A Path for Seekers

Zen Buddhist teachings and practices deepen our experience and can transform our life.  

- Zentatsu Baker Roshi

Welcome to Crestone Mountain Zen Center!

Crestone Mountain Zen Center is the Dharma Sangha Center for Personal Retreats and Monastic Zen Practice. It was founded and is led by Zentatsu Baker Roshi, the Successor of Shunryu Suzuki Roshi, who was the founder of the San Francisco Zen Center and the Tassajara Zen Monastery. Suzuki Roshi is also the author of 'Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind'.

A traditional and contemporary place to discover the teachings and crafts of Zen Practice. And it is a place to both discover yourself and to free yourself. If you would like to meet us and to meet yourself here, please come for a visit.

Where we are?

Crestone Mountain Zen Center is located in Southern Colorado above the San Luis Valley on the western slope of Crestone Peak. This extraordinary high-mountain-rimmed valley is unique in the world.

What we do?

Zen Practice is the craft of mind and body realized through the experience of stillness and nonduality. Our effort is to make Zen Buddhist teachings conceptually, emotionally, and practically accessible to contemporary Western practitioners.

...and Why?

Personal and societal transformation is possible and necessary. We recognize and are incrementally and consciously engaged in this global transformation, which can only be consequentially engaged or else consequentially ignored.

What is the Dharma Sangha?

Dharma Sangha is a ‚Wisdom School‘, rooted in the Lineage Teachings of the Zen Buddhist Tradition. We are just now building several curriculums for different ways of engagement: 1) A Path for the Monk; 2) A Path for the Lay Adept; 3) A Secular Path of Societal and Environmental Wisdom. Of course, it is also possible to participate on your own terms!

What is Zen?

Zen Praxis is the text and craft of mind and body realized through stillness and nonduality. Our effort is to make these Zen Buddhist teachings conceptually, emotionally, and practically accessible to contemporary Western practitioners.

What we do...

Our teachings and practices are rooted in ethical and actual experience. The key to opening our experiential horizons lies in shifting our reference point from our ‚habit and identity stream‘ to the vibrant and vast experience of shared aliveness.

And why...

We believe that personal and societal transformation is possible; that it is possible to be free from mental and psychologically caused suffering; that living in accord with how we and the world actually exists is possible; and that it is possible to live beneficially for all. We believe that these 'Possibles' can be realized through the craft of Zen.

Join us in a New Here!

Buddhism changes all the time, in some centuries through a creative individual, however, most often, Buddhist change comes through a creative sangha – exploring, applying, and evolving the practice and the crafts of Zen in their lives with others. Please join us in this All Around Turn Around!

- Zentatsu

News at Crestone Mountain Zen Center

We are regularly posting Sangha news, Dharma texts, or contributions from members.

Weekly Zen Talks by Baker Roshi

5/16/2024

Join Baker Roshi for his "Weekly Zen" series of lectures every Sunday. Explore culture, art, and the heart of Zen Buddhism.

Details

ORIGINAL MIND

3/10/2021

An ancient said, "In the eyes it is called seeing, in the ears it's called hearing – but tell me, what is it called in the eyebrows?"

Details

Women Ancestors join us for service

12/27/2021

Women ancestors have been instrumental in instantiating zen practice through the centuries.

Details

Building a new retreat cabin

1/4/2022

Crestone Mountain Zen Center is building a new retreat cabin.

Details

Podcast: The Craft of Zen

1/10/2022

Listen to our podcast – The Craft of Zen with Zentatsu Baker Roshi

Details

Online Programs
Supporting your practice at home

We believe that the future of Zen in the West is as a lay-adept practice. So, how do you bring Zen practice into your daily life? With our online programs and lectures we hope to support you in this process.

Weekly Online Dharma Lectures

Our Dharma Teachers usually offer one or two lectures per week. Join our mailing list to receive notices and instructions for registering for online lectures.

How to Support Dharma Sangha

A monastic practice center cannot survive without vital support from the community. By becoming a member or making a donation, you are helping us to maintain the practice center, provide student financial support when necessary, give our residents a small stipend, and keep the lights on. Thank you for considering!

Support Dharma Sangha

Dharma Sangha Practice Centers

Colorado, USA and the Black Forest in Germany

Dharma Sangha comprises a Practice Center in the Black Forest, Germany; a Zen Monastic Center in Crestone, Colorado, USA, and an Online Platform, called Dharma Sangha Academy. We are open to anyone who is interested in our teachings and practice. You are welcome to visit us onsite or join online! 

Traditional Zen buddhist interor with oryoki tables in the entrance area

Crestone Mountain Zen Center, Colorado

Buddha Dharma hall of the Zen buddhist monastery in Germany Johanneshof ZBZS

Zen Buddhist Center in the Black Forest, Germany

Staying in touch

Sign up for our newsletter, it's our most important tool for communication. We'll inform you about upcoming events, send links for online talks and keep you posted on what's going on at Crestone Mountain Zen Center.

Thank you! We successfully signed you up for our newsletter.
Beim abonnieren unseres Newsletters ist ein Fehler aufgetreten. Wir helfen gerne weiter: johanneshof@dharma-sangha.de
By clicking “Accept”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. View our Privacy Policy for more information.