The Zen Studies Podcast

Dharma Talks (a bit more personal take on Dharma topics)

306 – Teisho: Ordinary Mind Is the Way, Never Apart from This Very Place

by | Jun 30, 2025
306 – Teisho: Ordinary Mind Is the Way, Never Apart from This Very Place

This is a teisho - kind of like a cross between a Dharma Talk and guided meditation. I hope my words will point you toward how the Great Matter - that which we seek to awaken to and manifest - is never apart from this very place. Ordinary mind is the Way, and is buddha itself. But what does this really mean? Not that we can't hope for relief from the turmoil of our minds as we usually experience them! Mind-with-a-capital-M is not equivalent to our thoughts, feelings, emotions, and concepts. Mind is the undisturbed space within which everything arises, so it is always available to us - never apart from this very place.

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

by | Jun 18, 2025
305 – Dharma Foundations: Truths to Rely on No Matter What

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.”

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

by | May 24, 2025
303 – Supporting the Zen Practice of People with Physical Challenges (1 of 2)

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?

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

by | May 16, 2025
302 – Q&A: Standing Up for What’s Right, and Zazen Versus Dissociation and Trance

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?

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301 – Teisho: You Have to See Your Nature

by | Apr 30, 2025
301 – Teisho: You Have to See Your Nature

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.

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298 – Framing Your Dharma Practice in a Helpful Way

by | Mar 31, 2025
298 – Framing Your Dharma Practice in a Helpful Way

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.

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297 – Investigando la Mente Errante

by | Mar 16, 2025
297 – Investigando la Mente Errante

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...

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297 – Investigating the Wandering Mind

by | Mar 15, 2025
297 – Investigating the Wandering Mind

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.

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