Medicine and sickness cure each other, all the earth is medicine, where do you find your self? Gillian Coote, roshi, examines Yun-men’s words about our own sickness and suffering – as individuals, as family members, in relationships at work or in the sangha, and as members of this society and this vast interdependent mahasangha – the sickness of the air,
Gillian Coote, roshi explores ‘Beginner’s Mind’ including Suzuki Roshi’s thoughts on the matter, and how this mind is the heart of our practice, whether we’ve been practising for two weeks or a hundred years. This talk was given at the zazenkai in April, 2018
You were curious about Zen Buddhism so one day you turned up at an orientation. You liked the silence and the challenge of paying attention and so you came back. Soon it became a regular part of your life. You listened to podcasts, found some helpful apps and read widely about the Buddha’s enlightenment. You believed the best was yet
As the Chinese Year of the Dog begins – Gillian Coote, roshi explores the koan ‘Chao Chou’s dog’ which is the first case of the Wu-Men Kuan (The Galetless Barrier) This talk was given at 2013 Spring Sesshin held at Kodoji
Gillian Coote, roshi addresses the problem practitioners often have in explaining their practice to others. Answering ‘it helps me to remain calm’ or ‘to gain some insight’ reduces the practice to a very small part of what it is. Gillian takes up Case 30 of the Wu-Men Kuan, where this problem is reflected in the dialogue between Nan-yuëh and Ma-tsu,
‘What is the work of the Buddha’s whole life? An appropriate response.’ Gillian Coote, roshi explores Case 14 of the Blue Cliff Record. Day 5, Spring Sesshin 2017
Gillian Coote, roshi explores the first koan in ‘The Gateless Barrier’ of the Wu-Men Kuan – Mu. Day 1, Spring Sesshin 2017
At our recent samu at Gorricks Run, I asked Heath and Fleur (Nick and Jo’s children), whether trees breathed. They weren’t too sure, so we embarked on an experiment. We picked some leaves and put them in a glass of water, weighing them down with a little rock. We had to wait a few hours for a result, but there
Inside the Brushwood Gate An essay by Gillian Coote, Roshi. First published in Mind Moon Circle, Spring 2016 Yunmen said: Medicine and sickness mutually correspond. The whole world is medicine. What is the self? (1) And at the end of the day in sesshin, we are reminded: Birth and death is the Great Matter. All things pass quickly away.
