Author: TetsuGen KeiDo

We would like to first thank all who joined and help deliver a very nice and touching ceremony recently.

We also want to share there will be another Jukai Ceremony Saturday August 31st in place of the usual Dharma talk for two of the beloved Issan-Ji temple lay community (Sangha). We hope you will join us for this wonderful and touching event!

This event will be in place of the usual Saturday Dharma talk (although some words of Zen (Soto) lineage will be spoken). Also note this event will occur for others in August and early September again, as a note for the near future. Prior to that 10:30am time slot it will be our usual routine.

Join us for zazen (seated meditation) at 9:30am, with the Ceremony to follow at around/near 10:30. We offer in-person distanced attendance, and we also will continue to offer a Zoom web conferencing for video and/or audio presence for the scheduled events. There’s an earlier sitting at 6:30am, in addition to the later one at 9:30am (you can log into the conference starting at 9am to socialize). A period of zazen is typically 40 minutes, and it’s ok to adjust your sitting posture as needed.

We enjoy tea and cookies together afterwards.  Please click here to be routed to our Zoom gathering    

And as always you can contact us to arrange an introductory session ~8:45am if you are a beginner.

As a reminder any week you do not see a speaker announced for Dharma talk Saturdays, it is our Abbot, Rev. Myo Lahey.

The Jukai-shiki or”Jukai” Ceremony of Conferring the Precepts of Zen Lineage – is a public ceremony is to celebrate and formally mark a practitioner receiving the sixteen Bodhisattva precepts (3 refuges, 3 pure precepts, 10 essential precepts) and vowing to work to live their life in accordance with these precepts.

Please join us for this wonderful event

This event will be in place of the usual Saturday Dharma talk (although some words of Zen (Soto) lineage will be spoken). Also note this event will occur for others in August and early September again, as a note for the near future. Prior to that 10:30am time slot it will be our usual routine.

Join us for zazen (seated meditation) at 9:30am, with the Ceremony to follow at around/near 10:30. We offer in-person distanced attendance, and we also will continue to offer a Zoom web conferencing for video and/or audio presence for the scheduled events. There’s an earlier sitting at 6:30am, in addition to the later one at 9:30am (you can log into the conference starting at 9am to socialize). A period of zazen is typically 40 minutes, and it’s ok to adjust your sitting posture as needed.

We enjoy tea and cookies together afterwards.  Please click here to be routed to our Zoom gathering    

And as always you can contact us to arrange an introductory session ~8:45am if you are a beginner.

As a reminder any week you do not see a speaker announced for Dharma talk Saturdays, it is our Abbot, Rev. Myo Lahey.

photo by – https://www.renshinbunce.com/company

Please join us on the 13th of July, Saturday morning for a Dharma talk by Rev. Ryuei, Michael McCormick, who was ordained to the Nichiren-shū (Lotus Sutra School) ministry in 2001 by Rev. Ryusho Matsuda, of the San Jose Nichiren Temple.

Rev. McCormick is also a long-time practitioner of zazen (seated meditation) and a student of the writings of Dōgen-zenji.

He will be joining us from Brazil (Brasil). We hope you can join us!

Join us for zazen (seated meditation) at 9:30am, with the Dharma talk to follow at 10:30. We offer in-person distanced attendance, and we also will continue to offer a Zoom web conferencing for video and/or audio presence for the scheduled events. There’s an earlier sitting at 6:30am, in addition to the later one at 9:30am (you can log into the conference starting at 9am to socialize). A period of zazen is typically 40 minutes, and it’s ok to adjust your sitting posture as needed.

The Dharma talk includes time for questions and answers, occasionally followed by a particular ceremony such as the celebration of Buddha’s Birthday. We enjoy tea and cookies together afterwards.  Please click here to be routed to our Zoom gathering    

And as always you can contact us to arrange an introductory session ~8:45am if you are a beginner.

As a reminder any week you do not see a speaker announced it is our Abbot, Rev. Myo Lahey.

We hope you have a safe and wonderful holiday celebrating the birth of our government. Issan-ji temple / HSZC will be closed for this, Thursday, July 4th.

