Zazen includes a minutely precise study of our body/mind phenomena. We open to our intimate experience without judgment by staying centered and receptive, returning to “now” by releasing attachment to thought, moment after moment. At first, most of us need to engage some concentration practice to gather the attention as well as find inspiration in …
Times of disruption, anxiety, and confusion challenge us to dig deeply into our practice. We are searching for stability, clarity, and an authentic response to the mass suffering and challenges during this pandemic. Even though it’s hard to maintain discipline and get support from others while social distancing, it’s critical to clarify our intention to …
Practice in Times of Uncertainty — Zen Students Respond Read More »
Please share your experience with kindness and compassion here. What acts did you witness that were kind or compassionate? How did you serve another in need or help someone in distress? Include all sentient beings, plants and animals. Don’t be shy!
To be hopeful in bad times is not just foolishly romantic. It is based on the fact that human history is a history not only of cruelty but also of compassion, sacrifice, courage, kindness. What we choose to emphasize in this complex history will determine our lives. If we see only the worst, it destroys …
Dear Sangha ~ Extending gratitude to you all for your honest and courageous exploration of the practice of Zen together. For the banquet of warmth extended to one another, the cornucopia of creativity, and the generosity in bringing the teachings of awakening to life. My deepest gratitude goes to the simple yet extraordinary fact …
Lately, I can hardly read the news. I know I’m supposed to know what’s going on, but every day I’m left with a sense of dread and overwhelm with what’s happening in the world. Even though I meditate every day, I’m not sure how practicing zazen applies to this problem. I just feel helpless in …
I’m not sure if and when I should come to sanzen. What’s OK to ask and what isn’t? Sometimes I feel like I need more help in practice, that I don’t know what I’m doing, but it’s hard to figure out how to put it into words. I remember my first long retreat. On the …
Why do I seek realization? I only have a very short time to live (years or days just a blink in time). What is the benefit of becoming enlightened? It can’t be for me. I’m as transient as an airborne spore. When you realize buddha dharma, you do not think, “This is realization just as …
There is a huge billboard on W. 11th that says, “Jesus, the only way to God.” I know Zen (unlike the Christian billboard) is not saying that zazen is the only way to realization, but why is it indispensable in Zen practice? As I say this often, I can imagine it sounds quite dogmatic, a quality …
Does atonement address making peace with events in my past that happened to me, and that were not my doing or my fault? Webster defines it as “reparation for a wrong or injury.” Is the Buddhist definition broader? If not atonement, how does the Dharma teach us to deal with past wrongs done to us? This practice of at-one-ment …
Dharma Q/A: Does Atonement Make Peace with the Past? Read More »
