Life Purpose as Koan

Life Purpose as Koan

Author: Amy Kisei October 1, 2023 Duration: 32:31

The Dharma empowers us to ask essential questions. This talk is an invitation to question, to really question and to live into these questions.

Often when we think about our life purpose, we makes assumptions about ourselves and the world that stem from fixed beliefs or inherited perspectives. For example the dharma invites a very different view of ourselves and the world, then say neo-capitalism does.

The dharma invites us to see ourselves as a network of inter-relations, our lives completely intertwined with the lives of the natural world, animals, plants, the great earth and sky, the people on our block and all over the world.

How does our sense of life purpose change when we open to experience of deep interconnection?

This talk is a deconstructive contemplation. An invitation to question. An empowerment to sit with a question. To let self, world, purpose live as questions in your heart.



This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amykisei.substack.com/subscribe

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.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 95

Earth Dreams: Zen Buddhism and the Soul of the World
Podcast Episodes
The Qualities of Illumination [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 27:23
In this talk we explore illumination as an aspect of our awakened nature, sometimes experienced as clarity, brightness, lucidity, alertness. We also look at what happens when illumination is overly emphasized in our spir…
The Dharma of Flow [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 28:02
We all have had experiences of being in the flow of life. What is this flow? How do we find it? What do learn from the times that we feel obstructed, and what do we learn from being in the flow?Inspired by Zen Master Hon…
Instructions for Befriending the Darkness [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 24:01
Inspired by the lines from Dogen Zenji's Being-Time: For the time-being stand on top of the highest peak.For the time-being proceed along the bottom of the deepest ocean. An exploration of the interplay of highs and lows…
Recognizing Completion: Celebrating the Fruits of Dharma Practice [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 19:55
In this Dharma Talk the theme of completion is taken up, from the Zen and Non-dual perspective. How is this moment, this breath, this body, already + always complete?As we enter the New Year our attention can be drawn to…

«1...678910