The Soto Zen Buddhist Association was formed in 1996 by American and Japanese Zen teachers in response to a perceived need to draw the various autonomous lineages of the North American
Sōtō stream of Zen together for mutual support as well as the development of common training and ethical standards. With about one hundred fully transmitted priests, the SZBA now includes members from most of the Japanese-derived
Sōtō Zen
Zen ( zh, t=禪, p=Chán; ja, text= 禅, translit=zen; ko, text=선, translit=Seon; vi, text=Thiền) is a school of Mahayana Buddhism that originated in China during the Tang dynasty, known as the Chan School (''Chánzong'' 禪宗), and l ...
lineages in North America. The founding president was
Tetsugen Bernard Glassman
Bernie Glassman (January 18, 1939 – November 4, 2018) was an American Zen Buddhist roshi and founder of the Zen Peacemakers (previously the Zen Community of New York), an organization established in 1980. In 1996, he co-founded the Zen Peace ...
, followed by Sojun
Mel Weitsman
Hakuryu Sojun Mel Weitsman (July 20, 1929 – January 7, 2021), born Mel Weitsman, was an American Buddhist who was the founder, abbot and guiding teacher of Berkeley Zen Center located in Berkeley, California. Weitsman was a Soto Zen roshi p ...
, Myogen Steve Stucky,
Jishō Warner
Jisho Warner is a Sōtō Zen priest and abiding teacher of Stone Creek Zen Center in Sonoma County, California. Warner is a former president of the Soto Zen Buddhist Association, and its first female and first LGBTQ president. Having graduated fro ...
(the first female president), and Eido Frances Carney.
The Soto Zen Buddhist Association approved a document honoring the women ancestors in the Zen tradition at its biannual meeting on October 8, 2010. Female ancestors, dating back 2,500 years from India, China, and Japan, are now being more regularly included in the curriculum, ritual, and training offered to Western Zen students.
See also
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Zenshuji Soto Misson
Zenshuji Soto Mission (Japanese: ), established in 1922 in the Little Tokyo section of Los Angeles, California, was the first Soto Zen Buddhist temple in North America. Today, it is the North American headquarters for Soto Zen, under the guidance ...
*
American Zen Teachers Association
The American Zen Teachers Association (AZTA) was founded in the late 1980s as the Second Generation Zen Teachers Group. It is a peer-group organization of ordained and lay Zen Buddhist teachers, all of whom have received either teaching authorizat ...
References
{{Reflist
External links
Soto Zen Buddhist Association homepage
Buddhist organizations based in the United States
Soto Zen