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What we’re about

About Kannon Do Bay Area Zen Meditation Group:


We aim to bring the spiritual practice of mindfulness to the San Francisco Peninsula and the South Bay, emphasizing its relevance in the modern world. Our purpose is to bring balance to busy lives faced with constant distractions, work and family pressures, and demanding deadlines. Our practice goes beyond relief of stress or health concerns to benefit the whole person. It emphasizes living an authentic life and expressing our inherent true nature in everyday activities, with family, friends, and in our work.


This group facilitates spiritual practice through face-to-face personal relationships with the sangha (community of practitioners) of Kannon Do. Named after "Kannon" the Buddhist personification of compassion, we are a group that provides a supportive environment in which centuries-old teachings and traditions of Soto Zen Buddhism complement the creative and caring spirit of contemporary America. The friendship and trust in this community provides a sense of sanctuary for its members. Kannon Do a non-residential community that is voluntarily maintained by its members.


About our Practice:

***COVID-19 Pandemic Update***


Kannon Do is resuming limited in-person practice on Monday June 28. We welcome in-person attendance from people who are

-fully vaccinated against COVID-19

-wearing face coverings, and

-not exhibiting COVID-19 symptoms.


We’ll keep these requirements under review and consider relaxing them later in the year when it’s considered safe to do so.

 

While resuming limited in-person activities, all online activities will continue without significant changes. Please join us in person or at one of our online events using using the following Zoom meeting information available at https://kannondo.org/contact/online-zen/


In person: 5:30 am – 6:10 am , Monday to Friday – zazen

Identical in format to our pre-pandemic practice, except that face masks will be worn, and we’ll require people to space out across seating spots, including sitting on cushions on the floor if needed, and on chairs outside for those that wish to. Starbucks currently does not allow inside seating, so post-zazen plans are a little uncertain – we’ll play this by ear.We will not stream zazen from the zendo. Volunteers will continue to host a parallel online zazen group on Zoom at the same time every day for anyone who is unable to attend the zendo.


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This Meetup group regularly meets to practice on Wednesday evenings and Saturday mornings at Kannon Do, 1972 Rock Street, Mountain View, CA 94043.


Our practice consists of zazens (sitting/walking meditation), ceremony services, dharma lectures, group discussions, and occasional sesshins (1-3 days retreats). The essentials of zen practice and more reading topics can be found at here.


Our Meetup Schedule:


Virtual Morning Zazen/Meditation [Add to Calendar] [Join]

Monday to Friday 5:30am to 6:10am

Virtual Evening Meditation [Add to Calendar] [Join]

Monday & Thursday 6:30pm to 7:30pm

6:30 – 6:55pm meditation

10 min stretch break/kinhin

7:05 – 7:30pm meditation

Virtual Wednesday Zazen & Discussion [Add to Calendar] [Join]

Wednesday 7:00pm to 9:30pm

6:45pm – Optional online posture instruction

7:10pm – Meditation

8:00pm – Dharma talk or discussion

If you need help comfortably sitting at home, please join the call early at 6:45pm for posture support. If you don’t have a zafu, you can use a firm cushion such as a yoga bolster, a yoga block with towels on top, stacked towels, or a very firm couch cushion for comfortable seated meditation. You can also use a regular chair. Meditation will be silent except for 3 bells at the beginning, and one at the end. I will mute all participants during meditation only. We will then chant the Loving Kindness Meditation, and open up for optional discussion for anyone who has questions about the corona virus and the alternative schedule for Kannon Do over the next couple weeks. Please be sure to unmute yourself to ask questions and participate in the discussion, and please remember to mute yourself if you are in a noisy area. Dharma lectures and discussions may be recorded to share with the sangha (please let us know if you do not want to be recorded).


5:30 am – 9:00 am, Saturday – zazen & kinhin, service, breakfast, work period

As above, the zendo-hosted portions of the Saturday morning program will be identical in format but with face masks and spacing. Breakfast will take a modified format – please bring your own breakfast to eat in the courtyard. A standard work period will follow until about 9am, when the in-person Saturday morning program will conclude.None of this will be streamed, except for the service from 7:00 – 7:30, which will be connected to our regular Zoom room. Anyone attending online may join Zoom as usual at 5:30am or 6:20am, and the service will join the Zoom room at 7am. The Zoom program will conclude as usual after the service at around 7:30am.  Virtual Saturday Program [Add to Calendar] [Join]

Saturday 5:30am to 7:30am


We warmly invite you to come and practice with us.


Deep bows,

Umar and Anna