August 2025

Photo by Zen Master Jeong Bong

When Zen Master Jeong Bong first told me that our karma is with us for our entire lives, I became upset. I wanted to rip out my karma and never acknowledge it again. I imagined "enlightenment" to be a complete overhaul of myself, down to my foundation. 

What I learned with time, trust, and effort is that one aspect of Zen practice is seeing our karma without judgement. Practice can help us recognize, with compassion, how our karma unfolds in our lives. It is in seeing the way things are, that change becomes possible. People and situations that once provoked pain and anger in me, I now can see with equanimity and curiosity.

Although our karma isn't going anywhere (there's no undoing it), our relationship to it changes. And that makes all the difference in the world.

Yours in the dharma,

Meg Critchlow

Nine-Day Retreat

with Zen Master Jeong Bong,

Paul Gulick JDPSN, and

Ann Pepper JDSPN

Saturday-Sunday, August 16 – 24, 7am – 4:30pm

Beginning on Saturday, August 16, we’ll gather our online and in-person communities for an immersion in group practice, a Dharma talk, and personal Dharma dialogues. This retreat will be conducted as a hybrid of in-person practice in the Blue Heron dharma room and online using Zoom. You may participate in person, online, or a combination of these.

Please register here by Tuesday, August 12.

To join online:

Join our usual Zoom meeting up to 10 minutes before the retreat starts each day at 7:00am. The meeting ID is: 228 228 1938 and the password is: 010801.

To join in person:

Come to Blue Heron by 6:50am on each day. Attendees should be vaccinated and, optionally, wear a high-quality, well-fitting mask. Those meeting in person will participate in practice from the dharma room. No food will be served; bring a lunch for the lunch break.

The fee for this retreat is $35/day for non-members and $25/day for members. A voluntary gift of dana* to the teacher will be accepted with gratitude.

*dana is a voluntary donation to our teacher.

Residential Training Opportunity

Blue Heron Zen Community has an opening for a resident Zen trainee at the Blue Heron Zen Center. Resident training offers an opportunity to deepen one’s Zen practice in a beautiful, comfortable group setting near North Seattle Community College. Prospective residents are expected to have a strong commitment to Zen. For more information, please see our Resident Guidelines. If you’d like to discuss becoming a resident at Blue Heron, please contact Abbott Paul Gulick or Zen Master Jeong Bong.

Blue Heron Zen Community Potluck

Friday, August 15, 6pm-8pm

Please come to the Blue Heron Zen Community Center to break bread and create community with other sangha members and their families at this evening event. Please bring a vegetarian dish to share, with serving utensils. (It would be greatly appreciated if folks would label their dishes, especially for food sensitivities.) The Zen Center will provide dishes and silverware. There is no agenda, though we will take about 20 minutes to make introductions around the room.

If you have any questions, please contact Meg at meg@blueheronzen.org.

August In-Person Sessions

All in-person practices are open for walk-in attendance (no need to sign up in advance). In-person practice is not streamed, unless otherwise noted.

Weekly Sessions:

• Sunday 10-11:30am (Also streamed online)
• Tuesday 7-8:00pm
• Wednesday 10-11:00am
• Friday 10-11:00am

Newcomer Orientation:

• Sunday 9:30-9:50am

Sunday Morning In-Person Activities: (Online participation is welcome!)

• First Sunday of the month—In-person Dharma Dialogues
• Second Sunday of the month—Kwan Seum Bosal and Ji Jang Bosal chanting
• Third Sunday of the month—Nine day retreat
• Fourth Sunday of the month—Nine day retreat

Every Second Saturday of the month:

• Saturday, August 9, 9:00am-12:00pm

To attend, simply show up 5 to 10 minutes before any practice time. The building will be open for those practices. Use the ground floor entrance from the back yard.

Dharma Dialogues

Dharma Dialogues are an opportunity to meet one-on-one with our teachers to discuss your Zen practice and optionally engage in Kong-an exchanges. Zen Master Jeong Bong is offering online Dharma Dialogues. Sign up here.

Our Senior Dharma Teachers offer online Dharma Dialogues if you would like to discuss your practice and ask questions. Please get in touch with them individually to schedule an appointment if you would like a one-on-one Zoom meeting.

• Greg Eisen, JDPSN eisengn@gmail.com
• Paul Gulick, JDPSN paul@blueheronzen.org
• Ann Pepper, JDPSN anngoldenwind@outlook.com
• Jeff Tipp, JDPSN jefftipp@gmail.com
• John Craycraft, SDT johnc@blueheronzen.org
• Jim Peacey, SDT jim@blueheronzen.org

Looking Forward

Extended Saturday Practice: September 13, 2025

3-Day Retreat: October 17-19, 2025