Jikoji Zen Center
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Mission Statement
Jikoji is a Soto Zen temple and retreat center located approximately one hour south of San Francisco in the Santa Cruz Mountains. We offer programs, workshops and sessions (meditation retreats), and provide facilities for individual and group retreats. All are welcome.
About This Cause
Jikoji, Compassion Light Temple, is a teaching, meditation and retreat center available for retreats, seminars, and classes to the community of Zen practitioners, as well as individuals and groups of diverse backgrounds. Jikoji offers an ongoing daily meditation practice as taught by our primary teacher Kobun Chino Otogawa Roshi. Additionally, senior students of Kobun are available to provide instruction in the practice of Zen meditation. The Jikoji community functions from the basic assumptions that membership is universal, there is no idea of hierarchy within the organization, that directors and officers govern in order to serve the affairs of the organization, and that consensus, mutual respect and compassion are the guiding principles of decision making. Additionally, we hold a fundamental commitment to care for the land and the habitat, seeking to create the least possible impact on the environment. We remember and respect the original native inhabitants and their relationship to the land. We are dedicated to maintaining Jikoji as an informal way station, a refuge and oasis of serenity that is conducive to learning and renewal. We value the formality of our meditation practice and the informality of our relationships. We value and support Kobun Chino Otogawa Roshi, the Teacher who established the practice at Jikoji. We welcome other teachers, no teachers, and the Sangha as Teachers. History and Geography Jikoji was established in 1983 by Kobun Chino Otogawa Roshi and a group of his students. A Soto Zen Buddhist temple associated with Hokoji in Taos, NM and Jokoji in Japan, Jikoji exists as a unique opportunity to practice in a rural setting. At 2350 ft. elevation in the Santa Cruz mountains, the grounds comprise 13.26 acres. The property has many unique features: hostel type accommodationss, places to pitch a tent, a small lake, and miles of hiking trails in the surrounding 1800 acres of Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District. Care and Maintenance Jikoji is maintained by resident caretakers and non-resident sangha members. The facilities include an institutional kitchen, community space (living/dining room, bath rooms), two dormitory rooms, two private rooms, and a Zendo that comfortably seats 20+ people. All or part of the facilities are available for group as well as personal retreats at reasonable rates. Retreatants are welcome to participate in the Jikoji meditation schedule and other activities. Practice Our tradition is based on the Soto Zen linage of our founder, Kobun Roshi; however, other groups with compatible practices are welcome to use our facilities. In addition to the availability of retreat accommodations, Jikoji offers regularly scheduled meditation practice and discussions which are open to the public. There are four Sesshins between October and April. There is also an on-going Sunday morning program that features two periods of meditation, service, and a discussion led by one of the Sangha's senior students or visiting teachers.