Podcasts – Valley Streams Zen Sangha: Recent Episodes
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Dharma Talk given on Monday, July 27th, 2026 – Danan John Wark (16 MB, 51 min).
Danan John WarkVisiting Teacher
Danan John Wark, abbot of Cloud Zendo in Pilot Hill, practices koan introspection and has received inka from Zen Master BoMun (George Bowman) in the Single Flower Sangha tradition. Master BoMun is associated with the Kwan Um School of Zen and also with Boundless Way Zen. John has also studied koans with Tenshin Reb Anderson at No Abode Hermitage. Cloud Zendo offers sutra service and zazen every Saturday morning at 8:30 in Auburn at Sierra Foothills Unitarian Universalist Church, 190 Finley St., Auburn, CA 95603.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, July 20th, 2026 – So’on Jim Hare (17.7 MB, 46 min).
So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984; was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myō Lahey in 2016. He served as Shuso (Head Student) at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period. Jim offers practice discussion upon request at info@valleystreamszen.org.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, July 6th, 2026 by Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah and Sangha Participants (16.8 MB, 53 min).
Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler KatonahPractice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Ino, or head of the meditation hall. She studies in the Soto Zen lineage with Sojun Diane Martin, founder and guiding teacher of Udumbara Zen Center in Illinois and Rev. Val Szymanski, Head Priest of Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in California. She was lay ordained in 2008 and priest ordained in 2019. She served as head student for the spring practice period at Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in May 2022. Doralee offers practice discussion upon request at ino@valleystreamszen.org.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, June 22nd, 2026 – So’on Jim Hare (10.8 MB, 35 min).
So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984; was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myō Lahey in 2016. He served as Shuso (Head Student) at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period. Jim offers practice discussion upon request at info@valleystreamszen.org.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, June 8th, 2026 – Nyokai Kristin Diggs (17.6 MB, 54 min).
Nyokai Kristin DiggsPractice Committee, Teachers
Joined our sangha as Teacher in 2026. Prior to moving to Sacramento, she trained residentially at all three San Francisco Zen Center temples (2014-2025), holding a number of senior positions, including Ino, Tenzo, and Work Leader. Lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson and priest ordained by Eijun Linda Cutts, she served as Shuso during the winter 2025 practice period at Tassajara Zen Mountain Center, led by Eijun Linda Cutts. Kristin offers practice discussion upon request at nyokai.kristin.diggs@gmail.com.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, June 1st, 2026 – Ango Sara Tashker (18.3 MB, 59 min).
Ango Sara TashkerVisiting Teacher
Ango Sara Tashker has been a San Francisco Zen Center residential practitioner since 2002. She has held many positions, including Farm Manager, Creek Restoration Project Manager, and Director at Green Gulch Farm, as well as working in the kitchen and bathhouse and being Head Student (Shuso) at Tassajara. She loves that her every activity is the fertile ground of Zen practice: growing food, relating to community, being a mother, appreciating the breath and body. In the fall of 2019, she received Dharma Transmission from her late teacher, Sojun Mel Weitsman.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, May 18th, 2026 by Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah (20.6 MB, 62 min).
Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler KatonahPractice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Ino, or head of the meditation hall. She studies in the Soto Zen lineage with Sojun Diane Martin, founder and guiding teacher of Udumbara Zen Center in Illinois and Rev. Val Szymanski, Head Priest of Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in California. She was lay ordained in 2008 and priest ordained in 2019. She served as head student for the spring practice period at Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in May 2022. Doralee offers practice discussion upon request at ino@valleystreamszen.org.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, May 11th, 2026 – Nyokai Kristin Diggs (18.6 MB, 54 min).
Nyokai Kristin DiggsPractice Committee, Teachers
Joined our sangha as Teacher in 2026. Prior to moving to Sacramento, she trained residentially at all three San Francisco Zen Center temples (2014-2025), holding a number of senior positions, including Ino, Tenzo, and Work Leader. Lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson and priest ordained by Eijun Linda Cutts, she served as Shuso during the winter 2025 practice period at Tassajara Zen Mountain Center, led by Eijun Linda Cutts. Kristin offers practice discussion upon request at nyokai.kristin.diggs@gmail.com.Right-click to Download File
Way Seeking Mind Talk given on Monday, May 4th, 2026 – Patrick Dunn (19.5 MB, 59 min).
Patrick DunnBoard of Directors
Patrick Dunn has been practicing with Valley Streams Zen Sangha since 2024. After several years of sitting zazen and reading Dharma books alone, he realized he couldn’t continue without Sangha. He is grateful to have found Valley Streams and to serve on its Board of Directors. Patrick is also a nonprofit executive, musician, and writer. He lives in the Sacramento area with his wife, daughter, and dog.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, April 27th, 2026 – So’on Jim Hare (14.9 MB, 46 min).
So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984; was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myō Lahey in 2016. He served as Shuso (Head Student) at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period. Jim offers practice discussion upon request at info@valleystreamszen.org.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, April 13th, 2026 – Nyokai Kristin Diggs (18.8 MB, 58 min).
Nyokai Kristin DiggsPractice Committee, Teachers
Joined our sangha as Teacher in 2026. Prior to moving to Sacramento, she trained residentially at all three San Francisco Zen Center temples (2014-2025), holding a number of senior positions, including Ino, Tenzo, and Work Leader. Lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson and priest ordained by Eijun Linda Cutts, she served as Shuso during the winter 2025 practice period at Tassajara Zen Mountain Center, led by Eijun Linda Cutts. Kristin offers practice discussion upon request at nyokai.kristin.diggs@gmail.com.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Saturday, April 4th, 2026 – Kokyo Henkel (17.5 MB, 84 min).
Kokyo HenkelVisiting Teacher
Kokyo Henkel has been practicing Zen since 1990, in residence at Tassajara Zen Mountain Center, most recently as Tanto (Head of Practice), Green Gulch Farm Zen Center, No Abode Hermitage in Mill Valley, Bukkokuji Monastery in Japan, and Santa Cruz Zen Center.He was ordained as a Zen priest in 1994 by Tenshin Anderson Roshi and received Dharma Transmission from him in 2010. Kokyo is interested in exploring how the original teachings of Buddhadharma from ancient India, China, and Japan are still very much alive and useful in present-day America to bring peace and harmony to this troubled world.Part 1 (17.5 MB, 84 min):Right-click to Download File Part 2 (12.5 MB, 52 min):Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, March 23rd, 2026 – So’on Jim Hare (17.6 MB, 52 min).
So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984; was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myō Lahey in 2016. He served as Shuso (Head Student) at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period. Jim offers practice discussion upon request at info@valleystreamszen.org.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, March 16th, 2026 – Zenki Mary Mocine (19 MB, 59 min).
