Rochester Zen Center Teisho (Zen Talks)
Podcast and Audio Archives
2021
January 15, 2021
January 2021 Online Sesshin, Day 7: Blue Cliff Record #14, “Ummon’s Teaching in Reference to Oneness”Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
January 14, 2021
January 2021 Online Sesshin, Day 6: Teachings and Life of Zen Master HakuinTeisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede. Readings from Wild Ivy: The Spiritual Autobiography of Zen Master Hakuin (mostly the Introduction) and The Essential Teachings of Zen Master Hakuin. Both translated by Norman Waddell.
January 13, 2021
January 2021 Online Sesshin, Day 5: Teachings and Life of Zen Master HakuinTeisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede. Readings from Wild Ivy: The Spiritual Autobiography of Zen Master Hakuin (mostly the Introduction) and The Essential Teachings of Zen Master Hakuin. Both translated by Norman Waddell.
January 12, 2021
January 2021 Online Sesshin, Day 4: Teachings and Life of Zen Master HakuinTeisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede. Readings from Wild Ivy: The Spiritual Autobiography of Zen Master Hakuin (mostly the Introduction) and The Essential Teachings of Zen Master Hakuin. Both translated by Norman Waddell.
January 11, 2021
January 2021 Online Sesshin, Day 3: Teachings and Life of Zen Master HakuinTeisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede. Readings from Wild Ivy: The Spiritual Autobiography of Zen Master Hakuin (mostly the Introduction) and The Essential Teachings of Zen Master Hakuin. Both translated by Norman Waddell.
January 10, 2021
January 2021 Online Sesshin, Day 2: Teachings and Life of Zen Master HakuinTeisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede. Readings from Wild Ivy: The Spiritual Autobiography of Zen Master Hakuin (mostly the Introduction) and The Essential Teachings of Zen Master Hakuin. Both translated by Norman Waddell.
January 9, 2021
January 2021 Online Sesshin, Day 1: Teachings and Life of Zen Master HakuinTeisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede. Readings from Wild Ivy: The Spiritual Autobiography of Zen Master Hakuin (mostly the Introduction) and The Essential Teachings of Zen Master Hakuin. Both translated by Norman Waddell.
January 3, 2021
National Crisis, National OpportunityAtlantic writer George Packer sees the new year as a “plastic hour,” a rare chance for the U.S. to transform sickness and dysfunction into renewal. This mirrors the catalytic potential of personal dis-ease to lead us to spiritual practice.
2020
December 27, 2020
Working with an Untrustworthy BrainDharma talk by John Pulleyn. A look at a neuroscientist’s explanation of how our brain creates the hallucination we take for reality and a modern day Stoic’s approach to the fix that puts us in.
December 20, 2020
Pandemic Time Melting and Freezing2020 put many of us in a time warp that will run well into 2021. What’s going on, really? And how does daily Zen practice help us ride the waves?
December 13, 2020
December 2020 Online Sesshin, Day 2: Insight Meditation: The Practice of Freedom by Joseph GoldsteinDharma talk by Eryl Kubicka
December 2, 2020
CoronaCast: Second Verse, Same As the FirstA look back at the waves–and people’s reactions to them–in the last pandemic, so remarkably similar to today.
November 28, 2020
Jukai–the Ceremony of Taking the PreceptsA look at the several elements of the ceremony. The ten cardinal precepts are examined in the context of the “five trials” of 2020: the pandemic; its financial consequences; the intensifying effects of climate change; the clearer revelation of systemic racism and its ongoing wounds; and the alarming rise of political divisiveness.
November 15, 2020
Presidents and the Flux of CharacterBiden and Trump are dramatically different in character, but they have in common, with us, the True Self that is No-self. And all of us are continuously evolving and devolving through the world of samsara.
November 11, 2020
November 2020 Sesshin, Day 5: Zen Essence: The Science of Freedom (trans. by Thomas Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
November 10, 2020
November 2020 Sesshin, Day 4: Zen Essence: The Science of Freedom (trans. by Thomas Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
November 9, 2020
November 2020 Sesshin, Day 3: Zen Essence: The Science of Freedom (trans. by Thomas Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
November 8, 2020
November 2020 Sesshin, Day 2: Zen Essence: The Science of Freedom (trans. by Thomas Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
November 7, 2020
November 2020 Sesshin, Day 1: Zen Essence: The Science of Freedom (trans. by Thomas Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
October 25, 2020
Change, and Thus HopeLooking at the intersecting national crises of 2020 as an opportunity for us to evolve, reading from a July column by New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof.
October 7, 2020
October 2020 Sesshin, Day 5: Zen Essence: The Science of Freedom (trans. by Thomas Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
October 6, 2020
October 2020 Sesshin, Day 4: Zen Essence: The Science of Freedom (trans. by Thomas Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
October 5, 2020
October 2020 Sesshin, Day 3: The Original Face: An Anthology of Rinzai Zen (trans. T. Cleary). Text from Zen Master Lanxi Daolong (Jap.: Daikaku)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
October 4, 2020
October 2020 Sesshin, Day 2: The Original Face: An Anthology of Rinzai Zen (trans. T. Cleary). Text from Zen Master Lanxi Daolong (Jap.: Daikaku)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
October 3, 2020
October 2020 Sesshin, Day 1: The Original Face: An Anthology of Rinzai Zen (trans. T. Cleary). Text from Zen Master Lanxi Daolong (Jap.: Daikaku)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
September 20, 2020
Even If the World Is Ending, So What?The situation in the U.S. and around the world may be more bleak than ever. But consider: as individuals we manage to carry on with the very bleakest of futures: our own certain death. Rather than dwelling on future catastrophes, practice calls for us always to be fully responsive to the present. That is the…
September 13, 2020
September 2020 Online Sesshin, Day 2: Novice to Master: An Ongoing Lesson in the Extent of My Own Stupidity by Soko MorinagaDharma Talk by Trueman Taylor
September 12, 2020
September 2020 Online Sesshin, Day 1: Novice to Master: An Ongoing Lesson in the Extent of My Own Stupidity by Soko MorinagaDharma Talk by Trueman Taylor
September 9, 2020
CoronaCast: September 9Roshi’s weekly podcast: “Daniel Prude and Rochester: Going Beyond Black and Blue.”
August 30, 2020
The Happiness TrapDharma talk by John Pulleyn: Looking at ACT (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy) as presented by Russ Harris in his book, The Happiness Trap, and how it fits with Zen practice.
August 27, 2020
CoronaCast: August 27Roshi’s weekly podcast: “Depression Compared and Contrasted with Boredom.”
August 23, 2020
Thrivers’ GuiltIn the midst of massive suffering from the pandemic, many people, due to their circumstances, are experiencing unexpected personal contentment (and sometimes guilt as a result). How do we come to terms with this paradox–and move through in service to our bodhisattva vows?
August 16, 2020
Teisho by Roshi Philip Kapleau, October 1976 Sesshin, Day 4: Mumonkan #3 “Gutei’s Finger”Teisho by Roshi Philip Kaleau, played on Founder’s Day – August 16, 2020.
August 9, 2020
Considering White PrivilegeWhatever adversities we white people have suffered in our lives, structural racism isn’t one, and in that sense, at least, we’ve been privileged. We might deny having that advantage, or distance from it, but we can use our opportunities to join with others to begin dismantling systemic racism.
August 5, 2020
CoronaCast: August 5In Amala-sensei’s online sesshin last week, most participants had to negotiate some accommodation to the schedule of others they live with, and now have been negotiating the transition back to full-on household life. Roshi addresses both of these challenges in this week’s coronacast.
July 31, 2020
July 2020 Online Sesshin, Day 4, Amala-sensei: Master Hongzhi’s Cultivating the Empty Field“With total trust, roam and play in samadhi”. Main Text: Cultivating the Empty Field, The Silent Illumination of Zen Master Hongzhi by Taigen Daniel Leighton with Yi Wu, North Point Press San Francisco 1991
July 30, 2020
July 2020 Online Sesshin, Day 3, Amala-sensei: Master Hongzhi’s Cultivating the Empty Field“You must be broadminded, whole, without relying on others.” Main Text: Cultivating the Empty Field, The Silent Illumination of Zen Master Hongzhi by Taigen Daniel Leighton with Yi Wu, North Point Press San Francisco 1991
July 29, 2020
July 2020 Online Sesshin, Day 2, Amala-sensei: Master Hongzhi’s Cultivating the Empty FieldThe bright, boundless field — what is it? “Degrading situations” and how to avoid pursuing them. Main Text: Cultivating the Empty Field, The Silent Illumination of Zen Master Hongzhi by Taigen Daniel Leighton with Yi Wu, North Point Press San Francisco 1991
July 28, 2020
July 2020 Online Sesshin, Day 1, Amala-sensei: Master Hongzhi’s Cultivating the Empty FieldThe life of Master Hongzhi Main Text: Cultivating the Empty Field, The Silent Illumination of Zen Master Hongzhi by Taigen Daniel Leighton with Yi Wu, North Point Press San Francisco 1991
July 26, 2020
The Zen Teaching of Hui HaiA treatise on enlightenment and practice by the Tang dynasty Chan master, a disciple of the great Ma Tsu.
