Dongshan’s question is ‘How will you take your activity of seeing into self-nature into the ups and downs of the grassy world?’ Jane looks at the Way of practice, setting off on the pilgrimage of each day to reach the place of no grass. This teisho by Jane Andino was
In ‘seeing the reflection’ and ‘seeing the portrait’, we find that which we can’t put into words. This teisho looks at Case 98, The Book of Serenity, and also explores the Soto ancestor side of our Zen lineage, Dongshan. This teisho was given by Jane Andino, roshi on day 3
Senior student, Alladin Jones, gives us instructions about how to sit with a koan. Aitken roshi described them this way: “Koans are tiny doors that open to great vistas inviting us to wander through endless gardens. And they are the folk stories of Zen and like folk stories their expression
Who is the one not sick? Who is the one sick? Jane Andino reflects on these questions related to two cases of the Book of Serenity, Cases 83 and 94. She also talks about deepening our practice in this time of lockdown, and touches on Zen and the Art of
Rohatsu means the 8thday of December, the date traditionally commemorated as the day of the Budhha’s awakening. In this talk, Jane Andino looks at different versions of the enlightenment story, the sight of the Morning Star, and the significance for our practice. This talk was given on Day 1 of
Gillian Coote, roshi tells the stories of some of our ancestors who appear in the dedications we chant in our sutra service, including Choro Nyogen and his internment poems (written in the USA during WWII). She offers the koan ‘Mu’, and reflects on this monk’s – and our – doubt
Settling into samadhi on the zafu at sesshin on the first day is often attended by a jungle of thoughts, fleeting or solid – daydreams, schemes – and here lies our greatest challenge. In this teisho, Gillian talks about different ways to gather focus by using koans, breath counting or
“In all of the worlds, what is most wondrous? That no man, no woman, though they see people dying all around them, believes it will happen to them” King Yudhisthira, Mahabharata, Hindu epic poem. Jill Steverson talks about the privilege and challenges she experienced being with her mother through her
Brendon Stewart reflects on his work with homeless men to explore the concept of Wise Hope.
The question, “What is Buddha?” or, “What is Buddha Nature?” is a constant theme within Buddhism. Dōgen, the founder of Sōtō Zen Buddhism in Japan, has something interesting to say on this topic. Dōgen tells us that: Buddha Nature and becoming a Buddha always occur simultaneously. Paul Maloney, roshi explores
