Zencare Podcast

“Compassion only really happens in community.” – Koshin   How does the nobility of our imperfection become a place of deep connection?    In this dharma talk from the opening night of the Contemplative Care Retreat, Koshin Sensei introduces us to the Six Paramitas, often called the ‘six perfections,’ of dana, sila, ksanti, virya, dhyana, […] The post The Nobility of Imperfection | Koshin Paley Ellison appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“Moments in extremis point us to what is important, what is real.” – Koshin   How do you come know who you really are and what you truly care about? Opportunities to learn are constant.    In this recent dharma talk, Koshin Sensei speaks to us from within the waning moments of an unpleasant physical […] The post Exhausted, Emptied, Lively, and Curious | Koshin Paley Ellison appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“If the duality of good and bad is broken through, then there is real good.” – Harada Roshi     Aphids, flies, worms, tigers, all living beings move away from discomfort. “Most of us spend most of our time sealing ourselves off from real connection,” Koshin Sensei observes. What Shakyamuni Buddha understood is that the […] The post The Beauty of Buddhahood | Koshin Paley Ellison appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“Devotion is expressed through your dedicated practice.” – Harada Roshi     Many of us hold back. Why not completely throw yourself in? Wholehearted commitment is about showing up to every moment of your life. This is the practice and, for Chodo Sensei, what devotion looks like.       In this recent dharma talk, Chodo […] The post The Gifts of Devotion | Chodo Campbell appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“We are always at war with what is. We are creating suffering for others and in this way we are creating suffering for ourselves.” – Harada Roshi     We are constantly dividing the world, each other, and ourselves in half. We expend so much energy and effort picking sides and pointing fingers. “The beauty […] The post All Inclusive Practice | Koshin Paley Ellison appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“This life, all is well. Can we really say this? Is it alright to say that life is good?” —Harada Roshi    In this dharma talk from summer sesshin, Koshin Sensei reflects on his first sesshin sitting between two participants – one steady and grounded the other fidgety and agitated. They each represent a different […] The post Get Out of the Groove | Koshin Paley Ellison appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“The heart believes in tomorrow’s cherry blossoms. The storm comes at night and blows them away.”     Everything is subject to change. We all experience loss. Can this inevitability spark in us an urgency to practice diligently and to live our lives fully?          In this recent dharma talk from Summer Sesshin, […] The post Subject to Change | Chodo Campbell appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“Everything is encouraging you to awaken to your life.”   In the midst of our lives, we need to experience moments of respite. Twice a year, the New York Zen Center holds a silent retreat, or sesshin. The word sesshin means “to touch the heart-mind” and for thousands of years practitioners of the awakening way […] The post Set It Down | Koshin Paley Ellison appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“Don’t just stand there, one foot in and one foot out. Throw yourself in.”   The great matter of life and death is an ever present reality. Whether we are ready to face this reality or not, there is no guarantee we will see tomorrow or even take a next breath. How can this truth […] The post Sweeping the Mind Clear | Chodo Campbell appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“Inattention is harmful. Attention is a refuge.”   Have you noticed how often we can lose contact with what’s around us? Even with the ones we love the most? Koshin Sensei invites us to consider this separation – to actually notice it and be embarrassed by the distances we create – and change our behavior. […] The post The Dignity of Each Moment | Koshin Paley Ellison appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“There is so much energy around being sure. Thinking ‘I know,’ we become so narrow.”       Do you ever think ‘I am right’ and ‘you are wrong’? “I, you, all of us, can get caught up in deeply entrenched ideas of truth.” Koshin Sensei invites us to pay attention to our minds, to […] The post Are We Seeking Controversy and Creating Deep Divisions? | Koshin Paley Ellison appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“How does what you say and do really benefit living beings?”     We live in a world filled with beauty and terror. Whether we are experiencing euphoric glee, wrenching pain, or something in between, can our feelings lead to actions that benefit living beings? And not just some beings from the specific groups we […] The post Doing What is Beneficial and True, Not Popular | Koshin Paley Ellison appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“Our commitment to distractions and our commitment to not committing actually takes a lot of effort.”       The newest telescopes can see stars being born hundreds of millions of lightyears away. Innumerable stars, like the sun in our solar system, are scattered across the farthest reaches of the cosmos. It boggles the mind, […] The post Returning to the Original Place | Koshin Paley Ellison appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“Those without virtue are to be pitied.”          As Dogen Zenji reminds us, giving, kind speech, beneficial actions, and cooperation are the “Four Attractions of the Bodhisattva”. How often throughout your day do you lift these virtues up, even praise them? What would it look like in your life to embody the […] The post Practicing Interdependence Through Kind Speech | Koshin Paley Ellison appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“It is not enough to have good intensions. It really matters what you do. It really matters what you say.”       Our human ancestors have been caring for one another for at least 75,000 years. We survive, carry on, thrive, and even flourish when we show compassion.  It is not about what we […] The post Just Do. Without Regressing, Without Adulteration | Koshin Paley Ellison appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“This practice has kept me alive.”     When what has been lost brings the return of something new, when the debilitations of illness remind us of the deep dignities of being alive, these are the healing stories of care and compassion.         During the final evening of the Closing Retreat for […] The post Stories of Loss and Return, Illness and Healing | Chodo Campbell appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“…those whose lose mindfulness, lose.”       From Shakyamuni Buddha, down through generations of ancestors, including Dogen Zenji, and into the present moment have come a series of teachings on the eight awarenesses of awakened beings. One is called Maintaining Right Mindfulness or Not Neglecting Mindfulness. Practicing this in the midst of our tumbling […] The post Always New and Coming Back | Koshin Paley Ellison appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“This practice is actually about liberation, not about being comfortable, feeling good, or getting a reward.”         What are you afraid of? Can we remain focused and grounded when what we fear is right in front of us?       In this recent Zazenkai dharma talk, Koshin Sensei challenges us to […] The post Facing Your Fear | Koshin Paley Ellison appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“Treat others with great care.”   What is possible when we disbelieve our doubt? When we show up to wholeheartedly practice together, worlds come alive. There is an expansive reservoir of compassion and care for all beings.     In this dharma talk, Koshin Sensei shares a few teachings that are staying with him from […] The post Three Worlds and All Beings | Koshin Paley Ellison appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

“Non-doing allows us to cultivate compassionate presence.”         Doing nothing is not about inaction. In this dharma talk, Chodo Sensei invites us to set down our preoccupation with doing – excessive striving, frenetic working – and consider the generative possibilities of non-doing. Can we practice full presence, broad awareness, and deep compassion? […] The post The Art of Non-Doing | Chodo Campbell appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.