Shasta Abbey

Rev. Daishin Yalon gives an inspiring Dharma talk on the celebration day of Wesak which is the annual festival honoring Shakyamuni Buddha's birth, enlightenment, teaching, and death. YouTube: N/ATwitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Master Meian Elbert, Abbess of Shasta Abbey, talks about training with the 'Eight Winds' which are the major opposites we encounter in daily life: gain and loss, fame and disgrace, praise and blame, elation and sorrow.YouTube: https://youtu.be/VVjraEfhSOoTwitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Scholastica Hicks shares some personal stories of training with Rev. Master Jiyu and how it shaped her practice. YouTube: https://youtu.be/IyrYIimIUHUTwitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Enya Sapp talks about an important Japanese Zen Ancestor: Great Master Keizan Jokin. YouTube: https://youtu.be/-MFwaYiBvlMTwitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Oswin Hollenbeck concludes his lecture series on gratitude and the teachings of Great Master Dogen. YouTube: https://youtu.be/sjE9lOKbfiQTwitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Master Meian Elbert, Abbess of Shasta Abbey, gives a Dharma talk on the annual festival day for Manjusri Bodhisattva. She talks about Manjusri's vow to realize enlightenment and help all sentient beings, and how we can draw inspiration from his excellent example.Twitter/X: @shastaabbeyYouTube: https://youtu.be/mX2joSSFMks

Rev. Allard Kieres talks about 'silence' in our practice as Buddhist trainees. How does silence, both external and internal silence, help inform and deepen our daily practice and insight into the Dharma.YouTube: https://youtu.be/C3Eu5fHn5d0Twitter/X: @shastaabbey 

Rev. Amanda Robertson encourages Western Buddhists not to so easily disregard the Law of Karma. She encourages us to prove it true for ourselves and offers stories and insights from her own life and other Dharma writings to help try and illuminate this important teaching of the Buddha. YouTube: https://youtu.be/bqlBI_ieIoMTwitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Astor Douglas is inspired from reading Rev. Master Jiyu's teaching on the Four Wisdoms, which are Charity, Tenderness, Benevolence, Sympathy, and takes up the Wisdom of Benevolence. YouTube: https://youtu.be/Ngl0Q6vw7X4Twitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Master Meian Elbert, Abbess of Shasta Abbey, shares her thoughts on fear and how we can sit still with it in our daily life and practice. YouTube: https://youtu.be/XBYlpeoE-_YTwitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Daishin Yalon offers a teaching on practice and encountering grief. As Buddhists who practice 'letting go' and 'all acceptance', are we allowed to feel sad? Are we practicing incorrectly if we grieve the loss of friends, family, or even changing conditions? This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday February 23, 2025.YouTube: https://youtu.be/UEMVjR9k1Io Twitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Ando Mueller talks about the merits and importance of 'All Acceptance' in our practice as Buddhists. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday February 16, 2025. Twitter/X: @shastaabbeyYouTube: https://youtu.be/6yC_9OQqbrE

Rev. Master Meian Elbert, Abbess of Shasta Abbey, quotes Julian of Norwich as she talks about current world events and how we can sit still with them. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday February 9, 2025. YouTube: https://youtu.be/foO86D_AfUcTwitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Master Jiyu-Kennett continues her lecture series by briefly talking about the third kensho or third 'stage of enlightenment' and its relationship to the precepts. She then continues to study and commentate on the Shushogi. There are questions and answers at the end. This talk is part of a lecture series given in 1979.YouTube: N/ATwitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Master Jiyu-Kennett works directly with the Shushogi, a short compilation of Great Master Dogen's writings, and gives an in  depth analysis of the precepts. There are assorted questions and answers at the end. This talk was part of a winder lecture series given in 1979. YouTube: N/ATwitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Daishin Yalon gives an inspirational talk encouraging us in our practice. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey in 2022.YouTube: N/ATwitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Valeria Allison shares some thoughts on how to constructively engage with our karma in our efforts to train with and convert it. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday February 2, 2025. YouTube: https://youtu.be/3dPrDbnEnPoTwitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Master Jiyu-Kennett continues her lecture series on aspects of meditation within the context of our Soto (Serene Reflection) Zen lineage. In this talk she talks about the traditional four stages of Enlightenment; moving from the stream entrant to the arahant. She uses drawings from her book 'How to Grow a Lotus Blossom' to try and explain this process. There are questions and answers at the end. This talk was given in 1979. YouTube: N/ATwitter/X: @shastaabbey

The late Rev. Jisho Perry lead a retreat on the Surangama Sutra in 2011. This is the first talk in that retreat series. YouTube: N/ATwitter: @shastaabbey

Rev. Master Meian Elbert, Abbess of Shasta Abbey, delivers a Dharma talk on the festival day of Maitreya: the Buddha that is to come. She talks about who Maitreya is and how we can gain strength and encouragement from his message for our own daily life. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Wednesday January 1, 2025. YouTube: https://youtu.be/HJzam2oQbGgTwitter/X: @shastaabbey 

