In news, student talks, interviews and personal reflections, members of the Hazy Moon Sangha share the ways practice has transformed every aspect of their lives—at work, at home, in relationships, and in handling the change, pain, loss, and fear that all of us face at times. The consistent message from any serious Zen student is that practice works.
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…
Shuso Hossen 2019
Shuso Hossen ceremony for Lailah Dainin Shima and the culmination of Summer Ango 2019.
Pain Versus Suffering
In this excerpt, Hogen points to the power we have to reduce our own suffering. When we entertain fantasies of something “other” than what exists right now—no matter how painful or difficult the situation—our desire to escape from who and where we are actually creates more suffering for ourselves.
Aidan and the Mummy Girl Save the Universe
My first novel, Aidan and the Dragon Girl Save the World, was borne of my love of history and an interest in how dragons are viewed in the east—not as fire-breathing reptiles but as shape-shifting water spirits and protectors of the Dharma.
Now I’ve written a second Aidan novel, inspired by my interest in early Buddhism and the cosmology of ancient Egypt. It’s called Aidan and the Mummy Girl Save the Universe…
Losing My Misery
My name is Honmei and my practice is counting my breath. I’ve been practicing at Hazy Moon for 11 years.
When I started practicing, I did it because I felt like I should. Practice is good for you, like exercise, and I felt a connection to Buddhism…
Kathy Jizo Cummings’ Jukai
A faithful member of the Dewdrop Sangha, Kathy Cummings began her practice in 2013 as she moved toward a time of transition in her life. Since then, she has come together with the sangha in retreats from New Mexico to New York, including multiple visits to the Hazy Moon…
Flowers Fall
“The ambulance took the old man away because he wasn’t feeling good,” my daughter tells me excitedly as I walk through the door from work. I plaster myself against the window to see if this is true. She’s speaking about my neighbor, my friend, a man who has been so kind and attentive to my daughter since the day we brought her home from the hospital…
A Buddha Knows How to Talk
Nyogen Roshi tells us that when he used to resist giving talks, Maezumi Roshi would say: A buddha knows how to talk. My work as an assistant professor requires me to give many presentations on topics related to social development, which is a subject I feel very connected to. However, as long as I can remember, I have been terrified of speaking publicly—especially when I have to say something personal…
Revolving the Sutras
To close out the old and ring in the new, the sangha gathered at the culmination of our Year-End Sesshin for the New Year’s Eve ceremony of revolving the sutras, which has been enacted for generations in our lineage. Hosso Sensei officiated at the service, demonstrating the inherent power and benefaction of the eternal now, […]
Taisho’s Tokudo
In a ceremony that has been replayed over centuries, Patrice Taishō Bucher took the vows of tokudo, or ordination as a Zen Buddhist priest, committing herself forever to a life of service. Karen Maezen Miller was the preceptor in the ceremony, which took place on Dec. 27, 2018 during our Year-End Sesshin.
Forgetting Oneself
Nothing is more difficult for me than sitting in front of my computer to write this. Countless words are running through my head, leaving me unable to settle on the right ones. I’m not a creative writer, and I can’t remember the last time I read a novel. So this is intimidating in an all-encompassing way. When I read beautiful essays written by members of the sangha, it doesn’t only terrify me; it leaves my lips tight and my mouth dry. I don’t how to do this…
Bathing in Nature
A review of Forest Bathing by Dr. Qing Li
Forest Bathing tells us what we instinctively know to be true about being in the natural world: it “can restore our mood, give us back our energy and vitality, and refresh and rejuvenate us.”
