Blue Cliff – Page 2 – Mountain Cloud Zen Center

Dharma Talk: “The Great Matter: Arriving in the Light of Day” with Valerie Forstman

Fresh home from a memorial service for a beloved mentor and on the heels of the flooding in Texas, Valerie turns to case 41 of the Hekiganroku or Blue Cliff

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Dharma Talk: “The Great Matter: Arriving in the Light of Day” with Valerie Forstman

Fresh home from a memorial service for a beloved mentor and on the heels of the flooding in Texas, Valerie turns to case 41 of the Hekiganroku or Blue Cliff

Dharma Talk: Love and Loss in a Seamless World with Valerie Forstman

This talk is offered in gratitude for the life of Johanna Sindelar, a long-time sangha member who dedicated over a decade of service to Mountain Cloud. As a tribute to

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Dharma Talk: “Listen to the Heart of Things” with Maria Reis Habito

In this talk, Maria sheds light on how listening to the voice of a bird or the sound of rain can bring us fully back home to our true nature.

Dharma Talk: “Listen to the Heart of Things” with Maria Reis Habito

In this talk, Maria sheds light on how listening to the voice of a bird or the sound of rain can bring us fully back home to our true nature.

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Dharma Talk: “The Year of the Snake” with Valerie Forstman

On this first day of the Lunar New Year with the world in turmoil, Valerie turns to case 22 of the Blue Cliff Record, “Seppo’s ‘Poisonous Snake.’” What life-giving poison

Valerie Forstman: Zen’s Subverting Impulse: Overturning the One

Valerie begins this Halloween night teisho referencing Colleen’s Wednesday Wisdom talk based in part on Kamilah Majied’s book “Joyfully Just.” Colleen invited us to weave wonder, joy, and resilient compassion

Valerie Forstman: A Preaching in Accordance

Valerie begins this teisho noticing the full moon, The Hunter’s Moon, rising in the night sky. Dogen’s writings include several aspects of the moon as realization, one drop of water

Valerie Forstman: Complete Exposure of the Golden Wind

Valerie begins this teisho with the reminder that we are here, right where we are, as is everything else, nothing excluded. She recounts driving to Telluride last week and seeing

Valerie interviews scholar David Hinton

Valerie interviews scholar and author David Hinton about his new book, “The Blue Cliff Record.” David speaks about several fascinating topics, for example “absence” and “presence.” Absence, David says, is

Valerie Forstman: Case 37 of Hekiganroku (Blue Cliff Record)

In this talk, Valerie weaves through our Zen inheritance from Shakymuni Buddha, to Prajnatara to her disciple Bodidharma, to Bodidharma’s disciple, to Baso and his student, Banzan, and here to

Valerie Forstman: Celebration of Sister Elaine MacIness

This teisho is given on the 100th birthday of Sister Elaine MacIness. Valerie shares a sketch of the remarkable life and work of Sister Elaine who was a Roman Catholic

Valerie Forstman: Leaping into Here and Now

In this teisho, Valerie takes up the important koan, “Three pounds of flax.” This is case 12 in the Hekiganroku or Blue Cliff Record and also appears as case 18

Valerie Forstman: Layman Pang’s Snowflakes

Valerie begins by reminding us of the wide reach of our practice. While there are innumerable expressions, there is but one fact. According to Dogen, we may have only an

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