San Francisco Zen Center

02/03/2024, Onryu Mary Stares, dharma talk at City Center. In this talk, given at Beginner's Mind Temple, Onryu Mary Stares explores the current City Center Practice Period theme of the Bodhisattva precepts, describing her personal experiences of taking refuge and encouraging this vibrant practice.

In this talk, given at Beginner's Mind Temple, Rev. Eli explores how Zen practice, particularly the precepts, can be supportive when going through major life change—especially when dealing with loss of identity, decision making, and working with an inner critic. Through personal anecdotes and philosophical reflections, the talk emphasizes the role of Zen in fostering a deeper understanding of self...

02/04/2024, Eijun Linda Cutts, dharma talk at Green Gulch Farm. Avalokiteshvara in the Avatamsaka Sutra lets us know of the powerful practice of Great Compassion to meet the great challenges of our life.

In this talk, given during the first one-day sitting of the winter 2024 practice period, Abiding Abbot Dōshin Mako Voelkel discusses the sources and outcomes of the many different places and ways we construct our individual ethical frameworks. This talk was recorded during the January one-day sitting, held at Unity Church, a neighbor of San Francisco Zen Center’s City Center congregation.

01/21/2024, Tenshin Reb Anderson, dharma talk at Green Gulch Farm. In the great flower adornment scripture, chapter 67, the Buddha says, “All sentient beings without exception, fully possess the wisdom and virtues of the Buddha, and yet because of misconceptions and attachments, they do not realize it. If they would only abandon these misconceptions and attachments, they would fully realize Buddha...

01/20/2024, Kyoshin Wendy Lewis, dharma talk at City Center. Now our community is meeting only in the single room of the Zendo. What are some teachings on Sangha transformation in a Zendo? How can we see forms of the infinite, miraculous Dharma embedded through tradition and visualization in this shared space? This lecture explores such teachings in a verbal and visual presentation.

01/17/2024, Shosan Victoria Austin, dharma talk at City Center. In this talk, given at Beginner's Mind Temple, Shosan explores how we are practicing with the current physical changes to the temple space. This year, our urban temple is “residents out, contractors in.” Dogen Zenji once taught that Sangha Treasure appears equally in the vast openness of being or within a particle of dust; that to hel...

01/14/2024, Tenshin Reb Anderson, dharma talk at Green Gulch Farm. This talk by Tenshin Reb Anderson considers how to apply the Teaching of Thusness to the significant outbreak of infection and disruption in the midst of our January meditation intensive.

In this talk, given at Beginner's Mind Temple on the weekend before Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday, Sozan Michael McCord unpacks many life events from this historic civil rights icon and looks at how he could have had a much more comfortable life at many turns, but instead chose the path that the times were calling for. In the Buddhist path, we are met every day with many small choices that no...

01/10/2024, Anshi Zachary Smith, dharma talk at City Center. In this talk, from Beginner's Mind Temple, Zachary discusses an often-used koan (teaching story): Yúnmén’s “Every day is a good day.” Zen, a Mahayana Buddhist school that theoretically eschews lists, dualities, categories of experience and other conceptual forms on the grounds that they’re empty, is nonetheless swimming in them. We’ll ex...

01/07/2024, Tenshin Reb Anderson, dharma talk at Green Gulch Farm. This talk is a contemplation of the Flower Adornment Scripture saying “Clearly observe the Dharma of the king of Dharma. The Dharma of the king of Dharma is thus.” Tenshin Reb Anderson is further relating this teaching to the first case in the Book of Serenity and the "Song of the Precious Mirror Samadhi."

In this talk, from Beginner's Mind Temple, Liên speaks about how Skillful View, in services of restoration, is about opening up to acknowledging harm and harming, (re)learning ways to be more skillful, and then enacting them. The talk also serves as an overview of the main points of Rev. Liên Shutt's new book, “Home is Here: Practicing Antiracism with the Engaged Eightfold Path,” and how they can...

