SokukoJi Buddhist Temple Monastery

SokukoJi means “Temple of Immediate Light”. We are under the guidance of our head teacher Kyoun Sokuzan Bob Brown. Beginning as a Dharma Study Group in 1975 and becoming SokukoJi in 2007, we were originally inspired by the teachings of Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, a Tibetan Buddhist meditation master and scholar. We now follow the lead and example of Kobun Chino Roshi who traveled to the U.S and Europe from Japan in the 1960s upon the invitation of Suzuki Roshi. Sokuzan met Kobun in 1990. As a spiritual meditation community, we wish to support the larger community in which we live. This includes working with people in drug rehab environments, volunteer work in MDOC prisons, and working to extend our energy and support to people wherever it is needed regardless of their backgrounds or religious affiliations. We are engaged in building additional social and educational programs which will assist those in our community to live in harmony through mutual respect, appreciation and cooperation. Xenophobia is fear of the unknown. Sometimes we add a story about something or someone to cover up that fear. You can’t conceptualize yourself out of the depths of your fears, that’s why we sit down and look more deeply into what we are covering up. Fear can be overwhelming, so have some respect for those who are suffering with xenophobia.