July 19, 2020
East-West Cultural Contrasts and the PandemicThe U.S. is faring much worse with the coronavirus than the East Asian and Southeast Asian countries, where people also are much more agreeable to wearing face masks. These differences may be seen in the context of the broad historical contrasts drawn in Richard Nisbett’s The Geography of Thought, which presents cultural-psychological studies showing the…
July 12, 2020
Working with ImpatienceDharma Talk by John Pulleyn: Learning patience in the face of our unwillingness to be with things as they are.
June 28, 2020
The Life and Teaching of Peace PilgrimAfter dedicating herself to social service for five years, the woman who would later identify herself only as Peace Pilgrim had a spontaneous awakening while walking in the woods. Then she spent the next twenty-eight years walking across the country alone, sharing her commitment to inner and world peace.
June 21, 2020
Is There More to All This Than Meets the Eye?The pandemic and its massive economic consequences, when laid atop accelerating climate change, presents a perfect storm of suffering. But with the understanding that there is an Intelligence behind it all, we must be seeing corrective forces underway, a re-balancing at work. How might future generations look back and see these tumultuous times?
June 11, 2020
June 2020 Online Sesshin, Day 4: Blue Cliff Record #29, “It Goes Along with Everything Else”Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
June 10, 2020
June 2020 Online Sesshin, Day 3: The Original Face: An Anthology of Rinzai Zen (trans. T. Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
June 9, 2020
June 2020 Online Sesshin, Day 2: The Original Face: An Anthology of Rinzai Zen (trans. T. Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
June 8, 2020
June 2020 Online Sesshin, Day 1: The Original Face: An Anthology of Rinzai Zen (trans. T. Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
May 31, 2020
100,000 Deaths and Our Cities in FlamesThe pandemic shoved the unsurpassable threat of climate change out of the news, and now the outbreak of demonstrations in cities all over the country has seized our attention. Today we memorialize 100,000 U.S. coronavirus deaths with the traditional Buddhist memorial prayer, but also acknowledge the deadly virus of systemic racism and oppression of African-Americans…
May 24, 2020
Pandemics: A High-Altitude ViewAn overview of history’s most devastating pandemics, and a look at the timelessness of Camus’ The Plague.
May 10, 2020
The Zero Point Turned Inside-OutThere is just this, here, now. That is our freedom. Yet we can live it while acknowledging our interdependence with others, being grateful to those before us and around us while also responsible for those after us.
May 3, 2020
Giving Up to Live FullyHow much might the fear of losing oneself–of not being–drive our longing to leave home even during a pandemic? The denial of death and the craving for life: two sides of one coin. (Contributions from Brother David Steindl-Rast and Steven Levine.)
May 2, 2020
Following a Schedule During QuarantineDharma talk by Trueman Taylor: Advice from an astronaut and others on maintaining a consistent schedule. Also: excerpts and comments from Roshi Robert Aitken’s book Encouraging Words.
April 26, 2020
Outrage and the PandemicDharma Talk by John Pulleyn: Staying in touch with our shared humanity rather than indulging in outrage and separation.
April 19, 2020
AffluenzaAfter the U.S.’s decades of affluenza (“a painful, contagious, socially transmitted condition of overload, debt, anxiety, and waste resulting from the dogged pursuit of more”), to what extent might our experience of the coronavirus and isolation inoculate us from its resurgence?
April 12, 2020
Blue Cliff Record #87: “Medicine and Sickness Correspond to Each Other”Instead of engaging the coronavirus simply on a “war” footing, can we see ways in which it is educating us–right now? A pandemic reveals the consequences of our misuses of the natural world and the dis-ease we incur through the illusion of separation.
April 9, 2020
CoronaCast from Roshi: April 9As the pandemic and social isolation stretch on, Roshi speaks again to the Sangha from his kitchen table.
April 5, 2020
Blue Cliff Record #3: “Baso’s Sun-faced Buddha, Moon-faced Buddha,” Sensei Amala WrightsonA teisho by Amala-sensei, recorded in Auckland on March 10 and played in the Rochester zendo on April 5.
March 29, 2020
Covid Solitude, Dislocation, and Dis-illusionmentIn his 2010 book The Active Life, acclaimed educator Parker Palmer cites three opportunities for painful growth that any of us are likely to face during our life: disillusionment, dislocation, and unbidden solitude. Zen practice enhances our ability to navigate through these three portals and to adapt to the coronavirus aftershocks that will change our…
March 26, 2020
CoronaCast from Roshi: March 26As the pandemic ramps up, with isolation in place, Roshi speaks to the Sangha from his kitchen table.
March 22, 2020
Impermanence and the VirusThe current crisis can help us develop a more immediate awareness of the Buddha’s fundamental teaching and encourage us to find our refuge in opening to life as it is. – Dharma talk by John Pulleyn
March 15, 2020
Human Contradictions Exposed by the PandemicCovid-19 is highlighting human contradictions: the dilemma of social distancing vs. social solidarity, as well as the tension between our ignoble reactions (e.g., panic hoarding) and our noble responses (generous helpfulness). Our True Self is neither of these alone.
March 8, 2020
Preparing Ourselves for the Coronovirus for the Sake of OthersA Mahayana take: it’s not just about “me” and “my.” Also, some words about worry, stress, and anxiety.
February 29, 2020
February 2020 Sesshin, Day 4, John Pulleyn: Everything Arises, Everything Falls Away: Teachings on Impermanence and the End of Suffering by Ajahn Chan (trans. by Paul Breiter)Dharma Talk by John Pulleyn
February 28, 2020
February 2020 Sesshin, Day 3, John Pulleyn: Everything Arises, Everything Falls Away: Teachings on Impermanence and the End of Suffering by Ajahn Chan (trans. by Paul Breiter)Dharma Talk by John Pulleyn
February 27, 2020
February 2020 Sesshin, Day 2, John Pulleyn: Everything Arises, Everything Falls Away: Teachings on Impermanence and the End of Suffering by Ajahn Chan (trans. by Paul Breiter)Dharma Talk by John Pulleyn
February 26, 2020
February 2020 Sesshin, Day 1, John Pulleyn: Everything Arises, Everything Falls Away: Teachings on Impermanence and the End of Suffering by Ajahn Chan (trans. by Paul Breiter)Dharma Talk by John Pulleyn
February 23, 2020
Solitude Misused: So Near, Yet So Far AwayThe amazing case of the 21st-century “Hermit of Maine (The Stranger in the Woods, by Michael Finkel),” whose 27 years of complete seclusion, in which he survived through burglaries, is not remotely like the solitary meditation of practitioners in Zen and other traditions.
February 9, 2020
Coming to the Path Talk by Dené ReddingA Sunday talk about coming to the Dharma and to the Center.
January 26, 2020
The Dharma of DrivingEveryday driving as a practice field for mindfulness and a test of non-reactivity and other Buddhist values.
January 11, 2020
January 2020 Sesshin, Day 7: Blue Cliff Record #23, “Hofuku Points to Myohocho”Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
January 10, 2020
January 2020 Sesshin, Day 6: The Undying Lamp of Zen: The Testament of Zen Master Torei (trans. by T. Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
January 9, 2020
January 2020 Sesshin, Day 5: The Undying Lamp of Zen: The Testament of Zen Master Torei (trans. by T. Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
January 8, 2020
January 2020 Sesshin, Day 4: Swampland Flowers: The Letters and Lectures of Zen Master Ta Hui (trans. by J.C. Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
January 7, 2020
January 2020 Sesshin, Day 3: Swampland Flowers: The Letters and Lectures of Zen Master Ta Hui (trans. by J.C. Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
January 6, 2020
January 2020 Sesshin, Day 2: Swampland Flowers: The Letters and Lectures of Zen Master Ta Hui (trans. by J.C. Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
January 5, 2020
January 2020 Sesshin, Day 1: Swampland Flowers: The Letters and Lectures of Zen Master Ta Hui (trans. by J.C. Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
2019
December 29, 2019
Nuturing Self-control Through the Social EmotionsA presentation of studies suggesting that gratitude, compassion, and decent pride are features of morality that foster self-control and perseverance more than do will-power and grit.