Zenki Mary MocineVisiting Teacher
Reverend Mary Mocine is abbess of Clear Water Zendo in Vallejo. She was trained at San Francisco and Berkeley Zen Centers, and Tassajara Zen Monastery. She was ordained in 1994 by Sojun Mel Weitsman, former Abbot of San Francisco Zen Center and continuing Abbot of the Berkeley Zen Center. Reverend Mocine has also trained with Abbess Zenkei Blanche Hartman and former Abbots Zoketsu Norman Fischer and Tenshin Reb Anderson of the San Francisco Zen Center. She received dharma transmission from Sojun Mel Weitsman in May 2005.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Saturday, March 6th, 2026 – Nyokai Kristin Diggs (17.2 MB, 51 min).
Nyokai Kristin DiggsPractice Committee, Teachers
Joined our sangha as Teacher in 2026. Prior to moving to Sacramento, she trained residentially at all three San Francisco Zen Center temples (2014-2025), holding a number of senior positions, including Ino, Tenzo, and Work Leader. Lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson and priest ordained by Eijun Linda Cutts, she served as Shuso during the winter 2025 practice period at Tassajara Zen Mountain Center, led by Eijun Linda Cutts. Kristin offers practice discussion upon request at nyokai.kristin.diggs@gmail.com.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, March 2nd, 2026 – Jisan Tova Green (18.1 MB, 55 min).
Jisan Tova GreenVisiting Teacher
She/her, is a resident priest at San Francisco Zen Center. She was ordained in 2003 and received Dharma transmission from Eijun Linda Cutts in 2015. Tova is the Branching Streams Director, supporting and connecting the 75+ Zen Centers and sanghas in the Suzuki Roshi lineage. She also writes blogs for SFZC’s online newsletter, Sangha News. Tova co-founded SFZC’s Queer Dharma group and has been involved in Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging initiatives during her twenty-four years as a resident. She has worked with those who are approaching death as a hospice social worker and as a priest. Tova enjoys reading and writing poetry and playing the cello.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, February 23rd, 2026 – Nyokai Kristin Diggs (18.8 MB, 55 min).
Nyokai Kristin DiggsPractice Committee, Teachers
Joined our sangha as Teacher in 2026. Prior to moving to Sacramento, she trained residentially at all three San Francisco Zen Center temples (2014-2025), holding a number of senior positions, including Ino, Tenzo, and Work Leader. Lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson and priest ordained by Eijun Linda Cutts, she served as Shuso during the winter 2025 practice period at Tassajara Zen Mountain Center, led by Eijun Linda Cutts. Kristin offers practice discussion upon request at nyokai.kristin.diggs@gmail.com.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, February 16th, 2026 – Meikyo Robert Rosenbaum (21 MB, 64 min).
Meikyo Robert Rosenbaum, PhDVisiting Teacher
Meikyo Robert Rosenbaum, PhD, received lay entrustment in Soto Zen from Sojun Mel Weitsman. He is also authorized as a senior teacher of the Taoist practice of Dayan (Wild Goose) Qigong in the lineage of Yang Meijun by Master Hui Liu. In addition, he has received denkai in Ordinary Mind Zen from Karen Terzano. Bob teaches Zen and Qigong at the Meadowmind Center in Sacramento.Bob is the author of several books including Zen and the Heart of Psychotherapy, Walking the Way : 81 Zen Encounters with Tao Te Ching and most recently, That is not your Mind! Zen Reflections on the Sarangama Sutra.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, February 9th, 2026 – Susan Moon (9.8 MB, 29 min).
Susan MoonVisiting Teacher
Susan Moon is a writer, editor, and lay teacher in the Soto Zen tradition. She is the author of a number of books about Buddhism, including the humor book The Life and Letters of Tofu Roshi and This Is Getting Old: Zen Thoughts on Aging with Humor and Dignity. For many years she was the editor of Turning Wheel, the journal of socially engaged Buddhism. Her short stories and essays have been published widely.Sue has been a Zen student since 1976, practicing in the lineage of Suzuki Roshi at Berkeley Zen Center, Tassajara Zen Mountain Monastery, Green Gulch Farm, and now with Zoketsu Norman Fischer’s Everyday Zen sangha. She received “entrustment” as a lay teacher in 2005.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Saturday, February 7th, 2026 – So’on Jim Hare (12.2 MB, 43 min).
So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984; was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myō Lahey in 2016. He served as Shuso (Head Student) at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period. Jim offers practice discussion upon request at info@valleystreamszen.org.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, January 26th, 2026 – Rev. Shōku Kathy Early (16.7 MB, 52 min).
Shōku Kathy EarlyVisiting Teacher
Shōku Kathy Early came to zen practice in 1994 through classes with Tenshin Reb Anderson at the Yoga Room in Berkeley while working as a semiconductor engineer in Silicon Valley. She then practiced for several years with Keido Les Kaye at Kannon Do Zen Center in Mountain View, after which she trained at San Francisco Zen Center for 16 years. She was priest ordained by Tenshin Anderson in 2005. Shōku also spent a year and a half in residence at Toshoji International Training Monastery, in Okayama, Japan, including four angos (90 day training periods).Right-click to Download File
Talk given on Monday, January 19th, 2026 – Shokan Clement Spring and Malia McCarthy (17 MB, 53 min).
Shokan Clement SpringOther Sangha Leaders
Shokan Clement Spring serves as Head Doan on the Practice Committee of Valley Streams Zen Sangha. He received Jukai (lay precepts) with Rev. Myō Lahey in 2013 and Shukke Tokudo (priest ordination) with Rev. Kyosho Valorie Beer in 2023. He has completed three practice periods, two pre- and one post-ordination at Green Gulch Farm in Marin County.Malia McCarthyBoard of Directors
Malia is a member of the Valley Streams Board of Directors and serves as secretary. She recentlyretired from the practice of child and adolescent psychiatry. She has two daughters in college and livesin Davis with her husband. She feels very fortunate to have been able to practice with Valley Streamssince 2019Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Saturday, January 3rd, 2026 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (14.4 MB, 55 min).
So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984; was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myō Lahey in 2016. He served as Shuso (Head Student) at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period. Jim offers practice discussion upon request at info@valleystreamszen.org.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, December 15th, 2025 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (18.1 MB, 53 min).
So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984; was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myō Lahey in 2016. He served as Shuso (Head Student) at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period. Jim offers practice discussion upon request at info@valleystreamszen.org.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Sunday, December 7th, 2025 by Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah (13.2 MB, 43 min).
Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler KatonahPractice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Ino, or head of the meditation hall. She studies in the Soto Zen lineage with Sojun Diane Martin, founder and guiding teacher of Udumbara Zen Center in Illinois and Rev. Val Szymanski, Head Priest of Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in California. She was lay ordained in 2008 and priest ordained in 2019. She served as head student for the spring practice period at Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in May 2022. Doralee offers practice discussion upon request at ino@valleystreamszen.org.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Saturday, December 6th, 2025 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (18.2 MB, 63 min).
