Study Group (Hybrid)
2026-03-19 08:00 - 09:00, 2026-03-26 08:00 - 09:00, 2026-04-02 08:00 - 09:00, 2026-04-09 08:00 - 09:00, 2026-04-16 08:00 - 09:00, 2026-04-23 08:00 - 09:00, 2026-04-30 08:00 - 09:00, 2026-05-07 08:00 - 09:00 (America/Los_Angeles) and 1 more date | Sacramento Dharma Center, Sacramento Dharma Center, 3111 Wissemann Drive, Sacramento, CA, 95826, United States
The Zen Study Group meets at the Sacramento Dharma Center and on Zoom. The study group is facilitated by Rev. So’on Jim Hare, with readings from ancient and contemporary Mahayana Buddhist & Soto Zen texts and commentaries.
To join the Thursday morning study group, email the coordinator, Rollin Ives, twl4148@gmail.com

Dharma Talk by So’on Jim Hare (Hybrid, Speaker in Person)
2026-03-23 19:00 - 21:00 | Sacramento Dharma Center, Sacramento Dharma Center, 3111 Wissemann Drive, Sacramento, CA, 95826, United States
Rev. So’on Jim Hare serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984 and was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period, and was priest ordained by Rev. Myo Lahey in 2016.
*Zoom link to program
Our Monday night programs begin with zazen (sitting meditation) followed by a devotional service and dharma talk, group discussion, or practice circle. There are no membership requirements to participate. We invite donations to support the room rental, visits by teachers, and other sangha activities. Valley Streams Zen Sangha is dedicated to the study of Buddha’s teaching and the practice of meditation. We invite newcomers and experienced Zen students to join us. If this is your first visit please arrive at least 15 minutes early for a brief orientation.

Morning Zazen and Service (Hybrid)
2026-03-26 06:00 - 07:30, 2026-04-02 06:00 - 07:30, 2026-04-09 06:00 - 07:30, 2026-04-16 06:00 - 07:30, 2026-04-23 06:00 - 07:30, 2026-04-30 06:00 - 07:30, 2026-05-07 06:00 - 07:30, 2026-05-14 06:00 - 07:30 | Sacramento Dharma Center, Sacramento Dharma Center, 3111 Wissemann Drive, Sacramento, CA, 95826, United States
Join us for two periods of zazen (seated meditation) and kinhin (walking meditation), or just the first or second second meditation periods, as your schedule allows.
6:00 am – Zazen (sitting meditation)
6:30 am – Kinhin (walking meditation)
6:40 am – Zazen
7:10 am – Morning Service
Please arrive a few minutes before the beginning of each period to take your seat in the zendo or, if arriving via Zoom, to allow the AV person time to admit you. If you arrive on Zoom after the beginning of the sit, the AV person will not admit latecomers until the beginning of the next period. Stay for a cup of tea after service if you join in person.
•Zoom meeting link
•Chants used in our morning service (SFZC website)

Full Moon Ceremony (Hybrid)
2026-03-30 19:00 - 21:00 | Sacramento Dharma Center, Sacramento Dharma Center, 3111 Wissemann Drive, Sacramento, CA, 95826, United States
The Full Moon Ceremony acknowledges the karma created by our intentional actions, and reminds us to renew our commitment to the ethical conduct expressed as the 16 Bodhisattva Precepts. These are guiding principles for our daily conduct in the world. This ceremony is rooted in a ritual from pre-Buddhist India. To prepare for the ceremony there are two 25 minutes meditation periods separated by 10 minutes of walking meditation. All are welcome to participate.
*Full Moon Ceremony Chants
*Zoom link to program
Our Monday night programs begin with zazen (sitting meditation) followed by a devotional service and dharma talk, group discussion, or practice circle. There are no membership requirements to participate. We invite donations to support the room rental, visits by teachers, and other sangha activities. Valley Streams Zen Sangha is dedicated to the study of Buddha’s teaching and the practice of meditation. We invite newcomers and experienced Zen students to join us. If this is your first visit please arrive at least 15 minutes early for a brief orientation.

