- You Look So Zen
On a visit to some Buddhists incarcerated on a jail barge, I had to improvise how to practice Zen, just like we always have to improvise our practice.
- When The Buddha Met A Murderer
Everyone deserves a place where we can practice together, and the chance for redemption. A talk I gave at the Village Zendo on December 5, 2019.
- Five Ways to Establish a Rock-Solid Meditation Habit
Meditation can transform your life, but it only works if you sit regularly. You can establish a strong, serious practice following these five methods.
- How To Dissolve The Self
When you act with attention, your self merges with your activity. Watch how the self shifts and moves, and you'll see through the illusion of ego.
- How To Be Free From Greed
We waste our lives chasing empty things. Here's a practice to loosen greed's grip and appreciate this moment. A Zen talk I gave July 31, 2019.
- Are the Six Senses True Reality, Or Not?
Mindfulness reduces worry, but we can go deeper than that. Buddha said we can see through our greedy delusions and know the truth of our lives.
- Meaningless Striving
Each new year, Americans resolve to work harder and be more austere, for no reason. Let's stop torturing ourselves.
- The Day That Yunmen Broke His Foot
The old stories all have the same punchline: the monk was suddenly enlightened. What really happens when we have an experience of insight?
- Rules for Hyenas
If we treat the Zen precepts as a set of rules to obey, that's just conformity. Let's use them instead as a tool for busting the hierarchy!
- The Meteor
What if you knew you had 30 minutes to live? Would you want to be awakened?