Peter and Jane Schneider were early students of Shunryu Suzuki-roshi in the sixties. Both served as Suzuki-roshi’s jisha (personal attendant) in the early years of the Tassajara Zen Mountain Center. Peter and Jane also assisted in transcription of his dharma talks for later publication. Following Suzuki-roshi’s death, they accepted scholarships from the San Francisco Zen Center to study Buddhism in Japan. Peter and Jane lived and studied in Japan from 1973 to 1995. They founded the Beginner’s Mind Zen Center (originally the Northridge Zen Center) in 2003. Peter and Jane are members of the American Zen Teacher’s Association and the Soto Zen Buddhist Association.

Shunryu Suzuki Roshi, a Japanese Zen priest belonging to the Soto lineage, came to San Francisco in 1959 at the age of 55. He was impressed by the seriousness and quality of "beginner's mind" among Americans he met who were interested in Zen and decided to settle here. As more and more people joined him in meditation, Zen Center came into being and he was its first abbot. Under his tutelage, Zen Center grew into two centers: Tassajara Zen Mountain Center and City Center. He was undoubtedly one of the most influential Zen teachers of his time. Some of his edited talks have been collected in the books Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind; Not Always So: Practicing the True Spirit of Zen; Branching Streams Flow in the Darkness: Zen Talks on the Sandokai; Zen Is Right Here; and Wind Bell: Teachings from the San Francisco Zen Center 1968-2001. Suzuki Roshi died in 1971.

The paintings featured on this website are Jane’s work. You can see more at www.JaneSchneiderArt.com

History of BMZC

About Suzuki Roshi