Dennis “Genpo” Merzel was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1944. He trained at ZCLA – The Zen Center of Los Angeles from 1972 to 1984 under the guidance of Taizan Maezumi Roshi.

He received Shiho (Dharma Transmission) in 1980. In 1981, he traveled to Japan for further formal training and returned again in 1986, participating in a Tokubetsu Sesshin (special intensive retreat) conducted under the auspices of the Sōtō school. This training was part of an effort to ensure that Western successors were grounded in traditional Japanese Sōtō forms.

In 1991, a further gathering addressing succession and formal training took place at Maezumi Roshi’s original temple prior to his move to Zenshuji. The Sōtō headquarters provided sponsorship support so that Western successors could receive training aligned with traditional Japanese Sōtō standards.

Beginning in the early 1970s, Genpo Roshi’s work developed around three central intentions:

• bridging Zen with Western psychotherapy

• helping restore authentic Zen practice in China

• and, at his teacher’s encouragement, bringing renewed vitality to koan study

Deeply rooted in traditional training, he has also explored innovative forms of practice. His aim has been to preserve the essence of the Dharma while allowing its expression to remain alive in contemporary culture.

Today, his teaching emphasizes integrity, maturity, and realization lived fully in ordinary human life.