Kokyo Henkel has been devoted to Zen practice since 1990, with residential experience at Tassajara Zen Mountain Center, Green Gulch Farm Zen Center, No Abode Hermitage in Mill Valley, Bukkokuji Monastery in Japan, and Santa Cruz Zen Center. Ordained as a Zen priest in 1994 by Tenshin Anderson Roshi, he later received Dharma Transmission from him in 2010, reflecting decades of study, discipline, and commitment to the path.
In addition to Zen, Kokyo has trained with Tibetan Vajrayana teacher Tsoknyi Rinpoche since 2003, practicing in California, Colorado, and Kathmandu, and has also studied with other teachers in the Nyingma and Kagyu traditions. He completed Vajrayana ngondro, the foundational practices, in 2020. Today, he is developing Bright Window Hermitage, a small retreat place near Tassajara created for Buddhist practitioners of all traditions.