09/15/2024, Jiryu Rutschman-Byler, dharma talk at Green Gulch Farm.In this talk given at Green Gulch Farm, Abiding Abbott Jiryu Rutschman-Byler continues to explore four core elements of zazen practice: low belly, upright spine, clear mind, and wide-open welcoming. He focuses in particular on the practice of "clearing the mind," using teachings of …

09/14/2024, Gengyoko Tim Wicks, dharma talk at City Center.In this dharma talk, given at Beginner’s Mind Temple by tanto (head of practice) Gengyoko Tim Wicks, Tim speaks about working with everything that arises in zazen including grief and difficult emotions, for it is all a part of being awake.Por Gengyoko Tim Wicks

09/07/2024, James Ishmael Ford, dharma talk at City Center.This dharma talk was given at Beginner’s Mind Temple’s pop-up zendo at Unity Church on Page Street, by visiting teacher James Ishmael Ford. In the talk, Roshi Ford tells a story from his latest book, “The Intimate Way of Zen: Effort, Surrender, and Awakening on the Spiritual Journey.” In hi…

08/31/2024, Jiryu Rutschman-Byler, dharma talk at City Center.In this talk, Abbot Jiryu describes the fundamental Zen practice of "welcoming everything," and emphasizes the posture - grounded belly, upright spine, and clear mind - that we can care for in order to fully embody and actualize that practice.…

08/30/2024, Chikudo Catherine Spaeth, dharma talk at Tassajara.Por Chikudo Catherine Spaeth

08/28/2024, Shundo David Haye, dharma talk at City Center.In this talk, given at Beginner's Mind Temple, Shundo reflects on a recent visit to Tassajara, which included the monthly Full Moon Ceremony and the Obon Ceremony. He encourages us to remember our place in the ongoing lineage of Buddhas and Ancestors.…

08/28/2024, Pamela Weiss, dharma talk at Tassajara.Por Pamela Weiss

08/27/2024, Jan Willis, dharma talk at Tassajara. In this talk, Jan Willis discusses the conditions around the time of Buddha's lifetime, and how the Buddhist community was created.Por Jan Willis

08/25/2024, Onryu Mary Stares, dharma talk at Green Gulch Farm.In this talk Onryu Mary Stares discusses reality: how our attachments and karma lead us to obscure reality; how practice guides us to seek what is real in each moment.Por Onryu Mary Stares

08/21/2024, Shundo David Haye, dharma talk at Tassajara. In this talk, Shundo explains the elements and significance of the Full Moon Ceremony to those who had participated in it on their arrival day at Tassajara, and encourages everyone to understand their role in creating and sustaining the monastery and the community.…

08/21/2024, Dan Gudgel, dharma talk at City Center.In this dharma talk, given at Beginner’s Mind Temple, Dan uses the Soto Zen standard “Confession” verse to explore the connections between personal and collective karma. The verse is: “All my ancient twisted karma, from beginningless greed, hate and delusion, born through body speech and mind, I no…

08/17/2024, Sokaku Kathie Fischer, dharma talk at City Center.In this dharma talk, given at Beginner’s Mind Temple, Kathie references Eihei Dogen's work, "Receiving the Marrow by Bowing," to tell the stories of important Zen women ancestors in the light of changing demographics over the millennia, and discuss Zen master Dogen's courageous and uncom…

08/14/2024, Roger Hillyard, dharma talk at City Center.This talk was given at Beginner's Mind Temple, by Roger Hillyard. The path is sometimes dark and difficult, sometimes smooth and joyous. It is always circuitous and doesn't proceed in a linear direction, so we cannot resist its call. When we seek the extraordinary we miss what is before us, ben…

08/11/2024, Jiryu Rutschman-Byler, dharma talk at Green Gulch Farm.In this talk Jiryu discusses four fundamental, inter-related aspects of the Zen posture of body and mind which we can care for in sitting and in daily life: 1) grounded in the belly, 2) upright and strong in our spine, 3) clear and empty in our mind, and 4) warmly welcoming of the w…

