The Daily Zen Teisho https://www.dailyzen.com/teisho-today/the-daily-zen-teisho/ Daily Zen has been a contemplative haven for online visitors since 1998 offering a unique blend of Eastern quotes for each day of the year, Zen-inspired e-cards, and a meditation room where at any moment a visitor may be meditating with any one of our companion Wayfarers each day. The Journal, called On the Way, is published once a month and this podcast has been created to turn those Journals into an auditory experience allowing listeners to contemplate its ideas in another way. Thu, 06 Feb 2025 08:00:00 +0000 en-US © 2024 Daily Zen A series of Teisho for readers of the Daily Zen Journal Daily Zen episodic Daily Zen has been a contemplative haven for online visitors since 1998 offering a unique blend of Eastern quotes for each day of the year, Zen-inspired e-cards, and a meditation room where at any moment a visitor may be meditating with any one of our companion Wayfarers each day. The Journal, called On the Way, is published once a month and this podcast has been created to turn those Journals into an auditory experience allowing listeners to contemplate its ideas in another way. Daily Zen dailyzenpodcast@gmail.com false https://www.dailyzen.com/wp-content/uploads/lectern-1.jpg The Daily Zen Teisho https://www.dailyzen.com/teisho-today/the-daily-zen-teisho/ dailyzenpodcast@gmail.com Daily Zen has been a contemplative haven for online visitors since 1998 offering a unique blend of Eastern quotes for each day of the year, Zen-inspired e-cards, and a meditation room where at any moment a visitor may be meditating with any one of our companion Wayfarers each day. The Journal, called On the Way, is published once a month and this podcast has been created to turn those Journals into an auditory experience allowing listeners to contemplate its ideas in another way. No https://www.dailyzen.com/sponsor 78c0705e-a71b-5469-a4c0-4c8a8a220277 West Mountain Evening Talk – Part 5 https://www.dailyzen.com/podcast/west-mountain-evening-talk-part-5/ Sun, 02 Feb 2025 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.dailyzen.com/?post_type=podcast&p=16937 There are countless schools of Zen and Buddhism, each offering their own entry into practice.  Koan practice or “just sitting” practice appeals to different people’s sensibilities, but any practice can fall into extremes of spiritual “one-up-manship.”

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]]> full 129 1 There are countless schools of Zen and Buddhism, each offering their own entry into practice.  Koan practice or “just sitting” practice appeals to different people’s sensibilities, but any practice can fall into extremes of spiritual “one-up-manship.”

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]]> https://www.dailyzen.com/wp-content/uploads/podcast-west-evening-mountain-talk-pt5.png West Mountain Evening Talk – Part 5 false no 12:58 No no Silent Illumination https://www.dailyzen.com/podcast/silent-illumination/ Sun, 26 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.dailyzen.com/?post_type=podcast&p=16926 We can all appreciate the straightforwardness of Sheng Yen, and since he is closer to our own place in time, we know he had an understanding of our world.  Even though the human situation is the same no matter the time we find ourselves, sometimes the translation can interfere with understanding.

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]]> full 128 1 We can all appreciate the straightforwardness of Sheng Yen, and since he is closer to our own place in time, we know he had an understanding of our world.  Even though the human situation is the same no matter the time we find ourselves, sometimes the translation can interfere with understanding.

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]]> https://www.dailyzen.com/wp-content/uploads/podcast-silent-illumination.png Silent Illumination false no 9:51 No no The Mirror of Zen – Part 2 https://www.dailyzen.com/podcast/the-mirror-of-zen-part-2/ Sun, 19 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.dailyzen.com/?post_type=podcast&p=16913 This is a unique gift as you can see in the introduction above.  A Zen master from hundreds of years ago has essentialized what he sees as the heart of the sutras and Zen for us “practitioners in the future.”  How many times have some of us attempted to read one of the sutras and just felt overwhelmed by the language, the images, and the searching for the essence of the teaching?

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]]> full 127 1 This is a unique gift as you can see in the introduction above.  A Zen master from hundreds of years ago has essentialized what he sees as the heart of the sutras and Zen for us “practitioners in the future.”  How many times have some of us attempted to read one of the sutras and just felt overwhelmed by the language, the images, and the searching for the essence of the teaching?

