Zen Mountain Monastery (or, Doshinji, meaning Temple of the Way of Reality) is a
Zen Buddhist
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 ...
monastery and training center on a forested property in the
Catskill Mountains in Mount Tremper,
New York. It was founded in 1980 by
John Daido Loori
John Daido Loori (June 14, 1931 – October 9, 2009) was a Zen Buddhist rōshi who served as the abbot of Zen Mountain Monastery and was the founder of the Mountains and Rivers Order and CEO of Dharma Communications. Daido Loori received s ...
originally as the Zen Arts Center. It combines the
Rinzai
The Rinzai school ( ja, , Rinzai-shū, zh, t=臨濟宗, s=临济宗, p=Línjì zōng) is one of three sects of Zen in Japanese Buddhism (along with Sōtō and Ōbaku). The Chinese Linji school of Chan was first transmitted to Japan by Myōan ...
and
Sōtō
Sōtō Zen or is the largest of the three traditional sects of Zen in Japanese Buddhism (the others being Rinzai and Ōbaku). It is the Japanese line of the Chinese Cáodòng school, which was founded during the Tang dynasty by Dòngsh ...
Zen traditions, in both of which Loori received
Dharma transmission. Loori's first dharma heir was
Bonnie Myotai Treace, Sensei, who received shiho, or dharma transmission, from him in 1996. From Loori's death in October 2009 until January 2015, Zen Mountain Monastery had two teachers:
Geoffrey Shugen Arnold
Geoffrey Shugen Arnold is Rōshi of the Mountains and Rivers Order (MRO) founded by John Daido Loori, from whom Shugen received shiho, or dharma transmission, in July 1997.Seager, 257 As a lineage holder in the Sōtō tradition, Shugen currently ...
and
Konrad Ryushin Marchaj
Konrad Ryushin Marchaj was from October 2009 to January 2015 abbot of Zen Mountain Monastery, the main house of the Mountains and Rivers Order (MRO) of Zen Buddhism, founded by John Daido Loori, Roshi, from whom Marchaj received shiho in June 200 ...
, who received Dharma transmission from Loori in 1997 and 2009, respectively. Since January 2015, the training at the Monastery has been led by Shugen Roshi, assisted by Ron Hogen Green, Sensei; Jody Hojin Kimmel, Sensei; and Vanessa Zuisei Goddard, Sensei (currently on leave).
Retreat center building
The monastery was originally built as Camp Wapanachki in the 1930s. The massive
Arts and Crafts style stone and wood frame former retreat house and chapel was built in two phases between about 1935 and 1938. The four story "main house" is the earliest section. It contains living spaces, libraries, a small cellar and a large kitchen. The later section is built of
bluestone
Bluestone is a cultural or commercial name for a number of dimension or building stone varieties, including:
* basalt in Victoria, Australia, and in New Zealand
* dolerites in Tasmania, Australia; and in Britain (including Stonehenge)
* fe ...
and contains a dining hall and chapel.
[ ''See also:'' ]
It was listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...
in 1994.
Training
Students and residents of the monastery practice according to Daido Roshi's '
Eight Gates of Zen'' training matrix. These gates consist of zazen, face-to-face teaching, liturgy, moral and ethical teachings, work practice, body practice, art practice and academic study. Their practice occurs either at home for lay students or at the monastery during weekend retreats and monthly week-long
sesshin
A ''sesshin'' (接心, or also 摂心/攝心 literally "touching the heart-mind") is a period of intensive meditation (zazen) in a Zen monastery.
While the daily routine in the monastery requires the monks to meditate several hours a day, d ...
(meditation intensives). The monastery's schedule includes a Sunday morning program open to the general public and a variety of weekend and week-long Zen training programs, focusing variously on painting, poetry,
shakuhachi performance, Japanese archery (
kyūdō
''Kyūdō'' ( ja, 弓道) is the Japanese martial art of archery. Kyūdō is based on '' kyūjutsu'' ("art of archery"), which originated with the samurai class of feudal Japan. In 1919, the name of kyūjutsu was officially changed to kyūdō, a ...