So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984; was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myō Lahey in 2016. He served as Shuso (Head Student) at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period. Jim offers practice discussion upon request at info@valleystreamszen.org.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Friday, December 5th, 2025 by Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah (13.4 MB, 43 min).
Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler KatonahPractice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Ino, or head of the meditation hall. She studies in the Soto Zen lineage with Sojun Diane Martin, founder and guiding teacher of Udumbara Zen Center in Illinois and Rev. Val Szymanski, Head Priest of Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in California. She was lay ordained in 2008 and priest ordained in 2019. She served as head student for the spring practice period at Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in May 2022. Doralee offers practice discussion upon request at ino@valleystreamszen.org.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, November 17th, 2025 – Rev. Myō Lahey (13.8 MB, 43 min).
Myō Denis LaheyTeachers
Rev. Myō Lahey is the guiding teacher for our sangha. Rev. Myō became interested in Zen as a teenager and started full-time residential practice at the San Francisco Zen Center in 1982. He received dharma transmission from Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1999 and served as head of practice at Tassajara Zen Mountain Monastery from 2000 – 2002. He is now Abbot of Hartford Street Zen Center in San Francisco. (http://www.hszc.org)Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, November 10th, 2025 – Kokai Shalamah Yahchove (10.9 MB, 44 min).
Kokai Shalamah YahchoveVisiting Teacher
Kokai Shalamah Yahchove is a Soto Zen priest in the Suzuki Roshi lineage. She was lay-ordained in 2019 and became a priest in August 2025, with both ceremonies conducted by her Root Teacher, Zenju Earthlyn Manuel, at the Berkeley Zen Center. Kokai has practiced with the Still Breathing Sangha and at the Tassajara Zen Mountain Center.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, October 20th, 2025 by Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah (14 MB, 51 min).
Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler KatonahPractice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Ino, or head of the meditation hall. She studies in the Soto Zen lineage with Sojun Diane Martin, founder and guiding teacher of Udumbara Zen Center in Illinois and Rev. Val Szymanski, Head Priest of Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in California. She was lay ordained in 2008 and priest ordained in 2019. She served as head student for the spring practice period at Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in May 2022. Doralee offers practice discussion upon request at ino@valleystreamszen.org.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Saturday, October 4th, 2025 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (15.7 MB, 63 min).
So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984; was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myō Lahey in 2016. He served as Shuso (Head Student) at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period. Jim offers practice discussion upon request at info@valleystreamszen.org.Right-click to Download File
Way Seeking Mind Talk given on Monday, September 29th, 2025 – Todd Stein (11.2 MB, 44 min).
Todd SteinBoard of Directors
Todd Stein has been practicing Zen since the early 1990s and was a resident within San Francisco Zen Center from 1996 to 2002. He received Jukai from Ryushin Paul Haller in 1997. A former journalist, he’s currently a marketing consultant to healthcare technology companies. His marriage of 23 years has produced two children, a mortgage, two lazy cats and one exceedingly noisy chihuahua.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, September 22nd, 2025 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (10.9 MB, 44 min).
So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984; was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myō Lahey in 2016. He served as Shuso (Head Student) at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period. Jim offers practice discussion upon request at info@valleystreamszen.org.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, September 15th, 2025 by Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah (9.2 MB, 54 min).
Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler KatonahPractice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Ino, or head of the meditation hall. She studies in the Soto Zen lineage with Sojun Diane Martin, founder and guiding teacher of Udumbara Zen Center in Illinois and Rev. Val Szymanski, Head Priest of Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in California. She was lay ordained in 2008 and priest ordained in 2019. She served as head student for the spring practice period at Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in May 2022. Doralee offers practice discussion upon request at ino@valleystreamszen.org.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, September 8th, 2025 – Yo-on Jeremy Levie (16.5 MB, 62 min).
Yo-on Jeremy LevieVisiting Teacher
Yo-on Jeremy Levie, born in San Francisco in 1970, grew up in Fresno, California, where he excelled in math and developed a lifelong love of theater. After earning a B.A. in philosophy from Yale University, Jeremy returned to San Francisco and soon discovered the San Francisco Zen Center. He moved to Tassajara Zen Mountain Center in 1995 and lived and practiced at the three temples of SFZC until the fall of 2019. He was ordained by Eijun Linda Cutts in 2005 and trained as shuso (head monk) with her in the spring of 2009. Jeremy served in various positions of significant responsibility while at SFZC, including as the director and tanto (head of practice) at Green Gulch Farm Zen Center and twice on the SFZC Board of Directors.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Saturday, September 6th, 2025 – Jiryu Rutschman-Byler (15.5 MB, 61 min).
Jiryu Rutschman-BylerVisiting Teacher
Jiryu Rutschman-Byler is a Soto Zen Buddhist priest and teacher in the lineage of Shunryu Suzuki Roshi, with dharma transmission from Sojun Mel Weitsman. Jiryu has trained residentially in Zen temples since 1996, and currently serves as a co-Abbot of San Francisco Zen Center through his role as Abiding Abbot of Green Gulch Farm Zen Center.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, August 18th, 2025 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (11.5 MB, 47 min).
So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984; was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myō Lahey in 2016. He served as Shuso (Head Student) at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period. Jim offers practice discussion upon request at info@valleystreamszen.org.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, August 4th, 2025 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (13.5 MB, 55 min).
So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984; was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myō Lahey in 2016. He served as Shuso (Head Student) at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period. Jim offers practice discussion upon request at info@valleystreamszen.org.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Saturday, August 1st, 2025 – Danan John Wark (8.1MB, 33 min).
Danan John WarkVisiting Teacher
Danan John Wark, abbot of Cloud Zendo in Pilot Hill, practices koan introspection and has received inka from Zen Master BoMun (George Bowman) in the Single Flower Sangha tradition. Master BoMun is associated with the Kwan Um School of Zen and also with Boundless Way Zen. John has also studied koans with Tenshin Reb Anderson at No Abode Hermitage. Cloud Zendo offers sutra service and zazen every Saturday morning at 8:30 in Auburn at Sierra Foothills Unitarian Universalist Church, 190 Finley St., Auburn, CA 95603.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, July 28th, 2025 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (13 MB, 54 min).
So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984; was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myō Lahey in 2016. He served as Shuso (Head Student) at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period. Jim offers practice discussion upon request at info@valleystreamszen.org.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, July 21st, 2025 – Eli Brown-Stevenson (12.3 MB, 48 min).
Eli Brown-StevensonVisiting Teacher
Eli Brown-Stevenson has spent the past decade living at Tassajara and City Center (SFZC). He is currently a resident priest in the city and serves as the Director of Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging for the three temples.Prior to joining SFZC, Eli worked in the secular world, most notably in for-profit education and as a benefits liaison for employee wellness programs. After a decade of exploring various practices, he decided to leave the corporate world and immerse himself in formal residential practice.Eli’s Zen practice is deeply influenced by his main teacher, Maya—his daughter whom he met when she was born in 2017. In 2019, Eli received priest ordination from Abbot Ed Sattizahn and was given the Dharma name So-On Gen Kan, which means “Ancestor Warmth Present Completely.” Eli was the shuso (head student) for the Fall 2022 practice period at City Center.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, July 14th, 2025 – WaDen Eido Barbara Baccei (11.9 MB, 49 min).
