Zencare Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

“This life, all is well. Can we really say this? Is it alright to say that life is good?” —Harada Roshi    In this dharma talk from summer sesshin, Koshin Sensei reflects on his first sesshin sitting between two participants – one steady and grounded the other fidgety and agitated. They each represent a different […]

The post Get Out of the Groove | Koshin Paley Ellison appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“The heart believes in tomorrow’s cherry blossoms. The storm comes at night and blows them away.”     Everything is subject to change. We all experience loss. Can this inevitability spark in us an urgency to practice diligently and to live our lives fully?          In this recent dharma talk from Summer Sesshin, […]

The post Subject to Change | Chodo Campbell appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“This practice has kept me alive.”     When what has been lost brings the return of something new, when the debilitations of illness remind us of the deep dignities of being alive, these are the healing stories of care and compassion.         During the final evening of the Closing Retreat for […]

The post Stories of Loss and Return, Illness and Healing | Chodo Campbell appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“There is a lot of talk in dharma practice about stillness, peace and perfect alignment with life — there’s something beautiful about invoking that possibility but it often contrasts very much with the lack of peace one might feel. How often do we judge that lack of peace as something that shouldn’t be happening?”   […]

The post Getting Lost Is The Practice | Martin Aylward appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“What would it be like to say, with some humor, ‘Ah, who cares if I am uncomfortable?’ This whole world is uncomfortable! How do we find the softness and tenderness for that fear but not live in reaction to it?” In a recent virtual dharma talk, Sensei Koshin discusses the struggles the sangha has been […]

The post Finding Generosity in the Midst of Crisis | Koshin Paley Ellison appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

In a recent book launch, Marie Howe, Victoria Redel, Tenku Ruff and Sebene Selassie read poetry from “The First Free Women: Poems of the Early Buddhist Nuns” by Matty Weingast. Composed around the Buddha’s lifetime, the Therigatha (Verses of the Elder Nuns) contains poems of princesses and courtesans, tired wives of arranged marriages and the […]

The post ZenPoems: The First Free Women by Matty Weingast with Marie Howe, Victoria Redel, Tenku Ruff and Sebene Selassie appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“The beauty of this practice is that you can feel your feelings without identifying who you are by what you are feeling.” The Zen Masters of old would teach that those without preferences had their path laid out before them. Easier said than done! How do we soften the clinging to our preferences so that […]

The post How Do You Practice Beginner’s Mind? | Koshin Paley Ellison appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“A human being is a part of the whole, called by us “Universe”, a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings as something separated from the rest — a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness.” – Albert Einstein In this talk, Sensei Koshin shares his thoughts on the idea of self-compassion, and “practicing at […]

The post Widening The Circle Of Who We Are | Koshin Paley Ellison appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“Learning how to relax is a place of practice.”  In this vulnerable dharma talk, Sensei Chodo engages the students in the ancient art of Mondo Zen, or dialogue between teacher and pupil. He first shares a story of a classic zen teacher/student interaction and then queries: what does it take to relax into this moment […]

The post What Does It Take To Relax Into This Moment? | Robert Chodo Campbell appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“No one can live your life except you. No one can live my life except me” – Maezumi Roshi   In this recent talk, Sensei Chodo Robert Campbell GC-C discusses a heart opening experience with an unexpected teacher, appreciating the miracle of natural-born abilities, and finding practice in the middle of New York City. The […]

The post Slowing Down and Being In The Time Of Your Life | Sensei Chodo Robert Campbell GC-C appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.