Online Offerings

Online Community offering new courses

We are excited to announce this new online community for our ZLMC members and anyone wanting to take a stand alone class online. These Zen teachings ae rooted in practice and inclusive mindfulness teachings, taught by our Abbot, Roshi Robert Joshin Althouse.

Our Signature Classes are given in three levels:

Curriculum Overview

FOUNDATIONS OF MINDFULNESS
An Introductory class helps you get started with a mindfulness meditation practice. A comprehensive context from neuroscience, psychology and Buddhism will help you understand the many benefits this practice can bring to your well-ness journey. You’ll learn what gets in the way of this practice and you’ll learn how to move past these obstacles. We’ll continue taking you deeper, offering stronger medicine for addresses your most pernicious habits. You’ll learn how to harness your intention to change habits that no longer serve you, and to trust the wisdom of your embodied experience.

PATH OF ZEN
You’ll learn about the nature of the genuine spiritual path of Zen, and how you can enter the way through these clear, concise, and down-to-earth teachings from a Zen Master. You’ll learn about the inflection point that turns a practice of will power towards one of letting go and surrender. You’ll learn how the construct of self or ego is the root cause of suffering and how to begin moving beyond the prison of self-referential obsessions, by trusting a new sourse of wisdom. You finish by learning about the power of living your life by vow, and how taking the Bodhisattva Vow can re-orient and radically transform your life towards one of greater joy, meaning, and service.

ZEN LIFE SERIES
In this third and final series in the Signature classes, you’ll learn how to walk on the spiritual path of a Bodhisattva. You’ll learn about the six paramitas and how they aid and benefit your life as a Bodhisattva. You’ll learn many deeply transformative practice for moving past difficult challenges towards a great life of purpose, generosity and compassionate engagement with the world. You’ll discover how living by vow and committing to the Path of Zen can help you be more resilient facing difficult challenges in the world around you.

WHO CAN BENEFIT FROM THE TRANSFORMATIVE POWER OF LIVING A ZEN-INSPIRED LIFE?

Meditators

Teachers

Non-profit Leaders

Meditation & Mindfulness Teachers

Health-care Professionals

Professionals

Life Coaches and Yoga Instructors

Therapists

Entrepreneurs

AS A MEMBER OF THE PROGRAM, YOU’LL ALSO RECEIVE THE FOLLOWING EXTRA BONUSES

  • GUIDED MEDITATIONS FOR SELF-HEALING AND WELLNESS

  • LIFE-TIME ACCESS TO COURSE

  • PARTICIPATION IN ZLMC ONLINE COMMUNIT

  • ONLINE LIVE EVENTS WITH ZEN TEACHER

SIGN UP NOW FOR FOUNDATIONS OF MINDFULNESS

SIGN UP NOW FOR ZEN LIFE SERIES

SIGN UP NOW FOR PATH OF ZEN

SIGN UP NOW ALL THREE AND RECEIVE 20% DISCOUNT

MEET OUR ZEN TEACHERS

Roshi Robert Althouse

Roshi June Tanoue

HOW ZEN-INSPIRED LIVING CHANGES YOUR LIFE

Healing

Connection

Openning

Service

Includes interactive, live calls with Zen Teachers, and Mentors

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

SIGN UP TODAY

FOUNDATIONS OF MINDFULNESS

This series will be taught at two different times starting in September.

One series will be taught on Saturdays, from 1:00–2:30 PM, starting Sept. 16 (Sept. 16-Oct.7) (Online Only) Teacher: Karleen Manchanda

The same series will also be offered on Tuesdays, from 7-8:30 pm starting on Sept. 19 (Sept. 19-Oct. 10) (Hybrid) Teacher: Kelly Good

This series consists of four classes introducing beginners to the practice of meditation. In these classes you will learn how mindfulness can help you address everyday sufferings such as stress, anxiety, depression, loss, fear, anger, and other extreme emotional experiences. You will learn how mindfulness can help you water the wholesome seeds that help change habits that do not serve your own well-being.

Saturday series will be taught by Karleen Manchanda

Instructor: Karleen Manchanda (she/her), is a mother, wife and fourth-generation Japanese-American who was born in Hawai’i and has lived on Treaty No. 1 Territory in Canada since 1997. Raised in the Shin Buddhist tradition, she has reconnected to Buddhism through Zen in recent years. An online member and current Center Board Member, Karleen completed her ZLMC teacher training with Roshi Robert Joshin Althouse in 2021. She has studied and practiced mindfulness, meditation and yoga for the past ten years. Karleen holds a Master’s degree in Education from the University of Illinois, and has participated in mindfulness and self-compassion trainings with The Center for Mindfulness Studies in Toronto and UC Berkeley’s Greater Good Science Center. She has a strong interest in mindfulness for children, teacher, and families, as well as the connections between Buddhist and Indigenous wisdom. In her own life, mindfulness and meditation have helped to ease suffering and cultivate open-heartedness. As a meditation teacher at ZLMC, her intention is to share these beneficial teachings and practices with others.

Tuesday series will be taught by Kelly Good

Instructor: Kelly Junmei Good has been a member of ZLMC since 2015 and took Jukai earlier this year. Kelly is active in the sangha community as the steward of the Knitting Circle and Women’s Circle and has also served on the Center’s Board of Directors. Kelly has a Master’s degree in both Developmental Psychology and Business Administration. She also went through a Master of Education program to teach middle school science in Chicago Public Schools as a first career. Currently, Kelly is a Project Management Consultant for Complex Projects at Heath Care Service Corporation and lives in Oak Park with her husband and two children.

  • What does it mean to live our daily lives according to Zen principles? This class will dispel misconceptions about mindfulness and meditation. You’ll learn how mindfulness can benefit many areas of your life. It will get you started with the practice of meditation.

