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DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250120T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250120T193000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20241220T203242Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250117T232139Z
UID:10001948-1737396000-1737401400@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:MONDAY ZEN with Jon Joseph: Gaia Shows the Way
DESCRIPTION:REGISTER\n\nFollowing the heavy rains\, scores of Chinook salmon showed up in Sonoma Creek\, a narrow\, thirty-mile stream that flows into the San Francisco Bay. They came to spawn and then die\, as they have done for millennia. Extreme drought and decades of development brought the collapse of salmon and steelhead populations\, forcing California to ban fishing of those species along its Pacific coast. Yet this year the large salmon\, also known as “Kings\,” returned. \nGaia shows that she can heal. Here is a koan for healing: \nYunmen said to the assembly\,\n“Medicine and sickness cure each other.\nAll the great earth is medicine.\nWhat are you?” \n—Blue Cliff Record Case 87\, transl. John Tarrant & Joan Sutherland \nImages and videos of the fires in SoCal bring painful memories for those of us previously touched by fire. Five years ago the Kincade Fire rode on the back of Diablo winds—similar to Santa Anas—devastating our rural Sonoma neighborhood: Charred live and valley oaks\, burned manzanita and madrone\, and underfoot\, scorched grass. All the homes in the area\, save our own and a few others\, had burned. After the fire passed I watched a lone coyote amble on the blackened slope across the creek\, searching for dead rodents. \nMedicine and sickness heal each other. But despair has not been my strongest emotion hearing the terrible news from Los Angeles. I feel my appreciation for the power of renewal and healing that the great earth\, Gaia\, brings. \nIf Gaia can heal\, perhaps we\, too\, can heal. When I hike with my dog through the Mayacama hills\, most signs of the Kincade have been overtaken by new growth: the wildrye and fescue returned quickly\, followed by madrone\, manzanita and oaks. Only the gray pines remain as charred sentinels along the ridge line. \nDespair could come easily in these times\, especially for us gray-hairs. But at Pacific Zen we have a saying\, “Despair assumes too much knowing.” I see my young daughters deeply engaged in great-earth work\, seeking to make their future not just possible\, but promising. One has worked for several years in forestry and is currenly training to be a prescribed-burn crew boss. The other works as an analyst at a political polling firm. When I meet their friends\, I find them energetic\, action-oriented\, and full of hope. It is wrong and unfair for us to predict that they have no future. \nGaia finds a way\, all on her own. We don’t need to help her so much as we need to get out of her way. When we do\, the Chinook return to Sonoma Creek. \nHomeric Hymn to Gaia\nby Diane J. Rayor\, from The Homeric Hymns\, 30 \nI will sing to the mother of all\, firmly-rooted Gaia.\neldest living deity who feeds all the world’s life—\nwhether on the divine land\, in the deep sea\,\nor flying about—all beings feed from your plenty.\nFine children and rich harvests arise from you.\nO Queen; you alone give mortal folk a livelihood\,\nor take it away. The one you graciously honor\nis truly blessed. For him\, all is abundant:\nhis life-giving fields bear fruit\, flocks thrive\nin his pastures… \n\nJon Joseph Roshi\n  \nCOME JOIN US on Mondays for koan meditation\, dharma talk and conversation. Register to participate. All are welcome. \nJon Joseph Roshi\, Director of San Mateo Zen Community
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/monday-zen-with-jon-joseph-43/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:PZI Zen Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/chinook500.jpeg
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250119T103000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250119T120000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20241220T202041Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250117T155140Z
UID:10001938-1737282600-1737288000@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:SUNDAY ZEN with John Tarrant & Friends: Hanging From a Branch by Your Teeth
DESCRIPTION:REGISTER\n\n“Mummy\, why does it keep on changing?” asked the young rhino. “I mean it’s fire one minute and flood the next\, not to mention the hyenas.” \n“Yep.” \n“Why?” \n“First Noble Truth.” \n“What does that mean?” \n“It means that it’s like that. A dream\, a bubble\, a flash of lightning.” \n“Isn’t that\, well\, intense?” \n“Knowing about it helps. The mind is calm. \nEverything changes\, everything falls apart\, catches fire\, then drowns. \nA dream\, a bubble\, a flash of lightning.” \n“Mummy\, is there anything good about this?” \n“You can see that you are connected to everything in the universe\, the stars for example. That’s what ‘hanging from a branch by your teeth’ means.” \n“Really\, Mummy? I meant\, can I have an apple? I love apples.\n \nAlso\, can we have snow? I’d like to see snow.”\n \nJoin us for the mysteries of fire and rain. \n—John Tarrant \n\n\n\n \nMeditation is not a task with a known goal. It’s something you can’t do wrong\, a chance for the things of this world to come towards you and to meet you\, for doors to open by themselves\, and for us to see where the ancient paths lead. \n\n\nWaking up is something we do together\, in the online temple on Sunday. We love it when you join us.  \n—John Tarrant Roshi and all of us at PZI
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/sunday-zen-with-john-tarrant-friends-45/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:PZI Zen Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/two-rhinos500.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250114T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250114T193000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20241220T204418Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250110T175015Z
UID:10001953-1736877600-1736883000@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:TUESDAY ZEN with David Weinstein: A Fierce Wind
DESCRIPTION:REGISTER\n\nThe minister Yu Di asked Xi Yu Daotang about a line in the scripture. “What is meant by\, ‘A fierce winds blew the ship off course and set it drifting toward the land of the flesh-eating demons?’”  \nThe master replied\, “Minister\, why are you so ignorant? Why are you asking about that?” The minister’s face turned white. \nThe master said\, “A fierce wind blew them off course and set them adrift toward the land of the flesh-eating demons.” The minister understood.  \n— Entangling Vines Case 39 \nWith pirates in control of the morning meditation\, I found myself asking what koan is alive for me during this time—this one about the fierce wind blowing the ship off course. \nThe scripture referred to in the koan is the Lotus Sutra\, and I went to the Lotus Sutra to see what I could see. I saw that the next line in the sutra is\, \nBut if even only one person can remember the name of the bodhisattva of compassion\, all are saved. \nIt’s interesting that the line about “all are saved” was left out of the koan. I suppose the minister left it out! The quote he brought to the teacher did not include that line. That’s interesting. How we can be looking at how all can be saved and not see it? \nFreshly back from a couple of weeks in Japan—which were great—it’s not about the way I felt blown off course by a fierce wind and set adrift towards the land of the flesh-eating demons. Rather\, it’s about the way I remembered the name of the bodhisattva of compassion. I will share more about that on Tuesday. \n—David Weinstein \n\nDavid Weinstein Roshi\n  \nCOME JOIN US on Tuesdays for koan meditation\, dharma talk and conversation.\nRegister to participate. All are welcome. \nDavid Weinstein Roshi\, Director of Rockridge Meditation Community \n 
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/tuesday-zen-with-david-weinstein-24/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:PZI Zen Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/All-are-saved500.jpeg
ORGANIZER;CN="David Weinstein Roshi":MAILTO:dweinstein@pacificzen.org
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250113T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250113T193000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20241220T203150Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250111T144322Z
