The Zen of Everything

Without endorsing any particular candidate, Kirk and Jundo talk about how Buddhist values and Precepts should guide the voter in elections in the U.S. and other countries. Treeleaf Zendo (https://www.treeleaf.org) Vote (https://iwillvote.com) Theme music by Kiku Day (http://www.kikuday.com). To submit a question, send an email to podcast@zen-of-everything.com. If you like the podcast, please subscribe in iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/podcast/the-next-track/id1116242606) or your favorite podcast app, and please rate the podcast.

Good karma, bad karma, everyone knows about karma, right? Jundo and Kirk discuss what karma means, and how you count your karma points. Treeleaf Zendo (https://www.treeleaf.org) Karma (Wikipedia) (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karma) The Sopranos (https://www.hbo.com/the-sopranos) Theme music by Kiku Day (http://www.kikuday.com). To submit a question, send an email to podcast@zen-of-everything.com. If you like the podcast, please subscribe in iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/podcast/the-next-track/id1116242606) or your favorite podcast app, and please rate the podcast.

Treeleaf is an online sangha, and has been around since 2006. How does a sangha work when members don't meet each other physically? Treeleaf Zendo (https://www.treeleaf.org) Nyoi (Wikipedia) (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ruyi_(scepter)) Sluggard waker (Wikipedia) (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sluggard_waker) Keisaku (Wikipedia) (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keisaku) Hossu (Wikipedia) (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hossu) Theme music by Kiku Day (http://www.kikuday.com). To submit a question, send an email to podcast@zen-of-everything.com. If you like the podcast, please subscribe in iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/podcast/the-next-track/id1116242606) or your favorite podcast app, and please rate the podcast.

Is zen competitive? Is competition a bad thing? Treeleaf Zendo (https://www.treeleaf.org) Tour de France (https://www.letour.fr) Theme music by Kiku Day (http://www.kikuday.com). To submit a question, send an email to podcast@zen-of-everything.com. If you like the podcast, please subscribe in iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/podcast/the-next-track/id1116242606) or your favorite podcast app, and please rate the podcast.

Can zen make you happy? Should it? Treeleaf Zendo (https://www.treeleaf.org) The Origins of the Pursuit of Happiness (https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1123&context=law_jurisprudence) No Stupid Questions: Are You a Maximizer or a Satisficer? (https://freakonomics.com/podcast/nsq-maximizer-satisficer/) Theme music by Kiku Day (http://www.kikuday.com). To submit a question, send an email to podcast@zen-of-everything.com. If you like the podcast, please subscribe in iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/podcast/the-next-track/id1116242606) or your favorite podcast app, and please rate the podcast.

There are a number of precepts that have to be followed by Zen practitioners. Jundo and Kirk discuss these precepts, and how strict they are. Treeleaf Zendo (https://www.treeleaf.org) The Sixteen Bodhisattva Precepts (https://tricycle.org/magazine/the-sixteen-bodhisattva-precepts/) What is the Rakusu? (https://www.lionsroar.com/the-rakusu/) Isaac Asimov's Three Laws of Robotics (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Laws_of_Robotics) Theme music by Kiku Day (http://www.kikuday.com). To submit a question, send an email to podcast@zen-of-everything.com. If you like the podcast, please subscribe in iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/podcast/the-next-track/id1116242606) or your favorite podcast app, and please rate the podcast.

There are a lot of rituals in Zen. Where do they come from? Why are they still performed? And what's the thing about the number 108? Treeleaf Zendo (https://www.treeleaf.org) 108 (Wikipedia) (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/108_(number)) Mala (Wikipedia) (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japamala) Heart Sutra (Wikipedia) (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heart_Sutra) Theme music by Kiku Day (http://www.kikuday.com). To submit a question, send an email to podcast@zen-of-everything.com. If you like the podcast, please subscribe in iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/podcast/the-next-track/id1116242606) or your favorite podcast app, and please rate the podcast.

Many Zen priests in Japanese Buddhism have active sex lives, others are celibate. We discuss how Buddhism treats sex, and how it makes the world go around. Treeleaf Zendo (https://www.treeleaf.org) Buddhism and sexuality (Wikipedia) (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhism_and_sexuality) Theme music by Kiku Day (http://www.kikuday.com). To submit a question, send an email to podcast@zen-of-everything.com. If you like the podcast, please subscribe in iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/podcast/the-next-track/id1116242606) or your favorite podcast app, and please rate the podcast.

Jundo explains the importance of lineage in Zen, how the teachings have been handed down over the centuries from Zen teachers to students, in an unbroken chain. Treeleaf Zendo (https://www.treeleaf.org) Zazenkai Sunday June 21st with Writer-Zen Historian Barbara O'Brien (https://www.treeleaf.org/forums/showthread.php?17872-ATTENTION-Special-Zazenkai-SUN-June-21st-with-Writer-Zen-Historian-Barbara-O-Brien) Episode 14: What Is the Sound of One Kōan Clapping? (https://www.zen-of-everything.com/14) Zensabō (http://www.kikuday.com/zensabo/) Theme music by Kiku Day (http://www.kikuday.com). To submit a question, send an email to podcast@zen-of-everything.com. If you like the podcast, please subscribe in iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/podcast/the-next-track/id1116242606) or your favorite podcast app, and please rate the podcast.

