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Mind, or what we might also call ego, can only survive in two places: either in the past or in the future. But what about the space between our thoughts? This openness is what in Zen we call “No Mind”. In this talk, Michael suggests that the practice of letting go into, and from, this empty field of No Mind allows for us to source our activity from Spirit. This activity is compassion. Questions deal with what we might do in situations where we feel criticized, and how we can develop a sense of No Mind with consistency.

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Letting go of everything, and then acting from this place of radical surrender is the manifestation of Awakening. But how do we do this in practical terms? In this talk, Michael offers us a some pointers on how to practice both surrender and forgiveness in ways that lead each of us to orient our lives around an expansive sence of grace and ease.

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If it’s all only Spirit, why should we meditate? Couldn’t it be that meditation is designed to fail in getting us closer to what’s already totally present? In this talk, Michael discusses these questions and suggests how practice unfolds along three stages. Beginning with Recognition, where we are essentially invited to the party, ego fuels our search. Following this, practitioners can often lose their footing when the “dark night of the soul” arises in the phase known as Resistance. Crossing this arid plane, practitioners learn how to commit to an engaged Renunciation where we, and all that arises in our Awareness, are informed by the stillness that we’ve been practicing. Questions deal with: attempts at kind speech when we feel challenged.

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In this installment of Commuter Zen, Michael answers questions from listeners dealing with different aspects of desire and curiosity. Questions deal with the desire for a better work environment as well as intimate relationships; desire for Big Enlightenment; curiosity about how to best establish a sitting practice; curiosity about the practice of chanting; desire for recognizing how the Universe provides us with everything we need for Awakening; and how we can truly silence the mind. We end this installment with a brief pointing out instruction that leads us to the No Mind realization of the present moment. Other topics include the Nirmanakaya, the Sambhogakaya, and the Dharmakaya, as well as the corresponding gross, subtle, and causal levels of spiritual realization.

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In Buddhist teaching, we refer to the Fourth Noble Truth as the Eightfold Path. Following this Path shows us a map that leads directly to Awakening. But the Path often seems to be covered, metaphorically at least, with banana peels that cause us to slip and fall as we practice. In this talk, Michael discusses how we can walk the Eightfold Path with an intention supported by ethics and stillness even as we tumble. Questions deal with: the continual showing of delusion’s veils; attaching to practice instead of being committed to practice; slipping on the banana peels of expectation; the tough work of surrender; having built an entire life on attaching to outcomes; and, how we can get out of our own way as we walk the Path.

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Our normal state is intertwined with addiction to ego. Yet addiction to non-addiction is not the goal. In this talk, Michael deals with the middle way of practice in which we begin to uncover our ability to unfold as Spirit in Action for all beings AS all beings. This means that all things are ultimately “just like me”. From Emptiness all things are simply one and the same. This expression of deep equality in the world of form means that it is at times an appropriate response to participate in conflict, yet only from the “just like me” recognition. So pacifism, in its true spiritual form, in other words, does not mean that we simply give in to injustice in the world. It means that we “do our duty and remember the Lord” as it is said in the Bhagavad Gita. Questions deal with: recognizing self as other, and dealing with the ebb and flow of our awareness of Big Self and small self orientations.

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Meditation is not enough to support an authentic practice. Nor is the reading of scripture. Nor is just listening to Dharma talks. There must be a fire that fuels our meeting of Spirit. In this talk, Michael deals with accessing that very fire. Shunryu Suzuki, Plotinus, and Nisargadatta Maharaj represent Buddhism, Christianity, and Hinduism in dealing with this apprehension of Spirit. Questions deal with: resistance to sitting; uncovering what we really want; and, our relationship to the “weeds” that can grow as our practice deepens.