UID:10001949-1736791200-1736796600@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:MONDAY ZEN with Jon Joseph: In the Sea of Uncertainty: Knowing the Not Knowing of Our Lives
DESCRIPTION:REGISTER\n\nIn the dream\, I am floating on my back off the coast of the Big Island\, in Hawai’i. There is a gentle swell\, and the water is clear and warm\, and very deep. I look around me\, and the waters are alive with schooling fish and diving birds. I fall asleep in the dream for a time and\, when I awaken\, I realize no sharks have come\, though most of the fish and birds have moved on. The feeling of the dream is warm\, vast and inviting. \nIn recent years\, this is the kind of feeling that has visited me\, and I am sure you too\, when I keep company with “not knowing” in my life and practice. It is a greater appreciation for the vast and clear sea of life\, sea of love\, sea of light\, sea of uncertainty\, with both immediate gifts and infinite possibility. And pain\, as well. \nThere are a number of well-known koans that return us again and again to the sea of uncertainty: \n“Why are you going on pilgrimage?” asked Dizhang. “I don’t know\,” replied Fayan.\n“Who are you\, standing here before me?” inquired Emperor Wu. “I Don’t know\,” responded Bodhidharma.\nA student asked Zhao Zhou\, “If you don’t dwell in clarity\, what do you live by?” “Again\, I don’t know\,” said Zhao. \n—The Book of Serenity\, 20; The Blue Cliff Record\, 1&2 \nLast week we were having a holiday glass of wine with friends\, one of whom was recently diagnosed with cancer\, underwent chemotherapy and had his bladder removed. He said the doctor had found him to be cancer free\, and we all gave him a hearty toast. He then wryly added\, “At least until my next checkup in six months.” I thought\, “None of us can see beyond six months. We can’t even see beyond a week.” Another acquaintance\, extremely fit in his mid-80s\, broke a wrist playing tennis a couple of weeks ago\, developed sepsis and died on the first day of Hanukkah. Floating on the sea of uncertainty. \nIn some mysterious way\, the universe is constructing and deconstructing itself moment by moment. We are part of that construction project. Yet by the time we recognize our vital role\, the moment has passed and the universe has changed\, made wholly new once again. \nThis process of deepening\, of appreciation\, is without end. Many years ago\, sitting in sesshin at the small SanUn Zendo\, I was surprised to hear Koun Yamada start his teisho with the simple statement\, “In the past ten years\, my understanding of this koan has deepened immeasurably. A decade ago\, I would not be giving the same talk.” We are continually knowing not-knowing. And then not knowing that. \nThis morning we received a video clip from a friend whose house is in Altadena\, in Los Angeles. Driving down her neighborhood block is house upon house\, gutted and burned out\, with many of them still smoldering. She was certain her’s was lost\, but she comes to it and finds it still standing\, and exclaims\, “The turquoise lawn chairs survived. Amazing!” \nHunger for Something \nSometimes I long to be the woodpile\,\ncut-apart tree soon to be smoke\,\nor even the smoke itself\, \nsinewy ghost of ash and air\, going\nwhere I want to\, at least for a while. \nNeither inside nor out\, \nneither lost nor home\, no longer\na shape or a name I’ll pass through \nall the broken windows of the world.\nIt’s not a wish for consciousness to end. \nIt’s not the appetite an army has\nfor its own emptying heart\,\nbut a hunger to stand now and then \nalone on the death grounds\,\nwhere the dogs of the self are feeding. \n—Chase Twichell\, The Snow Watcher  \n  \n—Jon Joseph \n\nJon Joseph Roshi\n  \nCOME JOIN US on Mondays for koan meditation\, dharma talk and conversation. Register to participate. All are welcome. \nJon Joseph Roshi\, Director of San Mateo Zen Community
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/monday-zen-with-jon-joseph-42/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:PZI Zen Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/waves500.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250113T040000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250328T070000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20241231T171153Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250217T181943Z
UID:10001974-1736740800-1743145200@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:OPEN TEMPLE: 11-Week Winter Meditation Pass – MEMBERS FREE
DESCRIPTION:REGISTER\n\nFREE to PZI Members!\nMorning Meditations 5 Days Weekly\nWherever you are in the world\, let’s sit together.\n \nOpen Temple Pass gives you unlimited access to two morning meditations\, Mondays–Fridays\,\nJanuary 13th–March 28th\, 2025. All are welcome. PZI Members attend FREE. \nPractice leaders will ring the bells and hold a cushion for you. Join us! \n\nWeekday Schedule\nJoin in as you can\, as often as you like. \nSESSION 1 Sits in the East Temple: 7–8:00 AM Eastern Time\n(or 4–5 AM Pacific) \nSESSION 2 Sits in the West Temple: 6–7:00 AM Pacific Time\n(or 9–10 AM Eastern) \nCheck for weekly updates here.\n \n\nYour Temple Zoom Link\nThe recurring Zoom link for Open Temple access will be in your emailed receipt\,\nfor entrance to ALL morning meditations. \nPZI Members FREE\, Non-Members $125 \nQuestions? Or to check your membership status\, contact Lucas at PZI Support. \n\n\nNot a member of PZI? Now is your chance!  \nJoin us for free access to the Open Temple\, scholarships\, discounts for retreats\,\nour vast and growing library of dharma talks\, and other resources.\n \nBecome a Member
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/open-temple-winter-9-week-meditation-pass-members-free/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:Open Temple
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Winter-OT_500x375-1.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250112T103000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250112T120000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20241220T201908Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250110T201016Z
UID:10001936-1736677800-1736683200@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:SUNDAY ZEN with John Tarrant & Friends: Dreams & the Fire at the End of the Universe
DESCRIPTION:REGISTER\n\nLately in California the dream is fire\, the image of transformation. \nAllison grew up in the Palisades. \nDid your childhood house on Swathmore burn?\nYes it did\, the whole of Swathmore is gone.\nHow about ancient Aunt Betty’s house in the Red Zone near the cliffs?\nIt did not fall down\, but it burned yesterday.\nAnd the Corpus Christi Church?\nAh yes\, that too. \nThe park burned\, the library burned. \nA student asked Dasui\, “In the Kalpa fire when the universe is completely destroyed\, I’m still wondering\, is there something that won’t be destroyed?”\nDasui said\, “It will be destroyed.”\n“It will follow along with everything else?”\nDasui said\, “It will follow along with everything else.” \nMany intense things happen in the dream of our lives. \nJoin us for the practice of dream and fire. \n—John Tarrant \n\n\n\n \nMeditation is not a task with a known goal. It’s something you can’t do wrong\, a chance for the things of this world to come towards you and to meet you\, for doors to open by themselves\, and for us to see where the ancient paths lead. \n\n\nWaking up is something we do together\, in the online temple on Sunday. We love it when you join us.  \n—John Tarrant Roshi and all of us at PZI
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/sunday-zen-with-john-tarrant-friends-44/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:PZI Zen Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/LAburning500.png
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250111T080000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250111T100000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20241220T205404Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241223T155437Z
UID:10001960-1736582400-1736589600@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:SATURDAY ZEN: For PZI Members – Conversations with David Weinstein
