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Starting in 64 Days
June 18th – September 15th, 2025

Commit to Sit:
The Roots of Goodness

A 90-Day Guided Online
Zen Meditation Period​

Save your seat today

Zen Meditation, Guidance, Support

For new and advanced participants alike, Commit to Sit is a guided 90-day practice period designed to empower you on your Zen meditation journey through a structured and supportive community and environment led by renowned teachers in the US and Japan.

This unique program features:

Daily Video Teachings

Short video reflections from NYZC’s Koshin Paley Ellison Sensei will be sent to you via email, highlighting key learnings from the guiding text and expounding upon it in support of your journey.

Weekly Guest Teacher Talks and Q&A Sessions

Acclaimed Zen teachers from across the US and Japan will join us for a weekly talk and interactive Q&A—live-streamed Monday evenings at 7pm ET and available afterwards via recording.

Daily Live Meditation Opportunities

Learn and practice in our Online & In-Person Zendo (the “One-do”) with participants from around the world. Foster a sense of community wherever you are.

Connection with Sangha

Engage in reflective discussions with fellow Commit to Sit practitioners through a private online forum.

Essential Teachings from Zen Ancestors

The guiding text for this Summer's Commit to Sit will be The Roots of Goodness by Kosho Uchiyama Roshi. We share more on this Zen classic below.

...and more!

EXPAND YOUR PRACTICE THIS summer

The standard cost of this program is $108 — all payment levels offer the same access to the program.

Please choose a payment level that works for your financial situation. Supporter level and above pricing is available for those who wish to increase their support of NYZC and our work to make the dharma accessible to all.

$216+

Supporter Levels
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$108

Standard Level
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$54

Supported Level
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An International Group of Teachers

13 esteemed Sōtō Zen teachers from the US and Japan support you in your journey to connection.

Click on any image to read the teacher's bio.

Chodo Robert Campbell
Koshin Paley Ellison
Ben Connelly
Issho Fujita
Jisho Sara Siebert
Jisho Warner
Jose Shinzan Palma
Ryoki Sato
Ryushin Paul Haller
Setsuan Konjin Gaelyn Godwin
Shoei Takahashi

What do you love about commit to sit?

“This has been very special for me – communal support to deepen my practice. I’m a long-time meditator going mostly solo. The daily emails with the texts and the weekly dharma talks and the sense of sangha have been incredibly supportive. This is my first CTS with NYZC and I’m so grateful.”
“The daily videos from Koshin Sensei with reflections on that day’s quote were next-level fantastic. I know that was a ton of work to produce, and I’m so grateful. It was so wonderful to feel all that love and acceptance in and through the videos on a daily basis. I’m really sad it is ending.”
“Commit to sit has become my primary engagement with the broader Buddhist community. It is a way for me to be part of a sangha. It deepens my practice and understanding and provides motivation to sit regularly.”
“Commit to Sit has come to mean a lot to me. I feel that through my association with NYZC via Commit to Sit that I’m able to access the larger Sangha. Commit to Sit enables me to have a regular structured practice within Sangha relationship that fits my schedule and inclinations. I especially appreciate the abilty to access dharma talks videos after the fact as I’m not often able to be present for the live Zoom sessions.”
“Extremely generous offering of the dharma. So many thanks for the huge amount of work this took.”
“For me, the daily readings and the dharma talks are very important. The writings that have been selected for the sessions and the associated dharma talks have opened my mind to a greater understanding of Zen practice and meaning.”
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Why this book?

The Roots of Goodness by the late Zen teacher Kōshō Uchiyama Rōshi, and translated by Daitsū Tom Wright, is a clear and heartfelt guide to embodying the values at the heart of Buddhist practice.

Drawing on the final teaching of the 13th-century Zen master Eihei Dōgen, this book invites us to explore eight timeless qualities—from knowing what is enough to not engaging in useless arguments—that both Dōgen and the Buddha taught as essential for living a life of integrity and depth.

Uchiyama Rōshi’s commentary bridges ancient wisdom and contemporary life with compassion, humor, and clarity, making this book an ideal companion for our collective practice.

You do not need to purchase the book in order to participate in the program.

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