Soto Zen Buddhist Association - SZBA

04/22/2022

We are pleased to announce that the SZBA has completed its first yearly review of SZBA BIPOC Scholarship Fund applications. In this first year, all applications were accepted and we would like to congratulate these five scholarship recipients from around the United States.

The funds awarded will go towards things such as travel and registration costs related to retreats and training, study materials, and supplies for practice and ritual. The SZBA thanks its generous donors who make it possible for us to support these scholarship recipients on their path and celebrate this step in our organization.

Additional funds are available for needs that may come up throughout the year. If you would like to support or learn more about this work, you may go to szba.org/donations or https://donorbox.org/szba-bipoc-scholarship-fund

03/09/2022

Many Communities, One Sangha is a five-part, online self-facilitated community inquiry to support and energize sanghas and dharma practitioners seeking to create more equitable, inclusive communities. It is designed to be used by groups of five or more people, and guides participants through five sessions of inquiry and practice:

Session One: Introduction and Values
Session Two: Safety, Dignity and Belonging
Session Three: Right Relationship to Authority and Power
Session Four: Visioning
Session Five: Moving Forward Together

When you register, you will receive:
Access to more than 6 hours of video instruction and talks by Mushim Ikeda, Rhonda Magee, and Crystal Johnson.

A guide for course facilitators and participants that includes facilitation instructions, supplemental materials, resources, and a recommended schedule.

Online support from SZBA staff if questions arise as you implement the course in your sangha.

Go to szba.org/courses to contact SZBA with questions or to purchase this course. Proceeds from this course will support the East Bay Meditation Center and the Soto Zen Buddhist Association BIPOC Scholarship Fund.

Link for additional donations to EBMC: https://eastbaymeditation.org/generosity/donate/
Link for additional donations to SZBA/Scholarship Fund: https://www.szba.org/donations
For more information go to: szba.org/courses

01/26/2022

Thank you to those who have completed our disability survey. Please take a moment to share this with others who might be able to offer their experiences as well. We are grateful for your input and look forward to increasing accessibility and inclusion across the wider Buddhist sangha including the SZBA.

Over the past few years, SZBA has made expanding accessibility and inclusion one of its top priorities. The SZBA DEIA Committee and Priests with Disabilities Affinity Group have created a survey to find out more about the experience of Soto Zen priests and practitioners with physical/mental disabilities and/or who identify as neuro-diverse. If you are a Soto Zen Buddhist priest or are a Soto Zen practitioner who has considered priest training, and have/have had a physical/mental disability and/or identify as neuro-diverse, please consider taking this survey (Link in the bio). The SZBA hopes to gain a wide understanding of these experiences. Using what is learned, the SZBA will open discussion and opportunities for collaboration as we consider ways the SZBA and its members can expand DEIA in sanghas. We hope to hear from you. Click here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeJZCqoNZ5gP4GV2N5MCiJkSkndEGfNicXWtceTvbdAQjYNMQ/viewform

01/21/2022

Over the past few years, SZBA has made expanding accessibility and inclusion one of its top priorities. The SZBA DEIA Committee and Priests with Disabilities Affinity Group have created a survey to find out more about the experience of Soto Zen priests and practitioners with physical/mental disabilities and/or who identify as neuro-diverse. If you are a Soto Zen Buddhist priest or are a Soto Zen practitioner who has considered priest training, and have/have had a physical/mental disability and/or identify as neuro-diverse, please consider taking this survey (Link in the bio). The SZBA hopes to gain a wide understanding of these experiences. Using what is learned, the SZBA will open discussion and opportunities for collaboration as we consider ways the SZBA and its members can expand DEIA in sanghas. We hope to hear from you. Click here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeJZCqoNZ5gP4GV2N5MCiJkSkndEGfNicXWtceTvbdAQjYNMQ/viewform

12/02/2021

To our members, friends, and donors, thank you for your generosity on and every day🙏. We can only do our work with your strength and support. With palms pressed 💫✨🌟

11/26/2021

The Soto Zen Buddhist Association recognizes that there are inequities in access to Zen practice due to systemic racism. To make reparations for these inequities, the SZBA has formed a scholarship fund to begin to redistribute economic resources to BIPOC Soto Zen practitioners. We hope you will consider a gift to the SZBA to support BIPOC Buddhist practitioners. www.szba.org/donations

11/24/2021

🙏 Thank you to our donors, friends, and volunteers. We are grateful.

11/18/2021

"The practice of sitting helped me realize that suffering is universal and that it was time to accept and move away from anger and bitterness and create a new life without fighting back." ~ Shoryu

Our member priests and teachers help to channel resilience and compassion. Members of the SZBA channel the spirit of Kannon in offering varied support to practitioners and creating a multitude of ways that one can discover, embrace, and deepen this healing practice.

Thank you to the generosity of our donor, Shogaku Institute, for matching gifts to the SZBA between now and the end of the year, up to $1,000. As we move into a new season of gratitude and thanksgiving, we invite you to support the SZBA at any level - www.SZBA.org/donations

09/26/2021

This is the last week to join Many Communities, One Sangha - exploring the reality of equity and inclusion.

What do we actually mean by equity?
What does it mean to practice being in "right relationship" to hierarchy and authority in our communities?

This course is designed as an online facilitated community inquiry to support and energize sanghas and dharma practitioners seeking to create equitable, inclusive communities.

For more information and to register, go to szba.org/courses

08/23/2021

What do we actually mean by equity?
What does it mean to practice being in "right relationship" to hierarchy and authority in our communities?

This course is designed as an online facilitated community inquiry to support and energize sanghas and dharma practitioners seeking to create equitable, inclusive communities.

For more information, go to szba.org/courses

08/09/2021

Dana - the practice of giving and generosity - in all the things you do in life. The SZBA operates on the generosity of our members and our friends and donors. Thank you for helping to sustain and grow the SZBA 🙏. To make your gift today, visit www.SZBA/donations