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The Zen Studies Podcast

Sep 28, 2019

Real happiness is unconditional, and is achieved by releasing our suffering. Even though things are rarely how we would like them to be - within, or in our personal lives, or in the greater world - we have the potential to let go of our resistance, grief, or anger, and feel more relaxed, at ease, grateful, and...


Sep 20, 2019

In my enthusiastic endorsement of shikantaza or, "just sitting," I may have given the impression I think a real Zen student would only sit shikantaza, and there’s no place in Zen for paying attention to, learning from, and working with your thoughts and feelings in meditation. I think it's fine to use multiple types...


Sep 11, 2019

So sorry... no time to produce a new episode for you this week, but there's still something for you to listen to! I’ll be giving the Dharma Talk at San Francisco Zen Center this Saturday, Sept 14th. Livestream the talk at 10:15am Pacific, or watch it later, or download it as a podcast. Visit


Sep 6, 2019

I continue study of 13th-century Zen master Dogen’s essay, Bodaisatta Shishobo, "Four Ways Bodhisattvas Embrace Living Beings." In Episode 105 I gave an overview of the essay and defined the bodhisattva’s four “embracing actions:” practicing nongreed, loving words, beneficial action, and “being in the same...


Sep 1, 2019

If we're lucky, our practices of meditation and mindfulness give us some sense of spaciousness, stillness, and silence. What about when we engage in activities more complicated and demanding than potentially calming manual tasks like weeding the garden, sweeping, or washing the dishes? Zen master Dogen teaches us a...