Remembering our founder
Jun Po Kando Denis Kelly Roshi
On April 14, 1942, Denis Kelly was born in Green Bay, Wisconsin. He led an extraordinary life with experiences that many people would consider a lifetime of depth in any single chapter. Kelly began his Buddhist practice at the San Francisco Zen Center in the early 1970’s, influenced by Shunryu Suzuki and Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche. Kelly was also an accomplished yogi and yoga teacher who trained with BKS Iyengar and Pattabhi Jois.
He traveled extensively and became a student of Eido Shimano and trained at Dai Bosatsu Zendo in New York. He received Dharma transmission in 1992 and served as both Vice Abbot and head monk at Dai Bosatsu from 1987 through 1993.
In order to move beyond the practice of Zen within a monastic setting, Jun Po began teaching in Wisconsin in 1994. Green Tara Sangha was established in Green Bay and included practitioners from the Appleton and Green Bay area. Throughout the 1990’s and early 2000’s, other local sanghas emerged in Wisconsin. In the late 1990’s, Jun Po began holding Zen retreats for the Mankind Project and established the Hollow Bones Order in 1999. As he traveled and shared the Dharma, more sanghas blossomed worldwide.
During this time, Jun Po developed his most important teaching, the Mondo Zen Koan process, to bring Zen teachings into the 21st century world. Through his Mondo process, people discovered their true nature and learned the truth underlying all negative emotions. The Mondo experience allowed people to abide in Clear Deep Heart Mind and transform negative reactions into wise and compassionate responses. As Jun Po often noted, “Your angst is your liberation.”
A survivor of Stage 4 throat cancer in 2006, Jun Po embraced life fully, noting that “facing death was the resurrection of my life.” He continued to teach and lead sesshins for the next fifteen years in America and Europe until he was overcome by Parkinson’s Disease and liver cancer. He died on May 12, 2021.
Books by and about Jun Po Roshi
A Heart Blown Open: The Life and Practice of Zen Master Jun Po Denis Kelly Roshi (Divine Arts Media, 2012) by Keith Martin-Smith
This memoir chronicles the extraordinary journey of Zen master Jun Po Denis Kelly Roshi, whose life landed him in prison long before he landed in a monastery. Experience the successes and failures that led him to found an entirely new form of Buddhism called Mondo Zen.
Starting from an abusive and alcoholic home in Wisconsin, Kelly becomes a major force in the counterculture of the 1960’s and one of its biggest manufacturers of LSD. He ends up on the run for five years before serving time in a federal prison and then goes on to spend six years in a Zen monastery.
In his fiftieth year, he becomes a recognized Zen master in his own right, but the real journey is just about to begin.
“Written with extraordinary heart and skill, A Heart Blown Open chronicles the making of an Integral Zen Master. Jun Po’s life has been as unpredictable as it has been astounding. Jun Po’s dedication to exploring his own psychological shadows in light of his own awakening consciousness is the story of our times, and is an absolute must-read for anyone with even a passing interest in human evolution, and it was brought together brilliantly by Keith.”
–Ken Wilbur
The Heart of Zen (North Atlantic Books, 2014)
by Jun Po Denis Kelly and Keith Martin-Smith
Take a step-by-step approach to a growing problem in spiritual circles. More and more of us are “waking up” into spiritual insight, only to get stuck. Life still comes at us full force, and hope can turn to frustration as the gulf between spiritual belief and everyday life looms ever larger. Part discussion on these intricate topics and part experiential guide, The Heart of Zen offers a one-of-a-kind take on enlightenment, emotional maturity, and the honesty required to take one’s seat in true liberation.
“This is one of the most important works on spiritual realization to be written in years. There’s really nothing like this out there…you really can’t afford to miss this revolutionary process for your own awakening and enlightenment. My absolutely highest recommendation.”
–Ken Wilbur
The Junpo Roku: The Dharma & Recorded Sayings of Junpo Denis Kelly (2012)
by Daju Suzanne Friedman
The Junpo Roku is a record of the early teachings of Roshi Junpo Denis Kelly, a Rinzai Zen Master and the Abbot of the Hollow Bones Rinzai Zen Order. Junpo Roshi is the creator of the Mondo Zen process.
The Junpo Roku captures Junpo Roshi’s depth, humor, and wisdom while presenting his dharma talks and various lively Zen exchanges between him and his students. This roku, or official record, addresses such topics as Zen meditation, the nature of mind, the ego, koan practice, form and ritual, sutras, everyday dharma, and the Zen Buddhist approach to thoughts and emotions.