Quick Scan - This Month's Headlines

Local Events

Cleveland Shambhala hosts Acharya Eric Spiegel April 29-30

CloudWater holds a day-long intensive on May 1st

"Zen and the Art of Poetry at CloudWater Friday, May 6

CloudWater's annual Animal Release Service is Sunday, May 15

Miksang Contemplative Photography class will be May 19-20 at CSMG

Cleveland Zazen Group welcomes Rochester Zen Center Abbott May 20-21

Buddhist Peace Fellowship holds second meeting May 1 at CBT

Local News

New SouthCoast Meditation Group meets Mondays on near West Side

Regional News

Oberlin's Empty Field Buddhist Community meets on Sundays

Zen Columbus Sangha (formerly Columbus Zen Corner) has a new location

Pittsburgh's Stillpoint releases details of July sesshin with San Francisco Zen Center's Tenshin Reb Anderson Roshi

National News

Change Your Mind Day coming up in June

International News

Beijing-sanctioned Buddhist organization enshrines 350-foot-high statue of Kwan Yin

New York Times profiles the real Shaolin Temple

Sri Lankan monks perform tsunami victim remembrance ceremonies

My apologies to readers for the unintended lapse in publication over the last four months. I've renewed my intention to publish this newsletter once a month. E-mail me news about all local and regional events of interest to those studying any flavor of Buddhism by the 10th of each month.
Palms together, Lynne B.

Local Events

Cleveland Shambhala hosts Acharya Eric Spiegel April 29-30

On April 29-30, Cleveland Shambhala Meditation Group hosts Acharya Eric Spiegel for a two-day seminar called "Fearless Warrior: A traveler's view of the Shambhala Buddhist world and path." The program will be Friday, April 29 from 7:00 to 9:00 PM and Saturday, April 30 from 8:30 to 5:00 pm. Suggested donation is $120.00; $80 for students and seniors. Continental breakfast and lunch are included. Discounts and work study available. Contact Fred Schwieg or Ann Palomo to register or for more information.

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CloudWater holds a day-long intensive on May 1st

CloudWater Zendo will hold a Universal Worthy/Earth Store Bodhisattva Intensive on Sunday, May 1st from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm. The day will include periods of seated and walking Ch'an meditation, chanting, a light lunch, work practice and a Dharma talk by Ven. Shih Ying-Fa. CloudWater Zendo is located at 14436 Puritas Ave. on Cleveland's West Side. Call 216/889-1393 or e-mail yingfa@cloudwater.org for more information.

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"Zen and the Art of Poetry at CloudWater Friday, May 6

CloudWater Zendo hosts an evening of spiritually inspired poetry on Friday, May 6 at 7:00 pm. After readings by area poets and CloudWater members, there will be a discussion of poetry and practice. The event is free; donations welcome. Call 216/889-1393 or e-mail yingfa@cloudwater.org for more information.

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CloudWater's annual Animal Release Service is Sunday, May 15

CloudWater's Animal Release Service serves as both a memorial service for animals and a reminder of their place in the interdependent chain of life. The service will be May 15 at 12:00 pm on the far west beach of Edgewater Park on the shores of Lake Erie in Cleveland. It includes the release of living creatures into the waters. All are invited to bring their pets as well as mementos of departed pet friends. Attendees may also bring a vegetarian dish to share at the potluck lunch. Call 216/889-1393 or e-mail yingfa@cloudwater.org for more information.

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Miksang Contemplative Photography class will be May 19-20 at CSMG

Rannigan Walsh will teach an Introduction to Miksang ("Good Eye")Contemplative Photography class at Cleveland Shambhala Meditation Group's facility on Friday, May 20 and Saturday, May 21. Walsh is a student of John McQuade, cofounder of the Miksang Society. The Friday program includes a lecture and slide show. The hands-on workshop on Saturday runs from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm. The cost of the program is $50, including handouts and continental breakfast. Attendees should bring a 35 mm manual camera and two rolls of 24-exposure E6 slide film. For more information, and to register, please e-mail Rannigan Walsh at ranni@adelphia.net or call 440-498-0611.