WaDen Eido Barbara BacceiVisiting Teacher
WaDen Eido Barbara Baccei, an ordained Soto Zen Teacher, received Lay Entrustment from Kyōshō Valorie Beer Roshi. She is also a Soto Zen sewing teacher lineage holder of Suzuki Roshi. An alignment-focused yoga teacher, she is a graduate of the Berkeley Yoga Room Teacher Training. A contemplative artist and book artist, she works on paper and fabric embellished with findings from the natural world.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, June 30th, 2025 – Rev. Vivian Grenenfelder (13 MB, 53 min).
Vivian GrenenfelderVisiting Teacher
Rev. Vivian Gruenenfelder was ordained in the Order of Buddhist Contemplatives in 1998, and was given Dharma Transmission by her Master in 2003. On 25 January 2023, Rev. Master Haryo Young, who was then the Head of the Order of Buddhist Contemplatives, named her a Master of the Order (Roshi). She is Still Flowing Water Hermitage’s resident monk and serves the Bear River Meditation Group, which meets on Monday evenings in Applegate, California.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, June 23rd, 2025 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (11.6 MB, 47 min).
Rev. So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, June 16th, 2025 – Hoka Chris Fortin (13.3 MB, 52 min).
Hoka Soko Chris FortinVisiting Teacher
Chris began her practice in 1976 at the San Francisco Zen Center, and received Dharma Transmission from Zoketsu Norman Fischer. She is founding and guiding teacher of the Dharma Heart Zen sanghas in Sonoma County, an Everyday Zen senior priest and teacher, and guiding teacher for Sky Island Zen in Tucson, AZ. She offers retreats and practice groups through SF Zen Center that include Jizo Bodhisattva Journeys through grief and change, Jizo Ceremonies, Wildland Firefights Retreats. She co-founded Veterans Path for current era veterans and co-facilitates (with Valley Streams Ino Doralee Grindler Katonah) an ongoing Racial and Social Justice as Dharma Practice group.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Saturday, June 7th, 2025 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (11.1 MB, 43 min).
Rev. So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period.Right-click to Download File
Way Seeking Mind Talk given on Monday, May 19th, 2025 – Allison Claire (12.1 MB, 45 min).
Allison ClaireAllison Claire is both a lay-ordained Zen practitioner and a Unitarian Universalist. She has been a peace and justice activist, a lawyer for death row inmates, a longtime federal employee, and the single mother of triplets. Her practice is deeply rooted in the Dharma of the Green World and the principles of engaged Buddhism.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, May 5th, 2025 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (14 MB, 58 min).
Rev. So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talks given on Saturday, May 3rd, 2025 by Kokyo Henkel.
Rev. Kokyo HenkelVisiting Teacher
Kokyo Henkel has been practicing Zen since 1990, in residence at Tassajara Zen Mountain Center, most recently as Tanto (Head of Practice), Green Gulch Farm Zen Center, No Abode Hermitage in Mill Valley, Bukkokuji Monastery in Japan, and Santa Cruz Zen Center.He was ordained as a Zen priest in 1994 by Tenshin Anderson Roshi and received Dharma Transmission from him in 2010. Kokyo is interested in exploring how the original teachings of Buddhadharma from ancient India, China, and Japan are still very much alive and useful in present-day America to bring peace and harmony to this troubled world.Part 1 (21.8 MB, 80 min):Right-click to Download File Part 2 (23.9 MB, 86 min):Right-click to Download File
Practice Talk given on Monday, April 28th, 2025 by Malia McCarthy (13.6 MB, 55 min).
Malia McCarthyBoard of Directors
Malia is a member of the Valley Streams Board of Directors and serves as secretary. She recentlyretired from the practice of child and adolescent psychiatry. She has two daughters in college and livesin Davis with her husband. She feels very fortunate to have been able to practice with Valley Streamssince 2019Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, April 7th, 2025 – Rev. Tova Green (11.9 MB, 48 min).
Rev. Tova GreenVisiting Teacher
She/her, is a resident priest at San Francisco Zen Center. She was ordained in 2003 and received Dharma transmission from Eijun Linda Cutts in 2015. Tova is the Branching Streams Director, supporting and connecting the 75+ Zen Centers and sanghas in the Suzuki Roshi lineage. She also writes blogs for SFZC’s online newsletter, Sangha News. Tova co-founded SFZC’s Queer Dharma group and has been involved in Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging initiatives during her twenty-four years as a resident. She has worked with those who are approaching death as a hospice social worker and as a priest. Tova enjoys reading and writing poetry and playing the cello.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, March 31st, 2025 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (11.6 MB, 48 min).
Rev. So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period.Right-click to Download File
Way Seeking Mind Talk given on Monday, March 17th, 2025 by Shawn Hampton (13.8 MB, 57 min).
Shawn HamptonShawn Hampton is originally from Texas. He moved to California in 2020 and began attending VSZS in 2023. He has been involved with Contemplative Christianity for many years and spent 12 years pursuing monastic life, 9 of which were spent with the Carthusian Order in France: a community of solitary hermit monks.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, March 10th, 2025 by Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah (13 MB, 54 min).
Rev. Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler KatonahPractice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Ino, or head of the meditation hall. She studies in the Soto Zen lineage with Sojun Diane Martin, founder and guiding teacher of Udumbara Zen Center in Illinois and Rev. Val Szymanski, Head Priest of Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in California. She was lay ordained in 2008 and priest ordained in 2019. She served as head student for the Spring practice period at Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha this May 2022. She offers Practice Interviews upon request.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, March 3rd, 2025 – Bruce Fortin (12.4 MB, 49 min).
Bruce FortinVisiting Teacher
Bruce Fortin was ordained a Zen priest in 1977 at the San Francisco Zen Center. He is the founder and has been the guiding teacher at the Occidental Laguna Sangha in Sebastopol for twenty years. He has taught meditation in prisons, to Veterans, was the director of Hospice program in Sonoma country for many years, and is a psychotherapist in Private practice in Santa Rosa and Sebastopol.ContactWebsite: https://www.occidentallagunasangha.org
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Dharma Talk given on Saturday, March 1st, 2025 – Rev. Myō Lahey (9.1 MB, 37 min).
Rev. Myō Denis LaheyTeachers
Rev. Myō Lahey is the guiding teacher for our sangha. Rev. Myō became interested in Zen as a teenager and started full-time residential practice at the San Francisco Zen Center in 1982. He received dharma transmission from Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1999 and served as head of practice at Tassajara Zen Mountain Monastery from 2000 – 2002. He is now Abbot of Hartford Street Zen Center in San Francisco. (http://www.hszc.org)Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, February 24th, 2025 – Rev. Shōku Kathy Early (14.8 MB, 61 min).
