In this excerpt from a wide-ranging talk, Nyogen Roshi emphasizes the importance of continuous practice for the practitioner who aspires to true liberation from suffering. He also cautions us not to see the imperative of “home-leaving” as necessarily involving “shaving our heads and putting on a funny costume.” True home-leaving, he tells us, means freeing ourselves from the “nest” of delusional beliefs, opinions and preferences…
Home
Answers for an Authentic Life
A review of Zen: The Authentic Gate by Koun Yamada Roshi
An old friend passed away this morning. I wasn’t aware he had suffered a stroke two weeks earlier, so I was shocked to hear that he was gone. A silent pause seems to follow news like this, then my mind fills with questions…
Ordinary Mind is the Way
Ego’s job is to make things seem solid and safe, but ego’s sense is always delusional. When we see that whatever ground we hold onto in our delusional mind keeps us separate, then we can enter into this world of oneness. The world of oneness exists here now. It cannot be reached conceptually…
On Turning TEN
Reflections from the Sensei and Sangha of the Black Scorpion Temple on its 10th anniversary.
Already 10 years have passed since the Eye-Opening Ceremony of the Black Scorpion Temple in Tepotzlan, Mexico…
The Bodhisattva Precepts
When we receive the precepts we are not given something that exists outside ourselves. To truly receive the precepts is to realize your true nature, revealing your life as the very body, form, and functioning of the enlightened state. — Maezumi Roshi
How to Meditate
Learn the basics of Zen meditation in less than five minutes. Clear, step-by-step meditation instruction, as practiced at the Hazy Moon.
Sewing the Rakusu: A Formless Field of Self-Observation
In our Japanese Zen lineage the precept-taking ceremony is called Jukai. Those who wish to take Jukai begin by sewing a Rakusu, a bib-like garment assembled from cloth strips. The practice emerged from the custom set by the Buddha, whose followers sewed their own robes. On the back of the Rakusu, the teacher writes the Dharma name chosen for the student…
Every Moment is an Opportunity
Years ago, after a decade of practicing law as a partner in a workaholic, intense, and very adversarial corporate New York law firm, I drastically shifted gears and took a job as General Counsel for a nonprofit social services organization. A major impetus behind this terrifying change—with its resulting 95 percent cut in pay—was a […]
Ordinary, Extraordinary Life
Although chronologically I’m in the early winter of my life and older than most students at the Hazy Moon, five years of practice here is helping to shift my outlook. I know I don’t want to grow old simply chasing pleasures while waiting for the end. My life before I arrived at the Hazy Moon […]
Maezumi’s 3 Admonitions
Luckily for me, my teacher Nyogen Roshi keeps repeating the same thing over and over again. (I’m beginning to realize that’s what teachers do.) In nearly every one of his weekly dharma talks he ends up reciting a set of instructions given to him by his teacher Maezumi Roshi in the early days of his training.
The 49th Day
On this, the 49th day of your passing.
I’ve had a few people ask me, “How do Buddhists grieve?” Of course, the answer is simple. Like everyone else…
This Is Where I Am Today
Patrice Taisho Bucher’s poignant talk about caring for her elderly parents in her hometown of New Orleans reminds us that serious Zen practice can sometimes feel like trying to be quiet when you’re caught in a whirlwind. But the rewards are priceless. When she is able to get quiet, Taisho sees that her mother, who […]
