by SJZC Administrator | Sep 24, 2024
The stillness of the afternoon just now, the silence that is filtering through the stream of sunlight is just freely offered. Distant children’s voices. What else is freely offered at this very moment? We have to stop to notice. It’s not so much that we have to...
by SJZC Administrator | Sep 16, 2024
Once a monk asked Master Shirto, what are monks supposed to do? Shirto said, “Why are you asking me?” The monk said, “If I don’t ask you, how will I find the truth?” Shirto said, “Are you sure you have lost it?” How are we to...
by SJZC Administrator | Sep 9, 2024
From Shinei… What is a thought? What is it made of? Is it true? In Zen practice, we emphasize releasing the story and touching our experience directly, before concept. A thought about something is like a painting of a glass of water. It is not water and will...
by SJZC Administrator | Aug 21, 2024
How often in a day do you just stop? Not to rest, not to turn around, but just to stop to experience stopping. This is a wonderful Zen practice to pepper the day with. Stop. Physically. Experience the stillness that is so much more apparent when you have been moving...
by SJZC Administrator | Aug 12, 2024
Why leave behind the seat in your own home to wander in vain though the dusty realms of other lands? If you make one misstep, you stumble past what is right in front of you. ~Dogen Zenji Soten and I just returned from a trip wandering the dusty lands of Peru. We...
by SJZC Administrator | Aug 5, 2024
Impermanence is one of the unalterable marks of conditioned existence. Let’s just call it change. It’s an awareness practice that’s always at hand. We can appreciate how different each moment is from the moment before. Conditions change and condition what...
