Guest

Ryan Lee Wong is author of the novel Which Side Are You On, a finalist for the PEN/Hemingway Award for Debut Novel. He lived for two years at Ancestral Heart Temple and is the Administrative Director of Brooklyn Zen Center.

Some of Ryan's publications include:

• Which Side Are You On, his novel published in 2023. 
• Every Past Life All At Once, a critical essay on the films Past Lives and Everything Everywhere All At Once on The AMP.
• The Buddha on TV: Nam June Paik's fraught relationship to Buddhism, on PBS: American Masters

Check out his website to read more and stay updated.

IG: @ryanlwong 

Guest

Ryan Lee Wong is author of the novel Which Side Are You On, a finalist for the PEN/Hemingway Award for Debut Novel. He lived for two years at Ancestral Heart Temple and is the Administrative Director of Brooklyn Zen Center.

Some of Ryan's publications include:

• Which Side Are You On, his novel published in 2023. 
• Every Past Life All At Once, a critical essay on the films Past Lives and Everything Everywhere All At Once on The AMP.
• The Buddha on TV: Nam June Paik's fraught relationship to Buddhism, on PBS: American Masters

Check out his website to read more and stay updated.

IG: @ryanlwong 

Your Host

REVEREND DANA TAKAGI (she/her) is a retired professor of Sociology and zen priest, practicing zen since 1998. She spent 33 years teaching sociology and Asian American history at UC Santa Cruz, and she is a past president of the Association for Asian American Studies. 

Funie Hsu, Chenxing Han, and Duncan Ryūken Williams are the co-organizers of May We Gather, a collaborative project of commemorative healing, by and for Asian American Buddhists and their spiritual friends. What began in 2022 as a response to the uptick in violence and hate towards Asian Americans, has continued into 2024, as a second iteration of May We Gather, this time in the form of ritual memorial, and also as a precious and much needed space for gathering and community. In this interview, the three co-organizers share their reflections on the 2024 event.

Watch the entire live stream recording of May We Gather 2024.

Learn more about May We Gather.

GUESTS:

FUNIE HSU (she/they) is an Associate Professor of American studies at San Jose State University whose transdisciplinary research interests are shaped by their background as a former public elementary school teacher and a Taiwanese American heritage Buddhist from a working class, multilingual family. Look for their upcoming article in the Review of Education, Pedagogy and Cultural Studies which examines contemporary challenges to mindfulness in US K-12 public schools within the framework of White Christian nationalism, particularly with the perpetuation of positioning Asians and Buddhism as heathen, immoral, and a threat to the US.

CHENXING HAN (she/her) is an author, educator, and speaker whose work explores the possibilities that emerge at the intersections of Buddhism, Asian America, spiritual care, and creative expression. She is the author of Be the Refuge: Raising the Voices of Asian American Buddhists and One Long Listening: A Memoir of Grief, Friendship, and Spiritual Care.

DUNCAN RYŪKEN WILLIAMS (he/him) was ordained as a Soto Zen Buddhist priest at Kotakuji Temple (Nagano, Japan) in 1993. He served as a Buddhist chaplain at Harvard University, where he received his Ph.D. in 2000. Currently, he serves as a priest at Zenshuji Soto Mission in Los Angeles and Professor of Religion at the University of Southern California. He is the author of American Sutra: A Story of Faith and Freedom in the Second World War and The Other Side of Zen: A Social History of Soto Zen Buddhism in Tokugawa Japan. 

HOST

REV. LIÊN SHUTT (she/they) is a recognized leader in the movement that breaks through the wall of American white-centered convert Buddhism to welcome people of all backgrounds into a contemporary, engaged Buddhism. As an ordained Zen priest, licensed social worker, and longtime educator/teacher of Buddhism, Shutt represents new leadership at the nexus of spirituality and social justice, offering a special warm welcome to Asian Americans, all BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, immigrants, and those seeking a “home” in the midst of North American society’s reckoning around racism, sexism, homophobia, and xenophobia. Shutt is a founder of Access to Zen (2014). You can learn more about her work at AccessToZen.org. Her new book, Home is Here: Practicing Antiracism with the Engaged Eightfold Path. See all her offerings at EVENTS

Rev. Dana shares some of the ways she practices with grief.

Mentioned in the episode:
World Central Kitchen (website)

Dai Hi Shin Dharani (Sutra of Great Compassion) (text)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vjSzOHqYBK4 (video)
(read this blog post by Dana: https://danatakagizenlife.squarespace.com/blog)

Enmei Jukku Kannon Gyo (Well-Being Chant) (Access to Zen text and audio)


NEW Co-Host: Reverend Dana Takagi
Dana (she/her) is a retired professor of Sociology and also a zen priest. She spent 33 years teaching sociology and Asian Am history at UC Santa Cruz, she is a past president of the Association for Asian American Studies.  Zen practice since 1998.

Check out more of Dana's work:
2022: Sutra and Bible: an Interview with Duncan Ryūken Williams
2020: Most Intimate, Ordinary Way, Recollections of Katherine Thanas  (co-eds. with Eugene Bush; 2nd printing 2022)

NEW Co-Host: Reverend Dana Takagi
Dana (she/her) is a retired professor of Sociology and also a zen priest. She spent 33 years teaching sociology and Asian Am history at UC Santa Cruz, she is a past president of the Association for Asian American Studies.  Zen practice since 1998.

Check out more of Dana's work:
2022: Sutra and Bible: an Interview with Duncan Ryūken Williams
2020: Most Intimate, Ordinary Way, Recollections of Katherine Thanas  (co-eds. with Eugene Bush; 2nd printing 2022)
Mentioned in the episode, her 1993 book on affirmative action: "The Retreat from Race: Asian American Admissions and Racial Politics"

https://danatakagizenlife.squarespace.com/


This season, we will have a new focus: Uplifting and Forwarding Asian American/Asian Diasporic Buddhist Experiences in the West.

With our guests and audience, we will explore the specificities of Asian American/Asian Diasporic experiences.  We take as given that there are generational differences (hence the historical moment matters!) and we hope to also delve into Asian family norms and values, our inchoate understanding of ancestor worship, issues of identity, representation, stereotypes about sexuality and sexual identity,  and Asian American depression.   

A theme we'll be using to help guide our conversations is The Disquiet - a term we are adapting from writer/poet Fernando Pessoa (The Book of Disquiet) - which in our view signals a complex recognition of self, mind, and body.  The evidence for the foregoing includes scholarly research indexed in aggregate statistics on depression, youth suicide, and other issues in immigrant or first-generation families. While Asian Americans are not alone in experiencing trauma, the racial languages and discourses of othering are different for us than for other groups.    

What do we hope is the outcome of this podcast?  Our first aim is to give voice to the range and depth of Buddhism in Asian and Asian American generations.  We hope that in doing so, we help to shine a light on the limited or myopic envisioning of race in primarily white sanghas. Asian and Asian American diasporic truths about practice are a teaching for contemporary dharma organizations and centers. We recognize the depth and range of Asian and Asian Diasporic Buddhists is a wisdom mirror for organized Buddhism in the West. 

Co-Host: REV. LIÊN SHUTT (she/they) is a recognized leader in the movement that breaks through the wall of American white-centered convert Buddhism to welcome people of all backgrounds into a contemporary, engaged Buddhism. As an ordained Zen priest, licensed social worker, and longtime educator/teacher of Buddhism, Shutt represents new leadership at the nexus of spirituality and social justice, offering a special warm welcome to Asian Americans, all BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, immigrants, and those seeking a “home” in the midst of North American society’s reckoning around racism, sexism, homophobia, and xenophobia. Shutt is a founder of Access to Zen (2014). You can learn more about her work at AccessToZen.org. Her new book, Home is Here: Practicing Antiracism with the Engaged Eightfold Path. See all her offerings at EVENTS

info.access2zen@gmail.com

Rest in this meditation with Rev. Liên, Creator, Producer, & Co-host of ODA, as we transition Seasons. Offered at her weekly Access to Zen Meditation Group. Join us!

REV. LIÊN SHUTT (she/they) is a recognized leader in the movement that breaks through the wall of American white-centered convert Buddhism to welcome people of all backgrounds into a contemporary, engaged Buddhism. As an ordained Zen priest, licensed social worker, and longtime educator/teacher of Buddhism, Shutt represents new leadership at the nexus of spirituality and social justice, offering a special warm welcome to Asian Americans, all BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, immigrants, and those seeking a “home” in the midst of North American society’s reckoning around racism, sexism, homophobia, and xenophobia. Shutt is a co-founder of Buddhists of Color (1998) and founder of Access to Zen (2014). You can learn more about her work at AccessToZen.org. Her new book, Home is Here: Practicing Antiracism with the Engaged Eightfold Path. See all her offerings at EVENTS

Listen to this really amazing discussion between the 4 hosts on themes and highlights from all our interviews in Season 2. Listening will "make" you want to go listen to all of our wonderful guest teachers again! Or, check out the ones you've missed!