DESCRIPTION:About Saturday Conversations \nDokusan is the Japanese word for these conversations about meditation practice. It means “to go alone” or “to practice alone.” It is to have a conversation so intimate\, that for both participants it is as if you were talking with and listening to yourself. \nThe word “conversation” (in place of the Japanese word dokusan) has its own way of speaking to the experience. \nEtymologically\, it means “to turn around together.” Meditation is often referred to as a turning around of our attention towards the inside. These conversations about meditation practice are an opportunity for a mutual turning the light around and exploring what’s there. \n—David Weinstein \n\nSaturday Conversations with David Weinstein Roshi\nOnline on Zoom from 8–10:00 am Pacific Time\nEvery two weeks \nIf you are a PZI Member and would like to have a conversation with David\,\nbook your 15-minute online meeting for January 11th here.\n \nDana gratefully accepted \nQuestions? Contact David \n 
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/saturday-zen-for-pzi-members-conversations-with-david-weinstein-12/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:Saturday Conversations
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Buddha-laying-down.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="David Weinstein Roshi":MAILTO:dweinstein@pacificzen.org
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250109T160000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250109T173000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20241220T211446Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250107T230652Z
UID:10001971-1736438400-1736443800@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:THURSDAY ZEN with David Parks: Elemental Zen: Water
DESCRIPTION:REGISTER\n\nThis past weekend we here in Kentucky were visited by winter storm Blair. What can be politely called a wintry mix fell on Sunday and Monday here on Panola Ridge. You can say we were inundated with water in all its forms but steam. It began with a soft snow accumulating up to about 6 inches\, followed by an inch or two of sleet and freezing rain\, and then finishing off with another two inches of snow on Monday. \nThe weather changed how things are done around here. The animals were fed in the barn\, chainsaws were readied for falling trees\, and batteries were charged in the event of a prolonged power outage. What is the Scout’s motto? Be Prepared. This water all around\, falling out of the sky\, is all rather basic\, elemental. \nThe elements. Before the periodic table or quantum physics\, there were the elements. In the West\, four—water\, earth\, fire\, air. And in the East\, China adds one more—wood. Or if you are from Japan\, the void. Everything is made of these elements: the rain\, the snow—yes\, and also the grass\, the cattails that grow in my ponds—the fire in the fire pit\, wood and fire. \nYour body\, too\, is elemental. Your physical form is earth; your breath\, air; your body temperature\, fire. Sometimes we burn with passion. And water throughout—blood\, urine\, tears and yes\, sweat in the summertime. Your body is earth filled with water\, 60%. \nIt’s elementary\, Watson. All that we see\, touch\, taste\, the air we breathe is elemental. For the Chan/Zen ancestors viewed all that comes into form as a gate into the formless and unknown. When we look at the record that comes to us from their sayings and doings—koans—each of the elements makes a showing. \nWater: \n\nThis is the stone (earth) drenched with rain (water)…\nBeautiful snowflakes…\nKicks over the water pitcher…\n\nFire: \n\nExtinguish the fire across the river.\nThe fire at the end of the age…\nThe god beneath the hearth…\n\nEarth: \n\nI’ve built temples and monasteries. What merit?\nBuild me a seamless monument.\nThe stone woman gives birth in the night.\n\nAir: \n\nBe an ancient tree in a high wind.\nIt is not the wind that moves\, it is not the flag…\n\nWood: \n\nThe wooden man dances…\n\nOn Thursday evening\, we will begin an occasional series looking at the elemental images of the koans as gateways into the vastness. In honor of winter storm Blair\, we will begin with water and the koan: \nThis is the stone\nDrenched with rain\nThat points the Way.\n\n—Taneda Santoka \n—David Parks \n\n\n\n\n\n \n  \nCOME JOIN US on Thursdays for koan meditation\, dharma talk and conversation. All are welcome. Register to participate. \nDavid Parks Roshi\, Director of Bluegrass Zen
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/thursday-zen-with-david-parks-37/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:PZI Zen Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/water2_500.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="David Parks Roshi":MAILTO:dparksbluegrasszen@gmail.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250107T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250107T193000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20241220T212330Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241220T212330Z
UID:10001972-1736272800-1736278200@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:ON BREAK: TUESDAY ZEN with David Weinstein
DESCRIPTION:David Weinstein is not teaching today\, but will return on January 14th. We hope you join us then! \n\nEveryone is welcome here no matter how you are feeling\, where you come from\, what you believe.  \n—David Weinstein \n\nDavid Weinstein Roshi\n  \nCOME JOIN US on Tuesdays for koan meditation\, dharma talk and conversation.\nRegister to participate. All are welcome. \nDavid Weinstein Roshi\, Director of Rockridge Meditation Community \n 
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/on-break-tuesday-zen-with-david-weinstein-7/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:PZI Zen Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/wooden-bucketCALENDAR500x350.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="David Weinstein Roshi":MAILTO:dweinstein@pacificzen.org
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250106T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250106T193000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20241220T212457Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241220T212457Z
UID:10001973-1736186400-1736191800@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:ON BREAK: MONDAY ZEN with Jon Joseph
DESCRIPTION:Jon Joseph is not teaching today\, but will return on January 13th. We hope you join us then! \n\nWe are not alone in the world. We have each other to turn toward. All we need to do is ask. \n—Jon Joseph \n\nJon Joseph Roshi\n  \nCOME JOIN US on Mondays for koan meditation\, dharma talk and conversation. Register to participate. All are welcome. \nJon Joseph Roshi\, Director of San Mateo Zen Community
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/on-break-monday-zen-with-jon-joseph-17/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:PZI Zen Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/wooden-bucketCALENDAR500x350.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250105T103000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20250105T120000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20241213T205310Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20250106T231219Z
UID:10001934-1736073000-1736078400@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:SUNDAY ZEN: John Tarrant on His New Book – The Story of the Buddha
DESCRIPTION:Pacific Zen Institute & Point Reyes Books Present:\nTess Beasley in Conversation\nwith Zen Teacher\, Author\, & Poet John Tarrant\nOn His New Book: The Story of the Buddha\nSunday January 5th\, 2025\n10:30–12:00 pm Pacific Time\n\n\nJoin us online for a presentation and conversation on John Tarrant’s newest book\, The Story of the Buddha. The newly released hardcover book with beautiful\, high-quality imagery is now available in the PZI Online Store. \nPrefer to listen? The audiobook is also available with narration by John himself. \nDonations of $250 or greater to the PZI year end fund will receive a signed copy! \n\nJohn Tarrant is a Zen teacher\, author\, and poet and is PZI’s founder and director. He is interested in Zen as a Way that transforms the mind and in the dance between innovation and tradition in both teaching and practice. \nRead John’s full bio here. \n\nZen as a set of rules and procedures is not so interesting to me. I learned Zen when we were still trying to find what worked in the West. And people now seem to find freedom more naturally than I had assumed during my own initial studies. \nMy experiments have led me to trust people more than I once did\, and to teach people to trust their own moves. To me this means that koans are not a gadget that you put all your effort into using. They’re an environment—you wander around and they teach you. You have to listen and look.
