I've been to the Koyasan temple several times for the 'Moon Meditation' that Taijo-san leads, and…read moreit is one of the most healing experiences you will have. I'll describe the process a bit for those who aren't sure what to expect- First everyone removes their shoes and puts their bags under the bench at the beginning of the meditation room. The head monk will talk about the origin and purpose of the meditation, as well as give us sacred dirt from the Koyasan mountain in japan to rub into our hands. Rev. Taijo himself is just as humble as you would expect a monk to be, but he's also absolutely hilarious and personable! Before meditation we recite an excerpt from the heart sutra (you will fall behind regardless of how fast you can read or your Japanese proficiency lol. Don't be intimidated!) During the meditation, we sit on pillows and in front of the moon visualizer- sometimes in silence, sometimes chanting. And afterwards there is tea so that everyone can get to know each other! Both caffeinated and non-caffeinated options are available. Now, all of this is a 'normal' meditation pre-covid. While the temple is closed, sometimes we will have a moment of mindfulness in the park instead. I've actually dragged several friends to services with me and they all have been grateful for the experience! When it's safe to congregate again, I look forward to practicing at the temple again!

Just an absolute beautiful temple! Newley renovated, I went out for a meditation class and…read morethoroughly enjoyed myself. Learned allot highly recommend visiting.

Amazing community, wonderful Shrine room. I always felt very welcomed to the classes, to the…read more meditations and to the Cherenzi on Sundays. it is a Tibetan Budhist Monastery - what a better place to educate yourself and to learn to become a better, compassionate human being? May all be happy and may all be free!

I highly recommend the Friday Calm Abiding Meditation. It's open to the public. They have…read moreintroductory short sits starting at 7:00 PM where a few different short meditations are explained. At 7:30 the long sit sessions begin, consisting of three 20 minute sessions including a walking meditation around the front shrine/altar. I find these longer sits really force you to find your inner calm. I always leave feeling awake, energized, and ready to start my Friday night. Be sure to check their schedule: http://www.sakya.org/sakyacalendar.html Some Friday nights, they have special ceremonies (often not intended for those uninitiated into Buddhist practices) and the Calm Abiding Meditation is designated @Home.

"In the Four Noble Truths, the Buddha tells us that the source of all suffering is desire,…read moreattachment and clinging. We are told that in order to stop our unhappiness, our dissatisfaction and emotional pain, we must let go of our attachments" (from the website). * * * * * Though I haven't been here for some time, I would like to "plug" this meditation group. There are not that many Buddhist groups near or Queen Anne hill--or, for that matter, in Fremont, Wallingford, Ballard, or Magnolia. As the name indicates, it follows the Japanese Zoto tradition of meditation as led by Suzuki Roshi founder of the San Francisco Zen Center, but the group is far from being doctrinaire. They meet every Sunday at 9:30 (be there by 9:25) and sitting/walking mediatin for approximately an hour. A dharma talk follows afterwards. About a dozen people will show up on a given Sunday. (The group used to rent a space from Puget Sound Akido on Dexter just a few blocks north of Denny Park). Cushions are provided, donations requested. A good place to begin a meditation practice and find some calm and peace in a city that thrives on hyper-activity and "getting somewhere." http://www.seattlesotozen.org

This is a lovely group of Buddhist who will share their meditation practice, dharma talks and…read morecookies with you every Tuesday evening and Sunday morning. The location is quiet and clean.

This is a beautiful church: culturally, physically, socially and spiritually. I have attended…read moreservices and dharma here on occasion and always been struck by the congregation's warmth and casual air. Seattle Buddhist Church practices Jodo Shinshu aka "Pure Land" aka "Shin" Buddhism. It is one of the most common branches of Buddhism in the US. Many people note that there are assimilation aspects to this branch: they have a bishop, they call their branches "churches" interchangeably with "temples", and introduced lessons to hymns. These things harken back directly to WWII and it speaks to Shin Buddhism's place in the Japanese-American story. I find the members of Seattle Buddhist Church so friendly, and definitely "teaching by doing". You will not find proselytizing - you really have to ask around to get information about practices, services, classes. One of the best times to find out about Shin Buddhism is during Bon Odori, because the church is open and they have informational lectures at that time. Speaking of Bon Odori - this is the site of Seattle's annual festival to celebrate our ancestors and has been for over 75 years! You will find me dancing there every summer. Check the Seafair calendar for each year's dates. Bon Odori is just one of the many cultural experiences the Seattle Church offers in addition to dharma, Japanese Language class, the bazaar, and cultural enrichment classes in conjunction with Nikkei Horizons Sr. Home (like hula, cooking, ikebana and crafts). Within this church they offer Camp Fire, Boy Scouts, Taiko drumming, basketball, and the YBA - Young Buddhist's Association. It 's a wonderful place for families!! My children have always been very comfortable here even though we're not regular attendees. Whether visiting for cultural or spiritual reasons, you will feel welcome at Seattle Buddhist Church!