Shōku Kathy EarlyVisiting Teacher
Shōku Kathy Early came to zen practice in 1994 through classes with Tenshin Reb Anderson at the Yoga Room in Berkeley while working as a semiconductor engineer in Silicon Valley. She then practiced for several years with Keido Les Kaye at Kannon Do Zen Center in Mountain View, after which she trained at San Francisco Zen Center for 16 years. She was priest ordained by Tenshin Anderson in 2005. Shōku also spent a year and a half in residence at Toshoji International Training Monastery, in Okayama, Japan, including four angos (90 day training periods).Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, February 17th, 2024 – Rev. Mary Mocine (14.8 MB, 61 min).
Rev. Zenki Mary MocineVisiting Teacher
Reverend Mary Mocine is abbess of Clear Water Zendo in Vallejo. She was trained at San Francisco and Berkeley Zen Centers, and Tassajara Zen Monastery. She was ordained in 1994 by Sojun Mel Weitsman, former Abbot of San Francisco Zen Center and continuing Abbot of the Berkeley Zen Center. Reverend Mocine has also trained with Abbess Zenkei Blanche Hartman and former Abbots Zoketsu Norman Fischer and Tenshin Reb Anderson of the San Francisco Zen Center. She received dharma transmission from Sojun Mel Weitsman in May 2005.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, February 3rd, 2025 – Rev. Taiga Ito (13.3 MB, 54 min).
Rev. Taiga ItoVisiting Teacher
Rev. Taiga Ito, trained at Daihonzan Sojiji, one of the head monasteries of Soto Shu (Soto Zen in Japan). In 2016, Taiga Ito became Kokusaifukyoshi (international teacher of Soto Shu). He served as secretary of the Soto Zen Buddhism International Center between 2016 and 2018, and has served as its Assistant Director since 2019.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, January 20st, 2025 by Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah (17.7 MB, 73 min).
Rev. Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler KatonahPractice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Ino, or head of the meditation hall. She studies in the Soto Zen lineage with Sojun Diane Martin, founder and guiding teacher of Udumbara Zen Center in Illinois and Rev. Val Szymanski, Head Priest of Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in California. She was lay ordained in 2008 and priest ordained in 2019. She served as head student for the Spring practice period at Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha this May 2022. She offers Practice Interviews upon request.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, January 13th, 2025 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (11.2 MB, 46 min).
Rev. So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, December 16th, 2024 by Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah (14 MB, 58 min).
Rev. Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler KatonahPractice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Ino, or head of the meditation hall. She studies in the Soto Zen lineage with Sojun Diane Martin, founder and guiding teacher of Udumbara Zen Center in Illinois and Rev. Val Szymanski, Head Priest of Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in California. She was lay ordained in 2008 and priest ordained in 2019. She served as head student for the Spring practice period at Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha this May 2022. She offers Practice Interviews upon request.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Sunday, December 8th, 2024 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (6.7 MB, 25 min).
Rev. So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Saturday, December 7th, 2024 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (17 MB, 66 min).
Rev. So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Friday, December 6th, 2024 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (7.4 MB, 28 min).
Rev. So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, December 2nd, 2024 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (14.4 MB, 58 min).
Rev. So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, November 11th, 2024 by Lama Yeshe Jinpa (11.5 MB, 46 min).
Lama Yeshe JinpaVisiting Teacher
Lama Yeshe Jinpa is the spiritual director and resident teacher of Lion’s Roar Dharma Center in Sacramento. In 1995, Lama Jinpa received direct heart/mind transmission from Geshe Gyatso, after 25 years of Dharma practice and study. He is one of the few western lamas recognized within the Gelugpa lineage of Tibetan or Vajrayana Buddhism, the lineage of His Holiness the Dalai Lama.ContactWebsite: https://lionsroardharmacenter.org/spiritual-director/
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Dharma Talk given on Monday, October 21st, 2024 by Linda Hess (14.1 MB, 57 min).
LInda HessLinda began Zen practice in 1974 at San Francisco Zen Center and currently practices with Reb Anderson at GGF and No Abode.Linda is a translator and scholar of devotional/mystical poetry from North India, especially the 15th century poet Kabir. She taught at Stanford in the Dept. of Religion Studies for 21 years. Her publications include: Bodies of Song: Kabir and Oral Traditions and Performative Worlds in North India (2015) and Singing Emptiness: Kumar Gandharva Performs the Poetry of Kabir (2009).Linda is interested in the intersections of religion, politics, and personal experience.ContactWebsite: https://linda-hess.com/
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Dharma Talk given on Monday, October 14th, 2024 by Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah (5.8 MB, 22 min).
Rev. Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler KatonahPractice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Ino, or head of the meditation hall. She studies in the Soto Zen lineage with Sojun Diane Martin, founder and guiding teacher of Udumbara Zen Center in Illinois and Rev. Val Szymanski, Head Priest of Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in California. She was lay ordained in 2008 and priest ordained in 2019. She served as head student for the Spring practice period at Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha this May 2022. She offers Practice Interviews upon request.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, October 7th, 2024 – Katrena Paine (11.8 MB, 48 min).
Katrena PaineRight-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, September 23rd, 2024 – Shosan Victoria Austin (13.1 MB, 52 min).
Shosan Victoria AustinVisiting Teacher
Shosan Victoria Austin began practicing both Zen and yoga in 1971. In the Soto Zen tradition, she is entrusted as a Dharma heir in the lineage of Shunryu Suzuki, an international priest of the Soto School, and a Dharma teacher at San Francisco Zen Center. She trained in the U.S., in India, and in Japan. In the Iyengar tradition, she is certified as an Intermediate teacher.ContactWebsite: http://victoriaaustin.org/about-victoria/
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Dharma Talk given on Monday, September 9th, 2024 – Susan Moon (12.9 MB, 51 min).
Susan MoonVisiting Teacher
Susan Moon is a writer, editor, and lay teacher in the Soto Zen tradition. She is the author of a number of books about Buddhism, including the humor book The Life and Letters of Tofu Roshi and This Is Getting Old: Zen Thoughts on Aging with Humor and Dignity. For many years she was the editor of Turning Wheel, the journal of socially engaged Buddhism. Her short stories and essays have been published widely.Sue has been a Zen student since 1976, practicing in the lineage of Suzuki Roshi at Berkeley Zen Center, Tassajara Zen Mountain Monastery, Green Gulch Farm, and now with Zoketsu Norman Fischer’s Everyday Zen sangha. She received “entrustment” as a lay teacher in 2005.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Saturday, September 7th, 2024 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (15.2 MB, 52 min).
Rev. So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, August 19th, 2024 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (11.3 MB, 45 min).
Rev. So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period.Right-click to Download File
Way Seeking Mind Talk given on Monday, August 12th, 2024 – Rev. Eijun Linda Cutts (9.6 MB, 39 min).
