The Zoom link to participate in this event will be provided at least 24 hours before it begins. Please call 415-354-0360 if you have any questions.
Six Saturdays, February 21–March 28, 1–2:30 pm PT
This is an online introductory class for people who are working with the fierce teachers of chronic illness or chronic pain. In this six-part interactive class we will share our stories and explore practices that may be useful on the journey.
Zenshin Florence Caplow, who will be teaching the class, has "danced" with auto-immune illness for the last two decades, including rheumatoid arthritis. She is a Zen priest and teacher, co-author of Tend to Your Spirit: Mindful Living With Chronic Illness, and a Unitarian Universalist minister. She is also co-editor of The Hidden Lamp: Stories from Twenty-Five Centuries of Awakened Women.
Optional readings will be shared during the class. To prepare, students may wish to read Turning Suffering Inside Out by Darlene Cohen and/or How to Live Well With Chronic Pain and Illness, by Toni Bernhard. Please see Zenshin Florence Caplow’s essay on "Dancing in the Dark Fields" as well as her Dharma talk on this subject below.
This talk was given at Beginner’s Mind Temple by Zenshin Florence Caplow. Zenshin offers stories and teachings from her life as both a Zen practitioner and person with chronic illness, and readings from her new book, Tend to Your Spirit: Mindful Living With Chronic Illness. Recorded on Saturday, November 1, 2025.
Testimonials:
Chronic suffering is impossible to ignore, often excruciating and isolating. Florence Caplow’s Dancing in the Fields of Chronic Pain workshops, with her cheerful and enlightened guidance and the open participation of others, have consistently provided me with refuge, inspiration, and comfort. These workshops are subtle, magical, gentle, and transformative. They embody wisdom in service of compassion. It feels less like practice and more like a rally, opening our hearts. Thanks to everyone participating and to Zenshin Florence; it has been like a prayer flag of compassion touching my countenance.
—Barry E.
In this monthly online gathering, there is no 'othering.' The open and trusting atmosphere that Zenshin and the group co-create is invaluable. Sharing my experiences with chronic illness in this supportive environment brings a sense of release and companionship, without falling into self-pity. The Zoom format allows us to connect, forming a familiar, supportive group without needing to be physically present. Zenshin's integration of Buddhist teachings with the experience of illness has deepened my understanding of impermanence and dealing with suffering. There's room to feel lost and be carried, to be grateful and to complain, to share and to learn. 'There is no I, there is only a we' has profoundly impacted me, ending the isolation of chronic illness. The course is truly a gift that nourishes me and reminds me that I am never alone.
—Monika R.
Recordings:
All course sessions will be recorded, and registered participants will receive temporary access to the recordings for later viewing.
- Sustaining Level: $252
- Member (Become an SFZC Member): $227
- Sliding Scale 1: $151
- Sliding Scale 2: $63
- Current SFZC residents and qualified SFZC retirees may attend this course for free. To register, please email onlineprograms@sfzc.org at least 72 hours before the program begins.
Or call 415-354-0360.