Category: Newsette

This Newsette focuses on resources that may be helpful in leadership transitions and in meeting some of the challenges presented by the heightened tensions in the U.S. and around the world.

Resources offered and requested

In response to a query from a Branching Streams teacher, I found an archived Branching Streams document, Looking For a Teacher, written by Kosho McCall, former Abbot of Austin Zen Center. This document suggests a process for an existing sangha to find a teacher. It may be helpful for board members and leaders of a sangha whose teacher has retired or is stepping down. I’m sending it as an attachment.

Two members of the multi-sangha Racial and Social Justice as Dharma Practice Group, Doralee Grinder Katonah and Lini Wollenberg, have compiled an extensive Racial and Social Justice resource list (attached). They write: “The items below represent material that members have found valuable. While our focus has been on the experience of Black Americans and racism, our interests include the experiences of many socially oppressed groups. Some categories are better represented than others and we welcome suggestions of additional resources.” Correction:  The email address for Doralee Grinder Katonah in last week’s Newsette was incorrect; it is grindkaton@icloud.com.

Ryushin Andrea Thach from Berkeley Zen Center writes: Our temple has not raised its class fees in probably 20 or 25 years. We want to hear from you about what you charge for your classes. Do you calculate on the basis of a series or have a formula based on how many are in the series? Do you have a sliding scale or a different differentiation between members and nonmembers. Do you charge a different amount depending upon whether the teacher is the Abbot, or of another background? Please respond to Ryushin directly at andrea.thach@gmail.com.

Other offerings:

An invitation from the Election Retreat group: “Join us for online Postcard Writing Retreats on:
   Sunday, August 4, 10 – 1 Pacific (speaker: Roshi Joan Halifax),

   Sunday, August 11, 10 – 1 Pacific (speaker: Dekila Chungyalpa)

   Wednesday, August 21, 10 – 1 Pacific (speaker: Anne Johnson)

   Sunday, August 25, 10 – 1 Pacific (speaker: Hozan Alan Senauke)

To learn more about the program and to register, click HERE. We will be writing postcards to voters in swing states, to encourage them to get out and vote.” The Soto Zen Buddhist Association is offering Women in Himalayan Buddhist Traditions: Transmission and Transformation with Venerable Karma Lekshe Tsomo, on August 24, at 3:30 PM ET This event is part of the Celebrating the Voices of Women in Buddhism; Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow, a monthly, year-long speaker series in 2024. The event is online-only via Zoom. Registration is now open to all who are interested, including your sangha members

I received several responses to my request in last week’s newsletter to share ways in which your sanghas are engaging with some of the challenges facing our countries and our planet.

Misha Merrill, guiding teacher of Zen Heart Sangha in Woodside CA, wrote: “I read your Newsette this morning. I’m glad that so many sanghas are addressing the fear and anxiety that is arising due to the current political situation–it’s a major concern right now for everyone. I just finished a two-part talk on ‘Buddhism and Politics’ for this very reason, and next Monday we will follow up with a discussion about how sangha members are using their practice to deal with anxiety.

“My own view (expressed in the lectures) isn’t popular with those who are eager ‘to do something’, but it’s fundamental Buddhism. Rather than promote political or social change, the Buddha specifically advocated personal transformation as the way to end suffering. As I told my group, that sounds selfish if you do not understand the truth of emptiness, but when you realize the interdependent nature of all things, then personal transformation actually becomes universal–the opposite of selfishness. When something changes, no matter how small, everything changes–but it takes a long time. That’s the real conundrum: we don’t feel that we have that kind of time given the terrible things that are happening right now.”

Chris Fortin (Dharma Heart Zen in Cotati CA) and Doralee Grinder Katonah (Valley Streams Zen Center in Sacramento) CA continue to co-lead a monthly online multi-sangha Racial and Social Justice as Dharma Practice group. A flyer describing the group is attached. Chris and Doralee would be “happy to advise and support others who might want to start similar groups.” Chris can be reached at chris.fortin@comcast.net and Doralee at grindkaton@icloud.com.

