Talks from the March, 2026 Sesshin
Talk 1 – The Crow called, “Ikkyū, Ikkyū, Ikkyū” – by Leland Shields Read the transcript Talk 2 – Life and Death Is a Great Matter – by Leland Shields Read the transcript Talk 3 – No Questions, No Answers – by Leland Shields Read the transcript
read moreNo Questions, No Answers — a talk by Leland Shields (March, 2026)
No Questions, No Answers Leland Shields, March 2026 Someone asked, “What is the fundamental teaching?” Master Yunmen said, “No question, no answer!” (section 30) App, Urs. Zen Master Yunmen: His Life and Essential Sayings (p. 46). Shambhala. Kindle Edition. This is taken from Urs App’s translation titled, Zen Master Yunmen: His Life and Essential Sayings. No question no answer. We can get lost in the simple statement, but it’s easier to rest in it when we’re not thinking of it as a general principle. It’s not a teaching or a command; it is a...
read moreLife and Death Is a Great Matter — a talk by Leland Shields (March, 2026)
Life and Death Is a Great Matter Leland Shields, March 2026 I beg to urge you everyone Life and death is a great matter All things pass quickly away… Each of you must be completely alert Never neglectful, never indulgent. This is the encouragement that ends our retreat day, and I’ve been moved and encouraged by it for these many years. It is encouraging when the day ends with fatigue, and still so when the day ends with openness. But it is encouragement to what? In the phrase, “life and death is a great matter,” “life and death” opens...
read moreThe Crow called, “Ikkyū, Ikkyū, Ikkyū” — a talk by Leland Shields (January 11 and March 12, 2026)
The Crow called, “Ikkyū, Ikkyū, Ikkyū” Leland Shields, January and March 2026 Ten dumb years I wanted things to be different furious proud I still feel it One summer midnight on my little boat on Lake Biwa Caaaawwwweee Father when I was a boy you left us now I forgive you Ikkyū, translation by Stephen Berg Crow With No Mouth, (p. 26) This is one of several poems identified as the one Ikkyū wrote after his enlightenment when he was twenty-six years old, in 1420 Japan. From accounts of his life – or I could say the accounts of his “antics”– he...
read moreDon’t try to seek yourself. Just this is it: A Talk by Madelon Bolling (February 8, 2026)
Don’t try to seek yourself. Just this is it. A Talk by Madelon Bolling (February 8, 2026) When leaving Yunyan’s memorial event Tozan recalled asking Yunyan, “After your death if someone asks me if I can describe your reality, how shall I reply?” After awhile Yunyan said, “Just this is it.” Tozan left without saying anything more; later as he was crossing a river, he saw his reflection . . . and was thoroughly enlightened. After seeing his reflection in the water, Tozan Zenji wrote: Don’t try to seek yourself. Don’t try to...
read moreBeyond Words — a talk by Leland Shields (November 9, 2025)
Beyond Words Leland Shields, November 9, 2025 I’ll begin with the first part of verse 14 of the Taoteching, translated by Red Pine. We look but don’t see it and call it indistinct we listen but don’t hear it and call [it] faint we reach but don’t grasp it and call it ethereal three failed means to knowledge I weave into one … Lao Tzu. Lao-tzu’s Taoteching: With Selected Commentaries from the Past 2,000 Years (p. 28). Copper Canyon Press. Kindle Edition. There is an inherent challenge in a Zen talk for the writer, the presenter...
read moreThe Dragon King’s Daughter Pays Homage to the Buddha – a Talk by Carlos Abusaid Elias (October 12, 2025)
The master instructed the assembly saying, “The Dragon King’s daughter paid her personal homage to the Buddha from her heart. It was a completely natural act.” A monk asked, “If it was natural, why was there any ‘paying homage’?” The master said, “If there was no paying homage, how could it be natural?” Note: The full text transcript will be posted soon Listen to the talk
read moreTalks from the September, 2025 Sesshin
Talk 1 – “No Body” Breaks a Toe – by Leland Shields Read the transcript Listen to the talk Talk 2 – Buddha-nature – by Madelon Bolling Read the transcript Talk 3 – Nothing in The World – by Leland Shields Read the transcript Listen to the talk Talk 4 – How is Buddhism Being Maintained Here? – by Leland Shields Read the transcript Listen to the Talk Talk 5 – Roaming the Mountains, Blue Cliff Record 36 – by Leland Shields Read the...
read moreThe Way Has to Flow Without Obstruction— a talk by Leland Shields (September 19, 2025)
Listen to the talk …The Way has to flow without obstruction. Why would you block it? The Way flows freely when the mind doesn’t dwell on anything. Once it dwells on something, it is imprisoned… Pine, Red. Three Zen Sutras: The Heart, The Diamond, and The Platform Sutras (Counterpoints Book 7) (pp. 81-82). Catapult. Kindle Edition. This passage was taken from a paragraph in Huineng’s Platform Sutra. It’s the first sentences that draw me in and stop me in my tracks. …The Way has to flow without obstruction. Why would you block it? The Way flows...
read moreRoaming the Mountains — a talk by Leland Shields (September 18, 2025)
Listen to the talk Blue Cliff Record Case 36; Roaming the Mountains Chosha went roaming the mountains one day. On returning, when he came to the gate the congregation leader said, “Where have you been, Master?” Chosha said, “Roaming the mountains.” The congregation leader said, “Where did you go?” Chosha said, “First I followed the fragrant grasses on the way out, then I came back pursuing the falling flowers.” The congregation leader said, “How very much like the sense of spring.” Chosha said, “It even surpasses the autumn dew dripping on...
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