Class

Practicing with Jizo Bodhisattva- the cultivation of fearlessness in a world of suffering

Recurrent

Location
Online
Description
  • Online class
    Four Tuesdays, May 6–May 27, 2025, 7:00 PM–8:30 PM EST
    May 6, May 13, May 20, May 27
    Register by May 5


Jizo
 (地蔵 Earth Womb) Bodhisattva is the embodied archetype of fearlessness, and is renowned as a great protector of children, particularly those who have died. Jizo is also known as the guardian of travelers, pilgrims, mothers in birth, beings transitioning between realms, as well as firefighters and those in danger.

How did Jizo Bodhisattva develop their capacity for fearlessness and ease in the face of immense suffering and challenging circumstances?  And what does their story have to teach us about our own capacities to develop and grow ease and fearlessness in our own lives?  How might practicing with Jizo support us to walk into the fires of grief, transitions, and engagement with the world?

Class participants will study Jizo’s manifestations and history, learn about the different forms of rituals honoring and invoking Jizo, and well as participate in a Jizo Ceremony.

Read more in Sarah Dojin Emerson’s article in Lion’s Roar, “Calling on Jizo.”

Led by Sarah Dōjin Emerson and Wesley Sansei Antell

Registration ends May 5. Registrants will receive a zoom link for the class. Requests for pricing exemptions are due April 28. See “Equitable Pricing Information” below.

Image: Jizo Bodhisattva statue at Ancestral Heart Temple

 

Instructors

Sarah Dōjin Emerson’s formal practice in Soto Zen began in 1996. She lived and trained at Tassajara Zen Mountain center and other sites of the San Francisco Zen Center from 1997-2007. She received Dharma Transmission from Abbott Konjin Gaelyn Godwin of the Houston Zen Center in 2015. She has a Masters Degree in Counseling Psychology from California Institute of Integral Studies, and has worked in the fields of mental health and pastoral care with children and adults. She experiences Bodhisattva Zen practice as deeply supportive to inquiring into, challenging and transforming systems of oppression, particularly racial inequities and the harm they cause within convert Buddhist sanghas, and in U.S. society generally. Sarah has also worked for many years in grief support- clinically, ritually and in community- specializing in child loss. She lives with her partner, Charlie Pokorny (who is also a Soto Zen Buddhist priest), their children (who are her most profound and constant teachers) and numerous pets in Brooklyn, NY.

 

Wesley Sansei Antell was born and raised in the Blue Mountains of Eastern Oregon, and is of Pennsylvania Dutch, Swedish, English, and Jewish heritage. He holds a PhD in United States History from Harvard University, with a focus on racial capitalism and the carceral state. Wesley received the precepts from Kosen Greg Snyder, and lives at Ancestral Heart Zen Temple, where he has served as Enju, the Head of the Garden, since 2020. As a transqueer practitioner, he is deeply devoted to supporting earth-based community processes of repairing and healing complex historical violence. Wesley also serves as the Undoing Whiteness Program Coordinator.

 


Equitable Pricing Information

At BZC, we are committed to making our classes, workshops, and retreats accessible to all. To support this, we offer an equitable pricing model based on a sliding scale, reflecting our intention to move towards equity within our sangha and acknowledge historical contexts of wealth.

Determining Your Rate: Please refer to our Equitable Pricing Model to find the registration rate that best fits your circumstances.

Financial Assistance: No one will be turned away due to financial constraints. If you are unable to pay the lowest rate, please use this form to request a pricing exemption. Note that exemption requests are due at least one week prior to the event start date unless stated otherwise.

Questions? If you have any questions or concerns about registration, please contact us at info@brooklynzen.org.

 


Stay Connected with BZC!

  • For monthly newsletters and/or weekly agendas, choose from your BZC Mailing List options here.
  • To receive community news and updates on offerings, request to join the BZC Community Listserv here.
  • For updates specifically from the Millerton Zendo, please request to join the Millerton Zendo Community List here.

 


Donations

BZC relies on donations to sustain its spaces, teachers, and staff. Make a gift on our website, via PayPal through paypal@brooklynzen.org or Venmo. You can also support a dharma teacher or practice leader here. Or, consider becoming a Member to support us year-round!

 


COVID Protocol

We ask that all participants be fully vaccinated and boosted. Masks are optional. Please see the BZC Covid Protocol for more information.

Fee
$140-240
Questions?
info@brooklynzen.org

To request a refund for this program you must notify BZC in writing at least 2 days before the beginning of the program. This supports the organizing effort involved in managing registrations and cancellations.

Practicing with Jizo Bodhisattva- the cultivation of fearlessness in a world of suffering
Register