December 15, 2019
Out With the Old, In With–What?Stepping back to look at the massive national and global changes we’re living through. All bets are off, yet we have Zen practice to help us ride the process and transform crisis into opportunity.
December 8, 2019
December 2019 Sesshin, Day 2: How to Cook Your Life: From the Zen Kitchen to Enlightenment (trans. by Thomas Wright, commentary by Uchiyama Roshi)Dharma Talk by Trueman Taylor
December 7, 2019
December 2019 Sesshin, Day 1: How to Cook Your Life: From the Zen Kitchen to Enlightenment (trans. by Thomas Wright, commentary by Uchiyama Roshi)Dharma Talk by Trueman Taylor
November 30, 2019
Jukai and the InternetAn overview of today’s ceremony of Receiving the Precepts, with a look at how the Internet adds further challenges in upholding the Ten Cardinal Precepts.
November 17, 2019
The Buddhist Precepts in the Context of EnvironmentalismWith our annual ceremony of Receiving the Precepts (Jukai) coming up, here Roshi applies those precepts to the growing threat of climate change and how we might reduce the harm we are inevitably causing to the environment.
November 9, 2019
November 2019 Sesshin, Day 7: Shoyoroku #32, “Yangshan’s ‘Mind and Environment’”Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
November 8, 2019
November 2019 Sesshin, Day 6: Swampland Flowers: The Letters and Lectures of Zen Master Ta Hui (trans. by J.C. Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
November 7, 2019
November 2019 Sesshin, Day 5: Swampland Flowers: The Letters and Lectures of Zen Master Ta Hui (trans. by J.C. Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
November 6, 2019
November 2019 Sesshin, Day 4: Swampland Flowers: The Letters and Lectures of Zen Master Ta Hui (trans. by J.C. Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
November 5, 2019
November 2019 Sesshin, Day 3: Tracing Back the Radiance: Chinul’s Korean Way of Zen (trans. by Robert Buswell)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
November 4, 2019
November 2019 Sesshin, Day 2: Tracing Back the Radiance: Chinul’s Korean Way of Zen (trans. by Robert Buswell)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
November 3, 2019
November 2019 Sesshin, Day 1: Tracing Back the Radiance: Chinul’s Korean Way of Zen (trans. by Robert Buswell)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
October 20, 2019
Philip Kapleau: Planting Seeds While Trailing VinesA report on the Duke University conference celebrating the installation of Roshi Kapleau’s archives. Roshi Bodhin focuses on the unique challenges Kapleau faced–and we continue to face–in adapting Zen to the West.
October 5, 2019
October 2019 Sesshin, Day 7, Amala-sensei: Ziyong’s Ship of CompassionTeisho by Sensei Amala Wrightson
October 4, 2019
October 2019 Sesshin, Day 6, Amala-sensei: Subtle Sound: The Zen Teachings of Maurine Stuart, edited by Roko Sherry ChayatTeisho by Sensei Amala Wrightson
October 3, 2019
October 2019 Sesshin, Day 5, Amala-sensei: Subtle Sound: The Zen Teachings of Maurine Stuart, edited by Roko Sherry ChayatTeisho by Sensei Amala Wrightson
October 2, 2019
October 2019 Sesshin, Day 4, Amala-sensei: Subtle Sound: The Zen Teachings of Maurine Stuart, edited by Roko Sherry ChayatTeisho by Sensei Amala Wrightson
October 1, 2019
October 2019 Sesshin, Day 3, Amala-sensei: Subtle Sound: The Zen Teachings of Maurine Stuart, edited by Roko Sherry ChayatTeisho by Sensei Amala Wrightson
September 30, 2019
October 2019 Sesshin, Day 2, Amala-sensei: Meetings with Remarkable Women: Buddhist Teachers in America, by Lenore FriedmanTeachings of Maurine Stuart
September 29, 2019
October 2019 Sesshin, Day 1, Amala-sensei: Meetings with Remarkable Women: Buddhist Teachers in America, by Lenore FriedmanTeachings of Maurine Stuart
September 22, 2019
Zazen As Pure Science ExperimentThe dichotomy of science and religion, empiricism and direct experience, falls apart in the practice of Zen. Curiosity, wonder, investigation–these are the essentials of both science and the mystical spiritual traditions such as Zen.
September 15, 2019
What If Global Warming Is Irreversible?If it is, how would that change our behavior? Each one of us will die someday anyway, so how do we work with that? Jonathan Franzen presents the worst-case scenario, but then there are other points of view.
September 7, 2019
September 2019 Sesshin, Day 1: Encouraging Words: Zen Buddhist Teachings for Western Students, by Robert AitkenDharma talk by Eryl Kubicka
August 18, 2019
Teisho by Roshi Philip Kapleau, November 1976 Sesshin, Day 5: Mumonkan #8 “Keichu’s Cart”Teisho by Roshi Philip Kaleau, played on Founder’s Day – August, 18, 2019.
August 11, 2019
Global Buddhism: A Display of EmptinessBased on a 2017 Tricycle article by Kurt Spellmeyer: “Globalism 3.0: The Secret to World Harmony Isn’t Oneness. It’s multiplicity.”
August 3, 2019
July 2019 Sesshin, Day 7: Blue Cliff Record #80, “Joshu’s “A Newborn Baby””Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
August 2, 2019
July 2019 Sesshin, Day 6: Mumonkan #10, “Sozan and Poor Seizei”Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
July 31, 2019
July 2019 Sesshin, Day 4: Zen Essence: The Science of Freedom (trans. by Thomas Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
July 30, 2019
July 2019 Sesshin, Day 3: Zen Essence: The Science of Freedom (trans. by Thomas Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
July 29, 2019
July 2019 Sesshin, Day 2: Zen Essence: The Science of Freedom (trans. by Thomas Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
July 21, 2019
Zendo Air Conditioning and Won BuddhismFirst Half: Our recent efforts to cool the zendo in sweltering weather. Second Half: Won Buddhism, a Korean strain of the Dharma.
June 23, 2019
The Blindness of Other-ist ViewsConceptualizing people of conflicting political views or of different race, ethnicity, or gender as “other” leads us to more easily react with hostility to what they say, especially in the anonymous and reckless world of social media. Based on the age-old Buddhist warning about the harm arising from attachment to views and opinions, Zen practice,…
June 15, 2019
June 2019 Sesshin, Day 7: Blue Cliff Record #44, “Kasan’s ‘Beating the Drum'”Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
June 14, 2019
June 2019 Sesshin, Day 6: Mumonkan #7, “Joshu’s ‘Wash Your Bowl'”Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
June 13, 2019
June 2019 Sesshin, Day 5: Mud and Water: The Teachings of Zen Master Bassui (trans. by Arthur Braverman)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
June 12, 2019
June 2019 Sesshin, Day 4: Mud and Water: The Teachings of Zen Master Bassui (trans. by Arthur Braverman)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
June 11, 2019
June 2019 Sesshin, Day 3: Mud and Water: The Teachings of Zen Master Bassui (trans. by Arthur Braverman)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
June 9, 2019
June 2019 Sesshin, Day 1: Mud and Water: The Teachings of Zen Master Bassui (trans. by Arthur Braverman)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
June 2, 2019
Practice and Faith Nourishing Each OtherIn Zen, faith grows through practice experience, even as faith sustains practice. They co-evolve continuously, sustaining each other. This is Hakuin’s “oneness of cause and effect,” out of which awakening can emerge.
May 26, 2019
Coming to the Path Talk by Sudama NgoSudama, an ordained priest at the Center, gave this account of coming to the Dharma and coming to the Center. For more of her story, see these two Zen Bow articles: https://www.rzc.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/Just-Money-Luna-Ngo.pdf https://www.rzc.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/Commitment-the-Gift-of-Pain-Sudama-Ngo.pdf
May 12, 2019
Dharma talk by Eryl Kubicka, “Responding and Resilience in Parenting”Based on a New York Times article “Which is Better; Rewards or Punishments? Neither” by Heather Turgeon. It describes a middle way of engaging with children, essentially based on responding out of our true nature and intuition without getting stuck in preconceptions. Link to the NYT article. Link to video featuring Anna Breytenbach, “animal communicator.”