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/zen-luminaries-the-story-of-the-buddha-jon-joseph-in-conversation-with-zen-teacher-poet-author-john-tarrant/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:PZI Zen Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Buddha-book_500x375.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241231T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241231T193000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20241120T175042Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241120T181524Z
UID:10001933-1735668000-1735673400@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:ON BREAK: TUESDAY ZEN with David Weinstein
DESCRIPTION:David Weinstein is not teaching today and will return on January 7th. We hope to see you then! \n\nEveryone is welcome here no matter how you are feeling\, where you come from\, what you believe.  \n—David Weinstein \n\nDavid Weinstein Roshi\n  \nCOME JOIN US on Tuesdays for koan meditation\, dharma talk and conversation.\nRegister to participate. All are welcome. \nDavid Weinstein Roshi\, Director of Rockridge Meditation Community \n 
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/on-break-tuesday-zen-with-david-weinstein-6/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:PZI Zen Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/wooden-bucketCALENDAR500x350.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="David Weinstein Roshi":MAILTO:dweinstein@pacificzen.org
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241230T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241230T193000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20241120T163508Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241228T160344Z
UID:10001921-1735581600-1735587000@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:MONDAY ZEN with Jon Joseph: Taking Refuge in Family
DESCRIPTION:REGISTER\n\nThe winter holidays are family time around my house. Decades ago\, my mother began a tradition of gathering her six children and our broods on Christmas Eve. A few nights ago we numbered nearly thirty. As the seasonal rains murmured through the downspouts\, we threw juniper chunks on the fire\, tucked into our potluck feast\, and later played some very silly games. \nTraditionally\, the ceremony by which Buddhist monks are ordained is called shukke (出家)—home departure—which is a grave severing of the filial duties most Asian societies expect of children. Zen’s Sixth Ancestor Huineng was making a meager living selling firewood while he and his mother suffered extreme poverty. On hearing a monk chant the Diamond Sutra\, Huineng awakened and knew he must leave his mother and travel to a monastery in the north to study Zen. He left one small family to find another. \nLayman Pang\, who lived a couple of generations after Huineng\, is probably the best known family man from the golden age of Chan-Zen. After studying with Mazu\, he traveled about with his wife and two children\, visiting various temples and teachers. \nLayman Pang and his daughter Lingzhao were selling bamboo baskets. Coming down off a bridge he stumbled and fell. When Lingzhao saw this she ran to her father’s side and threw herself on the ground.\n“What are you doing?” cried the Layman.\n“I saw Daddy fall down\, so I’m helping\,“ replied Lingzhao.\n“Luckily no one was looking\,“ remarked the Layman. \n—The Recorded Sayings of Layman Pang\, The Anecdotes \n“I take refuge in my companions\,” is the third of the PZI Refuge Vows\, which include taking refuge in awakening and the teachings. When we join a sangha\, we come together as a kind of family—as brothers and sisters on the path. It is a familial act to look after one another: a check-in\, a brief note\, sitting together in the Open Temple. This is what family members do: they fall down together on the road. And then they pick up the baskets together. \nThis is how we come to understand our relationship to the greater household we live in\, the community of all things. Rocks\, sticks\, ants and grizzly bears support us\, and it is lovely that we\, in turn\, support them. \n—Jon Joseph \n\nJon Joseph Roshi\n  \nCOME JOIN US on Mondays for koan meditation\, dharma talk and conversation. Register to participate. All are welcome. \nJon Joseph Roshi\, Director of San Mateo Zen Community
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/monday-zen-with-jon-joseph-41/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:PZI Zen Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Ant-bridge500.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241229T103000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241229T120000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20241120T172718Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241226T232841Z
UID:10001928-1735468200-1735473600@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:SUNDAY ZEN with Guest Host Tess Beasley & Friends: Letting the World Care for Itself
DESCRIPTION:REGISTER\n\n\nWhen all thoughts\nAre exhausted\nI slip into the woods\nAnd gather\nA pile of shepherd’s purse. \nLike the little stream\nMaking its way\nThrough the mossy crevices\nI\, too\, quietly\nTurn clear and transparent \n—Taigu Ryokan \nBetween the waning of the old and promise of the new\, a space appears where nothing is yet known or defined. It is the space between breaths\, between thoughts\, between dynasties and universes. Into it returns everything that ever was\, and out of it appears laughter\, juncos\, firelight\, stars. \nIt is a space we grow intimate within practice\, and one that seems to draw especially near in the final days of each year. \nToo lazy to be ambitious\,\nI let the world take care of itself.\nTen days’ worth of rice in my bag;\na bundle of twigs by the fireplace.\nWhy chatter about delusion and enlightenment?\nListening to the night rain on my roof\,\nI sit comfortably\, with both legs stretched out \n—Taigu Ryokan \nJoin us Sunday\, December 29 for stories and discoveries\, music and companions. \n—Tess Beasley
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/sunday-zen-with-john-tarrant-friends-39/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:PZI Zen Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Magura-Cave-Bulgaria-Cave-Art_500.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241226T160000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241226T173000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20241220T210944Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241220T210944Z
UID:10001963-1735228800-1735234200@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:ON BREAK: THURSDAY ZEN with David Parks
DESCRIPTION:David Parks is not teaching today. Come join us next on January 9th! \n\nDon’t grab hold\, just allow the meditation to come to you. Same with koans\, they will come. It is like a dance\, a call and response. \n—David Parks \n\n\n\n\n\n \n  \nCOME JOIN US on Thursdays for koan meditation\, dharma talk and conversation. All are welcome. Register to participate. \nDavid Parks Roshi\, Director of Bluegrass Zen
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/on-break-thursday-zen-with-david-parks-8/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:PZI Zen Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/wooden-bucketCALENDAR500x350.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="David Parks Roshi":MAILTO:dparksbluegrasszen@gmail.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241224T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241224T193000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20241120T174926Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241120T181533Z
UID:10001932-1735063200-1735068600@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:ON BREAK: TUESDAY ZEN with David Weinstein
DESCRIPTION:David Weinstein is not teaching today and will return on January 7th. We hope to see you then! \n\nEveryone is welcome here no matter how you are feeling\, where you come from\, what you believe.  \n—David Weinstein \n\nDavid Weinstein Roshi\n  \nCOME JOIN US on Tuesdays for koan meditation\, dharma talk and conversation.\nRegister to participate. All are welcome. \nDavid Weinstein Roshi\, Director of Rockridge Meditation Community \n 
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/on-break-tuesday-zen-with-david-weinstein-5/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:PZI Zen Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/wooden-bucketCALENDAR500x350.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="David Weinstein Roshi":MAILTO:dweinstein@pacificzen.org
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241223T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241223T193000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20241120T163218Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241218T214751Z
UID:10001919-1734976800-1734982200@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:ON BREAK: MONDAY ZEN with Jon Joseph
DESCRIPTION:Jon Joseph is not teaching today\, but will return on December 30th. We hope you join us then! \n\nWe are not alone in the world. We have each other to turn toward. All we need to do is ask. \n—Jon Joseph \n\nJon Joseph Roshi\n  \nCOME JOIN US on Mondays for koan meditation\, dharma talk and conversation. Register to participate. All are welcome. \nJon Joseph Roshi\, Director of San Mateo Zen Community
