Mel Weitsman

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Sojun Mel Weitsman
Information
Birth name:	Mel Weitsman
Born:	1929
Place of birth:	Southern California
Nationality:	American
Religion:	Zen Buddhism
School(s):	Soto
Lineage(s):	Shunryu Suzuki
Title(s):	Abbot
Workplace:	Berkeley Zen Center
Teacher(s):	Shunryu Suzuki
Predecessor(s):	Hoitsu Suzuki
Successor(s):	Zenkei Blanche Hartman Zoketsu Norman Fischer Paul Haller Hozan Alan Senauke Maylie Scott Taitaku Pat Phelan Grace Schireson Dairyu Michael Wenger
Website
Portal:Buddhism

Sojun Mel Weitsman (b. 1929), born Mel Weitsman, is the founder, abbot and guiding teacher of Berkeley Zen Center located in Berkeley, California. Weitsman is a Soto Zen roshi practicing in the lineage of Shunryu Suzuki, having received Dharma transmission in 1984 from Suzuki's son Hoitsu. He is also a former co-abbot of the San Francisco Zen Center, where he served from 1988 to 1997. Weitsman is also editor of the book "Branching Streams Flow in the Darkness: Zen Talks on the Sandokai," which is said to be a sequel of sorts to Suzuki's bestselling "Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind."

Contents 1 Biography 2 See also 3 Notes 4 References

[edit] Biography

Mel Weitsman was born in Southern California in 1929.^[1] He started practicing at the San Francisco Zen Center under Shunryu Suzuki in 1964, and then co-founded the Berkeley Zen Center with his teacher in 1967. Suzuki ordained Weitsman as a priest in 1969, and in 1984 Weitsman received Dharma transmission from Suzuki's son Hoitsu. Installed as abbot of Berkeley Zen Center in 1985, he then assumed co-abbotship of San Francisco Zen Center from 1988 to 1997.^[1][2] Weitsman has given Dharma transmission to several individuals, including Zenkei Blanche Hartman (1988).^[3] In 1994 Mel came under fire from the community at San Francisco Zen Center for homophobic comments allegedly made by him. A meeting was held shortly after, where he was asked to explain his comments.^[4]

[edit] See also

• Buddhism in the United States
• Timeline of Zen Buddhism in the United States

[edit] Notes

[edit] References

• Ford, James Ishmael (2006). Zen Master Who?: A Guide to the People and Stories of Zen. Wisdom Publications. ISBN 0861715098. 
• Gach, Gary (1998). What Book!?: Buddha Poems from Beat to Hiphop. Parallax Press. ISBN 0938077929. 
• Prebish, Charles S.; Kenneth Kenʼichi Tanaka (1998). The Faces of Buddhism in America. University of California Press. ISBN 0520213017. 
• Skinner Keller, Rosemary; Rosemary Radford Ruether, Marie Cantlon (2006). The Encyclopedia of Women and Religion in North America. Indiana University Press. ISBN 0253346851. 

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