New Years Zoom Sesshin Online
with International Guest Teachers

December 27-January 7, 2022

Part 1 December 27-January 1
Part 2 January 2-7

21/12/09/2021

Everyone is welcome to join us online for our New Year’s sesshin, December 27–Jan.1 and January 2–7. Both parts of the sesshin will start at 3:30 pm with an introduction and end on the last day with concluding remarks in the early morning.
The sesshin schedule will be as usual, except that morning zazen is 6:00 – 7:30 am (two 40 minute periods). Also, we are very happy to mention again that, in addition to the dharma talk at 11:30 am, in most evenings there will be an interactive video conference conducted by seven guest teachers:
Tuesday, Dec. 28 —— Jorge Ryusho Lopez Doriga Sensei from Peru
Wednesday, Dec. 29 —Han de Wit Acharya from The Netherlands
Thursday, Dec. 30 —- Charles Tenshin Fletcher, Roshi from the US
Monday, Jan. 3 ——- Diane Musho Hamilton Roshi from the US
Tuesday, Jan. 4 ——- Michael Mugaku Zimmerman Roshi from the US
Wednesday, Jan. 5 — Nicolee Jikyo MacMahon Roshi from the US
Thursday, Jan. 6 —— Peter Gakudo den Hollander Sensei from Spain
These video conferences will be held in the evening from 8:00-9:15 pm
Dokusan and Daisan will be offered mostly in the afternoon, 4:10-5:40 pm. Please remember that all times indicated in this email refer to local time (CET). So for those who attend from abroad, check the time difference in advance…!
If you are an ‘O-member’ already, participation is free of charge. If you are not a member of the online program, please make a transfer of €50, which will also include the membership of this month and the month of January (see bank details below).
We understand that as a zoom participant you may not make all the sessions, so please just zoom in as much as you are able to.
—
IBAN: NL72 TRIO 0212 4970 30
t.n.v.: ‘Zen River’
o.v.v.: ‘NY Sesshin’
contribution: €50

Teisho by Rev. Minegishi, Sokan of Europe

19/11/09/2021
Rev. Minegishi, the European Sokan., who was the Jokeshi for the Hossenshiki ceremony, gave a Dharma talk at the start of Rohatsu Sesshin.

Shuso Hossenshiki Ceremony

for Pascal Tetsuko van der Knokke

November 16, 2021

On Sunday, November 16, at the start of the Rohatsu Sesshin and Winter Ango, Pascal Tetsuko van der Knokke completed the Shuso Hossenshiki ceremony at Zen River. The ceremony was led by Tenkei Roshi, and witnessed by the European sokan, Rev. Minegishi Roshi. He was accompanied by Rev. Keishu Kataoka who works at the European Soto school department in Paris.

Memorial Poem

Rev. Juyu Kuroda

January 5, 1940 – November 11, 2021

Baigaku Junyu Daiosho
Wishing you a safe passage
To the other shore
May your indomitable spirit
Give you wings
To fly and freely visit
The six realms of existence
Giving your kind assistance
To whoever is in need.
We always thought
That you were an exception
To the law of impermanence
That you were indestructible
Now I see that it is really true
Since you mysteriously passed
Some of that hard-core quality
On to us and to so many others
We thank you for everything
Your undying commitment
To true ancestral wisdom
And your joyous passion
for authentic compassion
We vow to do everything we can
To keep your dharma drive alive
For us, you will always be Hojo-san
And remain in our hearts forever.

Nine bows,
Kodo Tenkei Coppens
Zen River Temple

Annual Fundraiser and Newsletter 2021

19/11/09/2021

The annual fundraiser and newsletter are now available to download. Please click here to open the newsletter.
Click here to read the Annual Fundraiser 2021

Rev. Junyu Kuroda

05-01-1940 / 09-11-2021

09/11/09/2021

We are sad to announce that Junyu Kuroda Roshi, or Hojo-san, passed away on Tuesday, November 9th, 2021. He had been unwell for quite some time and died peacefully at home in Kirigayaji, surrounded by family, at 6:32 pm Japan time. The last few days, he had lost consciousness and couldn’t speak anymore but seemed composed. The very last word Tenkei Roshi heard him say over the phone was oyasuminasai, good night.
 
