eMirror Vol 29, No. 30 (2025-07-25)

 

Huangshan

Huangshan

eMirror Vol 29, No. 30

Friday, July 25th, 2025
Edited by the Practice Council

The White Wind Zen Community:
An international community practising and teaching Dogen’s Zen since 1985.


One day Yaoshan asked, “Other than staying at Mount Baizhang, where else have you been?”
Yunyan said, “I was in Guangnan [Southern China].”
Yaoshan said, “I have heard that east of Guangzhou’s city gate there is a great stone that the local governor cannot move. Is this so?”
Yunyan said, “Not only the governor but everyone in the country altogether cannot move it.”


There is a large stone in a grouping of three standing amidst the gravel garden under the old leaning spruce tree at the east side of the monastery. Some time ago, probably in the summer of 1987, I found it while digging in the garden at Daijozan, one of our old temples. I picked it up and moved it to the front and set it upright by some cedar trees. When we established Zazen-ji, our new monastery, in 1988, it was put onto a truck using a wheelbarrow. In 1996 when we moved here to Dainen-ji it was again carted with us and lay on its side amidst other stones that we had gathered. A few years ago it was established in its present position. Although I once had lifted and carried that stone by myself, I doubt my arthritic elbows would let me lift it now. But then, eventually, for everyone, everything becomes too heavy for us to lift, even our heads and hands.
    There are of course stones that no one has ever been able to move. I have walked and stood with groups of people together on such huge stones, covered with lichen and growing wild blueberries. Even flowers have planted themselves eventually on such stones. So since we cannot move them, people just blow them up with explosives if they are in our way. Regardless of whether or not there is such a stone outside Guangzhou, there is something that is always immoveable. It presents itself as every stone and as every leaf and as every breeze and every ripple on the face of water.

Dogen zenji comments on this.

Later, Dogen said, “Yaoshan and Yunyan have talked like this so how can I, Eihei, avoid speaking? Not only the local governor, not only the entire country, but if all the Buddhas of the three times and all the Ancestors were to use all their strength in trying to shift it, it would not budge. Why?”
After a pause Dogen said, “Each and every thing as such has no inside or outside. Every particle is firm, placed in samadhi. How wondrous and amazing! The whole body is bright and shining, beyond the value of jewels.”


All of this motion, this rising and falling and coming and going is always so, it is the hossho or nature of reality. Nothing can ever be pried apart from it and grasped onto as an object, as something permanent, as something owned by a someone. Nothing is sealed off from anything else. Inside and outside interpenetrate. Everything is priceless. 

-Continuing teisho 3: Try To Lift It, Sunday, May 16, 2005, in the series "Wandering on Medicine Mountain" presented by Zen Master Anzan Hoshin at Dainen-ji



The Hatto (for formal sittings)

The Hatto (for formal sittings)
 

Zen with renovated floors and new Butsudan (August 2024)

The Zendo (for associate and general sittings)
 


Practice Schedule and Upcoming Events

Fusatsu (Renewal of Vows): August 6th and 20th.

Introduction to Zen Workshop Ottawa:
The next two Introduction to Zen Workshops will take place on Saturday, August 2nd at 1:45 p.m. and Saturday, September 6th at 1:45 p.m. To register: https://IntroductionToZenWorkshop.eventbrite.ca ; for more information please see https://wwzc.org/introduction-zen-workshop-ottawa 

August Sesshin:
The August two-day sesshin will begin on Friday, August 8th at 8:00 p.m. and will end on Sunday, August 10th, at 6:00 p.m. Formal students are reminded to send their schedules as soon as possible.

General Sitting:
On August 9th, during the sesshin there will be a general sitting in the Zendo. The sitting will begin at 9:30 a.m. (please arrive by 9:15, in time for First Bell) and will end at 11:30 a.m. Students attending are reminded to remain on the first floor.

Dogen-ki (August 28th)
The memorial of Eihei Dogen Kigen zenji's death.

Hermitage:
The Roshi is continuing an extended period of hermitage due to underlying health issues.


