Jizo-an Zen Community
Meditation - Mindfulness - Benevolent Service - Community
Jizo-an Zen Community has re-located to our new facility in Cherry Hill, NJ. We have resumed all Livestreaming and in-person 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 lists here.
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!
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 March 2023
* Please note that masks are now optional when attending in person at the Zendo
The Ease & Joy of Morning Meditation (Virtual Meditation Online Only)
Livestream Meditation Schedule:
Every day (7 Days/week, at 5:30am Online)
EVERY WEEK OF THE MONTH
Zazen is the dharma gate of great ease and joy
— this is the standard that Master Dogen lays down.
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.
REGISTRATION NOT REQUIRED. DONATIONS WELCOME AND APPRECIATED.
The Ease & Joy of Evening Meditation & Dharma Discussion
Virtual Meditation and a brief Evening Dharma Discussion (Online Only)
Livestream Meditation: Tuesday & Thursday Evenings 7:00pm - 8:00pm
EVERY WEEK OF THE MONTH
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."
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.
REGISTRATION NOT REQUIRED. DONATIONS WELCOME AND APPRECIATED.
CLICK THIS LINK TO JOIN THE 7PM MEETING
ZEN STUDIES PROGRAM - In Person and Online*
Wednesday March 1st, 2023, 7:00PM
Join Rev. Sensei Emyo for our monthly Zen Studies discussion
Mindful Eating - Where Compassion and Wisdom Meet
Because food is life, it is of utmost importance that we receive it with deepest gratitude. When we eat, we consume life. There isn't a meal that is taken without the expense of another lifeforce. "The practice of eating is the essential truth of all Dharmas. At the very moment of eating , we merge with ultimate reality" — Dogen Zenji. When we eat a meal, we enter into the process of merging with everything that surrounds us. Eating becomes a celebration of the Dharma, with no separation between us and the universe.
Join the Monks of Jizo-an for an evening of Zazen, chanting of the Sutras and contemplation of the Dharma.
REGISTER FOR ONLINE EVENT
(*in-person need not register online)
Zen Studies Program - In Person and Online*
Wednesday March 8th 2023, 7:00pm
Join Rev. Kevin Genjo LeBlanc for our monthly Zen studies discussion
Vasubandhu's Yogacara - An Introduction to the '30 Verses'
Vasubandhu was a 5th century Buddhist monk who, along with his brother Asanga, formulated the teaching called Yogacara. It arose as means of finding balance between the two major paths of the Early Buddhist teachings and The Mahayana teachings. Vasubandhu and Asanga sought to bring harmony to the vast differences in these two practices, showing that both have very important roles in freeing us from suffering and delusion. This talk with be an introduction only...the Thirty Verses are complex; but more importantly, an eye opening into the nature of the Egoic birth and, ultimately, its overturning.
Join us for an evening of Zazen, chanting of the sutras and a Dharma discussion.
REGISTER FOR ONLINE EVENT
(*in-person need not register online)
Zazenkai - In Person and Online*
Saturday, March 11th, 2023, 9:00am-4:00pm
A full day meditation intensive...open to beginner as well as experienced
Zazenkai - Full Day Silent Meditation
Zazenkai is an opportunity for those less experienced with longer periods of meditation who would like to deepen and grow in a meditation practice, as well as those who are already experienced in longer hours of Zazen.
We come together for both seated meditation and Kinhin (walking meditation), share a meal together (in-person only), and a short talk from one of the Monks.
The entire day is spent in sacred silence.
Join the monks of Jizo-an for our monthy Zazenkai. Cushions and mats provided.
Please arrive 10-15 mins early for any instructions
*please contact us with any food allergies — the meal is always vegan
MEMBERS REGISTER HERE FOR IN-PERSON
Zen Studies Program - In Person and Online *
Wednesday, MARCH 15th, 2023, 7:00pm
Join Rev. Orlando Donen Nieves for our monthly Zen studies program.
The Four Noble Truths - The First Turning of the Wheel
Historically it is said that after his enlightenment experience, The Buddha's first discourse was defined as the First Turning of the Wheel of Dharma. He offered the first teaching of the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Noble Path to five fellow seekers, who at first denied him an audience...but after noticing something different in him, sat and listened. They became the first Sangha; the community.
These Truths are the very essence and core of the Buddhadharma, which asks us to return to them time and time again, thus taking refuge in the lived experience of what they offer: a way to perceive and participate in the great reality, life as it truly is. So, understanding and practice leads to wisdom, and wisdom leads to actualization...to making these truths real in our daily life.
Join us for an evening of Zazen, chanting of the sutras and a Dharma discussion
Click to Join ONLINE
(* in-person need not register online)
Sunday Morning Meditation and Liturgy - In Person and Online *
Sunday, March 19th 2023, 9:00am-11:00am
Join us in-person for our Sunday morning meditation and chanting of the Sutras through Liturgy. Chanting of the sutras is a way for us to connect with each other in a deeper sense as well as offering thanks to all the many beings and the Buddhas of the past, present and future as well as offering healing and prayers to the suffering.
Zazen is not a means to an end, it is enlightenment itself. The seed of enlightenment resides within the human mind...the Zafu becomes the vehicle.
Meditation starts at 9:00am, please join a few moments early for any instructions. Free to attend.