April 28, 2019
Conspiracy Theories: Why Believe Them?Recently we’ve seen conspiracy theories gaining wider currency in our country, which is just the latest surge in a long history of such theories. What spawns such ideas, and why do so many people believe in even the most far-fetched ones?
April 21, 2019
Where Christ and Bodhidharma MeetAn Easter Sunday look at apophatic theology, the Christian view of God as essentially unknowable or ineffable, which also insists that human language is inadequate to describe God. This insight overlaps with Zen and the famous words of its Founder: “I don’t know.”
April 6, 2019
April 2019 Sesshin, Day 7: Mumonkan #2, “Hyakujo’s Fox” Part 2Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
April 5, 2019
April 2019 Sesshin, Day 6: Mumonkan #2, “Hyakujo’s Fox” Part 1Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
April 4, 2019
April 2019 Sesshin, Day 5: Swampland Flowers: The Letters and Lectures of Zen Master Ta Hui (trans. by J.C. Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
April 3, 2019
April 2019 Sesshin, Day 4: Bankei Zen (trans. by Peter Haskel)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
April 2, 2019
April 2019 Sesshin, Day 3: Bankei Zen (trans. by Peter Haskel)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
April 1, 2019
April 2019 Sesshin, Day 2: Bankei Zen (trans. by Peter Haskel)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
March 31, 2019
April 2019 Sesshin, Day 1: Bankei Zen (trans. by Peter Haskel)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
March 17, 2019
Friendship: A Remedy for Cultural Disruption and LonelinessThose who perpetrate mass shootings such as the one in New Zealand last week are often “loners.” But more people than ever in our country and elsewhere, while more “connected” than ever via social media, suffer from social isolation, which in turn can breed fear and distrust. Cultivating adult friends can help.
March 10, 2019
The Value of Getting LostLosing our bearings in the world, either literally or figuratively, can provoke anxiety, but it also opens us to new vistas. Zazen at its best draws us into this state of wonder-ing, where we have the promise of losing our self and finding true freedom.
March 3, 2019
March 2019 Sesshin, Day 2: Everyday Zen, by Charlotte Joko BeckDharma Talk by Trueman Taylor
March 2, 2019
March 2019 Sesshin, Day 1: Everyday Zen, by Charlotte Joko BeckDharma Talk by Trueman Taylor
February 10, 2019
Dharma Talk by John Pulleyn: “Why Buddhism Is True”Commentary on the book, Why Buddhism Is True by Robert Wright – a look at Buddhism from the standpoint of evolutionary psychology.
January 27, 2019
Secular Creeds as Substitutes for ReligionIn his article “America’s New Religions,” Andrew Sullivan argues that all of us–conservatives, liberals, and even atheists–have our “religions”: belief systems, ideologies, or tribal affiliations that we “worship” beyond reason because they give meaning to our lives. The deities of secular faith may be scientism, progress, self-improvement, social justice ideology, or reason itself. Other gods…
January 12, 2019
January 2019 Sesshin, Day 7: Mumonkan #6, “The Buddha Holds Up a Flower”Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
January 11, 2019
January 2019 Sesshin, Day 6: Mumonkan #5, “Kyogen’s Man Up a Tree”Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
January 10, 2019
January 2019 Sesshin, Day 5: Blue Cliff Record #61, “Fuketsu’s One Particle of Dust”Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
January 9, 2019
January 2019 Sesshin, Day 4: Discourse of Master Hsu Yun from The Practice of Zen (trans. C.C.Chang)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
January 8, 2019
January 2019 Sesshin, Day 3: Zen Master Hakuin – Selected Writings ( trans. Yampolski)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
January 7, 2019
January 2019 Sesshin, Day 2: Mud and Water: The Teachings of Zen Master Bassui (trans. Arthur Braverman)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
January 6, 2019
January 2019 Sesshin, Day 1: Short Autobiographies of Two Chinese Zen MastersTeisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
2018
December 16, 2018
The Zen Poetry of RyokanRyokan was an eccentric 18th-century enlightened Zen hermit-monk who is still beloved in Japan for his poetry. In this collection of his verses, One Robe, One Bowl, he captures both the beauty and pathos of human life, and like his younger contemporary Thoreau, the wonders of nature.
December 8, 2018
December 2018 Sesshin, Day 4: Catching a Feather on a Fan: A Zen Retreat With Master Sheng Yen, by John CrookDharma talk by John Pulleyn
December 7, 2018
December 2018 Sesshin, Day 3: Catching a Feather on a Fan: A Zen Retreat With Master Sheng Yen, by John CrookDharma Talk by John Pulleyn
December 5, 2018
December 2018 Sesshin, Day 1: Being Dharma: The Essence of the Buddha’s Teachings, by Ajahn ChahDharma Talk by John Pulleyn
December 2, 2018
Mumonkan #32, “A Non-Buddhist Questions the Buddha”A non-Buddhist comes to awakening before the Buddha, sitting in silence, while his longtime disciple Ananda, standing in attendance, remains dumbfounded. How notions of identity can bind us. Who awakens? No one!
November 24, 2018
Jukai, Buddhist (Non-)Identity, and the Power of VowsThe ceremony of Jukai (Taking the Precepts) is basically an initiation into the Dharma. To be a Buddhist is to commit to aligning oneself with what is real–direct experience, not thoughts. It is to see things as they are in order to be with things as they are.
November 10, 2018
November 2018 Sesshin, Day 7: Mumonkan #48, “Kempo’s One Road”Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
November 9, 2018
November 2018 Sesshin, Day 6: Shoyoroku #20, “Dizang’s ‘Most Intimate’”Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
November 8, 2018
November 2018 Sesshin, Day 5: Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu (trans. J.C. & T. Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
November 7, 2018
November 2018 Sesshin, Day 4: Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu (trans. J.C. & T. Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
November 6, 2018
November 2018 Sesshin, Day 3: Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu (trans. J.C. & T. Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
November 5, 2018
November 2018 Sesshin, Day 2: Zen Dawn: Early Zen Texts from Tun Huang (trans. J.C. Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
November 4, 2018
November 2018 Sesshin, Day 1: Zen Dawn: Early Zen Texts from Tun Huang (trans. J.C. Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede. Commentary on texts from the first Zen Masters.
October 28, 2018
Miaozong’s Dharma Encounter, Amala-senseiThroughout much of history women’s bodies have been viewed as impure and dangerous by prevailing androcentric cultures, west and east, and unfortunately there still are many examples of this attitude in Buddhism today. In this story from the Song Dynasty, Miaozong, a Dharma heir of Dahui, courageously gives a lively demonstration of the true nature…
October 14, 2018
Caring, Engaging, VotingThe minimal response we can offer our descendants, who are under more threats than ever, is to vote. This is a contemporary way to “enter the marketplace with helping hands,” the ultimate stage of Dharma practice.
October 6, 2018
October 2018 Sesshin, Day 7, Amala-sensei: Satsujo Overcomes Hakuin”Before the tongue has moved the teaching has finished” — but take care — short of full awakening there is still work to do.
October 5, 2018
October 2018 Sesshin, Day 6, Amala-sensei: Chiyono’s No Water No MoonBeing willing to let things fall apart
October 4, 2018
October 2018 Sesshin, Day 5, Amala-sensei: Attaining the Way: A Guide to the Practice of Chan Buddhism (by Master Sheng Yen & Others)Teisho by Sensei Amala Wrightson
October 3, 2018
October 2018 Sesshin, Day 4, Amala-sensei: Attaining the Way: A Guide to the Practice of Chan Buddhism (by Master Sheng Yen & Others)Teisho by Sensei Amala Wrightson
October 2, 2018
October 2018 Sesshin, Day 3, Amala-sensei: Attaining the Way: A Guide to the Practice of Chan Buddhism (by Master Sheng Yen & Others)Teisho by Sensei Amala Wrightson
October 1, 2018
October 2018 Sesshin, Day 2, Amala-sensei: Attaining the Way: A Guide to the Practice of Chan Buddhism (by Master Sheng Yen & Others)Teisho by Sensei Amala Wrightson
September 30, 2018
October 2018 Sesshin, Day 1, Amala-sensei: Attaining the Way: A Guide to the Practice of Chan Buddhism (by Master Sheng Yen & Others)Teisho by Sensei Amala Wrightson
September 23, 2018
Blue Cliff Record #55, “Dogo’s ‘I Won’t Say'”The relative nature of the terms “living” and “dead,” and how one monk’s struggle with them led him to enlightenment.