Mid City Zen (New Orleans LA) posts on their website’s home page: “Mid City Zen calls for a ceasefire in Palestine/Israel. Read our statement here. And join us for our Ceasefire Sits, each Monday morning at 8am” in person or via Zoom. “Support and join us in our commitment to non-violence in ourselves and the world. We will sit zazen (meditation) and practice loving kindness, dedicated to a lasting ceasefire in Palestine/Israel. All are welcome.”

A Universal Ceasefire sitting was held at Austin Zen Center on July 20, “two periods of zazen dedicated to disarming our hearts and minds and the hearts and minds of others.”

Reirin Gumbel, guiding teacher of Milwaukee (WI) Zen Center, participated in a press conference last week as a supporter of Death Penalty Action. Sangha members canvassed with an interfaith group “100 Women on the Move” during the Republican National Convention.

A query and upcoming classes and other dharma offerings

Hogetsu Laurie Belzer, guiding teacher of Ancient Dragon Zen Gate in Chicago asks: “Are any branching streams sanghas willing to share course plans for an in-person ‘Introduction to Zen Meditation?’ Ancient Dragon is in the midst of developing a 4 session (or so) intro to Zen meditation course with some history of Zen, intro to Suzuki Roshi’s way, and orientation to our temple. Hoping to turn and not re-invent the wheel. Please respond to Hogetsu at: hogetsu.laurie@gmail.com.

Houston Zen Center priest Sengetsu Tricia McFarlin will be teaching a class on The Dream of Gender in the Historical Unfolding of Buddhism, 6 Tuesdays, August 6 – September 10, 6:30 – 8:30 pm CDT. “In this six-week course, we will trace the twists and turns of the identity category of gender in the historical enactment of Buddhism from India to China to Japan to the US. Course readings will be in pdf form, consisting of legends, sutras, and scholarly articles. In person and possibly online as well.

Djinn Gallagher, guiding teacher of Black Mountain Zen Centre in Belfast, Northern Ireland, writes, “we are offering a half-day sitting on Sunday July 28 from 7 am to 1 pm Belfast time in person. It will also be possible to participate online on our usual link. There are still places available for our five-day sesshin with Paul Haller, September 8 to 13.

Ashland (OR) Zen Center is offering a ten day practice period for householders, called Everything Matters, from September 13 – 22. It ends with a three-day sesshin.

Red Cedar Zen Community in Bellingham WA is offering a Mountains and Rivers Backpacking retreat from September 6 to 11. “Inspired by Eihei Dogen’s 1240 AD text the Mountains and Rivers Sutra (Sansuikyo), this retreat includes a day of guided nature awareness and meditation in the front-country followed by four days and three nights of silent backpacking through a beautiful old growth hemlock forest to a seldom-visited base camp at Mazama Park, just south of Mount Baker at the foot of Park Butte. Our days will be interspersed with some social and free time.”

In the last week I noticed that several Branching Streams teachers were giving dharma talks based on Dogen’s fascicle “The Bodhisattva’s Four Methods of Guidance.” One of my favorite lines is “kind speech can turn the destiny of the nation.” May it be so!

It’s midsummer now and some of you are experiencing extreme heat, intense storms, and other manifestations of the climate crisis.

This is the week of the attempted assassination of former president Trump and the Republican National Convention. The Democratic National Convention will soon follow. It’s a time of intense polarization and heightened anxiety for many of us in the U. S. and around the world. How can our Zen practice and our sanghas help us stay grounded now and in the coming months?

Santa Cruz Zen Center has an EarthCare practice group, which addresses the question: “How can we engage in care for the Earth as an expression of our spiritual practice? How might we weave together activism and our Bodhisattva Vows? As an expression of caring for the Earth, we decided to begin writing letters to increase voter participation throughVote Forward. Please sign in, make an account, print some letters, and start writing!” The EarthCare group is meeting twice a month to write these letters together.

Please send news of dharma talks, study sessions, Interfaith activities or actions, or other ways in which you and your sanghas are responding to the cries of the world.

Other offerings:

At San Antonio Zen Center visiting teachers Greg Fain and Linda Galijan offer a weekly online and in person reading of the Avatamsaka Sutra, or Flower Ornament Scripture, translated by Thomas Cleary on Wednesdays from 6:45 to 7:15 pm CST “We will read together from a projector screen.  Here is the link for Zoom participants. The passcode to access is: 674394. A free PDF copy of the text is also available

Red Cedar Zen Center in Bellingham, WA is involved in the showing of a new movie about Red Pine, a translator of Zen poetry and Buddhist sutras, “Dancing with the Dead: Red Pine and the Art of Translation.” A special screening of the film will occur in Bellingham on Saturday, July 27.

There will also be two screenings of the film at the Roxie Theatre in San Francisco on Sunday, August 11 at 12 and 3:15 p.m., at which Red Pine will be present, as well as a worldwide online screening in September. 

The Soto Zen Buddhist Association’s series, Celebrating the Voices of Women, continues on Saturday July 20 from 12:30 to 2 p.m. PDT with Chozen Bays speaking about the life of Zenshin, “a woman whose early experiences with Buddhism amidst adversity helped shape the spiritual landscape of Japan. We will explore how her quiet commitment to her faith provided a foundation during great political and social upheaval…This gathering aims to foster a thoughtful dialogue on sustaining spiritual practice through personal and collective challenges, honoring the gentle legacy of Zenshin and the quiet power of persistence in faith.” The event is online-only via Zoom. Registration is now open to all who are interested, including your sangha members.

In closing, here are some words from a recent talk on Self-Nature given by Josho Pat Phelen, Abbot of Chapel Hill (NC) Zen Center: “Life itself, the Life Force or energy we share with everything, is most important. So, the question is: “Right now, right here, how do I honor life?” How do I make the most of this precious “life opportunity” that I have right now?”

I’ll close with bows of appreciation for our shared practice.

This Newsette highlights a transition in spiritual leadership, recent events at two Zen Centers, two offerings focusing on peace and one on voter registration.

From September 5-8, 2024, ceremonies marking a change in spiritual leadership will take place at the Zen Buddhist Center Black Forest in Germany. There will be a ‘Stepping Down’ Ceremony for Zentatsu Richard Baker Roshi (Sept. 6), followed by an ‘Ascending the Mountain Ceremony‘ for his Dharma Heir, Tatsudo Nicole Baden Roshi (Sept. 7).

Because the ceremony weekend will take place in Germany, the Black Forest Center’s sister temple, Crestone Zen Mountain Center will offer extensive online coverage and streaming of the events. If you would like information about how to participate online, Click here. The Crestone sangha is inviting people to join them for the weekend to follow the livestream of the ceremony. Kokyo Henkle will join the community and will give a talk. This weekend is offered on a donation basis.

Tenshin Reb Anderson traveled to Brooklyn in June to lead a five-day sesshin at Boundless Mind Temple. “From June 5th to the 9th, Reb Anderson guided almost 60 participants through periods of zazen and kinhin, and offered dharma talks and dokusan. It was his eighth retread with their sangha.”

Brooklyn Zen Center dharma teachers and Tenshin Reb Anderson (left to right): Shingetsu Laura O’Loughlin, Charlie Korin Pokorny, Tenshin Reb Anderson, Sarah Dōjin Emerson and Kosen Gregory Snyder.

Members of Zen Center North Shore and guiding teacher Joan Amaral marched in North Shore Pride on June 22 in Salem, MA.

On Wednesday, July 10, 7 – 8:30pm EST Brooklyn Zen Center will host an in person Wednesday Evening Dharma Share with senior students Radha Radkar and Ryan Lee Wong on the subject of “Teaching and Learning Peace. “Especially in this moment of violence and warmaking, how does our bodhisattva training support peace? How do we receive and offer teachings of peace?”

