What we’re about
The Clear Water Zen Center is an authentic Zen Buddhist practice center. The training is disciplined and can be rigorous. Although we socialize before and after our sittings, our focus is on meditation and carrying our practice into daily life. Although there are many benefits that flow from spiritual growth, our purpose is not to get benefits but to create the conditions that allow our inherent Buddha nature to become manifest.
Buddhists do not worship the Buddha and Zen Buddhism is a religion only to the extent that those who dedicate themselves to practicing its disciplines and following its precepts have faith in its transformative powers.
"The Great Way is not difficult for those who do not pick and choose. When preferences are cast aside, the Way stands clear and undisguised. But even slight distinctions made set earth and heaven far apart. If you would clearly see the truth, discard opinions pro and con. To founder in dislike and like is nothing but the mind's disease, and not to see the Way's deep truth disturbs the mind's essential peace."
We are a lay group of Zen Buddhist practitioners who meet at scheduled times every week for meditation, chanting, dharma talks, and discussion. We have several intensive meditation retreats per year. We are affiliated with the Windhorse Zen Community of Asheville, NC and our teacher is Sensei Lawson Sachter. We meet every Sunday morning at 9:30 A.M. for meditation, every Monday evening at 7:00 P.M. for meditation and discussion, and every Wednesday evening at 7:00 P.M. for beginner's meditation. The complete schedule is at clearwaterzencenter.org.
This Meetup website says that the group was started in 2009. Well, that's when we started a Meetup group! The meditation group was started in the 1980s by Ken Rosen. We met from 1985 to 1999 at Jim Cameron's place, The Bodhi Tree. Then we met at a member's home from 2000 to 2008 and moved to our present location on December 1, 2008.
Sensei Lawson is co-abbot of The Windhorse Zen Community (www.windhorsezen.org) and is a dharma heir of Roshi Philip Kapleau, author of The Three Pillars of Zen and founder of the Rochester Zen Center.
The zendo (meditation hall) of the Clear Water Zen Center is fully equipped so you don't need to bring anything when you visit. If you are looking for a no nonsense, authentic Zen practice center, you have found it.
For more information about the Center, please visit clearwaterzencenter.org.