And we want to invite you to join us Saturday July 6 for a talk from HSZC’s resident Priest , Tanto and Board President, Rev. Daiko Tanzen, David Bullock!  One of our current connection to the early days of Hartford Street’s Zen Center founding, the garden’s long term friend, and many other capacities past and present of HSZC (as well as the past Maitri); who was ordained by the temple’s founder – Rev. Issan Dorsey. 

We hope you can join us!

Join us for zazen (seated meditation) at 9:30am, with the Dharma talk to follow at 10:30. We offer in-person distanced attendance, and we also will continue to offer a Zoom web conferencing for video and/or audio presence for the scheduled events. There’s an earlier sitting at 6:30am, in addition to the later one at 9:30am (you can log into the conference starting at 9am to socialize). A period of zazen is typically 40 minutes, and it’s ok to adjust your sitting posture as needed. The Dharma talk includes time for questions and answers, occasionally followed by a particular ceremony such as the celebration of Buddha’s Birthday. We enjoy tea and cookies together afterwards. Please click here to be routed to our Zoom gathering  

And as always you can contact us to arrange an introductory session ~8:45am if you are a beginner.

As a reminder any week you do not see a speaker announced it is our Abbot, Rev. Myo Lahey.

wishing you memorable joys and feelings of inclusive supported lives.

please do not forget your little zen temple founded to support this (our) community…

and consider or pass along an opportunity for short or longer term student resident Soto Zen practice! See above posts on that.

have a wonderful weekend of celebration

events: https://sfpride.org/

Steven Tierney (Kai Po Koshin) is a Dharma transmitted teacher in the lineage of Suzuki Roshi. Steven practices with: Meditation in Recovery, Great Spirit, SFLGBTQA, and Dragons Leap Sanghas in addition to the Harford Street Zen Center. Steven believes that we can find wisdom, compassion and awakening wherever good people come together for practice, healing, service and joy. Tierney is a psychotherapist in private practice and Professor Emeritus in Counseling Psychology at CIIS.

We hope you can join us!

Join us for zazen (seated meditation) at 9:30am, with the Dharma talk to follow at 10:30. We offer in-person distanced attendance, and we also will continue to offer a Zoom web conferencing for video and/or audio presence for the scheduled events. There’s an earlier sitting at 6:30am, in addition to the later one at 9:30am (you can log into the conference starting at 9am to socialize). A period of zazen is typically 40 minutes, and it’s ok to adjust your sitting posture as needed. The Dharma talk includes time for questions and answers, occasionally followed by a particular ceremony such as the celebration of Buddha’s Birthday. We enjoy tea and cookies together afterwards. Please click here to be routed to our Zoom gathering  

And as always you can contact us to arrange an introductory session ~8:45am if you are a beginner.

As a reminder any week you do not see a speaker announced it is our Abbot, Rev. Myo Lahey.

With special intentions of love, peace and harmony for all beings on this planet in a time still where globally LGBTQ+ peoples are not still yet equal citizens and are treated with negativity. At times the hatred due to misguided societies who often misquote or add intolerance to their religious teachings, to minimize or hurt healthy fully perfected individuals out of lack of education and exposure to the beauty of diverse people.

Wishes hopes and action for a day where we have a fully enlightened world where we all respect and care for one another as part of our same human family.

Issan-ji temple was founded to support and still primary attended and funded by the LGBTQ+ community and supports and invites all beings, but we as always and as founded for, will always exist to ensure this community has access and invitation to the Buddha Way through Soto Zen’s path; in a neighborhood that formed and still stands for love in an equal and legitimate way.

For Issan-ji temple, Hartford Street Zen Center this is a very special time of year.

Hello from Issan-ji…

This evening we wish to reignite the weekly study hour, and as before, we ask that you please opt-in by replying to this note if you wish to attend; the timing, as of old, will be 1930hrs to 2030hrs, making it a literal hour.

We’ll aim to send a functional zoom link around 1900hrs this evening to everyone who has replied, if there is a “quorum”, or a postponement, if not. 🤷🏻‍♂️

We’ll pick up where we left off by looking into Shō Bō Gen Zō “Koku“, or “Space”, which is essay #77 in vol. 2 of Kaz Tanahashi’s masterful translation.