Konen Scott LoweKonen Scott Lowe’s Dharma biography: “I first encountered the Buddha Dharma when I was a teenager. In the library of the town I grew up in (Gallup, New Mexico). I randomly picked up a small volume of Hinayana Buddhism Sutras and history. As soon as I read a few pages, I was drawn to the voice of the Buddha, and from that day on, I considered myself a Buddhist.Many years later, in 1994, I attended a Dharma talk at Green Gulch. Someone named Tenshin Reb Anderson gave the talk, and after hearing his talk, I thought, “I think this man is my teacher,” and so he is to this day. I took Jukai in 1999 and received the Dharma name Konen Shogaku.”Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, August 5th, 2024 – Rev. Eijun Linda Cutts (13.7 MB, 54 min).
Eijun Linda CuttsVisiting Teacher
Eijun Linda Cutts came to San Francisco Zen Center in 1971 and was ordained as a priest in 1975. She has lived at Tassajara and SFZC’s City Center, and has resided at Green Gulch Farm since 1993. In 1996 Linda received Dharma transmission from Tenshin Reb Anderson. After having served as Abbess of SF Zen Center from 2000 to 2007, she was appointed Abiding Abbess of Green Gulch Farm Zen Center in 2010, and Central Abbess of SF Zen Center in 2014. As Senior Dharma Teacher, she continues to teach and lead practice periods and retreats at Tassajara, Green Gulch, and elsewhere, and has been leading Yoga-Zen retreats and workshops for many years.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, July 22nd, 2024 – Barbara Baccei (10.6 MB, 43 min).
WaDen Eido Barbara BacceiVisiting Teacher
WaDen Eido Barbara Baccei, an ordained Soto Zen Teacher, received Lay Entrustment from Kyōshō Valorie Beer Roshi. She is also a Soto Zen sewing teacher lineage holder of Suzuki Roshi. An alignment-focused yoga teacher, she is a graduate of the Berkeley Yoga Room Teacher Training. A contemplative artist and book artist, she works on paper and fabric embellished with findings from the natural world.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, July 15th, 2024 – Robert Rosenbaum (13 MB, 54 min).
Meikyo Robert Rosenbaum, PhDVisiting Teacher
Meikyo Robert Rosenbaum, PhD, received lay entrustment in Soto Zen from Sojun Mel Weitsman. He is also authorized as a senior teacher of the Taoist practice of Dayan (Wild Goose) Qigong in the lineage of Yang Meijun by Master Hui Liu. In addition, he has received denkai in Ordinary Mind Zen from Karen Terzano. Bob teaches Zen and Qigong at the Meadowmind Center in Sacramento.Bob is the author of several books including Zen and the Heart of Psychotherapy, Walking the Way : 81 Zen Encounters with Tao Te Ching and most recently, That is not your Mind! Zen Reflections on the Sarangama Sutra.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Saturday, July 6th, 2024 by Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah (11.1 MB, 42 min).
Rev. Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler KatonahPractice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Ino, or head of the meditation hall. She studies in the Soto Zen lineage with Sojun Diane Martin, founder and guiding teacher of Udumbara Zen Center in Illinois and Rev. Val Szymanski, Head Priest of Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in California. She was lay ordained in 2008 and priest ordained in 2019. She served as head student for the Spring practice period at Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha this May 2022. She offers Practice Interviews upon request.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, June 17th, 2024 – Rev. Mary Mocine (12.3 MB, 50 min).
Rev. Zenki Mary MocineVisiting Teacher
Reverend Mary Mocine is abbess of Clear Water Zendo in Vallejo. She was trained at San Francisco and Berkeley Zen Centers, and Tassajara Zen Monastery. She was ordained in 1994 by Sojun Mel Weitsman, former Abbot of San Francisco Zen Center and continuing Abbot of the Berkeley Zen Center. Reverend Mocine has also trained with Abbess Zenkei Blanche Hartman and former Abbots Zoketsu Norman Fischer and Tenshin Reb Anderson of the San Francisco Zen Center. She received dharma transmission from Sojun Mel Weitsman in May 2005.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, June 10th, 2024 by Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah (10.5 MB, 42 min).
Rev. Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler KatonahPractice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Ino, or head of the meditation hall. She studies in the Soto Zen lineage with Sojun Diane Martin, founder and guiding teacher of Udumbara Zen Center in Illinois and Rev. Val Szymanski, Head Priest of Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in California. She was lay ordained in 2008 and priest ordained in 2019. She served as head student for the Spring practice period at Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha this May 2022. She offers Practice Interviews upon request.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, June 3rd, 2024 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (14.3 MB, 58 min).
Rev. So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, May 6th, 2024 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (13.9 MB, 56 min).
Rev. So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, April 29th, 2024 – Hoka Chris Fortin (13 MB, 53 min).
Hoka Soko Chris FortinVisiting Teacher
Chris began her practice in 1976 at the San Francisco Zen Center, and received Dharma Transmission from Zoketsu Norman Fischer. She is founding and guiding teacher of the Dharma Heart Zen sanghas in Sonoma County, an Everyday Zen senior priest and teacher, and guiding teacher for Sky Island Zen in Tucson, AZ. She offers retreats and practice groups through SF Zen Center that include Jizo Bodhisattva Journeys through grief and change, Jizo Ceremonies, Wildland Firefights Retreats. She co-founded Veterans Path for current era veterans and co-facilitates (with Valley Streams Ino Doralee Grindler Katonah) an ongoing Racial and Social Justice as Dharma Practice group.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, April 15th, 2024 by Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah (17.7 MB, 1 hr 7 min).
Rev. Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler KatonahPractice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Ino, or head of the meditation hall. She studies in the Soto Zen lineage with Sojun Diane Martin, founder and guiding teacher of Udumbara Zen Center in Illinois and Rev. Val Szymanski, Head Priest of Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in California. She was lay ordained in 2008 and priest ordained in 2019. She served as head student for the Spring practice period at Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha this May 2022. She offers Practice Interviews upon request.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, April 8th, 2023 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (14.6 MB, 56 min).
Rev. So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, April 1st, 2024 – Rev. Mary Mocine (15.9 MB, 1 hr 8 min).
Rev. Zenki Mary MocineVisiting Teacher
Reverend Mary Mocine is abbess of Clear Water Zendo in Vallejo. She was trained at San Francisco and Berkeley Zen Centers, and Tassajara Zen Monastery. She was ordained in 1994 by Sojun Mel Weitsman, former Abbot of San Francisco Zen Center and continuing Abbot of the Berkeley Zen Center. Reverend Mocine has also trained with Abbess Zenkei Blanche Hartman and former Abbots Zoketsu Norman Fischer and Tenshin Reb Anderson of the San Francisco Zen Center. She received dharma transmission from Sojun Mel Weitsman in May 2005.Right-click to Download File
Practice Talk given by Oscar Balaguer and Diana Cassady on March 18th, 2024 – (Audio Version: 13.3MB, 58 min).
