305 – Fundamentos del Dharma: Verdades en las que Confiar Pase lo Que Pase

305 – Dharma Foundations: Truths to Rely on No Matter What

by | Jun 18, 2025 | Buddhist Teachings

Religions and spiritual paths are meant to give you strength and help you find meaning. Many people derive strength and meaning through faith in an all-powerful God who works in mysterious ways but ultimately has your best interests in mind. Buddhism doesn’t teach this kind of faith, but it does call attention to many truths upon which we can rely for strength and meaning, no matter what happens to us personally or in the world. For the purpose of this discussion, I’m going call the truths we can rely on “Dharma Foundations.”

304 – Apoyar la Práctica Zen de las Personas con Capacidades Diferentes (2 de 2)

303 – Supporting the Zen Practice of People with Physical Challenges (1 of 2)

by | May 24, 2025 | Buddhism Today, Buddhist Practice

People with extra physical challenges – disabilities, chronic illnesses, or advanced age – often find it impossible to participate fully in Zen practice without special accommodations. Seated meditation (zazen) can be painful, and the demands of silent meditation retreats (sesshin) can be prohibitive. However, an important part of Zen practice – especially sesshin – is how everyone follows the forms together, doing the same things at the same times. The whole idea is to minimize the need to exercise personal choice, and to use a certain amount of physical discomfort to bring us up against the existential matter of our lives. How can Sanghas support the Zen practice of people with physical challenges while preserving what is supportive to those without them?

302 – Preguntas y Respuestas: Defender lo Correcto y Zazen vs Disociación y Trance

302 – Q&A: Standing Up for What’s Right, and Zazen Versus Dissociation and Trance

by | May 16, 2025 | Listener's Questions

In this extemporaneous Q&A episode, I address these questions: What is the responsibility of Buddhists to stand for what is right? What is the difference between the Buddhist goal of “detaching from clinging and aversion” and the pathological states of detachment from reality called “dissociation?” How would you describe the desirable level of overlap between shikantaza (the zazen of just sitting) and trance?

301 – Teisho: Tienes Que Ver Tu Naturaleza

301 – Teisho: You Have to See Your Nature

by | Apr 30, 2025 | Buddhist Teachings, Zen Teachings

This episode is a Teisho, an encouragement talk that’s meant to be listened to while you are sitting quietly. Zen teachers give Teisho during sesshin, and this amounts to a more formal kind of Dharma talk, almost like a meditation. It’s not meant to be educational. I’m curious as to how it will come off if you listen to it while walking or driving or doing something else. Maybe it’ll be cool. But I recommend sitting still if you’re able. Teisho are generally only given during sesshin and not recorded, but I recreated one from the sesshin I led last week for you.

298 – Framing Your Dharma Practice in a Helpful Way

298 – Framing Your Dharma Practice in a Helpful Way

by | Mar 31, 2025 | Buddhist Practice

Chances are, whether you’re aware of it or not, you have a certain way of framing your Dharma practice. That is, you function using a conceptual framework that defines your relationship to your practice, the intent of that practice, and what is supposedly being transformed by that practice. When you’re centered in the moment, you can practice without framing, but most of the time you’ll be framing things whether you mean to or not. It’s good to be conscious of your framing and choose a framing that’s helpful.

297 – Investigando la Mente Errante

297 – Investigando la Mente Errante

by | Mar 16, 2025 | Spanish Translations

Category: Práctica Budista ~ Translator: Claudio Sabogal Click here for audio + English version of Episode 297   Casi todos los que practican meditación o atención plena se encuentran con el fenómeno de la mente errante: cuando, a...
297 – Investigando la Mente Errante

297 – Investigating the Wandering Mind

by | Mar 15, 2025 | Buddhist Practice

Almost everyone who practices meditation or mindfulness encounters the phenomenon of the wandering mind – when, despite your conscious intention, your mind is filled with thoughts that have nothing to do with your current experience. You can employ various techniques to let go of the thoughts and “bring the mind back” to your meditative object or to the present moment, but often these techniques are applied as if all mind wandering was of the same nature. I investigate different reasons your mind wanders and how they call for different responses.

296 – Preguntas y Respuestas: Paramis, Atención Plena, Karma y Disfrute

296 – Q&A: Paramis, Mindfulness, Karma, and Enjoyment

by | Mar 8, 2025 | Listener's Questions

This is an extemporaneous question-and-answer episode. Do you know the difference between a parami and a paramita? Do I still like to think of mindfulness as “undivided presence?” What about when Buddhists use the idea of karma as an excuse not to take compassionate action? Why can’t our practice include more activities aimed at the cultivation of joy, creativity, and other positive experiences?

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