Weekly Practice Schedule

Formal Sittings for WWZC Students: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday Mornings. The formal sittings begin at 6:00 a.m. You would need to arrive by 5:45 in time for First Bell. The sitting ends at 7:25 with the Chants. Following that there is a Daruma-kata Aiki review which ends at about 7:50. If you need to leave before the kata, please let us know that in advance by sending an email to schedule@wwzc.org.

Saturday Morning General Sitting for WWZC Students: The general sitting begins at 9:30 a.m. You would need to arrive by 9:15 a.m., in time for First Bell. The sitting ends at 11:45 a.m. Some general students attend the 6:00 a.m. Saturday morning formal sitting, stay for breakfast and then attend the general sitting. If you stay for breakfast, there is a $5 contribution which can be made through Eventbrite: Register for Saturday Breakfast Proceeds from meals go to White Wind Zen Community.

Monday and Thursday Evening Associate Sittings for WWZC Students: The associate sitting begins at 7:30 p.m. You would need to arrive by 7:15 p.m., in time for First Bell. The sitting ends at 9:10 p.m.

Friday (Hosan): There are no formal sittings scheduled at the monastery on Fridays, but you are expected to sit at home if you have committed to sitting zazen daily. Retreats may be scheduled on Fridays.

Sunday Formal Sitting: The Sunday morning formal sittings are reserved for monastics, formal students, and probationary formal students. It starts at 7:00 a.m. and ends at 10:10 a.m. with the chants. Following that there is a Daruma-kata Aiki which ends at about 10:30 a.m.


Long Distance Training Program

For students living an hour or more commuting distance from the monastery in Ottawa, please visit this Web Page: https://wwzc.org/long-distance-training-program


What to do if you Arrive After the Sitting Begins

If you arrive after the sitting starts and the door is locked, you don't need to turn around and go home. Ring the bell once and then sit on the bench on the front porch. If possible, we will come and unlock the door for you right away. If we are in the middle of the chants or listening to a teisho, we will come to let you in as soon as the teisho finishes.


Retreats and Training Sessions

Information About Scheduling Retreats or Training Sessions

General public student Julien Jefferson sat a one and a half-day retreat from Thursday, July 17th to Saturday, July 19th at Dainen-ji. General public student Aaron Ford sat a two-day retreat on Saturday, July 19th and Sunday, July 20th at his home in Calgary, Alberta. General public student Matthew Moher sat a half-day retreat on Saturday, July 19th at Dainen-ji. General student Rana Annous sat a partial retreat on Saturday, July 19th at Dainen-ji. Associate student Sean Howarth sat a half-day retreat on Saturday, July 19th at Dainen-ji.


Recorded Teachings Schedule

July 26th to August 2nd, 2025

Listening to Recorded Teisho and Dharma Talks

General sitting Saturday, July 26th
Without Difficulty: Zen Master Anzan Hoshin's Commentaries on "Xinxin Ming: Words on Trusting Awareness" by Jianzhi Sengcan: Teisho 9: Straying? Dimming? Sinking? Rotting? Flowering? (21 minutes)

Formal sitting Sunday, July 27th
"The Secret Life of Manjusri" by Zen Master Anzan Hoshin: Teisho 7: The Bindu (37 minutes)

Associate sittings Monday, July 28th and Thursday, July 31st
Sitting Up Straight: Zen Master Anzan Hoshin's Commentaries on Keizan Jokin zenji's "Zazen Yojinki": Teisho 9: The World of True Zazen (20 minutes)

General sitting Saturday, August 2nd
Without Difficulty: Zen Master Anzan Hoshin's Commentaries on "Xinxin Ming: Words on Trusting Awareness" by Jianzhi Sengcan: Teisho 10: The One Way Is All Directions (24 minutes)


Troubleshooting Access to the Recorded Teachings Library

Some students are having issues accessing the Recorded Teachings library. Recent scheduled maintenance by our web hosting company resulted in everyone being logged out of their account. If you can no longer see the "Recorded Teachings" link in the left-hand menu bar, this means that you have been logged out and you will need to log back in again. You will find the log-in link under "Account" at the bottom of the left-hand menu bar.


