Dennis Merzel

Dennis Merzel (born June 3, 1944, in Brooklyn, New York) is an American Zen and spirituality teacher, also known as Genpo Roshi.

Dennis Paul Merzel was born on June 3, 1944, in Brooklyn, New York, and was raised and schooled in Long Beach, California.

His family was Jewish (his grandfather was a Rabbi), but he was raised as an agnostic by his father and as an atheist by his mother.

He was a champion swimmer and an all-American water polo player.

He was a lifeguard and began teaching public school while obtaining a master's degree in educational administration from the University of Southern California.

While on a trip in 1971 to the Mojave Desert in California with two friends, Merzel had what he described as an "awakening experience".

Following this, he left his career as a school teacher for a year to live in the mountains alone in a cabin near San Luis Obispo.

In 1972 he met the Japanese-born Zen teacher Taizan Maezumi, and moved to Los Angeles to study under him.

Merzel was ordained as an unsui, or novice priest, in 1973.

In 1980, a year after completing kōan study, Merzel received dharma transmission, becoming Maezumi's second Dharma successor.

In 1981 Merzel underwent zuise in Japan, and in 1988 he was officially installed as abbot of Hosshinji Zen temple in Bar Harbor, Maine.

In 1983 Merzel began studying Voice Dialogue—a Jungian therapeutic technique designed to expand the individual's ability to make choices in life rather than to behave in an automatic and unconscious fashion —with Hal and Sidra Stone.

In 1988 Merzel was installed as abbot at Hosshinji, a Zen temple in Bar Harbor, Maine.

He was alleged to have had a romantic relationship with a student, leading to the dissolution of the temple.

In August 1992, a group of 12 American Zen teachers sent a letter to Taizan Maezumi, expressing concern about Merzel's relationships with a number of female students, his lack of remorse, and his lack of responsibility.

They asked Maezumi to withdraw Merzel's sanction to teach.

In 1995 Merzel received the title of Dendō-kyōshi Kenshuso, a now defunct category officially recognizing Western Zen priests by the Sōtō School Headquarters in Japan (Sōtō-shū).

In 1996 Merzel received Inka from Bernie Glassman, after Maezumi's death in 1995.

This made Merzel Bernie Glassman's first Inka successor and made him the second in Maezumi Roshi's lineage to be recognized as a Zen Master.

Merzel is the founder and former Abbot of Kanzeon Zen Center.

Shortly thereafter, he began to experiment with integrating Voice Dialogue with the Zen tradition, and in 1999 he introduced the Big Mind Process™.

The aim of the Big Mind Process is to combine "Eastern, Buddhist insights with Western psychoanalytical ideas," and according to Merzel:

"It allows a person to step out of their ego and have a universal mind or mystical experience, to attain what is commonly called enlightenment, self realization, Christ mind, or Buddha mind."

Merzel has organized Big Mind™ retreats and events nationally and internationally, such as an annual event in the Netherlands that has attracted hundreds of participants.

Responses to Big Mind have been variously negative and positive.

A randomized clinical trial of Merzel's Big Mind process has been carried out as part of a masters thesis "to test the hypothesis that a Zen training method using a self-based dialogue approach called Big Mind (Merzel, 2007) produces significant changes in subjective experience that are similar to the spiritual experiences of long-term meditators during deep meditation and, second, to examine whether the effect brings about any lasting positive psychological improvements in both spirituality and well-being measures."

The participants appeared to score higher on various measures after participation, but the reported effects may also result from factors such as group effect, suggestibility, and/or simple expectation, and the study may have limited generalizability due to the high level of education of the participants.

In February 2011, after admitting to three extra-marital affairs, Merzel said he would disrobe as a Buddhist priest, resign as an elder of the White Plum Asanga, step down as Abbot of Kanzeon, and stop teaching for an indefinite period to seek counseling.

Forty-four American Buddhist teachers wrote a letter suggesting that Merzel take a minimum one-year break from teaching and seek therapy.

By April, Merzel had reversed his position, saying that too many students and his organizations depended on him financially and spiritually.

Sixty-six American Buddhist teachers responded with a public letter to Merzel requesting that he follow through with his stated intention to stop teaching for some time.

Merzel continued to lead retreats.

It was reported that he and his wife were divorcing.

He continues to serve as president and abbot of Kanzeon Zen Center, now called Big Heart Zen Sangha.

Dennis Merzel has given Dharma transmission (shiho) to twenty-three students heirs, and inka (final acknowledgement) to fifteen Zen-teachers.

He has given Jukai to 518 students and ordained 139 priests.