In this time of protests around the world, we discuss how Zen approaches injustice and protest. Treeleaf Zendo (https://www.treeleaf.org) For Justice & Peace (https://www.treeleaf.org/forums/showthread.php?17840-For-Justice-Peace) Socially DIS-engaged Buddhism (https://www.treeleaf.org/forums/showthread.php?17835-Split-Thread-Socially-DIS-engaged-Buddhism) Metta (Loving Kindness) for All in Social Unrest (https://www.treeleaf.org/forums/showthread.php?17851-Metta-%28Loving-Kindness%29-for-All-in-Social-Unrest) Theme music by Kiku Day (http://www.kikuday.com). To submit a question, send an email to podcast@zen-of-everything.com. If you like the podcast, please subscribe in iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/podcast/the-next-track/id1116242606) or your favorite podcast app, and please rate the podcast.

"Zen is a special transmission outside the scriptures, not depending on words and letters." With that in mind, Jundo and Kirk discuss Zen books: how to read them, what to read, and when to burn them. Treeleaf Zendo (https://www.treeleaf.org) Bodhidharma (Wikipedia) (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bodhidharma) Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind (https://amzn.to/36JTaqw) Zen Flesh, Zen Bones (https://amzn.to/2X9anGv) Buddhism For Dummies (https://amzn.to/3ceqx5D) Simple Guide to Zen Buddhism (https://amzn.to/3esBPVs) What Is Zen?: Plain Talk for a Beginner's Mind (https://amzn.to/2Agiich) The Circle of the Way (https://amzn.to/2zDgwlq) The Three Pillars of Zen (https://amzn.to/36JUDNy) Opening the Hand of Thought (https://amzn.to/3dbqOry) How to Cook Your Life (https://amzn.to/2AdFwzC) The Zen Teaching of Homeless Kodo (https://amzn.to/2AcG7lg) Realizing Genjokoan: The Key to Dogen's Shobogenzo (https://amzn.to/2XB5ntf) Theme music by Kiku Day (http://www.kikuday.com). To submit a question, send an email to podcast@zen-of-everything.com. If you like the podcast, please subscribe in iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/podcast/the-next-track/id1116242606) or your favorite podcast app, and please rate the podcast.

Sitting meditation can be painful for a lot of people. Jundo and Kirk discuss how to sit without pain, or how to accept the pain when sitting. Treeleaf Zendo (https://www.treeleaf.org) Alexander Technique (https://alexandertechnique.com) Mahāyāna Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahāyāna_Mahāparinirvāṇa_Sūtra) Phantom limb syndrome (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phantom_limb#Phantom_limb_syndrome) Seiza bench (https://www.treeleaf.org/forums/showthread.php?17799-DIY-Meditation-Bench&highlight=seiza) Invisibilia: For Some Teens With Debilitating Pain, The Treatment Is More Pain (https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2019/03/09/700823481/invisibilia-for-some-teens-with-debilitating-pain-the-treatment-is-more-pain) Theme music by Kiku Day (http://www.kikuday.com). To submit a question, send an email to podcast@zen-of-everything.com. If you like the podcast, please subscribe in iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/podcast/the-next-track/id1116242606) or your favorite podcast app, and please rate the podcast.

Walking can free your mind, but can also be an act of meditation. Treeleaf Zendo (https://www.treeleaf.org) Mount Tsukuba (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Tsukuba) Kinhin: The Dignity of the Buddha (https://wwzc.org/dharma-text/kinhin-dignity-buddha) Alexander Technique (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Technique) Photo: Tea Tray Ensō (https://kirkville.com/photo-tea-tray-enso/) Theme music by Kiku Day (http://www.kikuday.com). To submit a question, send an email to podcast@zen-of-everything.com. If you like the podcast, please subscribe in iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/podcast/the-next-track/id1116242606) or your favorite podcast app, and please rate the podcast.

Is zen all about silence? Treeleaf Zendo (https://www.treeleaf.org) John Cage's 4′33″ (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/4′33″) Suzuki Roshi's talk on the difference between "sound" and "noise" (https://www.treeleaf.org/forums/showthread.php?16188-Of-Noise-Ear-Plugs-and-Sensory-Deprivation-Tanks&p=222777&viewfull=1#post222777) Isolation tank (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isolation_tank) Correction: Jundo meant a blue jay; listen here (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T--LnlE1nE8) Into Great Silence (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Into_Great_Silence) Theme music by Kiku Day (http://www.kikuday.com). To submit a question, send an email to podcast@zen-of-everything.com. If you like the podcast, please subscribe in iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/podcast/the-next-track/id1116242606) or your favorite podcast app, and please rate the podcast.

