Why You Feel Stuck
A Four-Week Class on Emptiness
Tuesdays—June 9, 16, 23, 30, 2026
5pm to 6:30pm, pacific time
online via Zoom
Tired of feeling trapped by your own thoughts?
You meditate, practice mindfulness, try to stay present—but somehow, you still get caught in the same cycles of stress, reactivity, and dissatisfaction. What if the very sense of being a solid "someone" dealing with separate "problems" is actually what keeps you stuck?
Join Buddhist teacher and psychologist, nico hase, for this four-week dive into one of Buddhism's most liberating—and misunderstood—teachings. Drawing from years of monastic training and deep study, this course offers ancient wisdom and practical methods for recognizing the insubstantial nature of all experience.
What You'll Discover
Week 1 – Why, What, and How of Emptiness
🪴 Why emptiness matters, what it really means (not nihilism!), and how to begin seeing through the illusion of solidity.
Week 2 – The Three Doorways: Impermanence, Suffering, and Not-Self
🪴 Discover the liberating power of anicca, dukkha, and anatta—and how to see through everyday constructs like "days of the week," revealing the invisible "glasses" you're always wearing.
Week 3 – Awakening Through the Senses
🪴 Discover the liberating power of pure perception with the Buddha's teaching: "In the seen, there is only the seen."
Week 4 – The Emptiness of Self and the Heart of Compassion
🪴 Deconstruct the sense of self through the five aggregates, and discover how emptiness naturally opens into love—the ultimate freedom that includes both wisdom and compassion.
What's Included
Weekly 90-minute live sessions with nico hase
Private online community for ongoing support
Guided meditations and exercises to explore emptiness in daily life
What Past Students Say
"The emptiness course plunged fearlessly into rich and complex Dharma terrain, but nico's thoughtful talks and resources made it surprisingly accessible. The classes were a perfect balance of stillness and discussion, and I felt my practice sinking deeper each week - especially my ability to hold life's difficulties with lightness and even humor."
— Sophia P.
"Emptiness is probably the most challenging of all Buddhist principles to understand. Nico takes these seemingly abstract teachings and makes them plainly understandable, without oversimplifying. This course shows how immediately relevant emptiness is to every moment of our daily lives. "
— Marcello S.
Course Details
Dates: Tuesdays - June 9, 16, 23, 30
Live Sessions: Tuesdays, 5-6:30pm PT
Format: Online via Zoom (all sessions recorded)
Registration & Payment
We are offering this class on a dana (donation) model. The suggested donation is $120 to $360 for the course.
nico hase phd is a Buddhist teacher, psychologist, and author who focuses on bringing depth practice to daily life. He began Insight Meditation training in 1994, lived much of the first decade of the 21st century in a Zen monastery, and completed a Tibetan three-year retreat during the covid years. He serves as guiding teacher of the online dharma community Refuge of Belonging, where he teaches online and in-person in Joseph Goldstein's One Dharma lineage, and speaks with students in mentoring sessions. Look for his newest book, This Messy Gorgeous Love: A Buddhist Guide to Lasting Partnership, co-authored with his partner devon, in April 2026.
