The Village Zendo is a Zen community in the heart of downtown New York City. Serving as a sanctuary in busy Manhattan, we offer daily meditation, dharma talks, Buddhist services, retreats, workshops and study groups. Participation is open to all.
Daily Schedule
Calendar
About Practice
Teachers
About Us
Resources for Newcomers
Are you new to the Village Zendo? Welcome to our community – we’re delighted to practice with you! We’ve created several events that should be of particular interest to you – please check out these programs, ask us questions and tell us what you think!
Online
Learn to Meditate
Every Monday via Zoom
6:30pm Eastern Time
If you’re new to Zen meditation or curious to learn more about Zen practice, join us any Monday evening a few minutes before 6:30pm – no reservation necessary. Recommendations for a comfortable, stable sitting posture are given, as well as guidance on how to begin a meditation practice and do walking meditation. There will be ample opportunity for you to ask questions.
Online & In Person
Newcomers’ Meeting
Second Thursday of Each Month
6:40pm (Following the Dharma talk and chanting service)
Are you new to the Village Zendo community? Would you like to get to know some of the teachers, meet other community members and ask questions informally? If so, please join us for this open conversation where a wide range of practice-related topics is addressed. No reservation is needed, though we encourage you to attend the Dharma talk and service that precede this meeting.
Online & In Person
Newcomers’ Meeting
Second Thursday of Each Month
6:40pm (Following the Dharma talk and chanting service)
Are you new to the Village Zendo community? Would you like to get to know some of the teachers, meet other community members and ask questions informally? If so, please join us for this open conversation where a wide range of practice-related topics is addressed. No reservation is needed, though we encourage you to attend the Dharma talk and service that precede this meeting.
In Person
Body, Breath, and Mind: An Introduction to Zen
First Sunday of Every Month
9:30am – 11:00am
Village Zendo Executive Director Howard Thoreson introduces Zen meditation and explains other aspects of practice at VZ. Sitting posture, sustaining a meditation practice and walking meditation (kinhin) are discussed, and short periods of meditation are also included here. Emphasis is placed on finding ease in practice, on the significance of practicing with a community and on working with the Village Zendo teachers. There will be ample opportunity for Q & A.
“When we practice zazen, our mind always follows our breathing. When we inhale, air comes into the inner world. When we exhale, air goes out to the outer world. The inner world is limitless, and the outer world is limitless. We say ‘inner world’ or ‘outer world,’ but actually there is just one whole world. In this limitless world, our throat is like a swinging door. The air comes in and goes out, like someone passing through a swinging door.”
Shunryu Suzuki, Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind
“The Village Zendo has made a profound difference in my life and the lives of many others. It is a welcoming group that balances serious practice with great joy and fun. Come to learn to meditate, stay to change your life.”
“Profound authentic Zen practice in a welcoming environment. Great experienced teachers and senior students. Beautiful quiet meditation daily. On Sunday’s and Thursday evening there are interesting contemporary Dharma talks. Beginning instruction is every Monday evening. The are cool events, workshops and activities that support a lively community.”
“My spiritual home for 30 years and I’m still amazed at the depth, warmth, intelligence and creativity of teachers and students alike. And more teachers per capita probably than any sangha around!”
“Similar to other reviewers, I live quite a distance from the Village Zendo. I, nonetheless, am a member and formal student of VZ. I find the community welcoming, vibrant, diverse and deeply intentional. Led by Enkyo Roshi, our teachers are engaged, astute, open, available… true mentors and practice leaders. VZ retreats and programs are powerful, challenging, transformative. I am so grateful for and to this sangha! Belonging to the VZ community is well-worth the logistics of my living at a distance.”
Daily Meditation Schedule
TUESDAYS
7:30am - 8:30am
6:30pm - 8:00pm
WEDNESDAYS
7:30am - 8:30am
6:30pm - 8:00pm
THURSDAYS
7:30am - 8:30am
5:30pm - 6:00pm
Dharma Talk & Service:
6:05pm - 6:30pm
FIRST SUNDAYS
Body, Breath, Mind: Intro to Zen (in-person):
9:30am - 11:00am
OTHER SUNDAYS
Service, Zazen, Dharma Talk:
9:30am - 11:25am
MONDAY
7:30am - 8:30am
Learn to Meditate:
6:30pm - 7:30pm
TUESDAY
7:30am - 8:30am
6:30pm - 7:30pm
WEDNESDAY
7:30am - 8:30am
6:30pm - 7:30pm
THURSDAY
7:30am - 8:30am
5:30pm - 6:00pm
Dharma Talk & Service:
6:05pm - 6:40pm
FRIDAY
7:30am - 8:30am
SATURDAY
Bolivian Sitting Group:
7:00am - 8:00am
People of Color Sitting Group
10:30am - 12:00pm
FIRST SUNDAYS
Practice & Inquiry Circle (online):
9:30am - 11:00am
OTHER SUNDAYS
Service, Zazen, Dharma Talk:
9:30am - 11:25am
Upcoming Events
Featured Retreats, Workshops & Events

