In our Zen tradition, regular private interview with a teacher is an important element of study and practice. This page describes how you can receive a virtual interview with the Village Zendo’s teachers, while the Covid-19 pandemic prevents us from meeting at the zendo.
This page will be updated as needed, particularly the interview schedule at the bottom.
1. With a few exceptions, students do not need to schedule interview appointments. They can simply show up at VZ’s Zoom interview room when the teacher of their choice offers interview. The schedule below shows the times that teachers will offer interview each week.
NOTE: VZ’s Zoom interview room is accessed separately from the online Zendo. A link and a few technical details concerning how to access the interview room appear at the bottom of this page.
2. When you show up for interview, you’ll initially be placed in a waiting room. The waiting room is like the interview line in the physical zendo, allowing people to wait their turn while maintaining the privacy of everyone’s interview.
3. As is customary at VZ, teachers will offer dues-paying members interview first. This member benefit is not meant to discourage non-members from seeking interview. To inquire about your dues payments and membership status, write to vzdues@villagezendo.org.
4. If a large number of students shows up for interview at the same time, the teacher may not have time to see everyone. If this happens, the teacher will inform anyone who can’t be accommodated. Those who don’t receive interview with one teacher are welcome to show up for interview with another teacher — although we ask that you receive only one interview per week.
5. Please be punctual. Showing up more than 10 minutes after the starting time for any teacher’s interview block greatly reduces the odds that you will obtain interview. We suggest that you sit zazen while waiting for your interview to begin. While sitting zazen in the waiting room, please sit facing the computer with the audio on so that you can hear when the teacher begins your interview.
6. There will be times when the teacher scheduled to offer interview will be unable to do so because of illness, vacation etc. In those cases, we will try to find a substitute teacher to see students in that time slot. If we cannot find a substitute, the community will be notified through our groups.io email group. (Join the group here.)
7. There are exceptions to this interview process:
- Ryotan Roshi offers interview by appointment only, and his interviews will not take place in the VZ Zoom interview room. Ryotan offers interview regularly from 10:30-11:30am on Saturdays, and at other times of mutual convenience. To make an appointment with Ryotan, please email him on randall.eiger@gmail.com.
- Kaku Sensei offers interview by appointment only, and his interviews will not take place in the VZ Zoom interview room. Kaku offers interview from 1:00pm to 3:00pm on Wednesdays. To make an appointment with Kaku, please email him on kakusensei@deepoceanzendo.org.
- Soshin Hoshi offers interview by appointment only. Please email Soshin on ldufour917@gmail.com to schedule a mutually convenient time. She can accommodate Duo, Facetime, WhatsApp and Zoom.
If you have any questions about the Village Zendo’s interview process, please email registrar@villagezendo.org.
Here is the link to access the Village Zendo’s interview room 1. When you access this room at the time the teacher of your choice offers interview, you will initially be in the waiting room while those in line ahead of you receive their interviews.
Click Here for Interview Room 1
Meeting ID: 921 0757 5776
Technical note: The Zoom application is available for a wide array of devices, and you should download the Zoom app onto whatever device you use to participate in interview. It is possible to phone in without video using the telephone numbers below, but your experience of interview will be significantly enhanced with video.
For telephone-only access (again, not recommended), dial one of these numbers and enter meeting ID 921 0757 5776. There is no need to enter any participant number; just push pound when prompted.
+1 929 205 6099 US (New York)
+1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago)
+1 346 248 7799 US (Houston)
Find your local number: https://zoom.us/u/abFU8zMugd
Village Zendo Teacher Interview Schedule—as of 1/3/2021
Note: teacher interview is not currently offered on Sundays.
Time | Mon | Tues | Wed | Thur | Fri | Sat |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Mornings | ||||||
7:30 – 8:30 | ||||||
8:15 – 9:15 | Fugan | |||||
8:45 – 9:45 | Joshin Roshi | |||||
9:00 – 10:00 | Enkyo Roshi | |||||
10:30 – 11:30 | Ryo Roshi (1) | |||||
11:00 – 12:00 | Myoko | |||||
Afternoons | ||||||
12:00 – 1:00 | ||||||
1:00 – 2:00 | Kaku (2) | |||||
1:30 – 2:30 | Tokuyu | |||||
2:00 – 3:00 | Kaku (2) | Shinryu Roshi | ||||
3:00 – 4:00 | ||||||
4:00 – 5:00 | Bokushu | Enkyo Roshi | ||||
5:00 – 6:00 | ||||||
5:30 – 6:30 |
NOTES: Blue shading above indicates interviews by appointment only, as described below.
(1) Ryotan Roshi does not use interview room 1. He schedules interview appointments by email only on randall.eiger@gmail.com. Interview occurs from 10:30-11:00am Saturdays, and at other times of mutual convenience. Ryotan can accommodate FaceTime, Skype and Zoom.
(2) Kaku Sensei does not use interview room 1. He schedules interview appointments by email only on kakusensei@deepoceanzendo.org. Kaku’s interview hours are 1:00-3:00 Wednesdays; when the appointment is made, he will send you the technology/location information.
(3) Use the Zoom link below for interview with all other teachers at the times shown above. Please be punctual; arriving more than 10 minutes after the starting time for interview will greatly reduce your chances of obtaining interview. When you arrive you will be placed in the waiting room and, when it is your turn, the teacher will admit you into the main room for your dialogue.
Click Here for Interview Room 1
Meeting ID: 921 0757 5776