Zen Talking

Zen is a tradition from India that passed into China. Zen culture is based on the Five Lay Precepts, the Four Statements of Zen, and Zen's only practice: Public Interview, which is where we get Zen koans. This podcast covers topics like: What does that koan mean? How is Zen different from Buddhism/Christianity/Zazen? Why isn't Zen a philosophy? What do Zen Masters say that is applicable to modern life? What does it mean to have a community/sangha?

Zen Talking - Sangha, Fear, Mental Health, Ignorance 01/13/2026

Zen Talking - Sangha, Fear, Mental Health, Ignorance Read the History, Talk the History, #288 #Post(s) in Question ###Post: https://www.reddit.com/r/zen/comments/1p6gkae/zen_talking_poverty/ (that's right, a podcast about a podcast episode) ###Link to all episodes: https://sites.libsyn.com/407831 # What did we talk about? Barriers in Zen? Interest in public interviews, yet fear of not knowing enough or not being general enough? Loose assocations are a problem in religious studies... but are often corrected by public interview. * solo thinking not connected to reality... mistakenly viewed as "independence" A public interview as "slap in the reality" EVERYBODY IS SOMEBODY INTERESTING Sincerity vs fraud, exclusion, being comfortable with espousing racism/bigotry Zen Masters ELI5 all the time. ### Fear of not knowing A monk asked Shishuang Xingkong, “What is the meaning of the Patriarch coming from the West?” The master answered, “Let’s say there’s a man in a thousand-foot well. Get him out without using any rope, and I’ll answer you about the meaning of the Patriarch’s coming from the West.” The monk said, “But in Hunan now there’s a priest named Chang who freely explains all sorts of things to people.” 2 Thereupon Xingkong summoned the novice Jizi [Yangshan Huiji]3 and said, “Get this corpse out of here.” Later Huiji asked Danyuan Yingzhen, “How would one get the man out of the well?” Danyuan retorted, “Dolt! Blockhead! Who’s in a well!?” Huiji didn’t understand, and later put the same question to Guishan Lingyou. Guishan called out, “Huiji!” “Yes,” Huiji answered. “There, he’s out of the well!” said Guishan. # Keep in Touch Add a comment if there is a post you want somebody to get interviewed about, or you agree to be interviewed. We are now using libsyn, so you don't even have to show your face. You just get a link to an audio call. Buymeacoffee, so I'm not accused of going it alone:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/ewkrzen /episode/index/show/bc8ef917-caf9-4243-b285-58fcbf73cbf0/id/39180380

Zen Talking: Why so famous? r/Zen's most controversial reference 01/06/2026

Zen Talking: Linji Teaching... but What is he talking about? 12/30/2025

Zen Talking: Nanquan Reincarnated as Bull 12/16/2025

Zen Talking: That's no moon... that's Silent Illumination! 12/09/2025

Zen Talking: Foyan's Facing It Directly... Facing What? 12/02/2025

Zen Talking: Nanquan breaks the precepts 11/28/2025

Zen Talking: Poverty and Dependence 11/25/2025

Zen Talking: Zhaozhou's Nothing Lacking 11/18/2025

Zen Talking: Moon Face Buddha - Social Media and Mental Health 11/11/2025

Zen Talking: Bodhidharma's Mind and Anxiety Pacification 11/05/2025

Zen Talking: Zhaozhou's Bright or Dark 11/04/2025

Zen Talking - Eating Grass: Reincarnated Almsgiver's Ox 10/26/2025

Zen Talking: Zen's Traditional Violence... which goes a little off topic 10/19/2025

