Nourishing Stillness: Supporting the Community & Cooking Your Life

Wisteria House. A vibrant kitchen where we cook our life. A spacious dining hall in which we are nourished as we nourish stillness. A warm gathering space to support the community with aliveness, transmitting the heart of practice.

Wisteria House will also be home to the Zen Dust Store, Library, Laundry, Trash & Recycle Area, and Administrative Office. All as places of practice in which we receive and offer this life together.

Please join in helping Wisteria House come alive.

For more on the Sonoma Mandala Project:

As Zen practice evolves to second-generation American teachers, Sonoma Mountain Zen Center faces a critical historical moment. “Although useful and habitable, what we built was in many ways temporary,” the elder Kwong-roshi said of the original temple grounds assembled in the 1970s. “Therefore, it’s time to begin constructing a truly enduring temple complex on this ancient mountain, vibrant enough to reflect the authentic Zen spirit and inspire people from every region and all walks of life for the next 300 years.” In this spirit, the Zen Center is starting the next phase of the Sonoma Mandala, a capital campaign and building project to ensure a home for spiritual practice on Sonoma Mountain for generations.

The Sonoma Mandala project emerged from Kwong-roshi’s vision to build a lasting temple when prompted by the county to upgrade the entire Zen Center to more rigorous building codes. The project consists of two phases. Phase One focused on replacing aging infrastructure, including drilling a new well, trenching 1,000 feet of a new water system, integrating fire hydrants and sprinklers to the backup emergency water supply, new electrical and septic systems, demolition of twelve cabins of substandard housing, and construction of two new residential and guest halls, at a total cost of $3 million. As Phase One is nearing completion, the Zen Center is now turning its energy toward Phase Two, which includes the construction of the Wisteria House, a kitchen-administration building (kuri), and the Manjushri meditation hall (zendo), which is slated for completion in 2031, and finishing the remaining pathway construction and landscaping. The completion of Phase Two will move the existing functions away from Sonoma Mountain Road and into the new buildings to be situated further into the Zen Center’s property.

To achieve this vision, the Sonoma Mandala Project committee has set an ambitious goal of raising the remaining $1.8 million required to complete the $2.4 million Wisteria House and an additional $3.5 million to construct the meditation hall. A significant milestone in this transformative journey will occur in 2026, when the sanmon (mountain gate) to the future zendo is unveiled. Crafted by the workshop of master temple builder Paul Zengyu Discoe—an apprentice of Suzuki-roshi who honed his skills in traditional Japanese joinery—this monumental structure will be the first of its kind in North America, embodying tradition and innovation. Twelve massive cedar pillars arranged in three rows of four will create a “triple gate” entrance through the three gates of liberation—the gates of emptiness, signlessness, and non-constructedness.

Since the founding of Sonoma Mountain Zen Center, the Center has worked closely with Sonoma County to maintain compliance with local zoning laws and building codes. In 2011, the Center applied to amend its use permit to build a new mediation hall, initially issued in early 1993. In 2016, the county identified a long list of conditions the Zen Center would need to meet to move forward with plans for the Sonoma Mandala, which initially focused only on a new meditation hall and residence buildings. The approval conditions included the construction of a new Community Building and bringing all parts of the Center’s infrastructure up to code. These new conditions added to the project's total cost and pushed the completion timeline further than planned. Progress on the project was then delayed by the devastating wildfires of 2017 and the global pandemic in 2020. These delays have caused the project to fall behind the county-approved schedule, adding urgency to the current fundraising efforts.

Sonoma Mandala Phase Two Projects:

Wisteria House (Kitchen, Dining, and Community Building + Administration Office)

Dimensions: 73’ x 62’, height 27’, 3430 square feet

Functions: Kitchen, Dining/Multipurpose Room, Gathering & Lounge Area, Library, Zen Dust Store, Storage, Laundry, Trash & Recycle Area, Administrative Office

Materials: Plaster walls, wood & tile floors, corrugated metal roofing

Features: Clusters of social functions, radiant heat, solar assisted utilities, energy efficient construction

Manjushri Meditation Hall (Zendo)

Dimensions: 96’ x 48’, height 28’, 4330 square feet

Functions: Meditation Hall, Founder’s Altar, Abbot’s Study, Preparation & Storage Rooms, Tea Room

Materials: Plaster walls, cedar posts, fir beams, wood & tile floors, tile roof

Features: Clerestory for natural light, timber post & beam construction, sliding windows, radiant heat, solar assisted utilities, energy efficient construction

Completed Sonoma Mandala Phase One Projects:

Genjo Building (Guest Residence)

Dimensions: 77’ x 17’, height 17’, 1050 square feet

Functions: 2 Bedroom Suites with Bathrooms, 4 Bedrooms, Utility/Storage Room

Materials: Corrugated metal roof, earthen colored plaster walls, wood & tile floors, cedar wood trim

Features: Large windows overlooking creek & oak tree landscape, radiant heat, solar assisted utilities, energy efficient construction

Ando Quarters (Guest Residence)

Dimensions: 32’ x 54’, height 20’, 1650 square feet

Functions: 1 Bedroom Suite with accessible Bathroom, 3 Bedrooms with shared accessible Bathroom, Living/Multipurpose Room, Storage & Utility Closets

Materials: Corrugated metal roof, earthen colored plaster walls, wood & tile floors, cedar wood trim

Features: Multipurpose Area, radiant heat, accessible to those with disabilities, solar assisted utilities, energy efficient construction

Maintenance /Agriculture Shed

Dimensions: 20’ x 32’, height 15’, total: 640 square feet

Functions: Maintenance & Agriculture Storage, Work Area

Materials: Corrugated metal roof, wood siding, concrete floor

Features: Central work area and storage for the Zen Center

Remodeled Sangha Cabin (Residence)

Dimensions: 18’ x 22’, height 12’, total: 330 square feet

Functions: 2 Bedrooms

Materials: Corrugated metal roof, wood siding, wood flooring

Features: Senior student housing set in oak & redwood trees, incorporated recycled materials

Read More History

Help the Next Phase of our Sonoma Mandala Project be Realized: Wisteria House

By Sonoma Mountain Zen Center

Help the Next Phase of our Sonoma Mandala Project be Realized: Wisteria House

(Kitchen, Dining Hall, & Community Building)