The Journal of the Order of Buddhist Contemplatives

The Journal of the Order of Buddhist Contemplatives is the international quarterly publication of the Order of Buddhist Contemplatives (OBC), a Zen Buddhist order in the lineage of Rev. Master Jiyu-Kennett. It was founded by Rev. Master Jiyu-Kennett, who started a newsletter called News from the Tiger's Lair while she was in Japan to help people who studied with her keep in touch. That newsletter has been published ever since and grew with the sangha until it became The Journal of the Order of Buddhist Contemplatives. The Journal incorporates its predecessors, the Journals of both Shasta Abbey and Throssel Hole Buddhist Abbey, and represents all the affiliated temples of the Order. The publication is an international quarterly, published four times a year up to winter 2024. Each issue is a PDF publication of around 80 pages, containing articles from monks and lay practitioners on aspects of Zen practice, as well as news from temples around the Order. It serves to provide people studying Zen in the OBC lineage and tradition a way to receive teaching, encouragement, and news of events around the various groups and temples, and to give a sense of the wider community of trainees through contributions from both monks and householders, women and men, from all of the countries in which the Order has temples and groups. Typical content includes articles by senior monks on aspects of Dharma and daily training, articles by experienced lay trainees on living the Buddhist household life, articles by monastic and lay trainees on how they have approached practical problems in their practice, new translations of classical Zen texts by masters such as Great Master Dōgen, the Japanese founder of Sōtō Zen, and previously unpublished or hard-to-find material by Rev. Master Jiyu-Kennett, as well as explanations of Buddhist terminology. Printed annuals, comprising all the articles from the respective years, were produced for those who appreciate reading a printed book and are still available via lulu.com. The Journal has now been superseded by an email newsletter which is sent to subscribers four times per year. The OBC Journal Archive website allows readers to read and download issues from 2014 to 2024, access older archived articles, and subscribe to the new OBC Newsletter. Pre-Autumn 2021 EPUB issues are available via an e-book archive, and audio articles (MP3 versions of articles, produced by a volunteer human voice) can be requested via the contact page.

The Journal of the Order of Buddhist Contemplatives traces its origins to a newsletter started by Rev. Master Jiyu-Kennett while she was in Japan. Called News from the Tiger's Lair, it was created to help people who studied with her keep in touch. According to the Journal's own account, that newsletter has been published ever since and grew with the sangha until it became The Journal of the Order of Buddhist Contemplatives. In the course of this growth it incorporated its predecessors, the Journals of both Shasta Abbey and Throssel Hole Buddhist Abbey, and came to represent all the affiliated temples of the Order. As the Order expanded internationally, the Journal developed into an international quarterly publication. It was published four times a year up to winter 2024, with each issue issued as a PDF of around 80 pages. Its content was drawn from monks and lay practitioners writing on aspects of Zen practice, alongside news from temples around the Order. The Journal also served a community-building purpose, containing contributions from both monks and householders, women and men, from all of the countries in which the Order has temples and groups, and giving readers a sense of the wider community of trainees. Over the years the Journal built a set of recurring features intended to be of use to readers. These included articles by senior monks on aspects of Dharma and daily training; articles by experienced lay trainees on living the Buddhist household life; articles by monastic and lay trainees on how they have approached practical problems in their practice; new translations of classical Zen texts by masters such as Great Master Dōgen, the Japanese founder of Sōtō Zen; previously unpublished or hard-to-find material by Rev. Master Jiyu-Kennett; and explanations of Buddhist terminology. For readers who preferred printed books, printed annuals comprising all the articles from the respective years were produced and remain available via lulu.com. Digital access evolved as well: pre-Autumn 2021 EPUB issues are available through an e-book archive, and the OBC Journal Archive website provides access to issues from 2014 to 2024 as well as older archived articles. The Journal was ultimately superseded by an email newsletter sent to subscribers four times per year, and the archive site now also supports subscription to that new OBC Newsletter. An additional service offers MP3 audio versions of articles, including articles from pre-digital issues up to 2014, produced on request by a volunteer using a human voice rather than AI.

• Rev. Master Jiyu-Kennett starts a newsletter called News from the Tiger's Lair while in Japan.

• The newsletter grows with the sangha and becomes The Journal of the Order of Buddhist Contemplatives, incorporating the Journals of Shasta Abbey and Throssel Hole Buddhist Abbey.

• The Journal is published four times a year as a PDF of around 80 pages.

• Printed annuals collecting each year's articles are produced and made available via lulu.com.

• Pre-Autumn 2021 EPUB issues are made available via an e-book archive.

• The Journal is published up to winter 2024, after which it is superseded by an email newsletter sent four times per year.

• The OBC Journal Archive website provides access to issues from 2014–2024 and older archived articles, and supports subscription to the new OBC Newsletter.

An international quarterly publication serving Zen practitioners in the Order of Buddhist Contemplatives lineage, combining Dharma teaching, practice articles and community news.

• The Journal of the Order of Buddhist Contemplatives (quarterly PDF)

• Printed annuals (via lulu.com)

• EPUB e-book issues (pre-Autumn 2021)

• Audio articles (MP3, on request)

• OBC Newsletter (email, four times per year)

1. 1Journal of the Order of Buddhist Contemplatives – Homejournal.obcon.org
2. 2About the Journal – Journal of the Order of Buddhist Contemplativesjournal.obcon.org
3. 3The Journal of the Order of Buddhist Contemplatives – Wikidatawikidata.org