September 9, 2018
Integrating Life and Practice: Women’s Voices – Eryl KubickaA Dharma talk by Eryl Kubicka on the second day of the September 2018 two-day sesshin.
August 19, 2018
Teisho by Roshi Philip Kapleau, June 1975 Sesshin, Day 7: Mumonkan #36 “Goso’s ‘No Words or Silence'”Recording of a teisho given by Roshi Philip Kapleau on the last day of the June 1975 sesshin and played on Founder’s Day, August 19, 2018.
August 12, 2018
Our Marvelous Microbiome: A Web of Mutual CausationHow our concepts of individual self-identity and linear causality are being dissolved by the wondrous workings of our gut microbes. Readings from I Contain Multitudes, by Ed Yong.
August 4, 2018
July/August 2018 Sesshin, Day 7: Shoyoroku #13, “Linji’s ‘Blind Donkey'”Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede from the July/August 2018 sesshin. Commentary on a koan from The Book of Serenity.
August 3, 2018
July/August 2018 Sesshin, Day 6: Blue Cliff Record #18, “The National Teacher’s Seamless Monument”Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede from the July/August 2018 sesshin. Commentary on a koan from the Blue Cliff Record.
August 2, 2018
July/August 2018 Sesshin, Day 5: Zen Essence (trans. T. Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
August 1, 2018
July/August 2018 Sesshin, Day 4: Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu (trans. J.C. & T. Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
July 31, 2018
July/August 2018 Sesshin, Day 3: Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu (trans. J.C. & T. Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
July 30, 2018
July/August 2018 Sesshin, Day 2: Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu (trans. J.C. & T. Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
July 29, 2018
July/August 2018 Sesshin, Day 1: Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu (trans. J.C. & T. Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
July 22, 2018
The Latest Scandal in American BuddhismA look at the sexual misconduct, widely disclosed this month, of the head of Shambhala International, one of the major Tibetan Buddhist lineages, and the fallout in that Sangha.
June 16, 2018
June 2018 Sesshin, Day 7: Blue Cliff Record #67, “The Great Bodhisattva Fu Lectures on the Diamond Sutra”Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
June 15, 2018
June 2018 Sesshin, Day 6: Mumonkan #19, “Ordinary Mind is the Way”Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
June 14, 2018
June 2018 Sesshin, Day 5: Zen Essence (trans. T. Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
June 13, 2018
June 2018 Sesshin, Day 4: Zen Essence (trans. T. Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
June 12, 2018
June 2018 Sesshin, Day 3: The Original Face: An Anthology of Rinzai Zen (trans. T. Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
June 11, 2018
June 2018 Sesshin, Day 2: The Original Face: An Anthology of Rinzai Zen (trans. T. Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
June 10, 2018
June 2018 Sesshin, Day 1: The Original Face: An Anthology of Rinzai Zen (trans. T. Cleary)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
June 3, 2018
Teisho by Sunya Kjolhede Roshi: Reclaiming Our Resilient SpiritTeisho by Sunya Kjolhede Roshi: Reclaiming Our Resilient Spirit
May 13, 2018
Dharma Talk by John Pulleyn: “Working with Habits”Dharma Talk by John Pulleyn: “Working with Habits”
April 29, 2018
The Tyranny of Convenience, the Allure of What’s EasiestTeisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
April 22, 2018
Dharma Talk by Tom Kowal, “Dharma and Depression”Dharma Talk by Tom Kowal, “Dharma and Depression”
April 14, 2018
April 2018 Sesshin, Day 7: Mumonkan #46, “Step Forward From the Top of a Hundred-Foot Pole”Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
April 13, 2018
April 2018 Sesshin, Day 6: Mumonkan #28, “Ryutan Blows Out a Candle”Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
April 12, 2018
April 2018 Sesshin, Day 5: The Practice of Zen (trans. C.C. Chang)Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede
Apr 1, 2018
The Wisdom of Tofu RoshiMar 18, 2018
In Memorium: Harada Tangen Roshi, 1924-2018Mar 4, 2018
Three Large Strands of Western BuddhismJan 28, 2018
Memory, Forgetting, and the Self-making of Youth2017
Dec 17, 2017
Social Zen PracticeDec 3, 2017
Sexual Harassment and PowerNov 25, 2017
Jukai and the Six Realms TunnelNov 9, 2017
November 2017 Sesshin, Day 5: Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu (trans. J.C. Cleary & T. Cleary)Nov 8, 2017
November 2017 Sesshin, Day 4: Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu (trans. J.C. Cleary & T. Cleary)Nov 7, 2017
November 2017 Sesshin, Day 3: The Platform Sutra: The Zen Teaching of Hui-neng (trans. by Red Pine)Nov 6, 2017
November 2017 Sesshin, Day 2: The Platform Sutra: The Zen Teaching of Hui-neng (trans. by Red Pine)Nov 5, 2017
November 2017 Sesshin, Day 1: The Platform Sutra: The Zen Teaching of Hui-neng (trans. by Red Pine)Oct 29, 2017
Jukai and The Four Forces of PurificationOct 22, 2017
The Three Poisons As Our Common LotOct 15, 2017
Habit Energy: Our Lifelong OpponentSep 24, 2017
Ethnic Cleansing in Buddhist MyanmarJul 31, 2017
July-August 2017 Sesshin, Amala-sensei, Day 2: Master Sheng-yen on Shikantaza and Silent IlluminationJul 30, 2017
July-August 2017 Sesshin, Amala-sensei, Day 1: A review of some basics: posture and breathingJul 23, 2017
Empathy and PowerJun 25, 2017
A Ship, an Axe, a Human BeingJun 15, 2017
June 2017 Sesshin, Day 5: Dream Conversations: On Buddhism and Zen (trans. by T. Cleary)Jun 14, 2017
June 2017 Sesshin, Day 4: Dream Conversations: On Buddhism and Zen (trans. by T. Cleary)Apr 30, 2017
Why Can't We Sit Still AnymoreApr 13, 2017
April 2017 Sesshin, Day 5: Mud and Water: The Teachings of Zen Master Bassui (trans. by Arthur Braverman)Apr 12, 2017
April 2017 Sesshin, Day 4: Mud and Water: The Teachings of Zen Master Bassui (trans. by Arthur Braverman)Apr 11, 2017
April 2017 Sesshin, Day 3: Mud and Water: The Teachings of Zen Master Bassui (trans. by Arthur Braverman)Apr 10, 2017
April 2017 Sesshin, Day 2: Mud and Water: The Teachings of Zen Master Bassui (trans. by Arthur Braverman)Mar 12, 2017
Death, Rebirth, and SesshinMar 7, 2017
New Regime, New DreadJan 29, 2017
Self-identity and No-self2016
Dec 18, 2016
Lighting Candles of Generosity in Dark TimesDec 4, 2016
The Buddha's Quest--and Our OwnNov 26, 2016
Receiving the PreceptsNov 15, 2016
November 2016 Sesshin, Day 3: The Zen Teaching of Hui Hai on Sudden Illumination (trans. John Blofeld)Nov 14, 2016
November 2016 Sesshin, Day 2: The Zen Teaching of Hui Hai on Sudden Illumination (trans. John Blofeld)Nov 13, 2016
