The Vine offers innovative online Zen training with roots in both the Sōtō and Rinzai traditions,
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We're devoted to utilizing online modalities to support householders in their wholehearted practice wherever they might be on the planet. We emphasize the importance of kensho (literally, "seeing nature") as the foundation of applying the truth of nonduality to the nitty-gritty details of daily life in order to actualize the Great Vows of a Bodhisattva.
We offer daily zazen, weekly dharma talks, practice meetings, group study, engaging community connections, online retreats, and in-person sesshin (meditation intensives). This mix of training elements and the regularity of engagement that's possible online make for a powerful and thorough way for householders to deeply explore the buddhadharma. |
A little about the intimacy that can arise in a mostly online sangha from a current student in the Vine speaking to their fellow students on the Vine:
"I've participated in several different in-person sanghas over the years, and none of them have felt as intimate or deep as this cyber-sangha. Maybe it was me, maybe it was the practice container, but the in-person sanghas felt like they were mostly about practicing together in silence and so we never really got to know each other much. On the Vine, the container has balanced ways to share the challenges folks are going through, along with the dharma treasures arising from everyone's practice. It's incredibly nourishing! I feel like I know you all better than the people in the in-person communities I practiced with. It gives me a more visceral sense of what it means to take refuge in the sangha. Anyway, deep bows of gratitude and y'all rock!"
"I've participated in several different in-person sanghas over the years, and none of them have felt as intimate or deep as this cyber-sangha. Maybe it was me, maybe it was the practice container, but the in-person sanghas felt like they were mostly about practicing together in silence and so we never really got to know each other much. On the Vine, the container has balanced ways to share the challenges folks are going through, along with the dharma treasures arising from everyone's practice. It's incredibly nourishing! I feel like I know you all better than the people in the in-person communities I practiced with. It gives me a more visceral sense of what it means to take refuge in the sangha. Anyway, deep bows of gratitude and y'all rock!"
Being a Vine student requires a high-level capacity for following through with commitments and completing practice assignments.
If you would like to attend Sunday group practice sessions, held from 10:00 to 11:15am Central Time, contact us here to request the Zoom link.
Current students can log into the Vine of Obstacles training platform here: Click
If you would like to attend Sunday group practice sessions, held from 10:00 to 11:15am Central Time, contact us here to request the Zoom link.
Current students can log into the Vine of Obstacles training platform here: Click
We appreciate your donations via PayPal to support this community and the teaching.
The above photo is from our June, '22, sesshin at the North Carolina Zen Center with our host Teshin Sensei (front right in robes).