Rev. Myozen Joan Amaral is a Soto Zen priest and the Founder and Guiding Teacher of the Zen Center North Shore located in Beverly, MA. Joan is a dharma heir of Zenkei Blanche Hartman in the lineage of Shunryu Suzuki, Roshi. Joan trained at Tassajara Zen Mountain Monastery for six years. While in residency at San Francisco Zen Center, she formed a dharma group – Dharma en Español – devoted to studying Suzuki Roshi’s Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind in Spanish (Mente Zen, Mente de Principiante), in order to provide the opportunity for native Spanish speakers to hear the dharma in their own language. Joan's primary focus as a Zen priest, meditation teacher, sangha leader, and community activist, is on the dynamic relationship between formal practice and everyday, messy human life. In recent times she has been exploring the relationship of zazen and social justice, self-care, and creativity as a path of true happiness. Please see the following link for more information about Joan and Zen Center North Shore: https://www.zencenternorthshore.org/

We talked about finding “the heart of dance” in shikantaza, facilitating a recent emergency school board meeting, the importance of getting out of your own way and being your full self, practicing in a public library, and asking, "who wants to play?".