Recorded Teachings for Public Access

While most of the online Recorded Teachings library is password-protected and only accessible to students of the Lineage of Zen Master Anzan Hoshin, a small selection of MP3 recordings of teisho are accessible to the public at wwzc.org/recorded-teachings Additional recordings will be uploaded periodically. MP3 recordings of four recorded teisho by Ven. Anzan Hoshin roshi are currently available:

Dharma Position https://wwzc.org/dharma-position
Eyes See, Ears Hear https://wwzc.org/eyes-see-ears-hear
Embarrassment https://wwzc.org/embarrassment
Ven. Anzan Hoshin roshi's reading of his translation of Eihei Dogen zenji's “Bendowa: A Talk on Exerting the Way”: https://wwzc.org/bendowa-talk-exerting-way


Translations and Texts

Photograph of Ven. Anzan Hoshin roshi at Daijozan, mid-1980s by Ven. Shikai Zuiko sensei

Photograph of Ven. Anzan Hoshin roshi at Daijozan, mid-1980s,
by Ven. Shikai Zuiko sensei

Ven. Anzan Hoshin roshi has recently completed translation work on some shorter texts by Eihei Dogen zenji from the Shobogenzo. The work on these particular texts is based upon the literal translations that he worked on with Joshu Dainen roshi at Hakukaze-ji around 1977-78 followed by many years of putting them down, picking them up, and polishing. Naturally, more essential texts such as Uji, Genjokoan, Shinjin Gakudo and some 40 others were completed first and have been given extensive commentaries by the Roshi. This batch of texts includes Keisei Sanshoku: Sounds of Streams, Forms of Mountains, Baike: Plum Blossoms, Ryugin: Howling Dragon, and Udonge: The Udumbara Blossoming and many others are nearing completion. Annotation details and successfully conveying them across various document formats are the issue at this point.

Work on Bussho: Buddha Nature, a very long and nuanced text by Dogen zenji, is still ongoing.

Roshi also finished an update to the “Saijo Shingi: The Deportment of Radiance”, our manual of monastic training standards which is a supplement to the ancient Eihei Shingi and Keizan Shingi.


White Wind Zen Community Website Update

Dharma Talk: “Embarrassment” 
Dharma Talk presented by Ven. Anzan Hoshin roshi on August 25th, 1990.
https://wwzc.org/dharma-text/embarrassment

Teisho: “Practising Without an Edge”
Teisho presented by Ven. Jinmyo Renge sensei on February 19th, 2025
https://wwzc.org/dharma-text/practising-without-edge

Teisho: “I Know Who You Are!”
Teisho presented by Ven. Anzan Hoshin roshi, presented at Dainen-ji on March 13th, 1999
https://wwzc.org/dharma-text/teisho-i-know-who-you-are

Dharma Assembly: On Karma 
Mondo by Ven. Anzan Hoshin roshi, presented in April  of 1986, River Road Zendo. 
https://wwzc.org/dharma-text/dharma-assembly-karma


Request for Help to Maintain the Grounds

If you would like to offer time to help with maintenance in the grounds your help will be appreciated. You can offer a regular period of samu or make arrangements with the shissui to come for a single period of caretaking practice. Please write to info@wwzc.org or directly to Saigyo ino at saigyo.cross@gmail.com if you can assist with this work. Thank you.


Wooden Practice Materials for Sale in Myomaku

Saigyo ino has made a selection of wooden practice materials which are now for sale in myomaku. These include boxes for storing incense, incense bowls, kneeling benches and kaishaku. He is donating a portion of the proceeds to WWZC. You are welcome to go into myomaku before or after sittings to see what’s available.
 

Wooden Practice Materials for Sale in Myomaku


Alternate parking for sittings near Dainen-ji

If you need alternate parking near the monastery due to snow parking bans or lack of parking spots you can use the Loblaws car park located at 363 Rideau Street - 
https://en.parkopedia.ca/parking/parkade/loblaws/k1n/ottawa/?arriving=202503101130&leaving=202503101330
 
The car park is open until 10:00 p.m and charges $4 per hour. A full day 6:00a.m. to 6:00 p.m. is $10.


