MN Zen Meditation Center: Sunday Talks

Talk given by Bussho Lahn. Sunday Talks from the Zen Meditation Center on Lake Calhoun in Minneapolis, MN. Donations appreciated at MnZenCenter.org.

Talk given by Ben Connelly. The dharma of thusness is intimately transmitted by Buddhas and Ancestors. Now you have it, preserve it well. -Dongshan

Talk given by Bussho Lahn. Engo Zenji's IntroductionWhen even one particle stirs, the whole universe is invloved. When a blossom opens, the world responds. But what do you see when no particle stirs and a blossom does not open? It is like cutting the thread on a spool; one cut and you cut it all. Or it is like dying the thread on a spool; dye it once and you dye it all. Now if you relinquish the complicatioins that affect youand bring out the treasure within you, you will find that everything is all right, above, below, before, and behind. If you have not yet done so, see the following: Case: Whenever he was asked about Buddhism, Master Gutei simply raised a finger.

Talk given by Ted O'Toole. Sunday Talks from the Zen Meditation Center on Lake Calhoun in Minneapolis, MN. Donations appreciated at MnZenCenter.org.

Talk given by Ben Connelly. "Put aside the intellectual practice of investigating words and chasing phrases, and learn to take the backward step that turns the light and shines it inward." - from Fukanzazengi, Universal Recommendation for Zazen by Eihei Dogen

Talk given by Tim Burkett. Hint 1: Engage persistently and wholeheartedly in each activity you deeply care about Hint 2: Become intimate with each negative emotion without repressing or indulging Hint 3: Replace "I am a failure" with "I have not succeeded at this" Hint 4: Notice each "should" or "shouldn't" discarding those that inhibit authenticity Hint 5: Disempower hidden failure or anguish through appropriate sharing

Talk given by Bussho Lahn. "A person of the Way fundamentally does not dwell anywhere. The white clouds are fascinated with the green mountain's foundation. The bright moon cherishes being carried along with the flowing water. The clouds part and the mountain appears. The moon sets and the water is cool. Each bit of autumn contains vast interpenetration without bounds. Every dust is whole without reaching me; the ten thousand changes are stilled without shaking me. If you sit here with stability, then you can freely step across and engage the world with energy... Always arriving everywhere without being confused, gentle without hesitation, the perfected person knows where to go." - Hongzhi, "Practice Instructions," from Cultivating the Empty Field, translated by Taigen Dan Leighton

Talk given by Tiim Burkett. Failure comes part and parcel with invention. It's not optional. We understand that and believe in failing early, and iterating until we get it right. Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon

Talk given by Dokai Georgesen. Talk by guest speaker Dokai Georgesen, the Guiding Teacher of Hokyoji Zen Practice Community

Talk given by Ben Connelly. "This very mind is Buddha." - Mazu "Ordinary mind is the way." - Nanquan "The mind of the great sage of India is intimately transmitted." - Shitou "Bring me your mind." - Bodhidharma

Talk given by Ted O'Toole. Everything's alright, form is emptiness and emptiness is form, and we're here forever, in one form or another, which is empty. Everything's alright, we're not here, there, or anywhere. Everything's alright, cats sleep. - Jack Kerouac

Talk given by Tim Burkett. A practitionaer exclaims, "Heaven, earth and I have the same root; myriad things are one body. Isn't this marvelous?" Master Nanchuan comments, "People these days see this flower in a dream." Master Yuan Wu adds, "Lead him to the edge of a ten-thousand foot cliff and give him a push, causing him to FALL AWAY. If you were pushed over on level ground, you would be unable to COMPLETE FALL. Like a person in a dream: though you want to awaken, you can't; called by another, you wake up." Chuang Tzu: Last night I dreamed I was a butterfly flitting from flower to flower; Or am I a butterfly now dreaming he is Chuan Tzu flitting from word to word. This is called the transformation of things.

Talk given by Tim Burkett. Wild Geese You do not have to be good. You do not have to walk on your knees for a hundred miles through the desert repenting. You only have to let the soft animal of your body love what it loves. Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine. Meanwhile the world goes on. Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain are moving across landscapes, over the prairies and the deep trees, the mountains and the rivers. Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the blue air, are headiing home again. Whoever you are, no matter how lonely, the world offers itself to your imagination, calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting over and over announcing your place in the family of things. -- Mary Oliver

Talk given by Susan Nelson. Sunday Talks from the Zen Meditation Center on Lake Calhoun in Minneapolis, MN. Donations appreciated at MnZenCenter.org.

Talk given by Bussho Lahn. Katagiri Roshi once advised a student here at MZMC to pray. The student asked, "Who am I prayinig to?" Roshi answered, "It doesn't matter. When you pray, just pray."