Sensei

Reverend Jonathan Kaigen Levy

Sensei Jonathan Kaigen Levy is a ZCLA priest, Dharma-Holder and transmitted Preceptor. He received Dharma Transmission (Denbo) from Roshi Egyoku in 2022. For many years he was Co-Steward of the ZCLA Tenzo Circle, which oversaw the preparation of Sangha meals, he was Co-Steward of the Introduction to Meditation classes, the 2018-2019 Shuso (Head Trainee), and is […]

Sensei Darla Myoho Fjeld

Sensei Darla Myoho Fjeld is a Zen Buddhist priest and Temple Development Steward at the Zen Center of Los Angeles. She began her practice at the Zen Studies Society in New York in 1996 and in 1997 began practicing at the Fire Lotus Zendo in New York. While in New York she was a political […]

Autumn Wind Sesshin 2026 (Fulltime), Autumn Wind Sesshin 2026 (Part-Time), Autumn Wind Sesshin 2026 (Zoom), Autumn Wind Sesshin 2026 (ALL),

Sensei Lorraine Gessho Kumpf

Sensei Lorraine Gessho Kumpf is a Preceptor and ZCLA member since 1978.  She was empowered as a Dharma-Holder by Roshi Kipp Ryodo Hawley in 2022 and received Dharma Transmission from him in 2025. As Senior Resident, her role is to promote the Residential Training Program and encourage community practice. She has been active in the […]

Sensei Nem Etsugen Bajra 

Sensei Nem Etsugen Bajra has been a member of ZCLA since 2007.  He completed training as Head Trainee under the guidance of Roshi Egyoku in 2021. He was designated as Dharma Holder by Roshi Ryodo in 2022 and received Dharma Transmission in 2025.  He served as a Co-Steward of the ZCLA Tenzo Circle for four years.  […]

Rōshi Mark Kizan Shōgen Angyo Bloodgood

Raised in the Episcopal Church, Rōshi Shōgen aspired to become an Episcopal priest in his youth. But in the late 1960s and early '70s, a “subtle feeling” nudged him toward the spiritual teachings of the East. This quiet shift began with Hermann Hesse’s Siddhartha, and deepened through the writings of Shunryū Suzuki, Philip Kapleau, Huston […]

Sensei Katherine Senshin Griffith

Sensei Katherine Senshin Griffith started studying Zen in the Rinzai tradition at New York Zendo Shobo-Ji in Manhattan in 1987. At Dai Bosatsu Zendo, she received Jukai in 1994 from Eido Shimano Roshi, with whom she studied until 2000 when she moved to Los Angeles. She became a member of ZCLA in 2001 and began […]

The Hidden Lamp Study Group, Rohatsu Sesshin 2026 (Fulltime), Rohatsu Sesshin 2026 (Part-Time), Rohatsu Sesshin 2026 (Zoom), Year-End 2026 (Part-Time), Year-End 2026 (Zoom),

Sensei Tom Dharma-Joy Reichert

Sensei Tom Baiten Dharma-Joy Reichert received the Temple Seal and was installed as ZCLA’s Fifth Abbot on May 21, 2023.  He is also currently the Head Priest/Preceptor of ZCLA. Dharma-Joy grew up in New Rochelle, New York to a Roman Catholic family.  During college at Georgetown, he spent a year in the Middle East and, […]

The Hidden Lamp Study Group, Autumn Wind Sesshin 2026 (Fulltime), Autumn Wind Sesshin 2026 (Part-Time), Autumn Wind Sesshin 2026 (Zoom), Autumn Wind Sesshin 2026 (ALL), Rohatsu Sesshin 2026 (Fulltime), Rohatsu Sesshin 2026 (Part-Time), Rohatsu Sesshin 2026 (Zoom), Year-End 2026 (Part-Time), Year-End 2026 (Zoom), Zazenkai (Fulltime), Zazenkai (Part-time), Zazenkai (Zoom),