On the De-Animation and Re-Animation of Zen — July 13, 2025
Living Zen Podcast - Red Mountain Way
Release Date: 07/20/2025
On the De-Animation and Re-Animation of Zen — July 13, 2025
Living Zen Podcast - Red Mountain Way
This week there’s no Dharma talk from the Zendo — UVic was cleaning the carpets on Sunday, so our usual sit was cancelled. But I didn’t want to leave the Sangha hungry. Instead, I’m sharing this reflection on how Zen was “de-animated” when it came west — and how we might begin to re-animate it, in relationship with land, ancestors, and the many seen and unseen beings who share our world. It’s not doctrine; it’s just some thoughts I found worth writing down. May they serve you in some way. If this resonates (or even troubles you), I’d love to hear how. Zen has always been...
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The Buddha's Buffet - July 6, 2025 — Dharma Talk
Living Zen Podcast - Red Mountain Way
In this episode, we explore the long arc of practice — how insight and awakening might come suddenly, but true transformation takes slow, organic time. Like digestion or composting, it can’t be rushed. We reflect on moments of birth and death, on coming back to practice after seasons away, and on learning to pace ourselves at the endless feast of awakening. Whether you’re tasting your first bites or returning after time away, the Buddha’s buffet is always open. It’s good to be here together. I’m Eshū, Abbot of , where we make Zen come alive in contemporary community. At Zenwest we...
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Miraculous Medicine - June 29, 2025 - Dharma Talk
Living Zen Podcast - Red Mountain Way
In this talk, I explore how practice invites us to return again and again — to breath, posture, intention — dissolving fear and self-criticism, and opening to the quiet miracle of simply being here. When we give ourselves fully to this moment — to a bow, a breath, a meal, a conversation — life itself becomes the miraculous medicine this world so deeply needs. Thank you for listening, and for walking this path alongside me. • Support this work & get early access as a Patron: • Free Orientation to Zen program: • Orientation to Zen Support with Eshū: ...
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The Breath of Solstice
Living Zen Podcast - Red Mountain Way
“The Dharma is being preached in everything." This Dharma talk, offered just after summer solstice, reflects on the rhythms of breath, season, and spirit. It explores the natural arising and dissolving that moves through our practice, our emotions, and our path — and invites us to rest in the still point between. Recorded in the Zenwest zendo and shared here on Living Zen – Red Mountain Way. Support this work and access more teachings at . If this offering supports you, please consider leaving a rating or review on your podcast platform. It really helps others find the path. Thanks...
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The Path We Walk Together
Living Zen Podcast - Red Mountain Way
This episode is a quiet invitation to long-time listeners and new friends alike. After years of practice, storytelling, and podcasting, Eshū speaks directly to those who’ve walked this path with him—often at a distance—and shares the next steps in the journey, including a return to leadership at Zenwest and the weaving of many streams through Red Mountain Way. Join the Sangha. Join the kinship. The path is wide enough for all of us. ➤ Become a member of Zenwest: ➤ Support Red Mountain Way:
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Rewriting Money Stories: Thought Pattern Trancework
Living Zen Podcast - Red Mountain Way
This short preparatory session offers a gentle introduction to the themes and intentions behind Rewriting Money Stories, part of the Thought Pattern Trancework series. You’ll be guided through a few minutes of grounded presence, some light reflection on your current money narratives, and an orientation to the deeper trancework session available through Patreon or the Monarch Trancework website. This episode includes: A brief induction and settling An overview of the subconscious themes addressed Suggestions for how and when to listen to the full trance session A...
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A Return to the Zendo
Living Zen Podcast - Red Mountain Way
After a long hiatus, I’m returning to regular teaching in the Zendo with Zenwest — and inviting you to join me on a new path of practice and connection through my Patreon, The Red Mountain Way. Support the work: Thank you for walking this path together.
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Exploring Boundaries - Preparation Session
Living Zen Podcast - Red Mountain Way
Almost everyone, at some point, runs into challenges, obstacles, or problems in their family, work, or intimate personal relationships - that at their root, involve issues around boundaries. Today’s session will provide you with the framework you need to be ready to start clarifying, expressing, and maintaining healthy boundaries! This preparation session will give you the framework to go forward with the active Trancework session, called “Healthy Boundaries” which I’ll be posting on the podcast later this week. Find out more at
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A Question of Control - Preparation Session
Living Zen Podcast - Red Mountain Way
Today I’ll be sharing the preparation session for the next installment of the Thought Process Trancework Series which I’ve called “A Question of Control”, in which you’ll learn about how subconscious patterns that begin as natural survival responses become rigid, and overly-general rules that begin to be universally applied in our daily experiences, and can cause our lives to become increasingly smaller, and more anxious. I’m going to offer some understanding about two simple but serious errors that we can make in our thought processes that lead us to feel increasingly out of...
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Understanding Patterns - Preparation Session
Living Zen Podcast - Red Mountain Way
Today I'm sharing the preparation session for the next installment of the Thought Process Trancework Series which I’ve called “Understanding Patterns”, in which we’ll be doing a deeper exploration into how subconscious thought patterns first come about often when we are really young, how they become established and essentially automatic – our default way of reacting – and how, often in spite of being aware of an unhelpful pattern, we can still find ourselves repeating the same mistake over and over. This session, and many others are also available to download, for FREE from...
info_outlineThis week there’s no Dharma talk from the Zendo — UVic was cleaning the carpets on Sunday, so our usual sit was cancelled. But I didn’t want to leave the Sangha hungry. Instead, I’m sharing this reflection on how Zen was “de-animated” when it came west — and how we might begin to re-animate it, in relationship with land, ancestors, and the many seen and unseen beings who share our world.
It’s not doctrine; it’s just some thoughts I found worth writing down. May they serve you in some way.
If this resonates (or even troubles you), I’d love to hear how. Zen has always been about companionship on the Way.
Zenwest Buddhist Society: www.zenwest.ca — a living Zen community on Vancouver Island
Monarch Trancework: monarchtrancework.com — for Zen orientation, mentorship, and integration work
Support this work on Patreon: patreon.com/redmountainway