Soto Zen Buddhist Meditation in Chicago
Ancient Dragon Zen Gate is a community of practitioners committed to Soto Zen Buddhist meditation practice in Chicago, and now online to many distant practitioners. Our guiding teacher is Taigen Dan Leighton, author, scholar, and Dharma teacher in the lineage of Shunryu Suzuki. We invite you to read his teachings or listen to audio recordings of Dharma talks by Taigen and many others. Sunday mornings we welcome brand new visitors to attend our online zendo to learn meditation before our regular program. Please email info@ancientdragon.org
IN-PERSON EVENTS RESUME AT EBENEZER LUTHERAN CHURCH
The Board of Directors of Ancient Dragon Zen Gate voted at their June 19th meeting to resume in-person zen practice at Ebenezer Lutheran Church for Sunday morning and Monday evening services, effective Sunday, June 26th, with the previously established and published safety protocols. Masks will continue to be required at in-person service, with N95 masks encouraged, and sangha members will also be able to attended remotely via Zoom. Please review our COVID policy for attending in-person events, which can be found here. Please see our calendar, the Sangha Events section, and the Meditation Events sections of this site for news about upcoming events.
Guiding Dharma Teacher Taigen Dan Leighton will be available for dokusan by telephone or zoom, as will Dharma Teachers Nyozan Eric Shutt, Eishin Nancy Easton, Hogetsu Laurie Belzer, and Visiting Dharma Teacher Zengyu Paul Discoe. Please send requests for dokusan to our info@ancientdragon.org mailbox. Lay Teacher Douglas Floyd and Practice Leaders Gyoshin Laurel Ross, and Shudo Paula Lazarz also are available for practice interviews and can be reached through info@ancientdragon.org.
Finally, our Sangha Care Committee provides and facilitates support for Sangha members and their loved ones. We view caring for our community as an opportunity of mutual benefit, a chance to live out our Bodhisattva precepts and to realize our interconnectedness as beings. Challenging times during which the Sangha Care Committee could be of support include times of illness, grief, or hardship. Examples of support include our Dharma Buddies Program, support during times of illness or hospitalization, and mobilization of sangha resources and mutual aid. Please contact sanghacare@ancientdragon.org to be in touch.
Click the Online Zendo button above to enter our online zendo via ZOOM. Please bow to the camera when entering or becoming visible on Zoom, but then do not face the screen directly during zazen.
Please refer to our calendar for a complete schedule of services and events in our online zendo. As well, please refer to our Online Zendo page for instructions on accessing the room.
Latest Dharma Podcast Episodes
Dana Paramita: Realizing the Diamond Shift
ADZG 1016 ADZG Sunday Morning Dharma Talk by Hogetsu Laurie Belzer
Featured Podcasts: Buddhism in Kamakura Japan
Click here to learn more about some recent dharma talks given by our guiding teacher, Taigen Dan Leighton, about key buddhist figures in Kamakura-era Japan.
Featured Events
NAGARJUNA READING GROUP – Wednesday, August 17, 2022 @ 7:00 PM – 9:00 PM
This reading group is open to all. Monthly meetings in the online zendo begin with thirty minutes of zazen, followed by reading aloud together and discussing Nāgarjuna’s The Fundamental Wisdom of the Middle Way. Participants are not expected to purchase this text and are welcome to drop in for any reading group gathering. There is no registration or fee to attend, but donations are welcome. Email info@ancientdragon.org with questions.
LGBTQ+ DHARMA GROUP – Friday, August 19, 2022 @ 6:00 PM – 7:30 PM
The LGBTQ+ Dharma Group meets quarterly in our online zendo. The program begins with 30 minutes of group zazen followed by reading and informal discussion of a short text relevant to the concerns of the LGBTQ+ community and their intersection with Buddhist practice. For more information, email info@ancientdragon.org.
