Since COVID lockdown, Buddhist communities have greatly expanded their online practice opportunities. Virtual spaces are surprisingly effective for practice and building a sense of Sangha. Many Buddhist and Zen centers are now facing the prospect of permanently including options for virtual participation, which brings many opportunities but also many challenges. I discuss how the virtual and physical practice spaces look at my Zen center, and how we structure hybrid meetings. Then I talk about the merits of what we call the “Cloud Zendo.” In my next episode, I’ll discuss the merits of a good old-fashioned physical practice space, which we call the “Dirt Zendo,” and the ways my Zen center is trying to integrate and care for both of our Zendos and create a sense of being one Sangha.
Quicklinks to Article Content:
Dirt Zendo, Cloud Zendo, One Sangha
How Hybrid Cloud-and-Dirt Zendo Meetings Look at Bright Way Zen
Merits of the Cloud Zendo
This episode belongs in my “Buddhism Today” category. I’m calling it, “Dirt Zendo, Cloud Zendo, One Sangha: Buddhist Community in the Digital Age – Part 1.” I want to share with you how my Zen community, Bright Way Zen, is responding to the relatively new phenomenon of being able to share practice together online. Each Buddhist community – and actually each church, synagogue or temple of any religion – is responding to this situation differently but given the rapid expansion of the use of virtual connection over the last couple of years because of the pandemic, every spiritual community has to respond in one way or another. Some groups, able to meet in-person once again, are phasing out or de-emphasizing their online offerings. Most communities, however, are realizing that online participation is going to remain at least part of their reality. Now we face the challenge of meeting people’s needs in a virtual space, and of integrating in-person and virtual activities.
In this episode I will describe the physical and virtual practice spaces at Bright Way Zen – how we think of them, and how we use them. Then I’ll discuss the merits and benefits of the virtual practice space. In my next episode, I’ll talk about the merits of practicing in a physical practice space, in-the-flesh. I’ll end that episode by talking about how, at least at Bright Way Zen, we are attempting to create a sense of Sangha that connects and includes anyone who practices with us, regardless of whether they participate in-the-flesh, online, or both.
Dirt Zendo, Cloud Zendo, One Sangha
A Zendo means “meditation hall” – Zen meaning meditation, Do meaning hall. It is a space for practicing together.
The Dirt Zendo is our physical Zendo space on the westside of Portland, Oregon. The word “dirt” speaks to the gritty and tangible reality of being together in-the-flesh.
The Cloud Zendo is our virtual Zendo space. Cloud are beautiful, and the word speaks to the expansive, permeable, and ethereal nature of the virtual space (and, of course, “the cloud” is a common term these days for the online world).
I got the term “Dirt Zendo” from one of my Cloud Zendo Sangha members who lives in Iowa. He also participates in-person with other groups, and when speaking of his intention to go sit in a physical Zendo, he calls it a “dirt Zendo.” I’m not sure if he made the term up or borrowed it, but I’ve always liked it.
A few people have told me that the term “dirt” conjures up negative connotations for them, but I’ve chosen to use it for two reasons. I think of dirt in terms of rich, black soil in which plants can grow. Getting your hands dirty means to fully engage in something, without worrying too much about keeping yourself pure and clean. (Health experts are beginning to acknowledge the physical and mental health benefits of us literally touching dirt!) Our bodies are eventually buried in the dirt. The alternative term “soil” carries similar possible negative meanings as dirt, and to me seems little bit too specific – when I think of a “Soil Zendo,” it seems gardening ought to be involved.
We could have called our physical Zendo the “Earth Zendo,” but we chose not to because the term “Earth” is so grand. It implies the totality of our planet, including the clouds – or, at least, the clouds seem rather small and lightweight compared to the earth. A friend of mine chose the terms “Earth” and “Sky” for her Zendos, and these terms balance each other better than earth and clouds, and they have an appealing dignity. However, I like the humbleness of the term “dirt” for our physical space because of the tendency for us to think of the physical Zendo as more important or “real” than our virtual one.
I instituted names for the Zendos precisely because our Sangha was getting in the habit of saying “in the Zendo” to refer to those in the physical space, and “online” or “on Zoom” to refer to those in the virtual space. It is very easy for everyone involved to start thinking of the “real” activities as happening in the physical space, which those online are simply able to witness from afar – that the virtual space is a tangential, add-on benefit, or a compromise for those who are joining us that way. This kind of thinking is counteracted by giving each Zendo a name, and by giving the physical space a humble name like “Dirt Zendo.”
