Upaya Zen Center's Dharma Podcast Joan Halifax | Zen Buddhist Teacher Upaya Abbot

Fresh off a two-week pilgrimage to Japan, Roshi Joan and Upaya’s priests share reflections on their experience. For Roshi Joan, this pilgrimage was about connecting to the historical roots of Zen, cultivating relationships with modern-day practitioners, and touching the ethos of care in Japanese culture. Meeting with old and new friends from temples across the country, the trip was an opportunity to create and deepen relationships and learn through the exchange of cultures. From scroll glue that takes five years to make, “one-tooth” shoes worn to minimize harm to the Earth, and floors that have been cleaned so many times they look like mirrors, this embodiment of care and respect was a theme that repeatedly emerged. For others what stood out was the deep surrender of Japanese practitioners or the profound impact of Upaya’s G.R.A.C.E. trainings in Japan. For many priests, the experience of this pilgrimage is still being processed, but a question arose out of it: What is the heart of Zen practice?

This is the closing session of this program with Roshi Joan leading it with comments from the participants.

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In this impassioned talk, Jimmy Baca shares deeply personal experiences to illustrate the transformative power of writing and the significance of engaging with the present through art. He recounts his journey from being “just a number” as an inmate to becoming a profound voice for the marginalized. He tells of realizing a gift and using it to capture emotions and experiences in words to connect deeply with others and transcend barriers. Baca emphasizes the importance of using one’s talents not for self-aggrandizement but to serve and uplift those around them, embodying the spirit of giving back to the community that supported his own transformation. The talk shifts towards the relevance and application of Haiku in today’s world, advocating for its evolution from a venerated tradition to a dynamic, inclusive medium that resonates with contemporary issues and audiences.

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Pico Iyer discusses Haiku as a reflection of Japanese culture, highlighting its brevity, impermanence, and communal aspect. He notes Haiku’s integration into modern Japanese life, from education to public displays, underscoring its function as an exercise in mindfulness and a celebration of nature’s rhythms. Through anecdotes, Iyer illustrates how Haiku and Japanese cultural practices emphasize interconnectedness, minimalism, and attentiveness to the present moment. He shares the poignant life story of the Haiku poet Issa, whose works embody resilience and gratitude amidst personal tragedies, drawing a parallel between Issa’s outlook and the Dalai Lama’s approach to life’s hardships. Iyer concludes by reflecting on Haiku’s ability to foster a collective spirit and realistic acceptance of life’s impermanence

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Jane Hirshfield reads a Haiku by Basho about a horse eating roadside rose mallow, highlighting its simplicity, descriptive nature, and the human perception it conveys. She elaborates on the poem’s themes of impermanence, the cycle of life, and the shared experiences of life and death, using it to illustrate how Haiku captures and conveys the essence of human depth and allows for surprising clarity through its concise form. She contrasts Haiku with a longer poem of her own to illustrate the differences in conveying meaning and the potential of Haiku to evoke multiple resonances and associations due to its brevity. Hirshfield also dives into the origins of Haiku, and other forms of Japanese poetry at the time of its creation.

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Kazuaki Tanahashi and Peter Levitt’s discussion on Haiku delves into the depth and nuances of this poetic form, exploring its historical context, cultural significance, and the intricacies of its composition. They discuss the story of a young female poet who impressed one of Basho’s main students with her Haiku, demonstrating the longstanding tradition of Haiku as a revered art form.

Peter Levitt’s portion of the talk shifts to the writing aspect of Haiku, describing it as “poetry of the glance” – a moment captured in a brief yet profound way. He highlights the unpredictable yet truthful nature of Haiku, where the juxtaposition of elements brings forth an authenticity that resonates with both the writer and the reader.

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