Nyogen Roshi sent me a New York Times article that he thought I would like: “A Black Hole Mystery Wrapped in a Firewall Paradox.” Leonard Susskind, a theoretical physicist and educator whose work I enjoy, had offered comments on the article. There were also references to the iconic physicist and intellectual provocateur Stephen Hawking, and […]
Mind Breathes Fire
Present Moment, Wonderful Moment
Here’s how the script went. Loving doggie mama sees her boy through his final years with compassion and patience and lovingkindness. (She is a Buddhist, after all). She soothes his fears (she knows him so well), gently cares for him as he drifts into that dark night and makes the right decision when the time […]
A Bodhisattva Never Hesitates
He was maybe in his 70’s—out of shape, but not so out of shape that he couldn’t cradle a large, limp dog in his arms. I was coming off the dog beach near my house and he was just stepping onto it. The dog’s head hung over the man’s arm. There was a towel, in […]
Where Am I? What Time Is It?
A review of Biocentrism: How Life and Consciousness are the Keys to Understanding the True Nature of the Universe, by Robert Lanza, MD, with Bob Berman There are periods when I read from this book every morning, in the same way that I read Song dynasty Ch’an masters like Ta-Hui or Yuan-wu. I read for […]
Learning to Ride the Ox—Or the Horse!
I want to thank Roshi for assigning this talk – it definitely grounded me to focus on this talk. And while love knows no comparison, I have noticed that each time I have been assigned a talk my preparation has been different – most notably in that I am less anxious. I thought that that […]
Why A Zen Practitioner Reads About Science
Is there any reason for a Zen practitioner to read about science? When I started practice, I was certain the answer to that question was no. Obviously, one can have a Zen practice and not study science. So why bother? Don’t get me wrong: I love science, although I fell in love with it relatively […]
Interview with Loi Tran
What brought you to the Hazy Moon? I checked out the Hazy Moon website and was impressed by Roshi’s (Dharma) talks. I liked his no nonsense teaching style. And I started listening to his talks before I go to sleep. I’ve listened to all the talks multiple times by now, but I still get some […]
Far Away and Yet So Close
I had always felt like there was something missing in my life. Roshi once said that a sense of “unfulfillment” brings us to the practice. That is true for me. Unfulfillment, the feeling that something is not quite right, is what probably brought me to Los Angeles in the first place. While living in […]
Interview with Shelley Mushoku Cao
Nearly everyone has an unlikely story of how they came to Zen, but at the Hazy Moon, no one’s story covers more miles than Shelley Mushoku Cao’s. As the day-to-day administrator of the Zen Center, Mushoku nearly single-handedly responds to inquiries from members and visitors, manages the practice calendar, coordinates retreats, and serves as an […]
