Association Zen Internationale
The Association Zen Internationale ( AZI for short ) is a Buddhist association founded in 1970 by Taisen Deshimaru . Taisen Deshimaru was a master of the Soto school of Japanese Zen Buddhism. When he founded the association, he pursued the goal of making the practice and teachings of Zen accessible to people in Europe.
The AZI has more than 200 dojos and zazen groups worldwide ; especially in Europe. They follow the practice and tradition of the Soto school. The main practice of this school is zazen, a meditation practiced in the dojos (meditation halls). From the beginning, AZI has made it possible to organize numerous sesshins (days of intensive practice) and other practice-related events, as well as the traditional ango (summer camp) that all Buddhist communities hold every year.
Today the AZI unites the greater part of the various sanghas (groups of practitioners) that have formed around the successors of Master Deshimaru. They continue to practice together in the Temple of La Gendronnière , maintaining a spirit of concentration and coordination in order to reconcile the various Sanghas and to promote the means that correspond to the cause and the aims of the union. The AZI is also in constant contact with the other Zen Sanghas in the world, especially with the Japanese Soto Zen School and its administrative body, the Sotoshu Shumucho.
The AZI is chaired by a committee of 24 people, including the oldest students of Master Deshimaru. Its board of directors meets monthly to determine the grand objectives of the sangha, the course of action that will affect the lives of the dojos, and preserve the inheritance that has been entrusted to them. The association owns the La Gendronnière temple near Blois, an estate that was acquired in 1979, shortly before Master Deshimaru's death in 1982. It is a meeting place for all sanghas, where regular and lively practice continues throughout the year becomes.
There are branches of AZI in Belgium (AZB), Great Britain (IZAUK) and the USA (AZA).
Individual evidence
- ↑ Taisen Deshimaru (1914-1982) - Biography ( Memento of the original from January 31, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