01/03/2024, Jisan Tova Green, dharma talk at City Center. In this talk, from Beginner's Mind Temple, Tova speaks of the importance of sangha as we vow to be of benefit to all beings. This first talk of 2024 is also the first recorded in the City Center zendo, as renovations to our temple building are beginning.

In light of several major transitions unfolding for SFZC and the sangha at large, including the upcoming yearlong renovation of Beginner’s Mind Temple, Abbot David offers dharma pointers for how we might relate to and navigate changes and transitions in our lives ─ both big and small, individual and collective ─ with some measure of mindfulness, clarity, composure, and equanimity. Recorded on Dece...

This talk, from Beginner's Mind Temple, was given by City Center tanto (head of practice) Tim Wicks. Virya Paramita is often translated as "joyful" or "enthusiastic" energy. Working with the shadow side of energy — depression and low self-esteem — can also be a fruitful practice. Recorded on Nov. 25, 2023.

This talk, from Beginner's Mind Temple, was given by senior dharma teacher Ryushin Paul Haller. This talk was based on a Thanksgiving message from Brother David Steindl-Rast and examines how to sustain gratitude and be uplifted in the face of the difficulties and “bad news” of our lives. In dyads, attendees of the talk discussed the question: “What does it take for you to meet and be uplifted whil...

In this talk from Beginner's Mind Temple, Greg Fain discusses how the new book “Home Is Here” by Rev. Keiryu Liên Shutt has influenced his practice, and the vital necessity of metta (loving kindness) practice. Recorded on Nov. 18, 2023.

This talk, from Beginner's Mind Temple, was given by senior dharma teacher Ryushin Paul Haller. Practicing with the Paramitas brings initially asks us to see the dualistic perspectives of the absence of the virtues of the Paramitas and to practice remedy that lacking. As we bring our lives into alignment with the Paramitas, we start to see how “perfection” and imperfection” are both merely aspects...

This talk, from Beginner's Mind Temple, was given by senior dharma teacher Ryushin Paul Haller. As we witness the war in the Middle East and the suffering it creates, it's challenging not to get caught in choosing which side has virtue and which is the aggressor. Practicing with the Paramitas of Mutual Benefit, Ethical Conduct and Patience can help us acknowledge the humanitarian tragedy of war th...

In this talk from Beginner's Mind Temple, Shosan Victoria Austin discusses working skillfully with anger. Many ancient texts mention anger as an unwholesome emotion that undercuts or destroys our relationships and our true intention. However, we can practice using anger in wholesome ways, as an internal warning system for unmet needs, violated boundaries, and withheld respect. Developing skill wit...

In this talk from Beginner's Mind Temple, Ryushin Paul Haller discusses how the practice of fully engaging body and mind is expressed through attention to posture and awareness in sitting zazen and wholeheartedness in the activities of daily life. Dogen zenji points out in Genjo Koan that there is a potential for a one-sided approach. When we bring that sensibility to the paramita of Sila, we can...

In this talk from Beginner's Mind Temple, Marc Lesser discusses the conundrum of clarity. If you seek for clarity, you cannot find it. Clarity itself is necessary before you can acquire or find clarity. Recorded on Oct. 21, 2023.

In this talk from Beginner's Mind Temple, given by Ryushin Paul Haller, two different circumstances are described to illustrate how the teachings of the Genjo Koan can guide how to practice with challenging events. The first event is working with persistent thoughts in zazen, and the second is working with interactions that arouse distress and frustration. Recorded on Oct. 18, 2023.

12/03/2023, Chosetsu Lauren Bouyea, dharma talk at Green Gulch Farm. Suzuki Roshi said that beginner's mind - meeting the world and ourselves just-as-it-is - is the secret of Zen practice, but there are many powerful cultural and evolutionary forces that make remembering our beginner's minds the most difficult thing.

12/02/2023, Kyoshin Wendy Lewis, dharma talk at City Center. This talk from Beginner's Mind Temple addresses the aspect of philosophy in the practice and study of Buddhism, based on the fourth - contemplation of the dharmas - of the Four Foundations of Mindfulness. One of the qualities of philosophy and practice not usually explicitly referred to is poignancy, which includes the pathos of human na...