The Practice of Suchness seminar with Taigen Dan Leighton


In this seminar we will explore the teaching stories or koans attributed to Dongshan Liangjie, the legendary founder of the Caodong lineage of Chan Buddhism, or Soto Zen. These stories touch on the interrelationship between our conventional self and the fullness of our environment, the immediacy of realization beyond stages of progress, and how unconditioned totality informs our daily life. We will discuss the relationship between these rich and subtle teachings and their implications for how we may engage in social activism.

“Awareness is transformative,” Taigen has written: “It happens in the context of working out the conflicts in our own hearts and minds, as well as in the culture. In meditation, we become aware of our own inner processes and the primal separation of self and other. We come to see the interdependence of self and other, how our identity is dependent on so many things, including the problems in our society. Once we have some sense of any particular issue in society, we can also see it in terms of our own involvement. No one is pure and not related to the problem; we are in a web of connections. But when we are open to the suffering in the world, we recognize the call to respond helpfully when possible.”

Seminar Fee: $20

To register: signup@villagezendo.org

Taigen Dan Leighton is a Soto Zen Priest and a dharma successor in the lineage of Shunryu Suzuki Roshi, having received transmission in 2000 from Tenshin Reb Anderson. He is the co-translator and editor of several Zen texts. He is the author of several books including Zen Questions: Zazen, Dogen, and the Spirit of Creative Inquiry; and Faces of Compassion; Classic Bodhisattva Archetypes and Their Modern Expression.

His most recent book, Just This Is It — Dongashan and the Practice of Suchness will be available for sale in the Village Zendo store. There will be ample time available for Taigen to sign copies.

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