Ango, or practice period, is an opportunity to focus a bit more intensively on our practice and perhaps to make a commitment to ourselves to stretch a little -- to sit a little more, attend a little more frequently, learn something new or take on a particular activity.  We invite you to consider how you might deepen your practice during this time.

Ango at Sanshin is designed to include the three activities of our practice: zazen, work and study.  This three-month period includes sesshin, genzo-e, a workshop, the precepts retreat and several work days in addition to our regular weekly practice.

During ango we have the additional leadership of a shuso, or head novice, who takes on various responsibilities in the sangha as an opportunity to develop clergy skills.  Our shuso for this ango is Shinko Hagn.  His theme for the ango is Four Embracing Actions.  He will be supporting our practice and we will be supporting his growth as a leader.  Shinko will be giving a series of nine Sunday talks, serving as doshi for monthly World Peace ceremonies, serving as ino for monthly ryaku fusatsu ceremonies, assisting with sesshin and retreats, and serving the sangha in myriad other ways while he's in residence here.  In June, we will recognize the coming completion of his term as shuso with two ceremonies in which he will demonstrate his dharma mastery to the sangha and his readiness to teach and serve independently.

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The case: Dizang's "Nearness"  
Case 20 of the Book of Serenity

During the ango, Shinko will be working with the following case from the Shoyoroku, or Book of Serenity.  Okumura Roshi will talk about it during the honsoku gyocha (June 17, 7 pm) and Shinko will answer formal questions about it from the sangha during the shuso hossen (June 18, 10 am).  It will be possible for both in-person and virtual participants to ask a formal question about the case during the shuso hossen. 

Introduction
The profound talk entering into noumenon decides three and weeds out four; the Great Way to the Capital goes seven ways across and eight ways up and down. Suddenly if you can open your mouth and explain fully, take steps and walk, then you can hang your bowl and bag lip high and break your staff. But tell me, who is this?

Case
Dizang asked Fayan, "Where are you going?“ 
Fayan said, ''Around on pilgrimage."
Dizang said, "What is the purpose of pilgrimage?“ 
Fayan said, "I don't know"
Dizang said, "Not knowing is nearest.“
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Verse
Now having studied to the full, it's like before--
Having shed entirely the finest thread, he reaches not knowing.
Let it be short, let it be long—stop cutting and patching;
Going along with the high, along with the low, it levels itself.
The abundance or scarcity of the house is used according to the occasion;
Roaming serenely in the land, he goes where his feet take him.
The purpose of ten years' pilgrimage--
Clearly he'd turned his back on one pair of eyebrows. 

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About Shinko

Shinko was born in a small town in the countryside in Austria.  His early studies were in chemistry and architecture, and he founded or managed several international trading companies.  His first encounter with Zen practice came during a visit to Genrinji in Germany, a temple in the Shunryu Suzuki lineage, where he later took lay precepts.  He's been working as a chaplain with those who are incarcerated or homeless for more than a decade.  In 2018 he changed his lineage to that of Sanshin Network member Kaikyo Roby, and after her death he was ordained as a novice by Hoko Karnegis in 2019. He now practices with his sangha at Daijihi in Vienna and is working to establish a temple and housing campus.

Shinko has two grown children and is also a grandfather.  At home in Vienna with his wife, he runs his own company, Plantago.

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2023 ango

April 3:  Ango begins
May 3 - 8: Virtual Genzo-e (Bussho III)
May 30 - June 4: Sesshin 
June 17: Honsoku gyocha (formal tea and explanation of the case by Konjin Godwin,  director of the Soto Zen Buddhism International Center)
June 18: Shuso hossen (shuso answers questions on the case)
June 24 - 25:  Sanshin anniversary and leadership transition activities
July 4 - 9:  Precepts retreat, ending with lay precepts ceremony
July 9: Ango ends

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Shinko's Sunday talks
Shinko says: My lectures will have as their general theme the fascicle Shishobo (four embracing actions) from the Shobogenzo.  This topic is so important to me and many others in our sangha that Sanshin Network teachers are at work on a whole book of reflections on it in response to an opening chapter by Okumura Roshi.  However, it will be more like a cloud hovering over my lectures, because I am mainly focused on how we realize these four embracing actions, especially in our daily lives.  To understand the four embracing actions we should ask ourselves: How does our being come into being, how are the ingredients for what we call our being mixed together and how can we practice to recognize and transform them so that we realize Okumura Roshi's  formula 1=0=∞ in our everyday lives?  I will talk a lot about my own practice and especially how much my pastoral work, mainly in prisons, helps me.  Kodo Sawaki said, "Separated from daily life, Buddhism is a dead thing. All aspects of your life must be the Buddha Way."

• April 9: Introduction to Shinko
• April 16:  Introduction to Shishobo
• April 23:  Transformation and how to get there
• April 30:  Dathus and Vijnanas
• May 14:  Vijnanas
• May 21:  Five Skandhas. Emptiness and Interconnectedness
• (May 28: Work day; no dharma talk)
• June 11:  Engaged Buddhism and Chaplaincy Work

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Sangha participation with residents

Those living in Bloomington are invited and encouraged to join residential practitioners in their daily schedule of zazen, work and study during the ango (see below). If you wish to join the residents for a meal, please plan to bring your own food unless you've made prior arrangements with the tenzo for that day.

Regular weekdays
5:10 am Zazen
6:00  Kinhin
6:10  Zazen
7:00  Robe chant
7:05  Service
7:30  Reading from Shobogenzo Zuimonki, announcements, soji 
​7:45  Bow out
8:00  Breakfast 
9:00  Eihei Shingi study period
10:15  Work period
12:00  Lunch
1:00 pm Work period 
3:30  Personal time
5:30  Dinner
6:30  Zazen/evening practice

• Sangha book discussion group Wednesdays 7:00 – 8:00
• ​Ryaku Fusatsu one Monday each month 7:00 – 8:00

7:30 Open zazen/dorm quiet time/end of day

Mondays -- same as weekday schedule, except:
1:00 pm  General meeting with Hoko/work leaders (these meetings will likely only be useful for residents and practice leaders. Please plan to join the work period starting at 2 pm on Mondays, unless you've already received a work assignment)
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Fridays -- same as weekday schedule, except:
8:00 am  Breakfast in zendo using oryoki 
9:00  Eihei Shingi group discussion 
1:00 pm  Dormitory cleaning

Study of the Eihei Shingi (group discussion Friday mornings, 9 am)
Please come having completed the assigned reading and prepared to discuss.  We'll be using Dogen's Pure Standards for the Zen Community, translated by Leighton and Okumura, as well as From the Zen Kitchen to Enlightenment by Dogen and Uchiyama.  Copies of Pure Standards are available for purchase at Sanshin; there is one copy of Zen Kitchen in Sanshin's library for use during the discussion.  Other readings will be made available as needed.

April
7: Introductory material (through p. 29)
14: Tenzo Kyokun (meeting in zendo)
21: Jinsei Ryori no Hon I: Sections 1 - 7 (Zen Kitchen)
28: Jinsei Ryori no Hon I: Sections 8 - 14 (Zen Kitchen)
May:
5: Genzo-e​; no meeting
12: Bendoho; Living in the Sodo (Seido Suzuki); Pull your own nose and lift the ancient koan (Shohaku Okumura)
19: Fushukuhanpo
26: Shuryo Shingi 
June
2: Sesshin; no meeting
9: Taitaiko Gogejariho
16: Chiji Shinji I (through p. 152) 
23: Chiji Shingi II (director, ino)
30: Chiji Shingi III (tenzo, work leader)
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