ZAZEN AND DHARMA TALK BY STEVEN HEINE: YUNMEN’S JEWEL:-THE ORIGINS OF A KOAN CASE – Sunday, August 21, 2022 @ 9:30 AM – 11:30 AM
Dharma talk by Steven Heine, eminent scholar of Dogen, koans, and Zen history, and prolific author of related books. Dr. Heine will speak on Yunmen’s Jewel: A Case Study of the Origins of a Koan case (Blue Cliff Record #62; Book of serenity #92). Sunday Morning Public Program at Ebenezer Lutheran Church and in our online Zendo via ZOOM.
Featured News
HIROSHIMA VIGIL IN EVANSTON
Our guiding teacher, Taigen Dan Leighton, will be participating in a vigil for the anniversary of the Hiroshima bombing this Saturday, August 6, in Evanston. The event will start at Fountain Square, followed by a meditative walk to Dawes Lagoon. Click here to see the flyer containing more information about the event.
RUTH OZEKI TALK ON NEW BOOK
Zen priest and novelist Ruth Ozeki gave a talk on her latest novel, The Book of Form and Emptiness June 24th at Ebenezer Lutheran Church, co-sponsored by Ancient Dragon Zen Gate and Women and Children First bookstore. Hear her talk on our podcast by clicking here. Two days before the talk, Ruth Ozeki received the prestigious Women’s Prize for Fiction award for this book.
RESPONSES TO THE END OF REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS
Click here to read a post from our guiding teacher, Taigen Dan Leighton, responding to comments by his dharma sister, Konjin Gaelyn Godwin Roshi of the Houston Zen Center, regarding the Supreme Court’s recent overturning of Roe v. Wade.
Check out our Sangha News page to look at older news items previously featured here.
ARCHIVAL TALKS
Sangha Calendar
Thursday Morning Online Zazen with Hogetsu Laurie Belzer
Beginner’s Mind Zazen & Discussion Online
Meditation in Decolonizing Consciousness
Zazen and Dharma Talk by Taigen Dan Leighton
Monday Morning Online Zazen with Douglas Floyd
Donate when shopping at AmazonSmile!
Every little bit helps! Amazon will contribute a small percentage of your purchase when choose us, Ancient Dragon Zen Gate NFP, when you shop at smile.amazon.com/ch/41-2219998.
Click the Online Zendo button above to enter our online zendo via ZOOM. Please bow to the camera when entering or becoming visible on Zoom, but then do not face the screen directly during zazen.
Please refer to our calendar for a complete schedule of services and events in our online zendo. As well, please refer to our Online Zendo page for instructions on accessing the room.
IN-PERSON EVENTS RESUME AT EBENEZER LUTHERAN CHURCH
The Board of Directors of Ancient Dragon Zen Gate voted at their June 19th meeting to resume in-person zen practice at Ebenezer Lutheran Church for Sunday morning and Monday evening services, effective Sunday, June 26th, with the previously established and published safety protocols. Masks will continue to be required at in-person service, with N95 masks encouraged, and sangha members will also be able to attended remotely via Zoom. Please review our COVID policy for attending in-person events, which can be found here. Please see our calendar, the Sangha Events section, and the Meditation Events sections of this site for news about upcoming events.
Guiding Dharma Teacher Taigen Dan Leighton will be available for dokusan by telephone or zoom, as will Dharma Teachers Nyozan Eric Shutt, Eishin Nancy Easton, Hogetsu Laurie Belzer, and Visiting Dharma Teacher Zengyu Paul Discoe. Please send requests for dokusan to our info@ancientdragon.org mailbox. Lay Teacher Douglas Floyd and Practice Leaders Gyoshin Laurel Ross, and Shudo Paula Lazarz also are available for practice interviews and can be reached through info@ancientdragon.org.
