The Sangha evolved through a series of Zen classes offered in the Fall of 2009 by our teacher Lotus Vu. No resident Buddhist meditation teachers were residing in Regina at the time, and practitioners did not have regular access to a teacher. At the request of her Zen teacher, Lotus started to share the joys, beauty, and simplicity of Zen practice. From the first twelve classes, a community started to bud from those who learned and practiced Zen organically. Our Sangha’s formation and evolution over the years through its members’ deepening practice is a testimony to the transformative power of the Zen practice.
Our sangha is run solely on donations and generosity. Our teachers had never received renumeration for their teachings but teach from compassion and generosity.
Our Guiding Teachers
Lotus Vu – Founding Teacher
Our community is guided by Zen Teacher Lotus Vu, who was born in Vietnam and raised in Canada. She took her Buddhist precepts and vows with her teacher, Venerable Thích Viên Minh (Tic-wen-ming), a hermit Zen monk in Vietnam.
Lotus is the 43rd generation of the Vietnamese Thiền Lâm Tế Lineage of Nguyên Thiều (Rinzai equivalent in Japan). She had studied and practiced Zen for over 30 years under her teacher’s guidance. As a teenager, she attended retreats with His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Thich Nhat Hanh. She studied Mahayana and Theradava Buddhism with many monastic teachers from Vietnam, taking a particular interest in the Buddhist psychological system: the Yogachara. Vietnamese Buddhism is eclectic and non-sectarian. Lotus has the experience of being able to study many Buddhist teachings and explore different paths since childhood. She had explored a variety of Buddhist traditions such as Theravada, Tantra, Pure Land and Zen since the age of 9, but chose Zen as her primary path.
Lotus relocated from Regina to Toronto. She continues to guide the Sangha via Zoom and returns annually to Regina to teach at our residential retreat. Lotus has two Dharma successors authorized to teach/guide Zen: Milan Vora (London, U.K.) and Megan Cross (Haida Gwaii, B.C.).
Wisdom (Megan) Cross – Teacher
Wisdom (Meghan) Cross had started practicing Zen with our Sangha in 2012. She completed the Traditional Koan Curriculum Training with Lotus in 2023 and received Dharma Transmission. She is the first Dharma Heir of Lotus is the first student in Nguyên Thiều Lâm Tế Lineage to complete the rigorous Traditional Koan Curriculum training in Canada. Wisdom now resides in Haida Gwaii, a small village on Vancouver Island, works in the non-profit sector, volunteers as a firefighter and teaches yoga.
Senior Sangha Members
From time to time, selected senior sangha members with many years of experience in the Zen practice are encouraged by our teacher to share their personal experience of the practice with the sangha. These members have been practicing with a solid experiential foundation for many years, as do those in post-kensho koan practice. Our teacher encourages open dialogue in our practice and sangha. Sharing practice experiences helps everyone learn and deepen our practice together as individuals and the community as a whole.
Our Regular Sittings
For most of our Sangha’s history, we have met on Saturday mornings to begin our sittings at 10:30 AM at the Knox-Metropolitan United Church in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada. We would sit in silent meditation for approximately 30 minutes, followed by a Dharma Talk led by a teacher or a senior student of Zen. As a general rule, we sit year-round, taking a break from meeting at the Knox for major holidays, the summer months, and our annual weekend retreat.
Here is how to access our space when regular sittings take place:
Enter the Knox-Metropolitan United Church through the south entrance (facing Victoria Avenue). Use the door buzzer to gain entrance into the building proper. At the top of the staircase, walk straight ahead to the Centennial Lounge (our current space). Please note that once in a while we do get shuffled to the Chapel which is on the main floor close to this entrance – there will be people nearby and/or signage if this happens.