- An Online & In-Person Offering
Zen Precepts: Living an Ethical Life
with Chodo Robert Campbell & KOSHIN PALEY Ellison
Once a month on Sundays
Oct. 1st, 2023 – July 14th, 2024, 10:00am – 3:00pm ET
What are the Zen Precepts, and how do we learn to embody these guiding principles for living an ethical and enlightened existence in daily life?
Living the Zen Precepts is wisdom in action – the natural expression of a compassionate and awakened heart. The Precepts are studied, practiced and received to support the fullest expression of our lives.
Drawing on these teachings, the Precepts serve as guidelines for our daily lives, developing skillful ways to navigate relationships and life itself. This course consists of in-depth study, experiential learning, reading assignments, writing exercises, and discussion.
In this ten-month journey, we will meet once a month for a morning of practice, an afternoon of study, and, of course, we welcome you to practice zazen each day in the zendo (either in-person or online).
The coursework includes:
- Attendance at our Sunday Morning Meditation and Dharma Talk from 10:00 am – 12:00 pm ET on each class day. The Zen Precepts class will be held from 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm (there will be an hour break between the morning sit and the class).
- Classes each month consisting of teaching, discussion, and private breakout sessions to explore the Precepts in an intimate and confidential setting
- Monthly pre-recorded videos of each precept from both guiding teachers, Koshin Sensei and Chodo Sensei. (Please note: Foundations students will be engaging in the same video content to revisit and deepen their understanding of each precept)
- Sharing insights with other students via the NYZC course platform, a private online container for the duration of the course
This class will:
- Provide a deep understanding of the Zen Precepts – the guidelines for what it means to live an ethical life
- Strengthen your meditation practice
- Provide deep connections with other students; the embodiment of sangha
- Invite you to pause and notice new ways of thinking
- Remind you the Precepts are a continuous practice
This class is ideal for beginners and advanced students alike. Many students repeat this class to deepen their understanding as the Precepts take root and to become more aware of them in their everyday lives.
Class Registration
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Master's Level Credit $1,400
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Audit Level $760
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Audit - Scholarship Level $570
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Audit - Scholarship Level 1 $380
Financial Support: New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care endeavors to make our programs accessible. If the cost of this program is prohibitive, please choose the scholarship tier that would make it possible for you to attend. Please note that there are a limited number of scholarship seats available. If a scholarship tier is not listed on the registration form, that means it is no longer available.
Course Details | Zen Precepts
- Class Dates: Oct 1st | Oct 15th | (No Class Session in Nov) | Dec 10th | Jan 21st | Feb 11th | Mar 10th | Apr 21st | May 19th | June 2nd | July 14th
- Online and In Person: This hybrid model class allows students to attend the program on Zoom or in person. Please choose which option best suits your needs during registration. There are a limited number of in person spots available.
- Master’s Level Credit: Register at this level if you need Masters Credit. You will also be required to write a 10-page paper. If you register at any of the audit levels, you can still participate fully in the class and will not be required to submit a 10-page paper.
- Certificate in Contemplative Care: this course is part of our certificate program which you can learn more about here.
- Becoming a Formal Student: this course also serves as part of the track to becoming a Formal Zen Student. To learn more about this process, please click here.
- Combine Classes for a Weekend of Practice and Study: Our Catch Your Mind: Unveiling the Zen Path class is offered on the same weekend of each Zen Precepts class. Many students opt to register for both classes and treat each monthly weekend as a semi-retreat and study intensive.
About the TEACHERs
Chodo Robert Campbell Sensei, is a co-founder of the New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care Chodo is a dynamic, grounded, and visionary leader and teacher: he has traveled extensively throughout the U.S instructing in various institutions. Sixty-thousand people listen to his podcasts each year. His passion lies in bereavement counseling and advocating for change in the way our healthcare institutions work with the dying.
Koshin Paley Ellison Sensei, MFA, LMSW, DMIN, is an author, Zen teacher, Jungian psychotherapist, and Certified Chaplaincy Educator. After many years as a chaplain and psychotherapist, Koshin co-founded the New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care. Koshin is a world renowned thought leader in contemplative care. He is the author of Untangled: Walking the Eightfold Path to Clarity, Courage, and Compassion (Balance/Hachette, 2022); Wholehearted: Slow Down, Help Out, Wake Up (Wisdom Publications, 2019) and the co-editor of Awake at the Bedside: Contemplative Teachings on Palliative and End of Life Care (Wisdom Publications, 2016). His work has been featured in the New York Times, PBS, CBS Sunday Morning, and Tricycle Magazine among other publications.