Soto Zen School – The Patriarch Zen Master Dogen (1200 – 1253) laid the foundation for today’s Soto Zen in Japan.

The Patriarch Zen Master Dogen (1200 - 1253) laid the foundation for today's Soto Zen in Japan. Tired of idolatry in the temples, he returned to the original form of meditation. Pure sitting meditation (jap. zazen) is not to be understood literally, but that one should sit purely in one's true self.

Soto Zen - Genjokoan - The realization of enlightenment

Through body and mind we can understand the form and sound of things. They work together as one. However, it is not like a shadow reflected in a mirror, or like the moon reflected in water. If you only look at one side, the other is dark. Experiencing the Buddha-Way means experiencing yourself. To experience yourself means to forget yourself. To forget yourself means to perceive yourself in all things.

This realization is the falling away of body and mind, of oneself and others. When you reach this stage, you will be detached even from enlightenment, but you will continue to practice it without thinking about it. When people start looking for the truth (outside of themselves) they are immediately far from the real place. When the truth has been obtained through the right transmission, the real self appears immediately.

When you're in a boat and you just look at the shore, you think the shore is moving; but if you look at the boat, you will discover that it is actually the boat itself that is moving. Likewise, if you try to understand the nature of phenomena only through your own confused imagination, you will mistakenly assume that your nature is permanent. However, if you practice properly and return to your origin, you will see clearly that all things have no permanent self. (Dogen Zenji jap. Patriarch)

Meditation center

Here you get more information about the monthly meditation retreat. Abbot Reding welcomes you.