Oscar BalaguerSenior Student
A longtime Zen practitioner and member of Valley Streams, Oscar was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, March 11th, 2023 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (12.7 MB, 53 min).
Rev. So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, March 04th, 2024 – Myo Lahey (10.8 MB, 44 min).
Rev. Myō Denis LaheyTeachers
Rev. Myō Lahey is the guiding teacher for our sangha. Rev. Myō became interested in Zen as a teenager and started full-time residential practice at the San Francisco Zen Center in 1982. He received dharma transmission from Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1999 and served as head of practice at Tassajara Zen Mountain Monastery from 2000 – 2002. He is now Abbot of Hartford Street Zen Center in San Francisco. (http://www.hszc.org)[easy_media_download url=”https://valleystreamszen.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/2024-03-04MyoLahey.mp3
Dharma Talk given on Monday, February 26th, 2023 – Rev. Shōku Kathy Early (11.3 MB, 49 min).
Shōku Kathy EarlyVisiting Teacher
Shōku Kathy Early came to zen practice in 1994 through classes with Tenshin Reb Anderson at the Yoga Room in Berkeley while working as a semiconductor engineer in Silicon Valley. She then practiced for several years with Keido Les Kaye at Kannon Do Zen Center in Mountain View, after which she trained at San Francisco Zen Center for 16 years. She was priest ordained by Tenshin Anderson in 2005. Shōku also spent a year and a half in residence at Toshoji International Training Monastery, in Okayama, Japan, including four angos (90 day training periods).Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on February 19th, 2023 – Gambō Berry Crawford (17.12 MB, 1hr 12min).
Gambō Berry CrawfordOther Sangha Leaders
Berry Crawford first started practicing Zen meditation in 1992. He lived at the Sonoma Mountain Zen Center and practiced as a resident in the mid 1990s. There he completed the initiation ordeal known as tangaryo and completed traditional Soto Zen Practice Periods. Berry next practiced with Diane "Eshin" Rizzetto in the Ordinary Mind Zen School started by Joko Beck. Later, Berry became a student of John “Shoji” Sorenson and in 2022 was authorized to independently teach Zen. He currently engages in traditional White Plum koan study with his koan teacher Russell “Kyofu Seikyo” Mitchell and was authorized as an Assistant Koan Teacher by him in 2023. Berry is a member of the “Doan-ryo” at the Valley Streams Zen Sangha and is a member of the Board of Directors for the Sacramento Dharma Center. He is the host of the Simplicity Zen Podcast (https://simplicityzen.com/) and maintains the Science of Zen website (https://scienceofzen.org/).Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, February 5th, 2024 – Rev. Taiga Ito (14.1 MB, 1 hr 1 min).
Rev. Taiga ItoVisiting Teacher
Rev. Taiga Ito, trained at Daihonzan Sojiji, one of the head monasteries of Soto Shu (Soto Zen in Japan). In 2016, Taiga Ito became Kokusaifukyoshi (international teacher of Soto Shu). He served as secretary of the Soto Zen Buddhism International Center between 2016 and 2018, and has served as its Assistant Director since 2019.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, January 29th, 2024 – Myo Lahey (14.1 MB, 1 hr 1 min).
Rev. Myō Denis LaheyTeachers
Rev. Myō Lahey is the guiding teacher for our sangha. Rev. Myō became interested in Zen as a teenager and started full-time residential practice at the San Francisco Zen Center in 1982. He received dharma transmission from Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1999 and served as head of practice at Tassajara Zen Mountain Monastery from 2000 – 2002. He is now Abbot of Hartford Street Zen Center in San Francisco. (http://www.hszc.org)Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, January 15th, 2024 (14.9 MB, 1 hr 2 min).
Keiryu Liên ShuttVisiting Teacher
Rev. Liên Shutt is a lineage holder in the Shunryu Suzuki tradition. Born to a Buddhist family in Vietnam, she received her meditation training in the Insight and Zen traditions in the U.S., Thailand, Japan, and Vietnam. She was a founding member of the Buddhists of Color in 1998 and currently is the guiding teacher of Access to Zen, an anti-racist, inclusive sangha and non-profit in the San Francisco Bay Area. Please visit AccessToZen.org for ways to connect with her offerings. Liên's Home Is Here: Practicing Antiracism with the Engaged Eightfold Path is available through the Online Store. Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, December 11, 2023 by Ryoko Laura Burges (15MB, 1 hr 1 min).
Ryuko Laura BurgesVisiting Teacher
Ryuko Laura Burges, a lay entrusted dharma teacher in the Soto Zen tradition, teaches classes, lectures, and leads retreats in Northern California. Laura co-founded the Sangha in Recovery Program at the San Francisco Zen Center and is the abiding teacher at Lenox House Meditation Group in Oakland. The Zen Way of Recovery: An Illuminated Path Out of the Darkness of Addiction is offered by Shambhala Publications, as are her two children’s books, Buddhist Stories for Kids and Zen for Kids. They are available widely and can be purchased through the SFZC Online store. Laura’s work has appeared in Tricycle Magazine, Buddhadharma, The Best of the Windbell, Teach Our Children Well, and in the film The Digital Divide. Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, November 20th, 2023 – Susan Moon (13.1 MB, 55 min).
Susan MoonVisiting Teacher
Susan Moon is a writer, editor, and lay teacher in the Soto Zen tradition. She is the author of a number of books about Buddhism, including the humor book The Life and Letters of Tofu Roshi and This Is Getting Old: Zen Thoughts on Aging with Humor and Dignity. For many years she was the editor of Turning Wheel, the journal of socially engaged Buddhism. Her short stories and essays have been published widely.Sue has been a Zen student since 1976, practicing in the lineage of Suzuki Roshi at Berkeley Zen Center, Tassajara Zen Mountain Monastery, Green Gulch Farm, and now with Zoketsu Norman Fischer’s Everyday Zen sangha. She received “entrustment” as a lay teacher in 2005.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, November 11th, 2023 – Myo Lahey (15.1 MB, 1 hr 1 min).
Rev. Myō Denis LaheyTeachers
Rev. Myō Lahey is the guiding teacher for our sangha. Rev. Myō became interested in Zen as a teenager and started full-time residential practice at the San Francisco Zen Center in 1982. He received dharma transmission from Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1999 and served as head of practice at Tassajara Zen Mountain Monastery from 2000 – 2002. He is now Abbot of Hartford Street Zen Center in San Francisco. (http://www.hszc.org)Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, November 6th, 2023 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (13 MB, 56 min).
Rev. So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Saturday, Novemeber 4th, 2023 by Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah (9.12 MB, 35 min).
