

Zen Community of Oregon Dharma Talks
Zen Community of Oregon
New podcasts every Tues, Thurs and Sat. Here you can find talks from various teachers involved with the Zen Community of Oregon. We share talks from our retreats, as well as our different weekly offerings between Great Vow Zen Monastery and Heart of Wisdom Zen Temple.
Zen Community of Oregon's purpose is to express and make accessible the wisdom and compassion of the Buddha’s teachings, as transmitted through an authentic, historical lineage. To support and maintain Zen Buddhist practice in order to realize and actualize our Buddha nature in everyday life.
For more information, please visit zendust.org.
Zen Community of Oregon's purpose is to express and make accessible the wisdom and compassion of the Buddha’s teachings, as transmitted through an authentic, historical lineage. To support and maintain Zen Buddhist practice in order to realize and actualize our Buddha nature in everyday life.
For more information, please visit zendust.org.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Aug 5, 2025 • 33min
One--What is that? - Kisei Costenbader, Sesei
Exploring interconnection, our desire to be right and mind-stopping moments through the story of Bhadda Kundalakesa.
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Aug 2, 2025 • 49min
Motivation and Aspiration on the Path to Awakening - Bansho Green, Zen Teacher
In this talk Bansho discusses vow and aspiration on the spiritual path. What is it that brings us to practice? It's less about what we want to be, but instead how we are being called to be in the world. He also discusses his personal vows and the bodhisattva vows, in particular, the vows of Jizo Bodhisattva. This is the 5th talk of the 2025 July Sesshin at GVZM.
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Jul 31, 2025 • 25min
The Quiet Power of Worrying Less - Jogen Salzberg, Sensei
In this episode, we explore the difference between concern and worry, and how spiritual practice can free us from the endless cycle of anxious thoughts. Through stories of daily life, karmic cause and effect, and the power of our mental states, we consider how inner clarity seeds future change. The talk reflects on spiritual activism, the “fragrance of love,” and how even small acts of awareness can ripple outward. Listeners are invited to discover their own quiet influence in a world full of noise and fear.This talk was given on July 16, 2025 at Heart of Wisdom Zen Temple.
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Jul 29, 2025 • 32min
Life As Pilgrimage: Old Woman of Mount Wutai - Kisei Sensei
This talk explores the koan “The Old Woman of Mount Wutai,” a story that opens up questions about pilgrimage, practice, and how wisdom often appears in ordinary forms. We reflect on what it means to be a pilgrim rather than a wanderer, and how sacredness and devotion can show up in everyday life. Along the way, we meet Jizo Bodhisattva—the guardian of travelers—and consider what it means to go “straight ahead” even when the road curves.
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Jul 24, 2025 • 30min
Familiar Life, Fresh Eyes - Jomon Martin, Zen Teacher
This episode explores the Zen teaching that “not knowing is most intimate.” Through story, reflection, and real-life retreat experience, we look at how beginner’s mind helps us meet life directly—without relying on old assumptions. From the discomfort of not knowing to the clarity it can bring, this talk points to intimacy not as closeness with others, but as deep presence with what is. The path home, it turns out, is always right here. This talk was given during the Great Vow Sunday Morning Program on July 13 2025.
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Jul 22, 2025 • 32min
Love 100K Times - Kisei Sensei
This episode explores metta, the practice of lovingkindness, as a way of meeting life with warmth and care. Through stories, teachings, and reflection, we look at how metta softens the grip of resentment, reconnects us with our shared humanity, and creates space for healing. Like sunlight, metta radiates outward—touching ourselves, those we love, and even those we find difficult. It’s not about forcing a feeling, but about remembering our capacity to wish well. This talk was given during Kisei's online monday night program.
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Jul 19, 2025 • 39min
The Radiance of Metta - Jomon Martin, Zen Teacher
In this talk we explore the Buddhist heart practice of metta—a boundless, radiant wish for the well-being of all beings, including ourselves. Through meditation, reflection, and real-life stories, we examine how lovingkindness can soften resentment, humanize strangers, and even transform our relationship with those we struggle to forgive. Like the sun offering light without discrimination, metta invites us to live with generosity of spirit and openhearted presence. This episode is both a guided practice and a call to remember: what we shine our attention on, we help ripen and release. This talk was given during the Tuesday night program in Vancouver, WA on June 24th 2025.
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Jul 17, 2025 • 19min
The Beauty Gate - Jogen Sensei
This episode explores how moments of beauty can interrupt our mental habits and reconnect us with presence. Whether it’s light through leaves, a piece of music, or the sound of wind chimes, beauty can cut through the trance of constant thought. We reflect on how to become more available to those moments, to linger in them, and to let them open space in our busy minds. Beauty, in this sense, becomes a gateway to awareness and a form of real practice. This talk was given on July 2, 2025 at the Heart of Wisdom Temple Wednesday night program.
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Jul 15, 2025 • 16min
Beyond Labels - Hogen Roshi
This talk explores the Buddhist teaching of signlessness, including the fact that who we are cannot be reduced to fixed categories or identities. Drawing on Thich Nhat Hanh’s insights, we look at how everything—including ourselves—is in constant transformation. Through mindfulness and embodied awareness, we can step outside rigid definitions and experience life as fluid and creative. This shift opens the door to compassion, integrity, and a deeper sense of freedom. This talk was given at Heart of Wisdom Zen Temple in Portland, OR on June 22, 2025.
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Jul 12, 2025 • 39min
As If Love Was the Point- Jogen Sensei
This episode explores how we can live from a place of love, even when we don’t feel like we’ve earned it. We talk about the pressure to be perfect, the feeling of not being enough, and how choosing love—toward ourselves and others—can shift everything. With reflections from Adrienne Maree Brown, Rumi, and other voices, this is an honest look at what it means to let love lead. This talk was given as the fifth talk of the 2025 Loving-Kindness Sesshin.
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