White Heron Sangha welcomes back Zen priest Norman Fischer for the first two-day retreat of 2021.
"The Lotus Sutra points to a sudden understanding that cuts through the complexities of the spiritual life, emphasizing Buddhahood for all."
The Lotus Sutra is the most important Buddhist sutra for Far East Asian Buddhism and for Zen. It recasts the Buddha as a cosmic principle rather than a revered teacher, and shows the importance of a path of faith and devotion in Buddhism. It is famous especially for its parables and is full of extravagant cosmic imagery. The Lotus Sutra points to a sudden understanding that cuts through the arduous complexities of the spiritual life, emphasizing, especially, Buddhahood for all.
In this weekend retreat we'll practice silent sitting and walking meditation and study this sutra with short dharma talks and discussion. Each segment of the day will include a rhythm of all these practices. All are welcome. No prior meditation experience is required.
Although it is not necessary, reading the Lotus Sutra in advance would probably increase the delight of the day. Norman will be using the translation by Burton Watson in his talks. It is available in book form, The Lotus Sutra, Translated by Burton Watson (Columbia University Press, 1993), or as an online reference in full or abridged form. See Norman Fischer Resource List for accessing the online versions.
We look forward to supporting you on this retreat. If you choose to attend, we are asking that you commit to the retreat with the same integrity you would bring to a retreat in a residential setting.
Norman Fischer is a poet, author, and senior American Zen Buddhist priest. A former abbot of the San Francisco Zen Center, he is the founder and teacher of the Everyday Zen Foundation, a network of spiritual communities and projects dedicated to sharing Zen and Buddhist teachings widely with the world. He is the author of more than thirty books, most of which are collections of poetry. His latest Buddhist titles are The World Could be Otherwise: Imagination and the Bodhisattva Path (Shambhala, 2019), What Is Zen (Shambhala, 2016) and the forthcoming When You Greet Me I Bow: Zen Teachings from Norman Fischer (Shambhala, 2021). For more about Norman's writing go to normanfischer.org; for information on Everyday Zen go to everydayzen.org.
When:
Saturday, January 23 2021, 8:30AM - 4:30PM PST
Sunday, January 24, 2021, 8:30AM - 4:30PM PST
Where: Online via Zoom
The Zoom link for the retreat will be emailed to registrants on Friday, January 22.
Online/Home Retreat Guidelines and Suggestion
Retreat Schedule
Cost:
Pay what you can afford: $50, $25, or $0, depending on your means. The fee covers both days; attending the entire retreat enables you to fully appreciate the teachings that are being offered.
Dana:
The teachings are offered freely. The retreat fee covers only retreat expenses; beyond that, none of the retreat fee goes to the teachers. We try to keep our retreat fees to a minimum so that you can be truly generous with your donation to the teachers and to White Heron Sangha. Instructions for donating to Norman Fischer can be found at everydayzen.org. You may donate to White Heron Sangha on our Donate Now page.
Registration:
We require that you register online and pay by credit card or send a check to White Heron Sangha, PO Box 870, Morro Bay, CA 93443. Registration will close by noon (PST) on Friday, January 22, 2021.
For questions, contact Carole Maurer, cmaurer@jdcm.us
