
Mountain cloud zen center
Welcome to Mountain Cloud Zen Center, a lively community of lay-practitioners, deeply connected to the possibilities of peace and awakening through Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha. We are a hybrid community — our Santa Fe Campus has a lovely zendo, hiking trails, and lodging in the mountains just outside the city. Meanwhile we have a robust online community of practitioners tuning in from around the country and the world to our zendo, as well as to our online sangha forum.
Wondering where to start?
- Check out our daily meditation schedule for more information, including how to join us online. Daily zazen and weekly talks are all hybrid, free, open to the public, no membership or registration required to attend.
- We have retreats, courses, residencies, personal retreats and more! Explore our wealth of programs on our 2026 programs page, or our monthly calendar.
- For those new to meditation or Mountain Cloud, scroll down to our Getting Started section below for guided meditations and other resources.
Our Zen Ancestors: Keeping Company with Women Who Light the Way
Zazenkai (Daylong Retreat)
Saturday, February 21st, 2026
For our February Zazenkai, Valerie will continue her series of talks on modern women Zen masters in the wake of whose inspiration we practice. The focus for this talk is the life and teaching of Maurine Stuart Roshi, an accomplished concert pianist, dedicated practitioner, and dharma heir of Soen Nakagawa Roshi, Maurine embodied the freshness of each moment, the ordinary as extraordinary – an invitation we’ll practice with together.
Upcoming Retreats and Special Events


Learn to Meditate
Getting Started
We provide instruction and support for new meditators. Join our online Introduction to Meditation Start with some introductory videos and talks about mindfulness and zen meditation or join on of our online or on-site daily sits.
We are happy to connect with you
Subscribe here to receive our weekly newsletter and information about current and upcoming events.
Zen Teachers at Mountain Cloud
Valerie Forstman
Valerie Forstman is an Associate Zen Master of the Sanbo Zen Lineage and is Mountain Cloud’s Guiding Teacher. She joins Mountain Cloud with a shared vision of the core Zen path, a way of coming home to who we truly are.


Study at Mountain Cloud
Residency
Mountain Cloud is now accepting applications for our Residency Program. Information about the program including lodging, meals, Zen practice and study, samu, cost, and other activities are described on our Residency Program page. The minimum stay is one month.

Deepen your knowledge and practice with our free resources
Dharma Talk: “Sun-faced Buddha, Moon-faced Buddha” with Valerie Forstman
Dharma Talk: “Sun-faced Buddha, Moon-faced Buddha” with Valerie Forstman
Dharma Talk: “The ‘Such-as-this’ Sutra” with Valerie Forstman
Contact
Reach out to us.
Get in touch if you have further questions.
Email: Click here to email us
Mountain Cloud Zen Center
7241 Old Santa Fe Trail
Santa Fe, NM 87505