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Cleveland Zazen Group welcomes Rochester Zen Center Abbott May 20-21

The Cleveland Zazen Group will host Sensei Bodhin Knolhede, abbot of the Rochester Zen Center the weekend of May 20-21. Rochester Zen Center is founded by Roshi Philip Kapleau, author of The Three Pillars of Zen. Bodhin Sensei will give a free public talk at 7:30 pm on Friday, May 20 at the Guilford House on the Case Western Reserve Campus. On Saturday May 21, Bodhin Sensei will teach a full-day workshop on Introductory Zen Practice at the Unitarian Society in Cleveland Heights. Suggested donation $50, reservations strongly encouraged. For more information or reservations, contact Susan or Larry Rakow at 216/932-3084, susanrakow@earthlink.net.

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Buddhist Peace Fellowship holds second meeting May 1 at CBT

On April 3, about 15 people representing the entire spectrum of local Buddhist groups attended the first organizational meeting for a new Cleveland chapter of the Buddhist Peace Fellowship. After a lively discussion about the possible goals for this new group. There was a consensus that a good starting point would be to learn more about the principals of nonviolent communication. On Sunday, May 1 at 1:00 pm, the Cleveland BPF invites everyone to its second meeting at the Cleveland Buddhist Temple in Euclid (directions). One of the agenda items is details of a fall workshop with Sensei Robert Joshin Althouse. Althouse is currently Director and Teacher of the Zen Community of Oak Park (outside Chicago). Here is Althouse's description of his program on "Inner Disarmament":

Following September 11, 2001, I began to develop Inner Disarmament as a practice. Based on my experience of conducting this training in Mexico and the United States last year, I discovered that people are hungry for learning specific skills that can help them work more effectively with conflict. The response to the training has been enthusiastic. Making peace in our world begins by disarming the enemy within. I am convinced that if we work consciously with conflict, we can transform this experience we are so afraid of into an active engagement with the world that empowers ourselves, our friends, family and community."

For more information about the May 1 Cleveland BPF meeting, e-mail Mark McDermott.

Local News

New SouthCoast Meditation Group meets Mondays on near West Side

Mark McDermott and Jack Ricchiuto announced a new meditation group that meets on Cleveland's Near West Side. The SouthCoast Meditation Group meets Monday evenings from 5:30 to 6:30 pm at the West Side Ecumenical Ministry Building, 5209 Detroit. Attendees should be at the door no later than 5:25 pm as the door will be locked for security. The format includes both sitting and walking meditation and Dharma dialogue. For more information, e-mail jack@designinglife.com or mcdwizard@yahoo.com.

Regional News

Oberlin's Empty Field Buddhist Community meets on Sundays

We recently received information about a Buddhist group in the far west of Northeast Ohio. The Empty Field Buddhist Community, a Soto Zen group, meets in Oberlin every Sunday from 7:30 to 8:30 am at 42 1/2 S. Main St. The group is currently working with Reb Anderson's book on the precepts, Being Upright. For more information, contact John Sabin.

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Zen Columbus Sangha (formerly Columbus Zen Corner) has a new location

Last September, the Columbus Zen Corner adopted a new name and a new location. The group is now the Zen Columbus Sangha (tradition: Robert Aitken's Diamond Sangha). The group now meets at the First Unitarian Universalist Church. ZCS holds open meditation on Tuesday evenings and Saturday mornings. It holds an Introduction to Buddhism class on the 2nd Saturday of each month. April 29 through May 6 they will participate in the Yellow Springs Dharma Center's Spring Sesshin with Daniel Terragno at the Grailville Retreat Center in Loveland, OH.

