Our purpose is to end suffering. Our practice is to study the self, maintain the precepts and serve others. Our mission is to provide the teaching, training and transmission of Zen Buddhism; to be engaged with our community, and with interfaith activities.

• Zazen
• Council
• Dokusan/Daisan/working with a teacher
• Retreat: sesshin and intensives
• Precept study/Atonement
• Communication skills
• Dharma Talk
•  Shared leadership and Circle service
• Social Action
• Sangha Gathering

Intensive Zen practice will expose deep patterns of conditioning and trauma. SWZC encourages engaging in other programs, processes and techniques that help promote an individual’s physical, emotional and spiritual healing including therapy, the 12-Step program, yoga, tai chi etc.

1. Affirming the essential awakened nature of all beings: We want to cultivate this realization with appreciation and compassion for all we encounter. We understand that no-self and emptiness are basic marks of reality.
2. The practice of skillful and respectful communication.
3. Fully engaging in one's life.
4. A consciousness of the environment and our impact on it.
5. Taking responsibility for our lives.
6. Inclusion: All ages, abilities, ethnicities, genders, races, religions, sexual orientations and cultures etc.
7. Being of service to oneself and others.
8. Honesty: We expect transparency from the Board of Directors, teachers, students and the Sangha at large.
9. Sobriety/integrity/not deluding oneself: Valuing sobriety both in terms of avoiding intoxication and as a clear-minded emotional engagement with life.
10. Collective Awakening: Seeking support from teachers and the Sangha, we may awaken together.
11. Offering and asking for help.
12. Honoring our lineage and the gift of our heritage: We want to appreciate our ancestors who dedicated their lifetimes to passing the Dharma on to us.
13. Self-reflection/self-study: Taking responsibility for ourselves, being open to learning from our mistakes and successes.
14. Justice, protection of the vulnerable: Treating all beings with respect, dignity and compassion. Acknowledging our role in addressing the inequities of our world.
15. Confidentiality: Making a safe container for practice.
16. Shared leadership: Mutual support for shared stewardship, Circle governance and collective decision-making. We respect the Sangha’s diversity of talents, expertise, and leadership, encouraging everybody’s participation.
17. Financial Health/Integrity: Maintaining a stable and transparent organization; promoting ethical organizational and financial conduct; open access to policies and financial/governance documents; employing sound and transparent management practices in our day-to-day operations.