Hartford Street Zen Center | Issan-ji temple
A Sōtō Zen temple for the LGBTQ+ community, friends and allies in San Francisco's Castro neighborhood
As we all know our neighborhood gets wild on Halloween, so we will be closed the evening of and morning after to recoup the lost sleep from the late night celebrations going on around us.
Have a safe & enjoyable holiday! —Also Study Hour on Oct 31st will not occur… We will close after Morning schedule on the 31st and reopen 6pm Nov 1.
Rev.Beata Chapman will be leading Women’s Sangha on Tuesday 29 October at 7:00pm. This is an Open ongoing group for ALL Women.
Rev. Keiryu Lien Shutt will be speaking the following Tuesday 5 November at 7:00.
We are pleased and honored to have Rev. Beata Chapman leading the Women’s Sangha this coming Tuesday 29 October at 7:00pm.
Saturday 26 October – Sejiki Ceremony: Following a Guest Speaker Dharma talk from Rev Jeffrey Schneider, we’ll celebrate the ancient ceremony known in Japanese as Sejiki, or “Feeding the Jiki (wandering spirits)”. This ceremony addresses our connection to the “unseen world”, typically overlooked in the West. All aspects of our life that have been disowned, disrespected and denied are invited to come forth from exile and be nourished, a gesture that may have particular significance for members of the LGBTiQQ community, whose own place in the social order has been undermined by fear, prejudice and violence. Costumes and sundry noisemaking devices are encouraged, and everyone is invited to participate. (Time approximate after the Dharma talk, but about 11:10 a.m.)
Every Saturday we offer early morning zazen (seated meditation), a brief drop-in meditation instruction at 8:30 am. And again zazen at 9:25 am. We wrap up with a dharma talk at 10:15 am followed by tea and cookies.
Please join us this Saturday and we hope to see you often!
Jeffrey Schneider is a priest at SF Zen Center, where he has lived, worked and practiced since 1978. He has taught and led retreats at a number of Buddhist centers, including ones in Texas, Missouri and North Carolina. The founder of the SF Zen Center recovery programs, he is currently the Outreach and Volunteer Coordinator.
Every Saturday we offer early morning zazen (seated meditation), morning service, a brief drop-in meditation instruction at 8:30 am. And again zazen at 9:25 am. We wrap up with a dharma talk at 10:15 am followed by tea and cookies.
Please join us this Saturday and we hope to see you often!
We’ll have the monthly Full-Moon Ceremony renewal of our Bodhisattva vows Saturday morning after the Dharma talk. According to the Farmer’s 
Almanac this is the full hunters moon. The first full moon of fall.
The ceremony takes about a half-hour and involves some thirty full prostrations, but simple standing bows are also all right if prostrations are too strenuous.
Everyone is welcome to take part in this celebration. And for those interested in a charity walk through SF touring Buddhist temples and centers and helping to feed the hungry at 12:45pm you can join some of us for the walk to feed the Hungry with the Buddhist Global Relief.
Please join us for our normal morning program followed by the first Dharma talk from our Abbot, Rev. Myo Lahey at 10:15am.
And following a great charitable event and stroll through SF and, a wonderful way to meet more fellow Buddhists at 12:45pm:
At 4pm on October 13th 2013 our former Practice Leader ascended the mountain and became our Abbot! A deep bow of congratulations to all of Hartford Street Zen Center Community and to Rev Myo Lahey. We look forward to our years ahead together practicing this ancient, life changing way of Soto Zen.
Earnestly strive to avoid seeking outside, lest you go for astray. I travel on alone now, but everywhere I go I meet it. It is no other than me, but I am not it. Understand in this way to merge with true suchness – Dongshan