November 2016 Sesshin, Day 1: The Zen Teaching of Hui Hai on Sudden Illumination (trans. John Blofeld)Nov 6, 2016
How Not Voting Is Not the WayOct 16, 2016
The Three Essentials of BuddhismAug 21, 2016
Roshi Kapleau and the Past As PresentAug 7, 2016
The Mystery of LeadershipJun 26, 2016
Fifty Years of Change and AdaptationMay 1, 2016
General Advice From a Japanese Zen TeacherApr 24, 2016
Busyness Driven By FearApr 10, 2016
Zen and EnvironmentalismApr 3, 2016
Finding a Way to Sit Every DayMar 25, 2016
March 2016 Sesshin, Day 6: The Way of Korean Zen by Kusan Sunim (trans. Martine Batchelor)Mar 24, 2016
March 2016 Sesshin, Day 5: The Way of Korean Zen by Kusan Sunim (trans. Martine Batchelor)Mar 23, 2016
March 2016 Sesshin, Day 4: The Way of Korean Zen by Kusan Sunim (trans. Martine Batchelor)Mar 22, 2016
March 2016 Sesshin, Day 3: The Way of Korean Zen by Kusan Sunim (trans. Martine Batchelor)Mar 21, 2016
March 2016 Sesshin, Day 2: The Way of Korean Zen by Kusan Sunim (trans. Martine Batchelor)Mar 20, 2016
March 2016 Sesshin, Day 1: The Way of Korean Zen by Kusan Sunim (trans. Martine Batchelor)Mar 13, 2016
A Master Violinist Performs in the SubwayFeb 21, 2016
Procrastination: Not Always So BadJan 24, 2016
Secular BuddhismJan 16, 2016
January 2016 Sesshin, Day 7: Blue Cliff Record #92, "The World-Honored One Ascends the Seat"Jan 13, 2016
January 2016 Sesshin, Day 4: Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu (trans. J.C. Cleary & T. Cleary), IIIJan 12, 2016
January 2016 Sesshin, Day 3: Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu (trans. J.C. Cleary & T. Cleary), II2015
Dec 6, 2015
Countering the Holiday Consumerist FrenzyNov 28, 2015
Jukai and the Precept on Not Withholding AidNov 12, 2015
November 2015 Sesshin, Day 5: Zibo: The Last Great Zen Master of China (trans. J.C. Cleary), VNov 11, 2015
November 2015 Sesshin, Day 4: Zibo: The Last Great Zen Master of China (trans. J.C. Cleary), IVNov 10, 2015
November 2015 Sesshin, Day 3: Zibo: The Last Great Zen Master of China (trans. J.C. Cleary), IIINov 9, 2015
November 2015 Sesshin, Day 2: Zibo: The Last Great Zen Master of China (trans. J.C. Cleary), IINov 8, 2015
November 2015 Sesshin, Day 1: Zibo: The Last Great Zen Master of China (trans. J.C. Cleary), INov 1, 2015
Finding Exile--and Awe--In ZazenOct 25, 2015
Coming-to-the-Path Talk - Dan EslerOct 18, 2015
Facing Fear and AnxietyOct 10, 2015
October 2015 Sesshin, Day 7: Blue Cliff Record #89, "The Bodhisattva of Great Compassion"Aug 23, 2015
Zen Practice As Resilience TrainingAug 9, 2015
Coming-to-the-Path Talk - Rick SmithJul 30, 2015
July 2015 Sesshin, Day 5: The Zen Teachinng of Hui Hai: On Sudden Illumination (trans. John Blofeld), IIJul 29, 2015
July 2015 Sesshin, Day 4: The Zen Teachinng of Hui Hai: On Sudden Illumination (trans. John Blofeld), IJul 28, 2015
July 2015 Sesshin, Day 3: The Original Face: An Anthology of Rinzai Zen (trans. Thomas Cleary), IIIJul 27, 2015
July 2015 Sesshin, Day 2: The Original Face: An Anthology of Rinzai Zen (trans. Thomas Cleary), IIJul 26, 2015
July 2015 Sesshin, Day 1: The Original Face: An Anthology of Rinzai Zen (trans. Thomas Cleary), IJul 12, 2015
Practicing With Sounds in a Noisy CultureJun 28, 2015
Trying But Not TryingJun 4, 2015
June 2015 Sesshin, Day 5: Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu (trans. J.C. & Thomas Cleary), VJun 3, 2015
June 2015 Sesshin, Day 4: Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu (trans. J.C. & Thomas Cleary), IVJun 2, 2015
June 2015 Sesshin, Day 3: Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu (trans. J.C. & Thomas Cleary), IIIJun 1, 2015
June 2015 Sesshin, Day 2: Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu (trans. J.C. & Thomas Cleary), IIMay 31, 2015
June 2015 Sesshin, Day 1: Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu (trans. J.C. & Thomas Cleary), IApr 28, 2015
Zen and the Dark Side of Social MediaApr 7, 2015
Human Beings--Good or Bad?Mar 1, 2015
February 2015 Sesshin, John Pulleyn, Day 2: "Mindfulness in Plain English" by Bante Gunaratana, IIFeb 28, 2015
February 2015 Sesshin, John Pulleyn, Day 1: "Mindfulness in Plain English" by Bante Gunaratana, IFeb 22, 2015
Not Grasping, Not Striving to Become SomeoneFeb 15, 2015
When Belief Systems Collide with ScienceFeb 1, 2015
Coming-to-the-Path Talk - Bryan BashamJan 16, 2015
January 2015 Sesshin, Day 6: Blue Cliff Record #42, "Layman Pang's Beautiful Snowflakes"Jan 14, 2015
January 2015 Sesshin, Day 4: Mud and Water: The Teachings of Zen Master Bassui, trans. by A. Braverman, IVJan 13, 2015
January 2015 Sesshin, Day 3: Mud and Water: The Teachings of Zen Master Bassui, trans. by A. Braverman, IIIJan 12, 2015
January 2015 Sesshin, Day 2: Mud and Water: The Teachings of Zen Master Bassui, trans. by A. Braverman, II2014
Nov 29, 2014
Jukai and the Precept on Not LyingOct 26, 2014
Coming to the Path - Andy McClainJun 29, 2014
Time: Not Fighting It, but Being ItJun 1, 2014
Beyond Saving and Not Saving the WorldMay 11, 2014
Kindness--A Good StartApr 27, 2014
Dogen On the Transiency of LifeApr 13, 2014
Breath PracticeApr 6, 2014
The Dharma That No One Has Ever TaughtMar 23, 2014
March 2014 Sesshin, Day 1: Zen ChantingMar 2, 2014
Boredom as Sickness, Boredom as CureFeb 16, 2014
Integrating Concentration and MindfulnessJan 26, 2014
Will Power: Now You See It, Now You Don'tJan 10, 2014
January 2014 Sesshin, Day 6: The Way of Korean Zen by Kusan Sunim, Trans. Martine Batchelor, VIJan 9, 2014
January 2014 Sesshin, Day 5: The Way of Korean Zen by Kusan Sunim, Trans. Martine Batchelor, VJan 8, 2014
January 2014 Sesshin, Day 4: The Way of Korean Zen by Kusan Sunim, Trans. Martine Batchelor, IVJan 7, 2014
January 2014 Sesshin, Day 3: The Way of Korean Zen by Kusan Sunim, Trans. Martine Batchelor, III2013
Dec 29, 2013
New Year's, Rebirth, and Other TransitionsNov 30, 2013
An Overview of the Sixteen PreceptsNov 24, 2013
Karma and the PreceptsNov 19, 2013
The Six Realms of Unenlightened ExistenceOct 27, 2013
Coming to the Path - Alex ComardoOct 20, 2013
Bringing Imagination to Ethical DecisionsOct 13, 2013
Pain v. SufferingOct 5, 2013
October 2013 Sesshin, Day 7: Blue Cliff Record #100: "Haryo and a Blown Hair Against a Sword"Oct 2, 2013
October 2013 Sesshin, Day 4: The Original Face: An Anthology of Rinzai Zen (T. Cleary), IVOct 1, 2013
October 2013 Sesshin, Day 3: The Original Face: An Anthology of Rinzai Zen (T. Cleary), IIISep 30, 2013
October 2013 Sesshin, Day 2: The Original Face: An Anthology of Rinzai Zen (T. Cleary), IISep 29, 2013
October 2013 Sesshin, Day 1: The Original Face: An Anthology of Rinzai Zen (T. Cleary), ISep 22, 2013
Dharma Talk by John Pulleyn: "Right View"Sep 15, 2013
Shoyuroku #12: Dizang Plants the Rice FieldAug 18, 2013
