Angie Boissevain
Encyclopedia
Angie Boissevain is a Sōtō Zen roshi
currently leading the Floating Zendo in San Jose, California
. A Dharma heir of Vanja Palmers, for many years she was director and then teacher of Jikoji in the Santa Cruz Mountains
, which was founded by her main teacher Kobun Chino Otogawa in 1983. Today she leads meditation retreats in California and abroad.http://floatingzendo.org/blog/angie-our-teacher/
while in college, attending a small Quaker meeting house on campus. She married while still in college and had her first child just after graduation. The family soon moved to San Francisco, California
, where one weekend she and her husband stumbled upon Tassajara Zen Mountain Center
(of the San Francisco Zen Center
) during a weekend excursion. The couple had arrived just after Tassajara had conducted its first winter sesshin
and opened to the public for the guest season. They stayed that evening and heard a talk by Shunryu Suzuki
and learned how to sit zazen
. The couple continued to return to Tassajara frequently as guests, and when it was time to leave someone told them that Kobun Chino Otogawa lived within three miles of their home. By now she had three children, and after a few months (in 1971) she went to see Kobun and became his student. She has remarked since on how she instantly knew he was her teacher from their first meeting. Zen practice was very hard for her, as her husband traveled frequently and she bore most of the parental duties.
When Jikoji in the Santa Cruz Mountains
was established in 1983 by Kobun, Boissevain served as director there until the late 1980s. Soon after Kobun had begun teaching in New Mexico
, and for many years Boissevain was left to lead the sesshin
s and give Dharma talk
s. Kobun was very encouraging in this regard. One day, during a memorial service, Kobun grabbed a stick and ran it through some incense
three times and handed it to Boissevain—then walked away. This was Kobun's official recognition of her as an independent teacher. Without ceremony, he later gave her a robe and bowl. In 2002, when Kobun died in Switzerland
while trying to save his drowning daughter, Boissevain had been undergoing Dharma transmission
with him. She received Dharma transmission in 2004 from Vanja Palmers, a Dharma heir of Kobun.http://floatingzendo.org/blog/kobun-chino-angies-teacher/
Roshi
is a Japanese honorific title used in Zen Buddhism that literally means "old teacher" or "elder master" and sometimes denotes a person who gives spiritual guidance to a Zen sangha or congregation...
currently leading the Floating Zendo in San Jose, California
San Jose, California
San Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...
. A Dharma heir of Vanja Palmers, for many years she was director and then teacher of Jikoji in the Santa Cruz Mountains
Santa Cruz Mountains
The Santa Cruz Mountains, part of the Pacific Coast Ranges, are a mountain range in central California, United States. They form a ridge along the San Francisco Peninsula, south of San Francisco, separating the Pacific Ocean from San Francisco Bay and the Santa Clara Valley, and continuing south,...
, which was founded by her main teacher Kobun Chino Otogawa in 1983. Today she leads meditation retreats in California and abroad.http://floatingzendo.org/blog/angie-our-teacher/
Biography
Boissevain first developed her interest in meditationMeditation
Meditation is any form of a family of practices in which practitioners train their minds or self-induce a mode of consciousness to realize some benefit....
while in college, attending a small Quaker meeting house on campus. She married while still in college and had her first child just after graduation. The family soon moved to San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
, where one weekend she and her husband stumbled upon Tassajara Zen Mountain Center
Tassajara Zen Mountain Center
-External links:*...
(of the San Francisco Zen Center
San Francisco Zen Center
San Francisco Zen Center , is a network of affiliated Sōtō Zen practice and retreat centers in the San Francisco Bay area, comprising the City Center or Beginner's Mind Temple, the Tassajara Zen Mountain Center, and the Green Gulch Farm Zen Center. The sangha was incorporated by Shunryu...
) during a weekend excursion. The couple had arrived just after Tassajara had conducted its first winter sesshin
Sesshin
A sesshin , literally "touching the heart-mind" , is a period of intensive meditation in a Zen monastery....
and opened to the public for the guest season. They stayed that evening and heard a talk by Shunryu Suzuki
Shunryu Suzuki
Shunryu Suzuki was a Sōtō Zen roshi who popularized Zen Buddhism in the United States, particularly around San Francisco. Born in the Kanagawa Prefecture of Japan, Suzuki was occasionally mistaken for the Zen scholar D.T...
and learned how to sit zazen
Zazen
In Zen Buddhism, zazen is a meditative discipline practitioners perform to calm the body and the mind, and be able to concentrate enough to experience insight into the nature of existence and thereby gain enlightenment .- Significance :Zazen is considered the heart of Zen Buddhist practice...
. The couple continued to return to Tassajara frequently as guests, and when it was time to leave someone told them that Kobun Chino Otogawa lived within three miles of their home. By now she had three children, and after a few months (in 1971) she went to see Kobun and became his student. She has remarked since on how she instantly knew he was her teacher from their first meeting. Zen practice was very hard for her, as her husband traveled frequently and she bore most of the parental duties.
When Jikoji in the Santa Cruz Mountains
Santa Cruz Mountains
The Santa Cruz Mountains, part of the Pacific Coast Ranges, are a mountain range in central California, United States. They form a ridge along the San Francisco Peninsula, south of San Francisco, separating the Pacific Ocean from San Francisco Bay and the Santa Clara Valley, and continuing south,...
was established in 1983 by Kobun, Boissevain served as director there until the late 1980s. Soon after Kobun had begun teaching in New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
, and for many years Boissevain was left to lead the sesshin
Sesshin
A sesshin , literally "touching the heart-mind" , is a period of intensive meditation in a Zen monastery....
s and give Dharma talk
Dharma talk
A Dharma talk or Dhamma talk or Dharma sermon is a public discourse on Buddhism by a Buddhist teacher....
s. Kobun was very encouraging in this regard. One day, during a memorial service, Kobun grabbed a stick and ran it through some incense
Incense
Incense is composed of aromatic biotic materials, which release fragrant smoke when burned. The term "incense" refers to the substance itself, rather than to the odor that it produces. It is used in religious ceremonies, ritual purification, aromatherapy, meditation, for creating a mood, and for...
three times and handed it to Boissevain—then walked away. This was Kobun's official recognition of her as an independent teacher. Without ceremony, he later gave her a robe and bowl. In 2002, when Kobun died in Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
while trying to save his drowning daughter, Boissevain had been undergoing Dharma transmission
Dharma transmission
Dharma transmission refers to "the manner in which the teaching, or Dharma, is passed from a Zen master to their disciple and heir...
with him. She received Dharma transmission in 2004 from Vanja Palmers, a Dharma heir of Kobun.http://floatingzendo.org/blog/kobun-chino-angies-teacher/