The SFZC Audio Archive

Dan Zigmond explores how the "monkey mind" the Buddha diagnosed 2,500 years ago is exactly what today's algorithms are engineered to exploit, drawing on nearly thirty years of building attention-capturing technology... The talk examines the concept of the "monkey mind," as described by the Buddha, and how modern technology, particularly social media algorithms, exploits these mental tendencies, which were tools for distraction already...

Roger Hillyard explores how Dogen's most poetic sutra, Mountains and Rivers, can help us practice with tragedy and lead us towards equanimity. This talk examines Dogen's "Mountains and Rivers Sutra" as a guide for finding equanimity amidst personal tragedy. It emphasizes that the natural world serves as a dynamic sutra, continuously teaching the principles of...

Kiku Christina Lehnherr explores why it is so important to first cultivate a strong and stable foundation of kindness, gentleness, generosity, patience, courage and steadfast effort, that enable us to face the challenges and... The talk delves into the significance of cultivating foundational qualities such as kindness, gentleness, patience, and courage for successful engagement in the transformative practice of Buddhism. These qualities are crucial for...

Hokyo Lorenzo Garbo examines how the many ritual forms of Zen—such as bows and daily gestures—become transformative when practiced with awareness, evolving from prescribed actions into personal, embodied expressions... The talk explores the relationship between practitioners and the forms and rituals within Zen practice, emphasizing their role in fostering mindfulness and true self-expression. Personal anecdotes illustrate how engagement with...

Kiku Christina Lehnherr explores how a day—or several days—of meditation is giving ourselves the gift of simply being. The talk centers on embracing the practice of "simply being" through Zen meditation, exploring the intrinsic value of physical presence and mindfulness, despite personal limitations. It emphasizes the concepts of equanimity, the...

Doshin Patti Mitchell shares how meditation and community helped her face suffering, expectations, and self-judgment. Speaking about the importance of honesty, gratitude, and spiritual friendship, she also honors the teachers and... The talk centers on personal experiences with Zen practice, recovery from addiction, and the integration of these paths. A focus is placed on the importance of community support, the student-teacher relationship, and the...

Abiding Abbot Dōshin Mako Voelkel explores the life and lessons of Mahapajapati—the first Buddhist nun, and foster mother of the historical Buddha—after City Center’s annual ceremonial celebration for this first... This talk examines the story of Mahapajapati's quest for full ordination, highlighting gender equality within Buddhist history and the way her achievements have been retrospectively celebrated and revised. It explores the themes...

Zenju Earthlyn Manuel Osho explores stillness and silence as a response to the great suffering we are facing today. Can we trust the discovery promised in a practice of silence to lead us to resolve or peace? The talk explores the role of stillness and silence as responses to contemporary human suffering, positing that such practices can lead to personal and collective transformation. It questions the effectiveness of continuous...

Shosan Victoria Austin explores love as an internal posture, rather than a feeling. A stable base for our posture of love is awareness and patience with the negative emotions that often come up without our noticing them. The talk focuses on love as an internal posture, not simply a feeling, employing awareness and patience to navigate negative emotions. Emphasizing practical applications, it explores how to cultivate this posture through mindful...

Dr. Grace Dammann shares her journey through medicine, Zen practice, disability, and spiritual awakening. The talk explores using the body as a vehicle on the Bodhisattva Path, illustrating how one's body can guide significant life decisions through practice, meditation, and alignment with the heart's desires. Integrating personal...

Zenju Earthlyn Manuel Osho speaks to the fear of being consumed by great suffering while being turned towards the expansion of life at the same time. The talk focuses on reconciling the paradox of embracing life's expansion alongside the fear and experience of profound suffering. The discussion prominently centers on the Heart Sutra, examining its core teaching of the...

Hokyo Lorenzo Garbo explores how lifelong, internalized expectations—shaped by personal history and conditioning—distort perception and create suffering by separating us from present-moment experience. The talk focuses on how internalized expectations, shaped by personal history and conditioning, distort perception and create suffering by disconnecting one from the present-moment experience. The idea is that expectations form a...