Read the Journal while listening

]]> https://www.dailyzen.com/wp-content/uploads/podcast-the-mirror-of-zen-pt2.png The Mirror of Zen – Part 2 false no 7:08 No no Awakening https://www.dailyzen.com/podcast/awakening/ Wed, 15 Jan 2025 01:00:00 +0000 https://www.dailyzen.com/?post_type=podcast&p=16874 Most of the stories of the Buddha’s life are told in a very different manner. Speaking in the first person here brings a freshness to his journey, and starting at the beginning is sometimes just right for the beginning of the year.

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]]> Most of the stories of the Buddha’s life are told in a very different manner. Speaking in the first person here brings a freshness to his journey, and starting at the beginning is sometimes just right for the beginning of the year.

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]]> https://www.dailyzen.com/wp-content/uploads/podcast-awakening.png Awakening false no 5:58 No no The Mirror of Zen – Part 3 https://www.dailyzen.com/podcast/the-mirror-of-zen-part-3/ Sun, 05 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.dailyzen.com/?post_type=podcast&p=16763 We can really see in this concluding piece the essence of volumes from So Sahn’s own practice, quite an aspiration to bring to life.  Each chapter/paragraph delivers a clarity that deserves contemplation.  

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]]> full 125 1 We can really see in this concluding piece the essence of volumes from So Sahn’s own practice, quite an aspiration to bring to life.  Each chapter/paragraph delivers a clarity that deserves contemplation.  

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]]> https://www.dailyzen.com/wp-content/uploads/podcast-the-mirror-of-zen-pt3.png The Mirror of Zen – Part 3 false no 9:47 No no The Threefold Question in Zen https://www.dailyzen.com/podcast/the-threefold-question-in-zen/ Sun, 29 Dec 2024 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.dailyzen.com/?post_type=podcast&p=16720 These two selections seem to stretch the boundaries a bit. They almost seem to contradict each other, but such is the flavor of different teachers. In reality, they are talking about the same phenomenon, something so natural to who we are and how we function when we don’t complicate things, it is easy to overlook it. And, in fact, is a challenge for us.

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]]> full 124 These two selections seem to stretch the boundaries a bit. They almost seem to contradict each other, but such is the flavor of different teachers. In reality, they are talking about the same phenomenon, something so natural to who we are and how we function when we don’t complicate things, it is easy to overlook it. And, in fact, is a challenge for us.

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]]> https://www.dailyzen.com/wp-content/uploads/podcast-the-threefold-question-and-the-unborn.png The Threefold Question in Zen false no 10:54 No no Same Reality, Different Dreams https://www.dailyzen.com/podcast/same-reality-different-dreams/ Sun, 22 Dec 2024 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.dailyzen.com/?post_type=podcast&p=16540 Being students of the Way, naturally, we seek places to begin and signposts of which way to continue. There may be teachers we study with for years; we may have years of disillusionment, and then there may be years we are on our own. 

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]]> full 123 Being students of the Way, naturally, we seek places to begin and signposts of which way to continue. There may be teachers we study with for years; we may have years of disillusionment, and then there may be years we are on our own. 

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]]> https://www.dailyzen.com/wp-content/uploads/podcast-same-reality-different-dreams.png Same Reality, Different Dreams false no 11:36 No no Records of the Source Mirror – Part 2 https://www.dailyzen.com/podcast/records-of-the-source-mirror-pt-2/ Mon, 16 Dec 2024 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.dailyzen.com/?post_type=podcast&p=16592 Since there are sutras too numerous to count, Yanshou is taking the gems from many of them to help essentialize the heart of Buddhism.

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]]> full 122 1 Since there are sutras too numerous to count, Yanshou is taking the gems from many of them to help essentialize the heart of Buddhism.

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]]> https://www.dailyzen.com/wp-content/uploads/podcast-ecords-of-the-source-mirror-pt-2.png Records of the Source Mirror – Part 2 false no 8:46 No no Records of the Source Mirror https://www.dailyzen.com/podcast/records-of-the-source-mirror/ Sun, 08 Dec 2024 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.dailyzen.com/?post_type=podcast&p=16553 This excerpt is scratching the surface of a work consisting of 100 fasicles; the above being only part of the first fasicle and the only one in translation at this point. Even in this brief glimpse, one can get a sense of the intention behind the work.

