Reverend Jeanette Phillips
Tesshin Roshi used his talk this week to eulogize Jeannette J. Phillips who was one of his clerical colleagues in the Hudson Valley region. Roshi noted that right before her death at 90 years ...
Walking Meditation
This week Tesshin Roshi explored “Buddhist Walking” and what it means for our practice. It is important to note that all schools of Buddhism have some type of walking practice, even if the sty...
Buddhist Culture
Roshi opened his talk this week by telling us that he was invited to give a talk at the United Auto Workers conference on “Safety.” Why would a Zen teacher be invited to talk to a group of aut...
You are Buddha Right Now
Roshi begins this week with a reminder that we have been talking for several weeks about the sixth patriarch, the Platform Sutra. He tells us he could spend an entire year on this easily and ne...
Huineng’s Three Refuges
Tesshin Roshi continued our discussion this week on Huineng and the Platform Sutra.
Roshi opened the Taisho (dharma talk) this week by noting that the Platform Sutra is really all abo...
Turning the Mirror Inward
Tesshin Roshi continued our discussion this week on Huineng and the Platform Sutra. (Red Pine translation)
To reiterate, Roshi suggested that we could consider Huineng a rebel and a ren...
Zen Renegade
Tesshin Roshi opened the Taisho this week by thanking everyone for their hard work and dedication during our second annual Jukai ceremony. Special congratulations were in order for our Jukai c...
What is a Teacher?
Tesshin Roshi announced to the group that a representative from Soto Zen will be visiting the Sangha on Sunday July 23rd. Roshi then noted that in the West, there are three broad group of Zen ...
Dynamic Karma
This week Roshi continued our exploration of Dogen’s perspective on karma. One translation of Dogen’s Shobogenzo we can use is located at: http://www.urbandharma.org/pdf/Shobogenzo.pdf
(sear...
Karma in Action
Tesshin Roshi continued our discussion of karma this week and reiterated how karma is the foundation of our existence and our practice. Roshi started by relating a story about when he was in t...
Karma In This Life
Roshi will be leading us through the study of the concept of “Karma” for the next few weeks. We are commonly told that there is nothing outside of Zen and that Zen is karma. As such everythin...
What Passes?
This week we continued our study of “Records of the Transmission of the Lamp”
https://terebess.hu/zen/textindex.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denkoroku
Roshi started his talk this week...
Who Constrains You?
This week we continued our study of “Records of the Transmission of the Lamp”
https://terebess.hu/zen/textindex.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denkoroku
Roshi reminded us that this koan...
Bodhidharma Sparkles
This week we continued our study of “Records of the Transmission of the Lamp”
https://terebess.hu/zen/textindex.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denkoroku
To reiterate, this collection of...
Transmission
For the next few weeks, Roshi will be focusing on a collection of koans from the “Records of the Transmission of the Lamp”
https://terebess.hu/zen/textindex.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki...
Nothing to Grasp
This week Roshi set out to wrap up Vasubandhu’s Thirty Verses by focusing on the last five lines. He noted the density of this work and commented that he could give a full semester course on e...
Truth
Roshi started this week’s Teisho by noting that our progress through Vasubandhu is taking longer than expected because there is so much meaning packed into each verse. In the previous verses, ...
Spiritual Fuel
This week Tesshin Roshi continued our discussion on Vasubandhu’s Thirty Verses.
Roshi took us through a reiteration of the lists of afflictions and beneficial states listed in Vasubandhu’s ...
Seeds of Consciousness
Tesshin Roshi continued our discussion of the Thirty Verses of Vasubandhu over the past two weeks. He started by remarking on the power and usefulness of having a Sangha when trying to underst...
All in the Mind
Tesshin Roshi started this week’s talk by describing the part of the morning service in a Zen temple where all the names of the ancestors are chanted. The list is pretty long and the chant can...
Wash Your Bowl
This week Roshi led the investigation of Mumonkan Case 7 “Wash Your Bowl” The case is short and is provided below …
A monk said to Jõshû, “I have just entered this monastery.
Please te...
Zen and Creativity
This week Tesshin Roshi used his talk to discuss Zen and the arts. Does an artist use Zen practice to bring out their art or does Zen evoke an artistic desire in the artist? As the group cont...
Aeonic Fire
This week Tesshin Roshi continued our koan study with case 30 from the Book of Serenity. The case is called Dasui’s Aeonic Fire. The case is short and is provided below …
A monk asked Dasui...
Restlessness and Doubt
This week Tesshin Roshi continued our discussion of the Five Hinderances by discussing Restlessness and Doubt. We first started with the hinderance of restlessness. This is a very common hind...
Ill Will and Sloth
This week Tesshin Roshi continued our exploration of the Five Hinderances. Before beginning, Roshi reminded us again that the hinderances are never about external things, rather they are all a...
Happy New Year
Tesshin Roshi opened his talk this week by wishing everyone a happy new year. He reminisced about his time in Japan where every practice center rang their big temple bell 108 times. The sound...
Do Zen Androids Dream of Electric Buddhas
Goroshi used his talk this week to ponder the meaning of Artificial Intelligence from a Buddhist point of view. This week saw the release of yet another advanced “language model” which allows ...
The Way is not Difficult
Tesshin Roshi resumed our training this week by examining the second case from the Blue Cliff Record. This case is commonly known as “The Real Way Is Not Difficult”. Roshi mentioned that this...
Incense
This week Goroshi asked everyone to think and act like the incense we use on the alter. What does it mean to “be like incense?” First, we should note that when we put the incense into the hol...
Nothing Held Back
Tesshin Roshi continued his discussion of Dogen’s Shobogenzo this week. He reminded the group that that Dogen’s work is actually part of a long line of inquiry of the Lotus Sutra which actuall...
The Burning House
This week Goroshi continued his discussion on Dogen’s Shobogenzo which served as a commentary on the Lotus Sutra. Last week Roshi talked about “Hokke Ten Hokke” which essentially reminds us ab...
Round and Round
Tesshin Roshi noted that writers and teachers should work with what they know and like the best. However, for this week, he decided to ignore that advice and start a discussion on something he ...
Light Before Light
Tesshin Roshi opened his talk this week by discussing the Rosh Hashanah / Yom Kipper holidays practiced in the Jewish religion. Part of this tradition in these holidays is reflection and atone...
Form and Emptiness
This week goroshi opened his talk by discussing the forms we use in practice, both words and deeds. If everything is empty, why have forms in our practice? Why do we bow a certain way? Why d...
Old Cow
Roshi used his talk this week to explore case 60 in the Book of Serenity. This case is alternatively known as “Iron Grinder” or “Tetsuma, the Cow” Below is the text …
Ryû Tetsuma came to Is...
Mind of Enlightenment
Roshi continued our discussion this week on Hakuin. He opened the talk by reciting a famous koan ascribed to Hakuin.
“You know the sound of two hands clapping, what sound does one hand ...
Intense Effort – Great Calm
This week Tesshin Roshi began a discussion on Hakuin Roshi who is one of the great Rinzai masters in the Zen tradition. Roshi reminded us that the main thread of our practice is Soto Zen, but ...
No Pursuit No Attainment
Tesshin Roshi opened his talk this week by asking a question – How can you attain a thing without pursuing it. This is an important question in our Zen practice. Why do we show up for Zazen, ...