Hojo-san was always a fierce supporter of Maezumi Roshi’s mission to establish Zen Buddhist practice in the West. He had an indomitable spirit, and his generosity and kindness were exemplary. Already in the early days of ZCLA, Hojo-san would often come over from Japan to assist his brother. Roshis Tenkei and Tammy first met him around the time Maezumi Roshi passed away in1995, and in 2000 they went to Japan to live and practise with him for a half year at his temple, Kirigayaji, in Tokyo. After they returned to the Netherlands, he began helping them by supporting and establishing Zen River Temple. His contribution has been immeasurable. Hojo-san’s full dharma name is Baigaku Junyu Daiosho.
 
We offer our special condolences to Hojo-san’s daughter Keiko, and to his daughter, Hitomi and her husband and their two children – Hojo-san was a grand-dad! To Yodo-san, his long-time assistant who will take over the temple, and to Ingrid Shugetsu Appels, his close companion since they met at Zen River in 2002.
There will be a memorial service for Hojosan on Sunday evening, November 14, 19:30 CET that will be streamed over zoom. Everyone is welcome to attend.

Taiko Drum and Shakuhachi Performance

18/10/09/2021

Taiko Performance in the Hatto, with Marco Leinhard, Mark and Eisho.

Taiko Drum Workshop
October 16, 2021

06/10/09/2021

Zen River is happy to welcome Marco Lienhard, a taiko teacher and accomplished shakuhachi player. He will be coming to Zen River on October 16 to lead a workshop, and give a concert. If you are interested in joining, please contact Zen River!
As you may know, Zen River has been adding more drums and instruments to the services, creating an energetic and lively experience for everyone participating. To read more about Marco, please visit his website. https://taikoza.com/

Saturday October 16
16:30 hrs Taiko drum and Shakuhachi concert
19:30-22:15 Taiko Workshop

Sunday October 17
06:00 shakuhachi during Zazen

Making taiko drums. Zen’etsu found some discarded plastic pipes on Markplats, Taikan cut them to size and sanded them down, and Izzy and Harald made skins out of packing tape and duct tape.

October Falling Leaves Sesshin
October 16-21, 2021

12/10/2021

Early morning sunlight. Preparing for the October Falling Leaves Sesshin.

Painting the New Windows

12/10/2021

Steffen Buikema, who has painted many windows at Zen River over the years, is back to paint the new windows installed a few weeks ago.
They are starting to look great!

Makka Hannya Haramita Shingyo

15/09/2021

An ambient version of the Makka Hannya, by Myoho Roshi.

Shusohossenshiki Ceremony

21/08/2021

We are happy to announce that Liliann Shurei Manning is the Shuso (head monk) for this summer’s Ango. She will do the full three months of intensive training (May 22-August 21) and learn the various skills that are expected of a senior practitioner. The Ango includes our traditional Summer Month-long sesshin (July 24-August 21). The Hossenshiki (dharma combat ceremony) is scheduled for Saturday, August 21 at 11 am. We hope that by then it will be possible to welcome more people once again so that we can really celebrate this festive event together.

Born in Bolivia, Shurei obtained her PhD in psychology in Madrid, Spain, and did her post-doctoral specialization in neuropsychology in Oxford, UK. She has worked on research in different countries and served as a full-time professor at Strasbourg University in France. Her husband and three daughters are French. At present, she works in Lille as a consultant neuropsychologist.