The guiding teacher of Richmond (VA) Zen, Eden Heffernan, will speak on Sunday July 14 on “Climate, War, Democracy, and the Bodhisattva Path: The Tangled Web and Indra’s Net.” Following their regular Sunday zazen schedule Eden “will reflect on Dogen’s The Bodhisattva’s Four Methods of Guidance as an especially urgent teaching in our heated times.

Engaged Buddhist Election Retreats are online gatherings in which we can, together with others, send postcards to voters in swing states, encouraging them to register to vote. Each retreat includes zazen, a brief service, and a dharma talk as well as time to write postcards. Rob Lyons, one of the organizers, will speak at the next retreat on July 21, soon after he returns from the Republican Convention in Milwaukee, WI.

Some very good news from Berkeley Zen Center about Abbot Hozan Alan Senauke: “Hozan returned home to BZC Tuesday, June 18. A small group of members and residents greeted him in a quietly joyous moment which almost seemed to downplay the miracle of it… and its meaning for the Berkeley Zen Center.” To learn more, see their website.

Many sanghas are observing July 4 by closing the zendo that day. However, some Brattleboro (Vermont) Zen Center members “will celebrate Interdependence Day by walking in the Fourth of July parade together with practitioners from other local sanghas. They will be wearing white shirts and walking in silence under the banner ‘May All Beings Know Peace.’”.

Red Cedar Zen Community in Bellingham WA offers a series of wilderness walks throughout the summer. The next one, on August 17, is a mindful twilight walk around Lake Padden. If you’d like to learn more about their Wilderness Dharma Program  click the link for an overview or Wilderness Dharma Program Coordinator Bob Penny at wilderness@redcedarzen.org

On June 29, Konjin Gaelyn Godwin, Abbot of Houston Zen Center (Texas) gave dharma transmission to Reverends. Hondo Dave Rutschman and Shōjin Vicki Glenn with the assistance of Rev. Choro Antonaccio, the Abiding Teacher of Austin Zen Center as the Precept Instructor. Rick Mitchell (Hogetsu Kenkai, Dharma Moon, Precept Song) will receive entrustment as a Lay Dharma Teacher from Abbot Gaelyn on July 21. “This ceremony acknowledges the importance and vitality of Lay Dharma leaders.”

Chris Fortin, writes: “We’re gearing up for the Tassajara Wildland Firefighter Retreat from 12-28-2024 to 1-3 2025. If you know firefighters who might like to participate, please share the attached flyer with them.” Chris, guiding teacher of Dharma Heart Zen Sangha, is a facilitator of the retreat.

Whether you mark Interdependence Day by resting, marching, picnicking, or gathering, may you stay cool as extreme heat is affecting many of us – even in the San Francisco Bay Area.

I returned from Tassajara on Sunday after co-leading Queer Dharma sangha week. A highlight was offering a Pride event in which many staff members and guests participated. Queer Dharma was there at the same time as my long-time dharma friends Kathryn Stark with Sonoma Valley Zen and Meg Levie with Stone Creek Zendo. It was wonderful to spend time with Meg and Kathryn in the valley where we practiced together over twenty years ago.

After my visit to Centro Zen L’Arco in Rome in April, I interviewed founding teacher Dario Girolami about his interfaith work and wrote a blog for SF Zen Center’s Sangha News. Here’s the link if you’d like to read it.

On June 9, Ancient Dragon Zen Gate in Chicago held its first Guiding Teacher Transition Celebration, including two ceremonies and a garden reception. Hōgetsu Laurie Belzer, a founding member of ADZG and dharma heir of Taiyo Lipscomb, was formally installed as the new Guiding Dharma Teacher in an entry ceremony. After almost two decades of leadership, Founding Guiding Teacher, Taigen Dan Leighton, was honored in a stepping down ceremony. Taigen will continue teaching at ADZG as Guiding Teacher Emeritus. “This leadership transition was the fruit of innumerable sincere efforts and a joyous occasion for our sangha.”

