In Zen-Buddhism, Dharma transmission is a custom in which a person is established as a “successor in an unbroken lineage of teachers and disciples, a spiritual ‘bloodline’ (kechimyaku) theoretically traced back to the Buddha himself.” The...
GOING FOR REFUGE Going for refuge and taking the precepts is the cornerstone of all the Buddhist paths. It usually becomes a turning point in a person’s life. One where they work toward an ideal – this ideal being shown to us through The Buddha – a...
THE HEART SUTRA The Bodhisattva of Compassion, Avalokateshvara, while in deep meditative concentration, absorption and curious inquiry, looked deeply into the nature of experience, penetrated fully to the intuitve realization of the emptiness of the skandhas and after...
The Perfect Enlightenment Sutra is one of the most popular and influential sutras in Zen. It was held in the highest regards by some of the greatest Zen Master’s like Zongmi and Chinul. The sutra itself is twelve chapters and the introductory section describes...
“Do you have a Koan?” That was the first question Korean Zen Master, Venerable Hwasun Yangil Sunim asked me. I had heard about Koans before – mainly from books. I didn’t really think they were essential for Zen practice. But here I was, sitting...
A quick and expedient way of awakening… The master takes his staff and points directly to your heart saying, Listen here! This! This! A thousand times this! The seeker is what’s sought. Originally the mind is pristine, vast and expansive like a clear blue...
A young monk tentatively asked the Master, “Teacher, why did Bodhidharma come from the west?” The Master looked out the window and said, “The cypress tree in the courtyard.” The Zen Master whacks his stick against the floor. You’re startled, heart racing, eyes...
The conceptual every day mind is never happy. It always wants something to chew on. It’s a hungry ghost and no matter how much information we feed it the mind will never be satisfied. “Does a dog have buddha-nature?” “Why did Bodhidharma come to China?” “Was the...
Zen is… “A special transmission outside the scriptures, not founded upon words and letters. by pointing directly to one’s mind, It lets one see into one’s own true nature and thus attain buddhahood.” (1) The above statement from Bodhidharma is an...
The greatest achievement is selflessness. The greatest worth is self-mastery. The greatest quality is seeking to serve others. The greatest precept is continual awareness. The greatest medicine is the emptiness of everything. The greatest magic is transmuting the...
A student had really resonated with the teaching of giving and said that this came up for them in their business meeting just recently – to give so that they could get more. Here is my response… The practice of giving if tied to getting (the expectation...
After perfectly taking the bodhisattva’s vow of moral ethics, accumulate virtues through your body, speech, and mind in order to achieve enlightenment. Briefly, these are called the “accumulation of virtues.” What are they? The Bodhisattva Bhumis says: Maintaining and...
The Zen Master Hakuin was praised by his neighbors as one living a very pure life. This is a story about his patience. One day, the parents of a beautiful unmarried Japanese girl found that their daughter was pregnant. This made the parents very angry. She would not...
The Essentials of Chan Practice Xu Yun (1839-1959) The purpose of investigating Chan is to illuminate the Mind and see your self-nature. You must eradicate the mind’s impurities so as to personally perceive the true face of your self-nature. The mind’s...
Hakuin’s In Praise of Zazen (Song of Samadhi) Translated by Zen Master e (Ian Paul Marshall) In Praise of Zazen All beings are Buddhas. It’s like ice and water – without water there’s no ice Without sentient beings there’s no Buddhas. Not knowing how close the...
THE SERMON ON ONE-MIND If you would free yourself of the sufferings of Samsara, you must learn the direct way to become a Buddha. This way is no other than the realization of your own Mind. Now, what is this Mind? It is the true nature of all sentient beings, that...
PRINCIPLES OF SEATED MEDITATION The bodhisattva who studies prajna should first arouse the thought of great compassion, make the extensive vows, and vigorously cultivate samadhi. Vowing to save sentient beings, you should not seek liberation for yourself alone. Now...
WHO IS IT? Fortunately, you believe there is a truth specially transmitted outside the scriptures and scholastic teachings. Then why bother about the meaning of these scriptures? Renounce forthwith all such reflections and see the master directly. What is the master...
