Calligraphy for "dana"
by Mushin Steve Crisman
Our next introduction to Zen practice will be Sunday, June 9th, from 9 am until around noon. Please follow this link for more information.
The Tuesday Noon Practice has been discontinued. This practice was led by Cliff Clusin, director of the Prarie Mountain Zendo in Longmont. As of recently, Cliff no longer works in Boulder, and has decided to discontinue this practice time.
One strong way to offer ongoing financial support would be to sign-up for recurring monthly donations online, using the support button at the upper left. Any amount would be appreciated! Committed ongoing donations are a boost, not just materially. We are deeply grateful for your support.
We have now become Dharma Sangha Boulder, with the Boulder Zen Center at the Briar Rose as our home, formalizing our connection to Dharma Sangha/Crestone Mountain Zen Center, and Shunryu Suzuki Roshi's and Zentatsu Baker Roshi's lineage. A number of us have practiced there for many years now. Zentatsu Baker Roshi is our first abbot and head teacher, although he does not live in Boulder. Within our regular practice, we learn from one another through engaging in this ancient practice together. The BZC has no formal dues or membership. We deeply appreciate donations toward paying off our the considerable debt we took on to create our wonderful practice space.
(click here for a larger image of the
zendo) Note that the zendo has undergone several improvements. We now
have beautiful shoji for the two doors you see at the rear, and
rice-paper shades for the other windows. The altar has been upgraded
with the addition of another table, so that we now have a kobaku
(granular incense burner) in addition to the stick incense burner.
There is also a ceiling fan to help with air movement when it's warm.
Finally, we built a nice new fence, and created a lovely little garden
in the area you see outside the back doors.
On Saturdays you may arrive at 8:45 (15 minutes early) for a very brief orientation. This will be helpful if you are new to sitting with us (or want to refresh you memory), but it isn't required. This will introduce you to a few basics of the forms, so that you won't feel awkward joining us. Our forms may seem precise, but we are very laid-back. In other words, don't worry about making mistakes!
No work-practice dates are currently scheduled over the winter.
Working together is an important aspect of Zen practice. These work days bring us together as a sangha. They are also very supportive for those of us who are committed to keeping up the daily practice schedule. We hope you will join us.
Please see the schedule for details.
It is wonderful to share the entire day of practice together, for
those who are able to stay through the entire schedule. This helps
create a stronger integrity of the practice throughout the
day. Nonetheless, we welcome participation for any part of the day.
The day will conclude with an informal tea and discussion.
For questions, please call Gary at 303-579-6272.
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Zen Beginnings
Curious? Interested in Zen? New to practice?
An opportunity for questions, discussion, and meditation.
The next event will be announced soon
Sunday, June 9th, from 9:00 am – noonish
Instruction and conversation will be facilitated by Amy Robertson, an
experienced student of Zentatsu Baker-roshi. Please contact Amy
if you have any questions.
amy.robertson 'at' comcast.net
720-470-2230
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Super Brief Orientation
On Saturdays you may arrive at 8:45 (15 minutes early) for a very
brief orientation. This will be helpful if you are new to sitting
with us (or want to refresh you memory), but it isn't required. This
will introduce you to a few basics of the forms, so that you
won't feel awkward joining us. Our forms may seem precise, but we
are very laid-back. In other words, don't worry about making
mistakes!
One-On-One Meetings
Ryokan Gary Hardin is available on Saturdays after practice for
informal one-on-one meetings. This is an opportunity to discuss any
practice questions you have. Please contact Ryokan Gary directly to
schedule: gary@boulderzen.org, 303-579-6272. The usual times would be
starting around noon, after we all meet for tea, but it is possible to
schedule a time right after soji (temple cleaning). It may also be
possible to schedule for a different day.
General instruction is also available by appointment. We typically include discussion of sitting posture, zazen, mindfulness, the role of ritual in Zen, the approach of our group, and practices appropriate to the individual. The introduction is informal, and seeks to address each individual's interest and questions. Please call Gary: 303-579-6272.
After over 25 years of practicing Zen as the "Zen center in a box", the Boulder Zen Center made a home at the Briar Rose B&B, a boutique Boulder Hotel at 2151 Arapahoe Ave. in 2004. We've been running the business since then. We are crafting a way to support our new center through an appropriate business. It is a beautiful old building. It's going quite well, although it has been quite demanding for those of us in the thick of it. These are the challenges we face in creating a practice center in downtown Boulder. Please come stay with us, or drop by for a cup of tea.
There is still much work to be done in the future to complete our vision, but we finished the first phase of our zendo, and already it is a wonderful space. Please consider helping us by sending a donation to: Dharma Sangha Boulder, P.O. Box 7416, Boulder, CO 80306, or online through PayPal. Thank you!
Our formal practice consists of sitting zazen, chanting, and walking meditation. Dress is casual. Please see the Schedule.
In addition to our usual weekly schedule, on the third Sunday of each month we provide an opportunity for more intensive zazen practice...
Just upright sitting, with eight periods throughout the day.
Please see the schedule for details.
We are now offering a Dharma Talk each Saturday as part of our regular schedule. Randy Fox will give the talk on the second Saturday of each month, and Ryokan Gary Hardin will give the other talks. Saturday mornings begin at 9 a.m. with 40 minutes of zazen, followed by 10 minutes of kinhin (walking meditation), followed by a talk. After the talk there will be a few minutes of work to clean the zendo and grounds, followed by informal tea and discussion. On some Saturdays there may be a group discussion instead of, or incorporated into a talk. We request that you try to come for zazen as well as the talk, if possible. This is not essential, but it does help to establish a supportive feeling in the zendo, in the sense that the listerners are closer to zazen mind, which is good for both the speaker and the listener. Note: There will not be a talk on the first Saturday of April or December because of sesshin at the monastery in Crestone.
