Berkeley Zen Center (BZC), temple name , is an

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 Dòngshān L ...

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 ...

practice centre located in

Berkeley, California Berkeley ( ) is a city on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay in northern Alameda County, California, United States. It is named after the 18th-century Irish bishop and philosopher George Berkeley. It borders the cities of Oakland and Emer ...

currently led by Hozan Alan Senauke. An informal affiliate to the

San Francisco Zen Center San Francisco Zen Center (SFZC), is a network of affiliated Sōtō Zen practice and retreat centers in the San Francisco Bay area, comprising City Center or Beginner's Mind Temple, Tassajara Zen Mountain Center, and Green Gulch Farm Zen Center. Th ...

(SFZC),Ford, 129 BZC was founded in 1967 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 Rōshi, r ...

and Shunryu Suzuki as a satellite group for the SFZC.Dimidjian, 137 Despite founding the centre, Weitsman was not installed as an abbot there until 1985, one year after receiving

Dharma transmission In Chan Buddhism, Chan and Zen Buddhism, dharma transmission is a custom in which a person is established as a "successor in an unbroken Lineage (Buddhism), lineage of teachers and disciples, a spiritual 'bloodline' (''kechimyaku'') theoretica ...

from Hoitsu Suzuki.Gach, 230 Weitsman's

Dharma heir In Chan and Zen Buddhism, dharma transmission is a custom in which a person is established as a "successor in an unbroken lineage of teachers and disciples, a spiritual 'bloodline' ('' kechimyaku'') theoretically traced back to the Buddha hims ...

, Alan Senauke, lives on-site with his wife Laurie Senauke (as of 1999) and also works for the

Buddhist Peace Fellowship The Buddhist Peace Fellowship (BPF) is a nonsectarian international network of engaged Buddhists participating in various forms of non-violent social activism and environmentalism. The non-profit BPF is an affiliate of the international Fellowship ...

.Prebish, 108 Another former teacher at BZC was Maylie Scott, who died in 2001.Queen, 266 In 1969 Zenkei Blanche Hartman began sitting

zazen ''Zazen'' (literally " seated meditation"; ja, 座禅; , pronounced ) is a meditative discipline that is typically the primary practice of the Zen Buddhist tradition. However, the term is a general one not unique to Zen, and thus technicall ...

at BZC, receiving Dharma transmission from Weitsman in 198

In 1979 the centre relocated to its current location on Russell Street—and today houses a small group of residents who live on site. BZC has an active community and a full schedule of zen service, student talks, dharma talks, and zazen

Gallery

File:Mel Weitsman1.JPG,

Image:Hozan_Alan_Senauke.JPG, Hozan Alan Senauke Image:Maylie Scott 2.png, Maylie Scott Image:Berkeley_Zen_Center.JPG Image:Berkeley Zen Center zendo.jpg, Zendo

Notes

References

* * * * * Zen centers in California Culture of Berkeley, California Religious organizations established in 1967 Buddhism in the San Francisco Bay Area Buddhist temples in Berkeley {{AlamedaCountyCA-struct-stub

Gallery

See also

Notes

References