   Rev. Margaret Clyde talks about making vows and her relationship with this idea. This leads to an emphasis on 'letting go'.  This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday December 29, 2024.YouTube: https://youtu.be/X_3sd-1uajgTwitter/X: @shastaabbey

   Rev. Master Meian Elbert, Abbess of Shasta Abbey, talks about the story of the Buddha's Enlightenment. She emphasizes how important it was that even the Buddha kept training after realization. No matter where we are along the path, training never ends.  This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday December 22, 2024.YouTube: https://youtu.be/BZaPboXv4NwTwitter/X: @shastaabbey

    Nicky Antonellis, a founder of Dharma Gates (see mission statement below), interviews Rev. Allard Kieres about life as a monk at Shasta Abbey.    "Dharma Gates is a grassroots nonprofit dedicated to opening pathways into formal meditation practice for young adults. We connect young practitioners to a variety of Buddhist teachers and practice centers, working to eliminate conceptual, logistical, and financial barriers to practice. We foster connections through which practitioners can cultivate compassion, resilience, and clarity to meet the unique challenges of our times." -Dharma Gates mission statement on their website: https://www.dharma-gates.org/This interview took place in September 2024.YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J41_nwUTtYQTwitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Daishin Yalon shares thoughts about the common nature of winter time religious festivals. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday December 15, 2024.YouTube: https://youtu.be/g75273bun6ATwitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Amanda Robertson uses the Vimalakirti Scripture as a springboard for talking about not criticizing others. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday November 24,2024.  YouTube: https://youtu.be/Fpk3oDccfnITwitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Allard Kieres shares some personal stories and reflections about how fear is the genesis of suffering. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday November 17, 2024.YouTube:  https://youtu.be/97TK2RMHQGITwitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Ando Mueller gives a Dharma talk on the Festival of Remembrance on Veteran's Day. She talks about a story from the life of the Buddha where a famous general came and asked the Buddha about war. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday November 10, 2024.Twitter/X: @shastaabbeyYouTube: N/A 

This is a reading of chapter 2 of Great Master Keizan's 'Denkoroku: The Record of the Transmission of the Light'. It is the Rev. Hubert Nearman translation. The Denkoroku records the stories of the masters in our lineage starting with Shakyamuni Buddha and going through the generations up to Koun Ejo who was Great Master Dogen's disciple and grand master to Keizan. The stories highlight the thread of faith, practice, and enlightenment that has woven its way down through the ages to this very day. YouTube: N/ATwitter/X: @shastaabbey 

Rev. Scholastica Hicks gives a Dharma talk on the yearly memorial festival honoring Rev. Master Jiyu. Rev. Scholastica shares personal stories and lessons from her time working closely with Rev. Master Jiyu as her personal nurse. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday November 3, 2024.Twitter/X: @shastaabbeyYouTube: https://youtu.be/x1aaGZ_W36U

Rev. Master Meian Elbert, Abbess of Shasta Abbey, gives a Dharma talk on Founder's Day. The founder of Shasta Abbey is Keido Chisan Koho, Rev. Master Jiyu's master in Japan, and Rev. Master Meian explains about this Zen tradition of naming your teacher as the founder of your temple and shares stories about Koho Zenji's (Zenji meaning Zen Master in Japanese) life and teaching. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday October 27, 2024.Twitter/X: @shastaabbeyYouTube: https://youtu.be/OASETXN_xCQ

Rev. Oswin Hollenbeck continues his 'Attitude of Gratitude' series. He explains why making offerings bears such incredible merit and gives us advice on how to cultivate a proper attitude of mind when making offerings. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday October 20, 2024.Twitter/X: @shastaabbeyYouTube: https://youtu.be/QqKIcscniAY

Rev. Valora Midtdal offers words of encouragement to us in our practice to persevere and never give up. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday October 13th, 2024.Twitter/X: @shastaabbeyYouTube: https://youtu.be/p2qBzFXiUl4

Rev. Master Meian Elbert, Abbess of Shasta Abbey, talks about Bodhidharma who is an important ancestor in the Zen lineage. Specifically, Bodhidharma is known for his writing on the 'Four Practices' for trainees. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday October 6, 2024.YouTube: https://youtu.be/IcaCItkf62kTwitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Shiko Rom talks about the challenges of training with jealousy using stories from her own life and readings from Rev. Koten Benson's 2004 retreat on the Buddha Mother's Mandala. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday September 29, 2024.YouTube: https://youtu.be/7zlfdKBclboTwitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Astor Douglas uses stories from her own life as examples of how 'small' acts of kindness express the whole of Buddhist practice, and she encourages us in our own practice of kindness in our daily lives. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday September 22, 2024. YouTube: https://youtu.be/3fXQBp9cfQITwitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Master Meian Elbert uses a section from the Scripture of the Buddha's Last Teaching as a springboard for talking about 'contentment'. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday September 15, 2024.YouTube: https://youtu.be/rCRFo1Sa6DcTwitter/X: @shastaabbey 

