Teachings
You can find all of our weekly Dharma talks for free right here on this page, as well as on our YouTube channel and podcast. Live talks take place every Thursday from 5:30–7:00pm MT, both in-person and on Zoom (sit.mountaincloud.org — password: mountain22). Members receive access to some special archival materials.
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Hyakujo’s “Turning Word” from The Book of Equanimity
March 26, 20151 min read
Episode Description: Roshi Henry presents a case from the Book of Equanimity in which Master Hyakujo’s "turning word" about the law of causation releases an old man into authentic freedom. Hear a magical story about how a man receives healing, love and timeless understanding from a gentle whale. Using personal disclosure and koan explication, Henry shows us how a kensho experience can lead to a dualistic split between "awakening" and "delusion," which ongoing koan study...
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Blue Cliff Record 70, 71, & 72, How does one Speak with Lips and Throat Closed?
March 19, 20151 min read
Episode Description: This talk combines three related Blue Cliff Record cases 70, 71, and 72. We meet Hyakujo, Isan, Goho and Ungan, who grapple with the nature of speech and ultimate understanding. Roshi Henry Shukman draws on his extensive literary background to relate koan structure with narrative storytelling, which includes references to character transformation in Tolstoy’s War and Peace and a discussion of epic poetry’s roots in the shamanic journey. This far-reaching and inspiring teisho is...
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Blue Cliff Record 69, Nansen Draws a Circle
March 12, 20151 min read
Episode Description: This talk delineates the classic koan, Nansen Draws a Circle, Blue Cliff Record Case 69. Roshi Henry describes the brilliant craziness of this koan and draws on wisdom from Dogen’s Genjokoan. The talk explores both the substance and function of the “nameless fact” and concludes by describing Zen’s healing power. Image Credit:This Wikipedia and Wikimedia Commons image is from the user Chris 73 and is freely available here under the creative commons cc-by-sa 3.0 license. Featured Image Credit:By Tangopaso (Own work)...
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Guest Message from Ruben Habito
March 10, 20154 min read
We...are called to an encounter with that which is both so close to us that we can't see it and so far away that we can never reach it. This week we have some words from Roshi Ruben Habito’s recent new book, Zen and the Spiritual Exercises. Ruben was educated within the Jesuit Order in the Philippines, then joined the order as a young man and was sent to Japan, where he found his way,...
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Blue Cliff Record 68, Kyozan and Your Name
March 5, 20151 min read
Episode Description: Continuing with the Blue Cliff Record, Henry presents Case 68, Kyozan and Your Name. The talk explores the point of Zen and shows how each of us is born perfect and complete. Henry relates the experience of kensho or sudden realization and explores the idea of no separation, asking the question: Is there a me and a you?. Image Credit: Evalynn, by Ray Duma, CC By-SA 2.0, from flickr.com Featured Image Credit: Baby, by...
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