All Sangha members are welcome to bring their questions and topic ideas related to practice for this open discussion lead by Randy Fox. Informal sit from 7:00 - 7:30. Feel free to enter the Zendo anytime during this period. Discussion begins at 7:30. Contact Ralph Loeffler for more information: ralph.loeffler@gmail.com; 303-482-5442.
Dharma Sangha Boulder hosts two weekend seminars each year with Zentatsu Baker-roshi at the Chautauqua Community House. Baker Roshi is the dharma successor of Shunryu Suzuki-roshi, and abbot of the Crestone Mountain Zen Center and Dharma Sangha, including Dharma Sangha Boulder. To facilitate people's planning, we aim to hold these events as close as possible to the last weekend of January, and the last weekend of April. The dates for 2013 have now been set, as detailed below. (Reservations for the Chautauqua Community House, our venue, are not accepted before about September for the next year.)
Roshi's seminars are opportunities to extensively explore how to practice some aspect of the Dharma, shedding new light on classical teachings.
These seminars will be held in the Community House at Chautauqua Park in Boulder, at the base of the Flatirons. The format for the weekend will include lectures, questions & answers, group discussion, and some sitting meditation. It is not necessary for participants to have experience with Zen practice, or familiarity with Baker-roshi's previous seminars. The weekend seminar will begin Saturday and Sunday mornings at 9:30 A.M., extending to late afternoon. The cost for these two days is $145. While the main seminar will begin on Saturday, Baker-roshi will begin to develop the topic of the seminar on Friday from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm with those who are able to attend. The total price for all three days is $195. If you have further questions please contact Tim Hogan (see below). Advanced registration will be available online, closer to the event. On-site registration will also be available Friday and Saturday mornings.
There will be a couple hour break at mid-day for people to have lunch on their own.
Boulder Seminar Contact:
Tim Hogan
303-444-5577
Tim.Hogan 'at' colorado.edu
These Seminars are an opportunity for new and experienced students to explore teachings of Zen Buddhism together. The topic will be developed through informal dharma talks, question and answer, open discussion, and small groups. The schedule includes morning and evening Zazen.
Christian will also give a Seminar in Crestone, as well as two in Boulder. The Boulder Zen Center can only accommodate a smaller number of people, and these seminars have sold out early. We added a seminar in Crestone to ensure that everyone will have an opportunity to attend one of these events. Please see the Dharma Sangha website (http://dharmasangha.org/) for information, specifically, http://dharmasangha.org/zen-practice/program/seminars.
For the seminars in Boulder, participants are encouraged to stay overnight at the Briar Rose B and B. The cost will be $120 (whether or not you stay overnight at the Rose), plus a traditional teaching gift. The gift amount is up to you. Participants will be asked to help clean their rooms and change the bedding before they depart on Sunday, as part of our practice - taking care of things.
To reserve a space for Boulder Seminars with Zenki Christian Dillo, please contact Jessika (cell: 720-290-1612 or jessika1021 'at' gmail.com ), the manager of the Briar Rose. Space will be limited to ease logistics.
To reserve a space for Crestone Sangha Seminars, please register on the CMZC web site.
Thanks to all who made our recent Sangha Work Day a success! This time, we specifically oriented the schedule toward more formal work practice for part of the day, which worked out well. We will continue this format in the future. This was our last work day for the year since we are now into the colder months. We will instead incorporate other sangha activities, which will be announced as we clarify our schedule for next year. We would like to have one sangha event, such as these work days, each month throughout the year with the intention of providing Sangha members more opportunities to come together and support each other's practice. Thank you all for your hard work and support.
For information on Crestone Mountain Zen Center practice and events, including sesshin, seminars at the monastery (but not those in Boulder), and practice weekends, please see www.dharmasangha.org or contact CMZC directly at 719-256-4692 or cmzc 'at' dharmasangha.org.
Formally established in 1978 as the Boulder Zen Center, Dharma Sangha Boulder is dedicated to providing opportunities for traditional Zen practice. Originally, the Boulder Zen Center was founded by a group of students of the Rinzai Zen teacher Joshu Sasaki-roshi, who is based around Los Angeles. For 25 years our form primarily followed that lineage, although there were elements of a Korean style that were brought in by an early leader of our group, Richard Barskey, who had a Korean teacher. Richard also studied with Sasaki-roshi. In the early years the group was a bit transient, but eventually found a home at Karma Dzong, the center for Tibetan Buddhist practice in Boulder, which has now become the Shambhala Center. We practiced there for over 20 years as the "Zen center in a box", using whatever room was available. The Shambhala folks were very kind to allow us to stay for so long, charging us only nominal rent.
In June of 2004 we purchased the Briar Rose, to finally create a home after 25 years afloat. In July of 2008 we finally finished our zendo, stretching beyond our finances, but determined to make it happen. With the new zendo, we launched ourselves fully as a part of Dharma Sangha, with Richard Baker-roshi as our teacher and abbot. Although he does not reside in Boulder, he inspires and guides our practice. We welcome students from all lineages and approaches, as well as those seeking to explore Zen Buddhism for the first time.