In our Bright Way Zen Sangha, our goal is to have two Zendos, but one Sangha. That is, we have two very different practice spaces, but our intention is to have a sense of ourselves as a single community, and for everyone involved to feel like their participation is equally valued and valuable. I will speak more about some of the challenges of cultivating Sangha when some people only participate in the Cloud Zendo, while others only participate in the Dirt Zendo, but I want to set the stage for my discussion of both Zendos by describing how we structure our hybrid meetings at my Zen center, so you can picture how all of this works.
How Hybrid Cloud-and-Dirt Zendo Meetings Look at Bright Way Zen
At Bright Way Zen, we have three main practice meetings each week. One of them, on Saturdays, takes place only in the Cloud Zendo. Our Tuesday and Sunday meetings are hybrid, meaning that you can participate in the Dirt or Cloud Zendo. The Zoom meeting is hosted by someone in the Cloud Zendo, and they deal with the technical issues that might arise there. We also have a Zoom greeter, who welcomes people to the Cloud Zendo as they arrive and especially greets anyone who is new.
Meanwhile, in the Dirt Zendo we prepare for in-person participation and also fire up two laptop computers. One connects to a TV on a cart, which displays those in the Cloud Zendo. For the sake of those in the Cloud Zendo, the cart laptop’s camera shows the front of the Dirt Zendo, including the timekeeper’s (doan’s) seat, the main altar, and the teacher’s seat. The second laptop also connects to the Cloud Zendo and is located at the doan’s seat. The doan laptop is connected to a large microphone, which is how the Cloud Zendo hears what is going on in the Dirt Zendo. The doan laptop camera shows the rest of the Dirt Zendo to those in the Cloud. Many of our communal chants and recitations are led by people in the Cloud Zendo, who are heard in the Dirt Zendo through a large speaker.
Literally chanting together in the Cloud Zendo isn’t possible, sadly, because of the slight delay in Zoom connections. If people in the Cloud Zendo are unmuted and try to chant together it results in a cacophony that’s impossible to follow. So, Cloud Zendo participants can hear the chant leader and can of course chant along, but they have to remain muted. Nevertheless, Cloud and Dirt Zendo do the chanting services together and then sit zazen.
After meditation we have a 15-minute break when Cloud Zendo people are invited to small breakout rooms of 4-5 people to visit, and Dirt Zendo people mill around and do the same. I had hoped that there would be interaction across Zendos during the social break, but this has proved awkward. Dirt Zendo people naturally migrate away from the TV monitor into our tea room. To visit with Cloud Zendo people, they would have to stand right in front of the TV for the duration. The few times I left a connection open to the Cloud Zendo, the Cloud Zendo folks asked us to please mute the Dirt Zendo because the volume of in-person conversations tends to get quite loud, and there are often multiple conversations happening simultaneously in the same physical space. Oh well – during the social break Cloud Zendo people enjoy one another’s company, and Dirt Zendo people do likewise.
When it comes time for someone to give a talk or lead a class, they sit at the doan seat with the doan laptop directly in front of them so they can see all the Cloud Zendo participants. The speaker faces the room and can therefore see all the Dirt Zendo folks too, over the top of the laptop. The doan laptop camera shows the speaker close up. The cart laptop with its TV monitor has been turned to face the room so folks in the Dirt Zendo can see Cloud Zendo folks, and the cart camera shows those in the physical space. Our talks and classes always involve some Q&A, and there are usually as many questions and comments from those online as from those in the physical space. The speaker can call on people directly whether regardless of which Zendo they’re in. In the Dirt Zendo, it’s a little awkward because if someone wants to be seen and heard on Zoom, they need to come sit a chair a few feet away from a laptop camera and the single microphone, which is in front of the speaker. People are getting used it, though.
As you can see, we’ve made a great effort to integrate our Dirt and Cloud Zendos. There are still many challenges – usually with respect to poor audio transmission from the Dirt to the Cloud Zendo – and we hope to improve our tech over time, but so far things are working well enough.