Roshi Kapleau and His Teaching of No-teachingJul 7, 2013
Dharma Talk by John Pulleyn: "Motivation"Jun 23, 2013
Mindfulness Meditation and ZenJun 14, 2013
June 2013 Sesshin, Sensei Amala Wrightson, Day 6: "Tracing Back the Radiance: Chinul's Korean Way of Zen"Jun 13, 2013
June 2013 Sesshin, Sensei Amala Wrightson, Day 5: "Tracing Back the Radiance: Chinul's Korean Way of Zen"Jun 12, 2013
June 2013 Sesshin, Sensei Amala Wrightson, Day 4: "Tracing Back the Radiance: Chinul's Korean Way of Zen"Jun 11, 2013
June 2013 Sesshin, Sensei Amala Wrightson, Day 3: "Tracing Back the Radiance: Chinul's Korean Way of Zen"Jun 10, 2013
June 2013 Sesshin, Sensei Amala Wrightson, Day 2: "Tracing Back the Radiance: Chinul's Korean Way of Zen"Apr 28, 2013
Coming to the Path - Tom KowalApr 21, 2013
Responding to the Environmental Crisis - Part 2Apr 14, 2013
Responding to the Environmental Crisis - Part 1Apr 4, 2013
April 2013 Sesshin, Day 5: Zen Master Foyan, "Instant Zen: Waking Up in the Present" (T. Cleary) VApr 3, 2013
April 2013 Sesshin, Day 4: Zen Master Foyan, "Instant Zen: Waking Up in the Present" (T. Cleary) IVApr 2, 2013
April 2013 Sesshin, Day 3: Zen Master Foyan, "Instant Zen: Waking Up in the Present" (T. Cleary) IIIApr 1, 2013
April 2013 Sesshin, Day 2: Zen Master Foyan, "Instant Zen: Waking Up in the Present" (T. Cleary) IIMar 31, 2013
April 2013 Sesshin, Day 1: Zen Master Foyan, "Instant Zen: Waking Up in the Present" (T. Cleary) IMar 10, 2013
Our Bodies' Microbes--Who Is That "Other"Jan 20, 2013
Commitment and Wholeheartedness2012
Dec 16, 2012
Shooter's Mind and Original Mind--One, or Two?Nov 16, 2012
November 2012 Sesshin, Day 6: Blue Cliff Record #18 "The National Teacher's Seamless Monument"Nov 4, 2012
Voting and the Conditioned MindOct 21, 2012
Dharma Talk by John Pulleyn: "Birth and Death"Aug 19, 2012
Teisho by Roshi Philip Kapleau, November 1975 Sesshin, Day 7: Mumonkan #22 "Kashyapa and a Flagpole"Jul 1, 2012
Zen Capping Phrases and Other VerseJun 14, 2012
June 2012 Sesshin, Day 5: "Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu", (trans. J.C. Cleary & Thomas Cleary); VJun 13, 2012
June 2012 Sesshin, Day 4: "Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu", (trans. J.C. Cleary & Thomas Cleary); IVJun 12, 2012
June 2012 Sesshin, Day 3: "Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu", (trans. J.C. Cleary & Thomas Cleary); IIIJun 11, 2012
June 2012 Sesshin, Day 2: "Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu", (trans. J.C. Cleary & Thomas Cleary); IIJun 10, 2012
June 2012 Sesshin, Day 1: "Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu", (trans. J.C. Cleary & Thomas Cleary); IMay 20, 2012
Blue Cliff Record #36 "Changsha Goes for a Walk"Apr 15, 2012
Tribalism, Part I: Racial Bias As Human ImprintApr 6, 2012
April 2012 Sesshin, Day 6: "Dream Conversations: On Buddhism and Zen", (trans. T. Cleary) VIApr 5, 2012
April 2012 Sesshin, Day 5: "Dream Conversations: On Buddhism and Zen", (trans. T. Cleary) VApr 4, 2012
April 2012 Sesshin, Day 4: "Dream Conversations: On Buddhism and Zen", (trans. T. Cleary) IVApr 3, 2012
April 2012 Sesshin, Day 3: "Dream Conversations: On Buddhism and Zen", (trans. T. Cleary) IIIApr 2, 2012
April 2012 Sesshin, Day 2: "Dream Conversations: On Buddhism and Zen", (trans. T. Cleary) IIMar 24, 2012
Dharma Talk by John Pulleyn: "Labels"Mar 11, 2012
Techno-consumerism, Narcissism, and DowntimeFeb 5, 2012
Ordination, West and East, Past and PresentJan 12, 2012
January 2012 Sesshin, Day 5: "Bankei Zen: Translations from the Record of Bankei", (trans. P. Haskel) VJan 11, 2012
January 2012 Sesshin, Day 4: "Bankei Zen: Translations from the Record of Bankei", (trans. P. Haskel) IV2011
Nov 26, 2011
Repentance and the PreceptsNov 20, 2011
Taking Refuge in Buddha, Dharma, and SanghaOct 30, 2011
Coming to the Path Talk by Dwain WilderOct 16, 2011
Dharma Talk by Eryl Kubicka: "Women in Zen"Oct 6, 2011
October 2011 Sesshin, Day 5: "Zen Dawn: Early Zen Texts from Tun Huang", (trans. J.C. Cleary) VOct 5, 2011
October 2011 Sesshin, Day 4: "Zen Dawn: Early Zen Texts from Tun Huang", (trans. J.C. Cleary) IVOct 4, 2011
October 2011 Sesshin, Day 3: "Zen Dawn: Early Zen Texts from Tun Huang", (trans. J.C. Cleary) IIIOct 3, 2011
October 2011 Sesshin, Day 2: "Zen Dawn: Early Zen Texts from Tun Huang", (trans. J.C. Cleary) IIOct 2, 2011
October 2011 Sesshin, Day 1: "Zen Dawn: Early Zen Texts from Tun Huang", (trans. J.C. Cleary) ISep 25, 2011
Decision Fatigue, Will Power, and EatingSep 18, 2011
King Ashoka and Enlightened GovernanceAug 14, 2011
August 2011 Sesshin, Wayman Kubicka, Day 2: The Extraordinary Buddhist Life of Ajahn ChahAug 7, 2011
Beyond Optimism and PessimismJul 21, 2011
July 2011 Sesshin, Day 5: "Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu", (trans. J.C. Cleary & Thomas Cleary); VJul 20, 2011
July 2011 Sesshin, Day 4: "Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu", (trans. J.C. Cleary & Thomas Cleary); IVJul 19, 2011
July 2011 Sesshin, Day 3: "Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu", (trans. J.C. Cleary & Thomas Cleary); IIIJul 18, 2011
July 2011 Sesshin, Day 2: "Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu", (trans. J.C. Cleary & Thomas Cleary); IIJul 17, 2011
July 2011 Sesshin, Day 1: "Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu", (trans. J.C. Cleary & Thomas Cleary); IJun 26, 2011
Cultivating Sangha from the Ground of PracticeJun 18, 2011
June 2011 Sesshin, Sensei Robert Goldmann, Day 7: From the Teachings of Chan Master Sheng Yen VJun 17, 2011
June 2011 Sesshin, Sensei Robert Goldmann, Day 6: From the Teachings of Chan Master Sheng Yen IVJun 16, 2011
June 2011 Sesshin, Sensei Robert Goldmann, Day 5: From the teachings of Chan Master Sheng Yen IIIJun 15, 2011
June 2011 Sesshin, Sensei Robert Goldmann, Day 4: From the Teachings of Chan Master Sheng Yen IIJun 14, 2011
June 2011 Sesshin, Sensei Robert Goldmann, Day 3: From the Teachings of Chan Master Sheng Yen IMay 22, 2011
The Buddha, Yunmen, and OnenessMay 11, 2011
Teisho by Roshi Philip Kapleau, October 1973 Sesshin, Day 6: Blue Cliff Record #7 "Fayen's 'You are Echo'"May 1, 2011
Boredom and BeyondApr 7, 2011
April 2011 Sesshin, Day 5: A Primer of Soto Zen: Dogen's Shobogenzo Zuimonki (trans. R. Masunaga) IVApr 5, 2011
April 2011 Sesshin, Day 3: A Primer of Soto Zen: Dogen's Shobogenzo Zuimonki (trans. R. Masunaga) IIApr 4, 2011
April 2011 Sesshin, Day 2: A Primer of Soto Zen: Dogen's Shobogenzo Zuimonki (trans. R. Masunaga) IMar 27, 2011
Taking Stock of Our Practice As Time Slips ByFeb 20, 2011
Coming to the Path Talk by Phil SwansonFeb 6, 2011
Dharma Talk by John Pulleyn: "Anxiety"Jan 23, 2011
Shoyoroku #11 "Yunmen’s Two Sicknesses"2010