9 bows of love and appreciation for all the Hosts of Season 2!
1. LAMA KARMA YESHE CHÖDRÖN is a scholar, teacher, and translator of Tibetan Buddhism at Rigpe Dorje Institute at Pullahari Monastery in Kathmandu, Nepal and co-founder of Prajna Fire. In addition to Opening Dharma Access, Lama Yeshe co-hosts Prajna Sparks, a podcast for listening to, contemplating, and meditating on the Buddhadharma. Check out Lama Yeshe's articles published in Buddhadharma: The Practitioner's Guide, Lion's Roar Magazine, and Tricyle Magazine. Join the Prajna Fire global community and follow Lama Yeshe on Instagram @karmayeshechodron.
2. SISTER PEACE spent five years in government work before realizing that something was missing. Feeling spiritually bereft, she began practicing at the Washington Mindfulness Community where she encountered the teachings of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh. Compelled by his teachings, she relocated in 2006 to the Plum Village Monastery in France to deepen her mindfulness practice and where she was ordained a Buddhist nun in 2008, and received the Dharma Lamp Transmission in 2017. Sister Peace currently resides in Memphis, TN, where she practices Engaged Buddhism. Sister Peace's writing with Parallax Press.
3. DALILA BOTHWELL (she/her) is a Dharma practitioner in the Insight Meditation/Theravada Buddhist tradition and a graduate of Spirit Rock's Community Dharma Leader Program.  She served as Deputy Director of New York Insight Meditation Center for nearly a decade where she learned the priceless value of sangha and the role relationships play in embodying the teachings and in creating kinder human beings.  With a formal education in food and nutrition, her practice meets at the intersection of physical and emotional wellbeing while being Black and queer and her love of recovery, nature, community, and justice. A native of the Southwest, Dalila currently lives in Papago / Tohono O'odham territory in Arizona with her handsome pup, Brisco. www.dalilabothwell.com / IG: @moonearthlove
4. REV. LIÊN SHUTT (she/they) is a recognized leader in the movement that breaks through the wall of American white-centered convert Buddhism to welcome people of all backgrounds into a contemporary, engaged Buddhism. As an ordained Zen priest, licensed social worker, and longtime educator/teacher of Buddhism, Shutt represents new leadership at the nexus of spirituality and social justice, offering a special warm welcome to Asian Americans, all BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, immigrants, and those seeking a “home” in the midst of North American society’s reckoning around racism, sexism, homophobia, and xenophobia. Shutt is a co-founder of Buddhists of Color (1998) and founder of Access to Zen (2014). You can learn more about her work at AccessToZen.org. Her new book, Home is Here: Practicing Antiracism with the Engaged Eightfold Path. See all her offerings at EVENTS

A 30 minute guided meditation led by Solwazi Johnson at Spirit Rock Meditation Center. It was part of a larger talk he gave called "The Middle Seat." This recording is from DharmaSeed.org. Listen to our latest conversation with Solwazi "What's Values Got to Do With It?" to hear more.

GUEST

Solwazi Johnson (he/him) teaches mindfulness meditation classes and leads mindfulness meditation retreats and workshops throughout the U.S. and the world. He has practiced mindfulness meditation for over 25 years, focusing on Vipassana since 2003. In addition, he has studied and practiced meditation in many places, including Thailand, Burma, India, and South Africa. He is a graduate of Spirit Rock's Community Dharma Leaders' Training and Spirit Rock's four-year Retreat Teacher Training. In addition, for over five years, he served as the guiding volunteer teacher for the Prison Buddhist Ministry/Mindfulness Meditation Program in a Federal Prison located in Englewood, CO. He is currently with the Mindfulness Mentor Teacher Certification Program.

Solwazi Johnson has a laughter-filled conversation with Dalila Bothwell about his many life experiences before finding the Dharma, and how he believes the Dharma is for every person interested in freedom.

GUEST

Solwazi Johnson (he/him) teaches mindfulness meditation classes and leads mindfulness meditation retreats and workshops throughout the U.S. and the world. He has practiced mindfulness meditation for over 25 years, focusing on Vipassana since 2003. In addition, he has studied and practiced meditation in many places, including Thailand, Burma, India, and South Africa. He is a graduate of Spirit Rock's Community Dharma Leaders' Training and Spirit Rock's four-year Retreat Teacher Training. In addition, for over five years, he served as the guiding volunteer teacher for the Prison Buddhist Ministry/Mindfulness Meditation Program in a Federal Prison located in Englewood, CO. He is currently with the Mindfulness Mentor Teacher Certification Program.


HOST

Dalila Bothwell (she/her) is a Dharma practitioner in the Insight Meditation/Theravada Buddhist tradition and a graduate of Spirit Rock's Community Dharma Leader Program.  She served as Deputy Director of New York Insight Meditation Center for nearly a decade where she learned the priceless value of sangha and the role relationships play in embodying the teachings and in creating kinder human beings.  With a formal education in food and nutrition, her practice meets at the intersection of physical and emotional wellbeing while being Black and queer and her love of recovery, nature, community, and justice. A native of the Southwest, Dalila currently lives in Papago / Tohono O'odham territory in Arizona with her handsome pup, Brisco.

To connect with Dalila in other ways:
www.dalilabothwell.com
IG: @moonearthlove

A Dharma Talk by Grace Song. Perfect for the beginning of 2024!

GUEST:
Grace Song is an ordained Won Buddhist Kyomunim, meditation teacher, and advocate of interfaith dialogue. She serves as the Chair of the Won Buddhist Studies Department at the Won Institute of Graduate Studies. She has traveled to many countries to present and lead workshops and retreats on interfaith dialogue, social justice, mindfulness in education, and spiritual practice in daily life. She is committed to embodying the truth of interconnection and invests her time putting into practice her belief that renewing society starts with renewing our inner lives.

Social Media with Grace:
https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/14/3/369
https://tricycle.org/article/timeless-son/
https://tricycle.org/article/mindful-journaling/

Connect with her at:https://www.gracesangjinsong.com

An engaging conversation with Grace about creating  space for self, community, & collective inclusion for 21st Century Dharma.

GUEST:
Grace Song is an ordained Won Buddhist Kyomunim, meditation teacher, and advocate of interfaith dialogue. She serves as the Chair of the Won Buddhist Studies Department at the Won Institute of Graduate Studies. She has traveled to many countries to present and lead workshops and retreats on interfaith dialogue, social justice, mindfulness in education, and spiritual practice in daily life. She is committed to embodying the truth of interconnection and invests her time putting into practice her belief that renewing society starts with renewing our inner lives.

Social Media with Grace:
https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/14/3/369
https://tricycle.org/article/timeless-son/
https://tricycle.org/article/mindful-journaling/

Connect with her at: https://www.gracesangjinsong.com

HOST
Rev. Liên Shutt (she/they) is a recognized leader in the movement that breaks through the wall of American white-centered convert Buddhism to welcome people of all backgrounds into a contemporary, engaged Buddhism. As an ordained Zen priest, licensed social worker, and longtime educator/teacher of Buddhism, Shutt represents new leadership at the nexus of spirituality and social justice, offering a special warm welcome to Asian Americans, all BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, immigrants, and those seeking a “home” in the midst of North American society’s reckoning around racism, sexism, homophobia, and xenophobia. Shutt is a co-founder of Buddhists of Color (1998) and founder of Access to Zen (2014). As the creator, producer, and host, she launched a podcast series, “Opening Dharma Access: Listening to BIPOC Teachers,” in 2021. In Season 2, she hosts with Lama Karma Yeshe Chödrön, Sister Peace ,and Dalila Bothwell. You can learn more about her work at AccessToZen.org

Her new book, Home is Here: Practicing Antiracism with the Engaged Eightfold Path. See all her offerings at EVENTS

Praise to Tārā with Twenty-One Verses of Homage (Skr. Namastāraikaviṃśati­stotra­guṇa­hitasahita) is a liturgy that consists of twenty-seven verses of praise and reverence dedicated to the deity Tārā. The first twenty-one verses are at once a series of homages to the twenty-one forms of Tārā and a poetic description of her physical features, postures, and qualities.
    -  84000 Reading Room

Chanted by Pema Khandro Rinpoche and Buddhist Studies Institute dharma friends, using the English translation and melody arranged by the  Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition.

The English text used in this practice, with accompanying Tibetan phonetics, is available for free pdf download here, through the courtesy of Maitripa College of Portland, Oregon and the FPMT.

.................................................................

PEMA KHANDRO RINPOCHE is an internationally renowned teacher and scholar of Buddhist philosophy. She is the founder of Ngakpa International and its three projects, The Buddhist Studies Institute, Dakini Mountain and the Yogic Medicine Institute.

