Ocean Mind Sangha

Zen monasteries around the world practice oryoki, the meal ceremony that highlights that eating is a sacred act— one that puts us in touch, not just with physical hunger, but with our deeper aspiration to awaken.

To live in a time and place where we can actively seek and find the Buddhist teachings is remarkable. If you’re wondering how this might unfold in your life in a way that leads to the liberation of all beings, look to the Buddha’s path. This talk draws on the life of Shakyamuni Buddha and more.

In the midst of what can be an awesome fear, and grief, the teachings on death and dying can also be a source of great power, wonder, and love.

Zuisei shares just how the practice of love is the heart, the path, and the realization of the Buddhist teachings.

We say this often, Be present. But what does it really mean to be present? How can we be present to the teachings offered to us in every moment or even just this very moment? Zuisei guides us through the Dutiyakālasutta, a Buddhist teaching from the Pali Canon that, through four steps, shows how, with care, patience, and faith in ourselves, we can simply and actively pay attention, allowing our life to be as full, rich, and purposeful as it is. This talk draws on the koan from the True Dharma Eye, Case 111, Fayan’s Eye of the Way, the Dutiyakālasutta and the work of author Ursula K. Le Guin and poet Hillary-Anne Farley.

There’s a slow and quiet changing of a mind, even when we think nothing is happening. We can just begin or continue our steady effort to get close to all of it—the joy and the mess—as it is. It’s a simple instruction, but maybe the most difficult to put into practice. So what can you do when the mind gets in the way of getting close and your thoughts become obstacles? SWITCH. In this talk Zuisei discusses SWITCH, a helpful way to understand and to remember the Buddha’s teachings on how to work with the mind skillfully and directly at these times. This talk draws on the poetry of Ada Limón, the Vitakkasanthana Sutta, and more.

Not only did the Buddha teach that we need good friends along the spiritual path, the heart of Buddhist practice gives us the tools and concrete guidance on how to be that resource for others. This talk draws on teachings from Theravada, Mahayana, and Vajrayana Buddhism, including a couple of the Pali Canon’s sutras, as well as the "Prajnaparamita in 8,000 lines."

The Ocean Mind Sangha’s first Jukai ceremony - listen to and join in as Brian Pontolilo formally commits to a life guided by the ethical teachings of Buddhism with his teacher Zuisei, and the sangha.

There is a real medicine for loneliness. Reaching in all the ways we do to assuage it only touches its surface. How can we truly root out the hunger that keeps our phones in our hand and our gaze outward? Zuisei teaches how the heart of Zen, a practice of being completely and intimately alone, is the most powerful way to face the heart of loneliness, and to shed the ignorance that sustains it.

Zen training can prepare us to move skillfully through times of apparent isolation and disconnection that we may encounter in our day to day. This talk is a deep dive into one aspect of training that addresses just this—koan study—in which the teacher presents a case and asks a question. Answering requires entering into and vowing to stay with the question and the world it entails, as ungraspable as it is. Being fully immersed, we see clearly. Disconnection is not an option. Zuisei suggests that we stay with the questions, in our training and in our lives, with love and care. In fact, lovingly may be the only way to do this utterly. This talk focuses on Zen Master Dogen’s Case 114, Zhaozhou’s Dog (Does a dog have Buddha Nature?).

Could your next meal be a celebration of the sacred, no matter where or with whom? This mondo on mindful eating dives into the many ways we relate to food in light of Buddhist practice, from eating disorders and the art of parenting, to dinner parties and dining alone.

In this study session, Zuisei and the sangha relate their daily lives and practice to Koso Uchiyama’s Opening the Hand of Thought, a contemporary Zen text that speaks about the importance of zazen and letting go of thoughts in order to see the nature of the self. In the words of Uchiyama Roshi: You are within me. I'm just facing myself. In other words, you exist within myself, and it is to that you that I direct myself.

Join Zuisei and the sangha in conversation with Lama Karma Yeshe Chödrön and Karma Zopa Jigme. Yeshe and Zopa are Western teachers in the Kagyu lineage of Tibetan Buddhism who describe their mission as empowering practitoners to engage spiritual practice with integrity , creativity, and joy, by making available the authentic teachings of the Kagyu lineage to all who seek to eradicate suffering and cultivate happiness to its fullest potential, individually and collectively, whether Buddhist or not.

Where you are and what you are doing is exactly right—even when it’s a struggle. In this talk Zuisei reminds us that the focus of Buddhist practice is not liberation from anything but liberation within everything, and that when practicing with this intention, there are no obstacles in our path.

Take a look into how our sense of self gets in the way of our lives and catch a glimpse of what remains once we let go…

According to the poet David Whyte, there is a faith in loving fiercely the one who is rightfully yours. What if the one who is rightfully yours is you?

Discover what it means to create this world and how we might face it and ourselves in spaciousness and love…

In this study session, Zuisei explores Koso Uchiyama’s Opening the Hand of Thought, a contemporary Zen text that speaks about the importance of zazen and letting go of thoughts in order to see the nature of the self. In the words of Uchiyama Roshi: You are within me. I'm just facing myself. In other words, you exist within myself, and it is to that you that I direct myself. That is what "vow" is.

