Community: At evening tea on Sunday, August 14th, Rev. Master Oswin presented Rev. Allard Kieres with his Teacher of Buddhism certificate and his purple vestments. Rev. Allard was ordained in 2012 and will have been a monk ten years on the 19th.

On Tuesday, August 16th, the community held an entry ceremony for Rev. Quang Tue Nguyen, which was a modified ordination ceremony in which he took Rev. Master Meian has his master. He received his robes and vestments, begging bowl, and Precepts (he had already renounced the world and had his head shaved when he ordained in the Vietnamese Mahayana tradition). Rev. Quang Tue retained his ordination name, and together with the Houn family name his complete religious name, Houn Quang Tue, means “Bright Wisdom within the Dharma Cloud.” Rev. Quang Tue has been training at Shasta Abbey since March 2021.

Other Ceremonies.On June 19th, Rev. Master Ando was the celebrant for a naming ceremony for Soto, a small terrier mix dog who lives with Gayle Yamasaki in Klamath Falls, Oregon. Soto is a rescue dog from a southern California animal shelter. Several other monks attended the ceremony.

Then a week later Rev. Master Amanda was the celebrant for a funeral for Bernie, a 15-year old Shih Tzu who lived with local congregation member Scott Ward. The funeral was held at the outdoor Jizo Shrine.

On August 4^thRev. Master Oswin performed a 49-day memorial for Dixie Feiner, a Eugene Priory lay minister who died on June 16th. Afterwards we scattered her and her late husband Milt’s ashes in the monastery cemetery. Her funeral was held at the Eugene Buddhist Priory on June 26th.

FOSA Work Day. Friends of Shasta Abbey (FOSA), a local group of lay trainees dedicated to supporting the work of the Abbey, sponsored a Saturday morning, August 6^th, work day focusing on cleaning up the Abbey grounds, picking up tree bark, and stacking firewood as a part of fire abatement. Everyone enjoyed working together, and FOSA provided pizza for everyone’s lunch. Other recent FOSA projects have included contributions toward cloister roof repair and a new septic tank.

Retreat.The summer ended with a retreat led by Rev. Master Kinrei Bassis, Prior of the Berkeley Buddhist Priory. The theme of the retreat was Finding our Peaceful and Compassionate Heart. Each day Rev. Master Kinrei lectured on one aspect of this practice: Peaceful Heart, Compassion, Feelings and Emotions, Adapting to Conditions, Converting Suffering, and Connecting with the Buddha Heart. (You can find all these talks on our website.) In addition, he saw many people for sanzen and led discussions in the afternoons. The retreat was attended by 21 people in person and approximately 23 online. We are very grateful for Rev. Master Kinrei’s offering of the Dharma.