Dec 19, 2010
Dana: The Dharma of Giving-ReceivingNov 27, 2010
Taking the PreceptsNov 10, 2010
November 2010 Sesshin, Day 4: "Autobiography of Han Shan (from The Practice of Zen)" (trans. C.C. Chang) IVOct 17, 2010
The Six Realms of Unenlightened ExistenceOct 7, 2010
October 2010 Sesshin, Day 5: "Talks of Zen Master Bassui (from Mud and Water)" (trans. Braverman) VOct 6, 2010
October 2010 Sesshin, Day 4: "Talks of Zen Master Bassui (from Mud and Water)" (trans. Braverman) IVOct 4, 2010
October 2010 Sesshin, Day 2: "Talks of Zen Master Bassui (from Mud and Water)" (trans. Braverman) IIOct 3, 2010
October 2010 Sesshin, Day 1: "Talks of Zen Master Bassui (from Mud and Water)" (trans. Braverman) ISep 12, 2010
Mosques, Media, Politics, and FearAug 22, 2010
The Five HindrancesJul 31, 2010
July 2010 Sesshin, Day 7: Blue Cliff Record #67 "The Great Bodhisattva Fu Lectures on the Diamond Sutra"Jul 27, 2010
July 2010 Sesshin, Day 3: "Instant Zen: Waking Up in the Present" (trans. T. Cleary) IIIJul 11, 2010
Let the Heat Kill YouJun 27, 2010
The Curse of ContentmentJun 17, 2010
June 2010 Sesshin, Sensei Gerardo Gally, Day 5: The Paramitas of Concentration and WisdomMay 9, 2010
Teisho by Roshi Philip Kapleau, June 1975 Sesshin, Day 6: Mumonkan #35 "Sei and Her Soul Separate"Mar 28, 2010
Nonsense, Disorientation, Creativity, and KoansFeb 28, 2010
February 2010 Sesshin, Wayman Kubicka, Day 2: The Pain Body - A New Earth by Eckhart TolleFeb 21, 2010
Coming to the Path Talk by Cecily FuhrFeb 14, 2010
What Are Those Five Skandhas, Anyway?Jan 31, 2010
Teisho by Roshi Philip Kapleau, June 1975 Sesshin, Day 7: Mumonkan #36 "Goso's No Words or Silence"Jan 16, 2010
January 2010 Sesshin, Day 7: Blue Cliff Record #92 "The World-Honored One Ascends the Seat"Jan 15, 2010
January 2010 Sesshin, Day 6: Mumonkan #46 "Step Forward From the Top of a Hundred-Foot Pole"Jan 14, 2010
January 2010 Sesshin, Day 5: "The Chronological Biography of Hakuin" (trans. N. Waddell) VJan 13, 2010
January 2010 Sesshin, Day 4: "The Chronological Biography of Hakuin" (trans. N. Waddell) IVJan 12, 2010
January 2010 Sesshin, Day 3: "The Chronological Biography of Hakuin" (trans. N. Waddell) IIIJan 11, 2010
January 2010 Sesshin, Day 2: "The Chronological Biography of Hakuin" (trans. N. Waddell) II2009
Dec 6, 2009
Compassion and Giving--How Much Is Enough?Nov 28, 2009
The Ceremony of Receiving the PreceptsSep 27, 2009
Working With AngerSep 20, 2009
Anger: How It WorksAug 23, 2009
August 2009 Sesshin, John Pulleyn, Day 2: Nothing Special: Living Zen by Charlotte Joko Beck, IIAug 22, 2009
August 2009 Sesshin, John Pulleyn, Day 1: Nothing Special: Living Zen by Charlotte Joko Beck, IJul 19, 2009
Teisho by Sensei Amala Wrightson: Bodhidharma's Outline of Practice - Advice for Hard TimesJun 25, 2009
June 2009 Sesshin, Sensei Amala Wrightson, Day 5: "Master Hongzhi's Cultivating the Empty Field" VJun 24, 2009
June 2009 Sesshin, Sensei Amala Wrightson, Day 4: "Master Hongzhi's Cultivating the Empty Field" IVJun 23, 2009
June 2009 Sesshin, Sensei Amala Wrightson, Day 3: "Master Hongzhi's Cultivating the Empty Field" IIIJun 22, 2009
June 2009 Sesshin, Sensei Amala Wrightson, Day 2: "Master Hongzhi's Cultivating the Empty Field" IIJun 21, 2009
June 2009 Sesshin, Sensei Amala Wrightson, Day 1: "Master Hongzhi's Cultivating the Empty Field" IJun 14, 2009
Awareness and AttentionJun 7, 2009
Watching Our Response to RumorMay 17, 2009
August 2000 Sesshin, Day 1: CommitmentMay 10, 2009
Mothering and Zen Practice as Dana (Giving)Apr 26, 2009
Dharma Talk by John Pulleyn: "Self-Control"Apr 19, 2009
Zen Practice Maturing Beyond Special to RealMar 29, 2009
Insight, Zazen, and the BrainMar 22, 2009
The American Dream in Flux, Part TwoMar 15, 2009
The American Dream in Flux, Part OneMar 8, 2009
Coming to the Path Talk by Kadi SprengleFeb 22, 2009
Daily Practice: Buckling Down and Keeping At ItFeb 8, 2009
Coming to the Path Talk by Britta BrücknerJan 17, 2009
January 2009 Sesshin, Day 7: "Blue Cliff #89 The Hands and Eyes of the Bodhisattva of Great Compassion"Jan 15, 2009
January 2009 Sesshin, Day 5: "Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu", (trans. J.C. Cleary & Thomas Cleary); VJan 14, 2009
January 2009 Sesshin, Day 4: "Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu", (trans. J.C. Cleary & Thomas Cleary); IVJan 13, 2009
January 2009 Sesshin, Day 3: "Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu", (trans. J.C. Cleary & Thomas Cleary); IIIJan 12, 2009
January 2009 Sesshin, Day 2: "Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu", (trans. J.C. Cleary & Thomas Cleary); IIJan 11, 2009
January 2009 Sesshin, Day 1: "Zen Letters: Teachings of Yuanwu", (trans. J.C. Cleary & Thomas Cleary); IJan 4, 2009
Free Will vs. Karma2008
Dec 13, 2008
December 2008 Sesshin, Day 4: "Zibo: The Last Great Zen Master of China", (trans. by J.C. Cleary) IVDec 12, 2008
December 2008 Sesshin, Day 3: "Zibo: The Last Great Zen Master of China", (trans. by J.C. Cleary) IIIDec 11, 2008
December 2008 Sesshin, Day 2: "Zibo: The Last Great Zen Master of China", (trans. by J.C. Cleary) IIDec 10, 2008
December 2008 Sesshin, Day 1: "Zibo: The Last Great Zen Master of China", (trans. by J.C. Cleary) INov 29, 2008
The Sixteen Precepts - OverviewNov 23, 2008
Precept Five: Not to Abuse Alcohol or DrugsNov 12, 2008
November 2008 Sesshin, Day 4: "Zen Dawn: Early Zen Texts From the Tun Huang", (trans. by J.C. Cleary) IVNov 11, 2008
November 2008 Sesshin, Day 3: "Zen Dawn: Early Zen Texts From the Tun Huang", (trans. by J.C. Cleary) IIINov 10, 2008
November 2008 Sesshin, Day 2: "Zen Dawn: Early Zen Texts From the Tun Huang", (trans. by J.C. Cleary) IISep 14, 2008
"Believing is Seeing": Mind-altered PerceptionAug 10, 2008
Moral Judgments, Political Views, and OrdinationJul 20, 2008
Dharma Talk by John Pulleyn: "Habits"Jul 13, 2008
Chautauqua, Creative Writing, and ZenJun 29, 2008
Jill Taylor's Stroke of InsightJun 22, 2008
Zen Practice: Pain, Pleasure, and PromiseMay 18, 2008
Shrinking Our Carbon Footprints--Why Bother?Apr 27, 2008
Memory, Marijuana and ZenApr 20, 2008
Sex and the Third Precept - Part IIIMar 30, 2008
Sex and the Third Precept - Part IIMar 16, 2008
Dharma Talk by John Pulleyn: "Mistakes"Mar 9, 2008
Mumonkan No. 5: Kyogen's Man up a TreeFeb 3, 2008
The Will to Practice: Carrot and StickJan 27, 2008
Miscellaneous Words of Master JoshuJan 20, 2008
Falling Markets, Change, and DetachmentJan 10, 2008
January 2008 Sesshin, Day 5: Discourse of Chan Master Po Shan, The Practice of Zen (C.C. Chang) I2007
Dec 30, 2007
Mindless EatingDec 16, 2007
Dana: The Paramita of GivingNov 24, 2007
Great Jukai 2007: Morality and the PreceptsNov 18, 2007
Karma: 'Hyakujo and a Fox'