Challenages

[Elite_video_player id=”53″]

Fruit of Practice

[Elite_video_player id=”52″]

Death

[Elite_video_player id=”50″]

Enlightenment

[Elite_video_player id=”51″]

Practitioners 

2026-07-21T11:55:35+00:00

Roshi Shinge | Zen Buddhism, Zazen & the Path of Direct Experience

Roshi Shinge shares how an unexpected moment of awakening led her from the arts into a lifetime of Zen practice. In this in-depth interview, she explores the transformative power of zazen, koan practice, sesshin, and the indispensable role of teacher and sangha. Drawing from decades of training, Shinge explains why Zen is not about comfort or self-improvement, but about meeting reality directly, cultivating discipline, and integrating awareness into every aspect of daily life. Her insights offer a timeless perspective on how traditional Zen practice remains profoundly relevant in today's distracted world.

2025-11-20T23:37:08+00:00

Melissa

In brief, I currently aspire to the Vajrayana path as laid out by the great masters of the Indian and Tibetan Buddhist lineages. Many have dedicated their entire lives to the preservation of their lineage which has been unbroken and thus is an intact living lineage, still “whispered” from teacher to student .

2026-07-19T03:11:53+00:00

Lama Thupten Rinpoche on Bringing Authentic Tibetan Buddhism to the West

How can a 2,600-year-old spiritual tradition remain authentic while speaking to the modern world? In this in-depth conversation, Lama Thupten explores the challenge of preserving the integrity of Tibetan Buddhism while making it accessible to Western practitioners. He discusses lineage, compassion, adapting ancient teachings without losing their essence, and why genuine inner transformation—not cultural imitation—is the heart of the Dharma. Discover timeless wisdom on meditation, interconnectedness, and the responsibility of carrying an authentic Buddhist lineage into the future.

2026-07-19T00:14:56+00:00

Ani Palmo: From Catholicism to Tibetan Buddhism | A Journey of Wisdom, Compassion & Practical Dharma

Raised in a Catholic family, Ani Palmo spent years searching for a spiritual path that was grounded in reason, personal experience, and genuine transformation. Her journey through Zen, Vipassana, and eventually Tibetan Buddhism revealed a practice that didn't ask for blind faith, but invited inquiry, compassion, and direct experience. Today, as the director and resident teacher of Songtsen Gampo Buddhist Center, she shares how meditation, emptiness, bodhichitta, and the Vajrayana path have transformed her understanding of suffering, relationships, death, and the purpose of human life. Through decades of practice, Ani Palmo demonstrates that Buddhism is not about escaping the world, but learning to meet it with wisdom, patience, and an open heart.

2026-07-18T23:55:23+00:00

Zen Master Ji Haeng: Nearly Four Decades of Meditation, Discipline, and Zen Practice

Zen Master Ji Haeng, also known as Thomas, has spent nearly four decades exploring the depth of Zen meditation and bringing its teachings into everyday life. A former professional musician who performed with legendary artists including Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr., Aretha Franklin, and Patti LaBelle, he first turned to meditation as a way to cultivate focus, calm, and stability amid the intensity of his career. Over time, meditation became far more than a tool for concentration. Through daily practice, retreats, koan study, precepts, and guidance from respected Zen teachers, Thomas developed a deeper understanding of impermanence, non-attachment, compassion, and the nature of the self. His teachings emphasize that Zen is not confined to the meditation cushion. It is expressed through how we listen, how we respond to suffering, and how fully we meet each moment. After decades of practice, Thomas continues to return to the same essential foundation: still body, still breath, still mind.

2026-07-11T20:16:48+00:00

Lisa Ernst on Insight Meditation, Trauma, and Building a Compassionate Buddhist Community

Lisa, currently residing in Nashville, Tennessee, originated from Florida and spent part of her youth in Atlanta before settling in Nashville. Discovering Buddhism at the age of 17 during a high school elective on Zen Buddhism, Lisa found solace in the teachings of impermanence, especially during a challenging period when she lost both parents at the age of 16.