Dharma Talks

A Thursday Night Meander
Seido touches on a number of current happenings in the zendo and how they relate to precept practice including the recent installation of the new Shuso, Komyo, Jukan's Hossen ceremony last week, alongside this week's study of the precept on not killing, but instead,...

Precepts As Path
Seido talks about the way the bodhisattva precepts are firmly rooted in The Four Noble Truths. The Four Noble Truths include recognition of the human experience of suffering called dukkha , its cause as thirst, its end called nirvana, and the path to its end described...

Rohatsu: Three Talks
Below are three talks given by Seido at the time of our joint 2022 Rohatsu retreat with Sangha Jewel Zen Center in Corvallis. Rohatsu commemorates the Buddha's enlightenment under the bodhi tree. Unfortunately, talks during Rohatsu were not recorded except the last....

Tenzo Kyokun: Mushin on How to Cook Your Life
Guest teacher, Abby Mushin Terris, from Sangha Jewel Zen Center unfolds a number of salient passages from Dogen's Tenzo Kyokun including putting low things in low places and high things in high places as well as watching the pot so a mouse doesn't accidentally fall...

Tenzo Kyokun: Kishin – Joyous Mind
Seido talks about the secret ingredient in the soup of practice of joy. While Dogen talks about finding joy in the service of others for the cook, this talk explores other ways we can practice joy and what karmic conditioning gets in the way....

Tenzo Kyokun: Roshin – Motherly Mind
Seido talks about Dogen's advice to his cook to raise up "Roshin," the mind of a loving parent that brings a affectionate care and attention to their child. Roshin is the mind that knows what is needed, which sometimes means self sacrifice and sometimes holding back...

Tenzo Kyokun: Equanimity with Heart
Seido continues with Uchiyama Roshi's commentary on the Tenzo Kyokun where he says that Big Mind, or Daishin, this attitude of equanimity, means that "if we fall into hell, then we need to resolve to see that hell is our home. When we are being boiled in the demon's...

Tenzo Kyokun: Trust and Discernment
The Tenzo Kyokun teaches us a wholehearted approach to life. While we long for that state, what often gets in the way is our lack of trust. In this talk, Seido explores the relationship between trust and discernment, both their "relative" aspect in human development...

Tenzo Kyokun: Big Mind
Seido introduces Kosho Uchiyama's commentary on Dogen's Tenzo Kyokun calling attention to the "relentless devotion to zazen" that Uchiyama's lineage is know for. The talk explores the concept of "Daishin" or "Big Mind" that characterizes the spirit of practice for the...

Tenzo Kyokun: The Importance of Hunger
Seido comments on the theme of hunger coming up as the sangha anticipates Sejiki and studies Dogen's the instructions to the cook. During the "Festival of the Hungry Ghosts," participants feed the insatiable unsettled energy embodied in the "gaki" - mythical beings...