Wider Sangha



I take refuge in Buddha
I take refuge in Dharma
I take refuge in Sangha...


In traditional terms, "Sangha" is defined as the community of ordained Buddhist monks and nuns. However, Zen communities in the West are largely made up of lay practitioners, necessitating an expansion of the definition of Sangha.

When Roshi Philip Kapleau established the Rochester Zen Center in 1966, he could hardly have imagined the large community of Zen practitioners that his teaching and leadership would establish. Just as he had been guided by Harada-roshi and Yasutani-roshi, Roshi Kapleau shepherded his students through years of training, and granted some of them permission to become teachers and his Dharma Heirs.

The sense of community that was engendered through an affinity with Roshi Kapleau still connects his now far-flung Dharma Heirs and their students to each other and to the Rochester Zen Center.

Related information:

  • Cloud-Water Sangha
  • Affiliate Zen Centers
  • Autonomous Zen Centers
  • Sitting Groups
  • Sister Centers


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