Diana Worthen
The Great Plains Zen Center (GPZC) is a Soto Zen Buddhist temple that serves members in the suburbs of south Wisconsin and Chicago. Myoshinji, the center’s Subtle Mind Temple, spans three acres in the rural town of Monroe, Wisconsin. Members of GZPC consider Myoshinji to be their “home base,” and here they conduct their yearly retreats, workshops, and intensive training. GPZC is a member of the White Plum Asanga, an international organization of Dharma Successors of Maezumi Roshi.
History and Lineage
When Zen practice first developed in China, it was known as “Chan” Buddhism. The tradition flourished in the fifth century when the monk Bodhidharma “transmitted the lamp” of his lineage to China. After a dispute with Emperor Wu, Bodhidharma traveled to a monastery in Luoyang, where he spent nine years staring at a cave wall in quiet contemplation. This style of sitting meditation, called zazen, is fundamental to Zen practice. GPZC formally recognizes Bodhidharma as their 28th Ancestor Teacher.
Soto Zen developed when the monk Dogen Zenji (1200-1253) imported the teachings of the Chinese Caodong school to Japan, where it came to be known as the Soto school. In keeping with Bodhidharma’s practice of zazen, the primary practice of Soto Zen is “just sitting” as a means of silencing the mind (or, in Dogen’s interpretation, “dropping away the body and mind”) to achieve enlightenment.
The Great Plains Zen Center traces its lineage to Hakuyu Taizan Maezumi Roshi, a seminal figure in the foundation of Zen Buddhist practice in the West. Ordained as a Soto Zen monk at age eleven, Maezumi Roshi dedicated his life to the diffusion of Soto Zen Buddhism and to the education of his students. Among six other Soto Zen organizations across Europe, South America, and the United States, Maezumi Roshi founded the Zen Center of Los Angeles in 1967. At this “mother temple of the lineage” (Jones, 2004), he educated his first twelve Dharma Successors, who went on to establish their own organizations under the umbrella of the White Plum Asanga. Although Maezumi Roshi passed away in 1995, his lineage and his legacy thrive in White Plum establishments worldwide.
Teacher at Great Plains Zen Center
Susan Myoyu Andersen is the “spiritual director” of GPZC. She is one of Maezumi Roshi’s original twelve successors, and she studied with him for more than two decades at the Zen Center of Los Angeles at the time of its establishment. She was ordained as a Buddhist monk in 1978. Shortly before his death in 1995, Maezumi Roshi officially gave Myoyu Andersen the Dharma transmission, and with it the authority to teach the Zen tradition to others. The White Plum Asanga recognizes her as a Roshi. In addition to her role at GPZC, Myoyu Roshi works as a pediatric occupational therapist.
Meditation Practice
The Great Plains Zen Center represents a syncretistic brand of Buddhism, which seeks to blend traditional practice with modern ideologies. Members of GPZC generally adhere to the Buddhist origins of Zen practice, and they hold to the basic teachings promoted by Shakyamuni Buddha: that human suffering and dissatisfaction are rooted in anger, ignorance, and greed, and that this suffering “can be overcome by the development of wisdom and compassion innately present in each of us” (An Introduction to Zen Practice, 2006). The GPZC approaches Zen from a distinctively Western perspective, recognizing the practical benefits of Zen as a Buddhist practice, as a non-religious practice, and as a practice that may help its members engage with other religious traditions more meaningfully. According to the GPZC’s twenty-page primer, “Zen practice is an expression of our completeness and wholeness as we are.”
To this end, members of GPZC engage in zazen, the form of sitting meditation that is fundamental to Zen practice. Although most members may hold contemporary attitudes regarding the purpose or benefits of sitting meditation (i.e., for promoting mental health rather than achieving enlightenment), GPZC takes an entirely traditional approach to the practice of zazen. Instructors at GPZC offer detailed guidance on proper zazen procedure, and they train new members in the sitting posture, hand positioning, and breathing methods that have been associated with Zen practice for hundreds of years. Although sitting meditation is the main exercise at GPZC, members also engage in walking meditation. For elderly members or those with disabilities, GPZC offers modifications to the traditional sitting practice, which can cause physical strain.
Most members engage with the Sangha on a weekly basis, but Myoyu Roshi also advocates for daily, individual practice. This daily practice typically necessitates a small space in the home devoted to meditation, where members are encouraged to sit in quiet contemplation for at least ten minutes every day. Additionally, GPZC promotes a monthly Day of Reflection, which members observe on their own initiative. According to Myoyu Roshi, the Day of Reflection is intended as “an opportunity to bear witness to your life, looking at what you do, say or think through the lens of the Zen Peacemaker Precepts.”
