In past years, we had a beautiful and very sweet day as a community. During the ceremony, Terragno Roshi gave some encouraging words about our practice. We will also celebrate the founders of our lineage. We chanted the heart sutra and, one by one, each poured some sweet tea over the baby Buddha.
To see pictures, follow this link Buddha’s Birthday.
Roshi Katie Egart Visiting Rocks and Clouds Zen Sangha – February 13-28
We are delighted to welcome Roshi Katie Egart to Rocks and Clouds Zen Sangha this February for a period of deep practice and personal guidance. Roshi Egart, a seasoned Zen teacher, will be offering dokusan (individual practice interviews) on Sundays and leading a One-Day Meditation Retreat on February 23rd.
This is a rare opportunity to sit in retreat with a deeply experienced teacher and to receive direct guidance in your practice. Dokusan provides a space for personal questions, deepening one’s understanding of the Dharma, and refining one’s practice in a one-on-one setting.
Event Details:
📅 Retreat Date:Sunday, February 23rd 📍 Location: Rocks and Clouds Zen Sangha 🔗 Register Here
During her visit from February 13 to 28, Roshi Egart will be available for dokusan on Sundays, offering a precious opportunity to meet with a teacher individually.
We encourage all members and friends of the sangha to take advantage of this time for focused practice and guidance. If you would like to schedule dokusan or have any questions about Roshi Egart’s visit, please reach out to us.
We look forward to sitting with you!
About Roshi Katie Egart
Roshi Egart is a dedicated Zen teacher with decades of experience in guiding students through meditation, koan practice, and deep inquiry. Her presence and teachings bring a profound opportunity for practitioners at every stage of the path.
May this be a time of deep practice and clarity for all.
Annual Rohatsu Sesshin Our Rohatsu sesshin retreat is a time to connect deeply to our heart-mind and let the busyness of life fall away.
This retreat will offer a hybrid online and in-person option. The in-person part of the retreat will be in Sebastopol, CA, at our Zendo. We request that when you sign up, you let us know if you plan to attend online or in person.
Partial Attendance
We recognize that you might only be able to attend part of the retreat. Please let us know the days and times you are available when you sign up.
Three-Day Retreat 2024
When: Fri., Dec. 6th, to Sun., Dec. 8th
Time: 9 AM to 5 PM
Fee: Suggested dana $45 per day.
Sliding scale available upon request. No one turned away for lack of funds.
Throughout the day, meditation periods will be 25 minutes long, followed by five minutes of walking meditation. There will be one period of chanting meditation each day. Roshi Daniel will also give one teisho (Dharma talk) daily during the retreat. These talks are open to both individuals attending the retreat and anyone who wishes to attend. Please call ahead of time if you wish to join solely for the talk.
For Information, Emailor call rocksandcloudszen@gmail.com 707.319.2001
Retreat Instructions
Once you have signed up, you will receive instructions for retreat attendance online, in-person, or both.
When we practice in sesshin, we wake up to our life as it is. We begin to see through who we think we are, and who we truly are begins to emerge. The constant drone of thoughts fades and loses importance, and what is most essential rises to the surface.
For People Out of Town
This is a “commuter sesshin” for local participants. If you are from out of town and need accommodations, there are not currently many available accommodations in town. However, there are hotels and other options; please contact us for assistance.
Meals During Sesshin
You will be asked to eat breakfast and evening meals on your own. Lunch will be provided and conducted in the traditional Oryoki meditation style for those attending in person. For those participating online, there are no specific meal requirements.
We look forward to practicing together. Please contact us with any questions or for further details.
Rev. Sensei Katie Egart is Dharma teacher affiliated with Rocks and Clouds Zendo. She leads a Zen meditation group, teaches Buddhism, and mindfulness meditation, and coordinates meditation retreats with incarcerated women.
Celebrating the Dharma Transmission Ceremony of Sensei Katie Egart
This week, we celebrate a significant milestone in the journey of Sensei Katie Gyosei Egart as she receives the honor of the Dharma Transmission Ceremony, a profound recognition of her years of dedicated Zen practice, service, and leadership. This event marks her formal joining of the Diamond Sangha and Cementates lineage, as well as the continuation of her life’s work in guiding others on the Zen path. Let us honor her practice, her role as a chaplain, and the profound impact she has had on the Dharma community.
