Calendar

2024 BZC Calendar of Events

Weekly Schedule

Events in October 2023

  • October Beginner's Sesshin

    October Beginner's Sesshin


    Sun, Oct 1, 2023

    Please join us for a special sitting that comes around only twice a year. This is an opportunity for new and old practitioners alike to become intimate with beginner’s mind. The sesshin will be led by Laurie Senauke and Susan Marvin. The focus will be on the basics of Suzuki Roshi's practice: zazen, kinhin, and bowing. New students will receive clear explanations of our sometimes challenging forms, while more experienced students will have a chance to fine-tune their practice.

    Here is the link to register (please be sure to read the details below):

    https://forms.gle/uC7hnTD6p2GfmAtq8

    The sesshin will run from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Sunday, October It will be offered in-person only (no online participation). The rhythm of the day will be similar to our regular sesshins, with shorter periods of zazen and some on-the-spot instructions. Please bring your own bag lunch (or you can purchase a lunch nearby).

    The fee for this day is $15, or whatever you can afford.

    You may pay online, or you can send a check to BZC at:
    Berkeley Zen Center
    1931 Russell Street
    Berkeley, CA 94703
    Attention:  Office Manager, Helen Cheng
    If you have questions, please contact the day's directors, Susan Marvin (lai_hang@yahoo.com) and Laurie Senauke (lauriesenauke@gmail.com).
  • Open Discussion

    Open Discussion


    Mon, Oct 2, 2023

    7:30 am: zazen
    8:00 am: open discussion

  • Class: What is a Good Life

    Class: What is a Good Life


    Thu, Oct 5, 2023

    Berkeley Zen Center is pleased to host Shaykh Yassir Chadly for a 3-session dialogue with Abbot Hozan about “a good life” in our respective Sufi and Zen traditions.

    Please register at https://forms.gle/WTS5VK9PFNo9PeSz5

    Details

  • Way Seeking Mind Talk: Sonia Tamez

    Way Seeking Mind Talk: Sonia Tamez


    Fri, Oct 6, 2023

    BZC schedules a Way-Seeking Mind Talk on the First Friday afternoon of each month. The talk, followed by Q&A, begins at 5:45pm after five minutes of zazen and runs until 6:25pm. Please note, our First Friday afternoon WSM Talks are online only. The zendo is closed for in person Zazen on the First Friday of the month.

     

  • Lecture: Abbot Hozan

    Lecture: Abbot Hozan


    Sat, Oct 7, 2023

    Saturday Morning Schedule

    • Temple cleaning:  7:35 – 8:10 (in person)
    • Zazen:                        8:30 – 9:10
    • Service:                      9:10 – 9:30
    • Kinhin:                       9:30  – 9:40
    • Zazen:                        9:40 – 10:05
    • Kinhin/break         10:05 – 10:15
    • Lecture:                   10:15 – 11:15

     

  • Half-Day Sitting 10/8

    Half-Day Sitting 10/8


    Sun, Oct 8, 2023

    Berkeley Zen Center will have a half day sitting on Sunday October 8 from 8:00 am to noon. We will have five periods of zazen, kinhin, and a silent break with tea and muffins. The event is in person only. A $10 donation is suggested.
    Email Mark to sign up or ask questions.
    Mark Copithorne
    copithorne@hotmail.com

     

  • Zendo Holiday - Informal Zazen

    Zendo Holiday - Informal Zazen


    Mon, Oct 9, 2023

    In honor of Indigenous People's Day, there will be no formal program today.  Informal zazen only, and times to be announced.

  • Lecture: Gerry Oliva

    Lecture: Gerry Oliva


    Sat, Oct 14, 2023

    Saturday Morning Schedule

    • Temple cleaning:  7:35 – 8:10 (in person)
    • Zazen:                        8:30 – 9:10
    • Service:                      9:10 – 9:30
    • Kinhin:                       9:30  – 9:40
    • Zazen:                        9:40 – 10:05
    • Kinhin/break         10:05 – 10:15
    • Lecture:                   10:15 – 11:15

     

  • Way Seeking Mind Talk: Laurie Senauke

    Way Seeking Mind Talk: Laurie Senauke


    Mon, Oct 16, 2023

    There will be a student talk in the online zendo right after a shorter period of zazen:

    7:30 am: zazen
    8:00 am: way-seeking mind talk

    What is a "way-seeking mind" talk?  See below.

    Way-Seeking Mind at Berkeley Zen Center

    “Way-Seeking Mind” talks by practitioners at Berkeley Zen Center have been a regular event on Monday mornings for more than thirty years. Each of us came to Zen practice as a seeker, with a spirit of inquiry. Each of us arrives at BZC from our own diverse backgrounds—social, familial, educational, religious, and so on. The idea of our way-seeking mind talks is for students to share how it is that they came to practice. Each person tells his or her own story in a unique way that often blends autobiography, spiritual biography, and the practice questions that each of us is engaged with.

    The talks are by invitation, and last about twenty-five minutes, including time for presentation and short question & answer period. For newer students, this is a chance to meet and hear those we are sitting with. Those invited to talk have been sitting steadily at BZC; for them it is an opportunity to tell their story and be seen and heard. One of the teachers or senior students is available for advice in shaping one's talk, should that be useful.

