AZC Weekly talks

We can learn to guard our mind and nurture our aspiration by being careful of what we consume.

Source: Zen and the Art of Saving the Planet by Thich Nhat Hanh, Rider London 2021.

What we consume shapes us -- not just the food and drink that nourish our physical body but also the impressions of our five senses, what we long for, and what we think. We can learn to be mindful of our mind/body and be careful about what we consume.

Sources: Zen and the Art of Saving the Planet by Thich Nhat Hanh, Rider London 2021;The Universe is a Green Dragon by Brian Swimme, Bear and Company Publishing, Santa Fe New Mexico 1984.

Teisho by Sensei Richard von Sturmer.

The Milindapañha (lit. 'Questions of Milinda') is a Buddhist text which dates from sometime between 100 BC and 200 AD. It is a dialogue between the Indian Buddhist sage Nāgasena, and the 2nd century BC Indo-Greek king Menander I (Pali: Milinda).

Morality, Awakening and Meditation -- that is, good character, prajna wisdom and daily zazen -- are what is looked for in a Zen teacher.

Teisho by Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede.

All the other precepts we take at Jukai flow from our taking refuge in Buddha (realisation), Dharma (truth) and Sangha (harmony).

Various sources.

Some background on why we receive the sixteen precepts at Matariki. The importance of attending to our often harsh inner speech, and seeing through it.

Source(s): Advice Not GIven by Mark Epstein, Hay House 2018

Some reflections on why we have ceremonies and rituals, and look at some of the legends behind the bathing of the baby Buddha.

A Dharma talk by Sensei Richard von Sturmer.

Texts used: Crooked Cucumber: The Life and Zen Teachings of Shunryu Suzuki by David Chadwick; To Shine One Corner of the World by David Chadwick.

A first-hand case study in working with reactive states of mind.

Source(s): A Fire Runs Through All Things: Zen Koans for Facing the Climate Crisis by Susan Murphy, Shambhala 2023

Comments on ten zen pointers on the practice of welcoming

Source: Article by John Tarrant "How to welcome the end of the world" in Lion's Roar November 2016.