Teachings and Social Activism
As a Buddhist organization, the GPZC encourages adherence to the Eightfold Path described by the Buddha, as well as his five precepts against killing, stealing, improper sexual conduct, false speech, and intoxication. GPZC relates these precepts more specifically to the teachings of the Zen Peacemaker Order (founded in 1996 by Roshi Bernie Glassman, another disciple of Maezumi Roshi). The Zen Peacemaker tenets promoted by GPZC align with fundamental Zen concepts of open-mindedness, of “bearing witness” to arising thoughts and emotions, and of quiet contemplation.
Much like Maezumi Roshi, who “described his activities as socially engaged Buddhism” (Zen Peacemakers, 2012), GPZC and other members of the White Plum Asanga are devoted to social activism. Members of GPZC take a strong interest in raising awareness about the suffering caused by racism and inequality. A primarily white community, GPZC members are interested in addressing “experiences and beliefs, both conscious and unconscious, with respect to diversity, inclusion, privilege differentials, racism, and creating/being an ‘other.’” At GPZC, members participate in social dialogue from a Buddhist perspective, tracing the origins of inequality to the same human ignorance that promotes other kinds of suffering. Members of the Sangha also engage in community service, including the Interfaith Community for Detained Immigrants, the Second Harvest Foodbank, the Kenneth Young Center, and other organizations that aim to promote social equality. On their website and Facebook page, GPZC provides members with a comprehensive list of resources for addressing, discussing, and learning about social inequality and racism.
Activities and Offerings
GPZC typically offers introductory workshops twice a month. During these half-day sessions, newcomers learn the precepts promoted by GPZC and are instructed in traditional Zen practice, including the zazen procedure. Like some American Buddhist organizations, which have integrated religious customs with prevalent Western practices, GPZC offers zazen services on Sunday mornings and evenings. Members and non-members are free to attend any zazen meditation period at their own convenience.
Each month, GPZC offers Zen retreats at the Myojinshi location. Zazenkai are short, one-day meditation retreats that are popular among newer practitioners. Sesshin are longer retreats, lasting three to seven days, that allow participants to focus deeply on Zen practice over an extended period of time. During sesshin, members have an opportunity to receive personal instruction from one-on-one conversations with Myoyu Roshi. Some retreats are thematically devoted to a particular cause; for example, the Bodhidharma Sesshin honors the Zen lineage and “the spirit of Bodhidharma’s teaching” by requiring complete silence during the retreat.
GPZC offers children’s programs aimed at educating young minds about meditation, the Eightfold Path, and the benefits of mindfulness. Tailored for an adolescent audience, the Ripples program introduces the fundamentals of Soto Zen Buddhism in a child-friendly atmosphere. The center also offers painting and music programs with resident artist Annie Markovich, who encourages children to express their understandings of Buddhism through media.
National Impact
GPZC is a member of the White Plum Asanga, which comprises multiple organizations across the United States and Europe. Founded and led by a Dharma Successor of Maezumi Roshi, who was a pivotal figure in the establishment of Soto Zen Buddhism in the United States, members of GPZC are part of a significant legacy in the diffusion of Zen Buddhist practice across the world. Although Maezumi Roshi was criticized by some for alcoholism and infidelity, most do not believe that his domestic conduct diminishes his influence on the development of Western Zen. The members of GPZC and other practitioners of his lineage are a testament to the wide-reaching impact of Maezumi Roshi’s social and religious activism; to the dedication of his successors to the Buddhist path; and to the versatility of Buddhism in the modern era.
Works Cited
“About Us.” White Plum Asanga, 2017, whiteplum.org/about-wpa/.
Andersen, Susan Myoyu. An Introduction to Zen Practice at Great Plains Zen Center, 2014.
Great Plains Zen Center, 2017, http://www.greatplainszen.org/.
Jones, Noa. “White Plums and Lizard Tails: The story of Maezumi Roshi and his American Lineage.” Lion’s Roar: Buddhist Wisdom for Our Time, Lion’s Roar Foundation, 1 Mar. 2004, www.lionsroar.com/white-plums-and-lizard-tails-the-story-of-maezumi-roshi-and-his-american-lineage/.
“Our Story.” Zen Peacemakers International, 2017, zenpeacemakers.org/our-story/.
Stefon, Matt. “Bodhidharma: Buddhist Monk.” Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2015, www.britannica.com/biography/Bodhidharma.