Zen in the Upstate
Is there a Zen meditation group in Greenville, SC?
Yes. Greenville Zen Center is a welcoming Sōtō Zen meditation community in Greenville, South Carolina. We sit zazen together on the first and third Sunday mornings, and everyone is welcome, whether you have practiced for years or have never meditated at all. Every sitting is free.
Where and when we sit
We gather on the first and third Sunday mornings of each month at the Cancer Survivors Park Center for Hope & Healing, in the building at 52 Cleveland Street, Greenville, SC 29601, beside the river on the Swamp Rabbit Trail. A newcomer orientation begins at 8:00 a.m., zazen (seated meditation) begins at 8:15 a.m., and the morning ends by about 9:30. There is free public parking in the lot at 44 Cleveland Street, a short walk away.
What does it cost?
Nothing. Sittings are free to attend, and always will be. Greenville Zen Center is a volunteer-run, lay-led 501(c)(3) nonprofit, sustained by dāna, the practice of generosity. Gifts are welcome and tax-deductible, but no one is ever turned away for the lack of one.
I have never meditated. What should I expect?
You are exactly who this is for. If it is your first visit, arrive about ten minutes early, by 7:50, for a short and friendly orientation: we will show you how to sit, what the bells mean, and what the morning holds. You may sit on a cushion or in a chair, and both are complete ways to practice. The room is silent and adults-only. Wear comfortable, loose, plain clothing. If you arrive after zazen has begun, you are welcome to wait quietly and join us at kinhin, the walking meditation.
What kind of Zen is this?
We practice in the Sōtō Zen tradition, the school of Dōgen, whose heart is shikantaza, or "just sitting." A typical morning holds two periods of zazen (seated meditation) with kinhin (slow walking meditation) between them, and a brief dharma reading to close. You do not need to be Buddhist, or hold any belief, to sit with us. Greenville Zen Center fills a real gap for Sōtō Zen practice in the Upstate of South Carolina.
