Talks by Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee

Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee, explores the true measure of human existence. She contrasts superficial attachments to time and material accumulation with the eternal, timeless reality of spiritual awakening. Drawing from Zen Buddhism, Taoism, Christianity and ancient philosophical traditions, Lola challenges listeners to move beyond conventional definitions of life defined merely by passing days or...

Zen Roshi Lola McDowell Lee explores metaphysical truths through teachings rooted in the Kena and Isha Upanishads. The fundamental inquiry of the Upanishads: "At whose behest does the mind operate, the body live, and the senses perceive?" Moving beyond the limitations of sensory perception and conceptual thought, Lola establishes that the ultimate reality, Brahman or the true Atman, cannot be gras...

Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee, explores foundational metaphysical concepts of the Isha Upanishad, comparing Eastern philosophy with other esoteric traditions. She begins by examining the imagery of the "golden lid" that conceals ultimate truth from ordinary perception. The divine Purusha is omnipresent and identical to the true self. Shakti is the Great Mother and primeval energy behind all manifes...

Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee, contrasts two fundamental inner orientations: the path of the warrior and the path of the king. Lola shares Tilopa's poem to Naropa about transcending dualities, dissolving distractions, and abiding effortlessly in the natural state. She notes that while spiritual traditions are numerous, every individual ultimately carves out a unique path based on their own inner fo...

Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee, discusses the importance of mastering attention—to uncover the silent inner ground of being. Lola recounts a tale about Master Shoju, who calmly sat in a graveyard amidst howling wolves without fear. He had an unshakeable state of mind, invulnerable to the external turmoil of life and death. Most people operate through the thinking mind, engaged in chores, conversatio...

Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee, reflects on the universal reality of death and the transition of consciousness, illustrated by the historical encounter between the legendary Zen master Ikkyu and his dying disciple Ninagawa. When Ninagawa attempts to take comfort in traditional phrases about coming and going alone, Ikkyu challenges him, pointing to the path of no coming and no going. Lola explains th...

Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee, contrasts the "positive" and "negative" paths to enlightenment. Drawing upon ancient Chinese Taoist, Li Tzu, she begins by questioning the value of emptiness. Because emptiness cannot be quantified, traded, or manufactured—unlike the walls of a house or the clay of a cup—it possesses an absolute value that transcends human commerce. To abide in this emptiness one must...

Zen Roshi and Christian minister, Lola McDowell Lee, illustrates the many harmonies between Eastern spiritual practices and Western mystical traditions. Lola looks at the traditional nativity story and Christian parables and urges us to look beyond literal interpretations to uncover deeply transformative inner meanings within scripture. She introduces the concept of the "subsistence of existence,"...

The Taoist approach to existence is much different from our usual rigid, goal-oriented conditioning. Lin-Li, a man nearly a hundred years old, lives in profound simplicity. To many, his life seems marked by poverty, loneliness, and the absence of family, a life of failure. Yet to others’ surprise, Lin-Li maintains an inexplicable happiness. He sings while laboring for meager grains in the fields....

Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee, explores our tendency to confuse changes in external conditions with genuine inner liberation. Lola recounts the classic Taoist parable by Chuang Tzu, "Three in the Morning," about a monkey trainer whose monkeys revolted. The wise individual perceives both sides of dualism without partiality, viewing all phenomena in the unifying light of the Tao. Why are we so easily...

Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee explores the interplay between ego, consciousness, and the spiritual path, drawing on Taoist, Buddhist, and Christian traditions. She explores the Taoist message of flowing with existence, free from effort or resistance. By aligning oneself with the totality of life, one can move beyond fear and obstruction. Lola recounts the biblical narrative of Adam and Eve and the...

Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee, explores the concepts of unlearning, existential trust, and the structural dynamics of the ego. Lola describes the state of an enlightened individual as one whose nature has completely sunk back into its roots in the One. True spiritual power, she argues, is not achieved through cleverness, daring, or accumulated knowledge, but rather through an intense process of unl...

Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee, recounts Chuang Tzu’s advice: the purpose of a fish trap is to catch fish, and once the fish are caught, the trap is forgotten. So too with words — once an idea is truly grasped, the words that carried it should be released. Yet we find this nearly impossible. Words stick. They cling to the mind and take on a life of their own, trapping the very people who use them. S...

(Note on the recording: Thank you for your patience. Many of the remaining cassettes of Lola’s talks have substantial noise and echo issues. To overcome that, I’m trying out a different software to clean the audio. This software removes the noises, but it also sounds slightly clipped. Just so you know...if this sounds a little different from what you're used to. For those of you that follow her ta...

Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee, discusses the concept of the "Unborn," the central teaching of Master Bankei. Lola recounts the story of an arrogant Abbot trying to challenge Bankei. The Abbot told his congregation, “If I put a difficult question to him, I can stymie him with just one word. So saying this, he went off to see this supposed master. And here in this large crowd, in the middle of the ta...

Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee, opens with the core question: How does one enter the gateless gate? Lola points to a mountain stream, suggesting that "listening" is entering. She distinguishes between the someone’s simple interest in Zen and the actual acquisition of a Zen mind. Lola says the spiritual path begins only when the soul moves beyond a mild interest in Zen and raises the question: "Who a...

(Note: Although there is some remaining quiet delayed echo from the original cassette tape, this talk by Lola about the basics of Zen meditation is still a good primer for a new student of the discipline) --- Zen Roshi Lola McDowell Lee, explores the essence of Zen practice, noting that while the era of the 1960s opened Western minds to Eastern traditions, it often lacked the rigorous supervision...

Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee, Lola discusses the distinction between accumulating knowledge and attaining true wisdom. Lola shares the koan about a monk who asked his teacher, “Is there a teaching no master ever preached before?” And the teacher said, yes, there is. What is it, asked the monk. And the teacher replied, it is not mind, it is not Buddha, it is not things.. We require a different kind...

Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee, explores the difference between merely seeking reality and actually experiencing it through the practice of true listening. Ancient Zen master, Tokai, is abruptly awakened from a nap by a frantic monk shouting about a fire under the kitchen floor. Rather than panicking or leaping into action regarding a future threat, Tokai requests that the monk wake him only when th...

Zen Roshi Lola McDowell Lee, opens by recounting the classic Zen koan of Master Dogo and his disciple Zengen. When visiting a deceased parishioner, Zengen asks if the person is alive or dead, to which Dogo refuses to answer either way. Even after Dogo’s passing, another master, Sakeso, repeats this refusal, telling Zengen, "No saying whatever". The story illustrates that life and death are not dis...

Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee, explores the nature of truth, the limitations of the intellect, and the profound importance of trusting one's own immediate experience. She begins by introducing a classic Zen Master Tozan’s question: "What is the Buddha?" While working in a storeroom, replied, "This flax weighs three pounds." This seemingly nonsensical answer helps dismantle our reliance on logical a...

Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee, discusses the Diamond Sutra , known as the "Cutter of All Doubts." She story of the Buddha and his disciple, Subhuti, a Bodhisattva. It’s a paradoxical teaching: A Bodhisattva should give gifts without being "supported" by anything—not by a notion of a sign, a gift, or a recipient. If a gift is given with the thought "I am giving this to you," it is limited. However,...

(Note: This recording contains a static hum that, in spite of efforts to remove, does remain somewhat. But the content of the talk might be worth overlooking). Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee, understands how odd it must sound to some that an individual human being can become one with the universe. She explains that this search for unity is often misguided because people look out there for something...

Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee, discusses the ancient Indian philosophy of Samkhya Yoga as a framework for spiritual observation. It includes the dual principles of Purusha (the essence of the self) and Prakrit (the "Great Mother" or manifested nature and energy). While Samkhya might appear to be dualistic, it aims for a state of Sahaja , or awakened consciousness. This state contains and transcends...

Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee, explores the concept of freedom through the conquest of self. Per the Dhammapada , we should direct straying thoughts. The path to happiness is through quieting these elusive thoughts with single-mindedness, which brings freedom. We struggle from confusing wants and needs and forgetting the primary goal: freedom. This freedom is not worldly (economic, political, or so...