A Journey of Practice and Service Sensei Egart’s path is deeply rooted in the koan tradition of the Diamond Sangha. As a long-time student of Daniel Terragno Roshi, founder of Rocks and Clouds Zendo, her journey reflects the heart-mind transmission essential to the deepening of the Dharma. She has studied and practiced diligently, offering her heart and presence not only to formal Zen students but also to those in need of spiritual care.
Since 2012, as a chaplain serving incarcerated individuals, Sensei Egart has shared the teachings of Zen Buddhism within the walls of the Ohio Reformatory for Women. Under her guidance, the women have engaged in deep practice, cultivating mindfulness and embodying the spirit of Zen. Over the years, she has facilitated over seven Jukai ceremonies—each one a year-long commitment of study and rakusu sewing, culminating in a powerful ceremony of vow-taking. Her work with these women has been a source of hidden light, offering a path to inner transformation in a place where suffering often feels insurmountable.
Dharma Transmission: A Lineage of Heart-Mind The Dharma Transmission Ceremony is not simply a rite of passage but a profound expression of a spiritual lineage. In the tradition of Zen, dharma transmission represents the heart-mind connection between teacher and student, passing on the teachings through lived experience and shared presence. Daniel Terragno Roshi, a dharma heir of John Tarrant Roshi of the Pacific Zen Institute, has nurtured and guided Sensei Egart over the years, embodying the essence of the Diamond Sangha’s koan tradition.
Terragno Roshi’s own practice began in the Gurdjieff Work and evolved through his study of Zen under various teachers. His dedication to sharing the Dharma across Chile, Argentina, and North America reflects the global and interconnected nature of Zen practice, and it is in this spirit that he has offered Dharma transmission to Sensei Egart. Her elevation to the seat of teaching is both a recognition of her own profound dedication and an acknowledgment of the lineage she continues to serve.
Celebrating the Journey of Heart-Mind Connection This ceremony also serves as a celebration of all that Sensei Egart has given to her students, her sangha, and those she will guide in the years to come. Her teaching is a testament to the way Zen practice permeates the entirety of life, whether in the meditation hall, within prison walls, or in everyday relationships. Her guidance brings to life the essence of the Dharma: to see clearly, to respond compassionately, and to awaken to the true nature of the heart-mind.
Her journey is not one traveled alone but is shared with all those she has taught and all who walk alongside her. As she steps into this new role, her teachings will continue to inspire, support, and guide practitioners both near and far.
Joining the Lineage, Continuing the Practice The Dharma Transmission Ceremony is a celebration not only of Sensei Egart’s personal journey but also of the ongoing and unfolding tradition of the Diamond Sangha. It is an affirmation of her years of practice and her commitment to sharing the path with others. From her work as a chaplain to her teaching within the sangha, Sensei Egart’s life is an expression of the Dharma in action, and we are honored to witness her taking her seat within this lineage.
With deep gratitude for her path and for the teachings of Terragno Roshi, we honor this milestone and the continued unfolding of the way.
May her teachings continue to flourish, and may all those who practice with her find deep inspiration and joy on their own journeys.
This past weekend, the Rocks and Clouds Zendo community gathered to celebrate a momentous occasion: the birthday of Siddhartha Gautama, known to us as the Buddha. It was a day of warmth, connection, and deep reflection.
Terragno Roshi led the celebration with a profound talk, reminding us that this day honors not just the birth of the historical Buddha, but also our spiritual lineage, including revered figures like Robert Aitken Roshi. In a beautiful coincidence, it was also Terragno Roshi’s birthday. We celebrated him with a card, a gift and a cake.
We extend our heartfelt gratitude to Phil and Larry, who graciously opened their beautiful home to our Sangha for this special celebration. Their land, cultivated with the principles of permaculture, is a testament to their profound attention and care. It is a work of art, adorned with vibrant flowers and thoughtfully tended landscapes, reflecting the deep connection they have with the earth. Their generosity and the serene beauty of their home created a perfect setting for our gathering, enriching our celebration with the warmth of their hospitality and the harmony of their surroundings.
