Register Soon for 2016 7-Day Sesshin!

Register Soon for 2016 7-Day Sesshin!

Great Wave Zen Sangha is pleased to announce its 2016 7-day sesshin!  This retreat will take place from Sunday, August 7, at 7:00 PM through Saturday, August, 13, at 11:00 AM.  As well as providing a perfect opportunity to take your practice to a very deep level through meditation, Dharma talks, private instruction with Gendo Sensei, oryoki meals, and scripture recitation, this sesshin will offer a special opportunity to honor the lives of lost loved ones through the Gate of Sweet Nectar, or Kanroman, ceremony.  The Kanroman is a very moving and musically beautiful ceremony, replete with hundreds of candles that light the way of our memories.

At the end of the Obon festival in Matsue, Japan, paper lanterns are place on Lake Shinji, symbolizing the departure of ancestor spirits to the other world.
At the end of the Obon festival in Matsue, Japan, paper lanterns are placed on Lake Shinji, symbolizing the departure of ancestor spirits to the other world. Great Wave will perform a similar ceremony during its August sesshin.  (Photo by James Alexander Jack)

In addition to the Kanroman, we will also be holding a Jukai ceremony on Saturday morning, August 13.  During Jukai, one receives and vows to maintain the 16 Bodhisattva precepts.  This ceremony essentially marks one’s formal commitment to the Zen Buddhist path.  (If you are, or have been, seriously considering your own commitment to the path, please discuss this with Gendo Sensei.)

As always, everyone, regardless of experience, is welcome.  Driving directions to our location in Hamlin Township as well as other details of the retreat are available for all participants–simply log in and then complete our 7-Day Sesshin Registration Form.

We look forward to practicing with you!

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