Last night, 11 shoeless bodies unwound from the stress of their days at the Boston University Zen Society meeting, experiencing a deeply relaxing evening of Soen-Yu yoga exercises and Zen meditation.

The BU Zen program, which meets weekly on campus, includes about 15 students but “there’s always someone new,” according to College of Arts and Sciences senior Heather Wildman.

The Zen Society begins its weekly meetings with the Daoist practice of Soen-Yu exercises to sync the body and mind, with strong emphasis on breathing. The group then begins yoga relaxation to focus and prepare the mind for meditation. Zen meditation follows for 15 to 20 minutes, ending with a Dharma talk by a guest speaker from the Cambridge Zen Center.

At last night’s meeting, faculty advisor Barbara Feldman and the guest speaker gave instructions for newcomers. “No experience is necessary,” according to Feldman, and the BU Zen Society welcomes all students, faculty and staff.

The Zen Society follows a school of Zen Buddhism founded by a Korean Zen master, focusing on establishing an individual sense of tranquility. Zen has no dogma and encourages students not to believe in specific rules, but to find the individual truth of self.

BU Zen Society officer and College of Engineering senior Kurt Huerta said he attended a retreat “without any idea of what Zen was,” but continued to attend weekly meetings.

College of Communication senior Kevin Klagge took a “yoga course in [his] sophomore year” and discovered the Zen Society.

Zen meditation emphasizes the importance of clearing the mind to focus on questions in its practitioners’ lives. Feldman compared Zen to a “recipe for baking bread.”

“It’s more of a method or a practice,” she said.

Wildman began her experience with the BU Zen Society during a yoga class with faculty advisor Feldman. Wildman continued her Zen journey by attending retreats and weekly meetings.

As a long-practicing Dharma teacher and BU yoga instructor, Feldman gives expertise to students in weekly meditations.

“It’s a place where all are welcome,” Feldman said before beginning an hour of meditation and relaxation.

Feldmen began teaching yoga at BU in 1980 and later taught Zen meditation courses. Now a member of the Cambridge Zen Center, Feldman called Zen instruction “an awareness practice to allow you to look inward.”

“Many people come to Zen through yoga,” Feldman said. “Correctly done, yoga is meditation in action.”