
Lion’s Roar Weekend Event Co-Sponsored by San Francisco Zen Center
Lion’s Roar presents its first event of 2017 – a weekend of Buddhist discussion, dialogue, and debate on January 27 and 28. Sponsored by: Khyentse Foundation and San Francisco Zen Center.

Visionary Marin 2016 Honors Abbess Fu Schroeder
Visionary Marin 2016
Mill Valley Community Center
180 Camino Alto, Mill Valley
November 3, 6 – 8:30 pm Read more

Volunteers Needed for Grace Cathedral Event
Sickness, Old Age, and Death – A Conversation features Lucy Kalanithi (When Breath Becomes Air), Grace Dammann (States of Grace), and Lennon Flowers (The Dinner Party). The evening’s discussion will be held at Grace Cathedral on Wednesday, November 2, from 7 – 9 pm, and we need your support as a volunteer.
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Volunteers Needed to Cook and Serve for the Winter Shelter Program
Zen Center will be taking part in the San Francisco Interfaith Council’s Winter Shelter program again this year. We will be providing meals for homeless men at local churches on the following Sundays: Read more

Opening Our Hearts in a Shared World
A Message from the Central Abbess
Earlier this month Central Abbess Eijun Linda Cutts participated in an interfaith panel on the environment at Santa Clara University. The event preceded a two-day conference on November 3-4, titled “Our Future on a Shared Planet: Silicon Valley in Conversation with the Environmental Teachings of Pope Francis.” Read more

Introducing the Sangha Project: Wednesday’s Talk at City Center
Being on a spiritual path together with friends who are encouraging and supporting each other in their practice is called Sangha. The challenge for many—and especially those who don’t live in a residential practice center—is that it’s not easy to find spiritual friendship. Read more

Five Ingredients for Building Sangha
A monthly update on the Sangha Project, from Robert Thomas
Over the past couple of years, a small team led by Do-On Robert Thomas has been working on extending the San Francisco Zen Center sangha more widely out into the world. We call this effort The Sangha Project. Read more

Digital Sangha: Practicing the Way—Together
A monthly update on the Sangha Project, from Robert Thomas
When we first began experimenting with an online zendo, we wondered how it would feel to sit zazen in digital time-space. One of the first surprises was discovering how similar sitting together via a videoconferencing app was to sitting together in the meditation hall. Many group members have spoken about the sense of connection we feel and our deepening commitment to show up and support each other’s practice. Read more

Another Opportunity for Free Professional Advice on Estate Planning
Last week’s free workshop with Susan Olson, a financial planner at Abacus, was very helpful. We each got individual attention because the group was small. Susan presented simple ways to take care of estate planning—helping you make sure the assets of your estate go where you want them to. Besides being at Greens Restaurant (yummy snacks and cookies!), the presentation was informative, and it was fun. Read more

Supporting A Far-Flung Community of Practitioners
A monthly update on the Sangha Project, from Robert Thomas
During the past month, the Sangha Project has taken several important steps towards finalizing plans to build an online “home” for the global community of San Francisco Zen Center practitioners. Read more