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/monday-zen-with-jon-joseph-40/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:PZI Zen Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/wooden-bucketCALENDAR500x350.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241222T103000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241222T120000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20241120T172825Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241219T171645Z
UID:10001927-1734863400-1734868800@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:SUNDAY ZEN with John Tarrant & Friends: The Mind of Winter
DESCRIPTION:REGISTER\n\nwhen the winter chrysanthemums go\,\nthere’s nothing to write about\nbut radishes \n—Basho \nI find myself hoping for snow\, which is silly. I get snow about once a decade in Sonoma County. \nInside snow\, though\, there is a slow plunge of silence\, and the mystery of who I am.\nBut\, also\, I like the noisy way we come together in winter\, singing and feeling cheery merely because others are in the world with us. Santa Claus is fun\, too. Inside Santa is also the mystery of who I am. \nI do have oranges on a tree—”golden lamps in a green night\,” an old poet called them. \nSo this Sunday let’s have snow and friendship\, or if not snow\, perhaps rain will do\, or oranges—anyway\, let’s have friendship and enlightenment. \nJoin us. \n—John Tarrant \n\n\n\n\n \nMeditation is not a task with a known goal. It’s something you can’t do wrong\, a chance for the things of this world to come towards you and to meet you\, for doors to open by themselves\, and for us to see where the ancient paths lead. \n\n\nWaking up is something we do together\, in the online temple on Sunday. We love it when you join us.  \n—John Tarrant Roshi and all of us at PZI
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/sunday-zen-with-john-tarrant-friends-40/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:PZI Zen Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Hiroshige_Snow_falling_on_a_town500.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241219T160000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241219T173000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20241120T161752Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241218T160954Z
UID:10001917-1734624000-1734629400@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:THURSDAY ZEN with David Parks: Don't Believe It! Solitary Brightness
DESCRIPTION:REGISTER\n\nDon’t Believe It! Solitary Brightness \nLinji was a Chan (Zen) Master who lived in 9th Century China. He was known for his iconoclastic ways. His clear presentations of the dharma included anything\, even shouts and blows\, to loosen a person’s grip on things. All designed to open the heart to reality\, here and now. Of course\, he is the founder of one of the great schools of Zen: the Linji School\, or in Japanese: the Rinzai School\, with its emphasis on awakening and use of koans. Here is what might be described as Linji’s root teaching: \nWhatever confronts you\, don’t believe it. \nWhen something appears shine your light on it.\nHave confidence in the light that is always working inside you. \nWhatever Confronts You… \nThere is a vastness to my life\, to your life. This immensity extends beyond my ability to comprehend. It is before good and evil\, before birth and death. And it is home. There is consciousness before content\, life before the life we hold onto\, with which we find our separate identity. We all know this\, and we all have caught a glimpse as the sun sets\, the flower opens\, as we sit beside the bed of a sick friend. Within this vastness\, thoughts arise\, personalities arise\, things around us change—there is no-thing apart from the vast expanse of reality\, no change that is not a part of the whole. Yet\, when something comes\, in an effort to make sense of life\, we grab hold\, identify with it—reify it\, literally\, “make it into something.” For this reason Linji says… \nDon’t Believe It. \nAs thoughts are held\, they begin\, like newly poured concrete\, to set and harden. They become belief—about reality\, about ourselves in relationship to the vastness. We set ourselves up\, defining ourselves apart from the larger life\, a self separate from\, far away from\, home. \nSometimes we dare to cut into the mystery and proclaim to “know who we are.” Enter Linji—“If it pops up\,” he shouts\, “if a thought comes\, if it confronts you\, don’t believe it!” Wisely\, he admonishes us to eschew anything with which we might separate ourselves from life\, anything that might shrink our world. This is something we all confront. Human beings\, each one of us\, develops a personal reality filled with belief\, about ourselves\, about others\, and about the larger life\, the reality within which we swim. \nRecently\, I came face to face with one of my core beliefs: \nNo-one loves me. \nI am not sure where this thought first emerged\, not sure when I took hold. Perhaps as a child when I was chosen last for kickball. Or perhaps coming when I was being reprimanded by some adult for some action done or left undone. Or maybe\, or maybe\, or maybe…With this belief\, I learned that I could\, and needed to\, charm my way through my life; that I could work hard and earn folk’s love. Indeed\, work really hard and procure the love of God. As I carried this belief and worked to impress others\, to charm Reality itself\, I actually cut myself off from others and became less available\, not more; less vulnerable\, unapproachable. \nThis is how attachment to a core belief works\, causing Hakuin to write\, \nPeople miss what’s in front of them\nand go searching far from home.\nIt’s sad\, like someone standing in water\nand crying out in thirst\,\nor a child from a rich family\nstruggling among the poor. \nIt is this very sadness\, this loneliness\, that calls me to spiritual practice. \nWhen Something Appears Shine Your Light On It. \nHere is the heart of spiritual practice. Usually we don’t want to question our beliefs. We take them for reality—they are set hard in our lives\, the concrete upon which we stand. Because of our hard identification of ourselves with the contents of our consciousness\, we take these “things” to be our reality. We will fight and die for our perceptions of the world. For this reason we have a big “No Trespassing” sign on our beliefs — no one need question them\, least of all ourselves. We assume that if we question our beliefs the world as we know it might end (it will)\, and we live in fear of losing our identity. So\, to the no trespassing sign\, Linji’s teaching takes it the other way\, “Shine your light on it.” \nLinji also gave a koan that points to your light\, to my light. He calls it a solitary brightness. Here you go: \nThere is a solitary brightness without fixed shape or form. \nIt knows how to express the teachings and listen to the teachings.\nThat solitary brightness is you\, right here before my eyes. \nBefore there was belief\, before any self-image or identification\, there is a solitary brightness. A name for the vast reality of Life as-it-is\, is solitary brightness. This is your light\, you are that light. This is the light before you even gave a thought to yourself. This is the light that shines in all things—even your beliefs about things. This light of larger life\, is present. In practice\, we are present to this light. As things arise in this life\, as we are confronted with thoughts\, perceptions\, etc…they shine with this light. Perceiving this\, the bottom drops out of our identifications and are apprehended\, seized by the light. As Linji says\, “That solitary brightness is you.” \nFor me\, this meant holding this big sadness\, this no-one-loves-me-I-think-I’ll-eat-worms mind. It meant daring to trespass into the my self-imposed exile from reality and to live into a naked trust. For me this meant sobbing on my cushion\, it meant living within energies that seemed at times overwhelming. And yes\, the bottom drops out of all that\, as the doors never shut\, now beckon. Linji’s voice resounds\, “That solitary brightness is you.” \nAnd that is the last word\, that and\, “Always have confidence in that light which is working inside you.” \n—David Parks \n\n\n\n\n\n \n  \nCOME JOIN US on Thursdays for koan meditation\, dharma talk and conversation. All are welcome. Register to participate. \nDavid Parks Roshi\, Director of Bluegrass Zen
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/thursday-zen-with-david-parks-36/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:PZI Zen Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/lantern500.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="David Parks Roshi":MAILTO:dparksbluegrasszen@gmail.com
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241217T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241217T193000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20241120T164232Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241212T203525Z
UID:10001924-1734458400-1734463800@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:TUESDAY ZEN with David Weinstein: Dongshan’s Second View