),
qigong
''Qigong'' (), ''qi gong'', ''chi kung'', ''chi 'ung'', or ''chi gung'' () is a system of coordinated body-posture and movement, breathing, and meditation
used for the purposes of health, spirituality, and martial-arts training. With roots in ...
, and many other activities.
The monastery grounds are also home to the Zen Environmental Studies Institute and Dharma Communications, which runs The Monastery Store and publishes
Mountain Record: The Zen Practitioner's Journal' and other print, audio, video and online information resources.
In addition to supporting the lay community, ZMM is home to a number of monastic practitioners. These individuals have taken life vows of simplicity, selflessness, stability, service and accomplishing the Buddha's Way. As a result, they do not work outside the monastery, earn money, or have children. As the Mountain Record states: "Monastics in the order are entirely dependent on the sangha while maintaining the Monastery for current practitioners and sustaining it for generations to come."
Mountains and Rivers Order
ZMM is the main house of the
Mountains and Rivers Order
The Mountains and Rivers Order of Zen Buddhism (MRO) is an organization of associated temples, practice centers and sitting groups in the United States and abroad. The main house is the Zen Mountain Monastery located at the foot of Mount Tremper ...
, an umbrella organization inspired by the teachings of
Dogen as found in the Mountains and Rivers Sutra. Founded by John Daido Loori in 1980, it includes the following branches:
Dharma Communicationsis a nonprofit, right livelihood training dojo run at the monastery, and supplies teacher's talks and sitting supplies to home dwelling practitioners. It also creates th
Mountain Recordthe longest running Zen journal published in the USA.
# Society of Mountains and Rivers is composed of affiliate sitting groups in Buffalo, Albany, Philadelphia, Vermont and New Zealand, which hold weekly sitting sessions and visits from the teachers of the Order.
# National Buddhist Archives which collects and digitizes outstanding documents and media chronicling the history of Buddhism in America thus far, and especially the history of Zen Mountain Monastery.
# The Zen Environmental Studies Institute sponsors and conducts wilderness retreats, environmental mindfulness workshops, and pursues research on the local environment.
National Buddhist Prison Sanghaprovides teaching supplies and sitting opportunities to inmates currently serving in a correctional facility.
Fire Lotus Temple is the only residential Zen training facility in New York City, offering training opportunities to lay practitioners on a daily basis, along with Saturday retreats and a Sunday program similar to that held at ZMM.
Gallery
Image:Zen Mountain Monastery rain spout 2.jpg
Image:Lake @ Zen Mountain Monastery.jpg
Image:Walkway @ Zen Mountain Monastery.jpg
Image:Zen Mountain Monastery.jpg
Image:Sankai.jpg
Image:Zen Mountain Monastery 3.jpg
Image:Zen Mountain Monastery 4.jpg
Image:Zen Mountain Monastery rain spout.jpg
Image:Zen Mountain Monastery store.jpg
Image:Zen Mountain Monastery zendo drum.jpg
See also
*
Timeline of Zen Buddhism in the United States
Below is a timeline of important events regarding Zen Buddhism in the United States. Dates with "?" are approximate.
Events
Early history
* 1893: Soyen Shaku comes to the United States to lecture at the World Parliament of Religions held in ...
References
External links
Mountains and Rivers Order of Zen Buddhism*
ttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E9b4FbGlVSE Video of Annual Community Dana Dinnerbr>
Chronogram article on National Buddhist Prison Sangha
{{Authority control
Buddhist monasteries in the United States
Zen centers in New York (state)
Buddhist temples in New York (state)
White Plum Asanga
Zen Buddhist monasteries
National Register of Historic Places in Ulster County, New York
Religious buildings and structures completed in 1935
Religious buildings and structures in Ulster County, New York