08/04/2024, Rinso Ed Sattizahn, dharma talk at Green Gulch Farm.An exploration of the the koan: Zhaozhou's Cypress Tree in the Courtyard.Por Rinso Ed Sattizahn

07/31/2024, Jisan Tova Green, dharma talk at City Center.This talk was given at Beginner's Mind Temple, by Tova Green. Tova explores deep listening on the personal, relational, community, and global levels. Investigating the meaning of her dharma name, MyoCho, Wondrous or Subtle Listening, Tova shares stories that express the compassionate nature o…

07/28/2024, Shosan Victoria Austin, dharma talk at Green Gulch Farm.Studying Zen precepts, our tradition transmits a wealth of teachings to help us stop harming at personal and interpersonal levels. At this time in the West, we need to develop our ability to stop supporting harm and evil in groups and systems. Understanding and admitting how we may…

07/21/2024, Dr. Grace Dammann, dharma talk at Green Gulch Farm.Dr. Grace Dammann, a previouse Green Gulch Resident and physician, who was honored by the Dalai Lama for her extraordinary work speaks about the difference between suffering and pain from her experience as a doctor, practitioner and patient.…

07/20/2024, Tenzen David Zimmerman, dharma talk at City Center.This talk was given at one of Beginner's Mind Temple’s pop-up events at Unity Church, by Central Abbot Tenzen David Zimmerman. Dogen Zenji’s beautiful and inspiring essay “Bodaisatta Shishobo” addresses four central practices of a bodhisattva ─ giving, loving speech, beneficial action, …

07/13/2024, Kogen Jamie Howell, dharma talk at City Center.This talk was given by Kogen Jamie Howell at one of Beginner’s Mind Temple’s pop-up events at Unity Church, San Francisco. Jamie discusses his lay (i.e., not ordained clergy) Zen life in both the Rinzai and Soto traditions in the west, highlighting similarities and differences in their appr…

07/06/2024, Peter Coyote, dharma talk at City Center.This talk was given by Zen teacher, actor, poet and artist Peter Coyote. The talk, which Peter describes as “disguised as a dharma-way talk” recounts how the deepening grip of the precepts, as his practice deepened, made a wiser and more effective person, trying to model the life of a Buddha in h…

07/03/2024, Gendo Lucy Xiao, dharma talk at Tassajara.Por Gendo Lucy Xiao 玄道

06/29/2024, Shosan Victoria Austin, dharma talk at City Center.This talk was given by Shosan Victoria Austin at one of Beginner’s Mind Temple’s pop-up events at Unity Church on Page St in San Francisco. Sōtō Zen teaches that compassion underlies wisdom, and wisdom underlies compassion. When we take up the question of how to become compassionate hum…

06/23/2024, Kokyo Henkel, dharma talk at Green Gulch Farm. Case 35 in the Gateless Barrier koan collection tells the story of Qian's spirit being divided between following her heart and being responsible by following obligations. Is one path more true than the other or not?Por Kokyo Henkel

06/22/2024, Shundo David Haye, dharma talk at City Center.In this talk, the last given at Beginner's Mind Temple before the zendo closed for renovation, Shundo David Haye reflects on ideas of home, and taking refuge in the Three Treasures of Buddha, Dharma and Sangha.Por Shundo David Haye

06/16/2024, Ryuko Laura Burges, dharma talk at Green Gulch Farm.Laura talks about how we can practice with grief, loss, and ordinary everyday suffering, She weaves in stories from her recent book from Shambhala, The Zen Way of Recovery, and shares practices that can help us--no matter what we may be recovering from.…

06/15/2024, Sozan Michael McCord, dharma talk at City Center.This talk was given at Beginner's Mind Temple, by Sozan Michael McCord. The Zen Buddhist path can seem like one that is spare, determined and somewhat serious; addressing the primary root of suffering as its main purpose. Yet, the practice is full of examples and instructions about libera…

