June 18, 2013
Recent Articles
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Yearning to be Met
by Chuan Zhi
Published May 08, 2013
'The human heart yearns for contact - above all it yearns for genuine dialogue. Dialogue is at the heart of being human. Without it, we are not fully formed -... Read more
Sidetracked by Institutionalized Zen
by Chuan Zhi
Published Feb 10, 2013
I was approached recently by a man in his middle years who had spent much time sitting with various Zen groups around the country. He had left one after... Read more
Contemplating Consciousness
by Chuan Zhi
Published Sep 01, 2012
Consciousness. We don't think about it, we don't act upon it. It's just there. We awaken in the morning and go to the bathroom and do those things, make coffee,... Read more
No Mind? Really?
by Fa Gong Shakya
Published Jul 01, 2012
A couple of weeks ago a friend came to me to discuss problems she was having in her meditation practice. She was quite distraught at what she felt was her... Read more
Just Who Am I?
by Yin De Shakya
Published Apr 27, 2012
Each of us has a narrator in our head. An internal voice that we call “me”. And most of us assume that this narrator is real. We assume that it’s... Read more
Mara the Abuser
by Fa Gong Shakya
Published Apr 02, 2012
In Buddhist literature we are often exposed to Mara, the sometimes wily, sometimes violent, sometimes beguiling tempter of Gautama on his way to Buddha-hood. Mara can be said to provide,... Read more
A Woman's Work
by Fa Lian Shakya
Published Mar 14, 2012
Seeing things as they are Awareness opened one of the Dharma doors with a new way of seeing things. She started to understand more and more, then realized that all... Read more
Hua-t’ou: A Method of Zen Meditation
by Stuart Lachs
Published Mar 09, 2012
There are two different ways of understanding and actually practicing Zen. These two different ways are termed in Chinese pen chueh and shih-chueh respectively. The term pen chueh refers to... Read more
Just Being, a poem
by S. Elliot Sozan
Published Jan 01, 2012
The plum trees blossoms In the middle of winter. There is no robe no color. In practice there is no time, no culture, no sex. In pure existence the breath takes what... Read more
Reincarnation - a.k.a., New Year's Day
by Yin De Shakya
Published Dec 30, 2011
It’s a new year; a time for looking forward, and a time for looking back. Each time we celebrate “New Year’s Day” we are giving ourselves the opportunity to begin anew.... Read more
Connecting the Dots
by Fa Lohng (Koro Kaisan)
Published Dec 12, 2011
Students who come to my weekly Dharma talks (or who meet regularly with me in private) are often confronted with my insistence that they view the world more holistically. This... Read more
The Urban Hermit
by Fa Dong Shakya
Published Dec 05, 2011
As anyone versed in Chan’s history knows, the hermitic life is a common one passed through by many of China’s most famous Chan teachers. In fact, all mystical traditions commonly... Read more
The Urban Hermit
by Fa Dong Shakya
Published Dec 05, 2011
As anyone versed in Chan’s history knows, the hermitic life is a common one passed through by many of China’s most famous Chan teachers. In fact, all mystical traditions commonly... Read more
The Hua-Tou Practice
by Chuan Zhi
Published Oct 04, 2011
Zen’s hua-tou practice recently seems to be enjoying a renaissance among the small contingent of Zen Buddhists speckling the globe. In part, this may be due to the growing awareness... Read more
Don’t Drink the Kool-aide: How to Avoid the Projection Trap
by Chuan Zhi
Published Sep 22, 2011
Introduction In 1912 the French philosopher Lucien Lévy-Brühl published a collection of works that gave us a new model with which to view the relationship between self and other. He offered... Read more