Terragno Roshi emphasized that “Buddha” literally means “awake.” This awakening is not a distant ideal but a present reality. Each of us is on a unique path, continually waking up to our true selves. As Aitken Roshi wrote, our practice is about being fully present, fully engaged in the moment, and through this engagement, we awaken to the reality of our lives.
This celebration was a reminder that our practice is about recognizing and actualizing our inherent Buddha nature, moment by moment. As Aitken Roshi often noted in his writings, bodhicitta, the wish to wake up, is the seed of our practice. It is the heartfelt desire to realize our true nature and to live from that realization.
We each are engaging our own bodhicitta, our wish to wake up. In this awakening, we are being Buddhas, actualizing Buddha. As we celebrate the Buddha’s birth, we also celebrate each of us. We honor our individual paths and the collective journey of our sangha. We recognize that awakening is not a solitary endeavor but a communal practice, a shared aspiration.
As we sat together in meditation, shared stories, and reflected on our journeys, the sense of community was palpable. We were not just celebrating a historical figure but our own ongoing paths of awakening. The day was a beautiful tapestry of past, present, and future, woven together by our shared commitment to the Dharma.
Aitken Roshi often spoke of the importance of seeing our own Buddha nature in the midst of everyday life. He said, each moment offers an opportunity to wake up. Each interaction, each challenge, each joy is a chance to realize and express our true nature.
In the spirit of the Buddha, let us continue to wake up to our lives, embracing each moment as an opportunity to realize our true selves. As we let our lives wake us up to our true self, we celebrate the continuous unfolding of our Buddha nature, moment by moment.
(There will be two driveways fairly close take the one on the left. The gate should be open. If it is not text mike at 707.319.2001)
In past years, we had a beautiful and very sweet day as a community. During the ceremony, Terragno Roshi gave some encouraging words about our practice. We will also celebrate the founders of our lineage. We chanted the heart sutra and, one by one, each poured some sweet tea over the baby Buddha.
Bring food if you can! Come even if you can’t. We look forward to being together in the wide open space of heart with you.
To see pictures, follow this link Buddha’s Birthday.
The paramita of Vigor. The Japanese word for paramita is Higan, which means “the other shore of enlightenment”. The practice of the six paramitas is said to help people cross over to this other shore.
Our Rohatsu sesshin retreat is a time to connect deeply to our heart-mind and let the business of life fall away. As we practice something more essential and true emerges from within us.
This retreat will offer a hybrid online and in-person option. The in-person part of the retreat will be in Sebastopol Ca at our Zendo. We request that when you sign up you let us know if you plan to attend online or in person. We recognize that you might only be able to attend part of the retreat in person or online. Please let us know the days and times you are available when you sign up.
Instructions for Retreat: Once you have signed up you will receive instructions for either online, in-person, or both for retreat attendance.
When we practice in sesshin we wake up to our life as it is. We begin to see through who we think we are and who we are begins to emerge. The constant drone of thoughts fades and losses importance and what is most essential rises to the surface.
Dosho Port began practicing Zen in 1977 and now co-teachers with his wife, Tetsugan Zummach, with the Vine of Obstacles Zen. Dosho received dharma transmission from Dainin Katagiri Roshi and inka shomei from James Myoun Ford Roshi in the Harada-Yasutani lineage.
Link: https://www.vineobstacleszen.com/ He is the author of “Keep Me In Your Heart Awhile: The Haunting Zen of Dainin Katagiri,” “The Record of Empty Hall: One Hundred Classic Koans,” and “Going Through the Mystery’s One Hundred Questions.”
Ryushin Andrea Thach, Sensei Andrea began formal practice in 1994 in the Vipassana tradition. In 1997 she joined a Buddhist Peace Fellowship program for socially engaged study and practice and met Kushin Maylie Scott, who became her first teacher and lay ordained her in 2000. Andrea has practiced at BZC since 1999, was ordained in 2005, was shuso in 2009 and received dharma transmission from Sojun Mel Weitsman in 2015.
Rev. Sensei Katie Egart is a Diamond Sangha apprentice dharma teacher with Rocks and Clouds Zendo founding teacher Daniel Terragno, Roshi. Sensei, Egart leads a zen meditation group; teaches Buddhism; teaches mindfulness meditation; and coordinates meditation retreats with incarcerated women. She sits regularly w/ Yellow Springs Dharma Center & Zen on High, Columbus, Ohio.
