Beginners

How to Sit With Us Online

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To join our Zoom zendo, click here

(ID 7630773412, password zendo)

We sit for an hour every morning

We start at 7 am Monday to Friday (all times are GMT)

We start at 10 am Saturday and Sunday

Good to arrive a few minutes early

Your sound will be automatically muted when you arrive

There are three bells to begin

There will be two bells after 25 minutes, followed by a “clack” to begin kinhin, or walking meditation

After 10 minutes of kinhin there will be another “clack” to sit down again, followed by three bells for the second period

We end with one bell, followed by the robe chant, which will be on your screen if you want to join in

The person who is doing the bells will read a line or two from Suzuki Roshi

Most of us set up a cushion and a mat in front of the laptop or phone, but with the screen turned away so we’re not looking directly at it – you can experiment with the set-up that works for you

On Friday mornings we have a weekly check-in at 8 am that lasts about 40 minutes – we each talk about how our practice has been and what’s going on for us

On Saturday mornings at 11 am we have an hour-long study group that’s currently reading The Zen Teaching of Homeless Kodo

Introduction to the Body-Breath-Mind of Zazen

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Photo by Saffu on Unsplash

Free four-week online course, Mondays, 7 pm to 8:30 pm

February 15, February 22, March 1 and March 8

Led by Ryushin Paul Haller

Zazen is the practice of experiencing what’s happening in the moment. It’s both simple and profoundly challenging to sustain. In the Zen tradition there are ways of relating to the body, the breath and the mind that help sustain the open awareness of seated zazen. There are also traditional ways to help bring zazen heart/mind to the activities of daily life.

This four-week course will describe in detail these traditional techniques.  Each week some of the techniques will be described and demonstrated, so that participants can then practise them for a week at home. 

There will be an opportunity in class and in optional “small group” meetings to discuss your experience in practising with the techniques. Also, there will be time to discuss how to establish and sustain a zazen practice while sitting and in everyday activities. 

Discussion of what’s being experienced offers several benefits. It helps with recognizing and acknowledging your experience, a helpful part of the learning process. It offers a forum for mutual learning and support; we learn from each other’s experience. And it helps the teachers know what to emphasize as the course unfolds.

These classes are entirely free, and those who can make a donation will be supporting us and everyone else. We will send the Zoom link before the classes begin. To register, please click here (it’s only necessary to register for the first class!).