Project
About Dharma Atlas
An open directory of meditation centers, monasteries, temples, and spiritual guides — built so practitioners can find communities and lineages near them.
Listings are curated from public sources and community submissions. We aim for accuracy, but details change. If something is missing or outdated, submit an entry or claim a place you represent. Explore by tradition, lineage, and place — no account required.
Manifesto
A directory serves arrival, not engagement.
The job is to shorten the distance between intention and a real door — a zendo, a temple, a retreat, a teacher. We are not building a feed.
Traditions keep their names.
Zen is not Theravāda. Soto is not a generic mindfulness shelf. Related nondual and contemplative paths belong on the map without being collapsed into one essence or one brand.
Accuracy over polish.
Incomplete is honest. Invented coverage is not. We would rather show a thin region than pretend the atlas is finished.
Contribution with care.
Openness on the front, human review on the back. Communities are living institutions; a listing is a pointer we steward, not inventory we own.
Practice over marketplace.
No ranking traditions by popularity. No “best temple” framing. Promoted listings and booking theater can wait until the index itself is healthier.
Mission
Help practitioners find places and teachers across traditions — with enough lineage context to choose wisely, and enough geographic clarity to show up.
Vision
A living atlas where serious communities of practice can be found accurately, maintained by the people who know them, and explored without erasing the paths that make them distinct.
Created by
Dharma Atlas is created by Paul Bloch, a practitioner based in San Diego, California. He has studied across various nondual traditions and spent time ordained in the Sōtō Zen tradition in Japan at Tōshōji monastery near Okayama.
The project grows from that background: respect for lineage, curiosity across paths, and a practical wish that people looking for a place to sit can find one without noise.
Roadmap
Sequencing notes, not promises. Shipped work is already usable; what follows is what we are working toward next.
Explore places on map and list
ShippedFind centers, monasteries, and temples by geography, tradition, and search.
Place profiles that can grow
ShippedPhotos, about text, offerings, teachers, events, links, and notices.
People and teacher directory
ShippedA second lens for guides and lineages alongside places.
Tradition pages
ShippedContext for Buddhist schools and related contemplative paths without collapsing lineages.
Add, claim, and moderate
ShippedCommunity submissions, stewardship claims, and human review so openness stays livable.
Pilgrimage routes, books, and blog
ShippedSacred geography, a books shelf, and notes written in public about how the atlas is built.
Teacher stewardship after claim
In progressClosing the loop so claimed teachers get the same care path places already have.
Events discovery and offerings filters
In progressHelp people find what is happening — and filter by the activities communities actually offer.
Richer calendar tools for place managers
In progressMeet schedules where they already live, with imports that managers can trust.
Denser coverage, city by city
NextThicker profiles and fewer blank regions through careful catalog work and local contribution.
Deeper trust signals
NextClearer freshness, steward presence, and accountability — without turning practice into ratings theater.
Want the longer story? Read the soft launch notes or browse the blog.