Zen practitioners aren't the only ones who follow challenging paths in the hunt for transcendence. Come join us for five dates as we lose ourselves in the hunt of these five who explored beyond themselves.

Meetings will be on Tuesdays at 7-8 pm at Zen Desert Sangha. Discussions led by ZDS member Brad Stroup. No charge; donations accepted. All are welcome.

April 1: Giovanni di Pietro di Bernardone (1181-1226) - aka Francis of Assisi, a wealthy Italian playboy turned beggar, friar, revolutionary, failed peacemaker.

April 8: Marguerite Porete (1250-1310) - French beguine, writer, mystic, burned at the stake for heresy.

April 15: Ernest Shackleton (1874-1922) - a bored Irish kid, led the expedition that failed to be the first to cross the Antarctic continent.

April 22: Joe Simpson (born 1960) - British army brat, amateur mountain climber, reached top of an unclimbed peak in Andes with a friend. His partner cut his rope at 20,000 feet.

April 29: Thomas Merton (1915-1968) - son of