DESCRIPTION:REGISTER\n\nYou find yourself to be an old woman\nYou’re sleeping late.\nWhen you wake up you come upon an ancient mirror\nAnd you see your own face clearly.\nTry not to lose sight of it again and go chasing shadows. \n—2nd of Dongshan’s Five Ranks \nAs I’ve spent time with Dongshan’s second perspective—on the relationship between form and emptiness—I continue to be interested in using Dogen’s writings to get a perspective on Dongshan’s perspective. \nPossibly the most well known of Dogen’s statements appears in his writings on the Genjokoan\, sometimes translated as “The Way of Everyday Life.” \nThis statement is a kind of verse\, Dogen’s capping phrase on the relationship between form and emptiness. It goes something like this: \nTo study the Way is to study the self.\nTo study the self is to forget the self.\nTo forget the self is to be enlightened by the ten thousand things.\nTo be enlightened by the ten thousand things is to free one’s body and mind and those of others.\nNo trace of enlightenment remains.\nAnd this traceless enlightenment continues forever. \nDogen’s “to forget the self” resonates with Dongshan’s\, “you see a face from long ago that you do not recognize.” It makes sense that if I forget myself\, I will not recognize myself. But more than that\, it speaks to experiencing the un-recognizability of the self\, the un-graspability of the self. \nDongshan’s second perspective feels connected to Dogen’s\, “To forget the self is to be enlightened by the ten thousand things.” When we see ourselves clearly\, as the old woman does when she looks in the mirror\, everything we look at has our face. More than a mirror—it’s like a window looking out on the 10\,000 things. \nI’m still sitting with finding myself to be an old woman\, what’s that about? \nMore on Tuesday\, see you then. \n—David Weinstein \n\nDavid Weinstein Roshi\n  \nCOME JOIN US on Tuesdays for koan meditation\, dharma talk and conversation.\nRegister to participate. All are welcome. \nDavid Weinstein Roshi\, Director of Rockridge Meditation Community \n 
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/tuesday-zen-with-david-weinstein-21/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:PZI Zen Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Dongshans-Second-View-2_500.png
ORGANIZER;CN="David Weinstein Roshi":MAILTO:dweinstein@pacificzen.org
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241216T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241216T193000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20241120T162759Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241216T172814Z
UID:10001918-1734372000-1734377400@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:MONDAY ZEN with Jon Joseph: There Is a Light That Shines in All of Us
DESCRIPTION:REGISTER\n\nYunmen taught\, “Everybody has a light inside of them. Sometimes it is dark\, dark and dim\, and hard to see. What is the light that shines in you?” \n—Blue Cliff Record Case 86 \nZen is about seeing and appreciating the light in all things. Some of that is finding the light within the light: This early winter morning\, broken sunshine illuminated wet grass in the olive orchard across the drive. The grass\, thickened in the seasonal rains. \nPerhaps the greatest work is in realizing the light within the dark: This afternoon an unhoused woman stood in the portico of the local Walmart\, soaked from the cold rain\, possessions in the shopping cart standing by her. Perhaps she was weighing her options. She too shone with a kind of light. \nA few nights ago classics translator Emily Wilson visited with us and reflected on the light within the dark in her work. Of The Iliad\, Homer’s poem of the Trojan War\, she writes: “Human mortality is at the center of it all …” Yet The Iliad makes the whole world feel gloriously alive. \nHow is that possible—so much death and so much life? So much blood and so many tears? \nWilson ends her introduction like this: \nYou already know the story. You will die. Everyone you love will die. You will lose them forever. You will be sad and angry. You will weep. You will bargain. You will make demands. You will beg. You will pray. It will make no difference. Nothing you can do will bring them back. You know this. Your knowing changes nothing. This poem will make you understand this unfathomable truth again and again. \nIn the above koan it is Yunmen who guides us toward appreciating the unfathomable by celebrating the fathomable. He points to the fact that the light is only knowable in its ordinariness\, in its expression of this complicated life. In responding to his own question\, “What is the light that shines in you?” Yunmen answers “Kitchen pantry and temple gate.” Dark and dim\, how wonderful that it shines on this plain of Troy. \n—Jon Joseph \n\nJon Joseph Roshi\n  \nCOME JOIN US on Mondays for koan meditation\, dharma talk and conversation. Register to participate. All are welcome. \nJon Joseph Roshi\, Director of San Mateo Zen Community
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/monday-zen-with-jon-joseph-39/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:PZI Zen Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/JonJosephCALENDAR500X375.png
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241215T103000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241215T120000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20241120T172921Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241221T004302Z
UID:10001926-1734258600-1734264000@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:SUNDAY ZEN with John Tarrant & Friends: Endarkening – Deeper Into the World
DESCRIPTION:  \n\nLost and in the Dark \nYou come and go by daylight\, you make people out by daylight.\nBut suddenly it’s midnight and there’s no sun\, no moon\, no light.\nIf it’s a place you’ve been to\, then of course it might be possible\,\nbut if it’s a place you’ve never been\, how will you get ahold of something? \n—Yunmen \nZen takes us deeper. We feel\, taste\, touch\, hear\, see\, and remember the world in a complete meeting. We become what we see. \nWe do this when our thoughts stop telling us what to do\, think\, and feel. \nOne way of considering this is that the thoughts fall out of our mind\, and we are in darkness. That is where we can become true to ourselves. This is where the enchantment of the world is all around us. \n—John Tarrant \n\n\n\n \nMeditation is not a task with a known goal. It’s something you can’t do wrong\, a chance for the things of this world to come towards you and to meet you\, for doors to open by themselves\, and for us to see where the ancient paths lead. \n\n\nWaking up is something we do together\, in the online temple on Sunday. We love it when you join us.  \n—John Tarrant Roshi and all of us at PZI
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/sunday-zen-with-john-tarrant-friends-41/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:PZI Zen Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Guanyin-altar_500K.jpeg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241214T080000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241214T100000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20241120T173750Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241129T144701Z
UID:10001930-1734163200-1734170400@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:SATURDAY ZEN: For PZI Members – Conversations with David Weinstein
DESCRIPTION:About Saturday Conversations \nDokusan is the Japanese word for these conversations about meditation practice. It means “to go alone” or “to practice alone.” It is to have a conversation so intimate\, that for both participants it is as if you were talking with and listening to yourself. \nThe word “conversation” (in place of the Japanese word dokusan) has its own way of speaking to the experience. \nEtymologically\, it means “to turn around together.” Meditation is often referred to as a turning around of our attention towards the inside. These conversations about meditation practice are an opportunity for a mutual turning the light around and exploring what’s there. \n—David Weinstein \n\nSaturday Conversations with David Weinstein Roshi\nOnline on Zoom from 8–10:00 am Pacific Time\nEvery two weeks \nIf you are a PZI Member and would like to have a conversation with David\,\nbook your 15-minute online meeting for December 14th here.\n \nDana gratefully accepted \nQuestions? Contact David \n 
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/saturday-zen-for-pzi-members-conversations-with-david-weinstein-11/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:Saturday Conversations
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Buddha-laying-down.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="David Weinstein Roshi":MAILTO:dweinstein@pacificzen.org
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241212T160000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241212T173000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20241120T161315Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241209T180615Z
UID:10001916-1734019200-1734024600@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:THURSDAY ZEN with David Parks: Koan Leavening
