Lotus Sutra Summer Program

Should I leave this burning house
of ceaseless thought
and taste the pure rain's single truth
falling upon my skin?

- Lotus Sutra

Dates
July 14-August 5, 2007

Locations
City of Ten Thousand Buddhas in Mendocino County, California
with one optional week in the forests of Oregon
(link for description).

Cost
Entire Program: $400 (including room and board).
(Oregon week is another $50 (transportation) + donation).

Scholarship / Financial Aid
No one will be turned away because of a lack of funds, please fill out the scholarship application (DOC, PDF) and register online.

Deadline
On a rolling basis as spaces are available (please apply asap)

This summer in a tranquil monastic setting, Dharma Realm Buddhist University will host a three-week intensive immersion experience in the Buddhist tradition. Students will read, reflect upon, and discuss the Lotus Sutra, where the Buddha reveals that all beings can realize Buddhahood. This is one of the most important texts in Mahayana Buddhism, and is considered by some to be King of Sutras. Also many well-known Buddhist parables are found within this text--the analogy of the burning house and the story of the lost son.

The program will follow a traditional monastic lifestyle of work, study, and meditation designed to calm the mind, strengthen the body, and prepare the spirit for insight and understanding.

Classes will be led by faculty of Dharma Realm Buddhist University, both lay and monastic, with informal discussions balancing the more formal classes of the day. Time will be set aside for quiet reading, writing, and personal reflection. Workshops on yoga, chan/zen meditation, chanting, and ethical discipline will be available throughout.

The first week (July 14-July 20) will consist of an introductory week orienting participants to life in a monastery and the study of Buddhist texts through investigating the Lotus Sutra.

The optional second week (July 21-27) will relocate to the Oregon Coast Range for a five-day chan/zen meditation intensive. (Please note that the Oregon week will involve camping outside, go to the Oregon FAQ for more details. Participants are welcome to also spend this time practicing in the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas.)

The third week (July 28-August 5) brings students back to the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas for a weeks devoted to the recitation of the name of Guan Shi Yin, the Bodhisattva of Great Compassion. We will be chanting and studying the chapter devoted to Guan Yin Bodhisattva, the Universal Door Chapter of the Lotus Sutra.

If you have questions, please email the program coordinator, summerprogram@drbu.org.