The Heart of Zen with Henry Shukman

Henry Shukman, the guiding teacher of Mountain Cloud Zen Center, joins Rick and Forrest to explore self-transcendent experiences, relaxing self-identification, and the warm heart at the core of Zen practice. About our Guest: Henry Shukman is a writer, poet, and Zen Master of the Sanbo Zen lineage. He’s published nine books to date which have won numerous awards, and writes regularly for Tricycle, The New York Times and other publications. His most recent book is One Blade of Grass: Finding the Old Road of the Heart, a Zen Memoir.  Life After COVID Summit: Join Dr. Rick Hanson, Forrest Hanson, and a roster of world-class experts during this FREE three-day online event to explore our life after COVID. Click here to learn more about the Summit and register now. Key Topics: 1:50: How Henry came to meditative practice. 3:30: Henry’s self-transcendent experience. 7:20: How Zen practice has changed Henry’s experience of himself. 10:35: Gradual cultivation, sudden awakening.  14:30: The role of transcendent experiences.  18:50: The importance of virtue.  21:40: Unethical behavior among contemplative teachers.  22:40: The risks of “seeking” self-transcendent experiences. 27:00: A framework that supports awakening. 31:00: Where it’s valuable to rest our awareness.  35:30: Practicing when there’s suffering associated with the container of the body. 41:10: Non-separateness, and relaxing identification with self.  47:15: Fear around not-self.  48:10: “The apple falls away from the tree.” 51:15: Recap Forrest has a new YouTube channel! Subscribe to the channel, and watch his newest video over there.  Sponsors: From Dr. Hanson: The Foundations of Well-Being brings together the lessons of a lifetime of practice into one year-long online program. Podcast listeners can use the code BEINGWELL25 at checkout for an additional 25% off! Please don't hesitate to apply for a scholarship if you're in need.  Join over a million people using BetterHelp, the world’s largest online counseling platform. Visit betterhelp.com/beingwell for 10% off your first month!  Want to sleep better? Try the legendary Calm app! Visit calm.com/beingwell for 40% off a premium subscription. Start a new healthy habit with Seed! Visit seed.com/beingwell and use code BEINGWELL to get 20% off your first month of Seed’s Daily Synbiotic. Connect with the show:Follow Forrest on YouTubeFollow us on InstagramFollow Rick on FacebookFollow Forrest on FacebookSubscribe on iTunes