Dōgen Zenji,was a Japanese Zen Buddhist monk,writer,poet,philosopher,and founder of the Sōtōschool of Zen in Japan. He is also known as Dōgen Kigen (道元希玄),Eihei Dōgen (永平道元),Kōso JōyōDaishi (高祖承陽大師),and BusshōDentōKokushi (仏性伝東国師).
SōtōZen or the Sōtōschool is the largest of the three traditional sects of Zen in Japanese Buddhism. It is the Japanese line of the Chinese Cáodòng school,which was founded during the Tang dynasty by Dòngshān Liánjiè. It emphasizes Shikantaza,meditation with no objects,anchors,or content. The meditator strives to be aware of the stream of thoughts,allowing them to arise and pass away without interference.
Kenshō is an East Asian Buddhist term from the Chan / Zen tradition which means "seeing" or "perceiving" "nature" or "essence",or 'true face'. It is usually translated as "seeing one's [true] nature," with "nature" referring to buddha-nature,ultimate reality,the Dharmadhatu. The term appears in one of the classic slogans which define Chan Buddhism:to see oneʼs own nature and accomplish Buddhahood (見性成佛).
Bassui Tokushō was a Rinzai Zen Master born in modern-day Kanagawa Prefecture who had trained with Sōtōand Rinzai Zen-masters. Bassui was tormented by the question what the soul is,or "Who is the one that sees,hears,and understands?" This question was also central in his teachings,and still inspires present-day Zen-practitioners.
The term American Buddhism can be used to describe all Buddhist groups within the United States,including Asian-American Buddhists born into the faith,who comprise the largest percentage of Buddhists in the country.
Kanzeon Zen Center was a Zen Buddhist center located in Salt Lake City,Utah. It was an affiliate of the White Plum Asanga,an association of Zen centers stemming from the tradition of Taizan Maezumi. The founder and Abbot of Kanzeon Zen Center was Dennis Genpo Merzel Roshi,who resigned in 2011 amidst controversy. Kanzeon Zen Center was the home temple and the hub of Kanzeon Sangha International,founded by Genpo Roshi in 1984,with affiliate teachers,centers and groups in the US and seven European countries. The center was housed at 1274 E. South Temple,a historic building listed as a contributing property in the South Temple Historic District. It closed in the wake of the sex scandals involving Merzel. News reports stated that the center was deeply financially in debt to Merzel.
HakuyūTaizan Maezumi was a Japanese SōtōZen Buddhist priest who substantially contributed to development of Zen in the USA.
The Utah Supreme Court is the supreme court of the state of Utah,United States. It has final authority of interpretation of the Utah Constitution. The Utah Supreme Court is composed of five members:a chief justice,an associate chief justice,and three other justices. All justices are appointed by the governor of Utah,with confirmation by the Utah Senate. The five justices elect one of their own to serve as chief justice and another to serve as associate chief justice,each for a term of four years.
Dennis Merzel is an American Zen and spirituality teacher,also known as Genpo Roshi.
Michael Zimmerman may refer to:
Bernie Glassman was an American Zen Buddhist roshi and founder of the Zen Peacemakers,an organization established in 1980. In 1996,he co-founded the Zen Peacemaker Order with his late wife Sandra Jishu Holmes. Glassman was a Dharma successor of the late Taizan Maezumi-roshi,and gave inka and Dharma transmission to several people.
Hakuryu Sojun Mel Weitsman,born Mel Weitsman,was an American Buddhist who was the founder,abbot and guiding teacher of Berkeley Zen Center located in Berkeley,California. Weitsman was a Soto Zen roshi practicing in the lineage of Shunryu Suzuki,having received Dharma transmission in 1984 from Suzuki's son Hoitsu. He was also a co-abbot of the San Francisco Zen Center,where he served from 1988 to 1997. Weitsman was also editor of the book Branching Streams Flow in the Darkness:Zen Talks on the Sandokai,based on talks given by Suzuki on the Sandokai.
White Plum Asanga,sometimes termed White Plum Sangha,is a loose "organization of peers whose members are leaders of Zen Communities in the lineage of Hakuyu Taizan Maezumi," created by Hakuyu Taizan Maezumi and Tetsugen Bernard Glassman. It consists of Maezumi's Dharma heirs and subsequent successors.
Issan Dorsey,born Tommy Dorsey Jr.,was a SōtōZen monk and teacher,Dharma heir of Zentatsu Richard Baker and onetime abbot of Hartford Street Zen Center (HSZC) located in the Castro district of San Francisco,California. Earlier in his life,he had worked as a prostitute and a drag queen,and had struggled at times with drug addiction. He died of complications from AIDS in 1990.
Michael Jon Wilkins is an American lawyer and judge. He is a retired Justice of the Utah Supreme Court and current chairman of the Utah Independent Ethics Commission.
Below is a timeline of important events regarding Zen Buddhism in the United States. Dates with "?" are approximate.
J. Frederic Voros Jr. is an American jurist,hymnist,and author. He was a judge on the Utah Court of Appeals from 2009 to 2017.
Zen was introduced in the United States at the end of the 19th century by Japanese teachers who went to America to serve groups of Japanese immigrants and become acquainted with the American culture. After World War II,interest from non-Asian Americans grew rapidly. This resulted in the commencement of an indigenous American Zen tradition which also influences the larger western (Zen) world.
J. Allen Crockett (1906–1994) was a justice of the Utah Supreme Court from 1951 to 1981 –longer than anyone else in Utah's history. During his long tenure on the court,he was Chief Justice three times:from 1959 to 1961,from 1967 to 1970,and from 1979 to 1981.
