A commentary on the Pali Chant Attha dipa which identifies the True Self using the metaphor of Light. This is interpreted in the light of the zen tradition and the Heart Sutra: form is boundlessness. In zen we return our attention inwards – resting attention in the source of awareness itself and realising our True Self as that awareness.

A commentary on the koan which is often shortened to read, “what is your original face before your parents were born?” It gives the background story to the sixth founding teacher and relates the koan to the three steps of zen and the foundation this creates for deep self-acceptance.

The three steps to Zen awakening are (1) to study the self; (2) to forget the self; and (3) to integrate our awakening to reality into our everyday life.

The four Bodhisattva vows are regularly chanted at most Zen centres. We discuss the language and interpretation of the vows and how to make them relevant to our practice. Each of the vows is a perspective on the call to awaken from the self-centred dream to the Reality of just this moment.

Discussion of the duhkha or suffering. This focuses in particular on psychological suffering, the suffering of the separate self and the suffering that is maintained through the actions of the separate self. This includes examining suffering on a personal, interpersonal and social level.

The Buddha taught suffering and the ending of suffering. This talk focuses on the psychological suffering generated by the separate self. It starts with a commentary on the four practice principles and then discusses what we mean by “inquiry” practice.

This cycle of talks takes both the universal myth of the Hero’s Journey from the work of Joseph Campbell and the ten traditional Ox-Herding pictures from Japanese Zen to talk of the stages of Zen Practice.

This cycle of talks takes both the universal myth of the Hero’s Journey from the work of Joseph Campbell and the ten traditional Ox-Herding pictures from Japanese Zen to talk of the stages of Zen Practice.

This cycle of talks takes both the universal myth of the Hero’s Journey from the work of Joseph Campbell and the ten traditional Ox-Herding pictures from Japanese Zen to talk of the stages of Zen Practice.

Three Pillars of Practice by Andrew Tootell