Visit Khandro-la's website for more resources
and learn more about the Buddhist Studies Institute here.   
You can find Khandro-la on social media on:
Facebook
Instagram
X (formerly Twitter)

--------------------------------------------

HOST LAMA KARMA YESHE CHÖDRÖN is a scholar, teacher, and translator of Tibetan Buddhism at Rigpe Dorje Institute at Pullahari Monastery in Kathmandu, Nepal and co-founder of Prajna Fire.

Hear more about Lama Yeshe as ODA co-hosts Rev. Liên Shutt and Kaira Jewel Lingointerview her about her Dharma experiences as a practitioner and teacher of color here.

In addition to Opening Dharma Access, Lama Yeshe co-hosts Prajna Sparks, a podcast for listening to, contemplating, and meditating on the Buddhadharma.

Watch her on the Lion's Roar Podcast hosted by Mariana Restrepo, discussing the Vajrayana yidam practice of Chenrezig.

Lama Yeshe also shares with ODA this guided practice of tonglen and sacred creativity as well as this guided practice of being love.

Check out Lama Yeshe's articles published in Buddhadharma: The Practitioner's Guide, Lion's Roar Magazine, and Tricyle Magazine.

Join the Prajna Fire global community and follow Lama Yeshe on Instagram @karmayeshechodron. 

Enjoy this short guided meditation from Sharon Suh, called, "Compassionate Touch Meditation."

Guest:
SHARON SUH is professor of Buddhism at Seattle University and author of Being Buddhist in a Christian World: Gender and Community (2004); Silver Screen Buddha: Buddhism in Asian and Western Film (2015); and Occupy This Body: A Buddhist Memoir (2019). She focuses on racialized trauma experienced by people of color and emphasizes the importance of embodiment. She's also President of Sakyadhita International Association of Buddhist Women. Her upcoming book, Emergent Dharma: An Anthology of Asian American Feminist Buddhist Women scheduled for Fall 2025.

Links to social media:
www.mindfuleatingmethod.com; @mindfuleatingmethod

In addition to books mentioned in bio:
•.      “Western Buddhism and Race,” co-authored with Joseph Cheah, Oxford Research Encyclopedia (Oxford University Press, May 2022).
• “Jeong as the Expression of the Interrelationality of Self and Other in Korean Buddhist Cinema” in Edward Y. J. Chung and Jea Sophia Oh, eds. Emotions in Korean Philosophy and Religion: Confucian, Comparative and Contemporary Perspectives.” (Palgrave, 2022).
• “Taking Refuge in the Body to Know the Self Anew: Buddhism, Race, and Embodiment,” Embodying Knowledge: Asian and Asian American Women’s Contributions to Theology and Religious Studies, ed. by Kwok Pui Lan (Palgrave MacMillan).
• “We Interrupt Your Regularly Scheduled Programming to Bring You This Very Important Public Service Announcement . . .”: aka Buddhism as Usual in the Academy,” in Emily McCrae and George Yancy, eds., Buddhism and Whiteness: Critical Reflections (Rowman & Littlefield). 
•Suh. Sharon., “Buddhist Meditation as Strategic Embodiment: An Optative Reflection” in Flashpoints for Asian American Studies, ed. by Cathy Vials-Schlund. (Fordham University Press, 2017).
•Suh, Sharon. A., “Buddhism and Gender” in Oxford Handbook of Contemporary Buddhism, ed. by Michael Jerryson. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2016):635-649.
•Suh, Sharon A., “Buddhism, Rhetoric, and the Korean American Community: The Adjustment of Korean American Buddhists to the United States” in Richard Alba, Albert J. Raboteau, and Josh DeWing, eds., Immigration in America: Comparative Historical Perspectives. (New York: New York University Press, 2009):166-190.

PEMA KHANDRO RINPOCHE is an internationally renowned teacher and scholar of Buddhist philosophy. She is the founder of Ngakpa International and its three projects, The Buddhist Studies Institute, Dakini Mountain and the Yogic Medicine Institute.

In her work as a Buddhist teacher, she is an authorized Lama and lineage holder of the Nyingma and Kagyu traditions and was enthroned to carry on the lineage of her predecessor, the first Pema Khandro, an early twentieth century yogini from Eastern Tibet.

Khandro-la has led a vibrant world-wide community since 1999. Through the Buddhist Studies Institute, she also offers a complete curriculum of training in Tibetan meditation and Buddhist Philosophy.

She has a bachelor's degree in Sociology, a Master’s degree specializing in Tibetan studies, and a Ph.D. in Buddhist Studies from the University of Virginia. Her scholarly research focuses on the history of Dzogchen and on Women in Tibetan Buddhism.

Visit Khandro-la's website for more resources
and learn more about the Buddhist Studies Institute here.   
You can find Khandro-la on social media on:
Facebook
Instagram
X (formerly Twitter)

---

HOST LAMA KARMA YESHE CHÖDRÖN is a scholar, teacher, and translator of Tibetan Buddhism at Rigpe Dorje Institute at Pullahari Monastery in Kathmandu, Nepal and co-founder of Prajna Fire.

Hear more about Lama Yeshe as ODA co-hosts Rev. Liên Shutt and Kaira Jewel Lingointerview her about her Dharma experiences as a practitioner and teacher of color here.

In addition to Opening Dharma Access, Lama Yeshe co-hosts Prajna Sparks, a podcast for listening to, contemplating, and meditating on the Buddhadharma.

Watch her on the Lion's Roar Podcast hosted by Mariana Restrepo, discussing the Vajrayana yidam practice of Chenrezig.

Lama Yeshe also shares with ODA this guided practice of tonglen and sacred creativity as well as this guided practice of being love.

Check out Lama Yeshe's articles published in Buddhadharma: The Practitioner's Guide, Lion's Roar Magazine, and Tricyle Magazine.

Join the Prajna Fire global community and follow Lama Yeshe on Instagram @karmayeshechodron. 

GUEST:
Dr. Rebecca Li, a Dharma heir in the lineage of Chan Master Sheng Yen, is the founder and guiding teacher of Chan Dharma Community. Her books include Allow Joy into Our Hearts: Chan Practice in Uncertain Times and the upcoming book Illumination: A Guide to the Buddhist Method of No-Method. She lives in New Jersey with her husband.

Illumination: A Guide to the Buddhist Method of No-Method, clarifies the practice of  "Silent Illumination," (shikantaza in the Japanese tradition) and outlines the potential "traps and snares" that are encountered on the path to Awakening, as well as the potential remedies. Each chapter illuminates mind habits that cause difficulty to earnest meditation students, including: craving mode (striving for enlightenment), aversion mode (trying to eliminate thoughts completely), trance mode (cultivating a peaceful but foggy mind state), Intellectualization mode (substituting concepts for direct experience), quietism mode (dwelling in a cave of no thoughts), and forgetting emptiness (belief in someplace to arrive at and dwell in).

CONNECT with her writings, talks, guided meditation, teaching, buy her book, & see the book tour schedule at www.rebeccali.org

An open, spacious conversation with Dr. Rebecca Li on her practice & teachings on Chan Buddhism and her newly released book, Illumination: A Guide to the Buddhist Method of No-Method

GUEST:
Dr. Rebecca Li, a Dharma heir in the lineage of Chan Master Sheng Yen, is the founder and guiding teacher of Chan Dharma Community. Her books include Allow Joy into Our Hearts: Chan Practice in Uncertain Times and the upcoming book Illumination: A Guide to the Buddhist Method of No-Method. She lives in New Jersey with her husband.

Illumination: A Guide to the Buddhist Method of No-Method, clarifies the practice of  "Silent Illumination," (shikantaza in the Japanese tradition) and outlines the potential "traps and snares" that are encountered on the path to Awakening, as well as the potential remedies. Each chapter illuminates mind habits that cause difficulty to earnest meditation students, including: craving mode (striving for enlightenment), aversion mode (trying to eliminate thoughts completely), trance mode (cultivating a peaceful but foggy mind state), Intellectualization mode (substituting concepts for direct experience), quietism mode (dwelling in a cave of no thoughts), and forgetting emptiness (belief in someplace to arrive at and dwell in).

