AZC Weekly talks

This is the first in a series of koans centred on the natural world. The koan is Case 46 in the  Blue Cliff Record. Sources:  Zen's Chinese Heritage  by Andy Ferguson and  A Step Away from Paradise  by Thomas Shor.

Description: Sabbe anicca. Everything that arises passes. Impermanence is one of the Three Marks, or Characteristics, of Existence, and a cornerstone of Buddhist teaching. The Buddha says that what is real is change itself,and that there's order in that change. The Bodhisattva's practice of ego-attrition happens both on the meditation cushion and in our work in the world. Source:&nb...

Adrian Croucher gives a dharma talk on grief and Zen, drawing on a range of sources and his own recent experiences after the loss of his father. References: Domyo Burk, "Grief in Buddhism", Zen Studies Podcast, May 2020 (two parts): https://zenstudiespodcast.com/grief-in-buddhism-1/ Lucy Hone, "Resilient Grieving - How to Find Your Way Through Devastating Loss", Allen and Unwin, 2023.

In this teisho we explore the different meanings of "I don't know", which are the three most famous words in Zen.

What is the receiving- the-precepts, or Jukai, ceremony and why do we participate in it? Main Source:  Invoking Reality, moral and ethical teachings of Zen  by John Daido Loori, Shambhala 2007.

Richard-sensei's teisho on the koan "Linji's Great Enlightenment". The teisho also looks at the use of the kyosaku, the encouragement stick, in Zen. Main references: Zen's Chinese Heritage  by Andy Ferguson.

Description: To die the Great Death means letting go of everything, even our precious awakening experience. We go up the pole to free ourselves of the three poisons, but then we leap back down into the world of duality and suffering to help others to liberate themselves. A Zen master said, "Zen training is preparation for life in the world, not the goal of life in the world." Sources: Awakeni...

Texts: Urs App,  Master Yunmen Master Sheng-yen,  The Sword of Wisdom.

Description: According to the Avatamsaka (Huayen) Sutra the Buddha proclaimed at his great awakening that all beings are endowed with wisdom and virtue. Why then do we cause so much suffering for others and ourselves? Source:  The Book of Equanimity  by Jerry Shishin Wick.

Description: The third of Master Hui Neng's antidotes for attachment. Having the courage to be open and vulnerable and making peace with not being in control, are skilful strategies in an impermanent world.

Main text: Flowers Fall: A Commentary on Zen Master Dogen's Genjokoan translated by Paul Jaffe.

Description: Master Hui Neng's antidotes to our attachment to our inner world, outer relationships and identity. Source:  Silent Illumination  by Guo Gu.

Main references: Nine Lives  by William Dalrymple The Secret Life  of Flies by Erica McAlister Ichi Tantei : talks by Tangen Roshi

Description: A look at two of the essential qualities we need to practise Zen and ways we can cultivate them. Sources:  Throw Yourself into the House of Buddha  by Tangen Harada Roshi, Shambhala 2023, Silent Illumination by Guo Gu, Shambhala 2021, NOON e-Newsletter January 2025  Discipline of the Good Mind  article by Freida J. Jacques.

Readings from: Throw Yourself Into the House of Buddha : the Life & Zen Teachings of Tangen Harada Roshi / translated by Belenda Attaway Yamakawa ; edited by Kogen Czarnik.

Readings from: Throw Yourself Into the House of Buddha : the Life & Zen Teachings of Tangen Harada Roshi / translated by Belenda Attaway Yamakawa ; edited by Kogen Czarnik.

Readings from: Throw Yourself Into the House of Buddha : the Life & Zen Teachings of Tangen Harada Roshi / translated by Belenda Attaway Yamakawa ; edited by Kogen Czarnik.

Readings from: Ichi Tantei = One Doing / Tangen Roshi of Bukkokuji ; teisho translations by Belenda Attaway Yamakawa ; edited by Ron Klein.

Readings from: Ichi Tantei = One Doing / Tangen Roshi of Bukkokuji ; teisho translations by Belenda Attaway Yamakawa ; edited by Ron Klein.

Readings from: Throw Yourself Into the House of Buddha : the Life & Zen Teachings of Tangen Harada Roshi / translated by Belenda Attaway Yamakawa ; edited by Kogen Czarnik.

Texts used in the teisho: Karen Armstrong,  Buddha Stephen Batchelor,  Living with the Devil Nyanaponika Thera and Hellmuth Hecker,  Great Disciples of the Buddha

Educating ourselves about our colonial history can be a way of honouring Te Tiriti. We can learn much from Parihaka about waging peace and the power of non-violence, as Gandhi did. Sources:  Shifting Grounds, Deep Histories of Tamaki Makaurau Auckland  by Lucy Mackintosh Bridget Williams Books Ask that Mountain  by Dick Scott Raupo 1975

Book quoted from:   The Force of Character  by James Hillman.

Book quoted from:   The Soul's Code: In Search of Character and Calling  by James Hillman.

Daily life practice and "What is this and how did it get here?" Sources:  Meetings with Remarkable Women , Lenore Friedman, Shambhala 1987 Subtle Sound  ed. Roko Sherry Chayat Shambhala 1996