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How to Sit is How to Act (Beginner’s Mind 5)
Michael discusses Shunryū Suzuki’s book, Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind. People who practice Zen are always asking: what is this all about? Whatever you do, Buddha is in that activity. Becoming the breath. Hitting the pillow. Occupy the wall. Suck your
Mountains & Rivers, Part 7
Don’t ignore what your life actually is… Practice tattoos us. Life stains us. Your life carves your face all the time. Michael reads section 17 of Dōgen’s essay, Mountains & Rivers. Every action you do carves your life. So, how
Mountains & Rivers, Part 6
Water has its own integrity, like you. Every event is interconnected and empty, and yet, everything has its own integrity. You can’t say exactly what a river is, and yet, it’s not the same as every river.
Betrayal, Awakening, and Living in a Burning House
Roshi Pat Enkyo O’Hara talks about the Lotus Sutra and the parable of the burning house. Even in the world of the dharma we can get caught up with playthings and forget that we’re living in a burning house. It
Mountains & Rivers, Part 5: A Love Letter to Meditators
Can we express with language what is most true for us? Maybe all philosophy is heading towards poetry. Michael Stone tells a story about finding the nectar of compassion in the centre of practice.
Mountains & Rivers, Part 4
How do we use words to say something meaningful about our lives? This is what Dōgen tries to do. There is no outside or inside. There is just this. Being is the ongoingness of this. This is all our lives
Pranayama
Pranayama is a practice of settling your attention on your breath. As attention becomes balanced, so too does the nervous system. Michael and guest teacher, Grant Hutchinson, teach the ways yogic breathing returns the nervous system to “factory settings.” Topics
Mountains & Rivers, Part 3
Michael continues discussing the teachings of Japanese Zen master Dōgen and his essay, Mountains and Rivers. Mountains are actually walking. If you can understand that mountains walk, you can understand impermanence. Nothing is as solid as you think. What, in
Mountains & Rivers, Part 2
Michael describes the way mountains and rivers influenced Dōgen and the way they can teach us about our lives. Mountains and water teach us about time, flow, and solidity. Everything is nothing but a moment in time.
Mountains & Rivers, Part 1
Who was Dōgen? What were his main teachings? Michael introduces the teachings of the 13th-century Japanese Zen master Dōgen and his essay, Mountains and Rivers. Dōgen loses both his parents and wants to understand impermanence.
Basics of Buddhism, Part 2
Michael gives commentary on Buddhism and the Four Noble Truths in a series on the basic teachings of the Buddha — craving, suffering, enlightenment, and the Eightfold Path. Craving closes down the path.
Basics of Buddhism, Part 1
In this dharma talk, Michael aims to answer the question, “What did the Buddha teach?” by focusing on the Pāli Canon—the earliest known record of the Buddha’s teachings in India. The mind is like a tourist—taking pictures of the present
About the Community Library
Michael was a great archivist and the Community Library was—and continues to be—a labour of love. Everything in the Community Library is available for free. Anyone, anywhere can have instant access to material that will help them deepen their practice and contribute to a culture of compassion and collaboration.
Libraries are places where we gather alone together. They are known to be places of refuge for seekers, as well as those who are marginalized. This library is no different. It helps us nourish our beautiful, international community without walls. Now, it will also help keep Michael’s legacy alive.