Clear Mountain Monastery Project Deathless Zen: Sati, Satori, & the Koan of Cessation | Stephen Mugen Snyder, Roshi Q&A
Dec 4, 2025
Stephen Mugen Snyder, Roshi, is a Zen meditation teacher and founder of Awakening Dharma, with a rich background in multiple Buddhist traditions. He shares insights from his transformative Pau Auk retreat, detailing practical techniques for deepening jhāna and the essence of Cessation and Awakening. Mugen emphasizes the value of innate goodness, outlines the interplay of different meditation practices, and explores the relationship between Zen and Theravāda traditions, including the nuances of awakening qualities and the 'accordion effect' of personal growth.
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Two‑Month Pau Auk Retreat And Cessation
- Stephen Mugen Snyder, Roshi recounts a two-month Pau Auk retreat where he trained jhanas and briefly entered cessation.
- He reports being confident enough then to set a three-hour cessation resolve, which he no longer recommends.
Begin With Heart Before The Breath
- Do practice five to ten minutes of metta or karuna for yourself before shifting to breath meditation to bring heart 'juiciness.'
- Do maintain continuity by practicing on and off the cushion to preserve and deepen concentration.
Contact The Non‑Conceptual Breath
- Try to contact the non-conceptual breath and descend into its felt sense rather than narrating or theorizing about it.
- Allow that non-conceptual breath to anchor attention and reduce ruminative thought during practice.
