The Precepts of Skillful Action are the core Zen ethical teachings They are the heart of what it means to practice Zen off the cushion—and their study is an endlessly rich, ever-unfolding practice.

This study is open to all, whether you are just curious, intending to participate in a future formal ceremony of “receiving the precepts,” or have attended before and just want to discuss the precepts again.

The Spring 2025 cycle began March 16 and ran through June 1. Here is the information document. The next cycle will be scheduled when there is sufficient interest, which will likely be in late summer or fall.

It is fine to miss a class due to other commitments. If you are preparing for the ceremony, you may make up classes in the next cycle. There is no set fee, but donations are gratefully accepted. 

Watch the GBZC Newsletter (subscribe here) for announcements of future cycles. 

Email precepts@bostonzen.org to enroll or for more information. 

Of course we are all aging, and at the same pace! Yet the reality of this often becomes more noticeable at midlife or later. This group is for anyone who wants to explore with others how we may be fully present in this process, drawing on resources from the Zen tradition. 

We will begin by reading 4000 weeks: Time Management for Mortals by Oliver Burkeman and meeting online 9-10am (EST) on (usually) the third Wednesdays of each month. For more information, the schedule, and the zoom link, see this instructions document.

Questions? Email julie@bostonzen.org.

Note: Thesaurus.com suggests synonyms for “aging” that include “maturing,” “fermenting,” “mellowing,” “crumbling,” and “developing”! Take your pick, or embrace them all! 

GBZC is now offering an “Aspects of Zen” series, meeting occasionally, usually on the 2nd Wednesday of the month  from 7-8:30 pm via Zoom. See the Newsletter or Calendar for possible upcoming offerings.

The zoom information is:
Meeting ID: 881 4801 5759
Passcode: GBZC

The suggested donation is $15 per session, but please don’t let money issues keep you away!  Leaders (or co-leaders) will be GBZC members who have experience with a topic and want to share it.

Questions? Ideas for topics? Interested in leading a session? Contact programming@bostonzen.org.

Starting in June 2024, the GBZC Book Discussion Group is reading and discussing The Hidden Lamp: Stories from Twenty-Five Centuries of Awakened Women, edited by Zenshin Florence Caplow and Reigetsu Susan Moon. Meetings are held approximately monthly on Sunday evenings from 7:30-8:30pm via zoom. There is no charge, though donations are always welcome. See the Instructions Document for the upcoming schedule and more information.

Announcing the
Greater Boston Zen Center Sesshin
September 19-22, 2024 
Northwestern Massachusetts 

Dear Sangha Friends, 

We are pleased to announce that we will hold a residential retreat from September 19-22 in the scenic Berkshires town of Monroe, Massachusetts. The three-day sesshin will begin with dinner at 5:30pm Thursday evening, September 19 and end at noon on Sunday, September 22. Because space is limited to ten people and we know you want to be able to make plans, we are starting registration now. 

Our sesshin days will begin early in the morning and conclude by 9pm each evening. Our schedule will include periods of sitting (zazen) and walking (kinhin) meditation, chanting, work practice (samu), formal meal practice (oryoki) and discussions led by volunteer attendees. For those who want them, private meetings (dokusan) will be offered by qualified senior practitioners. We will be staying in a well-furnished home and preparing our own simple, vegetarian meals.

The total fee for the retreat is $210 for members and $240 for non-members. Single rooms may be available for an additional fee. Scholarships are available for those who can’t afford the full fee. Donations to the scholarship fund from those who can afford it are very welcome!

Registrations will be accepted through September 12 – but with limited space early registration is strongly encouraged! The first ten registrants will receive immediate confirmation of registration and be asked to pay a non-refundable deposit of $20.  The balance of fees will be due no later than August 22. Those on the waitlist will be notified of space as it becomes available. 

Carpools will be arranged, where possible. 

To register, please fill out this form. It asks for your contact information, retreat background, your preferences regarding rooms and roommates (if any), and your needs for special accommodations, financial aid, or transportation. You will (by email) then receive more details about fees/scholarships if you are among the first ten registrants, or be told you are on the waitlist if not. Those attending the sesshin will receive more information about retreat observances, the schedule, carpools, and what to bring as the sesshin approaches. 

If you have questions – about registration, fees, schedules, or on-site arrangements – please contact me.

We hope to see you there! 

Julie Nelson (Sesshin Registrar)

and the GBZC Retreat Working Group
registrar@bostonzen.org.

Sesshin: to touch the heart-mind

Registration is now CLOSED for the

Greater Boston Zen Center December Sesshin
December 14-17, 2023
Mercy by the Sea Retreat and Conference Center
167 Neck Road
Madison, CT 06443-0191 

Dear Sangha Friends, 

We are pleased to announce that registration is now open for our residential retreat to be held December 14-17 at Mercy by the Sea in Madison, CT. The retreat begins with dinner at 5:30pm Thursday evening, December 13, and ends at 10:00am on Sunday, December 17. 

Mercy by the Sea is situated on Long Island Sound and offers a strikingly beautiful setting for retreat. Delicious vegetarian meals are provided. Rooms are single or double occupancy with a private bath, or a bath shared with one other room. Linens are provided. (There will be no dorms, bunk beds, or need for sleeping bags.) The retreat center has no Covid-related protocols at this time, though masking is encouraged.