Santa Cruz Zen Center celebrated a priest ordination on June 14, when Sara McClellan was ordained by her teacher Neti Parekh. Neti, who trained at Santa Cruz Zen Center and was given dharma transmission by Kokyo Henkel, leads Twining Vines Zen Centre in Canberra,Australia. Sara’s new dharma name is DaFu KoRei, Gentle Breeze, Luminous Spirit.

Ashland (Oregon) Zen Center is hosting its 18th community-wide yard sale June 28 – 30.

“Browse a huge selection of [donated] furniture, toys, books, collectibles, clothes, home decor, kitchenware, sporting goods, linens and housewares. The Little Zen Farm Stand will also be open during the Yard Sale. Shop a wide variety of plants, preserves, fresh produce and more. Proceeds from the Yard Sale and Farm Stand support the ongoing Dharma offering at Ashland Zen Center.”

Crestone Zen Mountain Center (Colorado) is hosting an onsite and online retreat lead by Richard Baker Roshi from July 9 to July 14. The topic is “The Breath is the Teacher. The Body is the Path.” Click here for more information.

Konjin Gaelyn Godwin, and the staff of the International Center of Soto Zen Buddhism, based in San Francisco, is hosting an online presentation on Affordable and Clean Energy on Saturday June 29, from 2-4pm PDT. The speakers are Rev. Honda Shijo from Jodo shinshu Honganjiha, and Rev. Zengyu Paul Discoe, a Soto Zen teacher. “You and everyone in your sangha are invited to attend this free event. Please pre-register and a link will be sent to you. T

As the summer solstice approaches, our planet is once again experiencing its hottest summer. May you stay cool if you are living in an area experiencing extreme heat and may you and your loved ones be safe if you are in an area close to wildfires.

I returned from Tassajara on Sunday, after attending a deep and delightful retreat with Paul Haller and poet Naomi Shihab Nye. The summer is off to a robust start, with some retreats in addition to the many sangha weeks.

There are several wonderful practice opportunities coming up this week, as well as a leadership transition ceremony and a celebration of life for a long-time sangha member.

Kannon Do Zen Meditation Center in Mountain View CA will host a one-day sitting in their zendo on Saturday June 8, led by Sokaku Kathie Fischer. “If you are interested in attending there is still time to join. Please provide your contact info here  for more information.”

Akazienzedo in Berlin will host Tatsudo Nicole Baden Roshi, who will lead a Zen practice day on June 9, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on the topic “Roots of Wisdom – What is the state of Zen practice in the West?” Participation is possible both on site and online. Nicole will become the Abbot of Zen Buddhist Center Black Forest, German in September, succeeding Zentatsu Richard Baker Roshi.

Greg Snyder, co-guiding teacher of Brooklyn Zen Center, will offer an eight week class on Karma and Collective Liberation starting June 13. “The whole of Buddhist ethics is grounded in the teaching of karma and rebirth. The intention of this course is to begin to provide a nuanced understanding of this complex and essential ethical principle.” The class takes place in person at the Millerton Zendo (Millerton, NY) and online, during eight consecutive Thursday evenings from 6:45 to 8:30pm.

San Antonio Zen Center shares an invitation to a celebration of life ceremony on Saturday June 8 for their long-time member Gerald Schulz, who died recently. I met Gerald when he came to Tassajara nearly every summer with his wife Pat and son G.

The transition ceremony at Ancient Dragon Zen Gate, when Taigen Leighton will become Teacher Emeritus and Hogetsu Laurie Belzer will become the Guiding Teacher, will take place on Sunday June 9 at 10:15 a.m. CDT. It’s possible to attend by Zoom, with this link.