DESCRIPTION:REGISTER\n\nQuickly\, before thinking good and evil\,\nwhat is your original face before your parents were born? \n—Huineng \nFor the last fifty years I have baked bread. By my mother’s side\, I learned to bake bread that looked less like a chemistry project when you read the label and more like food. Flour\, yeast\, water and salt—simple ingredients for the staple of life. Of these ingredients\, yeast is the catalyst. It brings about the transformation. \nThere is a parable that notices this: It is like the yeast a baker uses in making bread. Even though she puts only a little yeast in three measures of flour\, it permeates every part of the dough. Domesticated or wild\, it will bring about transformation. \nA few things about the yeast: \nIt is all around us. Yeast is in the air. I have a friend who visited us here in Kentucky and collected yeast at the Buffalo Trace Distillery by leaving a little flour out on the grounds of the distillery. The flour receives the yeast\, the whole loaf is transformed. \nIt is alive. \nYeast grows and as it does change happens. \nThe vast web of interconnection and change is without bounds. It reaches everywhere. The koans\, too\, are a part of this vastness\, inviting us in. The koans are alive. \nAs yeast joins the flour\, the bloom begins. When you receive a koan\, sometimes from a teacher or sometimes it just arrives\, you welcome the koan into your body\, heart\, and mind. You begin to see your complete life reflected in the koan. Things come alive. You come alive. Your life begins to foam and bloom. \nAs the koan holds you\, a dialogue of sorts will ensue around who you think you are and what you think life is. Perhaps the koan will show you how with your concepts\, ideas and beliefs\, you hold yourself apart your life\, from the vastness. Your relationship with a koan is personal\, vibrant and direct — it is for you alone. It will move with you\, live with you. You and all that you do is “in” the koan. \nAs you awaken to life apart from your image of self\, things shift. You find yourself in the transformation ongoing from moment to moment. \n—David Parks \n\n\n\n\n\n \n  \nCOME JOIN US on Thursdays for koan meditation\, dharma talk and conversation. All are welcome. Register to participate. \nDavid Parks Roshi\, Director of Bluegrass Zen
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/thursday-zen-with-david-parks-35/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:PZI Zen Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/dough500.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="David Parks Roshi":MAILTO:dparksbluegrasszen@gmail.com
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241211T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241211T193000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20240914T000042Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241209T190821Z
UID:10001828-1733940000-1733945400@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:ZEN LUMINARIES: Jon Joseph in Conversation with Classicist & Author Emily Wilson — Western Koans: The Goddesses and Women of Homer
DESCRIPTION:REGISTER\n\nIn the old days there were sixteen bodhisattvas. When it was time to bathe they got into the bath together. They suddenly realized the cause of water and said\, “This subtle touch releases the brightness. We have become the sons and daughters of the Buddha.” \n—Blue Cliff Record Case 78 \nThere is something about the above koan that reminds me of the warriors\, women\, and gods of The Iliad. Their bath is on the plains of Troy\, where they find themselves immersed in love\, fighting\, tears\, and\, ultimately\, death. “Human mortality is at the center of it all\,” writes classics translator Emily Wilson. “I know of no other narrative that evokes with such unflinching truthfulness the vulnerability of the human body.” \nPerhaps more than anything\, The Iliad centers on the story of two great warriors: the Greek Achilles and the Trojan Hector. After Hector kills Achilles’ dear friend Patroclus\, Achilles seeks murderous revenge\, finally cutting Hector down. The gods wish Hector to have a proper burial\, and direct his proud and grieving father\, Priam\, to go to Achilles’ camp and offer ransom for Hector’s body. On arrival\, wholly exposed to his enemy\, old Priam supplicates himself. \nThis made Achilles yearn\nto mourn for his father. With his hand\, he gently\ntook hold of the old man and pushed him back.\nThen both remembered whom they had lost.\nCurled like a ball beside Achilles’ feet\nPriam sobbed desperately for murderous Hector.\nAchilles wept\, at times for his own father\,\nand sometimes for Patroclus.\nSo their wailing suffused the house. \nWilson writes\, “I have now lived with this poem for some thirty-five years—rereading it\, teaching it in the original and in various translations\, and now\, rendering it into English. For the last six years\, I have worked intensively on this translation. But even now\, when I turn back to lines I have read hundreds of times already\, I find that the raw power of the Greek still startles me\, like Athena suddenly tugging Achilles by the hair to stop him in his tracks. Often\, I am unable to read without goose bumps\, tears\, or both.” \n\nEmily Wilson is a British American classicist\, author\, and translator. In 2018\, she became the first woman to publish an English translation of Homer’s Odyssey. Her translation of the Iliad was released in September 2023. \nWilson is Department Chair and Professor of Classical Studies at the University of Pennsylvania. She attended Oxford University and Yale University\, receiving a Ph.D. in Classics and Comparative Literature. \nWilson has been named a Fellow of the American Academy in Rome in Renaissance and Early Modern scholarship\, a MacArthur Fellow\, and a Guggenheim Fellow. She lives in Philadelphia with her family and pets. \nMore books by Emily Wilson: Mocked with Death: Tragic Overliving from Sophocles to Milton (2004)\, The Death of Socrates: Hero\, Villain\, Chatterbox\, Saint (2007)\, and The Greatest Empire: A Life of Seneca (2014) \nsources: Wikipedia\, emilyrcwilson.com \n\nThe effect [of Wilson’s translation] is not so much to bring the characters of the Iliad into the contemporary sphere\, as to bring us into theirs. … A poem you read with your heart in your throat. \n—A. E. Stallings\, The Spectator\, September 2023 \n\nThis event is funded in part by the 2024 Frederick P. Lenz Foundation “Women in Buddhism” Grant.\n\n \n\n \nJon Joseph Roshi of San Mateo Zen and PZI created this series to support the hardworking innovators and shining voices of modern Zen: scholars\, writers\, poets\, translators\, activists\, artists\, teachers\, and more. \nAll proceeds for each event\, including teacher dana\, go directly to the guest speaker. Event attendees are encouraged to give as generously as you are able\, so we can offer deep thanks to Luminaries guests. \nOur suggested donation is $10 for PZI Members and $12 for Non-Members\, but the scale slides from zero depending on one’s ability to contribute. We also greatly appreciate Patrons\, who help support the program with larger gifts of $50—250. \n 
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/zen-luminaries-jon-joseph-in-conversation-with-classicist-author-emily-wilson/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:PZI Zen Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/Emily-wilson_500x375.jpg
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241210T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241210T193000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20241120T164629Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241209T182232Z
UID:10001923-1733853600-1733859000@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:TUESDAY ZEN with David Weinstein: Dongshan’s Five Ranks
DESCRIPTION:REGISTER\n\nIt’s past midnight\nthe moon has not yet risen.\nIn the deep dark you see a face from long ago\nthat you do not recognize.\nNo need to be surprised by this. \nThis is the first of Dongshan’s Five Ranks. “Rank” engages my ranking mind and perhaps that’s the point—an opportunity to know more deeply the way my mind ranks. Alternate translations are “modes\,” “vantage points\,” “perspectives\,” or “angles.” \nThe Five Ranks don’t necessarily occur in the order that they are presented nor are they neatly separate from each other. They’re sometimes likened to Linji’s four modes. \nThis first mode of Dongshan’s is called various things: “the contingent within the essential\,” “the phenomenon within the universal\,” “the particular within the universal”—you get the idea. Perhaps Linji’s description will help: “Sometimes I steal the place\, but not the person.” \nLinji went on to say a bit more about this mode: \nThe rule of the sovereign prevails throughout the world;\nthe general in the borderlands is unstained by smoke and dust. \nBeen out to the borderlands lately? \nThe Chinese characters for “particular” and “universal” literally mean “straight or upright” and “slanted or askew.” Intuitively that feels right just as “bouba” feels round and “kiki” feels pointed. \nThat the moon has not risen—a moonless night—reminds me of another koan: \nThe moon set at midnight;\nwe walk through the town alone.  \nEver done that? \nThe Japanese teacher Keizan’s comment: \nIf you release a blackbird at night\, it flies clothed in snow. \nSeen any blackbirds flying at night lately? \nSee you on Tuesday to compare notes. \n—David Weinstein \n\nDavid Weinstein Roshi\n  \nCOME JOIN US on Tuesdays for koan meditation\, dharma talk and conversation.\nRegister to participate. All are welcome. \nDavid Weinstein Roshi\, Director of Rockridge Meditation Community \n 