06/12/2024, Keido Keith Baker, dharma talk at City Center.This talk was given by Keido Keith Baker at Beginner’s Mind Temple, San Francisco. The Han's wooden knock calls countless practitioners to come to the Zendo for meditation. Indoors or outside, it's hard to miss its distinctive urgent rolldown. It's familiar hand-painted message encourages us…

06/09/2024, Jiryu Rutschman-Byler, dharma talk at Green Gulch Farm.In this talk, Jiryu reflects on the practice of shikantaza, just sitting, as a Way that is fundamentally different than technique-based meditation.Por Jiryu Rutschman-Byler

06/08/2024, Mushim Patricia Ikeda, dharma talk at City Center.In this talk, given at Beginner's Mind Temple, San Francisco Zen Center, Muslim Ikeda examines the question, How can Zen practice be of benefit to more people during what many are calling "unprecedented times"? In mid-2024 the news is filled with political divisiveness, threats of fascis…

06/05/2024, Kim Kōgen Dai-Hō Hart, dharma talk at City Center.In this talk, given at Beginner's Mind Temple, San Francisco Zen Center, Kim considers how we are often hindered by our habitual responses, conditioning and fundamental misunderstanding of the substantiality of the phenomenal world. Here, she reflects on how, through Zen practice, we c…

06/01/2024, Tenzen David Zimmerman, dharma talk at City Center.In this talk, given at Beginner's Mind Temple’s monthly one-day sitting, (this time held at Haight Street Art Center) Abbot David shares highlights of his recent trip to Japan to participate in a memorial ceremony and tour in honor of Keizan Jokin, considered the second of Soto Zen’s tw…

05/29/2024, Kazuaki Tanahashi, Mitsue Nagase, dharma talk at City Center.In this discussion, held in the conference center at Beginner's Mind Temple, Mitsue Nagase and Kaz Tanahashi discuss their new book “Gardens of Awakening: A Guide to the Aesthetics, History, and Spirituality of Kyoto's Zen Landscapes.” Selected photographs were exhibited on si…

05/18/2024, Kokyo Henkel, dharma talk at City Center.In this talk, given at Beginner's Mind Temple, Kokyo celebrates the spirit of non-sectarianism within Buddha-Dharma, and explores the similarities and differences between Zen and Vajrayana practices, through the teaching of the nine vehicles of the Tibetan Nyingma School.…

05/15/2024, Dan Gudgel, dharma talk at City Center.In this talk, given at Beginner's Mind Temple, Dōshin Dan Gudgel investigates how using the word and idea of ‘enemy’ affects our every day experience. Dan examines our national, military idea of ‘enemies,’ as well as how modern culture in the U.S. is increasingly using the word and concept of ‘enem…

05/12/2024, Thiemo Blank, dharma talk at Green Gulch Farm. This talk was presented by Thiemo on Mothers Day at the end of an introductory Sesshin (meditation retreat) at Green Dragon Temple.The Investigation of - “the true dragon” (Reality / Thusness) - in Sesshin is likened to the ancient story of the blind men investigating an Elephant. The speak…

05/11/2024, Gengyoko Tim Wicks, dharma talk at City Center.In this talk, given at Beginner's Mind Temple’s monthly one-day sitting, (this time held at Haight Street Art Center) Gengyoko Tim Wicks discusses reincarnation and rebirth, and the relationship that karma has on both of these ancient concepts. In the talk, Tim emphasizes the primacy of reb…

05/08/2024, Eli Brown-Stevenson, dharma talk at City Center.In this talk, given at Beginner's Mind Temple, Eli Brown-Stevenson describes how to find practical application of Buddhist teachings by bringing inquiry and curiosity to the expectations we hold in formal practice as well as the practice of life. The talk contains practical wisdom, Suzuki …

05/05/2024, Jiryu Rutschman-Byler, dharma talk at Green Gulch Farm.Offering a talk on the day of a funeral service for Caroline Meister, Jiryu observes that in the subtle, tender mind that is truly open and present in not-knowing, we cannot even say "alive or dead".Por Jiryu Rutschman-Byler

