Autumn 2026

Life and death are universally present within each moment. When I first studied meditation in the East, I was taught that "the incoming breath is life and the outgoing breath is death." This is a metaphor, and don't push it too far, but it leads to the recognition that life and death take place in every second and that That which comes in on the in-breath and goes out on the out-breath is the same thing. The Buddha Nature is in both. If one lives with the Buddha Nature, the moment our experience changes from "in" to "out" does not worry us. And the moment it changes from life to death does not worry us.

Recognize that It is always there.

Content:

• News of the Order
• News from the North American temples
• News from the European temples
• Dharma offerings
• From the editor

News of the Order

From 8–12 September, the local Buddhist group in Jersey was delighted to welcome Reverend Master Kōten and Reverend Elinore to the island. The visit offered something more than a programme of formal teachings. In the ordinary spaces between events — walking among ancient stones, sharing stories and conversation, having lunch — we had the opportunity to encounter our teachers. During their stay, Rev. Master Kōten and Rev. Elinore met members of the local group. One excursion took us to some of Jersey’s Neolithic dolmens, connecting us with the island's ancient landscape and those who lived and prayed here thousands of years ago.

During the visit Rev. Master Kōten offered an evening of meditation, Vespers, and questions and answers for the local group. He also led us through the Vespers scripture in its entirety, explaining how it leads us through the whole path of practice. A short article in the local newspaper brought around forty people to his public talk the following day, including both members of our group and people who had never attended before. The evening began with fifteen minutes of meditation, followed by questions and answers. The questions ranged widely—from “Can you please explain dependent origination?” to “What’s your favourite joke?” Rev. Master Kōten spoke about how stillness supports us to find what is good to do. He shared his own story of coming to the Dharma, and through the various stories he told, subtle and deep teachings emerged without necessarily being announced as teachings. A phrase that particularly stayed with members of the group was the encouragement to cease to cherish opinions.

The visit left us with an appreciation for the living transmission of the Dharma. We were reminded that practice happens through relationship—with our teachers, with one another, with ourselves, and with the ordinary world around us. For this, we felt deeply grateful.

Naomi West with contributions from others in the Jersey meditation group

On the Order of Buddhist Contemplatives website there is now an updated safeguarding and ethics statement: https://obcon.org/about-us/safeguarding-and-ethics/. This page has also guidance on how to raise an ethical concern. 

North America

U.S.A.

Shasta Abbey

On June 25 we had a friendly visit from a group of six female monks and 11 lay people connected to Ling Jiou Mountain Buddhist Society in Taiwan and Ling Jiou Mountain New York Center⁠, founded by Dharma Master Hsin Tao. Rev. Ando and Lay Minister Carol Jenkins gave then a tour of the monastery. One of the lay trainees in the group who lives in California had attended an introductory retreat with us several years ago and recommended to the group that they visit our monastery.

Rev. Master Amanda led the week-long June retreat focusing on the Law of Karma; Rev. Master Ando led the August retreat on The Scripture of the Buddha’s Last Teachings, which may be found in Buddhist Writings. Both retreats included daily Dharma talks (which may be found in the Shasta Abbey website), discussions, and formal sanzen. We had a full guesthouse and strong on-line participation for both retreats. It’s always inspiring for the community and lay sangha to meditate and practice together.

We held two memorials, one for Richard Markley, requested and attended by his wife and a friend from Japan. Richard was a noted scholar who helped Rev. Master Jiyu and the monastery with translation work. The other memorial was for Katie Hartel, mother of a congregation friend who lives in Ashland, Oregon.

A considerable summer endeavor was fire abatement. Throughout the summer the extern sacristy, assisted by retreatants, lay residents, and a local landscaping business, worked steadily to reduce the risk of forest wildfire, a major concern in our area, exacerbated by ongoing drought conditions.

Several much-appreciated bequests in the past year have enabled us to make some essential repairs and improvements to the physical fabric of the monastery. One was the installation of a new boiler and heating system for the Vimalakirti Hall (guest house). Repairs included several of the small stone cottages on the property, which are now100 years old.