The next event in the Soto Zen Buddhist Associations series, Celebrating the Voices of Women in Buddhism features Osho Zenju Earthlyn Manuel on June 30 from 2 to 3:30 EDT online. Her theme will be “A Trace of Mahapajapati: The Elements of Dharma Transmission Woman to Woman

Joan Amaral, guiding teacher of Zen Center North Shore, wrote “I wanted to share this image with you and the Branching Streams Sanghas. I think it uplifts us all. JT was the ZCNS intern this spring as part of finishing his senior year of high school. We met through his World Religions class, which I’ve taught at his high school for the past decade.He learned the role of fukudo and became familiar with the han.” JT shared this image of the cap he wore to his graduation:

It’s Pride month in San Francisco and rainbow flags are flying on Market Street. I will be co-leading a Queer Dharma sangha week at Tassajara next week and will write again the week of June 17.

May you enjoy the long days as Summer Solstice approaches.

Although this is a time for blossoms, berries and asparagus, and warmer, longer days in many parts of the U.S. and Europe, sanghas in Texas report temperatures in the 90’s and much of Houston experienced flooding and strong winds. Houston Zen Center has been without power for several days and many of their trees were damaged by wind.

Thirty-one Zen Centers and sanghas have responded to the Branching Streams Teacher Support Survey. Thank you to those who responded! We will be summarizing the responses and will share them on the Branching Streams website soon. Meanwhile, you may be interested in how two centers, Valley Streams Zen Sangha in Sacramento CA and Mountain Rain in Vancouver BC are planning for future needs.

Guiding teacher Jim Hare and the Valley Streams Zen Sangha (Sacramento CA) board and members have started a fund they call their Maitreya Fund. Jim writes, “Set in place last October, the primary purpose of the fund is to support the future spiritual leadership of Valley Streams Zen Sangha. Everything changes. The sky, the seasons, you, and me. In recognition of this truth and to plan for future change, we established this legacy fund with the Sacramento Region Community Foundation.” I will include more information about this initiative as a feature article on the Branching Streams website.

Mountain Rain Zen Community in Vancouver, BC is launching the Mountain Rain Zen Community Endowment Fund in conjunction with the Vancouver Foundation, one of the oldest and largest Community Foundations in Canada. “The purpose of this fund is to create long-term financial stability for Mountain Rain while maintaining creative flexibility…An endowment fund will allow people to include Mountain Rain in their wills and estate planning…Therefore, it is also an opportunity to help address the economic disparity that is an increasing reality in our society, by having those with the financial capability support the practice of those who have lesser means.”

Ancient Dragon Zen Gate in Chicago, IL is about to have a change in leadership. After over seventeen years “of generous and devoted leadership, our treasured Guiding Dharma Teacher Taigen Dan Leighton will step down to enter an emeritus dharma teacher role…Hogetsu Laurie Belzer, one of the founders of our community will begin as our new Guiding Darma Teacher on June 1.” The transition ceremonies will be held on Sunday June 9, both in person and online. The Stepping Down Ceremony for Taigen will be at 10:30 a.m. CDT, and the Entry Ceremony for Hogetsu will follow at 11:30.

MiR (Meditation in Recovery) Sangha (San Francisco CA) just completed its sangha week on 5/19. During that time, they held a memorial for their dear Dharma Brother Tom Ingalls at the Suzuki Roshi memorial site.

Steven Tierney’s San Francisco-based sangha, which recently became a Branching Streams affiliate, Ocean’s Compassion, also held a Jukai at Tassajara for two longstanding members, Andrew Korniej whose Dharma name is Sei Do (Sincere Way) Kei Gyo (Joyous Traveler) and Chuck Yenson, Ko En (Beautiful Garden)  Shi Kan ( Stopping, Listening

Djinn Gallagher, abiding teacher at Black Mountain Zen Centre in Belfast, Northern Ireland, writes: We have three half-day sittings coming up, in May, June and July, 7 am to 1 pm Belfast time, both in person and online. The dates are May 26 (next Sunday): https://bmzcbelfast.org/events/half-day-may/, June 30:  https://bmzcbelfast.org/events/half-day-jun/, and July 28: https://bmzcbelfast.org/events/half-day-jul/ BMZC is also offering a five-day sesshin with Paul Haller in September.