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]]> full 121 1 This excerpt is scratching the surface of a work consisting of 100 fasicles; the above being only part of the first fasicle and the only one in translation at this point. Even in this brief glimpse, one can get a sense of the intention behind the work.

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]]> https://www.dailyzen.com/wp-content/uploads/podcast-records-of-the-source-mirror.png Records of the Source Mirror false no 8:27 No no Idle Talk on a Night Boat https://www.dailyzen.com/podcast/idle-talk-on-a-night-boat/ Sun, 01 Dec 2024 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.dailyzen.com/?post_type=podcast&p=16490 his classic story from the history of Zen is an excellent example of the lengths some have taken to explore meditation, the results that can happen when someone goes too far in overzealous attempts, and the commitment it takes to extricate oneself and return to a more middle way of practice. 

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]]> full 120 1 his classic story from the history of Zen is an excellent example of the lengths some have taken to explore meditation, the results that can happen when someone goes too far in overzealous attempts, and the commitment it takes to extricate oneself and return to a more middle way of practice. 

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]]> https://www.dailyzen.com/wp-content/uploads/podcast-idle-talk-on-a-night-boat.png Idle Talk on a Night Boat false no 20:06 No no Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind https://www.dailyzen.com/podcast/zen-mind-beginners-mind-teisho/ Sun, 01 Dec 2024 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.dailyzen.com/?post_type=podcast&p=9070 People say that practicing Zen is difficult, but there is a misunderstanding as to why. It is not difficult because it is hard to sit in the cross-legged position, or to attain enlightenment. It is difficult because it is hard to keep our mind pure and our practice pure in its fundamental sense.

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]]> full 4 1 People say that practicing Zen is difficult, but there is a misunderstanding as to why. It is not difficult because it is hard to sit in the cross-legged position, or to attain enlightenment. It is difficult because it is hard to keep our mind pure and our practice pure in its fundamental sense.

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]]> https://www.dailyzen.com/wp-content/uploads/turtle_zazen.jpg Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind false no 15:18 No no Notes on Meditation https://www.dailyzen.com/podcast/notes-on-meditation/ Sun, 24 Nov 2024 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.dailyzen.com/?post_type=podcast&p=16365 How much of what we know has been discovered firsthand by us? If you are honest, most of what we know has been handed down by others and rarely questioned. Even the traditional teacher/student relationship often engenders passivity; like baby birds with beaks open, we wait for the next tidbit of understanding to arrive. 

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]]> full 119 1 How much of what we know has been discovered firsthand by us? If you are honest, most of what we know has been handed down by others and rarely questioned. Even the traditional teacher/student relationship often engenders passivity; like baby birds with beaks open, we wait for the next tidbit of understanding to arrive. 

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]]> https://www.dailyzen.com/wp-content/uploads/podcast-notes-on-meditation.png Notes on Meditation false no 16:45 No no Convention and Liberation https://www.dailyzen.com/podcast/convention-and-liberation/ Mon, 18 Nov 2024 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.dailyzen.com/?post_type=podcast&p=16386 There is a point in training where we feel like we are living in two separate worlds – the conventional reality or culture and our world of practice. In the beginning, we establish our meditation practice routine and strive for continuity. As we mature in practice we realize we need to take that calm and centered experience off the cushion and into daily life.

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]]> full 118 There is a point in training where we feel like we are living in two separate worlds – the conventional reality or culture and our world of practice. In the beginning, we establish our meditation practice routine and strive for continuity. As we mature in practice we realize we need to take that calm and centered experience off the cushion and into daily life.

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]]> https://www.dailyzen.com/wp-content/uploads/podcast-convention-and-liberation.png Convention and Liberation false no 11:54 No no Zen Teachings of Huang Po https://www.dailyzen.com/podcast/zen-teachings-of-huang-po/ Sun, 03 Nov 2024 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.dailyzen.com/?post_type=podcast&p=16297 It takes a while to begin to feel comfortable with “nothing to hang onto” as some refer to the subtleties of practice. Practice is bursting with paradox, and Zen masters seem to have mastered the art of communicating the Way in a manner that often does serve to stop the mind.

