Empty of a Separate Self

The dis-ease with our existence often manifests as a lingering feeling that there is something wrong with us and/or the world. The first sentence of the Heart Sutra gives an instruction for how to liberate ourselves from this kind of suffering. It asks us to practice the realization that the five skandhas—the experiential domains of form, feeling, perception, conditioning, and consciousness—are empty of a permanent, independent self. When we empty these domains of our desire for permanence and separateness, they reveal themselves to be "full" of change and interdependence. This talk is about how to explore this shift in our meditation practice.Welcome to Zen Mind!Learn more about our upcoming Weekend Seminar, An Appropriate Response — The Essence of the Buddhist Path (https://www.boulderzen.org/weekend-seminar). Available online and in person.Zenki Roshi's book, THE PATH OF ALIVENESS (https://www.amazon.com/Path-Aliveness-Contemporary-Approach-Awakening/dp/1611809975/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1673985096&sr=8-1) is now available in both hardcopy and audiobook formats! We appreciate you leaving a rating on Amazon, and if you have time, a review is even better!Join us live for our Saturday Dharma talks (https://www.boulderzen.org/saturday-dharma-talks), in person or online.See all events and join our mailing list at www.boulderzen.org (https://boulderzen.krtra.com/t/byTESd6XLtlF). Email us at [email protected] or give us a call: (303) 442–3007.If you're enjoying these talks, please subscribe and leave us a rating or review!Zenki Christian Dillo Roshi is the the guiding teacher at the Boulder Zen Center in Colorado, USA. This podcast shares the regular dharma talks given at the center. Zenki Roshi approaches Zen practice as a craft of transformation, liberation, wisdom and compassionate action. His interest is to bring Buddhism alive within the Western cultural context, while staying committed to the traditional emphasis on embodiment.