Gyokuko Carlson (born Andrea Gass) is a

Soto Zen Soto may refer to: Geography * Soto (Aller), parish in Asturias, Spain * Soto (Las Regueras), parish in Asturias, Spain * Soto, Curaçao, Netherlands Antilles * Soto, Russia, a rural locality (a ''selo'') in Megino-Kangalassky District of the Sak ...

roshi. She was co-founder and abbess of Dharma Rain Zen Center in

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

, United States, until her retirement in 2019.

Biography

She was formerly the co-abbot along with her husband, the late Kyogen Carlson. Carlson and her husband practiced at

Shasta Abbey Shasta Abbey, located on sixteen forested acres near Mount Shasta in northern California, United States is a training monastery for Bhikkhu, Buddhist monks and a place of practice for lay Buddhists and interested visitors. It was established in 1 ...

when Jiyu Kennett was the abbess (and from whom she received

Dharma transmission In Chan and Zen Buddhism, dharma transmission is a custom in which a person is established as a "successor in an unbroken lineage of teachers and disciples, a spiritual 'bloodline' ('' kechimyaku'') theoretically traced back to the Buddha him ...

), leaving to found their own center in 1986 when celibacy became a requirement at Shasta Abbey. She has been a practitioner of

Zen Buddhism Zen (; from Chinese: '' Chán''; in Korean: ''Sŏn'', and Vietnamese: ''Thiền'') is a Mahayana Buddhist tradition that developed in China during the Tang dynasty by blending Indian Mahayana Buddhism, particularly Yogacara and Madhyamaka ph ...

for more than thirty years, and is a member of the

American Zen Teachers Association The American Zen Teachers Association (AZTA) was founded in the late 1980s as the Second Generation Zen Teachers Group. It is a peer-group organization of ordained and lay Zen Buddhist teachers, all of whom have received either teaching authorizat ...

. Gyokuko and Kyogen Carlson have come to be known as the major non-Order of Buddhist Contemplatives line in succession to Jiyu Kennett; their Zen center has become the largest

Zen Zen (; from Chinese: ''Chán''; in Korean: ''Sŏn'', and Vietnamese: ''Thiền'') is a Mahayana Buddhist tradition that developed in China during the Tang dynasty by blending Indian Mahayana Buddhism, particularly Yogacara and Madhyamaka phil ...

congregation in

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

. Carlson's main teaching emphasis is the implementation of spiritual practice into daily life. Her family religious education program was developed from

Unitarian Universalist Unitarian or Unitarianism may refer to: Christian and Christian-derived theologies A Unitarian is a follower of, or a member of an organisation that follows, any of several theologies referred to as Unitarianism: * Unitarianism (1565–present) ...

practices, transformed by Buddhist principles. It is the largest

Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

child education program in Oregon, and one of the largest and oldest in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. Her dharma successor is Kakumyo Lowe-Charde who was ordained in 2002 and became Abbot of Dharma Rain Zen Center upon Gyokuko’s retirement. Her lineage also includes Domyo Burk.

References

Soto Zen Buddhists Zen Buddhist nuns American Zen Buddhists Clergy from Portland, Oregon Living people Buddhist abbesses Year of birth missing (living people) American Buddhist nuns 21st-century American nuns {{US-reli-bio-stub

Biography

See also

References