Zen Talking: How hard are koans? 09/06/2025

Zen Talking: Belly for Zen 08/15/2025

Zen Talking: Belly for Zen #Post(s) in Question ###Post: https://www.reddit.com/r/zen/comments/1mgiv6r/building_a_single_belly_for_zen/ The Illusory Man by Zhonfeng Mingben 12. Enter The Gate Abruptly Understand that the Great Illusory Dharma Gate is right at the soles of your feet and has never moved a single hair. You just need for your delusions to be snuffed out, for your point of view to end. When you take a false step and trample on your attachments, then you'll know that Taiyuan heard a gong at the same moment Dongshan crossed the river, and there will be no separation between us. When you get here to the place where the Great Illusory Dharma Gate is entered, kick it over with a single kick. Don't preserve your footprints: only then can you be ten feet tall. An emancipated person must be able to enter the gate abruptly. If you drift through live (sp, life?) frivolously, your mind always in a single revery of delight, then obviously you're still taking part in yesterday's bewilderments. This matter is not explained thoroughly, and then you rest easy. Nor is it something you finish seeing, and then you can take a break. It is done incessantly and without deviation, from beginning to end. When you're ten feet tall, you don't cling to a single truth like it's a fish basket. Being adequate only to the burden of the Buddha's teachings is just sowing weeds. Even at this very moment the truth of the Way is not an antique; people's minds are just lazy and idle. They may behave like teachers and behave like disciples but really, they just seek to balance one another's accounts. Day and night they entice each other with appearances when they ought to be building a single belly for Zen, the Way, the Buddhadharma. There, life and death are the family treasure. It hasn't ever yielded its dwelling high up on the cliff, and if it's cut off behind, it just comes around again rejuvenated. ###Link to all episodes: https://sites.libsyn.com/407831 # What did we talk about? danger and seriousness # Keep in Touch Add a comment if there is a post you want somebody to get interviewed about, or you agree to be interviewed. We are now using libsyn, so you don't even have to show your face. You just get a link to an audio call. Buymeacoffee, so I'm not accused of going it alone:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/ewkrzen /episode/index/show/bc8ef917-caf9-4243-b285-58fcbf73cbf0/id/37833705

Zen Talking: Xuefeng's Grain of Rice 08/07/2025

Zen Talking: Zen and Buddhism 08/03/2025

Zen Talking: Cause, Effect, and Community 07/11/2025

Zen Talking - Don't Misconceive, from Dahui's Shobogenzo 07/07/2025

Zen Talking: Falling into Cause and Effect 07/04/2025

Zen Talking - May 4 - Lady Zen Master Case 2: Zen is the Best! 05/10/2025

Zen Talking - April 26 2025 - Miaozong, Woman As Zen Master - Case 1 05/03/2025

Zen Talking - April 12, 2025: Koans: 1,000 years of history about how to survive Tariffs, Trumps, and Turmoil 04/30/2025

March 31 2025 - Talking Zen: Translation Error "Picking and Choosing" from Faith in Mind 04/06/2025

March 29, 2025 - Talking Zen: Zen's Only Sudden Enlightenment 04/01/2025

March 23, 2025 - Cats and Tunafish 03/29/2025

March 18, 2025 - Talking Zen: Podcast about Indra building Blade-of-Grass commune 03/23/2025

Mar 15 2025 - Tough Guy Zen: Time travel to kill baby Buddha or Hitler 03/18/2025

March 14 2025 - Zen Talking, Zen Poetry: A Verse for Prajnatara 03/14/2025

March 14 2025 - Zen Talking, Zen Poetry: A Verse for Prajnatara #Post(s) in Question Post: https://old.reddit.com/r/zen/comments/1jabfde/a_verse_for_prajnatara/ Link to episode: Link to all episodes: https://sites.libsyn.com/407831 # What did we talk about? It took us an hour and change to get here: A cloud rhino gazes at the crescent moon1, its light engulfing radiance; A wood horse2 romps in spring, swift and unbridled. Under [Bodhidharma's] eyebrows, a pair of cold blue eyes; How can reading scriptures reach the piercing of [Shitou Xiqian's] oxhide3? The clear mind produces vast aeons, Heroic power smashes the armies on both sides4. In the subtle round mouth of [Bodhidharma's Emptiness5] the pivot turns the spiritual works. Hanshan forgot the road6 by which he came [to so-and-so's Zen commune at XYZ]— Shide led him back [to his birth place] by the hand. 1. an ancient song that says that the rhino grew his horn while gazing at the moon. In this case its praising Prajnatara saying that she doesn't dwell in conditioned perception. Awareness is a mirror of reality, like the rhino mirrored the moon. 2. wooden horse, stone man, buddha statue 3. The piercing of oxhide line is also a reference to some Zen Master Shitou maybe getting asked why he reads the sutras when he forbids them and him saying something like he understand their meaning while for others it is like putting a piece of oxhide in front of their eyes 4. Wansong explains being surrounded on both sides by armies in his discussion 5. What is the highest holy truth? Emptiness with nothing holy therein. 6. Hanshan's poem, quoted by Wansong: If you want a place to rest your body, Cold Mountain is good for long preservation. A subtle breeze blows in the dense pines; Heard from close by, the sound is even finer, Underneath the trees is a greying man, Furiously reading Taoist books. Ten years I couldn't return-- Now I've forgotten the road whence I came. #You can be on the podcast! Use a pseudonym! Nobody cares! Add a comment if there is a post you want somebody to get interviewed about, or you agree to be interviewed. We are now using libsyn, so you don't even have to show your face. You just get a link to an audio call. Buymeacoffee, so I'm not accused of going it alone:https://www.buymeacoffee.com/ewkrzen /episode/index/show/bc8ef917-caf9-4243-b285-58fcbf73cbf0/id/35695090

Zen Talking

TOPICS