2024 Sangha Week at Tassajara

The application is now closed. 

 Zen Mountain Center, located deep in the Ventana Wilderness area of the Los Padres National Forest, southeast of Carmel California, is the oldest Sōtō Zen Buddhist monastery in the United States.

Sangha week is an opportunity for AZC practitioners to experience together a taste of monastic practice with the full time summer students and members of other sanghas who will share Tassajara during the week. It will be led by guiding teacher Rev. Choro Antonaccio.

Participants in Sangha Week will keep the full schedule, Tuesday through Sunday, including morning zazen & service, work-practice, and evening zazen or Dharma events. Four hours of work-practice daily is required of participants. 

Tassajara is gradually reopening this year to guests who are participating in dharma study opportunities. We will all eat together and the practice schedule is open to everyone at Tassajara. Our rooms will be assigned, and some of us will have roomates. CPAP and other medical needs will be accommodated as much as possible.

Information about what to bring and what to expect in terms of weather, communications, etc. can be found here.

 

Tassajara Reservation Cost: $600 (includes all vegetarian meals & lodging while at Tassajara)

Ground Transportation: We will carpool from SFO to Jamesburg and either take the “stage” (Tassajara SUV shuttle) or drive the 14 mi. dirt road to the monastery from Jamesburg.

Ground transportation for shared rides from SFO to Tassajara may incur an additional $200 fee for vehicle rental and a share of fuel. It is not recommended to take a rental car down the dirt road to Tassajara from Carmel Valley Rd. unless you have experience. 

PLEASE NOTE: All participants are responsible for their own airfare to SFO. Details of when to arrive and depart from SFO will be provided to confirmed participants. 

Tassajara Daily Schedule 

5:30 wake up bell
6:00 zazen
7:00 morning service
7:30 breakfast
8:30 morning work circle
12:00 lunch
AFTERNOON SANGHA ACTIVITY: study, short hikes, discussion
4:30 end of work / silent bath time
5:50 evening service
6:00 dinner
8:00 zazen
8:40 refuges

The application is now closed. There are limited spaces available for Tassajara Sangha Week, so we may not be able to accommodate everyone who is interested this year. (Scholarships are not available for this practice opportunity.)

We will get back to you in the next few weeks.