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/tuesday-zen-with-david-weinstein-22/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:PZI Zen Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Black-Bird-Midnight.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="David Weinstein Roshi":MAILTO:dweinstein@pacificzen.org
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241209T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241209T193000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20241120T174401Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241120T174401Z
UID:10001931-1733767200-1733772600@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:ON BREAK: MONDAY ZEN with Jon Joseph
DESCRIPTION:Jon Joseph is not teaching today and will return on December 16th. We hope to see you then! \n\nWe are not alone in the world. We have each other to turn toward. All we need to do is ask. \n—Jon Joseph \n\nJon Joseph Roshi\n  \nCOME JOIN US on Mondays for koan meditation\, dharma talk and conversation. Register to participate. All are welcome. \nJon Joseph Roshi\, Director of San Mateo Zen Community
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/on-break-monday-zen-with-jon-joseph-16/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:PZI Zen Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/wooden-bucketCALENDAR500x350.jpg
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241208T103000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241208T120000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20241120T173158Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241120T173158Z
UID:10001925-1733653800-1733659200@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:ON BREAK: SUNDAY ZEN with John Tarrant & Friends
DESCRIPTION:John Tarrant is away at the PZI Leadership Retreat and will return on December 15th. We hope to see you then! \n\nWaking up is what we do together in the online Temple. We love it when you join us. \n—John Tarrant & All of Us at PZI \n\n\n\n \nMeditation is not a task with a known goal. It’s something you can’t do wrong\, a chance for the things of this world to come towards you and to meet you\, for doors to open by themselves\, and for us to see where the ancient paths lead. \n\n\nWaking up is something we do together\, in the online temple on Sunday. We love it when you join us.  \n—John Tarrant Roshi and all of us at PZI
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/on-break-sunday-zen-with-john-tarrant-friends-12/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:PZI Zen Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/cavedoor500x350.jpg
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241203T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241203T193000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20241120T164939Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241129T150150Z
UID:10001922-1733248800-1733254200@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:TUESDAY ZEN with David Weinstein: Not Knowing Is Most Intimate
DESCRIPTION:REGISTER\n\nDizang asked Fayan\, “Where are you going from here?”\nFayan said\, “I’m on pilgrimage.”\n“What sort of thing is pilgrimage?”\n“I don’t know.”\n“Not knowing is most intimate.”\nFayan suddenly had a great awakening. \nThis meeting between Dizang and Fayan occurred while Fayan was on pilgrimage with some of his fellow monks\, when they were forced to take shelter at Dizang’s monastery in a sudden snowstorm. When the snow stopped and they were ready to leave\, Dizang asked Fayan the question that begins the koan: \nWhere are you going from here? \nEvidently Fayan’s companions were not as impressed with Dizang’s statement about “not knowing” as Fayan was. They pressed on with their pilgrimage and Fayan chose to stay with Dizang for a while. We are told that Fayan had a great awakening at hearing Dizang’s words. That he chose to stay longer says something about there being no end to practice even after great awakening. \nTrying to clarify his experience during his time with Dizang\, in response to whatever he brought to the teacher\, Dizang would say\, “The teachings are not like that.” \nFinally Fayan decided to continue on with his pilgrimage. On the day of his departure Dizang accompanied him to the gate of the temple. He said to Fayan\, “I have heard you say many times that everything is in the mind. What about that boulder next to the gate? Is it in the mind also?” Fayan replied\, “Yes\, it is.” To which Dizang said\, “Isn’t it going to be difficult to go on pilgrimage with a boulder in your mind?” At that point Fayan had another great awakening experience and decided to stay a bit longer with Dizang. \nDuring that additional time\, every time Fayan spoke with Dizang trying to clarify his understanding\, Dizang would say\, “The teachings are not like that.” Finally\, Fayan came to Dizang and said\, “I have used up everything\, my mind is empty\, I have nothing to say.” At which point Dizang said\, “It is exactly that empty mind in which mountains and rivers and the boulder next to the temple gate appear.” At which point Fayan had another great awakening experience taking him deeper into “not knowing being most intimate.” \nIt is not easy to not know. We must forget what we know and forget that we have forgotten. \n—David Weinstein \n\nDavid Weinstein Roshi\n  \nCOME JOIN US on Tuesdays for koan meditation\, dharma talk and conversation.\nRegister to participate. All are welcome. \nDavid Weinstein Roshi\, Director of Rockridge Meditation Community \n 
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/tuesday-zen-with-david-weinstein-23/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:PZI Zen Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Escher-Stairs-500.jpg
ORGANIZER;CN="David Weinstein Roshi":MAILTO:dweinstein@pacificzen.org
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241202T180000
DTEND;TZID=America/Los_Angeles:20241202T193000
DTSTAMP:20260503T101929
CREATED:20241120T162246Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20241202T232358Z
UID:10001920-1733162400-1733167800@www.pacificzen.org
SUMMARY:MONDAY ZEN with Jon Joseph: It's Complicated: Odysseus Returns Home
DESCRIPTION:REGISTER\n\nTell me about a complicated man.\nMuse\, tell me how he wandered and was lost\nwhen he had wrecked the holy town of Troy\,\nand where he went\, and who he met\, the pain\nhe suffered on the sea … Now goddess\, child of Zeus\,\ntell the old story of our modern times.\nFrom the beginning. \n—The Odyssey by Homer\, translated by Emily Wilson \nSo opens the nearly three-thousand-year-old Greek epic about a man trying to return to his original home. This tale is not very different from our own wandering in the Chan-Zen tradition. Perhaps it is wholly the same. \nDizang asks Fayan\, “Where are you going?\nLost\, Fayan responds\, “I am wandering\, trying to get back to my true home.”\n“Why are you doing that?”\n“I am not at all sure\,” replies Fayan.\n“Being lost\, being unsure\, that itself is your original home\,” answers Dizang. \nWhen The Odyssey opens\, our hero—sacker of cities\, trickster\, beggar\, pirate\, loving husband and father—is being held captive by the alluring and powerful nymph Calypso\, who wishes to keep him as her lover for all eternity. Instead\, forlorn\, he sits all day long on the shore of her island\, weeping for the family and community he has not seen in two decades. Rather than the immortality of the gods that she is offering\, he wishes instead to once again “see the smoke that rises/from his own homeland\, and he wants to die.” \nEmily Wilson’s translation of the classic is “majestic as literature gets\,” writes one critic. She brings forth the light of this one hero’s journey that shines through all ages\, regions and cultures. It radiates with the nature\, which is our self nature. There is an immediacy\, intimacy and familiarity in both the story and the translation that allows us to embody the journey and know it to be our own. \nTell me about a complicated man and woman\, who have wandered and have been lost\, who have done both wonderful and awful things\, and who now just wish to return home to their hearths and families. Tell me\, Muse\, an old story of our modern times. \n—Jon Joseph \n\nJon Joseph Roshi\n  \nCOME JOIN US on Mondays for koan meditation\, dharma talk and conversation. Register to participate. All are welcome. \nJon Joseph Roshi\, Director of San Mateo Zen Community
URL:https://www.pacificzen.org/event/monday-zen-with-jon-joseph-38/
LOCATION:PZI Online Temple
CATEGORIES:PZI Zen Online
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.pacificzen.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/JonJosephCALENDAR500X375.png
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