Peacemaker Circles UK

Lockdown meant that the Zen Peacemaker, Leeds Mindfulness, Wellbeing & Spirituality, and Leeds Nur Ashki Jerrahi sufi communities faced many challenges when it came to meeting. I'm grateful to Zoom but there are still challenges with understanding and sensing the space of the "other".  However, new opportunities for new communication and contact came about in this time. Steve Hart (dharma and vision holder, ZP) designed some peer support workshops for on-line groups for people with mental health difficulties under the Live Well Leeds third sector banner. These workshops looked at self care, self esteem, self compassion, confidence building and looking at heartfelt communication - Non Violent Communication, Assertiveness exploration and ethical  speech.  The LGBTQ community in Live Well Leeds also got in touch with Steve to receive on-line workshops on mindfulness, meditation, self nurturing, self compassion and loving kindness meditation. Also we couldn't have a ...

We're starting a new circle in Stockport - the Humble Earth Zen Circle - to rebirth the original Manchester Zen Peacemaker Circle which ran from 2007-2011, until Steve Hart moved it across to Leeds. The new circle will train in the core tools of the Zen Peacemaker Circles - zazen, council circle, study, the five Buddha families, consensus decision making - and will be open and inclusive of people from any spiritual background or none. We are honoured to have as our first Elder for the Humble Earth Circle the venerable Jeana Teiju Moore - a student originally of Taizan Maezumi Roshi, then personal attendant to Bernie Glassman in the early days of the New York zen community, and then invited by Bernie to be one of the founders and visionholders for the Zen Peacemaker Circles, sharing socially engaged zen on street retreats, in Auschwitz, and in community action. Jeana will offer regular contributions and friendship to the circle here.

Here's the latest news from the work of Steve Suleyman Hart, the Zen Peacemaker Circle visionholder in Leeds, and the Leeds circle in our sister community, the Nur Ashki Jerrahi Sufi Order, arranged by the Circle Guide Sahil Sefer Warsi. The umbrella organisation for Steve's work is Leeds Mindfulness, and he'll be beginning the next round of ZPC training this month: I'll make some time now to bring you up to speed with some succinct news. As you know I regard the groups I facilitate as my social engagement contribution and challenge. One of the groups - the tuesday evening circle at the Quaker House in Roundhay has now been taken over by Tamaris Kielty who works in the NHS and teaches mindfulness in the NHS. She is a lovely warm hearted trickster and laughs alot and is influenced by Tara Brach and Tsultrim Allione. After the highly successful Kirkstall Abbey Mindfulness Festival, our regular group on tuesday afternoons there continues to meet - we held a servi...

Bernie Glassman, zen teacher and social entrepreneur, and founder of our circle approach to zen, died today after a long struggle to recover from a stroke. He leaves behind his wife, Eve Marko, who cared for him in his last couple of years. Please think of Eve and send her prayers, metta, good wishes, to support her.

Steve Hart, a Circle Dharmaholder in the Zen Peacemaker Circles, has been offering training in circle zen practice for a few months each year in Leeds, Northern England. The next period of training will begin on Nov 14th 2018, in the Oblong Woodhouse Community Centre. Details on the link below: http://www.leeds-mindfulness.uk/event/zen-peacemaker-circle-partnership-leeds-mindfulness-mahakaruna-buddhist-community/ The training will include zazen, council circle, ethics and interfaith explorations.

Dear Friends, I'm writing today from Bern in Switzerland, from the beautiful house of Barbara and Roland Wegmueller. I would like to let you know that this will be - for the moment - the last post for this "UK Zen Peacemakers" blog, after four years of postings. Please find future blogs at www.greatheartsociety.blogspot.com After many interesting discussions this week here in Switzerland, I've decided to focus our work on the Great Heart Circle in Leicester, and no longer keep one blog open for both this and wider UK Zen Peacemakers activities. At present there is no Peacemaker Circle still going in the UK, since our Steward Steve Suleyman Hart brought the North of England Circle to a close last month. There may well be new ones in the future (and so future posts for this blog!) The Great Heart Circle will be continuing as usual on the first Thursday of every month in Leicester. Email greatheartzendo@gmail.com for details. Although we'll no longer be using ...

In the past month, two pioneers of Zen Buddhism have passed away. On 15th June, Charlotte Joko Beck died at the age of 94. Her last words were reported to be "This too is wonder!" Although this wasn't actually true (internet Chinese whispers!), it is really a quote from her and a lovely way to remember her. She was a great Zen teacher, who explored the approach of shikantaza in modern life. And then yesterday, 17th July, John Crook, scientist and first Dharma successor of Master Shen Yen of Taiwan, passed away aged 81. He was a teacher in the Chinese Chan traditions of Lin-chi and Cao-Dong (Japanese: Rinzai and Soto), and like Joko Beck he developed forms and approaches to explore Zen in modern life. May their efforts and inspiration continue to bring happiness to the World.