Editorial
By Frances Collins
‘What do you want to breathe life into?’
Reb Anderson Roshi
This late summer edition comes after a very busy period for Dancing Mountains Zen. A seven day retreat with Reb Anderson was well housed and supported by Hebden Bridge Zen group as well as the local community. This was followed by a public talk which was well received before leaving for London. Reb offered a seminar at Hampstead Quaker Meeting House on Compassion in relation to health and in the world. This was very well attended and we were delighted by the opportunity to meet Richard Baker Roshi also in attendance. Discussion is on-going with Reb about returning in 2014 or 2015 and we welcome all positive energy that anyone would like to offer as we build our supportive community. We will publish here on our website when we have any news so watch this space!
Signs of growth continue as an organisation stepping out and spreading Zen practice in the tradition of Suzuki Roshi & San Francisco Zen Centre. We realise this is a rare and precious opportunity. Introduced to the UK more than 30 years ago, the community has arisen around Tenshin Roshi as our founding teacher and more recently subsequent teachers and priests that have visited our shores. We are most grateful for the opportunity to receive the embodied teaching that Reb brings here tirelessly over the years.
We have come a long way! 2010 saw the first suggestion of an informal constitution offered to our sangha. Discussion led organically to the suggestion that the time could be right to take the next step in development as an organisation. Since then there has been growth in local sangha activity and also at national level. An interim board formed from a few committed sangha members from sanghas across England who were willing to offer time and energy to monthly skype meetings and to sit together as a sangha at regular intervals to actively face the difficulties that such growth brings and to explore how to move forward with the less known legal process of becoming an officially recognised organisation. Meeting the challenges of this growth period we continue to focus on our common aspiration toward growth as a nation-wide community who may be supported by widening our engaged practice in a way that we hope helps all to prepare for all aspects of living and dying.
We are delighted to report that we are actively ready to submit our legal documentation toward incorporating as a social enterprise in the form of a Community Interest Company (C.I.C.). We will be sharing our constitution formally at AGM and hope you can join us. We will have the opportunity to practice together as a sangha and also to review reports on events over the past year as well as the treasurer's report. Becoming a C.I.C. means that whilst accepting more responsibility we will be able to apply for funding streams that support practice opportunities in UK and to offer our community practice as an invitation to people searching for a way of life that is open to being shaped by the bodhisattva vows.
Dancing Mountains is a membership organisation. We offer our deep gratitude to all generosities shown and to paying members whose money contributed quietly and steadily to supporting this year’s events. We welcome all new members. If you would like to join us in breathing life into this practice please join us. You can download a membership form here
For all organisational enquiries please email us at :- directors@dancingmountains.org.uk
Sangha Update
Notice of Dancing Mountains weekend retreat and Annual General Meeting
By Devin Ashwood
We are very happy to announce that we will host the 2013 Dancing Mountains Annual General Meeting on Sunday 13th October at 2:00pm at The Manor House, Ash Walk, ... Read more
Article
‘San Francisco Zen Center – Turns Fifty’ (extracts)
By Tenshin Reb Anderson, transcribed by Kath Bennett, Edited by Frances Collins
Here’s a story…
Suzuki Roshi wanted to give something really good to America and the thing he had that he thought would be really good was the practi...
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Sangha Update
Felsentor Update
By Vanja Palmers (Poorly translated by Google and Devin Ashwood)
Dear friends of Felsentor,
For the second time in January our Zen practice ...
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Poetry
The Earth Remembered
By Carol Kempster
The Earth remembered when she was dressed in green
When her mountains came down and dippe...
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Poetry
The Happy Smiling Baby
By Carol Kempster
A happy smiling baby on the bus
Sat in his pushchair by his granny’s feet
Mimicked her smile
Turned his gaze on me –
For one moment, ...
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