Kwan Um School of Zen
These blog posts are general interest posts that may be funny, contain information about zen, or simply some news about Northern Light Zen Center.
We held a retreat on the 29th of March and it was very well attended. A wonder day of strong practice. If you would like to practice with us please send us an email. Check out the Events pages for our practice and retreat schedule! We like big retreats and we cannot lie! 🙂
Dear Sangha,
The annual Kwan Um School of Zen | Americas (KUSZa) Town Hall meeting is an occasion for us as a Sangha to listen to one another, an opportunity for discussion on topics of practice and community in our local Zen Centers and in the wider Kwan Um School of Zen. During the Town Hall, every participant is given the space to speak from the heart, and all are invited to listen deeply to different perspectives and experiences.
Historically, the Town Hall meetings took place in-person at the Providence Zen Center during one of the sangha weekends. To broaden accessibility and participation, we are taking the Town Hall to Zoom. We will have two sessions in January, and we ask that you register for one of them.
Click here to register for a town hall.
The pandemic forever changed the way many of us engage with practice at our local Zen Centers and with the Kwan Um School of Zen. The virtual platform of Zoom allowed the possibility to continue practicing together during enforced isolation. Zoom also granted the unprecedented opportunity to practice with members who live at a far distance and even on different continents. What has been your experience?
Topics:
We would like to make a special invitation to those who have not yet participated in wider Kwan Um School of Zen events. This is a wonderful opportunity to meet and hear from people from different parts of our school, in the past only possible with travel.
Whether you plan to attend the Town Hall or not, please take a moment to answer the KUSZa survey questions. Your feedback will help guide our discussion. Click here to share your thoughts.
Thank you for your continued dedication to practice and for sharing your voice in this important discussion. Your presence and input will help shape the future of our community and our connection to one another, both locally and globally.
We look forward to seeing you at the Town Hall and hearing your thoughts.
In gratitude,
Kwan Um School of Zen | Americas
Hi All,
As some of you know, we use Mailchimp to deliver emails for Chanting Requests, Weekly Teaching Pieces, and News & Events. This is a list people need to sign up for on their own if they want the emails.
We want to be sure everyone gets the information they are interested in. News & Events is the one list that spreads the word about sangha weekends, our yearly fundraiser, inka and transmission recipients, Kyol Che, and other important info about the school as a whole.
We do not directly email members about such news, they have to be subscribed to the email list to receive these.Can you please put something in your local email lists or announcements to direct folks to our website page to sign up for the email list?
We need your help to reach people.Please go to https://americas.kwanumzen.org/contact to sign up for any of these email lists, and be sure to at least pick the News & Events in order to stay up-to-date on the school’s happenings!
Thank you all for the help,
Warmly,
Mary Kay
This past weekend, (10/18 – 10 /20) NLZC had a good turnout for the Dharma Teachers Weekend at PZC. Bill, Darren, Jay and Terry carpooled together. Nancy Hathaway traveled separately and Edie attended via Zoom. Close to 75 students were there from our Zen Centers throughout the country, with a good number more Zooming in. Everyone seemed so happy to see their Dharma friends, new and old, many back for the first time since the pandemic. There was no Dharma Teachers Weekend last year because the Whole World is a Single Flower conference was held in Korea last fall. So, this was the first gathering of Dharma Teachers since 2022, and it sure seemed like it had been eagerly awaited by many. Each day began with 108 prostrations followed by sitting meditation and the opportunity for kong-an interviews with many of the Zen Masters and Ji Do Poep Sas who were present. After breakfast, there was a morning plenary session followed by breakout workshops. Lunch, then more breakout workshops and another plenary session followed. This year’s theme was: Developing Compassion for Self and Other: Transforming Suffering Into Freedom. Plenary Sessions were: Mental Health Plenary: Explorations in Vulnerability and Tolerance; Healthy Boundaries Plenary–Ethical Awareness: Embodying the Role of Dharma Teacher; and, on Sunday, Plenary with Guest Speaker (Joan Hogetsu Hoebereichts, Roshi)–Empowering Sangha. Breakout sessions included: Trauma Informed Meditation Instructions; Giving a Dharma Talk; Women Zen Ancestors; Zen Practice and Meeting Emotional Difficulty; Gender Diversity/Queerness: Creating a Welcoming Sangha; Zen and Climate Change; and, Role Playing Leading a Consulting Interview. Credit belongs to everyone in attendance for creating a safe, nurturing space where these sensitive topics could be explored with deep and sincere personal sharing. The credentials and skill levels of all the presenters were outstanding. And the hard work was fueled by delicious, vegetarian meals. It seems fair to say many didn’t want the weekend to end. If you have further interest or questions about any of the topics, don’t hesitate to talk with any of our Sangha members who attended. More information is also available on the Kwan Um School Website, including the biographies of the presenters and copies of the handouts and articles used in their presentations. See https://americas.kwanumzen.org/dtw-2024
— Terry Cronin, JDPSN
On the 11th of August we held a Precepts ceremony at Northern Light Zen Center! Jane Harter and Brian Meldrum were taking their 5 Precepts. The ceremony was followed by a Sangha Day Picnic. The weather that day was beautiful, sun shining, blue sky, and green grass. Wonderful!
Taking 5 Precepts is showing an intention to further one’s commitment to Buddhist practice. It joins you to a Sangha, in this case the Northern Light Zen Center of the Kwan Um School of Zen. The 5 Precepts are as follows;
Check out our Gallery below. Special Thanks to Tari Rowe for the wonderful photographs!
Friday the 19th we had a work day at Northern Light! The main focus was to sealcoat the driveway but we also planted some shrubs and started on preservative for the new front steps! A very productive day! Check out the pics!
A group of zennies from Northern Light went to Providence Zen Center in RI to represent! Two of our sangha members were getting their long robes as Dharma Teachers. Ron Turcotte and Darren Brown. It was a great day! The first ceremony of the day was Buddha’s Birthday. Ours is one of many zen traditions that celebrate this in April. We do it at the end of our 90-day winter retreat, Kyol Che. Then after lunch at 3 o’clock the precepts ceremony was held. There were a number of 5 preceptees and some Dharma Teachers in Training and then, of course, our own Ron and Darren getting the long robes and bowls in confirmation of becoming Dharma Teachers! It was a good day. Check out the gallery below.
Northern Light held a one day retreat on the 30th! It was a good day. It’s always funny how the day seems to go by quickly. Even though we are all just sitting. And it never feels like a wasted day. This is good practice. Practice hard, wake up, save all beings.
This photo is from the Bowdoin Congregation Crawl that Northern Light did with the Rachel Lord Center for Spiritual and Religious Life. As part of this Students learn about different Faith Traditions. In this instance Zen Buddhism. This took place in November at NLZC.
Our old cement front steps have become deteriorated and unsafe. We decided we needed to replace them as soon as we could. One of our members, Peter Kennedy, volunteered to get things done! That’s kind of his bag. He is pictured above with Terry Cronin, JDPSN using a jackhammer to break the steps up. The steps will be replaced with a wooden deck.
This coming Wednesday, please enter the zen center for practice from the back entrance behind the Dharma Room.
The Finished Steps! Awesome.
