Already Held: The Journey of Self-Compassion

By Laura Bennett Lately, I’ve been on a journey to be more compassionate towards myself. For me, this has meant learning to offer more compassion towards the thoughts, sensations, emotions, perceptions, and habitual patterns that arise. This journey has also naturally lent itself toward learning how to truly receive compassion. When I say compassion here,…

Not knowing is the most intimate.

  Not Knowing – I would like to start today’s Dharma talk with one of the most famous of the Zen Koans – Attention! Master ​Dizang asks ​Fayan,“Where have you come from?”​Fayan replies, “I pilgrimage aimlessly,”“What is the purpose of your pilgrimage?” asks ​Dizang.“I don’t know,” replies ​Fayan.“Not knowing is the most intimate,” remarked ​Dizang.At…

On Humility: The Path of Studentship

DHARMA TALK by CHRISTOPHER KAKUYO Today, I want to share a few thoughts on humility. Some years ago, I came across a profound teaching by Nubuo Haneda in his book Dharma Breeze. In the first chapter, he recounts the origins of the Shin Buddhist tradition when Shinran meets his teacher, Honen. Here is the passage….

Kintsugi: The Beauty of Imperfection

For Today’s dharma talk, I want to share some ideas and feelings about the beauty of imperfection. To do this, I want to use a metaphor from Japanese material arts, Kintsugi.  Metaphor helps us learn by adding a deeper, more emotive dimension. Metaphor tends to be the language of the heart. For me, kintsugi is…