Zencare Podcast

“When I forget who I am, I return to the Buddha. When I’m lost in confusion, I return to the Dharma. When I feel alone, I return to the Sangha.”

In this tender and luminous talk, Chodo Sensei reflects on the Three Refuges of Buddhism—Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha—through the lens of impermanence, community, and compassion.

With stories of accompanying his dear friend Rande in her final days, and reflections on awakening amid global unrest, Chodo reminds us that refuge is not found in escape, but in presence.<...

“I love birthdays because they remind us: I was born, and I’m going to die. This is my one shot.”

In this talk from his birthday this past Sunday, Koshin Sensei reflects on the gift of being alive and the simplicity of a nourishing life.

Drawing on the teachings of Bodhidharma (who, legend has it, share's Koshin Sensei's birthday), he explores the four all-inclusive practices: suffering injustice, adapting to conditions, seeking nothing, and practicing the Dharma.

Through humor, tenderness, and vivid stories—childhood friends r...

“The true way is not something bestowed by others... it is found in the depths of your own heart-mind.”

On the 68th day of our recent Commit to Sit, Koshin Sensei reflects on teachings from Shakyamuni Buddha, Dogen Zenji, and Uchiyama Roshi, reminding us that practice never ends—not even for the great teachers.

Through stories both profound and playful (including an unexpected giant Labubu doll appearing in the zendo), he challenges us to see failure not as weakness but as the essence of practice.

How...

“The discipline of zazen is the refusal to be manipulated by your own mind.”

In this talk, Koshin Sensei reflects on the liberating power of discipline, the courage to make effort, and the serenity that comes not from outer conditions but from the clarity of mind itself.

Drawing on the teachings of Shakyamuni Buddha, Dōgen Zenji, and Uchiyama Roshi, he explores how daily reverence for concentration allows the Dharma (wisdom) to flourish in our lives.

From the story of Dōgen meeting the tenzo...

"A boat without a rudder drifts with the current, sometimes slowly, sometimes quickly, but always away from the true shore."

In this recent dharma talk, Koshin Sensei invites us to reflect deeply on what it means to “not lose sight of true dharma.”

Drawing from Shakyamuni Buddha’s final teachings and Dogen Zenji’s commentary, Koshin reminds us that vigilance and effort are not punishments but the armor and encampment that protect us from distraction, defensiveness, and the pull of the senses.

With humor and tend...

“The challenge is not sustaining the silence (on retreat), but bringing the silence with you when you leave.”

In this dharma talk from the final day of our recent summer silent retreat, Chodo sensei explores what it means to practice without seeking reward.

Through the powerful story of 13th-century nun Mugai Nyodai, whose awakening came when the bottom fell out of her water bucket, and a poem by Marie Howe about a dog transfixed by moonlight, this talk explores mushotoku: the art of gaining nothing.

Thr...

“Sangha (community) is not a retreat from suffering but a mirror to it.”

In this lively and direct dharma talk, Koshin Sensei invites us to explore what it truly means to cultivate serenity and quietude; not as an escape from life’s messiness, but as a way of meeting it fully.

Drawing on a Jataka (lives of the historical Buddha) tale of a hollow tree, teachings from our Zen ancestors, Dogen Zenji and Uchiyama Roshi, and reflections on the challenges and beauty of Sangha life, Koshin reminds us that imperm...

In this dharma talk, Koshin Sensei shares a day of stark contrasts: one meeting filled with praise — “You’re awesome, the best teacher” — followed by another with harsh criticism — “You’re the worst, no good, unhelpful.”

How do we meet the swings between feeling wonderful and feeling terrible? How do we strive to “be on the right side of history” in a world that is both brutal and beautiful?

Koshin invites us into Uchiyama Roshi’s teaching of Having Few Desires, exploring what it means to rest with dissatisfaction rather than trying to fi...

“Zen is not interested in making us feel good. It is about being real. Sometimes this feels good. Sometimes this feels awful.”

In this dharma talk, Koshin Sensei celebrates the graduates of our Contemplative Medicine Fellowship, reflects on the teachings of Dogen guiding our current ango period (Commit to Sit), and invites us to ask: What are the roots of goodness?

It’s a question that feels both timely and timeless. Koshin reminds us that goodness means taking responsibility for who we are and how we live. We atone for ou...

“How can I arouse the spirit of reconciliation and harmony right now?”



In this recent dharma talk, Koshin Sensei invites us to reflect on what it means to truly grow up and live with wisdom.

Quoting Uchiyama Roshi, the author of this summer Commit to Sit's guiding text, he reminds us that while we may look like adults, our hearts and our behavior often remain immature.

Koshin also reflects on how, even in times of conflict and pain, we can choose harmony over division.

When illness and loss touch our community, how can we transform uncertainty into deeper practice?

