Walking a Buddhist Path
Buddhism is one of the fastest growing spiritual traditions in the United States, thanks to many teachers that came to this country, including (but not limited to) the lineage holders (Seung Sahn and Thich Thien An) that our group is founded on, and other teachers such as Shunryu Suzuki Roshi, Dainin Katagiri Roshi, and many more.
Buddhist teachings, while all coming from the root teachings of the historical Shakyamuni Buddha, can vary from tradtion to tradition. This is influenced by the cultural norms of the country the tradition comes from, as well as the different schools-of-thought's emphasis on meditation, sutra study (including which texts are of primary focus), chanting, etc.
The Buddhist community in the United States appears to be in a current state of cultural shift. For the past number of decades the predominance of buddhist teachers were of Asian background, coming to the United States and seeking or withouth intention finding themselves with American students. The shape of American buddhism was influenced by these teachers, and in some ways took on a pseudo-asian flavor. Currently there are Buddhist teachers throughout the United States, who are teaching with a mix of the asian traditions in which they were taught, as well as learning to teach within the cultural framework that makes sense to the American population.
Seung Sahn emphasized that being awake ("enlightenment") is having correct understanding of situation, function, and relationship. Therefore, learning to apply the wonderful teachings that Buddhism has to offer, teachers are beginning to find what could be termed a truely American flavored buddhism. Therefore, the emphasis at Burning River Zen is to honor the Asiatic traditions that were graciously passed on, while working to understand how the teaching helps to awaken us to the lives we live in our own culture and traditions. We welcome all people who wish to explore this with us!
If you are interested in one-on-one private teaching with Chong'An Dharma, or another teacher through the Five Mountain Zen Order, please use the contact page here and you will be contacted as soon as possible. Web-based methods of communication, such as Skype, Oovoo, Facetime, etc. are an option for individuals who are not local.
Buddhism is one of the fastest growing spiritual traditions in the United States, thanks to many teachers that came to this country, including (but not limited to) the lineage holders (Seung Sahn and Thich Thien An) that our group is founded on, and other teachers such as Shunryu Suzuki Roshi, Dainin Katagiri Roshi, and many more.
Buddhist teachings, while all coming from the root teachings of the historical Shakyamuni Buddha, can vary from tradtion to tradition. This is influenced by the cultural norms of the country the tradition comes from, as well as the different schools-of-thought's emphasis on meditation, sutra study (including which texts are of primary focus), chanting, etc.
The Buddhist community in the United States appears to be in a current state of cultural shift. For the past number of decades the predominance of buddhist teachers were of Asian background, coming to the United States and seeking or withouth intention finding themselves with American students. The shape of American buddhism was influenced by these teachers, and in some ways took on a pseudo-asian flavor. Currently there are Buddhist teachers throughout the United States, who are teaching with a mix of the asian traditions in which they were taught, as well as learning to teach within the cultural framework that makes sense to the American population.
Seung Sahn emphasized that being awake ("enlightenment") is having correct understanding of situation, function, and relationship. Therefore, learning to apply the wonderful teachings that Buddhism has to offer, teachers are beginning to find what could be termed a truely American flavored buddhism. Therefore, the emphasis at Burning River Zen is to honor the Asiatic traditions that were graciously passed on, while working to understand how the teaching helps to awaken us to the lives we live in our own culture and traditions. We welcome all people who wish to explore this with us!
If you are interested in one-on-one private teaching with Chong'An Dharma, or another teacher through the Five Mountain Zen Order, please use the contact page here and you will be contacted as soon as possible. Web-based methods of communication, such as Skype, Oovoo, Facetime, etc. are an option for individuals who are not local.