Heather Shōren Iarusso discusses an encounter with a rattlesnake when, in the flash of danger, there is no “Heather,” no narrative, no arising mental formations—only pure perception and appropriate response.... The talk explores the dissolution of self-identity in moments of pure perception, using the speaker's encounter with a rattlesnake as an example. It delves into the Buddhist concept of the five aggregates (form, sensation,...

Gengyoko Tim Wicks speaks about the history of the robes we wear (Buddha's Robe) and how it follows the geographic travel of Zen Buddhism. The talk examines the significance of the Buddha's robe (rakusu and okesa) as a symbol of the journey of Zen Buddhism across different cultures, encapsulating the union of body and mind. It delves into the historical and...

Onryu Mary Stares explores how external stimuli can act as a gate to practice if we use intention and curiosity. The talk examines how external stimuli, such as poetry, can serve as gates to Zen practice when approached with intention and curiosity. The poem "Bury Your Face in Your Hands" by Mark Strand is central, with multiple readings...

Abiding Abbot Dōshin Mako Voelkel discusses her January 2026 visit to Minneapolis with MARCH (Multifaith Antiracism, Change & Healing). In times of fear and violence, how does our practice teach us to pay attention to... The talk discusses responses to societal violence and unrest through Zen practice and emphasizes the intersection of spirituality and social activism. It highlights participation in a multifaith antiracism event organized by...

Kiku Christina Lehnherr explores how the body is completely and inseparably intertwined and interconnected with the mind and with everything in this universe, and how the practice of slowing down a fraction in all our activities... The talk explores the interconnection between the body and mind and the importance of cultivating bodily awareness in Zen practice. It emphasizes the need for slowing down and becoming more intimate with the body to foster...

So-on Eli Brown-Stevenson reflects on Dr. King’s legacy as a practice of staying human in the face of fear, polarization, and fatigue. Through Zen teachings on virya or joyful effort, we explore how commitment, courage, and... The talk explores the concept of "virya" or "joyful effort" in Zen Buddhism, drawing parallels to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy of nonviolent activism. It examines how commitment, courage, and hope can be sustained through...

The talk explores the concept of non-separation in Zen Buddhism, emphasizing that suffering and delusion arise from the perceived separation from the world and others. It challenges this perception by asserting that everything...

Sozan Michael McCord explores how waiting is not necessarily patience. And it is not a passive default. In this talk, the subject of patience is explored as one of the Buddhist "paramitas" (perfections) that are both... The talk centers on the concept of patience as an active, cultivated practice, integral to the Buddhist paramitas. It emphasizes the importance of embodying patience by accepting each moment's reality rather than simply waiting...

Edward Espe Brown emphasizes how we learn by our own careful observation rather than simply following instructions, through reflections on his early Zen training and the creation of the “Tassajara Bread Book.” The talk explores the practice of Zen through the lens of connecting poetic insights and the making of homemade bread, using the transformative journey of producing the "Tassajara Bread Book" as an illustrative metaphor. The...

12/22/2025, Gyokuden Stephanie Blank, dharma talk at City Center. Gyokuden Steph Blank considers Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol as a dharma story that reveals the transformative power of illumination, intimacy, and... The talk examines Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" as a dharma story, illustrating the transformative power of illumination, intimacy, and karmic fruition. The discussion equates Scrooge's journey of...

12/13/2025, Keiryu Liên Shutt, dharma talk at City Center. Keiryu Liên Shutt presents an informal comparison of Soto Zen and Insight practices within the context of The Three Marks of Existence.   The talk explores the intersection of U.S. Soto Zen and Insight Buddhism through the framework of the Three Marks of Existence: impermanence, not-self, and dukkha (suffering). It compares the core practices of Zen, which...

The talk emphasizes the significance of trees in both natural and spiritual contexts, discussing their role in sustaining life through processes like photosynthesis and their historical and cultural importance within Buddhism,...