Shurei started with transcendental meditation in 2000 and practised in other spiritual traditions until she came across Soto Zen ten years ago. She received Jukai at Ryumon-Ji (Weiterswiller, France) and Shukke Tokudo at the Lanau Zen Centre (Lanau, France) in 2017. Two years later she came over to Zen River and joined our programme with great enthusiasm. Shurei soon became a student of Tenkei Roshi and resides at our temple as much as she can, including for extended periods of time. She moved from Strasbourg to Lille to be closer to Zen River. We are all happy to see her here and wish her the very best!

Small Drain Drama

19/05/2021

The gutters were seriously backing up in the heavy rain, and no one could understand where the blockage was.
After some attempts, construction company De Boer was called in to help. It turns out that a drain was a drain to nowhere…probably cut off when the new wing was built. All the water had backed up into the sandy foundations under the glass hallway. A few thousands of litres of water were pumped out. De Boer will make a plan as to how to reconnect both the rain gutter and drain from the upstairs rooms in the old wing.

Ango Opening Ceremony for Shurei

22/05/2021

We are happy to announce that Liliann Shurei Manning is the Shuso (head monk) for this summer’s Ango. She will do the full three months of intensive training (May 22-August 21) and learn the various skills that are expected of a senior practitioner. The Ango includes our traditional Summer Month-long sesshin (July 24-August 21). The Hossenshiki (dharma combat ceremony) is scheduled for Saturday, August 21 at 11 am. We hope that by then it will be possible to welcome more people once again so that we can really celebrate this festive event together.

Born in Bolivia, Shurei obtained her PhD in psychology in Madrid, Spain, and did her post-doctoral specialization in neuropsychology in Oxford, UK. She has worked on research in different countries and served as a full-time professor at Strasbourg University in France. Her husband and three daughters are French. At present, she works in Lille as a consultant neuropsychologist.

Shurei started with transcendental meditation in 2000 and practised in other spiritual traditions until she came across Soto Zen ten years ago. She received Jukai at Ryumon-Ji (Weiterswiller, France) and Shukke Tokudo at the Lanau Zen Centre (Lanau, France) in 2017. Two years later she came over to Zen River and joined our programme with great enthusiasm. Shurei soon became a student of Tenkei Roshi and resides at our temple as much as she can, including for extended periods of time. She moved from Strasbourg to Lille to be closer to Zen River. We are all happy to see her here and wish her the very best!

Small Drain Drama

19/05/2021

The gutters were seriously backing up in the heavy rain, and no one could understand where the blockage was.
After some attempts, construction company De Boer was called in to help. It turns out that a drain was a drain to nowhere…probably cut off when the new wing was built. All the water had backed up into the sandy foundations under the glass hallway. A few thousands of litres of water were pumped out. De Boer will make a plan as to how to reconnect both the rain gutter and drain from the upstairs rooms in the old wing.

Buddhas Birthday Ceremony for
Buddhist Chaplains.

12/05/2021

Two Buddhist Chaplains who serve in the Army attended Buddhas Birthday Ceremony at Zen River. They also filmed the service to share with the Buddhist soldiers who observe Vesak. We heard they are the first Buddhist chaplains in Europe. Alie Jimon Rozendal, who is also a Zen River member, came with her colleague Paul Van Gogh who recorded the event.

New Crab Apple Trees

12/05/2021

There are five new Malus Profusion crab-apple trees growing on the Eastside.
They are finally opening their little petals to the warm sun.
The trees were purchased through the generous support of a Facebook Birthday Fundraiser.

Path & Drain Works

12/05/2021

The path to the zendo was difficult to navigate in the rain.
The new path is now stable in all weather conditions!
Discovering a mysterious blocked drain.

Teisho by Hojosan on Zoom

April 25, 12:00 CEST

15/04/2021

We are happy to announce that Rev. Junyu Kuroda will give a teisho during the first day of the Sakura Sesshin. He will join Zen River via Zoom from his temple in Tokyo. Rev. Hojun Szpunar will translate. (Photo from summer 2019.)

Buddhas Birthday

April 8, 2021

08/04/2021

Tenkei Roshi bathing the baby Buddha in the morning service on the occasion of Buddhas birthday.

