Jizo Garden at Green Gulch

dedicated to Yvonne Rand

Green Gulch Farm Zen Center, also known as Green Dragon Temple (Soryu-ji), is located in Marin County, just north of San Francisco, in a valley that opens out onto the Pacific Ocean. In addition to a year-round schedule of Zen meditation, study, and practice, it includes a thriving organic farm and garden, a traditional Japanese guest house and tea house, and a conference and retreat center.

The Jizo Garden at Green Gulch Farm is a dedicated memorial space used for mourning and remembrance, particularly for those who have lost children or loved ones. It serves as a sanctuary for grief, offering a place to process loss through Buddhist-inspired ceremonies and meditation.

New Jizo Garden at Green Gulch Farm, SFZC Branching Streams

Yvonne Rand

An elderly woman with gray hair, wearing a black top and a pearl necklace, sitting in a chair in a room with bookshelves in the background.

creator of Jizo Ceremony practiced at Green Gulch Farm

Jizo Ceremony
This is a short piece where Rand describes her first encounter with Jizō after a friend’s death and the development of her memorial ceremonies. 

Selected Articles
This page includes both “Jizo Ceremony” and “The Buddha’s Way and Abortion: Loss, Grief, and Resolution,” which explores grief, loss, abortion, and the role of Jizō ceremony in more depth.

Green Gulch Farm, San Francisco Zen Center - A lush garden with shrubbery and trees, a wooden bench on the right, and various paper tags hanging from a thin branch in the center.
Jizo Ceremony at Green Gulch, San Francisco Zen Center. A garden scene featuring a large, twisted tree with moss on its bark, surrounded by green foliage.. Several small hanging ornaments are seen on the tree
Jizo Ceremony at Green Gulch, San Francisco Zen Center. A tree with red and pink pieces of clothing hanging from its branches.
Jizo Ceremony at Green Gulch, San Francisco Zen Center. A stone Jizo statue with closed eyes, surrounded by flowers, shells, a singing bowl, and a wooden platform, set against a dark wooden background.
Jizo Ceremony at Green Gulch, San Francisco Zen Center. A garden scene with a tree and a small shrine containing a Buddha statue. Two people are standing nearby, and the area is lush with various green plants and bushes.
Jizo Garden at Green Gulch Farm, SFZC Family Sangha event- altar dedicated to Jizo decorated with orange, white, and green pumpkins, colorful flowers, candles, apples, and other fall decorations, surrounded by bamboo plants and fallen leaves.