Roshi Letter, Winter Ango 2017-2018

Dear Sangha,

How wonderful, our winter ango is almost here!  This year, from December 26, 2017, to March 18, 2018, the Village Zendo community (and anyone who wishes to join us) will engage in an intensification of practice and attention to our lives.

This is in accord with the traditional Zen long retreats called ango or peaceful dwelling. Our Village Zendo Winter Ango is conducted both as a weeklong sesshin at Garrison, and continuing in the city, in the midst of our ordinary daily lives of coming and going to work, family and Zendo. For ninety days we personally commit to more zazen, study, and other practices such as clear awareness of our interaction with others and attentiveness to the precepts.

This year we are studying Dotoku, (‘Expressions’), a short writing of Dogen’s for which the Village Zendo’s temple name, was given: Dotoku-ji. How expressive our sangha is! It is from this sense of activated practice that our Five Expressions arose.

Kazuaki Tanahashi’s translation can be downloaded from the Village Zendo’s site and in his book Treasury of the True Dharma Eye: Zen Master Dogen’s Shobo Genzo, Shambhala Press. Also, a hard copy will be distributed on request at the Zendo and at the Garrison Retreat.

As you know, one person is asked to serve as ‘Shuso’ – or practice leader – someone to show up as our model of sincere practice. Our shuso for this time is Elena Yuuka (幽 崋) Taurke.  She has written a letter and a commitment form to help us articulate our aims for this period of time. It is very helpful to fill our your commitment form and share it with one of the teachers. Please join Yuuka and the whole community in exploring this active way to energize our practice!

All of these documents, the shuso letter, the commitment form, and the study text, can be downloaded from our website.

Thank you for your practice,

圓教 Roshi

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