Because GBZC is, during this time of revisioning who we want to be, without an official teacher, the schedule will emphasize sitting and walking meditation, chanting, and discussions led by volunteer attendees. However, sangha member Julie Nelson, a Sensei in the Taizan Maezumi lineage, will offer opportunities for private meetings to those who wish to arrange them. 

The total fee for the retreat is $375 for members and $425 for non-members.   (Membership can be applied for online.) Single rooms will likely be available for an additional fee. Donations to the scholarship fund are very welcome.

Too expensive? Don’t have a car? We do not want the cost to prevent anyone from attending. Financial aid is available if you are unable to pay the full fee.  However, we do ask everyone to make some contribution no matter how small.  Carpools will be arranged from the Boston area. 

Registration Process: 

1. Please fill out this on-line form. It asks you for contact information, and about your retreat background, your preferences regarding a roommate (if any), and your need for special accommodations or financial aid.  
     
2. After you fill out the form, please pay your fees (or what you can afford of them) and/or donate to the scholarship fund by going to this website to pay via PayPal, credit card, or bank transfer (ACH). If you prefer, you may mail a check made out to GBZC to:  GBZC Treasurer, 552 Massachusetts Ave, #208, Cambridge, MA 02139 (Please indicate on the memo line of the check:” December Sesshin.”  If you are able to make an additional donation to the scholarship fund, please note this amount as “Scholarship fund.”)

Payment in full is required to complete your registration. 

1.   You will be notified by email of successful registration.  Allow 5 business days for the check to arrive, if you pay by check. 

Note: 

Because the members’ fee only covers room, board, and snacks, $375 of your payment is not tax deductible. The additional $50 for non-members and any donations to the scholarship fund are, like membership pledges, considered tax-deductible donations. 

Payment, cancellation, and wait list policies: 

•   Registrations must be received by November 29. 
•   We request that you notify us as soon as possible if you need to cancel.  Cancellations made by November 15 will receive a full refund. Cancellations by November 29 will receive a half refund. There will be no refunds after November 29. 

If you have questions about registration and fees, please contact registrar@bostonzen.org. Questions about schedules and other on-site arrangements should be directed to tanto@bostonzen.org. 

Those who register will receive more details about retreat observances, the schedule, and what to bring as our December sesshin approaches. 

We hope to see you there!

With the federal and state public health emergencies expiring May 11th, GBZC’s COVID policy is changing, effective the same date.

The new policy is:

• GBZC will continue to abide by Cambridge’s local regulations and mask ordinances
• Masks optional. Please do mask and take other precautions you feel appropriate
• Vaccinations encouraged
• Please stay home if you’re feeling unwell
• We’ll continue to monitor in case of further COVID developments

If you have comments or concerns, please feel free to email covid@bostonzen.org.

We need volunteers to lead discussions at occasional Tuesday evening and Saturday morning sits! Please consider volunteering. Such discussions can take a variety of formats, including:

1. A prepared talk (10–20 minutes) by a presenter (usually someone who has been practicing for a good while), followed by discussion
2. Opening comments (5–10 minutes, which may include a reading) by a presenter, followed by discussion
3.  A question or set of questions that are on your mind, followed by discussion
4. A reading, followed by discussion
5. Other innovations (sharing a song? a video?), as appropriate

To volunteer, please write to programming@bostonzen.org and include which format you’d be interested in and your idea for a topic, question, or reading. You should also say whether you will facilitate the group discussion yourself or if you would prefer to have someone else do it. Discussion can be conducted popcorn style or as circle practice as decided by the facilitator. Readings could include pieces from the liturgy or from elsewhere. Questions could be questions about our practice, people’s experiences with Zen, historical teachings—whatever might be interesting and instructive. The scheduler may then go back and forth with you about possible materials, format, and dates. 

Contact programming@bostonzen.org with any questions. 

A number of people in the sangha have expressed a need for more silent sitting and/or more opportunity to hear from others in the sangha. As a result, the Programming Working Group in consultation with the teachers, practice leaders, and participants has made some changes to our Tuesday evening and Saturday morning practice formats. We have added more periods of silent sitting as well as discussions led by someone other than a senior teacher, and arranged these so that each week at least one practice group includes a talk, while another offers just silent sitting, and yet another offers dokusan. Each sit still includes an opening circle, a sutra service, and seated and walking meditation.

Here is a summary of the new schedule: 

For more details, see the Practice Instructions for each group.

Are you concerned about there being fewer Dharma Talks or opportunities for dokusan? Please note that there will still be a talk given every week, and recall that many are published in our podcast series. It has also become common, in the era of Zoom, to offer dokusan by appointment. Please contact a senior teacher (jeff@bostonzen.org, ed@bostonzen.org, julie@bostonzen.org or fran@bostonzen.org) if you would like to arrange an appointment via zoom or in Cambridge.

The Sunrise Sit (Monday-Friday 7am, via zoom) has also adopted a silent practice on Mondays.

Questions or concerns? Please contact programming@bostonzen.org or talk with your teachers or practice leaders. We want to find the format that best supports our sangha-wide Zen practice!