Tonight at City Center we will have a full moon ceremony. The night sky in San Francisco has been fog-free the last few nights. It will be clear tonight, allowing us to enjoy the brightness of the moon as we leave the zendo after renewing our vows.

May the practice of our sanghas ripple out widely and bring ease and wellbeing to our troubled world.

This Newsette highlights expressions of the dharma through writing and art by members of Branching Streams sanghas, and more widely.

First, however, some Branching Streams news:

Welcome to new affiliate, Oceans Compassion in San Francisco. Oceans Compassion has grown over the last two and a half years and just celebrated its first Jukai ceremony. Founding and guiding teacher Steven Tierney was ordained by Dairyu Michael Wenger and received dharma transmission from Ryotan Cynthia Kear, guiding teacher of Great Spirit Sangha.

Since the 2023 Gathering in Santa Cruz, the Branching Streams Advisory Group and I have been following up on some issues that were explored at the Gathering. We have been focusing on how Branching Streams sanghas support their teachers. We created a survey that I sent two days ago to over 70 teachers. We think the results will be helpful to teachers, board members and sanghas experiencing teacher transitions, as well as more broadly. We will summarize the results and share them on the Branching Streams website.

Arts and Letters

Ryan Wong, the Director of Brooklyn Zen Center, relates, in his personal newsletter, “On Chanting, Protest and Faith,” his morning practice at Brooklyn Zen Center’s Ancestral Heart monastery with the experience of joining a student march in Manhattan this week in solidarity with Palestine.

An exhibit of Blythe King’s artwork, “Time Beings,” opened recently at the Eric Schindler Gallery in Richmond, VA. Richmond Zen sangha member Blythe’s collages “give expression to her ongoing de/re-construction of our images of women as re/de-fracted through the lens of Zen practice. This exhibit specifically explores Dogen Zenji’s teaching on time, in which he directs our awareness from our usual sense of time as “merely flying away,” to an understanding that “time itself is being, and all being is time.” This view brings an urgent vitality to every moment of being.”

“Are You Really Present All the Time?” – an article   by Kaishin Victory Matsui discussing a modern koan about waking up in this lifetime – was recently published in Tricycle. Kaishin. a priest of the Brooklyn Zen Center sangha, currently serves as the Director of Brooklyn Zen Center’s Ancestral Heart Temple, in Millerton, New York.

Lien Shutt, founding and guiding teacher of Access to Zen in the San Francisco Bay Area, has been hosting a podcast series available on the Access to Zen website. On May 1, in honor of Asian and Pacific Island month, she posted an interview with the 2024 May We Gather co-organizers, Funie Hsu, Chenxing Han, and Duncan Ryuken Williams. Lien will be co-hosting the next series of podcasts with Dana Takagi, who trained at Santa Cruz Zen Center.

Lion’s Roar just launched “Bodhi Leaves: The Asian American Buddhist Monthly” written and edited by Asian American Buddhists. Editors Noel Alumit and Mihiri Tillakaratne write, “Bodhi Leaves centers Asian American experience and is part of a larger movement creating a more inclusive American Buddhism.”

Turning toward summer

The Tassajara guest season began on April 30. The first Branching Streams sangha to go for a Sangha Week was Zen Heart Sangha from Woodside, CA. Twenty-five Branching Streams sanghas will be enjoying Sangha Weeks at Tassajara this summer.

Dharma Rain Zen Center in Portland OR offers a Buddhist Summer Camp for children. Dharma Camp, from July 21 to 26, is “an overnight summer camp for kids aged nine through eighteen who are interested in Buddhism. The camp experience combines traditional camp activities, such as swimming, crafts, sports, and a campfire, with Buddhist practices like meditation, a chanted morning service, silent breakfast, and mindful work practice. Campers come from a variety of traditions and have different levels of familiarity with Buddhism but are willing to participate in our forms for the week of camp.” Please spread the word if you know families who may be interested.

I hope you are enjoying the colors and fragrances of spring.

