Practice Intensive Groups with Domyo

Practice Intensive Groups meet regularly with Domyo, online, over the course of a 5-month term. Each term there is a course of study/practice created by Domyo, including assigned reading and activities. PIGs are for active BWZ members who have received Jukai and participated in at least one Term Student Program – see the Prerequisites and Requirements below.

Limited to 6-8 participants per group (number depending on course of study). Don’t be shy about signing up if you are eligible (see below). If necessary, there will be a wait list and anyone who can’t join can be at the top of the list for the next term. Groups have not always filled up.

Oct-Feb is Fall Term, March-July is Spring Term

The Practice Intensive Groups for Fall Term 2025 are now full.

SPRING TERM 2026: Meeting dates can be found via the calendar link below. Feel free to submit interest via the application form.

Click here to see a calendar with dates of upcoming Practice Intensive Group meetings

 Past study:

• Spring 2025: Uchiyama Roshi’s recently released book The Roots of Goodness: Zen Master Dogen’s Teaching on the Eight Qualities of a Great Person. Click here for more info on Spring 2025 study.
• Fall/Winter 2024/2025: Studying the Self; Dogen’s “Only Buddha and Buddha;” click here to see the syllabus
• Spring 2024: Being Ordained into Your Life; Reb Anderson’s Entering the Mind of Buddha: Zen and the Six Heroic Practices of Bodhisattvas; click here to see the syllabus

• The Saturday Group meets on the 1st and 3rd Saturdays of the month* for each five-month term:
  • Five meetings with Domyo, for two hours on the 1st Saturdays of the month, 11am- 1pm Pacific Time (Noon-2pm Mountain Time, 1-3pm Central, 2-4pm Eastern, 7-9pm British Time, 8-10pm Western Europe, 9-11pm Eastern Europe)
  • Four peer-only check ins for one hour on the 3rd Saturdays of the month, Noon-1pm Pacific Time (1-2pm Mountain Time, 2-3pm Central, 3-4pm Eastern, 8-9pm British Time, 9-10pm Western Europe,10-11pm Eastern Europe)
• The Thursday Group meets on the 1st and 3rd Thursdays of the month* for each five-month term:
  • Five meetings with Domyo, for two hours on the 1st Thursdays of the month,  4-6pm Pacific Time (5-7pm Mountain Time, 6-8pm Central, 7-9pm Eastern, night time across the pond)
  • Four peer-only check ins for one hour once a month on 3rd Thursdays
  • NOTE: For the Spring 2026 Term, the Thursday group will meet later (6-8pm Pacific Time), to give those with 9-5 jobs and Saturday family responsibilities a chance to participate. See the BWZ calendar. (Fall/Winter 2025/2026 remains the same, 4-6pm Pacific)

* With occasional date adjustments as necessary to avoid retreats, holidays, etc.

Click here to see a calendar with dates of upcoming Practice Intensive Group meetings

Prerequisites:

In order to join a Practice Intensive Group, you need to:

• Have been an active, participating member of Bright Way Zen for at least a year (Click here to learn more about membership; active participation generally means attendance at BWZ practice at least three times a month)
• Have received Jukai (Click here to learn more about Jukai)
• Have completed at least one Term Student Program

Requirements for Participation:

• Attend all Group meetings (if truly necessary, you may miss one meeting with Domyo and one of the four peer check ins; if you end up needing to miss more meetings than this, you are asked to respectfully drop out and participate again in a different term; this is because there are so few meetings to begin with)
• Continue regular participation with the BWZ Sangha (3 or more times a month on Tuesdays, Sundays, or Saturdays including Sangha Check in)
• Maintain a regular zazen practice at least five times a week (sessions of 25 minutes or more)
• Participate in all the Zazenkai, Retreats, and Sesshin that occur during the term (if you have a schedule conflict you can’t change in order to attend a retreat, speak to Domyo, but the idea is to make this a priority in your life for the term)
• Do homework assigned between meetings (expect this to take 2-3 hours during the month)
• Challenge yourself, allow Domyo and fellow group members to get to know you better, and provide peer support to other members of the group by showing up and participating wholeheartedly
• Be willing to explore, with Domyo’s guidance, things like deepening samadhi power; identifying and working with one’s natural koans; facing and working with one’s karma, and learning our “family way” – the way the Dharma is expressed and manifested in our shared tradition, so one can participate in transmitting it to others.

Suggested Donation: $200 a term. See our Suggested Donation page about how BWZ deals with fees so that our center is sustained financially while never turning anyone away for lack of funds.

Practice Intensive Group Application or Inquiry Form

If the above qualifications apply to you, feel free to write to Domyo about committing to a term: