Practice Period
Just Show Up Zen Winter/Spring 2025 Practice Period—Silent Illumination: Exploring the Method of No Method at the Root of Soto Zen
Our Winter/Spring Practice Period for 2025 was devoted to the practice of Silent Illumination, the form of objectless meditation that was developed and practiced in the Caodong (Soto) school of Chan (Zen). It is the direct precursor to what the Soto Zen tradition calls shikantaza or “just sitting.” The most prominent teacher of the Silent Illumination style in China was Hongzhi Zhengue (1091-1157), who was the abbot at the same monastery where Dogen (1200-1253) later had his great enlightenment experience and received dharma transmission.
Resources:
We used Rebecca Li’s excellent new book Illumination: A Guide to the Buddhist Method of No-Method as a key resource. Li is a contemporary American teacher of Chan in the modern Chinese lineage of master Sheng Yen. An article by Li in Lion’s Roar magazine can be found here.
Dharma talks for the practice period can be found on the Dharma Talks page of our website, from February 14, 2025 to May 30, 2025. There is an entry on the JSU Blog dated February 14, 2025 and a series of excellent short readings on the Readings page of the website between January 25 and May 30, 2025.
Just Show Up Zen Spring/Summer 2024 Practice Period — Mettā
Our Spring/Summer Practice Period for 2024 was devoted to the study and practice of mettā (loving-kindness, or good-will).
Dharma talks for the practice period can be found on the Dharma Talks page of our website, from March 29, 2024 through August 30, 2024. Guided meditations exploring various aspects of mettā can be found on the Dharma Talks page from April 12, June 14, June 21, July 12, and August 18, 2024.
Readings on mettā and some of the other brahma viharas can be found on the Readings page between April 12 and September 6, 2024.
Other Resources (All Hyperlinked):
Discourse on Loving Kindness, from the Sutta Nipata, translated by Andrew Olendzki
Andrew OIendzki’s Study Guide to the Discourse on Loving Kindness (please note that each verse has its own page—you can navigate to each of the pages for each of the verses easily from this link)
Metta in other Suttas, Andrew Olendzki
21 translations of the Mettā Sutta
The Sublime Attitudes: A Study Guide to the Brahmaviharas, Thanissaro Bhikkhu (free e-book)
“When Goodwill is Better than Love: The Meaning of Metta”, Thanissaro Bhikkhu (article from Lion’s Roar)
Metta: The Philosophy and Practice of Universal Love, Acharaya Buddharakkhita (from Access to Insight)
Guided Meditation on Radiating Mettā Practice, by Ayya Anandabodhi, from Dharma Seed (37 minutes)
Guided Mettā for Oneself, Benefactor, Dear Friend, Neutral Person and Difficult Person, by Kamala Masters (45 minutes
Just Show Up Zen Spring/Summer 2023 Practice Period — Practicing with the Hindrances
Just Show Up Zen Spring/Summer 2022 Practice Period — Living By Vow
Our Spring/Summer Practice Period for 2022 was devoted to the practice of vow. We explored the four Great Bodhisattva vows, self-compassion and the Bodhisattva vow, bodhicitta, vow as continuous practice, the interplay of vow and repentance, and Dogen’s vow. We were fortunate to have Zen Master Jeong Ji (Anita Feng) join us for a talk on her sangha’s project of restating the great vows in modern language.
Dharma talks for this practice period can be found on the Dharma Talks page from April 1 to August 26 of 2022. Pertinent readings appear on the Readings page between April 8 to May 30 of 2022.
We used the chapter on the Four Bodhisattva Vows from Shohaku Okumura’s book Living By Vow as a resource for this practice period.