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]]> full 117 1 It takes a while to begin to feel comfortable with “nothing to hang onto” as some refer to the subtleties of practice. Practice is bursting with paradox, and Zen masters seem to have mastered the art of communicating the Way in a manner that often does serve to stop the mind.

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]]> https://www.dailyzen.com/wp-content/uploads/podcast-zen-teachings-of-huang-po.png Zen Teachings of Huang Po false no 12:56 No no Treatise on Sitting Meditation https://www.dailyzen.com/podcast/treatise-on-sitting-meditation/ Sun, 27 Oct 2024 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.dailyzen.com/?post_type=podcast&p=16263 As abstruse as some of these pieces sound, there are always concrete points of practice that shine through. That doesn't mean it doesn't take some real contemplation to find the hidden kernel that is just the point to spur on our practice.

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]]> full 116 1 As abstruse as some of these pieces sound, there are always concrete points of practice that shine through. That doesn't mean it doesn't take some real contemplation to find the hidden kernel that is just the point to spur on our practice.

Read the Journal while listening

]]> https://www.dailyzen.com/wp-content/uploads/podcast-treatise-on-sitting-meditation.png Treatise on Sitting Meditation false no 15:22 No no Tsung Ching Record of Hui Hai – Part 2 https://www.dailyzen.com/podcast/tsung-ching-record-of-hui-hai-part-2/ Sun, 20 Oct 2024 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.dailyzen.com/?post_type=podcast&p=16243 The question-and-answer format between a teacher and student is a timeless and startling tradition. The role of any true teacher is to help the student break through their illusions and awaken in the present moment to their attachments; their means of achieving this are often misunderstood.

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]]> full 115 1 The question-and-answer format between a teacher and student is a timeless and startling tradition. The role of any true teacher is to help the student break through their illusions and awaken in the present moment to their attachments; their means of achieving this are often misunderstood.

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]]> https://www.dailyzen.com/wp-content/uploads/podcast-tsung-ching-record-of-hui-hai-pt-2.png Tsung Ching Record of Hui Hai – Part 2 false no 10:43 No no Delusion and Zazen – Part 2 https://www.dailyzen.com/podcast/delusion-and-zazen-part-2/ Tue, 15 Oct 2024 01:00:00 +0000 https://www.dailyzen.com/?post_type=podcast&p=16154 Simplicity and clarity. The above guidelines are touchstones that help us to steer through practice. To take it all a step further is finding a way to return to zazen while walking, lying down, and standing.

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]]> full 114 1 Simplicity and clarity. The above guidelines are touchstones that help us to steer through practice. To take it all a step further is finding a way to return to zazen while walking, lying down, and standing.

Read the Journal while listening.

]]> https://www.dailyzen.com/wp-content/uploads/delusion-and-zazen-pt2.png Delusion and Zazen – Part 2 false no 8:35 No no Calming the Mind https://www.dailyzen.com/podcast/calming-the-mind/ Sun, 13 Oct 2024 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.dailyzen.com/?post_type=podcast&p=16155 With all the journals there are always one or two sentences that jump out at us. They seem to be what the piece turns on for us here and now. This is a very ancient work, and it is interesting how much is conveyed in this excerpt.

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]]> full 113 1 With all the journals there are always one or two sentences that jump out at us. They seem to be what the piece turns on for us here and now. This is a very ancient work, and it is interesting how much is conveyed in this excerpt.

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]]> https://www.dailyzen.com/wp-content/uploads/podcast-calming-the-mind.png Calming the Mind false no 9:44 No no Jade Buddha Monastery https://www.dailyzen.com/podcast/jade-buddha-monastery/ Sun, 06 Oct 2024 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.dailyzen.com/?post_type=podcast&p=16118 At times it seems like a deluded mind dominates us as past tendencies recur to test us. At some point, these become almost entertaining as they burn themselves out vying for our attention.

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]]> full 112 1 At times it seems like a deluded mind dominates us as past tendencies recur to test us. At some point, these become almost entertaining as they burn themselves out vying for our attention.

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]]> https://www.dailyzen.com/wp-content/uploads/podcast-jade-buddha-monastery.png Jade Buddha Monastery false no 8:28 No no Zazen https://www.dailyzen.com/podcast/zazen/ Sun, 29 Sep 2024 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.dailyzen.com/?post_type=podcast&p=16067 Whether we think of ourselves as average, superior, or inferior students, we all share zazen as a practice, and probably for most of us we don't think of our “level” as students at all.