In-Person & Online Zendo Closed
December 24 - January 10
Both the online and in-person zendo will be closed during our Winter Retreat and the first week of the new year, re-opening on Sunday, January 11 for our regular Sunday program. Please see our calendar for details.

Genjokoan: Fully Expressing Our Life
Sunday, January 11
In this two-part workshop, we’ll continue our close reading Genjōkōan, one of the most important philosophical texts written by Dogen Zenji, a Buddhist poet, teacher, philosopher and founder of the Soto Zen school. All are welcome.

Zazenkai with Dharma Talk by Bokushu Sensei
Saturday, January 17
We invite you to participate in Village Zendo’s zazenkai, a half-day retreat that will be held both online and in person. It will include ample periods of meditation, service, a Dharma talk, and conclude with open sozan.

Learn to Meditate (Online)
Resumes Monday, Jan 12
For those new to Zen meditation or who have not practiced meditation in a zendo before. Recommendations for a comfortable, stable sitting posture are given, as well as guidance on how to begin a meditation practice and do walking meditation. There will be ample opportunity for Q & A.

People of Color Sitting Group
Resumes January 17
The People of Color Sitting Group aims to embody the three tenets by being a sanctuary for People of Color to study, support and discuss how in a system (society) of oppression and racial bias we can create a community where we recognize our interdependence.
Newcomers' Meeting
Thursday, December 11
Are you new to the Village Zendo online community? Would you like to get to know some of the teachers, meet other community members and ask questions informally? If so, please consider joining us for an open conversation on the second Thursday evening of every month.

Bolivian Sitting Group
Saturdays, 8:00am
You are invited to join Village Zendo’s affiliated Bolivian sangha every Saturday morning. We will sit two periods of zazen, with an optional stretch break between, in the same fashion as online sitting at the Village Zendo.
About the Village Zendo
Vision Statement
We envision a world of peace where all beings treat each other and their environment with awareness, wisdom and compassion.
Mission Statement
To provide a way for realizing a life of awareness, wisdom and compassion. We do this by offering training in the teachings of Zen Buddhism and by cultivating and maintaining a practice environment that is supported by teachers and a community of practitioners in the heart of New York City.
Inclusivity
We welcome people of different cultures, colors, abilities, ages, identifications, and beliefs who can practice within the guidelines for meditation and harmonious practice that we have laid out for the Village Zendo. We appreciate and explore our differences in order to build understanding, harmony, and openness for the whole community.
Our Community
The Village Zendo is a community of people who come together to practice in the Soto Zen tradition. We offer zazen (sitting meditation), one-on-one instruction with a teacher, dharma talks, chanting services, retreats, workshops and study groups.
Co-founded in 1986 by Roshi Pat Enkyo O’Hara and Roshi Barbara Joshin O’Hara, the Village Zendo is committed to authentically continuing the Zen tradition while keeping it contemporary and relevant to today’s world. We are located in lower Manhattan, offering a place of healing and sanctuary in the midst of one of the world’s busiest and most vital cities.
Our Abbot Emerita, Roshi Pat Enkyo O’Hara, received Dharma transmission from Bernie Glassman in the White Plum lineage of Roshi Taizan Maezumi. The lineage is in the Soto tradition, but incorporates elements of Rinzai teaching. Our zendo has the Japanese name Dotoku-ji (True Expression Temple). Enkyo Roshi trained many Dharma successors who continue to head the VZ teaching staff. The current abbot is Roshi Sinclair Shinryu Thomson.
The zendo is known for its vibrant and diverse community and the stability of a sangha that draws from a core of longtime dedicated practitioners. Our programming emphasizes the myriad ways Zen relates to our daily lives writing, social action, health and well-being, and the arts as well as traditional Zen studies.
Participation is open to all. We welcome practitioners and students of various traditions to join us at whatever level of commitment they wish. We welcome people of different cultures, colors, abilities, ages, identifications, and beliefs who can practice within the guidelines for meditation and harmonious practice that we have laid out for the Village Zendo. We appreciate and explore our differences in order to build understanding, harmony, and openness for the whole community.