As August ended, ushered in by early rain and cool weather, our local landscaping company began an extensive replacement and upgrade of our irrigation system. This will result in conservation of water resources, provide dependable water to fruit trees, keep the monastery garden’s green, and free up monks for other responsibilities. Another dimension is to conform to California Department of Forestry and property insurance requirements related to landscaping around structures.

Wallowa Buddhist Temple

Lingering smoke from regional summer wildfires blew swiftly away in chilling winds the first week in September here at the Wallowa Buddhist Temple, a welcome harbinger of autumn, along with an early dusting of snow on the nearby peaks of the Eagle Cap Wilderness.

Also this summer the temple monks were joined at other times by another monk from Washington state who came to rest, as well as a returning lay guest from Japan, each staying for about a week.

Hosting individual retreats has always been one of the main functions of the Wallowa Buddhist Temple. Retreats are currently being offered for monastic and lay members of the Order of Buddhist Contemplatives, and for those who follow our practice of Serene Reflection Meditation (Soto Zen). If you are considering an individual retreat here with us, we invite you to contact us via our website to discuss the possibility.

The previous Sunday, our congregation offered a memorial ceremony and tea for Mitra, a black lab/border collie friend of Clyde and Susan in Kaslo, B.C., Canada. Rev. Master Clairissa served as celebrant. Clyde has come for individual retreats at the Wallowa Buddhist Temple over many years. Mitra died in August at age 16; her name, suggested years ago by Rev. Master Meiko, means “Spiritual Friend.” The memorial altar included a tasty dish of carrot chunks, one of several favorite vegetarian foods of Mitra’s.

We are pleased with the results of dedicating four weeks this summer to improve parking access and wildfire defensibility near the temple’s buildings. With skill and wisdom from long experience, our local excavator friend Ed used various pieces of heavy equipment to improve the driveway along a slippery steep hill and raise the grade in front of the main building. There is now an attractive, safer, graveled approach with five new level parking spaces. Combined with an added overhang and handrail, this already helps make our hillside temple noticeably more accessible for all. Our longer-term plans include continuing to improve on this foundation, eventually offering barrier-free access to the temple entrance in all weather.

As we mark the 30th anniversary of Reverend Master Jiyu’s death this autumn, you might like to listen our Serene Reflections podcast episode “A True Heart Exists” which includes Rev. Clairissa’s first-hand account of the days following Rev. Master Jiyu’s death at the monastery on November 6, 1996, from the perspective of a (then) young laywoman who is now a Zen priest and grand-disciple of Rev. Master Jiyu in our transmission lineage. It offers a glimpse of one way the living teaching can be passed on by example, in real life. You can download a written version of “A True Heart Exists” as well. Also on our website you can find a page with more about Rev. Master Jiyu, including some suggested readings and other resources.

Canada

Lions Gate Buddhist Priory

The summer heat has shifted into the chill of autumn as the leaves change from green to yellow and begin to scatter.

Rev. Master Kōten had some much needed rest on Vancouver Island from June 20 - July 10. Upon his return we held an ordination for our resident pets, Boba and Mita, who were both quite eager and willing to be a part of the ceremony. We are happy to deepen our commitment to training together with them.

We greatly enjoyed a visit from Rev. Sanshin, who spent a week with us in July while he was visiting in North America. On July 20, Rev. Master Aurelian and Rev. Owyn travelled to Victoria to hold a memorial for Matt MacLean who sadly and unexpectedly passed away in March. It was a lovely ceremony and a nice way to remember him and meet and get to know those who were close to him, including his immediate family and 20 members of the Vancouver Island Zen Sangha of which he was a part.

Slowly we began to move things back into Mandala Hall after our renovations, and have put up two new side altars for Fudō and Kanzeon. In addition to the normal outdoor work, Rev. Owyn discovered a Kitchenaid mixer in our local dump's metal recycling. After bringing it home and cleaning it up, he was able to make a full renovation and repair of it including a new paint job. It was a nice project to rescue the machine and now we have an easier time making homemade bread and baking sweet treats for special occasions.

We've had the good fortune of having a close-knit relationship with our local community and are glad to have been invited to various local gatherings and potlucks over the summer. Also, Rev. Master Kōten and Rev. Master Aurelian were honoured to be invited to a naming ceremony for one of the local First Nations women.