In this recent dharma talk, Koshin Sensei explores how life's fragility can awaken rather than paralyze us. Drawing from Shakyamuni Buddha's third awareness, he reveals how we trap ourselves in narrow self-concepts and offers practice as the antidote.

“Let the forms of the practice dismantle your self-image,” he guides, echoing Uchiyama Roshi's wisdom to “let go of the small self to realize the vastness of life itself.”

Discover how to break...

“What would it be like to realize that you're not missing anything, that the brightness is not somewhere else and it's not someone else.”

We share one final excerpt from last winter's Commit to Sit as the next 90-day summer practice period starts this Wednesday!

In this talk, Koshin Sensei captures the essence of Zen practice through the lens of lineage and transmission. Speaking on the 90th day, he weaves together ancient wisdom stories with intimate personal reflections from his time training in Japan earlier this year.

“It’s one of the challenges of our school: to be prepared, and then to drop it.”

What can a 13th-century Zen master teach us about the courage needed to challenge institutional barriers?

This week, we continue to share excerpts from our winter Commit to Sit, with a talk from our dear dharma friend, Konjin Godwin, the abbot of the Houston Zen Center and Director of the International Division of Soto Zen.

Konjin offers an intimate and accessible exploration of one of Zen's most influe...

“My storehouse having burnt down, nothing obscures the view of the bright moon. All of our previous conceptions, our preferences, our ideas, our understandings of the way the world works have to go up in flames.”



What happens when 40 years of perfect dedication still isn't enough?

In this excerpt from her captivating talk at our Winter's Commit to Sit, Jisho Sara Siebert, of Zen Fields in Ames, Iowa, tells the remarkable story of Ananda—the Buddha's personal attendant who had a photographic memory, knew every teaching by heart, and served with unw...

What’s the difference between empathy and compassion—and why does it matter so deeply for those in caregiving professions?

In this moving and insightful conversation, our Guiding Teachers Koshin Paley Ellison and Chodo Robert Campbell sit down with Dr. Judson Brewer, renowned psychiatrist, neuroscientist, bestselling author, and faculty member of the Contemplative Medicine Fellowship.

Together, they explore the nuanced terrain of emotional presence, personal boundaries, burnout, and healing—both personal and collective.

Drawing from clinical research, Buddhist psychology, personal stories, and decades of experience in contemplative and medical education, the conversation opens with a...

Each of us is carrying so much—lugging around feelings and stories of deficiency, blame, or unworthiness. How can what we carry no longer separate us, but instead become the very ground of connection?

In this poignant dharma talk, Koshin Sensei reflects on the life of Jianzhi Sengcan, the 30th ancestor after Shakyamuni Buddha, who bore the visible burden of leprosy and the invisible weight of shame. At age 40, he approached his teacher Huike and pleaded, “Cleanse me of my wrongdoing.” What followed was an intimate encounter of great healing—and the heart of Zen prac...

In this powerful and poignant talk from the midst of our Commit to Sit practice period, Koshin Sensei explores the teachings of Punyamitra, the 26th ancestor in the Zen lineage.

As a crown prince seeking home-leaving, Punyamitra is asked by his teacher: “What must you do?” His answer—“I must do Buddha’s work”—echoes through the centuries as a timeless call to presence, compassion, and responsibility.

Koshin challenges us to examine what ordinary habits we are willing to set down and how we might take up the work of awakening w...

Spanish philosopher, José Ortega y Gasset once remarked: “Tell me what you pay attention to and I will tell you who you are.”

A capacity to pay attention grows as we continually practice being receptive to what is happening within and around us. How do you pay attention to life? What holds you back from fully receiving reality as it is?

In this recent dharma talk, Koshin Sensei emphasizes the important of attention and the way of awakening.

Too often, he says, we indulge the t...

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In this recent dharma talk from our winter silent retreat, Koshin Sensei offers teachings on the eve of the Hossenshiki ceremony, a rare occasion in which a teacher entrusts their head student, the Shuso, to give a dharma talk before the sangha.

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This tradition, known as Honsaku Gyocha, reflects the deep process of training, trust, and surrender at the heart of Zen practice.

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The talk focuses on Case #2 from The Book of Serenity—Bodhidharma’s famous exchange with Emperor Wu:

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"What is the highest meaning of the holy...

What does it really take to build a lasting, loving relationship? In this special episode from the 10% Happier Podcast, Koshin Sensei and Chodo Sensei join Dan Harris and his wife, Bianca, for a candid conversation about marriage, connection, and the deep work of being in relationship.

Together, they explore:

“…when you practice and practice in this way and there is agreement between thoughts and words, it will truly be like intimate friends meeting, or self nodding to self. ” – Keizan Zenji

Even in the darkest of days, a faint light may be shimmering in the distance. Sometimes the dharma emerges as a mere sprinkle of goodness through the dense muck of our lives. No matter how heavy things are at the moment, can we allow something tiny and quiet and beautiful to break in?

In this recent dharma talk, Chodo Sense...