White Plum Asanga

White Plum Asanga
Name	White Plum Asanga
Founded	1979
Founder	Taizan Maezumi
Location	United States
Type	Zen organisation

White Plum Asanga is a lineage-based network of Zen Buddhist teachers and communities established in the United States by Taizan Maezumi. The Asanga links teachers trained in the Hakusan, Daishin, and Harada-Yasutani lineages and has influenced Western Buddhism through monasteries, practice centers, and socially engaged projects. Its formation catalyzed relations among American practitioners, Japanese teachers, and international Buddhist institutions.

History

The Asanga emerged from the transmission activities of Taizan Maezumi, whose life connected Hyogo Prefecture, Soto Zen institutions such as Komazawa University and teachers like Koshiro Maezumi (parent), with contacts to Hakuun Yasutani, Harada Daiun Sogaku, and the Rinzai-influenced Harada-Yasutani koan curriculum. Early American developments involved collaborations with figures associated with San Francisco Zen Center, Zen Center of Los Angeles, and teachers who had trained in Eiheiji or studied under émigré teachers such as Shunryu Suzuki and Philip Kapleau. Growth in the 1970s and 1980s intersected with networks including Mount Baldy Zen Center, Green Dragon Temple, and independent centers led by successors who had received dharma transmission. The Asanga’s organizational consolidation reflected wider trends visible in the histories of Tricycle (magazine), Insight Meditation Society, and the rise of Western monastic institutions modeled partly on Kamakura and Kyoto monastic norms.

Teachings and Practice

Teachings in the Asanga synthesize elements from Soto Zen shikantaza practice, Rinzai Zen koan study, and methods articulated by teachers like Hakuun Yasutani and Harada Daiun Sogaku. Practice formats include sesshin, zazen, teisho, and dokusan patterned after traditions at Eiheiji, Sojiji, and adaptations found at San Francisco Zen Center and Zen Mountain Monastery. The curriculum often integrates study of texts associated with Dogen and commentaries by Kukai and modern interpreters such as Shunryu Suzuki and Philip Kapleau. Ethical training draws upon precepts comparable to those practiced at Tassajara Zen Mountain Center and rituals influenced by Hōkyō-ji and other Soto temples. Group practice and lay training echo models from Kwan Um School of Zen, Diamond Sangha, and other Western sanghas, while retreat formats mirror programs at Insight Meditation Society and Spirit Rock Meditation Center.

Organizational Structure

The Asanga functions as a loose federative network rather than a centralized hierarchy, resembling organizational patterns seen in International Network for Buddhist Teachers and lineage groups associated with Thich Nhat Hanh and Dharma Drum Mountain. Leadership is constituted by dharma-transmitted teachers who coordinate through councils, meetings, and cooperative projects analogous to governance bodies at San Francisco Zen Center and Mount Baldy Zen Center. Affiliations range from autonomous sanghas affiliated with organizations like Zen Studies Society to monasteries modeled on Eiheiji and practice groups connected to academic settings such as University of California, Los Angeles and Columbia University. Administrative practices incorporate corporate-style governance similar to nonprofit boards registered in jurisdictions such as California and New York.

Lineage and Notable Teachers

The Asanga’s lineage descends from Taizan Maezumi, who received transmission from teachers including Hakuun Yasutani and figures rooted in Soto Zen and Rinzai lineages. Prominent teachers within the network have included successors who established centers comparable to those run by Soen Nakagawa, Shunryu Suzuki, and Philip Kapleau. Notable transmitted teachers associated with the Asanga have worked alongside peers in institutions like San Francisco Zen Center, Zen Mountain Monastery, Mount Baldy Zen Center, Centro Zen, and university Buddhist chaplaincies at Harvard University and Princeton University. Cross-training and interlineage dialogue connected Asanga teachers with figures from Kwan Um School of Zen, Thich Nhat Hanh’s Plum Village, and leaders from Japanese Soto Buddhism such as abbots of Sojiji and Eiheiji.

Centers and Global Presence

Centers affiliated with the Asanga appeared across North America and internationally, comparable in scope to networks like Tricycle (magazine)-featured communities and retreat centers at Insight Meditation Society and Spirit Rock Meditation Center. Establishments included urban practice centers, rural monasteries modeled after Kamakura temples, and university-based groups at institutions similar to University of California, Berkeley and Yale University. The Asanga’s international presence connected to communities in Europe, Australia, and Latin America through visiting teachers, inter-sangha retreats, and participation in conferences hosted by organizations such as the American Zen Teachers Association and international Buddhist congresses.

Criticisms and Controversies

The Asanga, like several Western Zen networks, faced scrutiny over governance, teacher accountability, and responses to misconduct, issues also publicized in cases involving San Francisco Zen Center, Dharma Drum Mountain, and other sanghas. Critics invoked comparisons to debates on teacher authority seen in controversies surrounding figures like Taizan Maezumi and institutional responses studied by scholars at Columbia University and University of California, Berkeley. Calls for transparency paralleled reforms advocated by organizations such as the American Buddhism Scholars community and ethics initiatives promoted by networks including International Network of Engaged Buddhists.

Category:Zen Buddhist organizations