Upcoming Events
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Introductory Program (First Sunday of the Month)
Please email us to confirm during holidays and bad weather
Join us for our Sunday morning program on the first Sunday of every month. Registration is required. Please aim to arrive at 9:00 AM — coffee and tea will be available in the Dining Hall. Zen meditation instruction will begin at 9:30 AM. Following the instruction class, there will be an opportunity to join residents and members for a period of zazen (seated meditation). A short break at 11:00 AM is followed by a dharma talk by a teacher or senior student, and then we share a delicious vegetarian lunch. There is a recommended donation of $25.00. All are welcome!
We have a number of instructional videos that you may find helpful either before or after visiting Yokoji for the first time. If you would like to know more about how we do things here, please refer to our videos on meditation, or zazen, and the basic forms we use.
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Sunday Schedule for Members
Every Sunday (please email us to confirm during holidays and bad weather)
Every Sunday, members are invited to join the schedule. Please aim to arrive at 9:00 AM. Service will begin at 9:30 AM, followed by two periods of Zazen, a dharma talk, and lunch. A teacher or senior student will give the dharma talk on the first Sunday of the month in the Buddha Hall. On the three remaining Sundays of the month, dharma talks are given by Tenshin Roshi from his home on the property. Please email zmc@zmc.org if you plan to attend so we can prepare an appropriate amount of food. If you would like dokusan with Tenshin Roshi, please include a request in your email. Please find out more about our membership program if you are not yet a member.
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September
Fall Training Period
Sunday September 3rd - Sunday November 19th
The Fall Training Period at Yokoji is a time of intensified practice for the whole community—where we have the wonderful opportunity to recommit ourselves to practice, embodying and strengthening the qualities that we most appreciate and value. It is a perfect time to spend a few days, weeks or months in residence at the Center to deepen your appreciation of life through zazen, service and communal living. Non-residents can participate both at home and at the Center. For those practicing at Yokoji, the schedule is more demanding, with an abundance of zazen and a greater number of sesshins. Whether you are spending the whole period at Yokoji, just one or two weekends, or are committing to a stronger home practice, we invite you to participate with us in any way that you can during this Training Period.
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October
Beginner's Mind Sesshin
Friday October 27th, 3:30pm - Sunday October 29th, 12:30pm
REGISTRATION NOW CLOSED
Sesshin can be translated as “to touch the heart-mind.” Sesshin is at the heart of Zen Practice - a chance to give full attention to one’s life without distraction.
This sesshin is designed for those who are new to Zen practice. There will be orientation given regarding the basic formal procedures that will be used over the weekend, so no prior experience is required. The schedule will be lighter than the regular sesshin that we run at Yokoji. We all have the ‘beginner’s mind’, that which sees the world afresh in each moment. Sesshin is the perfect vehicle to realize this. This sesshin is also open to experienced practitioners. Please look over the schedule for sesshin before signing up.
Members: $150
Non-members: $250Registration required. Part-time rates are listed on the sesshin page.
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November
Sesshin (Rohatsu)
Sunday November 12th, 3:30pm - Sunday November 19th, 12:30pm
The final sesshin of the Fall Training Period. Rohatsu means ‘December 8th’ in Japanese, the date of Shakyamuni Buddha’s enlightenment, but we bring the sesshin forward to tie it in to the end of training period. If Shakyamuni did it, you can too.
Sesshin can be translated as “to unify the mind.” Sesshin is at the heart of Zen Practice—a chance to give full attention to one’s life without distraction. Participants live at the Center for the duration, following a simple yet challenging schedule of zazen, chanting services, formal meals, work practice and rest periods. Dharma talks are given daily and Tenshin Roshi, if present, offers face-to face interview (dokusan) to all students. There are sometimes visiting teachers who will also give dharma talks and interviews. Please visit the sesshin page for more information about sesshin.
If you would like to participate in a 7-day sesshin for the first time, we recommend that you attend a Day of Zen Practice class or a weekend sesshin first. If you cannot attend either of these first, you must at least be present for the first evening of sesshin to receive instruction.
For those with prior sesshin experience, part-time participation is acceptable if you cannot make the whole event.
Members: $400.00
Non-members: $550.00Registration required. Part-time rates are listed on the sesshin page. Please look over the schedule for sesshin before signing up.
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December
Closed over the Christmas Holiday
Saturday December 23rd - Wednesday January 3rd
Yokoji will be closed to the public over the Christmas and New Year holiday period.
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January
Beginner's Mind Sesshin
Friday January 19th - Sunday January 21st
Sesshin can be translated as “to touch the heart-mind.” Sesshin is at the heart of Zen Practice - a chance to give full attention to one’s life without distraction.
This sesshin is designed for those who are new to Zen practice. There will be orientation given regarding the basic formal procedures that will be used over the weekend, so no prior experience is required. The schedule will be lighter than the regular sesshin that we run at Yokoji. We all have the ‘beginner’s mind’, that which sees the world afresh in each moment. Sesshin is the perfect vehicle to realize this. This sesshin is also open to experienced practitioners. Please look over the schedule for sesshin before signing up.
Members: $150
Non-members: $250Registration required. Part-time rates are listed on the sesshin page.
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March
Spring Training Period
Sunday March 3rd - Sunday May 19th
The Spring Training Period at Yokoji is a time of intensified practice for the whole community—where we have the wonderful opportunity to recommit ourselves to practice, embodying and strengthening the qualities that we most appreciate and value. It is a perfect time to spend a few days, weeks or months in residence at the Center to deepen your appreciation of life through zazen, service and communal living. Non-residents can participate both at home and at the Center. For those practicing at Yokoji, the schedule is more demanding, with an abundance of zazen and a greater number of sesshin. Whether you are spending the whole period at Yokoji, just one or two weekends, or are committing to a stronger home practice, we invite you to participate with us in any way that you can during this Training Period.
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Sesshin
Sunday March 3rd, 3:30pm - Sunday March 10th, 12:30pm
Sesshin can be translated as “to touch the heart mind.” Sesshin is at the heart of Zen Practice—a chance to give full attention to one’s life without distraction. Participants live at the Center for the duration, following a simple yet challenging schedule of zazen, chanting services, formal meals, work practice and rest periods. Dharma talks are given daily and Tenshin Roshi, if present, offers face-to face interview (dokusan) to all students. There are sometimes visiting teachers who will also give dharma talks and interviews. Please visit the sesshin page for more information about sesshin.
If you would like to participate in a 7-day sesshin for the first time, we recommend that you attend a Day of Zen Practice class or a weekend sesshin first. If you cannot attend either of these first, you must at least be present for the first evening of sesshin to receive instruction.
For those with prior sesshin experience, part-time participation is acceptable if you cannot make the whole event.
Members: $400.00
Non-members: $550.00Registration required. Part-time rates are listed on the sesshin page. Please look over the schedule for sesshin before signing up.