CONNECT with her writings, talks, guided meditation, teaching, buy her book, & see the book tour schedule at www.rebeccali.org

HOST
Rev. Liên Shutt (she/they) is a recognized leader in the movement that breaks through the wall of American white-centered convert Buddhism to welcome people of all backgrounds into a contemporary, engaged Buddhism. As an ordained Zen priest, licensed social worker, and longtime educator/teacher of Buddhism, Shutt represents new leadership at the nexus of spirituality and social justice, offering a special warm welcome to Asian Americans, all BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, immigrants, and those seeking a “home” in the midst of North American society’s reckoning around racism, sexism, homophobia, and xenophobia. Shutt is a co-founder of Buddhists of Color (1998) and founder of Access to Zen (2014). As the creator, producer, and host, she launched a podcast series, “Opening Dharma Access: Listening to BIPOC Teachers,” in 2022 with Lama Karma Yeshe Chödrön, Sister Peace and Dalila Bothwell. You can learn more about her work at AccessToZen.org

Her new book, Home is Here: Practicing Antiracism with the Engaged Eightfold Path was released on Tuesday, Aug. 22! To see when it's in your part of the U.S. or is virtual, go to BOOK TOUR INFO.  See all her offerings at EVENTS

GUEST:
René Rivera (he/him) is a meditation teacher and restorative justice facilitator working and learning in all the spaces in-between race, gender, and other perceived binaries, as a queer Latinx trans man. René teaches heart-centered, trauma-informed meditation, as a core teacher at the East Bay Meditation Center. He has co-led the first residential meditation retreats for transgender, nonbinary and gender expansive people, and offers classes and retreats for many Buddhist centers and groups. René is a restorative justice facilitator for the Ahimsa Collective, working to heal sexual and gender based violence.

Find René’s talks and guided meditations for EBMC’s Alphabet Sangha on YouTube. Here are also a few of his talks and conversations on Spotify on Gender and No Self, Attachment Trauma Repair, Bringing our Mindfulness to Powerand Bringing Compassion to Conflict.
Article in Lion's Roar: Finding Nonself on My Gender Journey

GUEST:
René Rivera (he/him) is a meditation teacher and restorative justice facilitator working and learning in all the spaces in-between race, gender, and other perceived binaries, as a queer Latinx trans man. René teaches heart-centered, trauma-informed meditation, as a core teacher at the East Bay Meditation Center. He has co-led the first residential meditation retreats for transgender, nonbinary and gender expansive people, and offers classes and retreats for many Buddhist centers and groups. René is a restorative justice facilitator for the Ahimsa Collective, working to heal sexual and gender based violence.

Find René’s talks and guided meditations for EBMC’s Alphabet Sangha on YouTube. Here are also a few of his talks and conversations on Spotify on Gender and No Self, Attachment Trauma Repair, Bringing our Mindfulness to Powerand Bringing Compassion to Conflict.
Article in Lion's Roar: Finding Nonself on My Gender Journey

HOST
Dalila Bothwell (she/her), a Dharma practitioner in the Insight Meditation/Theravada Buddhist tradition and a graduate of Spirit Rock's Community Dharma Leader Program.  She served as Deputy Director of New York Insight Meditation Center for nearly a decade where she learned the priceless value of sangha and the role relationships play in embodying the teachings and in creating kinder human beings.  With a formal education in food and nutrition, her practice meets at the intersection of physical and emotional wellbeing while being Black and queer and her love of recovery, nature, community, and justice. A native of the Southwest, Dalila currently lives in Papago / Tohono O'odham territory in Arizona with her handsome pup, Brisco.

To connect with Dalila in other ways:
www.dalilabothwell.com
IG: @moonearthlove

A meditation with guidance by words and song!

JOE REILLY (he, him) is a singer, songwriter, social worker, and ordained Dharma Teacher in the tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh. Joe was raised Catholic and currently studies and practices progressive Catholicism, Native American spirituality, and engaged Buddhism. Joe has been a student of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh since 2004 and is often found singing and writing songs on spiritual retreats. He currently lives in Waawiyatanong/Detroit, where he co-leads the Building Beloved Community Sangha. He is of Cherokee, Choctaw, Italian, and Irish descent and identifies as Native American.

Connect with Joe and LISTEN to more of his music at:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/joereillymusic/
YouTube, Instagram @JoeReillyMusic
https://www.joereilly.org/music/

GUEST:
JOE REILLY (he, him) is a singer, songwriter, social worker, and ordained Dharma Teacher in the tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh. Joe was raised Catholic and currently studies and practices progressive Catholicism, Native American spirituality, and engaged Buddhism. Joe has been a student of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh since 2004 and is often found singing and writing songs on spiritual retreats. He currently lives in Waawiyatanong/Detroit, where he co-leads the Building Beloved Community Sangha. He is of Cherokee, Choctaw, Italian, and Irish descent and identifies as Native American.

Connect with Joe and LISTEN to more of his music at:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/joereillymusic/ 
YouTube, Instagram @JoeReillyMusic
https://www.joereilly.org/music/

This EPISODE is in MEMORIAM for Mary Randolph
(Rev. Liên covered for Sr. Peace so she could attend to her sister)

HOST
Rev. Liên Shutt (she/they) is a recognized leader in the movement that breaks through the wall of American white-centered convert Buddhism to welcome people of all backgrounds into a contemporary, engaged Buddhism. As an ordained Zen priest, licensed social worker, and longtime educator/teacher of Buddhism, Shutt represents new leadership at the nexus of spirituality and social justice, offering a special warm welcome to Asian Americans, all BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, immigrants, and those seeking a “home” in the midst of North American society’s reckoning around racism, sexism, homophobia, and xenophobia. Shutt is a co-founder of Buddhists of Color (1998) and founder of Access to Zen (2014). As the creator, producer, and host, she launched a podcast series, “Opening Dharma Access: Listening to BIPOC Teachers,” in 2022 with Lama Karma Yeshe Chödrön, Sister Peace and Dalila Bothwell. You can learn more about her work at AccessToZen.org

Her new book, Home is Here: Practicing Antiracism with the Engaged Eightfold Path was released on Tuesday, Aug. 22! To see when it's in your part of the U.S. or is virtual, go to BOOK TOUR INFO

For full info on all her offerings: EVENTS

A short, but lovingly offered, meditation from Anushka Fernandopulle. Originally offered on Dharma Seed.

Anushka Fernandopulle (she/they) is on the Spirit Rock Teacher's Council and has trained for over 30 years in the Theravada Buddhist tradition in the U.S., India, and Sri Lanka. Anushka lives in San Francisco and teaches retreats and workshops around the world. They also works as a leadership coach and management consultant, influenced by a BA in anthropology and religion from Harvard and an MBA from Yale. Her teaching is informed by nature, creative arts, political engagement and modern urban life.

Connect with Anushka at:

https://www.anushkaf.org/

HOST
Rev. Liên Shutt (she/they) is a recognized leader in the movement that breaks through the wall of American white-centered convert Buddhism to welcome people of all backgrounds into a contemporary, engaged Buddhism. As an ordained Zen priest, licensed social worker, and longtime educator/teacher of Buddhism, Shutt represents new leadership at the nexus of spirituality and social justice, offering a special warm welcome to Asian Americans, all BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, immigrants, and those seeking a “home” in the midst of North American society’s reckoning around racism, sexism, homophobia, and xenophobia. Shutt is a co-founder of Buddhists of Color (1998) and founder of Access to Zen (2014). As the creator, producer, and host, she launched a podcast series, “Opening Dharma Access: Listening to BIPOC Teachers,” in 2022 with Lama Karma Yeshe Chödrön, Sister Peace and Dalila Bothwell. You can learn more about her work at AccessToZen.org

Her new book, Home is Here: Practicing Antiracism with the Engaged Eightfold Path launches on Tuesday, Aug. 22! Join her in-person or livestream at Book Inc Berkeley

For full info on all her offerings: EVENTS

GUEST
Anushka Fernandopulle (she/they) is on the Spirit Rock Teacher's Council and has trained for over 30 years in the Theravada Buddhist tradition in the U.S., India, and Sri Lanka. Anushka lives in San Francisco and teaches retreats and workshops around the world. They also works as a leadership coach and management consultant, influenced by a BA in anthropology and religion from Harvard and an MBA from Yale. Her teaching is informed by nature, creative arts, political engagement and modern urban life.

Connect with Anushka at:

https://www.anushkaf.org/

HOST
Rev. Liên Shutt (she/they) is a recognized leader in the movement that breaks through the wall of American white-centered convert Buddhism to welcome people of all backgrounds into a contemporary, engaged Buddhism. As an ordained Zen priest, licensed social worker, and longtime educator/teacher of Buddhism, Shutt represents new leadership at the nexus of spirituality and social justice, offering a special warm welcome to Asian Americans, all BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, immigrants, and those seeking a “home” in the midst of North American society’s reckoning around racism, sexism, homophobia, and xenophobia. Shutt is a co-founder of Buddhists of Color (1998) and founder of Access to Zen (2014). As the creator, producer, and host, she launched a podcast series, “Opening Dharma Access: Listening to BIPOC Teachers,” in 2022 with Lama Karma Yeshe Chödrön, Sister Peace and Dalila Bothwell. You can learn more about her work at AccessToZen.org

Her new book, Home is Here: Practicing Antiracism with the Engaged Eightfold Path launches on Tuesday, Aug. 22! Join her in-person or livestream at Book Inc Berkeley

For full info on all her offerings: EVENTS

A multidimensional practice of hearing Dharma, chanting, and silent meditation in the Shin Buddhist tradition, offered by Rev. Mark Unno.

