General Membership:  Includes zen sittings and Dharma talks.

By donation: Suggested donation: $20-$30 per event

We are a 501 (c)(3) Non-profit organization in the USA.

In Canada we are a Canada Not-for Profit Corporation. All donations are tax deductible.

To donate in Canadian currency: Use e-Transfer: jsunim@sixthancestorzen.org

It does cost money to maintain a zen organization and support our teacher. We rely on members and generous friends to help keep our organization open and growing.

Membership fees: Those who pledge to donate on a monthly basis provide regular income that our organization can rely on to pay rent, utilities, phone, etc. This makes it possible for us to continue to offer group sittings, teachings and community. Donations on a semi-annual, or annual basis make it possible for our center to grow and make longer term plans.

Donations: The Practice of Giving or Generosity
In the Six Perfections, or Six Paramitas, of Mahayana Buddhism, and in the Ten Perfections of Theravadin Buddhism, the first Perfection is Dana: Giving or Generosity. The Perfections are virtues that we cultivate to purify our hearts, remove our internal obstacles and further our practice of awakening. The Perfections are attributes of an awakened being.

The Dana Paramita is true generosity of spirit, giving from a desire to help others, without expectation of reward. So our motivation in giving must be pure. We practice giving in order to let go of our attachment to greed, to our need for personal validation, to our attachment to receiving something in return, and to our identification with the illusory self. We also practice giving to cultivate compassion for others.

The Perfection of Giving also includes giving spiritual guidance to those who seek it. In spiritual traditions, the teachers or monks give teachings, and the students give offerings. So there is no giving without receiving, it all comes full circle. Being willing to receive, without expectation, provides the giver the opportunity to cultivate the virtue of Dana.

Your donations not only help to ensure that the Zen Center continues to be a place of practice for our community, but they also help to support the practice of those of little means.