In this talk Zuisei invites us to join a “zazen streak,” committing to sit in silent meditation at least ten minutes a day, every day, “no matter what,” pointing to the power of that kind of constancy and stability. Drawing on the heart of restorative justice, koan study, and specifically the koan “Dongshan’s No Cold or Heat” (Blue Cliff Record Case 43), Zuisei explores what it means to be fully present and open to all the circumstances of our lives, no matter how challenging, and certainly appreciating all their wonder.

December 8 was Bodhi Day, the celebration of Buddha’s Enlightenment. In this talk, which brings a weekend sesshin to a close, Zuisei speaks of the Buddha’s life of practice and realization, focusing specifically on the aspiration, courage and determination that supported his vow to awaken. Most importantly, she links his aspiration to our own, stressing the point that we have everything that the Buddha had, which means that we too can awaken; we too can reach “the Unbinding.” The Buddha may have had to walk the path on his own, but we have his inimitable example, which can always be a source of inspiration.

A continuation of the exploration of the Buddhist precepts focusing on taking refuge, highlighting the importance of understanding what it is that we take refuge in…

Where do you go to be seen and to be seen through? Facing reality, facing yourself, that is what’s needed here and now. From the spacious and bare zazen practice of the Zen Sōtō priest Kosho Uchiyama and the new movement of Secular Buddhism to Yuval Noah Harari’s 21st Lesson for the 21st Century, his book on pressing global issues like the consequences of rapid changes in pervasive technology, Zuisei takes up various paths that lead to the realization that to liberate ourselves and each other, we must understand our minds.

A reflection on what it means to know all of ourselves and each other as treasure—if we really knew this, how would it affect the way in which we live our lives?

This talk on a koan about the love between parent and child (teacher and student), lays bare the uniqueness of this relationship and the unconditional trust and love that it’s based on—a love grounded in the aspiration for liberation, for awakening…

This talk, part of the study session series on Thich Nhat Hanh’s Understanding Our Mind, deals with perception and experience. “What conditions do we need to be truly happy?” Thich Nhat Hanh asks. It’s another way of asking, Do we understand how the seeds of our experiences shape the way we perceive our lives? This text on the Fifty Verses shows us that it’s not what happens to us that determines whether we’re happy or unhappy, but how we respond to it.

Without you, I cannot be me. Who am I? In this talk Zuisei reflects on how we see ourselves and one another verses the reality of what is, who is. How could you be one unchanging self? Why do we often hold each other and ourselves to a familiar idea of who we are, and what happens when individuals and communities do not?

I can’t. I won’t. This is the sound of fear in the lead. And a sign to look closer. In this talk Zuisei returns to the three steps or ways to enter our zazen—failing, falling, and feeling—and studies the fear that often holds us back from fully realizing them. How does practice enable us to stay with our fear—to be both fearful and fearless? Zuisei reminds us that when we realize that we’re like the sky, vast and boundless, there’s no thought or feeling we cannot face or hold. This talk includes a short guided meditation.

Acknowledging that practice does not always come easily, in this talk Zuisei skillfully guides us back to the art of shikantaza, “the gate of ease and joy,” as Dogen called it. But what is shikantaza? How do we practice it, when we have to let go of doing and striving? Zuisei describes three steps: failing, falling, and feeling—ways to enter our zazen and also our day-to-day lives.

It’s never been more important to cultivate an attitude of care and reverence for this world and for one another. How can we use the teachings and our practice to remind us of the sacredness inherent in all things?

Why prostrate yourself, when Buddhism doesn’t include belief in God or a higher power? With insights from Eihei Dogen, Judy Lief, and Reggie Ray, Zuisei looks at the power of the sacred and of bowing, as well as the importance of prostration in the cultivation of devotion—an attitude of respect and reverence so needed in this world today.

“When we practice mindfulness we are not practicing for ourselves alone, but also for the countless generations to follow.” –Thich Nhat Hanh In this session, Zuisei and the sangha take up this teaching as they continue their study of Thich Nhat Hanh’s Understanding Our Mind. The session opens with a “student entering ceremony,” recognizing sangha members Marguerite Battaglia, Adam Green, Brian Pontillo and Jess Angelson, as Zuisei’s formal students.

When our path seems unclear and reality precarious, where do we turn? In this talk Zuisei and the sangha take this question to heart. Zuisei reminds us, as the famous Machado song says, that “the path is made by walking.” Whether it seems laid bare for miles ahead or the view appears obscured, we can ever only take one step at a time.

In this talk Zuisei dives into the center of the eighth realization—the awareness that the fire of birth and death is raging, causing endless suffering everywhere. Even in difficult moments there is a soft spaciousness, perfect and complete, where we are whole and things are as they are. How do we remember this in the very real and present stress of our day to day lives?

The Seventh Realization of Great Beings teaches us to live simply, follow the precepts, and treat all beings equally and with compassion. Through the poetry of Hafiz and the stories of the Zen teacher and Sixth Ancestor Huineng, Zuisei cuts to the heart of living simply so that we might apply this sense of simplicity and openness to our lives outside of the monastery, in the reality of our everyday lives. Sangha member Norm Christian also offers a short talk on sincerity of intent.

