Our Roots

Our Roots, Onze wortels

We are an open group and as a result, we have many roots. We have a common denominator, which is our interest in practicing the applied Zen Buddhist way of living. We are taking the mindfulness and insight practice to our daily lives and our daily lives into our mindfulness and insight practice. 

In more detail: We are nourished by the Mahayana tradition which has studied and passed on the insight of the Buddha for more than 25 centuries. In the Mahayana tradition, the YogaCara school has studied and developed a detailed understanding of the human mind and has build a philosophy on reality. (With the masters Vasubandu and Nagarjuna). This wisdom is brought to us over many centuries by the Ch'an and Rinzai schools following Zen master Linji and the Vietnamese masters Tang-Hoi and Van-Hanh.

The most visible current day roots are in the teachings and practice of Thich Nhat Hanh and PlumVillage.
As a lively manifestation of that root, we experience a strong daily support and a near presence of Thay Cuong Lu and the MindOnly Institute for Buddhist Psychology and the NoWordZen Zen-school.

Many of us have visited PlumVillage multiple times, follow PlumVillage teachers on Youtube and have read books of Thay.
Cuong Lu has over the years given many Dharma talks in Eindhoven and our Sangha members have visited the retreats organized by The MindOnly school and the No-Word-Zen practice center. (NoWordZen NL)

Our individual roots are experienced as an enrichment to the Sangha. 
There are strong roots in:
Christianity
    Catholic, Protestant and Franciscan-movement
Soefi
Yoga
The applied Mindfulness of Kabat Zin and Edel Maex
The Rinzai Zen of Ton Lathouwers (Maha Karuna Ch'an)

Insights and expressions of compassion and understanding from other traditions, literature and poetry are used regularly.

In our Sangha we acknowledge and embrace our roots and use our roots to nourish and support each other. We practice openness and deep listening to truly see the other as part of our life and part of our self.