05/04/2024, Jisho Lisa Beth Hoffman, dharma talk at City Center.In this talk, given at Beginner's Mind Temple, Jisho Lisa Beth Hoffman explores the meaning of refuge and the experience of doing so through teacher, teaching and community - Buddha, Dharma and Sangha. Sharing herexperiences with Heart teacher Surei Darlene Cohen and mentor Ninsen Lee …

05/01/2024, panel discussion at City Center.In this discussion, held in place of the regular Wednesday night dharma talk at Beginner's Mind Temple, Eli Brown-Stevenson leads a discussion featuring Community Village co-founders Caleb Tenenbaum, Nina Raddy, and Richard Bae; and, representing San Francisco Zen Center, resident priest Sozan Michael McC…

04/28/2024, Zoketsu Norman Fischer, dharma talk at Green Gulch Farm.In this talk Zoketsu discusses case 19 of Mumonkan, Nanchuan’s Everyday Mind. Our practice is very plain and ordinary, and yet, the plain and ordinary world is also vast and wide, and when we practice zazen regularly we can begin to live in it with that appreciation. To end his tal…

04/27/2024, Kyoshin Wendy Lewis, dharma talk at City Center.In this talk, given at Beginner's Mind Temple, Kyoshin Wendy Lewis discusses the Zen text "Harmony of Difference and Equality". Written in the 8th century in China, the "Harmony of Difference and Equality" holds significant importance in Zen history. It is chanted daily in many Zen temples…

04/24/2024, Kodo Conlin, dharma talk at City Center.In this talk, given at Beginner's Mind Temple, Kodo Conlin discusses this rich topic. Here, we resolve the distance between speaker and listener to turn the questions, "What is the shape of our practice?" and "How do we stay intimate with Dharma?" Also, haiku by Mitsu Suzuki one day after the 110t…

In this talk, given at Beginner's Mind Temple, Kiku Christina Lehnherr discusses the dharma implications and importance of rest. By being with and clearly seeing the true nature of our bodies and experience, we can allow the fundamental calm of the world to show us what true rest is. Modern culture in the United States has no pause button, but true…

04/17/2024, Anshi Zachary Smith, dharma talk at City Center. In this talk, given at Beginner's Mind Temple, Anshi Zachary Smith digs into the well-known Case 17 of the Blue Cliff Record. Here, we discover that there are unexpected and experientially accurate ways to interpret the original text of Hsiang Lin’s response beyond the usual, “Sitting for…

04/14/2024, Jiryu Rutschman-Byler, dharma talk at Green Gulch Farm.In this talk, Jiryu suggests that by reflecting on the potential of Artificial Intelligence in Buddhism, in the form, for example, of the Suzuki Roshi chatbot, we can be led to renew our commitment to embodied presence, which is the real purpose and effort of Zen practice, and the r…

04/13/2024, Shosan Victoria Austin, dharma talk at City Center.Zen forms work both in clear and hidden ways. In this interactive lecture, given at Beginner's Mind Temple, Shosan Victoria Austin discusses the ancient chants, called dharanis, which sound like magic spells. At a deeper level, they function as rituals that hold teachings. Chanted with …

04/10/2024, Jisan Tova Green, dharma talk at City Center.In this talk, given at Beginner's Mind Temple, Jisan Tova Green speaks of her recent visit to Montana de Silencio, a Suzuki Roshi lineage Zen Center in Medellin, Colombia, where the late Blanche Hartman's name is mentioned daily as "our first woman ancestor in America." Tova's presence as a w…

04/06/2024, Ryuko Laura Burges, dharma talk at City Center.In this talk, given at Beginner's Mind Temple, Ryuko Laura Burges opens the City Center temple’s celebration of Buddha’s Birthday by recounting the story of the Buddha’s birth for the children in attendance, before further unpacking this story for the congregation. Buddha’s early life of pr…