Earth Dreams: Zen Buddhism and the Soul of the World

Earth Dreams: Zen Buddhism and the Soul of the World

Author: Amy Kisei Language: English Episodes: 50
Hosted by Zen teacher Amy Kisei, Earth Dreams: Zen Buddhism and the Soul of the World is a quiet space for exploring what it means to be truly awake in a living, dreaming world. Rather than treating spiritual practice as a retreat from daily life, this podcast gently examines how the core insights of Zen-interconnection, non-separation, and our original nature of freedom-are intimately woven into our dreams, our relationship with the earth, and our sense of soul. Each episode feels like a thoughtful conversation, where ancient teachings meet the raw material of our inner lives and the ecological world around us. You’ll hear Kisei’s reflections on how dreamwork can be a surprising ally on the path of awakening, revealing our deep entanglement with the cosmos. The aim here isn’t abstract philosophy, but a palpable sense of how these liberating perspectives can reshape our experience of reality itself. Tuning into this podcast offers a rare blend of grounded spirituality, where the soul of the world speaks through both silence and symbol, inviting a more creative and loving engagement with existence. It’s for anyone curious about how the heart of Zen Buddhism illuminates our most profound connections.
Episodes
sparkling in pure light [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 28:18
Greetings!I am beginning a series of talks exploring the wisdom of Zen Master Shitou’s Sandokai, which is translated in various ways including: The Identity of Relative and Absolute, Being One and Many, The Harmony of Di…
All is blessed, all is blessed [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 29:25
Greetings Friends,I am returning from the Grasses, Trees and Great Earth Sesshin at Great Vow Zen Monastery. An outdoor sesshin I have had the deep pleasure of co-leading for the past six years. During the sesshin we pra…
Nothing in this World Frightens Me [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 31:41
Greetings!It’s Leo season (how is it the over 50% of people I know are Leos?) I have had the joy of some travel over the past month—Mud Lotus Sangha did our first weeklong sesshin at Saranam Retreat Center in WV, I saw B…
equanimity's full range [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 30:32
Greetings Friends,I have been reflecting on the art of living a life of attention and intention. This is an art form I have dedicated much of my life to, and one that continues to bear fruit as I continue to practice it.…
the size of awakening? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 35:33
Greetings Friends,Happy Solstice! Here in the northern hemisphere it is the longest day of the year, one of two days of the year where the sun appears to stand still on the horizon. I feel interested in that teaching, he…
Let the soft animal of your body, love what it loves [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 31:35
Greetings Friends,Happy New Moon! This past week we explored the Hidden Lamp Case 21: Linji Meets the Old Woman Driving the Ox.Linji Meets the Old Woman Driving the OxChina, ninth centuryMaster Linji Yixuan went to see M…
Shadeless Trees [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 39:38
Greetings Friends,We are moving through this wonderful collection of encounters with Buddhist Women found in the book The Hidden Lamp for our Summer Read. This week we met Keizan Zenji and Mokufu Sonin engaged in the dia…
Actualizing Care, Recognizing Beauty [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 27:23
Greetings and Happy Early Summer!We are continuing our Summer Read of the Hidden Lamp again this year. Every week we will explore a different koan story from the collection. If you would like to follow along, check out t…
Not-knowing is Love [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 27:57
Greetings Friends,I am returning from the Light of the Ancestors Sesshin at Great Vow Zen Monastery and feeling deep gratitude for this path of practice and all the people who have walked this path— discovering freedom a…
In Praise of Poetry [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 32:52
Greetings Friends,I’m a lover of poetry. A sometimes writer of poems. A sometimes reader. Poetry for me is more of a way of being, a willingness to be carried across by metaphor, to be turned inside out by image, to sit…