Shasta Abbey

Rev. Valora Midtdal offers words of encouragement to us in our practice to persevere and never give up. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday October 13th, 2024. Twitter/X: @shastaabbey YouTube: https://youtu.be/p2qBzFXiUl4

Rev. Master Meian Elbert, Abbess of Shasta Abbey, talks about Bodhidharma who is an important ancestor in the Zen lineage. Specifically, Bodhidharma is known for his writing on the 'Four Practices' for trainees. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday October 6, 2024. YouTube: https://youtu.be/IcaCItkf62k Twitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Shiko Rom talks about the challenges of training with jealousy using stories from her own life and readings from Rev. Koten Benson's 2004 retreat on the Buddha Mother's Mandala. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday September 29, 2024. YouTube: https://youtu.be/7zlfdKBclbo Twitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Astor Douglas uses stories from her own life as examples of how 'small' acts of kindness express the whole of Buddhist practice, and she encourages us in our own practice of kindness in our daily lives. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday September 22, 2024.  YouTube: https://youtu.be/3fXQBp9cfQI Twitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Master Meian Elbert uses a section from the Scripture of the Buddha's Last Teaching as a springboard for talking about 'contentment'. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday September 15, 2024. YouTube: https://youtu.be/rCRFo1Sa6Dc Twitter/X: @shastaabbey 

Rev. Margaret Clyde shares some stories about her own life to illuminate how we can engage with our 'problems' in a healthy Buddhist way. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday September 8, 2024. Twitter/X: @shastaabbey YouTube: https://youtu.be/wAnsq5IdX9E

Rev. Master Meian Elbert, Abbess of Shasta Abbey, uses the image of a lava lamp to talk about karma and the 'unreality of self'. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday September 1, 2024.  Twitter/X: @shastaabbey YouTube: https://youtu.be/LawpNrQXhkw

Rev. Serena Seidner led a retreat in 2019 on 'The Mind That Seeks the Way'. This is one of the talks from that retreat that addresses: "The self is the very mind that seeks the Way. But what is this mind that seeks the Way?" This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on August 19th, 2019. YouTube: N/A Twitter: @shastaabbey 

Rev. Leon Kackman gives his sixth and final meditation talk of the retreat. He continues exploring the vows of Samantabhadra focusing on how we can be grateful to the Buddhas for this practice. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Saturday August 24, 2024. YouTube: https://youtu.be/M3pYtYQ3iSU Twitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Leon Kackman gives his fifth meditation talk of the retreat. He continues exploring the vows of Samantabhadra focusing on how we can actively study WITH the Buddhas here and now: today. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Friday August 23, 2024. YouTube: https://youtu.be/Xx7Tf2M5a7I Twitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Leon Kackman gives his fourth meditation talk of the retreat. He continues exploring the vows of Samantabhadra focusing on the vow to 'make offerings to the Buddhas'. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Thursday August 22, 2024. YouTube: https://youtu.be/ilhXsR_ayQI Twitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Leon Kackman gives his third meditation talk of the retreat. He invites us to explore Samantabhadra's direct vows and how we can work with them in our own lives. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Wednesday August 21, 2024. YouTube: https://youtu.be/eD3GIbcsScs Twitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Leon Kackman gives his second meditation talk during his retreat on Samantabhadra talking about the practice of vows for which this particular Bodhisattva is well known. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Tuesday August 20, 2024. YouTube: https://youtu.be/f2GbUFjZkBQ Twitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Leon Kackman delivers his first meditation talk of the retreat describing the merits and practices of Samantabhadra Bodhisattva. Rev. Leon says, "Samantabhadra is the one who patiently continues, just working for the benefit of beings and working to perfect his ten great vows". Rev. Leon encourages us to find the reality of Samantabhadra in our own daily practice. This talk was give...

Rev. Leon Kackman, Prior of the Portland Buddhist Priory, a temple of the Order of Buddhist Contemplatives, leads a retreat at Shasta Abbey during the week of August 18, 2024. The focus of the retreat is the teaching and emphasis of the Bodhisattva Samantabhadra. This introductory talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday August 18, 2024. YouTube: N/A Twitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Amanda Robertson discusses themes of spiritual friendship and training together. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on June 23, 2024. Twitter/X: @shastaabbey YouTube: https://youtu.be/b6ErKISa6Dw

Rev. Ando Mueller quotes a piece of writing by Rev. Master Jiyu from the book 'Zen is Eternal Life' where Rev. Master Jiyu uses the traditional Buddhist image of a lotus flower to talk about spiritual practice. The lotus is a traditional symbolic image in Buddhism because of its specific qualities of growing in and being nourished by pond mud and then rising above the water in order to b...

Rev. Enya Sapp quotes a famous line of Buddhist Scripture where Ananda, the Buddha's cousin and attendant monk, asks about 'spiritual friendship'. Rev. Enya points out an often forgotten part of the quote that points us back to our ultimate spiritual friend: the Buddha, our own True Heart. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday June 9, 2024. Twitter/X: @shastaabbey YouTube: h...

Rev. Allard Kieres uses the movie 'The Iron Giant' to talk about themes of training with karma. He explains how we come into this world 'preprogrammed' from past actions and that it is up to us to convert our past unskillful habits into wholesome habits through the power of our free will to make choices. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday June, 2 2024. Iron Giant Del...

This is the sixth and last meditation talk given by Rev. Koten during his retreat: To View the Morning Star. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Saturday June 29, 2024. Twitter/X: @shastaabbey YouTube: https://youtu.be/kilzfkRBCKY

This is the fifth meditation talk given by Rev. Koten during his retreat: To View the Morning Star. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Friday June 28, 2024. Twitter/X: @shastaabbey YouTube: https://youtu.be/kilzfkRBCKY

This is the fourth meditation talk given by Rev. Koten during his retreat: To View the Morning Star. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Thursday June 27, 2024. Twitter/X: @shastaabbey YouTube: https://youtu.be/kilzfkRBCKY

This is the third meditation talk given by Rev. Koten during his retreat: To View the Morning Star. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Wednesday June 26, 2024. Twitter/X: @shastaabbey YouTube: https://youtu.be/topG_k51NPw 

This is the second meditation talk given by Rev. Koten during his retreat: To View the Morning Star. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Tuesday June 25, 2024. Twitter/X: @shastaabbey YouTube: https://youtu.be/yRIvptdgbOE 

This is the first meditation talk given by Rev. Koten during his retreat: To View the Morning Star. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Monday June 24, 2024. Twitter/X: @shastaabbey YouTube: https://youtu.be/XynnzwB-Ddk