Merits of the Cloud Zendo
I think it surprised everyone involved how rich and vital a practice space the Cloud Zendo has turned out to be. When COVID lockdown began in March 2020, Bright Way Zen moved its activities online without missing a single meeting. Fortunately, I had already established weekday morning zazen on Zoom, so we just expanded our online presence. For a year and half, until October 2021, we didn’t use our physical space at all. We adapted our meetings to be hosted and led virtually, and we all joined from our homes.
During COVID lockdown, amazingly, our Sangha actually grew. At this point (June 2022), one third of our pledging, committed members are now from outside of Oregon – we have members from all over the US, and in Canada, Brazil, the UK, and Sweden. Two of our seven board members are on the east coast. At our hybrid meetings, there are often more participants online than in the physical Zendo.
Before lockdown BWZ had about 75 pledging, official members, and we had 25-30 people in the Dirt Zendo for Tuesday and Sunday meetings. Between five and ten of our regular participants never made the transition with us to online practice, but the vast majority did. Most of us, I think, were surprised by how easy and pleasant it was to join the Sangha in the Cloud. I love our Dirt Zendo, but it was sweet to head out to my backyard studio at 9:15am on the dot in order to be present for our 9:30am Sunday service. My dogs sat with me. When the program ended at 12:15, I shut down the computer and was already home.
We held retreats in the Cloud Zendo and found it very helpful and enlightening to have the support of Sangha while practicing in our own homes. We came together for sitting and chanting, but then did our own silent work practice and rest periods on our own. This helped us realize in a new, visceral, literal way the lesson that our Zen practice is not separate from our daily lives. We learn this lesson anew each time we join the Cloud Zendo from our homes.
It is also nice how, when we participate in the Cloud Zendo, we often share something of our home space with others. We’re all used to dogs and cats wandering on and off screen now.
At times, it feels like a more intimate and personal connection is possible in the Cloud Zendo than in the Dirt Zendo. Online, we are face to face. We’re all on the same level. Many of the social dynamics that can inhibit or even cause anxiety are much less present. We speak from the safety of our own homes. We can disappear at any time. Therefore, ironically, we are also sometimes more able to speak freely, open up emotionally, and show vulnerability. In the Cloud Zendo, we’re never left to mill about a room wondering whether someone wants to talk to us or not. Instead, we’re randomly assigned to breakout rooms where people talk if they want to.
One of the sweetest aspects of the Cloud Zendo has been, of course, the inclusion of all kinds of people who would not otherwise be able to join us. This includes people who live far away from the Dirt Zendo, or far away from any kind of physical Buddhist practice place. People who struggle with physical and mental health issues who wouldn’t be able to attend in-person even if they were local. People with underlying health issues who can’t risk exposure to COVID. People with extremely busy lives who drop in when they can, without having to take the time to commute. People from other countries! Not only is it sweet to be able to offer Sangha to all these folks, they bring a richness and diversity to our Sangha that we would otherwise lack.
Some of the people who join the Cloud Zendo because they live at a distance from our Dirt Zendo participate because they feel an affinity for my style of teaching, and/or with the character of the Bright Way Zen Sangha. I’m pleased that our reputation for being friendly and welcoming has extended from our Dirt Zendo into the Cloud Zendo! Being able to practice with a Sangha and/or lineage you resonate with and trust is a really big deal. Even if someone lives near a Buddhist community, if that community’s style and flavor isn’t a fit (and there’s great diversity here), it can mean the person ends up not practicing with Sangha at all.
I’m sure there are Cloud Zendo benefits that I’m forgetting to mention, but one important one is that we know our Sangha can continue in a vital way no matter what happens with respect to our ongoing pandemic. Right now, COVID vaccinations are required in our Dirt Zendo, but masks are optional and we don’t bother to social distance. That situation may change in the future… we may bring back masks and social distancing. Hopefully we won’t go back into lockdown but will continue meeting in the Dirt Zendo no matter what kind of mitigation measures we need to employ. But it’s a huge comfort knowing that our Sangha will thrive even if, at some point, we only have the Cloud Zendo space.
In my next episode I’ll talk about the merits of the Dirt Zendo. Then I’ll talk about what it means to try and create a sense of Sangha when some of your participants only participate in the Cloud Zendo, while other only participate in the Dirt Zendo. I’ll discuss challenges to this effort, and then share some of the ways my Zen center is meeting them.
Read/listen to Dirt Zendo, Cloud Zendo, One Sangha: Buddhist Community in the Digital Age – Part 2
