RSS Amplifier

Podcast

Blue Collar Zen

Come into the tea-room & with Zen monks Hwalson, and his student Myungju, at the Detroit Zen Center, as they read spiritual folk-tales, and share conversations about them.

detroitzencenter.orgSource feed ↗10 episodes

Live Last read · last published · next check

Written by

Latest episodes

Saves to your Listen queue, to pick up on another day or another device.

COTTON SOCK FLOWER; the Origin Story of Sudeoksa Temple

The Origin Story of our Mother Temple, Sudeoksa. COTTON SOCK FLOWER A/K/A THE HUNTER & THE LADY Live in front of an audience at the Detroit Zen Center! Eighteen Hundred years ago, a young academic man named Sudok went out on a hunt with his servant, and came across a mysterious young lady in the forest. A heart churning tale of both joy and misery unfolded, as the young man is led all the way up…

Play

Tumbledown Sage

The extreme punishment for a thief -- his foot is chopped off -- transforms him into a sage. Join us in the tea room as Sunim reads the story of the great sage Tumbledown, as told by Confucius, and then he and Myungju discuss the way forward for all of us to become free.

Play

Of Fire and Weeds

A story within a story. An unremarkable monk, a scholar, a young disciple. A loving wife, a foolish husband. Their lives separated by time, yet cross on a mountain-top, fire & weeds their teachers. ------------------------ We are seeking podcast support. Blue Collar Zen Podcast is a free offering, and we want to keep it that way, but need support. To date we have received less than $100 in podcast…

Play

The Old Man with a Broken Arm

War: The curse of humanity. An old man with a wrangled & broken arm shares his story from youth, of being the lone surviving man in the entire region, of a long & bloody war in 8th century China that killed 10 million men over the course of decades. A story in the book of prose & poems by Po Ch'u I, a famous poet & Taoist of 8th century China. Translated by David Hinton.

Play

Cutting Up the Ox

A simple cook shares the Way of Tao with his ruler (the Emperor).

Play

The 4 Adepts

Yielding, with the 4 Adepts from the Chuang Tzu The 4 Adepts is a story read from the Chuang Tzu. Story read by Abbot Hwalson Sunim, then a conversation afterward together with Vice-Abbot Myungju Sunim. On the 4 Adepts (Taoist Sages) : As Adept Cart becomes sick and faces death, he shares with us & his fellow sages his own fearless and yielding view of death, as a simple extension of the eventual…

Play

Let Go

LET GO by Zen Master Daehaeng A man journeys home through the misty mountains of old Korea. But as previous karma follows him, he meets with unexpected fortune, & terror. Letting Go, written by Zen Master Daehaeng, presents us with a story we can all relate to. Zen Master Daehaeng (1927 - 2012) was a Buddhist nun began her spiritual life at the age of 8 in Korea, before its split into North &…

Play

Red Bean Porridge Bubbling

Enter the world of Zen nuns. A common kitchen nun finds her teacher's instruction simple enough, but eventually the endless work & burden of cooking in the zen community becomes a serious complication in her quest for mental, emotional & spiritual peace. Frustrated, hastily she makes the fire to prepare the winter solstice dish -- red bean porridge -- and winds up at the brink.

Play

A Little Talk about Evening Things Out

Six thousand years ago two folks were having a walk in the mountains. They were Taoist sages, which simply means they were very sincere & accomplished spiritual practitioners. Master Timid Magpie asked the elder Master Noble Tree a question about the Way of things. Some questions are timeless, felt in the heart of ancient humans as deeply as we feel them in our own hearts & minds. Welcome to my…

Play

On the Road Home

Abbot Yang Chu is excited to hear that his master Lao Tzu is on his way back from his remote hermitage. He drops everything to travel up to meet his teacher on the road home.

Play