The Jizo-an Zen Community Podcast

"I hate war as only a soldier who has lived it can, only as one who has seen its brutality, its futility, its stupidity." - Dwight D. Eisenhower Dedicated to the healing of Our Veterans Serving Around The World: A Day of Serene Meditation and Silence for The End of War in Our World Characterized by silence and deep introspection, sesshin is recommended to anyone who is sincerely interested in expe...

"Underneath all we are taught, there is a voice that calls to us beyond what is reasonable,and in listening to that flicker of spirit, we often find deep healing." Central to Authentic Spirituality (Zen) is the teaching that, "We are not who we think we are, or who we think we should be." Therefore the aim and objective of Zen is to "Awaken from a lifetime of Ego-Delusion" to discover who and what...

Mindfulness and Meditation and washing the dishes, making the bed, doing the laundry go together. They always have gone together. How we hold the mundane speaks loudly about how we hold life. Sen Rikyu taught, "All can find peace in a bowl of tea." If you know how to make and drink a bowl of tea, if you know how to hold the tea bowl in your hands. Tonight we will explore how we can find "our Zen"...

Life is always "urgent," we are challenged everyday to meet demands on our time, responsibilities, and the unexpected; and whether we are aware or not, the truth of suffering or discontentment. What might support us to meet the challenge of everyday living? The Three Tenets are powerful skillful means for working with our emotions and meeting daily challenges with all victorious mastery. The Three...

At the moment we fully appreciate the Power of Living Authentically, everything changes and nothing is ever the same again. Opportunities never available to us before become possible. The past, the present, and the future all at once is transformed. We will explore the impact of living as Shakespeare described it "The Life of an Actor" has on our physical, mental, and emotional health, and how we...

Self-confidence is an essential ingredient in living an inspired and effective life. Cultivating confidence in yourself and about your life requires living in harmony with the real nature of life, clarifying what is really important and aligning your daily living activities and choices with what is important including the people, places, and activities which support you. Join Seijaku Roshi & Rabbi...

Through stories and everyday examples, Seijaku Roshi examines the difference between direct experience and the expectations we place upon it. The talk invites us to appreciate life as it actually unfolds rather than measuring each moment against our preferences, assumptions, or ideas of how things ought to be.

Ultimately the goal of any authentic Spiritual Path especially The Path of a Spiritual Warrior is "Communion"; First with Mystery, call it God or Dharma, or Buddha, it is that which is larger than ourself; next with the Teachings (Dharma) manifested in myriad forms of energy that make the Universe what it is, and finally with Others (Community or Sangha). Tonight we will discuss the concept of - T...

"Even if the Sun were to rise in the West, the Bodhisattva knows One Way." For many Americans the Sun indeed rose in the West on Election Day and the reaction has left us with age old questions. Who are We? Who do we want to Be? Tonight we will explore The Way of the Bodhisattva - The Spiritual Warrior in the face of disappointment, grief, and impermanence. (Seijaku Roshi, Rabbi Richard Simon)

For so many of us fear can be crippling, stifling, getting in the way of our hopes and dreams, and yet it doesn't have to be that way! When we understand how the mind operates from moment to moment, especially when it is fearful, we can apply ancient wisdom, well-honed and proven to weaken the grip of fear - We can Be Courageous in the Face of Fear and Transform it for Our Benefit!

Seijaku Roshi explores the deeply conditioned survival mechanisms that cause us to react automatically to the circumstances of our lives. He contrasts this habitual, ego-driven response with the path of the spiritual warrior, where practice creates enough space to meet doubt, fear, and difficulty with awareness, purpose, and choice.

Seijaku Roshi explores transformation as an active process of training rather than something we wait to feel ready for. He examines how conditioning, intention, and our underlying context shape the lives we create, emphasizing clarity, perseverance, and conscious practice as essential to genuine change.

