SOTOZEN-NET > Soto Zen Temples > Organization and temples outside Japan > Instituto Italiano Zen Soto Shobozan Fudenji
The Temple of Fudenji has been founded in 1984 by Narita Shūyū Roshi, who was also the 28th Abbot of the Todenji Temple in the Akita Prefecture in Japan. Fudenji is located in the hills at the beginning of the Apennines Mountain range in Parma -Italy -6 km (about 4 miles) from Fidenza and Salsomaggiore Terme and 100 km (about 60 miles) from either Milan or Bologna. Since 2006 the Abbot of Fudenji is Rev. F.Taiten Guareschi.
The Temple is located at 5 km from Fidenza rail-station and is reachable by taxi. From the exit of A1 highway (Milano-Bologna) Fidenza-Salsomaggiore Terme, proceed following the indications to Tabiano. Proceed after Fidenza, following the road directed to Tabiano . After about 5 Km, on the right there is the indication "Bargone". Turn on the right through a brief ascent road and, after the bend, at about 200 meters, the Temple is the second building on the right; go ahead and go down to the parking lot. You should rise a brief path.
In Fudenji many activities take place daily, weekly and monthly: Zazen, Services, Commemorations, summer's and winter's Ango, Sesshins, Qi-Gong stages, Shiatsu, Zen Massoterapy, Shōdō, sewing the Kesa. Four monastic retreats take place in Fudenji every year.
Fudenji’s Community is an original social body of religious nature, established to testify the salvific power of Awakening and the faith in the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha.
In 1999 a training course in Buddhist Theology was created. It is aimed principally for training and qualifying monastic and lay religious teachers of the Sôtô Zen tradition. The course is open to everyone (lay and religious) and is attended by both Italian and foreign students.
New buildings to create a traditional Zen Monastery are under construction, others are provided in the future.
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