Rev. Mark Unno is Professor of Buddhist Studies & Department Head of Religious Studies at the University of Oregon, specializing in Pure Land, Zen, and Shingon Buddhism. He is the 14th generation minister of Shin Buddhism in his family. He is also the President of the Society for Buddhist-Christian Studies.

Click to access the abbreviated Juseige Chant (Song of Praise) that Rev. Mark shares with us in this episode.

Listen to Lama Yeshe's interview with Rev. Mark Unno on Opening Dharma Access.

Visit Rev. Mark Unno's website for more resources.

A layered and engaging discussion with Prof. Sharon Suh on what "Asian American Buddhism can be defined as; including the refusal to be silenced.

Guest:
SHARON SUH is professor of Buddhism at Seattle University and author of Being Buddhist in a Christian World: Gender and Community (2004); Silver Screen Buddha: Buddhism in Asian and Western Film (2015); and Occupy This Body: A Buddhist Memoir (2019). She focuses on racialized trauma experienced by people of color and emphasizes the importance of embodiment. She's also President of Sakyadhita International Association of Buddhist Women. Her upcoming book, Emergent Dharma: An Anthology of Asian American Feminist Buddhist Women scheduled for Fall 2025.

Links to social media:
www.mindfuleatingmethod.com; @mindfuleatingmethod

In addition to books mentioned in bio:
•.      “Western Buddhism and Race,” co-authored with Joseph Cheah, Oxford Research Encyclopedia (Oxford University Press, May 2022).
• “Jeong as the Expression of the Interrelationality of Self and Other in Korean Buddhist Cinema” in Edward Y. J. Chung and Jea Sophia Oh, eds. Emotions in Korean Philosophy and Religion: Confucian, Comparative and Contemporary Perspectives.” (Palgrave, 2022).
• “Taking Refuge in the Body to Know the Self Anew: Buddhism, Race, and Embodiment,” Embodying Knowledge: Asian and Asian American Women’s Contributions to Theology and Religious Studies, ed. by Kwok Pui Lan (Palgrave MacMillan).
• “We Interrupt Your Regularly Scheduled Programming to Bring You This Very Important Public Service Announcement . . .”: aka Buddhism as Usual in the Academy,” in Emily McCrae and George Yancy, eds., Buddhism and Whiteness: Critical Reflections (Rowman & Littlefield).
•Suh. Sharon., “Buddhist Meditation as Strategic Embodiment: An Optative Reflection” in Flashpoints for Asian American Studies, ed. by Cathy Vials-Schlund. (Fordham University Press, 2017).
•Suh, Sharon. A., “Buddhism and Gender” in Oxford Handbook of Contemporary Buddhism, ed. by Michael Jerryson. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2016):635-649.
•Suh, Sharon A., “Buddhism, Rhetoric, and the Korean American Community: The Adjustment of Korean American Buddhists to the United States” in Richard Alba, Albert J. Raboteau, and Josh DeWing, eds., Immigration in America: Comparative Historical Perspectives. (New York: New York University Press, 2009):166-190.

Host:
REV. LIÊN SHUTT (she/they) is a recognized leader in the movement that breaks through the wall of American white-centered convert Buddhism to welcome people of all backgrounds into a contemporary, engaged Buddhism. As an ordained Zen priest, licensed social worker, and longtime educator/teacher of Buddhism, Shutt represents new leadership at the nexus of spirituality and social justice, offering a special warm welcome to Asian Americans, all BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, immigrants, and those seeking a “home” in the midst of North American society’s reckoning around racism, sexism, homophobia, and xenophobia. Shutt is a founder of Access to Zen (2014). You can learn more about her work at AccessToZen.org. Her new book, Home is Here: Practicing Antiracism with the Engaged Eightfold Path. See all her offerings at EVENTS

REV. MARK UNNO is Professor of Buddhist Studies & Department Head of Religious Studies at the University of Oregon, specializing in Pure Land, Zen, and Shingon Buddhism. He is the 14th generation minister of Shin Buddhism in his family. He is also the President of the Society for Buddhist-Christian Studies.

Read articles by Rev. Mark Unno at Lion's Roar Magazine online

Visit his website for more resources

---

HOST LAMA KARMA YESHE CHÖDRÖN is a scholar, teacher, and translator of Tibetan Buddhism at Rigpe Dorje Institute at Pullahari Monastery in Kathmandu, Nepal and co-founder of Prajna Fire.

Hear more about Lama Yeshe as ODA co-hosts Rev. Liên Shutt and Kaira Jewel Lingo interview her about her Dharma experiences as a practitioner and teacher of color here.

In addition to Opening Dharma Access, Lama Yeshe co-hosts Prajna Sparks, a podcast for listening to, contemplating, and meditating on the Buddhadharma.

Check out Lama Yeshe's articles published in Buddhadharma: The Practitioner's Guide, Lion's Roar Magazine, and Tricyle Magazine.

Join the Prajna Fire global community and follow Lama Yeshe on Instagram @karmayeshechodron. 

A reading of a piece from the CMOON  Substack Newsletter,  by the author, Cristina Moon.

As a strategist, author, and Chozen-ji priest, Cristina Moon works with individuals and organizations to develop the sensitivity and spiritual strength needed to lead in today’s challenging world. 

Cristina ordained as a Zen priest in December 2020 at Daihonzan ChInozen-ji, a Rinzai Zen temple in Hawaii in the Tenryu-ji line. Cristina publishes a Substack newsletter called CMOON, with published work appearing in Tricycle, Lion's Roar, and Buddhadharma magazines. Cristina's memoir is coming out in June 2024 with Shambhala Publications.

Find out more about Cristina at:
www.cristinamoon.com
https://cmoon.substack.com
Instagram: @moon.c.moon

About Our Guest for this Episode

As a strategist, author, and Chozen-ji priest, Cristina Moon works with individuals and organizations to develop the sensitivity and spiritual strength needed to lead in today’s challenging world. 

Cristina ordained as a Zen priest in December 2020 at Daihonzan ChInozen-ji, a Rinzai Zen temple in Hawaii in the Tenryu-ji line. Cristina publishes a Substack newsletter called CMOON, with published work appearing in Tricycle, Lion's Roar, and Buddhadharma magazines. Cristina's memoir is coming out in June 2024 with Shambhala Publications.

Find out more about Cristina at:
www.cristinamoon.com
https://cmoon.substack.com
Instagram: @moon.c.moon

About Our Host for this Episode

Dalila Bothwell (she/her), a Dharma practitioner in the Insight Meditation/Theravada Buddhist tradition and a graduate of Spirit Rock's Community Dharma Leader Program.  She served as Deputy Director of New York Insight Meditation Center for nearly a decade where she learned the priceless value of sangha and the role relationships play in embodying the teachings and in creating kinder human beings.  With a formal education in food and nutrition, her practice meets at the intersection of physical and emotional wellbeing while being Black and queer and her love of recovery, nature, community, and justice. A native of the Southwest, Dalila currently lives in Papago / Tohono O'odham territory in Arizona with her handsome pup, Brisco.

To connect with Dalila in other ways:
www.dalilabothwell.com
IG: @moonearthlove

A 20 minute guided meditation and visualization on the sacred body with Dr. Ava Avalos, a Dharma teacher in the tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh, living in Botswana.  No experience necessary.  The meditation is held while lying down.  Get ready to let-go, breath and consider our embodied possibilities.

2 Links to connect with Dr. Avalos:
1. Facebook: Studies in Zen Buddhism Botswana.
2.  The next Africa based retreat Tshedisa Sangha Botswana is holding: :
Sacred Body - Wonderful Body - Coming Home to Ourselves with Ava Avalos, MD

Sister Peace interview of Dr. Ava Avalos from the Order of Interbeing (OI) branch of the Thich Nhat Hanh tradition. 

BIO: 
Dr. Ava Avalos was ordained as a Dharma teacher in 2018, after over 20 years of study and Zen practice. She facilitates the Tshedisa Sangha in Botswana - the first African Sangha established in the tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh on the continent. 

Originally from San Diego, California, for the last 22 years she has worked as HIV/TB specialist physician and AIDS activist in Africa. In addition to clinical care, she focuses medical research on optimizing anti-retroviral treatment for HIV/AIDS patients, preventing the development of HIV drug resistance and improving implementation of public health programs. 

She currently leads the Botswana National Advanced HIV Care Initiative, is a Research Associate of the Botswana Harvard AIDS Institute Initiative and Botswana-Baylor Children’s Centre for Clinical Excellence and sits on the Editorial Board of the Southern African Journal of HIV Medicine. 

She also does her best to keep up with her two high spirited pups, paints, teaches yoga and dances as often as she can.