So many good memories of this place. Dancing in line during Bon Odori. Learning flower arrangement…read more My sensei who taught me iaido. I attended this Temple/"Church" with my stepmom Lumchuan for several years. They orchestrated services very like in christian churches -- a bit of sermon, stand and sing a hymn together; it was very Americanized, and sometimes I really didn't want to go but I went anyway. My step-mom was a bikuni educated in a Thai monastery from age five on. Though I was steeped in Buddhism at the time, from her teachings and others, I never became a real believer in anything, which is okay for any good Buddhist! I love the idea that belief isn't necessary, that it can even be a goal to let go of such considerations. Rather than belief, for me it's art and literature and ceremony and culture and compassion, the most secular of religions. Even if there were a god it wouldn't matter, since he she or it no less than we are bound to this wheel of sorrows. So, I'd bow to the golden Buddha in the niche of this church and light incense and clap thrice, while Lumchuan fell prone before the Buddha in ecstatic devotion. As a kid that was a little embarrassing to me, to be standing beside my step-mom who goes flat on the floor like nobody else did. But what I'd give to spend another day with her now, gone so many years. Dunno if she achieved liberation or not. All of us seem just a little too foolish to ever achieve that.

I enjoy services here. Sermons are in English and Japanese. Parking on Weller is sometimes scarce.read more

Nichiren Church Serves the best home-made Chow Mein every year for their fundraiser at the end of…read moreSeptember. I've been going to this church since I was a kid and was married here Japanese style with three tiers of sake. My parents were married here too. Recently, the reverend resigned in July. So the members are waiting for another new reverend to start. There's Sunday service in half in English and half Japanese sutras at 10:30am, unless there's a special service like Buddha's Birthday or St. Nichiren's Memorial Service called Oeshiki. I visited the head temple in Ikegami Honmonji Temple in Tokyo, during Oeshiki. It's when a million pilgrims show up and parade up to the temple chanting and beating their hand-held drums. They also carry these large Cherry Blossom lanterns. When St. Nichiren died in Oct. cherry blossoms began to bloom again. He lived in the 13th Century and was a radical in his time and paid the price since the Japanese government tried to execute him. But a storm brewed and legend said, lightning struck the samurai who was to behead him. So they stuck him on a rock in the middle of the sea. He survived another attempt on his life. He also prayed to help defend against the Mongols who wanted to invade Japan. The Mongols ran into stormy seas and wasn't able to take over the country. Later, they exiled him to Sado Island and he was able to teach his disciplines. During services, it's exciting to hear the drums compared to the quiet Zen sect where you will have to medidate for hours. For Nichiren the meditations are for only a few minutes so it's not painful. Every Wednesday, there's a Shodo (calligraphy) Club that meets and the church ladies help out to cook the Beef Bowl for the Seattle Cherry Blossom Festival at Seattle Center. They are the best cooks and members are treated to the best Japanese Bento Box during New Years! But you will need to be a member to get this bento box.

I have just recently moved to Seattle and gotten involved with KMC Washington. I am so impressed by…read morethe people here! There are many very long-time practitioners of Buddhism here, and it is clear that they have been sincerely being Buddhists. These are people who have learned from a qualified Buddhist master, and they are humble and have a sense of humor. It is so refreshing! This is a great example of Sangha. As you can see from the photos, the temple is beautiful with a lovely meditation room. This is covid time, and they are being careful, so everything is streamed right now. It will be wonderful when people can gather together inside again in the future.

I encourage everyone to make their own impression but being as this is Yelp, here's mine: this…read moreplace is great in concept but it quickly gave off a cultish vibe to me. And I'm not saying this because I'm a skeptic of Buddhism, as my entire family is Buddhist! My grandfather was a political figure in Vietnam who had the backing and support of the Buddhist party. He also was the one who lent his car to his monk friend on the day that monk infamously lit himself on fire in protest (if you Google pics you can see my grandpa's car in the background behind the burning monk). So yeah, I'm trying to say that I have a familiarity/background with Buddhism. Anyway back to the KMC: Everyone was very nice, but I didn't like how everything was "for purchase" and how meditation classes have a mandatory fee. I'm used to free or donation-based sessions, as most Buddhist temples/centers I'm familiar with are. It felt like they obviously were trying to make money wherever they could, which didn't feel very Buddhist to me? But again, I understand that this place isn't technically a temple or monastery etc so maybe that's the difference. Group meditation felt more like a lecture hall at a college. I personally seek a more intimate, calming environment. Here, they have the ceiling lights on so bright you'd think you were being interrogated. How does one relax and meditate with bright ass lights? Perhaps that's a challenge on purpose? I'd suggest dimming the lights a bit for meditation, even if it means some might fall asleep. *UPDATE*: Upon further online research, I've discovered to my shock that the NKT organization is actively against the Dalai Lama and have been called the "Death Eaters to the broader Hogwarts of global Tibetan Buddhism." There are actually testimonies written by "survivors" claiming how NKT is very much a cult. Make up your own mind about it but the info is out there. TLDR: I don't know if most who go here are aware of all this controversy and that Kelsang Gyatso is opposed to His Holiness. Basically, the sect he's created here is based on teachings/practices that's been banned from Tibetan Buddhism, and there are eyebrow-raising articles online regarding the activity of its members. I strongly urge anyone interested to do their research first because I suspect they're largely successful due to the ignorance of Westerners (their target audience/demographic). I'm giving them 2 stars because the people seemed nice, they provided snacks afterwards, and the lesson taught that day had value, but I personally will not be supporting this center and will seek meditation from a more traditional Buddhist establishment.

Great place for family! They offer vegetarian food you can buy anytime!read more