In this mondo Zuisei introduces the Sixth Realization of Great Beings through the sangha’s reflections on their lived experiences of the past year. This realization turns to equanimity and generosity in the midst of poverty—poverty of mind and spirit that creates our sense of lack During the pandemic, have you experienced a feeling of listlessness, Zuisei asks. Or something else? What have you turned to for comfort, stability, relief?

What happens when you deeply listen? The commentary to the fifth of the Eight Realizations of Great Beings says that bodhisattvas listen deeply to others in order to ease their suffering and bring them joy. Delving into the practice of listening and the parallel tracks of growing up and waking up, Zuisei inspires us to listen deeply so that we can become fully human buddhas.

Bring back that lovin’ feelin’Whoa that lovin feelin’When your enthusiasm for practice slows or seems to come to halt, does it “still count?” And anyways, how do you spark it up again? In this threaded talk, Zuisei introduces the fourth realization, indolence, aka find your enthusiasm. The sangha takes this up, each sharing their personal experiences of “failure” and “laziness,” and the awesome realization that in practice, nothing is left out.

Are you aware of a mind that searches outside of itself and never feels fulfilled? In this talk Zuisei and Brian each explore different aspects of this awareness—the Third Realization. Drawing on different sources from the experience of addiction to the Vimalakurti Sutra, this talk asks us to reflect on how this searching mind show up in our own lives and how might we might work with it.

In this talk, drawing from Dogen’s teachings, the Lojong slogans and more, Zuisei dives into the very human experience of desire. How do the teachings on desire relate to satisfaction and sensuousness? How can we hold that desire is the root of suffering and still realize its affirming and joyful side?

“I want to be like water. I want to slip through fingers but hold up a ship.” In this talk Zuisei returns to the reality of impermanence, from the Buddha’s last talk just before his death—the Nirvana Sutra, to the wish above taken from an interview with Michelle Williams. How might impermanence inspire you?

How do you experience impermanence? In this first threaded talk, Zuisei introduces the realization of impermanence and asks the group gathered to take it from there. As each person speaks up and follows the thread, we explore how we can and do work with this awareness.

In this talk Zuisei delves into what it is to experience the vast spaciousness of our ordinary, day-to-day lives. From engaging with our ancestors—whether mythical, spiritual, or flesh and blood—to reflecting on our present and ever-changing paths, how many ways are there to acknowledge the infinite stream of space and time in which we flow? How might this nurture our practice, our kindness, our clarity?

Do you ever pause in the midst of your life and ask yourself, what is my role in all of this? What is my agency? In this talk Zuisei addresses the need to train the body, mind, spirit and heart, the need to learn endurance, flexibility, and kindness, the need to be here now. In the spiritual path, all action is rooted in the clarity and wisdom that arise out of stillness and silence. And out of this wisdom comes hope—or possibility.

The world is on fire. What do each of us have to offer to meet that fire? Reflecting on the teachings of Dogen’s Mountains and River Sutra, Zuisei looks into what it means to take care and the urgent need for that care. From practicing zazen to the learning about and dismantling the worlds we’ve co-created around racism and climate change, how do we show up for ourselves and one another?

Do you find yourself silently commenting on and critiquing this life as it happens? There’s a Buddhist term for the seemingly endless chatter in our minds—papañca or proliferation. Zuisei brings to life the teachings on papañca contained in the sutra “The Ball of Honey,” exploring how this proliferation comes to be and how we might relate to it skillfully.

We don’t always know we’re perfect, we don’t always feel complete, yet fundamentally, both are true of who we are. In this talk Zuisei highlights Zen as a path of transformation. She shares her personal journey with sadness and leads an intimate exploration of how practice can change the ways in which we relate to ourselves and to each other. In this way, darkness becomes light, and sadness, joy.

Using a passage from the 14th century mystical text, The Cloud of Unknowing, Zuisei speaks of the bridge between the relative and absolute worlds. She refers to the center of the present moment as the place where there is nothing and we are nowhere—the place where we “just sit"” “just walk,” “just eat,” as we refer to it in Zen. It’s the place where doing and doer disappear and we are free to respond to the world spontaneously and “magnificently.”

Anchoring her talk on the teachings on loving-kindness contained in the Karaniya Metta Sutta, Zuisei speaks on the importance of applying these teachings to oneself, as well as others. For the longer we practice, the more we understand that the lines we draw: inside and outside, self and other, exist nowhere else but in our minds. “The only thing that stops you is your mind,” Zuisei says, quoting the late Burmese teacher Dipa Ma. But, as Zuisei points out, mind too is vast and without boundaries, which means that the very thing that stops us is unstoppable in itself.

Zuisei Goddard

In this interview Zuisei shares a glimpse into her history around the monastic life and introduces her book Still Running—the Art of Meditation in Motion. Pilgrimage is both an inner and outer journey; it is travel into the unknown for the purpose of knowing ourselves intimately and drawing closer to our understanding of the divine. It is realizing that at the end of a long sojourn, we return to the home that we never actually left.