Ordinary Mind is the Way: A Day of Zen Practice
February 1 @ 9:00 am - 5:00 pm
We are pleased to announce a hybrid (in person & on Zoom) silent retreat, “Ordinary Mind Is the Way: A Day of Zen Practice”, led by Zen Teacher Peter Nichols on Saturday, February 1st, 2025, atPlymouth Meeting Friends.
In a Zen dialogue recorded in ancient China, a monk asks, “What is the Way?”
The Zen master replies, “Ordinary mind is the Way.”
The question is centuries old, probably as old as the human race. It’s our question too: Who am I? What is it to be alive? Why does my life feel unsettled or unsatisfying or unhappy or muddled or…you fill in the blank? Shouldn’t it feel great? What must I do to make everything OK?
The master says, You already have everything you need. It’s the lesson Dorothy brought home from her journey to the Land of Oz: “If I ever go looking for my heart’s desire again, I won’t look any farther than my own backyard.”
Our Ordinary Mind Is the Way retreat will be a day of Zen practice—together as a group—that includes how-to instruction for zazen (meditation), plenty of sitting periods (approx. 25 min) broken up by walking, a dharma talk, a little chanting and bowing, time for eating and resting, private face-to-face interview with the teacher (optional), and a chance to ask questions and talk about your experience at the end.
Come prepared to surrender being in control, to practice hard, and to see what happens when you do nothing more than pay attention to what’s as ordinary as your own backyard.
All PBA activities are free of charge, but we recommend a donation of $25-$50 to the teacher if you can. Please don’t let financial issues keep you from attending. RSVP HERE.
This will be a hybrid retreat, so for those who are not able to join in-person, a Zoom link will be provided in advance of the retreat.
Peter Nichols was a student of Bernie Tetsugen Glassman and John Daido Loori in the late 1980s and early 90s. Later he practiced with Pat Jikyo George from whom he received dharma transmission in 2022. He is a husband and father, a retired writer-editor, and a teacher at the Zen Center of Philadelphia.