Zencare Podcast

“Part of our practice is to educate ourselves about history but also about how we work with our rage; how we work with our feelings of difference.”   On May 30th, 2021, the 100th anniversary of the Tulsa Massacres, Koshin Paley Ellison discusses the importance of Right View, the first step in the Buddha’s Eightfold […]

The post How Do You Stop the Fighting Across the River? | Koshin Paley Ellison appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“What do you do in the face of horror, the face of fear, the face of the unknown? How do we give each other the courage to dig into curiosity and generosity?”   As conflicts in the Middle East spawn rising tension and animosity, Koshin Paley Ellison addresses the necessary strength one needs to maintain […]

The post No Beginning and No End: What Do You Do in the Face of Fear? | Koshin Paley Ellison appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“How can my actions today foster and nourish other people’s spiritual lives?”   Drawing upon Case 33 of The Book of Equanimity, Koshin details the interaction between Sanshô and Seppô, in which the younger monk addresses his senior with contempt. This story illuminates the need for skillful means, but what is skillful means? Does the […]

The post What is Skillful Means? | Koshin Paley Ellison appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“Treading the Mountain Path,  The Violets Fill My Heart, With indefinable gracefulness. Though no one pays any attention to the violets along the path, they still bloom, quietly beautifully elegantly.“   —Basho   In this recent dharma talk, Chodo Robert Campbell inquires how we take notice of details in our life that we otherwise may […]

The post The Unborn Mind | Chodo Robert Campbell appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“The world is a beautiful place to be born into, if you don’t mind a touch of hell.”   On one of the final days of our last practice period, Koshin Paley Ellison discusses the importance of getting up, even after failing miserably. He also asks us to examine our impact on others, and inspired […]

The post What will the Zen Center be in 450 years? | Koshin Paley Ellison appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“But the curse of this charm is exile from the unlucky, how gifts make you deaf to the sudden shout   of a man camped in the ravine, make you blind to the dirty face of a woman with a cardboard sign.   Without hunger, it’s easy to be heartless. Without hurt, you are disabled.” […]

The post The Curse of the Charmed Life | Chodo Robert Campbell appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“There is not a single thing that is not Buddha.”   On the night after the center’s first Shuso empowerment, Chodo Robert Campbell discusses the importance of the Shuso, or senior student. As someone who had gone through this training period himself with its many humble responsibilities, he explains how the title and ceremony are […]

The post What is a Shuso? (Shuso Empowerment) | Chodo Robert Campbell appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“We are here to feel all of the waves, from the great joys to the great sorrows.”   In this Sunday morning dharma talk, Koshin Paley Ellison discusses the need and the difficulty of opening and closing (when appropriate) to life. As he describes it, opening and the Bodhisattvic vow are difficult to do when […]

The post How Do We Consider What Is Spiritual? | Koshin Paley Ellison appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“This practice is about a daily struggle!”   Given on February 28th, the 47th day of our Commit to Sit practice: In that day’s source text, the Soto Zen founder, Dogen Zenji, tells us, “At the top of a 100 foot pole, take one step further!” Reflecting on this teaching and thinking of his own […]

The post Be Determined: Letting Go of Attachment | Koshin Paley Ellison appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

Sensei Chodo gives a talk on the importance of virya, the sanskrit word for strength or energy, and how it can be used when the forces of Mara (depression, ill-temper, addictive behavior) attempt to seduce you.

The post What Happens When Mara Shows Up In Your Life? | Robert Chodo Campbell appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.