Zen Center of Denver : About the ZCD

Lotus in the Flame Temple \| School of Zen Arts and Studies \| A Thousand Hands Unlimited

	Welcome to the online home of the Zen Center of Denver. We are a Zen Buddhist community (sangha) offering Zen Buddhist practice and training under the direction of Danan Henry Roshi. The Zen Center of Denver is part of the Diamond Sangha, an international network of centers and teachers in the Harada-Yasutani line of Zen Buddhism, descended from Western Zen pioneer Robert Aitken Roshi. The primary practice of the Zen Center of Denver is zazen, seated meditation. Zazen is the heart of Zen practice and is simultaneously the full expression of inherent enlightenment (satori), as well as the means of uncovering it. Zazen can be said to take place in stillness (sitting) as well as in activity (kinhin, walking meditation, and samu, work practice, and attention in all activities). Regular periods of zazen are held most days of the week, and nearly all Center events are preceded by one or more periods of sitting. Location The Zen Center of Denver is located near the intersection of Speer and Federal Boulevards in northwest Denver, at 3101 W 31st Ave. A map can be found here. Tours and Educational Outreach The Zen Center of Denver is open weekdays for tours by school, church, or other groups by appointment. Danan Henry Roshi is available to give guest lectures to university classes, and qualified senior members are available to speak to secondary school and other groups. Please contact the office to schedule a talk or tour at 303-455-1500 or office@zencenterofdenver.org. Lotus in the Flame Temple The Lotus in the Flame Temple is the sacred space for Zen practice and training of members and friends of the Zen Center of Denver. The goal of the Lotus in the Flame Temple is to provide people of all backgrounds with authentic Zen training for the clarification of the mind (satori), and its application in every aspect of life. The vision of the Temple is to be a “monastery without walls,” a place of Zen training for people with homes, families, and careers in the world. The Center emphasizes the westernization of Zen Buddhist practice, but great care is taken not to compromise the authenticity of the Zen tradition or to lose touch with its ancient roots. To this end, the Temple offers a variety of training opportunities for interested people as their level of aspiration dictates. It is not necessary to be a Buddhist to benefit from the calming and centering of the mind that results from the practice of Zen, and anyone is welcome to practice within our tradition regardless of religious affiliation, race, gender, or sexual orientation. The Lotus in the Flame temple maintains an ongoing schedule of practice events including: zazen (Zen meditation); teisho (Zen talks by the teacher); dokusan (private interviews with the teacher); zazenkai (all-day meditation); sesshin (meditation retreats); samu (work as meditation); liturgy practice (chanting, ceremonies and devotional forms); mindfulness practice (every minute Zen); community service and social functions. Most sittings and events at the Temple are open to the public, though some are only open to those who have completed an introductory seminar or have experience with another Zen center. If you are coming for your first time, please come to a Tuesday evening sitting for instruction. After receiving instruction, you are then welcome to join us in all other scheduled meditation periods and activities open to the public. Donations (dana) are appreciated to help us maintain the temple. More information about getting involved can be found in the Getting Started section. A more thorough introduction to Zen practice and training at the ZCD is found through our Introductory Seminars on Zen Buddhism. These one-and-a-half day events are conducted on three weekends per year. They include lectures about Zen Buddhism, question-and-answer periods, detailed zazen instruction and zazen practice. Completing a seminar is the first step in becoming a member of the Center, and opens up more practice and training opportunities. Information about membership can be found in the Membership section. School of Zen Arts and Studies The School of Zen Arts and Studies is the educational wing of the ZCD, offering opportunities for study and discussion of Buddhist doctrine, Zen Buddhist philosophy and practice, Zen arts such as ikebana and calligraphy, and related disciplines such as hatha yoga and t'ai chi. Courses are available on a periodic or ongoing basis. Currently, the School of Zen Arts and Studies offers six day-and-a-half introduction to Zen seminars per year and bi-weekly talk and discussion meetings during the winter and summer training periods. The seminars and classes are taught by Danan Henry Roshi and qualified senior Zen students. Other courses will be posted as they become available. There is currently a Kyudo (traditional Japanese archery) group practicing on Wednesday evenings at 7pm. For more information, please read the kyudo flyer (PDF, 76K). A Thousand Hands Unlimited Compassion is central to all Buddhist teaching, pervading our relationships with other people, animals, the environment, and society. Taking the image of the thousand hands of Avalokiteshvara (also known as Kannon or Kuan-yin), the bodhisattva of compassion, A Thousand Hands Unlimited exists to facilitate the extension of wisdom and compassion into the larger community by providing opportunities for engaged Buddhist practice. Over the years, participants in A Thousand Hands Unlimited have shown particular interest in issues of peace and social justice, environmentalism, and participated in a variety of charitable activities, including a prison outreach program that provides correspondence and aid to incarcerated individuals seeking instruction in Zen. A Thousand Hands Unlimited hosts the local branch of the international organization, the Buddhist Peace Fellowship, which provides a forum for Buddhists of different sanghas and traditions to meet and work together for social and political change.