I went to Venice for the opening of the Biennale, an international display of art that occurs every two years. This year’s theme was Strangers Everywhere, and many artists created work related to the experiences of migration, refugees, and the impact of colonialism.

Several Branching Streams teachers and sanghas participated in the April pilgrimage to Eiheiji and Sojiji Japan to honor the 700^th Anniversary of Keizan Zenji, the founder of Sojiji, and many were able to visit Rinso-in, Suzuki Roshi’s family temple. Houston Zen Center’s Abbot Konjin Gaelyn Godwin reported on the pilgrimage, including some wonderful photos.

In the latest Mountain Rain Zen Community (Vancouver, BC) newsletter, co-guiding teacher Kate McCandless writes: “I want to say something about the war in Gaza, and beyond, the war that is all wars, the dead children that are all the children killed in wars – and at the same time this war, and this child, and this one. Like so many others, I am heart-broken at the news every day.” If you would like to read more, here’s a link to the Mountain Rain newsletter.

Kate invites us to listen to a Ted Talk given in Vancouver by “two men of tremendous courage and heart, a Palestinian, Aziz Abu Sarah, and an Israeli, Maoz Inon, both of whom have lost family members in the conflict, and both of whom are whole-heartedly working for peace. Their conversation opened TED2024 in Vancouver April 15.” Click here for link 

Djinn Gallagher, resident teacher at Black Mountain Zen Centre in Befast, Northern Ireland, writes that Paul Haller from San Francisco Zen Center is offering two workshops this Saturday, May 4, in person and online. The first, at 10 am, is The Essentials of Zazen, which will explore the awareness of posture, breath, and mental/emotional activity. The second, The Path of Zen, at 2 pm, investigates how to let the insights that have been revealed guide us to bring kindness and wisdom into our life. 

The current Brooklyn Zen Center newsletter includes a beautiful description of the coming of spring at Ancestral Heart temple, Brooklyn Zen Center’s monastery in Millerton, NY written by a student named Larissa P.

Also, Brooklyn Zen Center is offering a new class with co-guiding teacher Kosen Gregory Snyder, Karma and Collective Liberation, in person at the Millerton Zendo and online, during eight consecutive Thursday evenings from 6:45 to 8:30pm, June 13 – August 1. Registration is now open!

Valley Streams Zen Sangha in Sacramento CA celebrated a Jukai Ceremony in April. Malia McCarthy received the Dharma name Hō Etsu/Dharma Joy.  Dave Jarrell received the Dharma name Kō Shin/Generous Heart.  Myō Lahey, Abbot of Hartford Street Zen Center in San Francisco was the preceptor. Guiding teacher Jim Hare gave the dharma names and prepared the rakusus and documents. He reported, “Many people pitched in to set up the hall and hold a reception afterwards.  It was a lovely day.”

Joan Amaral, guiding teacher of Zen Center North Shore in Beverly MA, recommends a new book by Tim Ream, Fallen Water: A Novel of Zen and Earth. Joan says, “I just finished it, and was deeply moved by his thorough and compassionate view of beings – plants, birds, stars, fire, water, earth, animals, and humans. I think others might enjoy it, possibly recognizing with fresh eyes aspects of their own practice and training at Tassajara as I did.” The book is  available in print and on Kindle here.

This month’s event in the Soto Zen Buddhist Associations yearlong series, Celebrating the Voices of Women in Buddhism, Yesterday, today, and tomorrow is a talk by Eijun Linda Cutts on Receiving the Marrow by Bowing, Raihai Tokuzui on Sunday May 11, 12:30 to 2 p.m. PDT, on Zoom. Eijun says, “Besides his unfolding of the issue of gender in relation to the Dharma of nonduality and in the choosing of a guiding teacher, Dogen does not hold back in his diatribe and strong admonishment of the biased practices of the time in relation to women…” There will be time for discussion and Q&A. Registration is now open to all who are interested, including your sangha members.

I welcome news you would like to share with other sanghas. I also welcome your comments and feedback about these newsettes.