3 Links to connect with Dr. Avalos:
1. Facebook: Studies in Zen Buddhism Botswana.

2.  The next Africa based retreat I am facilitating: 

Sacred Body - Wonderful Body- Coming Home to Ourselves
Tara Rokpa Centre, Groot Marico, South Africa. October 13, 14, & 15th, 2023
Inquire at careenahealth@gmail.com

3. Tshedisa Sangha holds monthly Days of Mindfulness on the first Sunday of each month. Inquire at careenahealth@gmail.com

Dalila Bothwell (she/her) is a Dharma practitioner in the Insight Meditation/Theravada Buddhist tradition and a graduate of Spirit Rock's Community Dharma Leader Program.  She served as Deputy Director of New York Insight Meditation Center for nearly a decade where she learned the priceless value of sangha and the role relationships play in embodying the teachings and in creating kinder human beings.  With a formal education in food and nutrition, her practice meets at the intersection of physical and emotional wellbeing while being Black and queer and her love of recovery, nature, community, and justice. A native of the Southwest, Dalila currently lives in Papago / Tohono O'odham territory in Arizona with her handsome pup, Brisco.

To connect with her in other ways:
www.dalilabothwell.com
IG: @moonearthlove

Get to know ODA's Season 2 other new co-host, Dalila Bothwell, as she shares with Rev. Liên frank talk about what it takes to teach and stay true to their experience as queer, Black, and other social locations in predominantly white convert-Buddhist settings.

Dalila Bothwell (she/her) is a Dharma practitioner in the Insight Meditation/Theravada Buddhist tradition and a graduate of Spirit Rock's Community Dharma Leader Program.  She served as Deputy Director of New York Insight Meditation Center for nearly a decade where she learned the priceless value of sangha and the role relationships play in embodying the teachings and in creating kinder human beings.  With a formal education in food and nutrition, her practice meets at the intersection of physical and emotional wellbeing while being Black and queer and her love of recovery, nature, community, and justice. A native of the Southwest, Dalila currently lives in Papago / Tohono O'odham territory in Arizona with her handsome pup, Brisco.

To connect with her in other ways:
www.dalilabothwell.com
IG: @moonearthlove

----
Host Info:
Rev. Liên Shutt (she/they) is a recognized leader in the movement that breaks through the wall of American white-centered convert Buddhism to welcome people of all backgrounds into a contemporary, engaged Buddhism.

As an ordained Zen priest, licensed social worker, and longtime educator/teacher of Buddhism, Shutt represents new leadership at the nexus of spirituality and social justice, offering a special warm welcome to Asian Americans, all BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, immigrants, and others seeking a “home” in the midst of North American society’s reckoning around racism, sexism, homophobia, and xenophobia.

Home is Here: Practicing Antiracism with the Engaged Four Noble Truths is her new book coming out Aug. 22, 2023. Published by North Atlantic Books.

Advance praise from ODA's Season 1 Cohosts!
“With tenderness, an open heart, and characteristic grace, Rev. Liên Shutt shares her knowledge and practice of Buddhadharma alongside her own searing experiences of being Asian American in our racialized culture. Anyone wishing to bring the wise compassion of the Buddha’s teachings to bear on their journey with systemic oppression of any ilk will find in Rev. Liên a skillful and kind guide whose footsteps are well worth following.”

—Karma Yeshe Chödrön, author of Heal Transform Transcend

“Presenting a powerful and fresh look at core Buddhist teachings, [Home Is Here] offers innovative and effective ways to free ourselves from the bondage and illusions of white supremacy culture and a compassionate, accessible path to experiencing that we are already whole.”

—Kaira Jewel Lingo, author of We Were Made for These Times

Pre-Order options HERE

Connect with Rev. Liên & all her offerings at: AccessToZen.org  (including soon to-be-added info on an upcoming LGBTQIA+ Yoga & Dharma retreat over Labor Day & an 8-month Asian American affinity group for precepts studies!)

Enjoy this lovely practice, as Sister Peace walks us gently through a guided meditation to learn to pay attention to the quality of our breath so that we become anchored in the feelings of calm and ease.

This guided practice is also available on the Plum Village App and on YouTube.

SISTER PEACE spent five years in government work before realizing that something was missing. Feeling spiritually bereft, she began practicing at the Washington Mindfulness Community where she encountered the teachings of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh. 

Compelled by his teachings, she relocated in 2006 to the Plum Village Monastery in France to deepen her mindfulness practice and where she was ordained a Buddhist nun in 2008, and received the Dharma Lamp Transmission in 2017.

She has dedicated her life to bringing the practice of mindfulness to people around the world –from educators and teenagers to artists and politicians. In particular, Sister Peace is interested in helping people understand the aspiration of Thich Nhat Hanh and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to build the “Beloved Community.” 

Sister Peace has organized retreats in Asia, Africa, Europe and North America; and facilitated retreats for People of Color, Business Leaders, Silicon Valley, Educators, Artists and others. Most recently, her heartfelt focus of service and practice has been with the children in the Shelby County Juvenile Detention Center – a jail for children in Memphis, Tennessee.  She is on a virtual team offering Mindfulness and the Arts during the COVID-19 Crisis with students at East High School in Memphis. 

Sister Peace currently resides in Memphis, Tennessee, where she practices Engaged Buddhism.  

You can find Sister Peace in Meditations on the Plum Village app, as well as articles in Lions Roar and The Thich Nhat Hanh Foundation Newsletter - The Raft, the Mindfulness Bell Magazine, and an upcoming article in the Arrow Magazine.

Here are a few links to her teachings:

YOUTUBE video
Uncomfortable Spaces - Cultivating Love & Peace for Racial Healing

Articles in the Mindfulness Bell
Ancestral Insights Article
When Giants Meet

Click here to learn more about the tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh and Plum Village.

SISTER PEACE spent five years in government work before realizing that something was missing. Feeling spiritually bereft, she began practicing at the Washington Mindfulness Community where she encountered the teachings of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh. 

Compelled by his teachings, she relocated in 2006 to the Plum Village Monastery in France to deepen her mindfulness practice and where she was ordained a Buddhist nun in 2008, and received the Dharma Lamp Transmission in 2017.

She has dedicated her life to bringing the practice of mindfulness to people around the world –from educators and teenagers to artists and politicians. In particular, Sister Peace is interested in helping people understand the aspiration of Thich Nhat Hanh and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to build the “Beloved Community.” 

Sister Peace has organized retreats in Asia, Africa, Europe and North America; and facilitated retreats for People of Color, Business Leaders, Silicon Valley, Educators, Artists and others. Most recently, her heartfelt focus of service and practice has been with the children in the Shelby County Juvenile Detention Center – a jail for children in Memphis, Tennessee.  She is on a virtual team offering Mindfulness and the Arts during the COVID-19 Crisis with students at East High School in Memphis. 

Sister Peace currently resides in Memphis, Tennessee, where she practices Engaged Buddhism.  

You can find Sister Peace in Meditations on the Plum Village app, as well as articles in Lions Roar and The Thich Nhat Hanh Foundation Newsletter - The Raft, the Mindfulness Bell Magazine, and an upcoming article in the Arrow Magazine.

Here are a few links to her teachings:

YOUTUBE video
Uncomfortable Spaces - Cultivating Love & Peace for Racial Healing

Articles in the Mindfulness Bell
Ancestral Insights Article
When Giants Meet

Click here to learn more about the tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh and Plum Village.

---

HOST LAMA KARMA YESHE CHÖDRÖN is a scholar, teacher, and translator of Tibetan Buddhism at Rigpe Dorje Institute at Pullahari Monastery in Kathmandu, Nepal and co-founder of Prajna Fire.

Hear more about Lama Yeshe as ODA co-hosts Rev. Liên Shutt and Kaira Jewel Lingo interview her about her Dharma experiences as a practitioner and teacher of color here.

In addition to Opening Dharma Access, Lama Yeshe co-hosts Prajna Sparks, a podcast for listening to, contemplating, and meditating on the Buddhadharma.

Check out Lama Yeshe's articles published in Buddhadharma: The Practitioner's Guide, Lion's Roar Magazine, and Tricyle Magazine.

Join the Prajna Fire global community and follow Lama Yeshe on Instagram @karmayeshechodron. 

Noliwe Alexander has been a student of Vipassana meditation for over 20 years.
This is a meditation from a POC Retreat at Spirit Rock 2020

You can reach her at Deep Time Liberation and Peace at Any Pace 

Enjoy this short dharma talk from Reverend Jean Paul Contreras deGuzman.

GUEST

REV. DR. JP DEGUZMAN (he/him) is minister’s assistant at the 103-year-old San Fernando Valley Hongwanji Buddhist Temple and received tokudo ordination at Nishi Hongwanji in Kyoto, Japan in 2023. He teaches history and Ethnic Studies at Windward School and UCLA where he earned the University Distinguished Teaching Award.

His publications include:

Lions Roar: "The Pure Land is in the West"
Everyday Buddhist: "The Dharma of a Turkey Sandwich"
Wheel of Dharma: "Mindful Action in Mindless TImes: A Buddhist Response to Injustice"
Young Buddhist Editorial: "Gratitude For My Mom"

Explore his website to learn more about his academic publications as well.

