An Appropriate Response: Encountering Suzuki Roshi’s Teachings on The Blue Cliff Record (class), CC 10/11 - 11/29

Practice Center
Date / Time
Oct 11, 2022 / 7:30pm - Nov 29, 2022 / 9:00pm
Event Type
Classes & Extended Courses
Description

For onsite participation, please see instructions below regarding Covid-19 safety requirements.


Eight Tuesdays, 7:30 – 9 pm PT

The Blue Cliff Record/Hekiganroku has been a training text in the Zen school for more than seven centuries. Revered as a model koan collection, the text is a compilation of one hundred traditional stories and citations selected for their ability to bring about insight and awakening. Compiled in the 12th century and accompanied by commentaries and appreciative verses from Chinese Chan masters, The Blue Cliff Record is considered one of the seminal treasures of Zen literature and an essential study manual for students of Zen. While the content may not be easy to navigate, an encounter with it can offer the dedicated student ways to wake up, clear our minds, and face reality directly.

Through readings, group exercises and discussions, weekly reflections, and individual projects, we will dive into and unpack select koans included in The Blue Cliff Record, with the orientation to bring them to life by examining how their wisdom and pointers can help us meet the circumstances of our life with wisdom, compassion, and an “appropriate response.”

Primary Texts: The Blue Cliff Record, translated and edited by Thomas & J.C. Cleary (Shambala, Boston 2005), Two Zen Classics: The Gateless Gate and The Blue Cliff Records, translated by Katsuki Sekida (Weatherhill, NY, 2000), both available through the SFZC Online Store, and selections and commentaries on The Blue Cliff Record by Suzuki Roshi from a new forthcoming collection of his talks.

Online class registration page.

Note: This class is offered as part of the Fall 2022 Practice Period [online / onsite], which supplements the study of this topic through sittings, small discussion groups, and opportunities to meet individually with practice leaders.


  • This offering is open to those who have reviewed the Covid-19 protocols pertaining to this event and have fulfilled the "Safety Preparations Prior to Arrival," including filling out and submitting the Covid-19 Safety Questionnaire.

Please complete this process and then click “Register Online” below.

Fee Information
  • General $300
  • Current SFZC Members $270
  • Sliding Scale 1: $180
  • Sliding Scale 2: $75

For additional discount options, please email us at rezoffice@sfzc.org.

Register Online

Or call 415-354-0360.

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