Dharma Talks

Even if you are devoted to zazen, it is good to take a break from sitting. Every so often, forget you practice Zen. Just go about your life and see what happens. It is a great learning opportunity. We notice what happens in our life naturally, how we’ve been changed by the practice, and what we experience when we don’t sit. Putting down the forms also allows us to see our big ideas about Zen, and put those down, too.

As soon as we have some sort of insight or opening—small or large—we risk disappointment with the imperfection and messiness of the world of the particular. The states of mind that open the heart and feel so life-changing don’t necessarily become traits of character. These require long and slow cultivation. If you come to see the beauty of this fourth season, you’ll taste true freedom. No need to dodge when blades are crossed.

Tozan’s Five Ranks, or Seasons, are poems describing the flow of practice through absolute and relative truth. Kyogen Carlson talked...

Seido shares some memories of her teacher and our center’s founder, Kyogen Carlson Roshi, who died suddenly in 2014 at the age of 66. The...