Sanshin Zen Community redesign
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A Year of Beneficial Action

An exploration of Dogen Zenji's Bodaisatta Shishobo and carrying out our bodhisattva vows in the world

Virtual workshops on the fourth Monday evening of each month throughout 2021
Zazen at 6:30 pm; teaching and discussion 7:00 - 8:30 pm
No cost, but dana is welcome.
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Some of us are already involved in our communities, doing everything from working with arts groups, serving on boards, teaching or tutoring and volunteering with non-profits to chaplaincy, providing direct service to those in need, engaging in dialogue with elected officials and providing pro bono professional skills.  For others, carrying out bodhisattva vows means fulfilling workplace responsibilities, looking after a family or caring for the earth.  After a tumultuous beginning to this new century, thoughts have turned to the state of our communities and society, how we can make sense of what we're seeing and feeling, and how we can take skillful action to help liberate beings from suffering and bring wholesomeness to the world.

Commitment to beneficial action has always been a part of Sanshin's mission, but this year we're going to explore that in a whole new way.  As individual bodhisattvas, we need guidance from the teachings of our tradition, a chance to do some discernment about the kind of activities and issues with which we're personally interested in being involved, and the support and encouragement of fellow practitioners in seeing that through.  Using the four elements of Dogen Zenji's Bodaisatta Shishobo (The Four All-Embracing Actions of the Bodhisattva) as a roadmap, we'll engage in individual and group exploration of the practice of beneficial action and equip ourselves to undertake the activity or activities we choose to do.  That activity may be new or familiar, public or private, large or small, social, political, scientific, artistic or anything else that's meaningful.  Each of us may be engaged in the community in a different way, but the underlying aspiration to skillfully see, hear and lessen the suffering of the world and to undertake our community engagement as practice holds us all together.

Our roadmap for the year

First quarter:  Offering
Workshops: Jan 25, Feb 22, Mar 22
  • Greed and generosity; our activity as an offering; offering skillfully
  • The role of offering in our own issue/activity
  • Inquiring into our own hindrances and discomfort with offering
  • Gathering and sharing information and resources about our own issue/activity
  • Taking first steps in actualizing offering in the community
  • Reflection and sharing our experiences
  • Summarizing the quarter and preparing for exploration of loving speech

Second quarter:  Loving speech
Workshops: Apr 26, May 24, June 28
  • Meeting others with compassion ; practicing right speech; loving speech as skillful means
  • The role of loving speech in our own issue/activity
  • Inquiring into our own hindrances and discomfort with loving speech
  • Continued gathering and sharing of information and resources
  • Actualizing loving speech in the community
  • Reflection and sharing our experiences
  • Summarizing the quarter and preparing for exploration of beneficial action

Third quarter:  Beneficial action
Workshops: Jul 26, Aug 23, Sep 27
  • The beginningless beginning and endless end of the circumstances of this moment; benefiting friends and enemies, self and others; skillful action
  • The role of beneficial action in our own issue/activity
  • Inquiring into our own hindrances and discomfort with beneficial action
  • Continued gathering and sharing of information and resources
  • Actualizing beneficial action in the community
  • Reflection and sharing our experiences
  • Summarizing the quarter and preparing for exploration of identity action

Fourth quarter:  Identity action
Workshops: Oct 25, Nov 22, Dec 27
  • Non-duality with those we help; reviewing our motivations; individual self and universal self in our activity
  • The role of identity action in our own issue/activity
  • Inquiring into our own hindrances and discomfort with identity action
  • Continued gathering and sharing of information and resources
  • Actualizing identity action in the community
  • Reflection and sharing our experiences
  • Summarizing the year and reflecting on what we've learned and done

​A typical workshop in this series:
  • 30 minutes of zazen
  • 30 minutes dharma talk
  • 10 minutes Q&A
  • 45 minutes facilitated small group discussion
  • 5 minutes wrap up and close

​Participants will have access to a non-public page on our website that provides the text of the Bodaisatta Shishobo for study, a place to post information and reflections, our collective resource list, the link to Zoom workshops, and recordings of the dharma talks.  The page will serve as our shared space between the workshops themselves so we can continue to stay in touch, support and encourage each other and remember to practice.

Other activities in which we might engage between workshops to continue developing our practice of beneficial action
  • Responding to prompt questions by creating prose, poetry, artwork, etc. and sharing with the group
  • Doing our homework about the individual issue(s) we choose to work with this year
  • Searching out relevant resources in our community: groups with which we can partner or volunteer, opportunities for training or experience, mentors, publications, websites, podcasts, etc.
  • Working together and forming special interest groups if we share interest in a particular issue or activity. 

    Registration

    Anyone is welcome to join us in this initiative throughout the year.  However, please note that this is a regional effort and the focus of our activities and resources will be on the area lying within about 120 miles of Sanshin.
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