At the opening of Ango, Seijaku Roshi challenges the idea that we must wait until we feel “ready” to change. Authentic spiritual training is transformation: a deliberate willingness to become different rather than supplementing an unchanged life with spiritual practices. Because change and impermanence are the natural movement of life, growth begins when we declare ourselves willing to be open, le...

In this practice-oriented session, Seijaku Roshi offers guidance on posture, breathing, relaxation, and settling fully into zazen. Attention to the exhalation, the body, and the sounds of practice becomes a way of releasing unnecessary effort and returning to simple, embodied presence.

Seijaku Roshi explores how the stories we carry from the past shape identity and behavior. Zen practice offers a way to move beyond these inherited narratives, live from a consciously chosen identity, and meet each new experience without being confined by old patterns.

We are witnessing the most polarizing politics in modern American History. Should Bodhisattvas (Spiritual Warriors) become involved in the political arena as a method of helping everyone attain the requisites of a spiritual life? My answer to this question is "Yes." When we enter into the political discussion with Wisdom and Skillfulness, we are not dirtying our hands in a messy, mundane world tha...

"Love is our true destiny. We do not find the meaning of our lives alone, we find it with another." Love is a Force of Nature. It pervades the entire Universe. It runs through everyone and everything. Revealing and available right here, right now. Yet Loving oneself and others continues to be the single most difficult experience in people's lives. We will explore LOVE as a Force for Change, Healin...

In a Nation torn by so much polarization, violence, and so much inequality, how do we begin to heal and find the ground to come together. If we don't we can only expect more pain, more suffering. In the first 78 minutes we will watch the Award Winning Documentary "The Power of Forgiveness" followed by a group discussion and a Dharma teaching by Seijaku Roshi on the Healing Power of Forgiveness and...

Living Mindfully helps us develop awareness of those habitual reactions rooted both in our genetic make-up and our early childhood experiences (pain body), then we retrain our minds to "respond", rather than react habitually, more skilfully and with real compassion for ourselves. Seijaku Roshi will begin by summarizing the teachings in Part 1, and guide us through several "mindfulness techniques"...

"The road to the truth is paved with disappointments. When life disappoints we need not be "dis-appointed". The key is to stay the course. The truth which liberates us is never far away" Living Mindfully helps us develop awareness of those habitual reactions rooted both in our genetic make-up and our early childhood experiences, then retrain our minds to react or "respond" more skillfully and with...

The Present is full of Yesterday and is moment to moment Creating tomorrow. "According to our yesterdays so shall today unfold, according to our interaction with the unfolding of today, so shall our tomorrows manifest." - Buddha The Buddha encouraged personal investigation of the mind as an essential practice leading to the highest level of conviction and of wisdom. This includes recognizing delus...

Is "Independence" an Illusion? What is the real meaning of "Freedom"? Do we have "Free Will"? What about my "Choices"? Is there such a thing as "Pre-destination" and "Free-Will"? The Buddha encouraged personal investigation of the mind as leading to the highest level of conviction and of wisdom. This includes recognizing delusion the root of all as unskillful mental factors. In this way Buddhism h...

Preparing the community for O-Rohatsu Sesshin, Seijaku Roshi describes Zen training as genuine transformation rather than an attempt to make the conditioned self more comfortable. Drawing on Dogen and other teachers, he emphasizes studying and ultimately forgetting the egocentric self so that our true nature can emerge. This requires willingness to change how we actually live, meeting circumstance...

"What is lacking is virtue. Virtue is a force-of-nature a conduit for change. A force always to be reconciled with sooner-or-later. The only thing that has ever brought about real change in our world is the virtuous. The only thing that has caused war, poverty, injustice, and discrimination, are the non-virtuous." - Seijaku Roshi The Buddha characterized "The Way" as "The Noble Life". to live Nobl...

As the seasons change so do we. Being Present to Life-Changes is Being Present to the Life-Force which renews, rejuvenates, and sustains all life forms. If it feels like life is passing you by - where are you? Being Present is an inherent quality we knew as children and begin to lose as our conditioning redirects us away from life and toward an egocentric experience of life which is not the same,...