Little Rock Garden

06/04/2021

With a little rock garden

Fundraiser Trees

05/04/2021
The tree stumps have been removed, and thanks to the Facebook fundraisers, the new trees and yew hedge have been planted.

Garden Works

22/03/2021

Spring is in the air, and there are lots of things to do in the garden. Taikan, Niels and Zenétsu worked for a few days to remove the old tree stumps. Now the new blossom trees, hedge, and shrubs can be planted.

Shusohossenshiki Ceremony

February 19, 2021

22/02/2021

The Shusohossenshiki ceremony for Jyokun was a great success, with over 50 members logging into the ceremony via Zoom. Doin and Zenetsu configured the cameras and technical aspects. while Marloes managed the zoom. Everyone was present on the TV screen! Householders stayed on one side of the hatto, whilst our extended bubble from the Zen River team sat on the other. Congratulations!

Maha Sangha Zoom Gathering

February 23, 2021

22/02/2021

On Tuesday, February 23 at 20:00 CET we will host our second Maha Sangha Zoom gathering for all Zen River members and friends. The first gathering held this way was on January 6, 2021. It was wonderful to connect with everyone from many parts of the world.

Winter Training

21/01/2021

These are challenging times, and it seems more important than ever to be able to connect and to communicate, and we can praise ourselves lucky to have the treasure of the Dharma to continue to do so. Unfortunately, due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, Zen River still has to observe the strict regulations the Dutch government issued – for sure until February 9. That means that the long-term residential community keeps following the schedule while staying closely connected with you over the internet.

The number of members who signed up for an online membership (see the online practice page of the website) is steadily growing, and more and more people attend zazen, services, study, and right speech classes, and engage in dokusan with Tenkei Roshi from their homes. The membership now includes Zoom zazen on Tuesday evenings. It also allows for participation in the O-sesshins, including the upcoming January 30/31 weekend sesshin which will be held on Zoom.

Lastly, on Tuesday, January 26, at 8:15 pm we plan to have a Zoom sangha gathering, and everybody is welcome to join. It is meant to see old friends, make new ones, and keep us all connected.
WINTER ANGO TRAINING NOVEMBER 21, 2020 -FEBRUARY 20, 2021
January 15–17Bodhidharma Weekend O-Sesshin
January 23–24 Intro Weekend (cancelled due to COVID19)
January 23-28 Gyōji Week (cancelled due to COVID19)
January 29-31Weekend O-sesshin
February 13–20 Ango Closing Sesshin
February 19 11:30 AM Teisho by Rev. Junyu Kuroda (zoom)
February 20 11:30 AMFebruary 20 11:30 AM Shusohossenshiki Ceremony for Jyokun Eijkmans
SPRING INTERIM
March 19-21Weekend O-Sesshin (+stay possible to 25th)
April 3-8Gyōji Week
April 10-15 Gyōji Week
April 24–29Sakura Spring Sesshin
May 8-13Gyōji Week
May 15-20Gyōji Week
SUMMER ANGO May 22–August 21
May 22–27Falling Flowers Sesshin
June 5–10Gyōji Week
June 18–20 Weekend Sesshin
July 3–8 Young Minds Seminar
July 24–Aug 21Summer Month Long
July 24–29Sesshin Part 1, (5-day)
July 31–August 5Sesshin Part 2, (5-day)
August 7–12Sesshin Part 3, (5-day)
August 14–21Sesshin Part 4, (7-day)
August 21Shuso Hossenshiki
FALL INTERIM
September 11-12Intro Weekend
September 11-16Gyōji Week
September 17–19Weekend Sesshin
September 25–30Gyōji Week
October 16–21Falling Leaf Sesshin
October 30–November 4Gyōji Week
November 13–18Gyōji Week
November 20–27Rohatsu Sesshin
December 11–16Gyōji Week
December 27–January 1New Years Sesshin