Rev. Margaret Clyde shares some stories about her own life to illuminate how we can engage with our 'problems' in a healthy Buddhist way. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday September 8, 2024.Twitter/X: @shastaabbeyYouTube: https://youtu.be/wAnsq5IdX9E

Rev. Master Meian Elbert, Abbess of Shasta Abbey, uses the image of a lava lamp to talk about karma and the 'unreality of self'. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday September 1, 2024. Twitter/X: @shastaabbeyYouTube: https://youtu.be/LawpNrQXhkw

Rev. Serena Seidner led a retreat in 2019 on 'The Mind That Seeks the Way'. This is one of the talks from that retreat that addresses: "The self is the very mind that seeks the Way. But what is this mind that seeks the Way?" This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on August 19th, 2019.YouTube: N/ATwitter: @shastaabbey 

Rev. Leon Kackman gives his sixth and final meditation talk of the retreat. He continues exploring the vows of Samantabhadra focusing on how we can be grateful to the Buddhas for this practice. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Saturday August 24, 2024.YouTube: https://youtu.be/M3pYtYQ3iSUTwitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Leon Kackman gives his fifth meditation talk of the retreat. He continues exploring the vows of Samantabhadra focusing on how we can actively study WITH the Buddhas here and now: today. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Friday August 23, 2024.YouTube: https://youtu.be/Xx7Tf2M5a7ITwitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Leon Kackman gives his fourth meditation talk of the retreat. He continues exploring the vows of Samantabhadra focusing on the vow to 'make offerings to the Buddhas'. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Thursday August 22, 2024.YouTube: https://youtu.be/ilhXsR_ayQITwitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Leon Kackman gives his third meditation talk of the retreat. He invites us to explore Samantabhadra's direct vows and how we can work with them in our own lives. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Wednesday August 21, 2024.YouTube: https://youtu.be/eD3GIbcsScsTwitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Leon Kackman gives his second meditation talk during his retreat on Samantabhadra talking about the practice of vows for which this particular Bodhisattva is well known. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Tuesday August 20, 2024.YouTube: https://youtu.be/f2GbUFjZkBQTwitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Leon Kackman delivers his first meditation talk of the retreat describing the merits and practices of Samantabhadra Bodhisattva. Rev. Leon says, "Samantabhadra is the one who patiently continues, just working for the benefit of beings and working to perfect his ten great vows". Rev. Leon encourages us to find the reality of Samantabhadra in our own daily practice. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Monday August 19, 2024.Intorductory/Orientation talk: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2046795/episodes/15611563-activity-in-stillness-stillness-in-activity-retreat-introduction-orient-yourself-to-practiceYouTube: N/ATwitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Leon Kackman, Prior of the Portland Buddhist Priory, a temple of the Order of Buddhist Contemplatives, leads a retreat at Shasta Abbey during the week of August 18, 2024. The focus of the retreat is the teaching and emphasis of the Bodhisattva Samantabhadra. This introductory talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday August 18, 2024.YouTube: N/ATwitter/X: @shastaabbey

Rev. Amanda Robertson discusses themes of spiritual friendship and training together. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on June 23, 2024.Twitter/X: @shastaabbeyYouTube: https://youtu.be/b6ErKISa6Dw

Rev. Ando Mueller quotes a piece of writing by Rev. Master Jiyu from the book 'Zen is Eternal Life' where Rev. Master Jiyu uses the traditional Buddhist image of a lotus flower to talk about spiritual practice. The lotus is a traditional symbolic image in Buddhism because of its specific qualities of growing in and being nourished by pond mud and then rising above the water in order to bloom. As Rev. Ando points out, we do not disparage the mud, which is all the conditions of our daily life, but make use of it with gratitude for helping us to deepen our practice and nourish our own blossom of Awakening. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday June 16, 2024.Twitter/X: @shastaabbeyYouTube: https://youtu.be/XhiBc6z0fmc

Rev. Enya Sapp quotes a famous line of Buddhist Scripture where Ananda, the Buddha's cousin and attendant monk, asks about 'spiritual friendship'. Rev. Enya points out an often forgotten part of the quote that points us back to our ultimate spiritual friend: the Buddha, our own True Heart. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday June 9, 2024.Twitter/X: @shastaabbeyYouTube: https://youtu.be/kLLt4_JbyNM

Rev. Allard Kieres uses the movie 'The Iron Giant' to talk about themes of training with karma. He explains how we come into this world 'preprogrammed' from past actions and that it is up to us to convert our past unskillful habits into wholesome habits through the power of our free will to make choices. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Sunday June, 2 2024.Iron Giant Deleted Scene, Giant's Dream: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SsL0GbswF3ITwitter/X: @shastaabbeyYouTube: https://youtu.be/uVOcNni8cpI

This is the sixth and last meditation talk given by Rev. Koten during his retreat: To View the Morning Star. This talk was given at Shasta Abbey on Saturday June 29, 2024.Twitter/X: @shastaabbeyYouTube: https://youtu.be/kilzfkRBCKY