Membership Information

Provisional Membership: To accommodate a new student’s curiousity about the Zen Center and our form of practice, they are allowed a maximum of four visits to the Zen Center. The provisional member may also attend two personal interviews with a Dharma Teacher as a way of experiencing the interview process and getting acquainted with the teaching style prior to commiting as a provisional member. It is a minimum requirement for all students who practice regularly at the Zen Center to join the sangha as a provisional member. Provisional students may attend regular practice, and attend public talks as their practice and dedication moves them. To advance in training and to receive ongoing instruction from a Dharma Teacher requires you to meet the requirements for Associate Membership and to begin paying the Associate Membership dues.

Associate Membership: Anyone who has completed the introductory seminar is eligible to become an associate member. An associate member may take part in nearly all of the practice forms offered at the Zen Center, such as regular sittings, dharma talks, study events, work practice, ceremonies, and social events. They are also permitted to attend consulting interviews which are personal interviews with one of the Dharma Teachers. They are not eligible to ask to enter into formal kongan study with the Master or to become ordained. Associate members are not allowed participation in the governance of the center through meetings, voting, or participation in the committee system. Associate members support the Center by making a monthly monetary contribution with optional donations of their own choosing every time they attend a practice function at the Center.

Supporting Membership: Supporting members are eligible to participate in all Center activities, including Sangha meetings, general membership meetings, and eventually enter into a formal student relationship with the Guiding Teacher. Supporting members pay lower rates for one day retreats and yongmaeng chŏngjins. Please note that formal training with the Guiding Teacher requires, at a bare minimum, three months of supporting membership as a prerequisite before applying as a student. This must also be combined with regular and consistent attendance in accord with this Zen Center Training Guide. A supporting member must be thoroughly acquainted with the Center forms, including: the proper way to wear and use the bowing robe, sitting posture (ability to sit motionless and quiet in a correct sitting posture during the formal periods of sitting), walking meditation, entering, leaving and walking in the Dharma Room, taking a seat in the Dharma Room and leaving your seat in proper order, the different types of hap chang, and their proper uses, prostrations, chanting, requesting and receiving the changgun chukpi, kongan and consulting interviews procedures A supporting member helps the Zen Center by making monthly monetary contributions, by donating time and energy to run and maintain the center through rotation in the committee system, and by attending and voting at the two all–sangha meetings held in the fall and spring training periods. Supporting members are also required to attend one morning or evening sitting per month, one all–sangha workday per year, and one work practice in each of the spring and fall training periods. Prospective supporting members must complete the introductory workshop on Zen Buddhism. Those with extensive experience with Zen practice at other centers may be waived from this requirement; however, it is still recommended that such a person attend the workshop to become familiar with the approach to Zen offered at this center. After attending several sittings, the prospective student may pursue supporting membership by filling out a supporting membership questionnaire, found in the foyer, and placing it in the donation box. They will be contacted by a member of the administrative staff who will arrange to meet and explain the supporting membership process and give them a check list of requirements. Upon completion of the interview the prospective supporting supporting membership member will begin paying dues and may attend consulting interviews on a regular basis. Prospective supporting members are also required to attend a minimum number of regular Zen Center activities, including: three full sittings per month, at least one of which is a morning sitting, two dharma talks per year, one precepts ceremony per year, six full days of yongmaeng chŏngjins per year, meet with a Teacher once a month A time limit of six months has been set for the completion of supporting membership requirements. Exceptions may be granted where a serious student’s schedule or responsibilities make it impossible to fulfill particular attendance requirements. When a new member has completed the supporting membership requirements, they should contact a Zen Center official through the office, and a meeting is arranged to answer questions and establish committee system participation. An Entering the Gate Ceremony is held in conjunction with a Sunday sitting to acknowledge and welcome new supporting members. After fulfilling the minimum requirements and becoming a supporting member, which ensures a thorough understanding of the center’s forms and the ability to contribute to a strong practice atmosphere, the student’s level of participation in the practice forms, beyond those which are required, is entirely up to the individual.