  • Aspects Class: Genjo Koan

    Aspects Class: Genjo Koan


    Thu, Oct 19, 2023

    The theme for this year's Aspects of Practice class will be Dogen Zenji's Genjo Koan - Actualizing the Fundamental Point.  It will be offered hybrid - in person for up to 40 people as well as in the Online Zendo.

    ASPECTS OF PRACTICE 2023 CALENDAR

  • Lecture: Hannah Meara

    Lecture: Hannah Meara


    Sat, Oct 21, 2023

    Saturday Morning Schedule

    • Temple cleaning:  7:35 – 8:10 (in person)
    • Zazen:                        8:30 – 9:10
    • Service:                      9:10 – 9:30
    • Kinhin:                       9:30  – 9:40
    • Zazen:                        9:40 – 10:05
    • Kinhin/break         10:05 – 10:15
    • Lecture:                   10:15 – 11:15

     

  • Way Seeking Mind Talk: Ellen Webb

    Way Seeking Mind Talk: Ellen Webb


    Mon, Oct 23, 2023

    There will be a student talk in the online zendo right after a shorter period of zazen:

    7:30 am: zazen
    8:00 am: way-seeking mind talk

    What is a "way-seeking mind" talk?  See below.

    Way-Seeking Mind at Berkeley Zen Center

    “Way-Seeking Mind” talks by practitioners at Berkeley Zen Center have been a regular event on Monday mornings for more than thirty years. Each of us came to Zen practice as a seeker, with a spirit of inquiry. Each of us arrives at BZC from our own diverse backgrounds—social, familial, educational, religious, and so on. The idea of our way-seeking mind talks is for students to share how it is that they came to practice. Each person tells his or her own story in a unique way that often blends autobiography, spiritual biography, and the practice questions that each of us is engaged with.

    The talks are by invitation, and last about twenty-five minutes, including time for presentation and short question & answer period. For newer students, this is a chance to meet and hear those we are sitting with. Those invited to talk have been sitting steadily at BZC; for them it is an opportunity to tell their story and be seen and heard. One of the teachers or senior students is available for advice in shaping one's talk, should that be useful.

  • Aspects Class: Genjo Koan

    Aspects Class: Genjo Koan


    Thu, Oct 26, 2023

    The theme for this year's Aspects of Practice class will be Dogen Zenji's Genjo Koan - Actualizing the Fundamental Point.  It will be offered hybrid - in person for up to 40 people as well as in the Online Zendo.

    ASPECTS OF PRACTICE 2023 CALENDAR

  • Lecture: Abbot Hozan

    Lecture: Abbot Hozan


    Sat, Oct 28, 2023

    Saturday Morning Schedule

    • Temple cleaning:  7:35 – 8:10 (in person)
    • Zazen:                        8:30 – 9:10
    • Service:                      9:10 – 9:30
    • Kinhin:                       9:30  – 9:40
    • Zazen:                        9:40 – 10:05
    • Kinhin/break         10:05 – 10:15
    • Lecture:                   10:15 – 11:15

     

    Sejiki Ceremony - Feeding the Hungry Ghosts

    Sejiki Ceremony - Feeding the Hungry Ghosts


    Sat, Oct 28, 2023

    On Saturday, October 28th, BZC will celebrate Sejiki, an annual ceremony from our Soto Zen tradition that we have missed during the pandemic. The morning program will include a short zendo talk by Hozan, followed by a joyous ceremony in the courtyard. The outdoors altar is filled with fruit, cakes, and other food offerings. Raucous noise-making by children and adults call forth hungry ghosts feel and the spirits of the departed. After offerings and chanting the “Sutra of Opening the Gate of Sweet Dew,” we will read the names and honor all those who have died this year.

                Families and children are encouraged to participate. Since we have adapted the tradition to dovetail with the western tradition of Halloween, members and children are welcome to come Halloween costumes. The talk and ceremony will start in the zendo at 10:15. All are welcome to join the work circle at 7:35 to help set up the altar and decorate the grounds.

  • Way Seeking Mind Talk: Susan Marvin

    Way Seeking Mind Talk: Susan Marvin


    Mon, Oct 30, 2023

    There will be a student talk in the online zendo right after a shorter period of zazen:

    7:30 am: zazen
    8:00 am: way-seeking mind talk

    What is a "way-seeking mind" talk?  See below.

    Way-Seeking Mind at Berkeley Zen Center

    “Way-Seeking Mind” talks by practitioners at Berkeley Zen Center have been a regular event on Monday mornings for more than thirty years. Each of us came to Zen practice as a seeker, with a spirit of inquiry. Each of us arrives at BZC from our own diverse backgrounds—social, familial, educational, religious, and so on. The idea of our way-seeking mind talks is for students to share how it is that they came to practice. Each person tells his or her own story in a unique way that often blends autobiography, spiritual biography, and the practice questions that each of us is engaged with.

    The talks are by invitation, and last about twenty-five minutes, including time for presentation and short question & answer period. For newer students, this is a chance to meet and hear those we are sitting with. Those invited to talk have been sitting steadily at BZC; for them it is an opportunity to tell their story and be seen and heard. One of the teachers or senior students is available for advice in shaping one's talk, should that be useful.