In these times, we need hope. Jundo and Kirk discuss how we can cultivate hope. And we learn that the name for the Zen of Everything podcast in Japanese would be Zen no Zen. Treeleaf Zendo (https://www.treeleaf.org) Abbott & Costello Who's On First (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kTcRRaXV-fg) Cast Away (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0162222/) Viktor Frankl (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viktor_Frankl) (Wikipedia) Medicine Buddha (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhaisajyaguru) (Wikipedia) Jizo (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kṣitigarbha) (Wikipedia) Theme music by Kiku Day (http://www.kikuday.com). To submit a question, send an email to podcast@zen-of-everything.com. If you like the podcast, please subscribe in iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/podcast/the-next-track/id1116242606) or your favorite podcast app, and please rate the podcast.

With many people going into quarantine, Jundo and Kirk discuss how this time can be beneficial, and how washing your hands can be the act of a Boddhisatva. Treeleaf Zendo (https://www.treeleaf.org) Master Dogen's Instructions for Washing the Hands (https://www.treeleaf.org/forums/showthread.php?17611-MASTER-DOGEN-S-Instructions-for-Washing-the-Hands) Tonglen (Wikipedia) (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tonglen) Theme music by Kiku Day (http://www.kikuday.com). To submit a question, send an email to podcast@zen-of-everything.com. If you like the podcast, please subscribe in iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/podcast/the-next-track/id1116242606) or your favorite podcast app, and please rate the podcast.

With a potential pandemic looming, Jundo and Kirk talk about rumors, unreasonable and reasonable fear, plagues of the past and today, and a good Zen attitude to sickness and death. Treeleaf Zendo (https://www.treeleaf.org) Coronavirus rumors fuel panic buying of toilet paper in Japan (https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotlight/Coronavirus/Coronavirus-rumors-fuel-panic-buying-of-toilet-paper-in-Japan2) Vatican Insists Pope Francis Only Has a Cold — Not Coronavirus (https://time.com/5794364/pope-francis-cold-not-coronavirus/) Shit stick (Wikipedia) (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shit_stick) Theme music by Kiku Day (http://www.kikuday.com). To submit a question, send an email to podcast@zen-of-everything.com. If you like the podcast, please subscribe in iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/podcast/the-next-track/id1116242606) or your favorite podcast app, and please rate the podcast.

What is "original Buddhism?" In the absence of texts from the Buddha's times, how can we know what the Buddha really taught? And how does the corpus of later texts help us understand Buddhism? Treeleaf Zendo (https://www.treeleaf.org) Pale Rider: The Spanish Flu of 1918 and How It Changed the World (https://amzn.to/39EQqLg) Stephen Batchelor (https://www.stephenbatchelor.org/index.php/en/) The Circle of the Way: A Concise History of Zen from the Buddha to the Modern World (https://amzn.to/2ud7QQ7) Buddhism in the Shadow of Brahmanism (https://serval.unil.ch/resource/serval:BIB_0AE49B543099.P001/REF.pdf) Theme music by Kiku Day (http://www.kikuday.com). To submit a question, send an email to podcast@zen-of-everything.com. If you like the podcast, please subscribe in iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/podcast/the-next-track/id1116242606) or your favorite podcast app, and please rate the podcast.

Jundo and Kirk talk about zen and parenting. Treeleaf Zendo (https://www.treeleaf.org) Biography of Gautama Buddha (Wikipedia) (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gautama_Buddha#Biography) Dr. Seuss books (https://amzn.to/2OvfVX2) Winnie the Pooh (https://amzn.to/2tz0Rk1) The Giving Tree (https://amzn.to/3722ynT) Stone Soup (https://amzn.to/2v9dH9f) Zen Shorts (https://amzn.to/2H1YoBY) Puppy Mind (https://amzn.to/2SAxExR) Theme music by Kiku Day (http://www.kikuday.com). To submit a question, send an email to podcast@zen-of-everything.com. If you like the podcast, please subscribe in iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/podcast/the-next-track/id1116242606) or your favorite podcast app, and please rate the podcast.

Jundo and Kirk discuss "hard" and "easy" zen. Has zen become too easy? Is it too hard? You are New York all along. Treeleaf Zendo (https://www.treeleaf.org) Junici Saga: Memories of Silk and Straw (https://amzn.to/2NUgc5H) The Next Track podcast (https://www.thenexttrack.com) Honkyoku (https://honkyoku.com) Theme music by Kiku Day (http://www.kikuday.com). To submit a question, send an email to podcast@zen-of-everything.com. If you like the podcast, please subscribe in iTunes (https://itunes.apple.com/podcast/the-next-track/id1116242606) or your favorite podcast app, and please rate the podcast.