The word “Zen” comes from the Sanskrit term dyana which means meditation. Everything that we do in the Zen tradition rests on a foundation of meditation and so our exploration of the practice of Zen Buddhism starts with learning how to meditate.

Meditation is a powerful tool for working with the mind and developing our spiritual potential and the best way to learn how to meditate is directly with a teacher. It is also very helpful, recommended even, to practice meditation in the context of a community or Sangha. Meditation in the context of the sangha provides us with the rich support of all aspects of Buddhism.

The Portland Priory offers meditation instruction on the first Saturday of each month. or, go here to get in touch to make arrangements to receive instruction at a different time.

To read more about our form of meditation, you can go to this page on the Shasta Abbey website.