PZI Teacher Archives

the self

Audio August 8, 2022

Summer Sesshin: The Realm of the Self

Allison Atwill

A dharma talk by Allison Atwill in Summer Sesshin on June 16, 2022. Complete session. 46 minutes.

46' 30"
Video July 13, 2022

Separation in the Realm of the Self

Allison Atwill

The exhaustion and effort of “making a me” often brings people to Zen. In retreat, we begin to see the contours of the self that causes us to suffer. From a talk in Summer Sesshin, June 16, 2022. 7 minutes.

7' 18"
Video July 12, 2022

We Are What Is Missing from the World

Tess Beasley

Tess reads Tony Hoagland’s poem, “The Question,” on creation and loosening of the self, during her talk in Summer Sesshin, June 15, 2022. 3 minutes.

2' 32"
Video July 12, 2022

Talking to a Rock

Tess Beasley

Rocks come to everyone’s aid at a gathering, bringing enchantment and connection. From a talk in Summer Sesshin, June 15, 2022. 5 minutes.

5' 6"
Video July 12, 2022

What’s Possible if I’m Not Making a Me

Tess Beasley

Tess talks about how koans ferret out our strategies for making a me, from a dharma talk in Summer Sesshin, June 15, 2022. 2 minutes.

2' 21"
Video July 12, 2022

Decorating My Idea of Myself

John Tarrant

No being has ever fallen out of the samadhi of Buddha nature. Being in the life you have is your samadhi. Recorded at Summer Sesshin on June 14, 2022. 4 minutes.

4' 3"

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Article September 8, 2021

The Paradox of Happiness

John Tarrant

“Mostly, if a method for achieving happiness is not successful, people think something like, She should have loved me more. Or, I wasn’t trying hard enough. Or, I wasn’t holding my mouth right. Whether the needle on the blame meter points to yourself or to others, that particular machine will always seem to be malfunctioning. You try to do the method better, rather than looking at whether the method works. So let’s look at the method.”

3801 Words

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Article May 5, 2021

How to Defeat the Enemy

John Tarrant

Turning your thoughts upside down is almost always progress, especially with conflicts that seem old and full of certainty. Article by John Tarrant published in Lion’s Roar magazine June 9, 2009.

1038 Words

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Article November 15, 2017

The Power of Koan Practice

John Tarrant

Those who have used koans have described them as a poetic technology for bringing about awakening, a painful but effective gate into the consciousness of the Buddha, an easy method of integrating awakening into everyday life, the most frustrating thing they have ever done, an appalling waste of time, a tyranny perpetrated by Zen masters… Well, you get the idea — about koans, opinions differ. Article by John Tarrant published in Shambhala Sun magazine, May 1 2003.

3992 Words
Video June 30, 2017

Offering Condolences

John Tarrant

John Tarrant talks about the relationship between student and teacher, as well as the relationship between the student and her self.

32' 51"