Jizo-an Zen Community
Meditation - Mindfulness - Benevolent Service - Community
Jizo-an Zen Community now makes its home in Cherry Hill, NJ, offering all our events at the new Zendo. Please see below for the latest information on In-Person and Livestreamed Zendo Events, and other ways to connect. You can also keep up with us through our Newsletter, our podcast, as well as Patreon and social media. If you are not currently receiving our Newsletter, you can add your name to our mailing list.
All of the following programs are offered at low cost or without a fee requirement. If you would like to make a donation, you can do so through the registration process, or via our Donation Page. Thank you for your support!
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Please note that if you are planning on attending any program in person, you can pay the program registration fee in person at the door. Registration online is only required if you will be attending the program online via Zoom. In-person registration can be paid by cash, or check made out to The Zen Society.
Upcoming In-Person & Online Zendo Programs (Zoom) for August 2025
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THE EASE AND JOY OF MORNING MEDITATION
(Virtual Meditation Online Only)
Livestream Meditation Schedule:
Every day (7 Days/week, at 5:30am Online)
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Zazen is the dharma gate of great ease and joy
— this is the standard that Master Dogen lays down.
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Join us for a morning of meditation where we sit with ease and intimacy. We spend this time together in self-exploration and investigation. It is ideal for beginners, intermediate, and experienced meditators who wish to deepen their practice. The Ease and Joy of Mornings is open to everyone.
We come together as community to sit Zazen, or silent illumination, for 25-30 minutes. On some mornings, Zazen is followed by a short reading and reflection, and we close with a recitation of the Four Great Vows and the Benefit for All. ​
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REGISTRATION NOT REQUIRED. DONATIONS WELCOME AND APPRECIATED.
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THE EASE AND JOY OF EVENING MEDITATION
​Virtual Meditation and a brief Evening Dharma Discussion
(Online Only)​
Tuesday & Thursday Evenings 7:00pm - 8:00pm
EVERY WEEK OF THE MONTH
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Practice and enlightenment, the masters have long said, are both solitary and social endeavors. We need each other for reflection, encouragement and inspiration. Though some may have a strong capacity for seclusion, Sangha is one of the three precious gems for a very good reason—we depend on each other to wake up. "We Are More Together Than Alone."
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Guidelines for Participating (Zazen) Meditation Over Zoom:
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Please join sittings a few minutes before the scheduled time, so as to be seated and settled in place before the period of zazen begins.
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Please keep your microphone muted until the very end.
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The group leader will ring three bells to begin zazen & one bell to signal the end of zazen.
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REGISTRATION NOT REQUIRED. DONATIONS WELCOME AND APPRECIATED.
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​CLICK HERE TO ENTER THE 7:00PM MEDITATION
ZEN STUDIES PROGRAM- ONLINE and *IN-PERSON
Wednesday AUGUST 6th 2025, 7:00PM - 9:00PM
Join SISTER BETSY GESSHO NIEVES for one of our monthly Dharma talks...
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​The Significance of Taking Refuge:
When we begin walking this path, we start the process of taking refuge in the Buddha, the Dharma and the Sangha. Then, we may come to the realization that we are ready to take formal refuge as we experience the transformation that naturally happens when we make the genuine commitment to fully embrace this way of being in the world. Let's explore the meaning of the powerful statement and action of taking refuge.
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Join us for an evening of Zazen, (seated meditation) Kinhin (walking mediation) chanting of the Sutras and a Dharma discussion...both in-person and online.
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REGISTER FOR ONLINE EVENT (click here)
*IN PERSON NEED NOT REGISTER
​HALF-DAY ZAZENKAI- ONLINE and *IN-PERSON
Saturday, AUGUST 9th, 2025 9:00am - 12:00pm
Join the Monks of Jizo-an Zen Community for an extended period of Zazen
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HALF-DAY ZAZENKAI
Zazenkai is the coming together of the Sangha as well as anyone with an interest in Zen and to experience Zazen in the Meditation hall. It allows those who have never sat for an extended period to do so with other practitioners so as to give support and a conducive space for that purpose. It seems also that without these extended periods of meditation, finding ease and joy in Zazen can take a very long time.
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Suggested donation of $15 is appreciated.
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ZEN STUDIES PROGRAM- ONLINE and *IN-PERSON
Wednesday AUGUST 13th, 2025, 7:00PM- 9:00PM
Join REVEREND ORLANDO DONEN NIEVES for one of our monthly Dharma talks...
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The Three Tenets of the Zen Peacemakers - A Framework for responding skillfully in a divisive world.
In 1994, the late American Zen master, Roshi, Bernie Glassman founded the Zen peacemakers, an organization of practitioners and teachers that has grown globally. He also established the Three Tenets of the Zen Peacemakers, a path of practice to relieve the suffering of all beings through contemplative social action. Those Three Tenets – Not Knowing, Bearing Witness, and Compassionate Action - are a framework to work towards a more compassionate and enlightened society in a wounded world that appears so divided and in need of healing. We will discuss the Three Tenets as a guide to skillful and compassionate action in our society.
Join us for an evening of Zazen, (seated meditation) Kinhin (walking mediation) chanting of the Sutras and a Dharma discussion...both in-person and online.
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JOIN THE ONLINE EVENT (CLICK HERE)
*IN-PERSON NEED NOT REGISTER
SUNDAY MORNING ZAZEN- ONLINE and *IN-PERSON
SUNDAY, AUGUST 17th, 2025 9:00am - 11:00am
Join the Monks of Jizo-an Zen Community for a morning of silent meditation
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ZEN MEDITATION
Zazen is at the core of Zen Buddhism. It has been refined and well honed over thousands of years and because of these endless offerings down through the ages, we are invited to a way to show up to ourselves that actually works. It has been said that a Zendo (meditation hall) is a conducive space for enlightenment and so we come together in community, for community, for that very purpose.​
Open to both beginners and experienced practitioners.
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Please arrive 10-15 mins early so we can all begin together on time...cushions and chairs are provided.
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JOIN THE ONLINE EVENT (CLICK HERE)​
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*IN PERSON NEED NOT REGISTER
ZEN STUDIES PROGRAM- ONLINE and IN-PERSON*
Wednesday AUGUST 20th, 2025, 7:00PM - 9:00PM
Join REVEREND KEVIN GENJO LEBLANC for one of our monthly Dharma talks...
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Specters in poem, entangled in rhymes. Look at Zen Poetry
For those touched by awakening, the complexities of existence allow for words to be molded like clay… and so poetry lends itself to the wonderful mysteries of what lies beyond the temporal and transitory…not allowing the reader to fully put their finger on it, for it would just be another case of the finger pointing at the moon. Each time the Dharma is composed into intellectual and coherent vocabulary, it wrangles the reader into a fury of grasping at concepts and the tangible world. Poetry on the other hand, invites curiosity and depth as well as an openness that allows room to breathe.
Join us for an evening of Zazen, (seated meditation) Kinhin (walking mediation) chanting of the Sutras and a Dharma discussion...both in-person and online.
REGISTER FOR ONLINE EVENT (CLICK HERE)
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*IN PERSON NEED NOT REGISTER