Disturb Me, Please!
In graduate school, I had one professor who encouraged us to notice what surprised or...
I Am Interested In My Mind
I am interested in my mind, and in my body. Previous to my having cultivated the habit of sitting, I had thought about myself and had...
Clinging Causes the Pain
Genuine love and kindness is desperately needed in this world. It comes from appreciating the object, and rejoicing in the object,...
Are You Ready To Lose Your World?
There is a very famous poem written by the third patriarch of Zen, Seng-ts’an, called the Hsin-Hsin Ming, which translates as...
Contemplation Vs. Social Change
Brother David: You can’t really be a contemplative, unless you also want to change the world. You want to...
If You Really Pay Attention
When I was a little bitty kiddy, about five, my Dad began a process … anytime somebody came and said something to us, my dad would...
Maintaining Vision, While Focusing
It seems that the key to the practice is maintaining vision and focus. Vision keeps an overview of what one is doing and the greater...
Plan of Life
For most of us, the first thing we must do is to work -- to have a roof over our head, bread in our mouth, fire in our chimney -- for...
Underneath All Victories and Defeats
In the midst of some activity, even the activity of reading this now, it is completely possible to allow your mind to open fully, and in...
Deciding What You Want to Keep
Look at your life in the same way you’d look through an attic, deciding what you’re going to keep, what you’re going to...
One Legitimate Use of Power
Gandhi never held any official position in government, he had no wealth, the commanded no armies -- but he could mobilize millions. ...
Letter to A Friend in A Hurry
You are at a crossroads, sensing there are less worldly paths you can follow, paths that feed on profound inner peace, a more...