Historically it is said that after his elightenment experience, The Buddha's first discourse was defined as the First Turning of the Wheel of Dharma. He offered the first teaching of the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Noble Path to five fellow seekers, who at first denied him an audience...but after noticing something different in him, sat and listened. They became the first Sangha; the community. These Truths are the very essence and core of the Buddhadharma which asks us to return to them time and time again, taking refuge in the lived experience of what they offer: a way to perceive and participate in the great reality. So, understanding and practice leads to wisdom, and wisdom leads to actualization...to make it real.

Vasubandhu was a 5th century Buddhist monk who, along with his brother Asanga formulated the teaching called Yogacara. It arose as means of finding balance between the two major paths of the Early Buddhist teachings and The Mahayana teachings. Vasubandhu and Asanga sought to bring harmony to the vast differences in these two practices, showing that both of them have very important roles in freeing us from suffering and delusion. This talk with be an introduction only...the Thirty Verses are complex; but more importantly, an eye opening into the nature of the Egoic birth and ultimately, its overturning.

Because food is life, it is of upmost importance that we receive it with deepest gratitude. When we eat, we consume life. There isn't a meal that is taken without the expense of another lifeforce — "the practice of eating is the essential truth of all Dharmas. At the very moment of eating, we merge with ultimate reality” — Dogen Zenji. When we eat a meal we enter into the process of merging with everything that surrounds us. Eating becomes a celebration of the Dharma, with no separation between us and the universe.

CLIP: You Have to Come in to Win (Community) by Jizo-an Zen Community

From Saturday, June 15th, 2019

More Together Than Alone by Jizo-an Zen Community

A Passover and Easter Minute to Change the World by Jizo-an Zen Community

Getting Beyond Fear & The Illusion of Differences initiative arises directly from the Great Bodhisattva Vows: to alleviate the suffering of every human being; to put an end to all self-serving desires; to profoundly study and realize the Dharma; and to perfectly manifest this real truth in every aspect of our lives. Tonight we will examine how the Dharma can illuminate the persistent forms of bias that shape our experience of the world. The Dharma teaches that all beings are equal, and yet each day we encounter injustice, hatred, and violence that stem from a sense of self and other as divided and unequal. Transformation emerges from cultivating and nurturing awareness in every moment of our lives. When we clearly see how our preconceived notions and deep conditionings are functioning in our relationships with others, we can begin to dissolve the boundaries that we create between ourselves and others. Then we can relate to each other from the recognition that all beings, regardless of our apparent differences, share the same essential nature, all beings possess "Basic Goodness".

“And the simple fact that by being attentive, by learning to listen (or recovering the natural capacity to listen which cannot be learned any more than breathing), we can find ourself engulfed in such happiness that it cannot be explained: the happiness of being at one with everything in that hidden ground of Love for which there can be no explanations.” - Thomas Merton To "Hold Space" for ourselves and others, especially during this current uncertain and rapidly changing time in our world. The single most important gift we have to offer ourselves and others in "times of uncertainty" and in life itself is the wisdom, and the art of "Holding Space," being "A Place of Refuge." Tonight through a series of mental and physical exercises familiar in Zen Mind-Body Training and a Dharma Talk about about the Three Refuges of The Buddhadharma and how to develop a tender and open heart for ourselves and others, we will begin to lay the ground for being "Community" for our family, friends, neighbors, and the world during these troubling times.

Creating Clarity Through Morality & Mindfulness by Jizo-an Zen Community