Welcome to the Falmouth Soto Zen Sangha (FSZS), practicing on Cape Cod since 2010. We are a warm and inviting community dedicated to the practice and teachings of Soto Zen Buddhism. Whether you are new to Zen or have been practicing for years, we are delighted to have you join us. Our Sangha is a place where individuals from all walks of life come together to cultivate peace, compassion, and wisdom in a supportive environment.
We invite you to explore our list of services and calendar of events, where you will find a variety of opportunities to engage with our community, from meditation session and Dharma talks to retreats. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to us at sensei@fszs.org. We look forward to welcoming you to our Sangha and walking this path together.
A Brief History of Buddhism and Soto Zen
Sensei Sangaku Dan Joslyn, Falmouth Soto Zen Sangha
- Siddhartha Gotoma was born in what is now Nepal around 523 BC with his death, para-nirvana, about 463 BC. This was the era of the Golden-Age of Greek philosophy and Jeremiah the Prophet and Babylonian exile of the Old Testament.
- He was born into the warrior caste of a middle-size kingdom and was expected to become the leader. Instead he left home to be a mendicant in search of the end of suffering – Dukkha.
- The was awakened to a deep understanding of Impermanence, Interconnectivity of all things, and the absence of a tangible self (ego). He taught the inability to understand this leads to Dukkha.
- Buddha taught a way of life (The Middle Way) between hedonism and self-mortification.
- Buddha’s teachings are called Sutras and number in the thousands
- Buddhism split into two branches around 300 AD, Thravadian personal enlightenment and monastic based, and Mayahana helping save others (from the ignorance of Dukkha) and included lay practitioners.
- Mahayana Buddhism flourished in China from 400-1300 AD. Heavily influenced by Taoism and teachings of Confucius. A school of thought featuring a strong emphasis on meditation arose- called Chan. Chan then spread into Korea and then Japan, and later into Tibet.
- In 1223, the Japanese monk Eihei Dōgen (1200-1253), the founder of Soto Zen Buddhism, went to China in search of the essence of enlightenment and daily practice. A prolific writer, Dōgen’s work has become the cornerstone of Soto Zen teaching in the United States. The early history of Buddhism in America sprang from Chinese immigrants of the mid 1800s, and the impact of the World Parliament of Religions, held in Chicago in 1893. Our Order of Soto Zen Buddhism, Mokurai or Silent Thunder, was brought to the United States in 1940 by Rev. Dr. Sōyū Matsuoka-roshi (1912-1997).
- The similarities of teaching of Zen Buddhism and Christianity in the twenty-first century include: Honoring Mother and Father, Do no harm, Do not kill, Do not speak hatred, Do not misuse sexual energy, Do not take what is not freely offered, Focus on community harmony, Be a light unto ourselves, Off-set hate with loving-kindness, Allow teachings to foster one’s everyday life.
- There are approximately 500 hundred million Buddhist in the world-500,000 in the U.S.
- Zen is a way of life and practiced by persons of various faiths… steps.
How To Sit In Meditation (Zazen): “It’s Not What You Think!”
Welcome to Meditation sponsored by the Falmouth Soto Zen Sangha, and is guided and silent. Your two instructors, Dan and Nancy, have a combined thirty-five years of meditation teaching. During the hour we’ll introduce ourselves and talk about what we want from meditation. Instruction is given in four meditation posture with emphasis on sitting and walking. We sit, walk, sit, and talk about our experiences. A plan for practice at home is encouraged for full benefit.
- STOP, what you are doing and allow a minute of stillness and quiet to flow over you
- SIT DOWN-TALL, like you want your head to touch the ceiling…elongate
- LISTEN TO YOUR BODY, with compassion as different parts tell you what they are experiencing
- BREATHE, through DEVELOP YOUR INNER-SMILE, a slight smile does wonders for your glow and sparkle
- Breathe through your nose, in and out long and steady, as if surfing and the air becomes still and you are flowing…
- PLACE RIGHT HAND ON LAP PALM-UP, cradle your left hand palm-up as if it is a precious gift and lightly touch your thumbs
- CLOSE YOUR EYES SLIGHTLY, as if you are looking through two narrow slits, allow soft hazy seeing
- BE FULLY AWARE, of letting-go, dropping away into just breathing
- ALLOW THE STOMACH TO POKE OUT, when you inhale getting smaller as you slowly exhale
- THOUGHTS, come and go like the in and out rhythm of your breathing, not rushing, not holding onto a single thought
- THE UNIVERSE, is doing what you are doing, simply being in tune with breath, heart rate, waves of the ocean, calmness abiding, you are weightless
- ALLOWING, neither demanding nor expecting, each moment arising anew
- TIME, slows to your breathing and becomes peacefully safe
- A PLACE TO SIT is always available, find it, time for you is always available, take 10-15 minutes in the morning and just before bed to just be…
- NOW A WAY OF LIFE, is unfolding as it offers refuge from stuff
- MOVE THROUGH YOUR DAY, slowly, fully aware internal smile beaming each moment arising joyfully
- YOU ARE WORTHY, and each moment awaits full living…