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]]> full 111 1 Whether we think of ourselves as average, superior, or inferior students, we all share zazen as a practice, and probably for most of us we don't think of our “level” as students at all.

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]]> https://www.dailyzen.com/wp-content/uploads/podcast-zazen.png Zazen false no 9:52 No no Understanding Mind https://www.dailyzen.com/podcast/understanding-mind/ Sun, 22 Sep 2024 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.dailyzen.com/?post_type=podcast&p=15945 Each teacher of the Way has their own style to help students break through stubborn attachments and confusion. Each master exemplifies approaches that sometimes are easy to digest and other times pull the rug out from under us. Ajahn Chah has a more gentle and matter-of-fact style using ordinary language and examples that are easy to relate to.

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]]> full 110 1 Each teacher of the Way has their own style to help students break through stubborn attachments and confusion. Each master exemplifies approaches that sometimes are easy to digest and other times pull the rug out from under us. Ajahn Chah has a more gentle and matter-of-fact style using ordinary language and examples that are easy to relate to.

Read the Journal while listening

]]> https://www.dailyzen.com/wp-content/uploads/podcast-understanding-mind.png Understanding Mind false no 8:00 No no Delusion and Zazen https://www.dailyzen.com/podcast/delusion-and-zazen/ Mon, 16 Sep 2024 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.dailyzen.com/?post_type=podcast&p=16043 We can learn something from every teacher we meet through the journals. Some may be difficult to understand because their style seems archaic or the translator’s choice of words may lead to some confusion, but there are kernels of wisdom in every piece.

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]]> full 109 1 We can learn something from every teacher we meet through the journals. Some may be difficult to understand because their style seems archaic or the translator’s choice of words may lead to some confusion, but there are kernels of wisdom in every piece.

Read the Journal while listening

]]> https://www.dailyzen.com/wp-content/uploads/podcast-delusion-and-zazen.png Delusion and Zazen false no 15:15 No no Investigating Chan and Comtemplating Mind https://www.dailyzen.com/podcast/investigating-chan-and-comtemplating-mind/ Sun, 08 Sep 2024 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.dailyzen.com/?post_type=podcast&p=15918 For those of us who entered the doorway of Zen through “just sitting,” koan practice has always seemed a bit mysterious. Not that there isn’t a technique involved in sitting meditation but concentrating on a certain phrase or word is not part of that approach.

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]]> full 108 1 For those of us who entered the doorway of Zen through “just sitting,” koan practice has always seemed a bit mysterious. Not that there isn’t a technique involved in sitting meditation but concentrating on a certain phrase or word is not part of that approach.

Read the Journal while listening

]]> false no 12:28 No no Aspiration for Enlightenment https://www.dailyzen.com/podcast/aspiration-for-enlightenment/ Sun, 01 Sep 2024 11:36:51 +0000 https://www.dailyzen.com/?post_type=podcast&p=15902 Many of us have longed at one time or another to retreat to a hermitage in the mountain wilds, to follow the way of the sages, thus shedding our distractions and focusing on a life of practice.

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]]> full 107 1 Many of us have longed at one time or another to retreat to a hermitage in the mountain wilds, to follow the way of the sages, thus shedding our distractions and focusing on a life of practice.

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]]> https://www.dailyzen.com/wp-content/uploads/podcast-aspiration-for-enlightenment.png Aspiration for Enlightenment false no 11:14 No no Doctrine of Mind https://www.dailyzen.com/podcast/doctrine-of-mind/ Sun, 25 Aug 2024 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.dailyzen.com/?post_type=podcast&p=15889 Once again, the classic student and teacher dialogue we have all heard at one time or another. True teachers can be and should be, difficult to pin down an “answer” to questions that in reality wind up limiting us. What else, and how else could Huang Po answer?

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]]> full 206 1 Once again, the classic student and teacher dialogue we have all heard at one time or another. True teachers can be and should be, difficult to pin down an “answer” to questions that in reality wind up limiting us. What else, and how else could Huang Po answer?

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]]> https://www.dailyzen.com/wp-content/uploads/podcast-doctrine-of-mind.png Doctrine of Mind false no 11:02 No no