Dokusan and Practice Discussion

Rev. Nyozan Eric Shutt is an authorized Dharma Teacher and has served in various temple positions at Ancient Dragon Zen Gate.  For many years he guided meditation at our affiliated weekly group at the University of Chicago’s Rockefeller Chapel in Hyde Park,  He is also on our Ethics and Reconciliation Council, previously served as chair of our board, and is available for Zen practice discussion. He was introduced to Tibetan practice at Naropa Institute in 1974 but by the mid-1980s felt more of an affinity to Zen. He has now had many years of practice with both Korean and Japanese Zen teachers. Nyozan attended a Tassajara practice period in the spring of 2009 and was ordained as a priest by Taigen in 2011. In 2014 he served as head monk (shuso) for our spring practice period. And in 2019 Nyozan again attended ango at Tassajara, and later that year received dharma transmission from Taigen.  Nyozan taught zazen at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in Chicago for five years and has helped construct community gardens on the South Side.

​Rev. Hōgetsu Laurie Belzer is the Guiding Dharma Teacher at Ancient Dragon Zen Gate and succeeds our founding guiding teacher, Taigen Dan Leighton.   She is a lineage holder in the Soto zen tradition of Shunryu Suzuki-roshi, and received dharma transmission from Rev. Taiyo Lipscomb. Since 1989, Hōgetsu has trained intensively at all three of San Francisco Zen Center’s temples, where she served as Shuso (Head Monk) with Tenshin Reb Anderson at Green Gulch Farm.  A founding member of ADZG, Hōgetsu has supported the evolution of our practice center since its genesis.  As guiding teacher, Hogetsu joyfully serves the wonderful ADZG community in many ways, including as dharma teacher, sangha leader, board member, Thursday morning zazen host,  and sewing practice mentor.

Rev. Shudo Paula Lazarz has served as Ancient Dragon’s Work Leader, Tenzo and Board Secretary.   Her Soto Zen training began in 2010 under Taigen Dan Leighton with periodic intensive study at San Francisco Zen Center’s affiliated temples.  She was priest ordained by Taigen in February, 2016.  Paula originally came to Zen practice to deepen her understanding of martial arts. A 6th-degree Black Sash in Northern Shaolin Long Fist, Paula studies common threads in the physicality, concentration practices, and Temple traditions of Soto Zen, Shaolin Kung Fu, and Chinese Qigong. She is an authorized teacher with her own martial arts studio in Chicago. There are indeed historical links between Soto Zen and Shaolin martial arts.