Latest writings

People often say, "I am who I am" but most people don't know their true self. It is more accurate to say that it is you who make yourself this way, instead of saying this way is who you are. Ultimately you are not just…

Just completed this morning Zen-Seven Retreat at the monastery and over lunch, a few fellow practitioners and I came up with a question: "How do you know if a thought is a habitual thought or a wondering thought instead of a pure thought?" Our answer is: "You must know from where the thought arise. If you do, then it is a pure thought. If you don't, then it is habitual thought." What is your answer?

To accelerate change, first accelerate your practice. Your practice will bring together all the right ingredients. To slow down your disturbances, first calm down your mind. Do not pedal aimlessly in turbulent water.

"The famed poet Su Dong Po, of the Sung dynasty, composed the following verse to express his attainment: 'Prostrate to the heaven among the heavens, light of a single hair strand illuminates the universe. Imperturbable by the worldly winds, seated firmly upon the golden purple lotus.'…

The new book, just use this mind, written by Zen Master Miao Tsan (Jian Liao) tells it all. "No theory or spiritual figure--regardless of his or her level of realization--can convey anything higher than the truth. No speaker--or the ideas he expresses--can go beyond the scope of the truth. Any…