"Shitou's Thatched Hermitage" - One-day Retreat led by Kokyo Henkel (In Person Only)
2026-04-04 08:30 - 16:30 | Sacramento Dharma Center, Sacramento Dharma Center, 3111 Wissemann Drive, Sacramento, CA, 95826, United States
In this Dharma poem we hear how to build a thatched hut and to practice zazen by turning the light around.
Our daylong retreat will focus on the classic Zen poem, Song Of The Thatched Hermitage by our lineage ancestor Shitou, who also wrote the Sandokai or the Harmony of Difference and Equality. There will be morning and afternoon talks, zazen, and optional dokusan (private interviews). The retreat will end with a celebration of Buddha’s Birthday.
Your registration offering supports our guest teacher and the ongoing activities of Valley Streams Zen Sangha. No one will be turned away for lack of funds. Contact info@valleystreamszen.org to request a scholarship, or if this will be your first retreat with us.
Kokyo Henkel has been practicing Zen since 1990, in residence at Tassajara Zen Mountain Center, Green Gulch Farm Zen Center, No Abode Hermitage in Mill Valley, Bukkokuji Monastery in Japan, and Santa Cruz Zen Center. He was ordained as a Zen priest in 1994 by Tenshin Anderson Roshi and received Dharma Transmission from him in 2010. Kokyo has also been practicing with the Tibetan Dzogchen (“Great Completeness”) teacher Tsoknyi Rinpoche since 2003, in California, Colorado, and Kathmandu, as well as other Tibetan teachers in the Nyingma and Kagyu traditions, completing Vajrayana ngondro (foundational practices) in 2020. Kokyo’s retreat near Tassajara, called Bright Window Hermitage, welcomes Buddhist practitioners of all traditions.
Please register here.

"The Great Round Mirror turns our everyday life" - Practice Circle led by Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah (Hybrid, Speaker on Zoom)
2026-04-06 19:00 - 21:00 | Valley Streams Zen Sangha, Sacramento Dharma Center 3111 Wisseman Dr., Sacramento, CA, 95826, United States
Rev. Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah serves as Ino, or head of the meditation hall. She studied in the Soto Zen lineage with Sojun Diane Martin, founder and guiding teacher of Udumbara Zen Center in Illinois and Rev. Val Szymanski, Head Priest of Bamboo in the Wind Zen Center in Sunnyvale, California. She was lay ordained in 2008 and priest ordained in 2019. She served as head student for the Spring practice period at Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in May 2022. She offers Practice Interviews upon request.
*Zoom link to program
Chants: Hymn to the Perfection of Wisdom, The Heart Sutra
Our Monday night programs begin with zazen (sitting meditation) followed by a devotional service and dharma talk, group discussion, practice circle or retreat night. There are no membership requirements to participate. We invite donations to support the room rental, visits by teachers, and other sangha activities. Valley Streams Zen Sangha is dedicated to the study of Buddha’s teaching and the practice of meditation. We invite newcomers and experienced Zen students to join us.

Introduction to Zen Meditation (In Person Only)
2026-04-13 18:00 - 18:40, 2026-05-11 18:00 - 18:40 | Sacramento Dharma Center, Sacramento Dharma Center, 3111 Wissemann Drive, Sacramento, CA, 95826, United States
On the second Monday of each month, we offer a 40-minute introduction to Zen practice. We focus on the art of sitting meditation, with emphasis on posture, breath and mental focus. This is for new meditators and those wishing to refresh their practice of meditative immersion.
Following the instruction the Valley Streams Zen Sangha meets for a 30-minute meditation in the Dharma Hall followed by a 10-minute service and Dharma talk. You are invited to stay for these events after the instruction.
* Meets in the Library at Sacramento Dharma Center.
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Dharma Talk by Nyokai Kristin Diggs (Hybrid, Speaker in Person)
2026-04-13 19:00 - 21:00, 2026-05-11 19:00 - 21:00 | Sacramento Dharma Center, Sacramento Dharma Center, 3111 Wissemann Drive, Sacramento, CA, 95826, United States
Nyokai Kristin Diggs joined our sangha as Teacher in 2026. Prior to moving to Sacramento, she trained residentially at all three San Francisco Zen Center temples (2014-2025), holding a number of senior positions, including Ino, Tenzo, and Work Leader. Lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson and priest ordained by Eijun Linda Cutts, she served as Shuso during the winter 2025 practice period at Tassajara Zen Mountain Center, led by Eijun Linda Cutts.
*Zoom link to program
Our Monday night programs begin with zazen (sitting meditation) followed by a devotional service and dharma talk, group discussion, or practice circle. There are no membership requirements to participate. We invite donations to support the room rental, visits by teachers, and other sangha activities. Valley Streams Zen Sangha is dedicated to the study of Buddha’s teaching and the practice of meditation. We invite newcomers and experienced Zen students to join us. If this is your first visit please arrive at least 15 minutes early for a brief orientation.

