Bay Area Practice Period

I am pleased that our Shuso for this Fall’s Practice Period will be Eva Bovenzi (Seiun Soshin, Blue Cloud, Brave Faith) who has been practicing with the Everyday Zen sangha for decades. Eva is a wonderful painter and an exceptionally soulful practitioner. She has been spending her summer preparing for the Practice Period and I look forward to her talks and her presence in the “first seat.”

Zen Practice Periods include two important ceremonies for the Shuso. The Shuso Entering Ceremony installs the Shuso into her position and the Practice Period culminates with the Dharma Inquiry Ceremony (Shuso Hossenshiki) during which the Shuso responds to questions from Practice Period participants. These ceremonies bookend the Practice Period in a beautiful way.

Theme

Our theme for this Practice Period is the Teachings of the Platform Sutra.

We will primarily use Red Pine’s great translation of this text, which is seminal for Zen and for the Sinicization of Buddhism.

As always, we will contemplate and discuss the text for its direct relevance to our practice, as we try to live the Dharma in the contemporary world of Everyday Zen.

Commitment

We ask that all Practice Period participants plan on attending several events each week, including, especially, daily sitting, the weekly dharma seminar, the monthly all-day sittings on September 18, October 9, and November 20, the opening and closing ceremonies, the ceremonies for the Shuso, and any other events you find of interest. We encourage you to attend sesshin but recognize this might not be possible for everyone.

Of course, “events” do not constitute the Practice Period, they only structure it. What happens in your body and mind as you live the days weeks and months of the Practice Period is what’s important.

Practice Meetings

In addition to scheduled events, we include the practice of meeting with a sangha partner and, if requested and available, a practice leader. Since this is a non-residential practice period, it may be especially helpful to have a sangha partner with whom to discuss your practice and experience over the course of the Practice Period.

At the beginning of the Practice Period, everyone will be assigned a sangha partner. A sangha partner is a person in the Practice Period with whom you speak on the phone, via Zoom/Skype, or in-person at least 4 times during the Practice Period. If you like, you can request a particular person to partner with and if possible we will assign that person to you. Suggestions about how to keep your communication focused and practice-oriented will be sent to participants after the start of Practice Period.

In addition, for those who also feel the need to discuss their practice with a more experienced member of our community, a number of Everyday Zen teachers and senior students are available during Practice Period to discuss your practice with you. If you would like to request a Practice Leader, please indicate this on your application. We will make every attempt to assign a Practice Leader to everyone who requests one but please know that our resources are limited. ​​Practice Leaders will be assigned to those who request one on a first-come, first-served basis.