This summer we had a good amount of smoke from nearby wildfires; luckily none threatened the immediate vicinity of the Priory, but travel was certainly impacted as the main Highway was closed for much of the summer, adding hours of detour driving to get to the lower mainland. Two fires did start in our valley, but were put out the same day. We have lots of gratitude for the numerous professionals who work fighting these fires and protecting nearby communities. As fire activity continues to increase each year, we do what we can to be responsible stewards of our 160-acre parcel of land, including thinning the forest, removing dead material and firewood, and building burn piles that can be burned in the late fall and winter.

Rev. Master Kōten left for Throssel on August 4, where he will remain through November 4. He has been visiting many of the European groups during his stay. Rev. Master Aurelian left on August 7 to visit the meditation group in Edmonton, Alberta and then subsequently to visit his brother and have a rest in Calgary, returning September 2; less than a week later he flew to the US to visit Shasta Abbey for the monastic gathering. Rev. Owyn has been on his own at the Priory for much of August and September, enjoying some quiet time and learning how to train on his own. He was able to join in a retreat given at Shasta Abbey remotely which was a great help.

We continue to work together with our building committee and various local and regional trades as we move forward with our New Building Project. You can find updates and more information on how to get involved with this project on our website: https://lionsgatebuddhistpriory.ca/new-building-project/

We continue to hold regular Zoom meetings Thursdays at 7pm and Saturdays at 2pm (PST). During the Saturday zooms we try to hold a Precepts Renewal Ceremony and a Shurangama Festival each month. If you'd like to join in, contact us at lionsgatebuddhistpriory@gmail.com

Europe

U.K.

Throssel Hole Buddhist Abbey

We were delighted to welcome Rev. Master Kōten to Throssel in early August. He made the trip over from Lions Gate Buddhist Priory partly so that he could join the community whilst September's biennial monastic gathering takes place. His intention was also to get to know as many monks and lay trainees as would be possible during his three-month stay in Europe. So far he has visited Portobello Priory and the Jersey meditation group (see for more details the separate article in the section News of the Order), as well as meeting many of the laity at Throssel. He is giving teaching whilst he is here, including offering Dharma talks at our Segaki retreat in October.

The hot and dry summer weather has affected our water supply adversely just as it did last year, unfortunately. Retreat guests have been very understanding about the restrictions on water usage which have been necessary; we are grateful for the patience and adaptability of everyone who has come to stay. We are confident that in future the shortages will be averted, as plans have been drawn up to upgrade our water supply's infrastructure: new collection trenches, pipes, storage tanks and filtration systems will be installed in the coming year which will ensure a plentiful and dependable supply for a long time to come. And to help with the effects of increasing temperatures, ceiling fans have been installed in both the lay common room and the monks' library.

Dragon Bell Temple

Planning permission has been granted to extend the bungalow. We are intending to build a single room extension to serve as meditation and ceremony room. Included in the plans, is the creation of a new entrance and installation of an additional toilet in the existing building. Hopefully, building work will be starting in the autumn.

A regular schedule of events are held at Dragon Bell, some of which are available to join remotely. Details can be found on the ‘calendar’ page of the website and on the ‘ways to join in’ page.

Telford Buddhist Priory

The acknowledgement of the care given to, and eventual passing of, congregation members’ family ‘pets’, together with the subsequent grief and the process of coming to terms with the realities of death, very much falls within the priory’s function. For many children, the death of a beloved pet is their first experience of losing a living creature with which they have formed a deep and loving connection. I’m glad there is now a place, and time, here for families to mark the death of a pet with a simple ceremony and to mark the spot. In Billy’s case, with a piece of Himalayan rock salt.

Germany

Dharmazuflucht Schwarzwald

Rev. Clementia will be travelling to Throssel Hole Buddhist Abbey in September, to participate at the gathering of our Order. The evening before taking the plane from Basel airport, she will be spending the night at the house of Lay Minister Irene Mueller-Harvey and will attend the evening meeting of the meditation group that Irene leads. Irene will then very kindly drive her to the airport on the following morning.

The Netherlands

De Dharmatoevlucht

Dharma offerings