Noliwe Alexander has been a student of Vipassana meditation for over 20 years. Throughout this time of deep devotion to the Dharma, Noliwe has become a dedicated practitioner, meditation teacher of various retreats and sitting groups, day-longs and class series programs. She dedicates much her BuddhaDharma practice and teachings to the BiPOC, LGBTQIA+, At Risk and Elder communities. She is a graduate of Spirit Rock's CDL4 program, EBMC's Commit 2 Dharma program in 2010 and is a graduate of Spirit Rock Teacher Training from 2017-2020. Noliwe is the co-founder of Peace At Any Pace, Inc. a non-profit organization that offers a Journey to Healing from Intergenerational & Ancestral Trauma retreats and Elder & Youth programs, which are exclusively for people from the African Diaspora. Noliwe is a wisdom keeper and humbled by the presence of her ancestor’s spirit that lives within and walks beside her.

You can reach her at Deep Time Liberation and Peace at Any Pace

And writitng at:
https://www.lionsroar.com/free-at-last/
https://www.lionsroar.com/heal-the-wounds-and-trauma/

~~~
Your Host for this episode is Rev. Liên Shutt (she/they) is a priest lineage holder in the Shunryu Suzuki tradition. Born to a Buddhist family in Vietnam, she received her meditation training in the Insight and Soto Zen traditions in the U.S., Japan, Thailand, and Vietnam. She was a founding member of the Buddhists of Color in 1998 and currently is the guiding teacher of Access to Zen, an inclusive, anti-oppression sangha and non-profit in the SF Bay Area. She lives on Ohlone land, currently called San Francisco, with her partner, exploring waterways and forests as often as they can. Visit AccessToZen.org for ways to connect and practice together. 

In the meditation, Kaira Jewel Lingo refers to the Garrison BIPOC meditation sangha which meets every Thursday at noon, run by her and Marisela Gomez.

Order my book, We Were Made for These Times: Ten Lessons on Moving through Change, Loss and Disruption 

Order from Indie Bound or Bookshop

To stay in touch and learn about my upcoming mindfulness teaching and events, please sign up for my e-newsletter here.

My article in Lion's Roar: How Equanimity Powers Love

Connect with me:

at kairajewel.com

on Insight Timer

on YouTube

on Instagram

on Facebook

on Dharmaseed

Happy 2023! Enjoy this meditation to support you bring the quality of attending (my latest word for our natural access to the quality of mindfulness.

The "Meditation Training" course referred to in the meditation is "Meditation Training: Establishing a Meditation Practice in 4 Short Week." It's a popular and effect course taken by thousands at this point. Back in-person in SF and online for everyone else. It starts this Thursday, 1/5, 7:30 pm PT so for full info and registration, CLICK HERE.

For other practices and full programming, go to AccessToZen.org or email me at SuddenLeap.A2Z@gmail.com

Happy 2023!
(Also, join us for Lunar New Year A2Z Meditation Group Sangha Night on Monday, Jan. 23, 7 pm PT, by clicking HERE!)

A guided meditation invoking creative imagination to cultivate familiarity with our innate quality of being love within a space of active repose. Led by Lama Yeshe.

LAMA KARMA YESHE CHÖDRÖN is a scholar, teacher, and translator of Tibetan Buddhism at Rigpe Dorje Institute at Pullahari Monastery in Kathmandu, Nepal and co-founder of Prajna Fire.

HOST LAMA KARMA YESHE CHÖDRÖN is a scholar, teacher, and translator of Tibetan Buddhism at Rigpe Dorje Institute at Pullahari Monastery in Kathmandu, Nepal and co-founder of Prajna Fire.

Hear more about Lama Yeshe as ODA co-hosts Rev. Liên Shutt and Kaira Jewel Lingointerview her about her Dharma experiences as a practitioner and teacher of color here.

In addition to Opening Dharma Access, Lama Yeshe co-hosts Prajna Sparks, a podcast for listening to, contemplating, and meditating on the Buddhadharma.

Watch her on the Lion's Roar Podcast hosted by Mariana Restrepo, discussing the Vajrayana yidam practice of Chenrezig.

Lama Yeshe also shares with ODA this guided practice of tonglen and sacred creativity as well as this guided practice of being love.

Check out Lama Yeshe's articles published in Buddhadharma: The Practitioner's Guide, Lion's Roar Magazine, and Tricyle Magazine.

Join the Prajna Fire global community and follow Lama Yeshe on Instagram @karmayeshechodron. 

Private spiritual counsel sessions with Lama Yeshe are available for online booking with immediate confirmationat Prajna Fire.

Learn more about tsewa in Tibetan Buddhist heritage fromDzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche's book, Training in Tenderness.

May all beings benefit!

Tune in as Rev. Liên and Lama Yeshe share a lively discussion of their experiences with Opening Dharma Access during 2022. They also bid farewell to Kaira Jewel Lingo as she transtions from Opening Dharma Access to other Dharma activities.

Rev. Liên Shutt can be reached at: AccessToZen.org

Learn more about Kaira Jewel Lingo and her Dharma Offerings at kairajewel.com to learn more about her Dharma offerings. 

Lama Karma Yeshe Chödrön shares the Dharma through the Prajna Fire global community. Follow Lama Yeshe on Instagram @karmayeshechodron.

May all beings find genuine happiness and true freedom from suffering!

Stay tuned in the coming weeks as Rev. Liên, Kaira Jewel, and Lama Yeshe share practice offerings over the holiday season. 

May your new year be bright, peaceful, and rich in all goodness!

Bishop Myokei Caine-Barrett chanting is part of this larger program:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/0o2e4wsxdicmr1t/Shodaigyo.pdf?dl=0

For the YouTube version of this chant (with about 20 minutes of silent meditation first):
https://www.facebook.com/NBSTX/videos/201551801729358/
___

Myokei Caine-Barrett currently holds the position of Bishop of the Nichiren Shu Order of North America. She is the first woman to hold this position and the first person of African-American and Japanese descent to be fully ordained in the Nichiren Shu order. She is also the chief priest and guiding teacher of Myoken-ji Temple in Houston, TX.

     Myokei Shonin is engaged in spreading the Dharma behind bars at Texas Department of Criminal Justice. She supports weekend trainings for Healing Warrior Hearts, a Texas for Heroes project designed to truly welcome veterans home. She is a facilitator in dialogues on racism and mindful cross-cultural conflict resolution, as well as engaging in interfaith and intrafaith dialogue.
     Her writings have been published in a variety of Buddhist magazines, including Tricycle and Lion’s Roar, and is featured in The Hidden Lamp: Stories from Twenty-Five Centuries of Awakened Women.

Learn more about Myokei at https://myoken-ji-usa.org/

Listen in on this candid and wise interview with Myokei Caine-Barret, Shonin, as she shares about her own path of transformation and how we can all create a deeper experience of refuge for each other in the Dharma. She names the importance of sharing about race and increasing awareness in dharma spaces in the face of resistance. And how empowering it can be to leave space for listening, honoring people's unique experiences, and the importance of offering a warm welcome. She encourages us to learn from the radical hospitality in cultures of color, and describes how she used chanting to work with her rage. She also addresses the challenges of offering the Dharma in BIPOC communities based in Christianity.  

We apologize for the brief moments of echo in the recording. 
___

Myokei Caine-Barrett currently holds the position of Bishop of the Nichiren Shu Order of North America. She is the first woman to hold this position and the first person of African-American and Japanese descent to be fully ordained in the Nichiren Shu order. She is also the chief priest and guiding teacher of Myoken-ji Temple in Houston, TX.

     Myokei Shonin is engaged in spreading the Dharma behind bars at Texas Department of Criminal Justice. She supports weekend trainings for Healing Warrior Hearts, a Texas for Heroes project designed to truly welcome veterans home. She is a facilitator in dialogues on racism and mindful cross-cultural conflict resolution, as well as engaging in interfaith and intrafaith dialogue.
     Her writings have been published in a variety of Buddhist magazines, including Tricycle and Lion’s Roar, and is featured in The Hidden Lamp: Stories from Twenty-Five Centuries of Awakened Women.

Learn more about Myokei at https://myoken-ji-usa.org/
  __

TODAY'S HOST

Kaira Jewel Lingo began practicing mindfulness in 1997 and is a teacher in the Zen and Vipassana lineages. Author of We Were Made for These Times: Ten Lessons in Moving through Change, Loss, and Disruption (Parallax Press), she teaches Buddhist meditation, mindfulness, and compassion internationally, focusing on waking up in daily life. Ordained for 15 years in Thich Nhat Hanh’s monastic community, Kaira Jewel now teaches both Buddhism and secular mindfulness, writes, and offers spiritual mentoring to groups.