Onion

Office of the Tenzo

Dogen zenji taught in the Tenzo Kyokun: Instructions for the Tenzo ( Tenzo kyokun: Instructions for the Tenzo https://wwzc.org/dharma-text/tenzo-kyokun-instructions-tenzo ) that the work of preparing and serving meals is "a matter for realized monks who have the mind of the Way“, or by senior disciples who have roused the Way-seeking mind." In alignment with this, part of Zen Master Anzan Hoshin's samu for the Community involves personally overseeing the activities of the ancient Office of Tenzo. Ven. Jinmyo Renge sensei serves as Tenzo and Mishin godo and Saigyo ino offer assistance as tenzo-anja.

The WWZC does not advocate any particular diet. However all meals prepared during practice events, such as Dharma Assemblies, sesshin, or retreats are vegetarian or vegan as most people can eat this. On Tuesday evenings there is an optional meat dish, as some people find that a purely vegetarian diet, especially as they get older, is not sufficient for their health. If you are adhering to a strictly vegan diet, you can write to the tenzo, Jinmyo Renge sensei, at jinmyo.renge@wwzc.org a week prior to attending an event to request vegan foods. If you are lactose intolerant or have allergies to foods, you should write to the tenzo about dietary restrictions a week before attending events.

The meal served during Yaza (all-night sitting) on July 12th:
Thai white rice; medium-firm tofu sauteed and then braised in a sauce made from minced ginger, shitake mushrooms and mushroom stock, fermented black bean paste, Chinese cooking wine, chili garlic paste and vegetarian oyster sauce, thickened with a little potato starch, to which glass noodles (made from sweet potato) were added; garnished with sesame oil and chopped scallions. 

The following meals were made on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday evenings. 

Monday Yakuseki:
Crusty rolls with butter; Etruscan legume and vegetable soup (spoon sized pieces of Spanish onion, leeks, green cabbage, zucchini, celery, diced carrots, potatoes, spoon sized pieces of fresh kale and Swiss chard sauteed in olive oil infused with rosemary, garlic, and sage with vegetable broth made from the scraps and peelings of the vegetables, chick peas and whole cannellini beans, chickpeas and cannellini beans (some of the cannellini beans were blended and then emulsified with olive oil infused with rosemary, sage, and garlic to make a ‘crema’ which was added to the soup); salad of chopped romaine and green leaf lettuce, radicchio, thinly sliced white onion and grated carrots with an optional dressing of equal parts mayonnaise, dijon mustard, and apple cider vinegar with honey and black pepper, with optional mixed seed topping. 

Tuesday Yakuseki:
Lundberg brown rice mixed with sauteed yellow onion, chopped kale and green chard; 
roasted chicken thighs seasoned with smoked paprika, ancho and chipotle chilis, garnished with yogurt mixed with lemon juice and chopped scallions; green cabbage coleslaw with Granny Smith apples and chopped fresh dill.

Thursday Yakuseki:
Calrose short grain white rice with pearled barley, chopped scallions and sesame oil; miso soup made with vegetable stock, shiro miso, minced garlic, sauteed medium-firm tofu, finely sliced ginger, white onion, and bokchoy; blanched green beans sauteed with garlic; baechu kimchi.


Monk bowing

Thank You

If you would like to thank someone for a contribution they have made, please feel free to send an email to Jinmyo sensei at rengezo@gmail dot com, but be sure to type "eMirror” in the subject line.

From Jinmyo sensei:
Thank you to Mishin godo for many hours of administration she did this week, in addition to other tasks; to Saigyo ino for planning out samu projects around the monastery; to Fushin shuso for picking up bags of potting soil for herbs and other plants in the monastery; to Senbo and Myocho for coordinating orders placed with Great Matter Publications and mailing books; to Yujin for taking care of donating items we are not using; to Fushin shuso, Senbo and Yujin for their work on creating a new Website for White Wind Zen Community.

From Yujin:
Thank you to Roshi for presenting countless teisho, and for establishing a very detailed and carefully structured residential training program at Dainen-ji. Thank you to Jinmyo sensei for a wonderful array of resident meals this week, for growing nutritious mushrooms at Dainen-ji, and for regular dokusan.

From the Office of the Treasurer:
Thank you to Martin Miasko, Sean Howarth, David Alexander, and an anonymous donor for donations.

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