Morning Star Zen Sangha

06/25/2025

Photos from our commuter sesshins in April and June.

02/05/2025

Another sesshin among friends.

12/09/2024

Living Vow Zen's Rohatsu sesshin (Carolynn not pictured).

11/29/2024

By James Ford

With our bare attention a light shines through wounds and joys. The promise of our saving ourselves and each other. A real Thanksgiving.

11/06/2024

Rebecca Solnit:
“They want you to feel powerless and to surrender and to let them trample everything and you are not going to let them. You are not giving up, and neither am I. The fact that we cannot save everything does not mean we cannot save anything and everything we can save is worth saving. You may need to grieve or scream or take time off, but you have a role no matter what, and right now good friends and good principles are worth gathering in.

Remember what you love. Remember what loves you. Remember in this tide of hate what love is. The pain you feel is because of what you love. The Wobblies used to say don’t mourn, organize, but you can do both at once and you don’t have to organize right away in this moment of furious mourning.

You can be heartbroken or furious or both at once; you can scream in your car or on a cliff; you can also get up tomorrow and water the flowerpots and call someone who’s upset and check your equipment for going onward. A lot of us are going to come under direct attack, and a lot of us are going to resist by building solidarity and sanctuary. Gather up your resources, the metaphysical ones that are heart and soul and care, as well as the practical ones.

People kept the faith in the dictatorships of South America in the 1970s and 1980s, in the East Bloc countries and the USSR, women are protesting right now in Iran and people there are writing poetry. There is no alternative to persevering, and that does not require you to feel good. You can keep walking whether it’s sunny or raining. Take care of yourself and remember that taking care of something else is an important part of taking care of yourself, because you are interwoven with the ten trillion things in this single garment of destiny that has been stained and torn, but is still being woven and mended and washed.”

(Shared by Sandra)

It is now time to ask ourselves, “What would a bodhisattva do?,” and let that be our guide and inspiration. Lion’s Roar offers us the wisdom of leading Buddhist teachers, leaders, and activists as we contemplate how to meet a dark time with the compassion, courage, and skill of bodhisattvas de...

10/08/2024

Another glorious sesshin.

08/18/2024

Living Vow Zen (Morning Star’s organization) just held an amazing 7-day residential sesshin at the lovely Providence Zen Center. Our faces tell the story. Free all beings!

06/06/2024

Celebrated a jukai ceremony last night with sangha members who "received the precepts," Bodhisattva hearts manifesting.

04/08/2024

Another magnificent sesshin among friends. Ever grateful for this practice and one another.

03/12/2024

We've been exploring the provocatively titled "A Whip for a Good Horse," by Torei Enji, in Morning Star Zen Sangha. Here is a blog post by Mike Fieleke, roshi offering a few thoughts.

The realization of intimacy with all beings is the medicine that heals division and is the root of the practice of the six paramitas.

02/25/2024

A reflection on the First Noble Truth, by Mike Fieleke, roshi.

Morning Star Zen Sangha and Living Vow Zen teacher Mike Fieleke reflects on a life or practice, a life of wonder.

02/06/2024

Our altar at sesshin. 🙏🏻