Zen-Ken-Sho Public Lecture & Demonstration By So’zan Miller Roshi

Join us in November as we host Rev. So'zan Miller Roshi (First Abbot of Daiyuzenji) as he shares his view on Zen-Ken-Sho. 

Zen-Ken-Sho is a principle set forth by Omori Sogen, who became well known for this unique approach to Zen practice, integrating insights from martial and fine arts training with traditional Zen methods as a way to create a balanced life. This approach has been described as a unity of Zen, Ken ("sword," referring to martial arts or physical culture), and Sho ("brush," referring to calligraphy or fine arts). 

Friday, November 10, 7 - 9 PM
Suggested donation: $25
Limited capacity, click here to RSVP

Shodo (Way of the Brush)

This autumn, we are focusing on the “sho” aspect of the “Zen, ken, sho” curriculum set forth by Omori Roshi for balanced human development.

Shodo means “way of writing," but there is much more here than meets the eye. Our focus is on the meditative aspects of this beautiful form of writing. We will start by practicing basic strokes while focusing on posture, breath and the observation of how the subtleties in aesthetics are affected by our own condition. In the months to come, we will dive deeper into the practice by putting our attention on developing the characters in the Heart Sutra. Please join us on Tuesday evenings as we will be making shodo our regular post zazen practice, and join us for our short retreats on October 14 and November 18, where we will be dedicating larger blocks of time to putting great effort into this practice.

Although shodo will become our primary focus on Tuesday evening, we will continue working on Hojo (sword kata) on Thursdays after zazen. We will begin by learning the primary movements involved in the autumn kata.

We are also excited to announce the beginning of our Sunday morning in-person training. Keep an eye out for the details.  

Tesshin Brand
Abbot, Daiyuzenji Rinzai Zen Temple

Shodo (Calligraphy) Practice

Every Tuesday, join us for two periods of zazen, seated meditation, followed by shodo practice. This Fall, we also offer two special calligraphy-focused events - an introductory workshop on October 14 to learn the fundamentals of brushwork, stroke order, and composition. And a comprehensive 7-hour seminar on November 18. Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced practitioner, there’s something suitable for everyone. 

Space is limited. Please email us at daiyuzenji@gmail.com to RSVP. 

Daiyuzenji Coffee Now Available

Thank you to Brewpoint and our community for supporting Daiyuzenji with this collaboration.
 

Brewpoint Coffee is a Women & Minority Owned Certified business, committed to providing coffee farmers $2 per pound or more above Fair Trade standards and highlighting a female-led supply chain, by working with women-owned coffee farms & exports. Their mission is to build an equitable and inclusive world through coffee.

DAIYUZENJI COFFEE
Now available for a limited time
Click here to learn more and order



Updates from Daiyuzenji

We hope you have been enjoying a beautiful summer. We'd like to thank everyone who joined us for our 3-hour "Intro to Hojo" retreat in June. This event was well-attended, and we are so excited to see the growth in our community and interest in Zen practice. The energy and effort by the practitioners at Daiyuzenji is absolutely inspiring and we continue to look into the future of this practice with great optimism.

Tesshin Brand
Abbot, Daiyuzenji
Rinzai Zen Temple.

This summer, we will focus on the “ken” of “Zen-ken-sho” set forth by Omori Roshi as a way to create a balanced life.  The Hojo Kata is used as a practical method at Daiyuzenji to give one a deeper meaning in life and to cut off all of the habits you have acquired from the day you were born and ultimately to help in the realization of the “true self” through these methods:

  1. Correct breathing

  2. Correct Posture

  3. Correct frame of mind


Extended Intro to Hojo

Please join us as we spend the first and last hour of a seven-hour block on meditation (including sanzen) with 5 hours focused on Hojo in between. We will also provide a delicious mid-day vegan meal.  Beginners are encouraged to attend, as well as more advanced students as we work towards memorization of the entire summer kata.

Extended Intro to Hojo 
Saturday, July 29,
10 am - 5 pm
Suggested donation: $40

HOJO-KAI RETREAT
Saturday - Sunday, August 26 - 27
10 am - 10 am
Suggested donation: $75

You must RSVP to daiyuzenji@gmail.com to secure a spot to our retreats.

In our current book discussion group, we are working on the Lankavatara Sutra with Translation and Commentary by Red Pine


We are still in the very early stages of the book so we encourage you to join us as a wonderful way to start your Sunday morning. 


Our book discussion group meets Sundays 10 - 10:30 AM CT via Zoom. 

In addition to Zen training, we host related transformative practices from a variety of highly qualified teachers. We have some very exciting news coming up in the near future so please keep an eye on our "Transformative Practices" page for Details. 

Click here for more information

DAIYUZENJI COFFEE
Now available for a limited time
Click here to learn more and order


Thank you to Brewpoint and our community for supporting Daiyuzenji 
with this collaboration.
 

Brewpoint Coffee is a Women & Minority Owned Certified business, committed to providing coffee farmers $2 per pound or more above Fair Trade standards and highlighting a female-led supply chain, by working with women-owned coffee farms & exports. Their mission is to build an equitable and inclusive world through coffee.

As a not-for-profit organization, Daiyuzenji gratefully accepts your tax-deductible donations. Your donations allow us to continue providing a rare opportunity for monastic-style Rinzai Zen training for those who wish to embark on the path of Zen.

Support Daiyuzenji - Donate via Paypal

May 21st: Breakfast with Buddha

We invite you to join us for a special event on May 21st beginning with in-person (zazen and okyo) practice at the temple from 8:30 to 10:00 am, followed by a traditional monastery breakfast (congee, plum and takuan). Suggested donation is $20 and you may come for just the breakfast if you desire. You must RSVP to daiyuzenji@gmail.com because space is limited. We look forward to seeing you there!

SPRING SPECIAL EVENTS

Breath Work Seminar, Saturday, March 25th, noon - 5pm, suggested donation $20

Calm, de-stressed more energy and concentration - these are a few benefits derived from proper breathing techniques. This breathing seminar will cover Box, Hojo and other breathing techniques that facilitate proper breathing for Zen meditation.

Monastic-Style Retreat, Saturday, April 22nd, 9am - 7pm, suggested donation $40

This monastic-style retreat will feature several hours of zazen, opportunity for sanzen as well as lectures on jukai for those intending to participate in that this year.

Please email us with any questions. These seminars are both suitable for beginners. YOU MUST RSVP to daiyuzenji@gmail.com to attend.

Warm Wishes this Holiday Season

We wish all of our community members a healthy, happy and relaxing holiday season this year. We are truly immensely grateful for all of your involvement and contributions over the past year as we resumed in-person programming and dealt with a number of other transitions. It is truly a rare and wonderful thing to be able to practice and learn together. We anticipate a strong 2023 for our community and hope this holiday season gives you all a chance to recharge.

A note on programming: we will conduct our schedule as usual through the new year. Felix will be running the Zoom sits on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day for those planning to Zoom in. Our book discussion resumes Sunday the 8th with “Tibetan Zen.”