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Navigating Pain and Suffering Within Myself
Yesterday, like every day, I found myself in a conversation with a recovering addict. I was asked about my personal "strategies" for...
Jun 7, 20233 min read
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ZEN IS BEYOND THE COFFIN OF THOUGHT
Martin Heidegger once wrote, "As things become dulled and inauthentic, they are conceptualized rather than experienced; they are taken...
Jun 6, 20232 min read
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Straightening The Twisted Relationship With Self
For me, there have been two distinct phases in my life: the time since recovering from active addiction, and everything that happened...
Jun 4, 20232 min read
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What Is the Owner of Our Attention?
Our attention can be surprisingly unpredictable and sometimes trick us into believing it's beyond our ability to manage. It can be a...
Jun 3, 20232 min read
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My Actions Are My Only True Belongings
Karma? In my direct experience, I drop a stone in a pond. The ripples radiate outward... and after some time has passed, the waves...
May 31, 20231 min read
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OPENING THE HAND OF ATTENTION: UNCHAINING OURSELVES FROM SUFFERING
When attention is welded to thought, we are blind to Reality as Reality. When we are caught up and entangled in thought patterns coming...
May 30, 20232 min read
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LEAVING DISTRACTIONS OUTSIDE THE DOOR
The simplest way that I can express my spirituality... my Zen practice... my ministry as a priest and monk is be present, open, alert,...
May 29, 20233 min read
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The Mirror Reflection: A Journey From Self-Hate to Self-Love
Maybe because Monday is Memorial Day... maybe just because... before opening my eyes, I remembered Zen Master John Daido Lorri saying...
May 26, 20233 min read
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360 Mindful Appreciation: Zen, Mindfulness, and The Unassuming Gifts of Life
There are words that can seeds that take root inside of us; remaining long after they've been spoken or read, echoing realities so...
May 23, 20233 min read
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Letting Go To Live Forward
Walking, running, hiking, or climbing, we may not consider it much or take it for granted. But, in order to move in a direction, we must...
May 22, 20231 min read
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The Goal of Zen is Not to Control or Dominate Thoughts and Thinking - Its a Waste of Time
Henry David Thoreau Once wrote, "As a single footstep will not make a path on the earth, so a single thought will not make a pathway in...
May 21, 20231 min read
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Zen - Savoring of Unfiltered Reality
Zen training and practice encourages us to intentionally and deliberately shift our attention away from the mental activities that often...
May 20, 20231 min read
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From Brokenness to Wholeness
Growing up, I found myself frequently trapped in mental loops of self-deprecation. Phrases like, "I feel fundamentally flawed," "I feel...
May 19, 20232 min read
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Understanding Addiction: The Interplay of ID, Executive Ego, and Superego
Addiction is a complex and multifaceted phenomenon that affects millions of people worldwide. Whether it is substance abuse, gambling, or...
May 15, 20234 min read
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Exiting Conditioned Fear, Anxiety, and Worry That’s Hijacked Our Life
Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche once shared, "We have all kinds of situations that we have to handle in ordinary life, even states that we are...
May 15, 20232 min read
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Awakening from the Blackout from Overthinking
What is the nature of Zen training and practice? Not worshiping at the altar of thinking mind. Instead of allowing our attention to be...
May 13, 20232 min read
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What We Might Learn from AI's Ability to Hallucinate
The latest artificial intelligence (AI) has shown an ability to make up create stories. This capacity to create stories mirrors human...
May 12, 20232 min read
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Intentional Intentionality
Living with intentionality from a Zen perspective involves embracing the practice of "Sincere Intention" as a guiding principle in our...
May 11, 20232 min read
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Zen and Recovery is Not a Competition
For me personally, I didn't turn to Zen or recovery because everything was going well. I was driven by a sense of restlessness,...
May 10, 20231 min read
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Lesson of Cloud and Blue Sky
A white cloud is a perfect example of the effortless Universal Identity of Loving Presence. It has no set path, no predetermined...
May 8, 20232 min read
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