Hear more about Kaira Jewel as ODA co-hosts Rev. Liên Shutt and Lama Karma Yeshe interview her about her Dharma experiences as a practitioner and teacher of color. 

Kaira Jewel also shares with ODA this guided practice on getting grounded. 

Visit kairajewel.com to learn more about her Dharma offerings. 

May all beings find refuge!

Listen to this dharma story Thomas created and shared at East Bay Meditation Center in August 2022. 

This tale deals with our developmental struggles and aversion to what the Path is asking of us, and ends with an invitation to a new perspective about how we can engage with less entanglement.

Thomas can be reached at: www.avant-dharam.com

A fascinating conversation with Thomas Davis IV and Rev. Liên about the possibilities of expanding the range for assessing BIPOC teachers' readiness to teach and the connections between the Dharma and the creative process.

Thomas Davis IV is a Contemplative Artist based in Los Angeles who explores the connections between the principles of the Dharma, Christian Mysticism, Jazz Ethics, Art and Sciences. Thomas self-identifies as a Contemplative Artist which allows for a consistent and fluid commitment to personal authenticity; and for the exploration of emerging ideas, concepts and individual expressions of Liberation.       

Media: Lions Roar Juneteenth Edition 2022

Thomas can be reached at: www.avant-dharam.com

This week's Interviewer, Rev. Liên, can be reached at: AccessToZen.org

In this month's practice offering, Bhante Sanathavihari shares a chanting practice central to the novice monastic training in the Sri Lanka tradition. The Pali and English text is available here for those who want to follow along with the chant.

The Caturārakkhā, or Four-Fold Protective Contemplations, consists of:

(1) Buddhānussati Recollection on the Buddha

(2) Mettā Loving-Kindness Meditation

(3) Asubha Meditation on Impurities of the Body

(4) Maraṇsati Mindfulness of death

The contemplations in the third and fourth parts of the practice are challenging, in language, import, and emotional impact. In particular, the third contemplation is consistently a topic of vigorous discussion among practitioners (see, for example, this contemporary discussion thread). Considering what does and does not resonate for us, and how we can find ways to relate to the essence of the teaching, despite what jars, can be very helpful. 

For example, we may consider the meditation on the impurities of the body from the perspective of how it might help overcome misconceptions about the body, in order to connect with our embodied experience in ways that are meaningful, wholesome, and wise. 

We might also consider how much the cultural context impacts our practice, and in what ways contemporary understanding advances or detracts from the essence of the practice.

LOS ANGELES SANATHAVIHARI BHIKKU is a Mexican-American Theravāda monk at the Sarathchandra Buddhist Center in North Hollywood, a Sri Lankan center. He is a student of the late Dr.  Bhante Punnaji, and the director of Casa De Bhavana – an outreach project to bring the Dhamma to the Spanish-speaking world. He is also the co-author of Buddhism in Ten Steps. Bhante is a U.S. Air Force veteran, has a B.A. in Religion, and is a Mindfulness researcher at Mount St. Mary University, Los Angeles, and a Graduate Student in Counseling Psychology at Mount St. Mary University. 

Visit Bhante Sanathavihari on the web and social media:

www.casadebhavana.com
https://www.facebook.com/sanathaviharibhikkhu 
https://www.instagram.com/casadebhavana/

Or on YouTube:
Youtube channel (English)
Youtube channel (Spanish)

And check out Bhante's Spanish-language introduction to Buddhism:
Buddhismo en 10 Pasos: Una introducción práctica y sencilla al buddhismo para principiantes (Spanish Edition)

Rev. Dr. Jean-Paul Contreras deGuzman talks about how he came to Jodo Shinshu Pureland Buddhist practice coming from a Catholic family and after moving forward from a traditional path as an academic. He and Dana Takagi have an enlivened discussion about the importance and power of cultural gatherings like Mochi-tsuki for sangha and the wider community, and the role of pop culture references in Rev JP's talks in the San Fernando Valley.


REV. DR. JP DEGUZMAN (he/him) is minister’s assistant at the 103-year-old San Fernando Valley Hongwanji Buddhist Temple and received tokudo ordination at Nishi Hongwanji in Kyoto, Japan in 2023. He teaches history and Ethnic Studies at Windward School and UCLA where he earned the University Distinguished Teaching Award.

His publications include:

Lions Roar: "The Pure Land is in the West"
Everyday Buddhist: "The Dharma of a Turkey Sandwich"
Wheel of Dharma: "Mindful Action in Mindless TImes: A Buddhist Response to Injustice"
Young Buddhist Editorial: "Gratitude For My Mom"

Explore his website to learn more about his academic publications as well.


Your Host

REVEREND DANA TAKAGI (she/her) is a retired professor of Sociology and zen priest, practicing zen since 1998. She spent 33 years teaching sociology and Asian American history at UC Santa Cruz, and she is a past president of the Association for Asian American Studies. 

Los Angeles Sanathavihari Bhikkhu is a Mexican-American Theravāda monk at the Sarathchandra Buddhist Center in North Hollywood, a Sri Lankan center. He is a student of the late Dr.  Bhante Punnaji, and the director of Casa De Bhavana – an outreach project to bring the Dhamma to the Spanish-speaking world. He is also the co-author of Buddhism in Ten Steps. Bhante is a U.S. Air Force veteran, has a B.A. in Religion, and is a Mindfulness researcher at Mount St. Mary University, Los Angeles, and a Graduate Student in Counseling Psychology at Mount St. Mary University.

Visit Bhante Sanathavihari on the web and social media:

www.casadebhavana.com 

https://www.facebook.com/sanathaviharibhikkhu  

https://www.instagram.com/casadebhavana/

Or on YouTube:

Youtube channel (English)

Youtube channel (Spanish)

And check out Bhante's Spanish-language introduction to Buddhism:

Buddhismo en 10 Pasos: Una introducción práctica y sencilla al buddhismo para principiantes (Spanish Edition)

TODAY’S HOST

LAMA KARMA YESHE CHÖDRÖN is a scholar, teacher, and translator of Tibetan Buddhism at Rigpe Dorje Institute at Pullahari Monastery in Kathmandu, Nepal and co-founder of Prajna Fire. Their work is featured in Tricycle Magazine, Buddhadharma: The Practitioner's Guide, and Lion's Roar Dharma en Espanol.

In addition to Opening Dharma Access, Lama Yeshe co-hosts Prajna Sparks, a podcast for listening to, contemplating, and meditating on the Buddhadharma.

Hear more about Lama Yeshe as ODA co-hosts Rev. Liên Shutt and Kaira Jewel Lingo interview them about their Dharma experiences as a practitioner and teacher of color.

Lama Yeshe also shares with ODA this guided practice of tonglen and sacred creativity.

Join the Prajna Fire global community and follow Lama Yeshe on Instagram @karmayeshechodron to learn more about their Dharma offerings.

May all beings benefit!

A short, guided meditation on breath with Rev. Dana Takagi

Dana is a retired professor of Sociology and also a zen priest.  She spent 33 years teaching sociology and Asian Am history at UC Santa Cruz, she is a past president of the Association for Asian American Studies.  Zen practice since 1998.

2022: Sutra and Bible: an Interview with Duncan Ryūken Williams
2020: Most Intimate, Ordinary Way, Recollections of Katherine Thanas  (co-eds. with Eugene Bush; 2nd printing 2022)

More of Dana at: https://danatakagizenlife.squarespace.com/

Check out this in-depth interview with Rev. Dana Takagi on being Japanese American practicing convert Soto Zen.

Dana is a retired professor of Sociology and also a zen priest.  She spent 33 years teaching sociology and Asian Am history at UC Santa Cruz, she is a past president of the Association for Asian American Studies.  Zen practice since 1998.

2022: Sutra and Bible: an Interview with Duncan Ryūken Williams
2020: Most Intimate, Ordinary Way, Recollections of Katherine Thanas  (co-eds. with Eugene Bush; 2nd printing 2022)

More of Dana at: https://danatakagizenlife.squarespace.com/

A meditation offering from  Margarita Loinaz

She has trained in the Tibetan and Theravada traditions.  She met her root teacher Kalu Rimpoche in 1977 and is a Dzogchen student of Lama Drimed Norbu.  She is a graduate of the first Community Dharma Leader’s Program at SRMC and began teaching in l997 leading the Women of Color Sitting Group in Marin City with Marlene Jones and co-organizing the first People of Color Retreat at Spirit Rock Meditation Center in 1999.  Her current teaching integrates Dzogchen practice with social justice and environmental awareness.  As a physician, she served Day Laborers, the Latinx and Homeless communities in San Francisco.  She is a grandmother and originally from the Dominican Republic.

Talks and Videos present on Youtube, Vimeo  and Dharma Seed,  EBMC POC Sangha recordings, and Spirit Rock Meditation Center recordings on programs such as BIPOC Voices,  day-longs and BIPOC retreats.

She can be reached at:  greatmotherinquiry@gmail.com