The evening bell rings in moonlight and lanterns are raised.
Training monks sit in the hall and quietly observe emptiness.

The first two lines are the description of an evening practice at Eiheiji (or Daibutsuji). According to  The Model for Engaging the Way (Bendoho), the daily practice schedule at the monks' hall begins with evening zazen, not with the wake-up bell in the morning. Traditionally this has been interpreted to mean that even the time of sleeping in the night is not a break from monks' practice.

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The genesis of the group came last winter when an I.U. student named Hao Teng came to our January sesshin at Sanshin. While were talking afterwards he mentioned that he was connected with the campus's existing Buddhist Study Association. Separately, during the Nirvana Sesshin the following month a freshman named Liam Murphy came to participate. In later conversations it turned out that he had started an informal meditation group with his friends. I kept in touch with both of them as I prepared to start my graduate work in the religious studies department. We got together just before the semester began and agreed to establish a regular meditation opportunity on campus. It was Liam who suggested that we meet every day, which I must confess I thought would not be consistently attended by anyone other than perhaps the three of us. 

Fortunately, I was quite thoroughly wrong. I had greatly underestimated the number of friends he had who were nearly as serious about Buddhism as he was. Our first meditation period already had more ten people in attendance thanks to his outreach. After our first week of daily meditation we decided to fold the group into Hao's long-established student organization, the Buddhist Study Association (BSA). Soon after, a new pool of students affiliated with the BSA began joining our daily practice as well. It is now about a month into the semester and about thirty students keep showing up regularly, several of them every day. Because Hao is unfortunately leaving us to pursue further studies in California, I was made co-president of the BSA, while Liam became the new vice-president. In these roles we will be able to invite speakers to campus, and we both hope that Hojo-san and Hoko will be able to give talks later in the academic year. We are still very much learning the ropes of our new positions, but we are excited to be able to share our enthusiasm for practice with the growing number of like-minded individuals on campus. 

Whether as a practitioner, a financial supporter, a listener/reader or simply as an interested friend, Sanshin welcomes you to our international sangha.  Like all nonprofit organizations, Sanshin depends on the generous offerings of those whose lives are helped by the work it does.  Visit our  website to set up a monthly donation or make a one-time gift online, or download a  form to use when giving by check. 

More ways to give

Community give-back programs

Designating Sanshin Zen Community as the recipient of give-back programs is a painless way to provide funding support simply by making your usual purchases!  

Amazon Smile: Instead of going to Amazon's regular homepage, go to  Amazon Smile and sign into your Amazon account.  Choose Sanshin Zen Community as your charity, and .05% of what you spend will come to us.  Remember, only purchases at smile.amazon.com (not www.amazon.com or the mobile app) support Sanshin.

HaloCard: If you're in the market for a new Visa credit card, consider getting a  HaloCard and joining the friends of Sanshin who have designated us as their nonprofit beneficiary.  One percent of what you spend will come to us.

Kroger:  If you shop at Kroger with a Plus card, your regular purchases of groceries and household goods can provide financial support for Sanshin.  Create or sign in to your  Kroger account, enroll in Kroger Community Rewards® with your card, and choose Sanshin as your organization.  Every time you shop and swipe your card, a percentage of what you spend will come to us.

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Employer giving programs

Friends of Sanshin who work at companies like Google and Adobe are providing regular financial support through payroll deduction and employer gift-matching programs.  Check with your employer's human resources or community relations department to see whether giving opportunities like these are available at your workplace.