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Pittsburgh's Stillpoint releases details of July sesshin with San Francisco Zen Center's Tenshin Reb Anderson Roshi

The Stillpoint Zen Community recently released registration information for the five-day July sesshin with Tenshin Reb Anderson Roshi, Senior Dharma Teacher and former abbott with the San Francisco Zen Center. The retreat will be July 8-13 at the Kearns Spirituality Center in Allison Park, PA. The fee is $300 which includes meals and accommodations. The deadline to register is June 15. For more information or a registration form e-mail or call Amy P. Kennedy phone: 412/371-7891.

National News

Change Your Mind Day coming up in June

Tricycle Magazine is once again sponsoring it's "Change Your Mind Day." This year the event will be observed by groups around the country on June 4, 2005. Here is a description from the Tricycle site:

"You don't have to be a Buddhist to share in the afternoon. As when Buddha taught, sitting under a tree in a forest grove, everyone is welcome," said Rande Brown, national Change Your Mind Day coordinator. "Because the teachings and meditation focus on awareness and compassion, they can be appreciated by anyone wanting more spiritual understanding. Change Your Mind Day reflects the Buddhist concept that if we transform our thinking from confusion to wisdom, we will have much happier lives."
Change Your Mind Day is unique because it presents a tapestry of beliefs and approaches found only in Western Buddhism. In many Asian countries, only one or two streams of Buddhism are represented. However, in the United States and Europe, many different streams of Buddhism are intermingling and converging, creating a very rich environment of spiritual practices and teachings. The afternoon of ecumenical discussions and practices reflects a growing spiritual trend.

Are any local groups planning to observe the day? E-mail lbrakeman@cox.net.

International News

Beijing-sanctioned Buddhist organization enshrines 350-foot-high statue of Kwan Yin

On April 24, 108 Buddhist monks from he Chinese mainland, Taiwan Province, Hong Kong and Macao formally enshrined a 108-meter (350-foot) high statue of the bodhisattva Kwan Yin. The statue cost $1 billion Chinese Yuan (approximately $121 million U.S.). It was erected in the Nanshan Cultural Tourism Zone as part of the Nanhai Cultural Customs Park. The China Tourism Development authority has made the development of the theme park a priority project. Shenghui, the vice chairman of the government-sanctioned Buddhist Association of China told Chinese news outlets that the statue will protect and preserve all Chinese people around the world. The statue has one body and three faces, looking at the Chinese mainland, out over the South China Sea towardsTaiwan and out at the rest of the world. Check out:

• the impressive photo essay.
• "Kwan-Yin statue 'enlightened' in Hainan," China Daily, April 24, 2005
• "Statue draws pilgrims," The Age (Australia), April 24, 2005.

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New York Times profiles the real Shaolin Temple

In February, the New York Times published an article profiling the original Shaolin Temple which is located in Engfeng, Henan Province, China. "Like any temple, the birthplace of China's most famous form of kung fu is supposed to be a space of tranquillity and meditation. Yet Shaolin has become such a fixture of Chinese popular culture that much of the life of this holy shrine involves greeting paying tourists who arrive year-round by the thousands," writes Howard W. French. French interviewed the temple's abbot, Yongxin, about the temple's struggle to keep its unique identity in the face of thousands of imitators.

Check it out at: "Dengfeng Journal: So Many Paths. Which Shaolin Is Real? The Reply: Yes," New York Times, February 10, 2005 (free registration required).

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Sri Lankan monks perform tsunami victim remembrance ceremonies

At the three-month anniversary of the tsunami that killed hundreds of thousands of people in southeast Asia, Sri Lankan Buddhist monks and survivors gathered on the devastated beaches of Peraliya to light coconut oil lamps and offer prayers in remembrance. Agence France Presse published an illustrated feature story. See:

• "Don't forget to remember: Sri Lanka village in vigil for tsunami victims," AFP via Yahoo News, March 27, 2005.
• Check out this Yahoo News Photo search for images of Buddhist rites for tsunami victims in other countries.
• The Buddhist Peace Fellowship maintains a list of organizations that are organizing relief to these hard-hit nations.