  • What gets in the way of meditation from the inside out? This class will help you overcome some of the crippling effects of shame that prevent you from trusting your own direct experience, which is the basis for meditation practice.

  • You’ll learn the nuts and bolts of how to meditate in this class, including breathing and posture. Learn how this meditation can improve the quality of your attention which can have a profound impact on your over-all well-being.

  • Opening to life is allowing the inconsistencies and ambiguities to be a part of your daily experience. We all suffer in many ways, but opening to our suffering is the way forward to opening our broken hearts.

Prices for Foundations of Mindfulness Series

We rely primarily on the donations and class fees that our sangha offers. We encourage those with more capacity for giving to consider registering at the patron or supporter level. One pass is good for all four classes.

$129 Patron
$119 Supporter
$99 Participant

If you purchase all 3 Signature Classes as a bundle (Foundations of Mindfulness, Path of Liberation, and the Zen Life Series), you’ll save 30% off the regular price. This pass is good for one year. The Signature Classes are taught continuously throughout the year so that you can take them at your own convenience.

$314 Patron
$265 Support
$229 Attendee

  • You will learn more about mindfulness and how it can help you understand yourself and any challenges you may face. It will also gently guide you as you begin your own meditation practice

    CRAIG MINDRUM, PH.D

PATH OF LIBERATION (Hybrid)

Weekly classes begin Tuesday, October 17, at 7:00 PM (CST) for four weeks

If you are confused about your life or not sure about your spiritual path, consider taking this second series of our Signature meditation classes. In this Path of Liberation series, we will introduce you to the genuine nature of the Zen spiritual path and why this could make an important and meaningful difference in your daily life. In a time of increasing stress and existential crisis in many areas of our society, it’s more important than ever to ground your life in a meaningful spiritual path that helps you be resilient in the face of change and uncertainty.

Instructor: Kelly Junmei Good has been a member of ZLMC since 2015 and took Jukai earlier this year. Kelly is active in the sangha community as the steward of the Knitting Circle and Women’s Circle and has also served on the Center’s Board of Directors. Kelly has a Master’s degree in both Developmental Psychology and Business Administration. She also went through a Master of Education program to teach middle school science in Chicago Public Schools as a first career. Currently, Kelly is a Project Management Consultant for Complex Projects at Heath Care Service Corporation and lives in Oak Park with her husband and two children.

Path of Liberation Series Prices

We rely primarily on the donations and class fees that our sangha offers. We encourage those with more capacity for giving to consider registering at the patron or supporter level. One pass is good for all four classes.

$129 Patron
$119 Supporter
$99 Participant

If you purchase all 3 Signature Classes as a bundle (Foundations of Mindfulness, Path of Liberation, and the Zen Life Series), you’ll save 30% off the regular price. This pass is good for one year. The Signature Classes are taught continuously throughout the year so that you can take them at your own convenience.

$314 Patron
$265 Support
$229 Attendee

  • This class will introduce you to an elegant teaching of Buddha describing the arc of the overall spiritual path called the “Four Foundations of Mindfulness”.

  • This class goes to the heart of our Zen teachings addressing the root cause of suffering, the self that we construct.

  • In this class you’ll learn about a more dynamic approach to mindfulness meditation called “Open Awareness”.

  • It’s time to find out what we mean by “Zen-inspired living”. Trusting your own deepest aspirations will set you clearly on the spiritual path that will take you forward, meeting whatever challenges life throws your way.

JURI SEKIGUCHI

“Zen Life Series is a wonderful experience. It’s a great next step after the Foundations of Mindfulness classes as it allows you to go deeper into the history of Buddhism and its core teachings.”

ZEN LIFE SERIES

Weekly classes begin Saturday, November 11 at 10:00 AM (CST), for four weeks (Nov. 11–Dec. 2). (Hybrid)

Deepen and clarify the spiritual path of Zen and help orient your life around greater meaning and purpose. Learn about the Six Paramitas which are the path of practice of living by the vow of a Bodhisattva. This series will take a deep dive into the genuine spiritual path of Zen. It will explain what a Bodhisattva is and why orienting your life around this profound, universal, and benevolent intention can lead to deeper meaning, purpose, and joy in your life. This is the third series in our signature classes. To get the most out of it, we recommend you take the first two series.

Instructor: Roshi Robert Althouse is a Zen Master, Zen Buddhist Priest, Co-founded of ZLMC and the Abbot of ZLMC. He developed these signature classes ten years ago and have been refining them ever since. He has practice Zen for over 50 years and been teaching for 30 years. He is also a painter. You can see his work at www.althouseart.com. He is married to Roshi June Tanoue, the other Co-Founder of ZLMC.

  • Learn how opening to your own awakened heart, what we call “bodhicitta” is the basis for the Zen spiritual path and the teachings of the Six Paramitas, the practices of a Bodhisattva.

  • Here you’ll learn about the first two paramitas that will help you trust your natural generosity and support your discipline in strengthening and deepening your meditation practice.

  • You’ll learn about the third and fourth Paramitas here. These practices will help you work more skillfully with anger and the places where you get stuck.

  • Learn about the last two Paramitas and how they can guide you in establishing a strong foundation for meditation and living a Zen-inspired life.

Prices for Zen Life Series

We rely primarily on the donations and class fees that our sangha offers. We encourage those with more capacity for giving to consider registering at the patron or supporter level. One pass is good for all four classes.

$199 Patron
$149 Supporter
$129 Participant

If you purchase all 3 Core Curriculum series as a bundle (Foundations of Mindfulness, Path of Liberation, and the Zen Life Series), you’ll save 30% off the regular price. This pass is good for one year. The Core Curriculum classes are taught continuously throughout the year so that you can take them at your own convenience.

$314 Patron
$265 Support
$229 Attendee

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