The Zen Center of Denver is a lay Buddhist community offering authentic Zen practice and training to all who wish to uncover their innate wisdom and compassion and live with greater awareness in everyday life. Of course, one need not be Buddhist to benefit from the stability and equanimity learned through meditation, so especially vital in these turbulent times.
Along with daily zazen (seated meditation), the ZCD offers a full range of opportunities for Zen training, including dokusan (private instruction with a teacher), samu (work practice), zazenkai (all-day sittings), and sesshin (week-long retreats).
History
Founded in 1974 as the Denver Zen Center, our community first functioned as an affiliate of the Rochester Zen Center (of New York) in a small house in Congress Park. Amid a tide of steadily growing membership and activities, the Denver Zen Center became the autonomous Zen Center of Denver in 1989, upon Danan Henry receiving Dharma transmission from Philip Kapleau Roshi and assignment as spiritual director.
For decades Danan Roshi played a pivotal role in the growth of the Center, working tirelessly to cultivate a community of committed practitioners and establish programs for authentic Zen training. As the sangha flourished and began to press against the limits of the residential location, he advocated strongly for a move to an already-existing church or other recognizable religious structure, by way of encouraging continued growth and rooting Zen more firmly in our city and culture.
In January 1998, the ZCD purchased the historic former Fourth Church of Christ Scientist at 3101 W. 31st Avenue in the Highlands neighborhood of Denver. For many years the building served us well, offering a great deal of a space in a prominent location. However, the enormous maintenance and renovation costs proved to be impractical over the long term, and in many other respects the building was less than ideal for Zen practice. After much deliberation, the decision was made to sell, and this was accomplished in summer 2015.
In the meantime, Danan Roshi retired, and the ZCD came under new leadership when Karin Ryuku Kempe, Ken Tetsuzan Morgareidge and Peggy Metta Sheehan – as the Dharma heirs of Danan Roshi – received full transmission and jointly assumed spiritual directorship in September 2010.
Following the sale of the 31st Avenue temple, we spent over a year looking for a new location, and in fall 2016 purchased a property at 1856 S. Columbine Street, just a couple of blocks from the University of Denver and conveniently located near the intersection of University Boulevard and I-25. Over the next three years, with the astounding generosity and support of our members and the larger community, we succeeded in constructing a beautiful new temple tailored to our needs, joyously opening the doors of our new home in November 2019.
… Only to close them, of course, in March 2020, as the coronavirus pandemic took hold. Well, if Buddhism teaches anything, it’s that all things are subject to change, so nearly overnight we shifted gears and moved our practice activities online, using Zoom for most events. Expanding our online activities has had unexpected blessings, allowing many who would otherwise have had difficulty participating physically due to location or other factors to discover the profound benefits of meditating regularly with a community of devoted and experienced practitioners.
With the easing of Covid restrictions, we are happy to again be offering a full calendar of in-person and hybrid events, including daily meditation, classes and retreats. If you are interested in attending, please see our Getting Started page.
Contact and Location
If you have questions or need additional information, please contact the office at 303-455-1500 or office@zencenterofdenver.org. Our regular office hours are 8:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. Monday – Thursday.
The Zen Center of Denver is located at 1856 S. Columbine Street, Denver, CO, 80210. Please call or email ahead if you wish to visit the Center in person.