Finally, our Sangha Care Committee provides and facilitates support for Sangha members and their loved ones. We view caring for our community as an opportunity of mutual benefit, a chance to live out our Bodhisattva precepts and to realize our interconnectedness as beings. Challenging times during which the Sangha Care Committee could be of support include times of illness, grief, or hardship. Examples of support include our Dharma Buddies Program, support during times of illness or hospitalization, and mobilization of sangha resources and mutual aid. Please contact sanghacare@ancientdragon.org to be in touch.
Latest Dharma Podcast Episodes
The Practice of Zen Forms
ADZG 1015 ADZG Monday Night Dharma Talk by Gyoshin Laurel Ross
Featured Podcasts: Buddhism in Kamakura Japan
Click here to learn more about some recent dharma talks given by our guiding teacher, Taigen Dan Leighton, about key buddhist figures in Kamakura-era Japan.
Featured Events
NAGARJUNA READING GROUP – Wednesday, August 17, 2022 @ 7:00 PM – 9:00 PM
This reading group is open to all. Monthly meetings in the online zendo begin with thirty minutes of zazen, followed by reading aloud together and discussing Nāgarjuna’s The Fundamental Wisdom of the Middle Way. Participants are not expected to purchase this text and are welcome to drop in for any reading group gathering. There is no registration or fee to attend, but donations are welcome. Email info@ancientdragon.org with questions.
LGBTQ+ DHARMA GROUP – Friday, August 19, 2022 @ 6:00 PM – 7:30 PM
The LGBTQ+ Dharma Group meets quarterly in our online zendo. The program begins with 30 minutes of group zazen followed by reading and informal discussion of a short text relevant to the concerns of the LGBTQ+ community and their intersection with Buddhist practice. For more information, email info@ancientdragon.org.
ZAZEN AND DHARMA TALK BY STEVEN HEINE: YUNMEN’S JEWEL:-THE ORIGINS OF A KOAN CASE – Sunday, August 21, 2022 @ 9:30 AM – 11:30 AM
Dharma talk by Steven Heine, eminent scholar of Dogen, koans, and Zen history, and prolific author of related books. Dr. Heine will speak on Yunmen’s Jewel: A Case Study of the Origins of a Koan case (Blue Cliff Record #62; Book of serenity #92). Sunday Morning Public Program at Ebenezer Lutheran Church and in our online Zendo via ZOOM.
Featured News
HIROSHIMA VIGIL IN EVANSTON
Our guiding teacher, Taigen Dan Leighton, will be participating in a vigil for the anniversary of the Hiroshima bombing this Saturday, August 6, in Evanston. The event will start at Fountain Square, followed by a meditative walk to Dawes Lagoon. Click here to see the flyer containing more information about the event.
RUTH OZEKI TALK ON NEW BOOK
Zen priest and novelist Ruth Ozeki gave a talk on her latest novel, The Book of Form and Emptiness June 24th at Ebenezer Lutheran Church, co-sponsored by Ancient Dragon Zen Gate and Women and Children First bookstore. Hear her talk on our podcast by clicking here. Two days before the talk, Ruth Ozeki received the prestigious Women’s Prize for Fiction award for this book.
RESPONSES TO THE END OF REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS
Click here to read a post from our guiding teacher, Taigen Dan Leighton, responding to comments by his dharma sister, Konjin Gaelyn Godwin Roshi of the Houston Zen Center, regarding the Supreme Court’s recent overturning of Roe v. Wade.
Check out our Sangha News page to look at older news items previously featured here.
Sangha Calendar
Thursday Morning Online Zazen with Hogetsu Laurie Belzer
Beginner’s Mind Zazen & Discussion Online
Meditation in Decolonizing Consciousness
Zazen and Dharma Talk by Taigen Dan Leighton
Monday Morning Online Zazen with Douglas Floyd
ARCHIVAL TALKS
Donate when shopping at AmazonSmile!
Every little bit helps! Amazon will contribute a small percentage of your purchase when choose us, Ancient Dragon Zen Gate NFP, when you shop at smile.amazon.com/ch/41-2219998.
