We practice the forms of Soto Zen with a spirit of warmth and inclusion, in the tradition of Shunryu Suzuki Roshi, founder of San Francisco Zen Center. Mountain Rain Zen Community was founded in 2002, and is registered as a non-profit organization as well as a religious organization in British Columbia. It grew out of the Zen Practice Group of Karuna Mediation Society which first invited Zoketsu Norman Fischer to Vancouver in 1983. Our zendo on Wall St. opened its doors in April of 2012. In Spring 2023 we were given the Koryuji practice house and temple, for which we are deeply grateful.

MRZC aims to create a vibrant and diverse community of people who support each other in their practice and in their lives. We are happy that MRZC has extended its reach to include those in the geographical region and beyond.

Our community is self-governing; our council (board) handles finances, business and long-term planning, and major decisions are made by the membership as a whole. Our practice committee deals with programming and zendo forms and functioning. Most of the work related to the community’s activities is done by volunteers, though as of Summer 2023 we have one paid staff to help with ongoing administration and event registration.

For more on community/sangha as practice, please see Our Practice.