On Sunday, April 26, Everyday Zen will hold a Jukai or lay ordination ceremony for students formally entering the Buddha way. During this traditional ceremony, students receive and acknowledge the sixteen bodhisattva precepts as an ongoing path in their lives.
Each student will receive the precepts from their teacher along with a Dharma name and rakusu — a small garment in the form of the Buddha’s robe, which the students have hand-sewn — inscribed by their teacher. They will also receive a traditional lineage paper, tracing their position in the Soto Zen family as it comes down to us from the time of the Buddha, and the Women Ancestors Document, honoring our female ancestors dating back 2,500 years.
The students taking Jukai and their teachers are:
- Receiving Jukai from Norman: Dan Geiger, Doug Miner (with assistance from John Murray), Larry Yermack, Marianne Johnson (with assistance from Jeff Bickner), Paula Lerner.
- Receiving Jukai from other teachers: from Kathie Fischer, Patricia Pigman; from Alan Block, Carrie Hennesy; from Jaune Evans, Ernie Boyar.
Following the Jukai ceremony, we’ll celebrate the birthday of the Buddha. In this simple traditional ceremony, we’ll bathe a figure of baby Buddha with sweet tea under a canopy of flowers. All are invited to participate.
In-person attendees are asked to register in advance so we can prepare the ceremony and reception. Registration will open mid-April with an announcement to the EDZ News & Events mailing list. Zoom attendees do not need to register.
Please join us for this joyous pair of ceremonies!