Earth Day Event led by Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah and Oscar Balaguer (Hybrid, Speaker in Person)
2026-04-20 19:00 - 21:00 | Sacramento Dharma Center, Sacramento Dharma Center, 3111 Wissemann Drive, Sacramento, CA, 95826, United States
THE EARTH IS BUDDHA (Thich Nhat Hanh)
Intimacy with Planet Earth as Dharma Realization
Come dressed to commune with the earth, awakening our place in the web of life (there will be a ‘rain’ alternative).
Teachers: Paravrtti Doralee Grindler Katonah and Oscar Balaguer
Parāvrtti Doralee Grindler Katonah serves as Ino, or head of the meditation hall. She studied in the Soto Zen lineage with Sojun Diane Martin in Illinois and Rev. Val Szymanski in California. She was priest ordained in 2019 by Sojun Diane Martin. She served as head student for the spring practice period at Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in May 2022. Doralee offers practice discussion upon request at ino@valleystreamszen.org.
A longtime Zen practitioner and member of Valley Streams, Oscar Balaguer was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson. Oscar was a senior environmental scientist with the State Water Board. He works now with 350 Sac and other organizations on climate issues, including weaning Sac County from its addictions to sprawl development.
*Zoom link to program
We offer a Well-Being Ceremony on the third Monday of every month to remember friends, family, neighbors, pets and people of the world who are ill, facing a recent loss, or struggling with some difficulty in their lives. Please send the names of those you wish to be remembered to: Parāvrtti Doralee Grindler Katonah (Ino@valleystreamszen.org) by the Sunday evening prior.
Our Monday night programs begin with zazen (sitting meditation) followed by a devotional service and dharma talk, group discussion, or practice circle. There are no membership requirements to participate. We invite donations to support the room rental, visits by teachers, and other sangha activities. Valley Streams Zen Sangha is dedicated to the study of Buddha’s teaching and the practice of meditation. We invite newcomers and experienced Zen students to join us. If this is your first visit please arrive at least 15 minutes early for a brief orientation.

Dharma Talk by Rev. So’on Jim Hare (Hybrid, Speaker in Person)
2026-04-27 19:00 - 21:00 | Valley Streams Zen Sangha, Sacramento Dharma Center 3111 Wisseman Dr., Sacramento, CA, 95826, United States

Women’s Retreat at Green Gulch Farm (In Person Only)
2026-04-30 - 2026-05-03 | Green Gulch Farm, 1601 Shoreline Hwy, Muir Beach, CA, 94965, United States
Be part of our Sangha of Embodied Women Co-creating Our Future. Our weekend together at Green Gulch Farm will include dharma teachings, meditation, mindfulness practice, yoga, conversation and sharing, communal living and eating. There will be generous free time for walking in nature or whatever your heart desires. Plus, the merriment of art making and koan theater. This is the place from which trust, faith, creativity and friendship grow.
Registration is limited, so please apply today. For registration details and application, contact Doralee Grindler Katonah, grindkaton@icloud.com, 916.284.4783 or Katrena Paine, katrenapaine@gmail.com, 916-261-9902.

"Cultivating the Mind of Equality" - Half-day Sitting led by So’on Jim Hare (In Person Only)
2026-05-02 08:30 - 12:30 | Sacramento Dharma Center, Sacramento Dharma Center, 3111 Wissemann Drive, Sacramento, CA, 95826, United States
Our practice of observing thoughts and feelings without getting involved in them cultivates the mind of equality.
As we go through life, we learn that it is not possible to control circumstances so that everything always goes smoothly; not possible to make it so that there are never any deviations from our plans, our hopes, and our desires. Zen practice is teaches us how to meet pleasant and unpleasant circumstances with the mind of equaity.
“There is a power which you cannot grasp with your rational mind. It operates freely, according to the situation, in a more natural way. At the same time, this power functions in our lives to clarify and settle activities and is beneficial to all living beings.” Dogen
If this will be your first extended sitting with us, please send us a note at info@valleystreamszen.org to introduce yourself.
A social lunch – bring your own – will follow the sitting.
Attendance is available on a sliding scale from $10 to $50. No one will be turned away for lack of funds.
Please register here.

Way Seeking Mind Talk by Patrick Dunn (Hybrid, Speaker in Person)
2026-05-04 19:00 - 21:00 | Sacramento Dharma Center, Sacramento Dharma Center, 3111 Wissemann Drive, Sacramento, CA, 95826, United States
Patrick Dunn has been practicing with Valley Streams Zen Sangha since 2024. After several years of sitting zazen and reading Dharma books alone, he realized he couldn’t continue without Sangha. He is grateful to have found Valley Streams and to serve on its Board of Directors. Patrick is also a nonprofit executive, musician, and writer. He lives in the Sacramento area with his wife, daughter, and dog.
*Zoom link to program
Our Monday night programs begin with zazen (sitting meditation) followed by a devotional service and dharma talk, group discussion, or practice circle. There are no membership requirements to participate. We invite donations to support the room rental, visits by teachers, and other sangha activities. Valley Streams Zen Sangha is dedicated to the study of Buddha’s teaching and the practice of meditation. We invite newcomers and experienced Zen students to join us. If this is your first visit please arrive at least 15 minutes early for a brief orientation.