Rev. Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler KatonahBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Ino, or head of the meditation hall. She studies in the Soto Zen lineage with Sojun Diane Martin, founder and guiding teacher of Udumbara Zen Center in Illinois and Rev. Val Szymanski, Head Priest of Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in California. She was lay ordained in 2008 and priest ordained in 2019. She served as head student for the Spring practice period at Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha this May 2022. She offers Practice Interviews upon request.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, October 23rd, 2023 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (11.1 MB, 47 min).
Rev. So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, October 2nd, 2023 by Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah and Malia McCarthy (7.6 MB, 33 min).
Rev. Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler KatonahBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Ino, or head of the meditation hall. She studies in the Soto Zen lineage with Sojun Diane Martin, founder and guiding teacher of Udumbara Zen Center in Illinois and Rev. Val Szymanski, Head Priest of Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in California. She was lay ordained in 2008 and priest ordained in 2019. She served as head student for the Spring practice period at Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha this May 2022. She offers Practice Interviews upon request.Malia McCarthyBoard of Directors
Malia is a member of the Valley Streams Board of Directors and serves as secretary. She recentlyretired from the practice of child and adolescent psychiatry. She has two daughters in college and livesin Davis with her husband. She feels very fortunate to have been able to practice with Valley Streamssince 2019Right-click to Download File
Talk given on Saturday, October 9th, 2023 – Susan Farrar (11.6 MB, 50 min).
Susan FarrarBoard of Directors
Susan Farrar practices in two traditions---in the Tibetan tradition with Lion’s Roar Dharma Center since 2008, and more recently, with Valley Streams Zen Sangha. She completed the 2-year Foundation of Buddhist Thought training in 2014 and the Chaplaincy Program from the Sati Center for Buddhist Studies in 2019. She volunteers as a chaplain at U.C. Davis Medical Center and has volunteered as a hospice worker also through U.C Davis. She is also active in various activities surrounding food insecurity in the Sacramento community.Prior to her retirement in 2004, Susan worked as a law office manager and as a research manager specializing in data and demographic research. She has a BA from the University of Colorado and post-graduate work at UCLA.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Saturday, October 7th, 2023 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (10.9 MB, 41 min).
Rev. So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, October 2nd, 2023 by Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah and Malia McCarthy (16.4 MB, 1 hr 7 min).
Rev. Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler KatonahBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Ino, or head of the meditation hall. She studies in the Soto Zen lineage with Sojun Diane Martin, founder and guiding teacher of Udumbara Zen Center in Illinois and Rev. Val Szymanski, Head Priest of Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in California. She was lay ordained in 2008 and priest ordained in 2019. She served as head student for the Spring practice period at Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha this May 2022. She offers Practice Interviews upon request.Malia McCarthyBoard of Directors
Malia is a member of the Valley Streams Board of Directors and serves as secretary. She recentlyretired from the practice of child and adolescent psychiatry. She has two daughters in college and livesin Davis with her husband. She feels very fortunate to have been able to practice with Valley Streamssince 2019Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, September 25th, 2023 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (15.3 MB, 1 hr 3 min).
Rev. So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, September 11th, 2023 – Myo Lahey (12.8 MB, 54 min).
Rev. Myō Denis LaheyTeachers
Rev. Myō Lahey is the guiding teacher for our sangha. Rev. Myō became interested in Zen as a teenager and started full-time residential practice at the San Francisco Zen Center in 1982. He received dharma transmission from Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1999 and served as head of practice at Tassajara Zen Mountain Monastery from 2000 – 2002. He is now Abbot of Hartford Street Zen Center in San Francisco. (http://www.hszc.org)Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given by Rev. Renshin Bunce on Monday, August 28th, 2023 – (13.2 MB, 56 min).
Rev. Renshin BunceVisiting Teacher
Rev. Renshin Bunce is a California native, born in Marin County and raised in Southern California. In midlife, yearning for a peaceful mind, she began meditating, and met her teacher Myogen Steve Stücky in January of 1994. She made jukai (took her lay vows) with Myogen at Dharma Eye Zen Center in 1996, was priest ordained by Zenkei Blanche Hartman at San Francisco Zen Center in 2003, served as Shuso (head student) with Myogen at Tassajara in 2008, and received dharma transmission from him at Tassajara in April of 2013.Renshin lived at Zen Center for seven years, and then began training as a chaplain. She moved out of Zen Center in 2008 and worked as a hospice chaplain from 2010 until retiring in 2022.She has written two books, Entering the Monastery, a record of her time at Zen Center, which was published in 2008; and Love and Fear, reflections on chaplaincy, which was published in 2020.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Saturday, August 7th, 2023 – Rev. Mary Mocine (9.8 MB, 42 min).
Rev. Zenki Mary MocineVisiting Teacher
Reverend Mary Mocine is abbess of Clear Water Zendo in Vallejo. She was trained at San Francisco and Berkeley Zen Centers, and Tassajara Zen Monastery. She was ordained in 1994 by Sojun Mel Weitsman, former Abbot of San Francisco Zen Center and continuing Abbot of the Berkeley Zen Center. Reverend Mocine has also trained with Abbess Zenkei Blanche Hartman and former Abbots Zoketsu Norman Fischer and Tenshin Reb Anderson of the San Francisco Zen Center. She received dharma transmission from Sojun Mel Weitsman in May 2005.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Saturday, August 5th, 2023 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (12.9 MB, 49 min).
Dharma Talk given on Monday, April 24th, 2023 by Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah (9.11 MB, 37 min).
Dharma Talk given on Monday, June 26th, 2023 – Rev. Shōku Kathy Early (11.3 MB, 49 min).
Way Seeking Mind talk given on Monday, June 19th, 2023 by Malia McCarthy (14.4 MB, 1 hr 1 min).
This performance was organized/directed by sangha member Sarah OGara. This beloved text, unique among Buddhist Scriptures, contains the quintessence of Mahayana doctrines, taught with vivid imagery, dramatic encounters and sly […]
Practice Talk given by Oscar Balaguer on Monday, May 22th, 2023 – (Audio Version: 13.3MB, 58 min).
Oscar BalaguerSenior Student
A longtime Zen practitioner and member of Valley Streams, Oscar was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, April 24th, 2023 by Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah (9.14 MB, 39 min).
Rev. Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler KatonahBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Ino, or head of the meditation hall. She studies in the Soto Zen lineage with Sojun Diane Martin, founder and guiding teacher of Udumbara Zen Center in Illinois and Rev. Val Szymanski, Head Priest of Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in California. She was lay ordained in 2008 and priest ordained in 2019. She served as head student for the Spring practice period at Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha this May 2022. She offers Practice Interviews upon request.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, May 6th, 2023 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (8.7 MB, 32 min).
Rev. So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, May 1st, 2023 – Myo Lahey (12.9 MB, 54 min).
Rev. Myō Denis LaheyTeachers
Rev. Myō Lahey is the guiding teacher for our sangha. Rev. Myō became interested in Zen as a teenager and started full-time residential practice at the San Francisco Zen Center in 1982. He received dharma transmission from Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1999 and served as head of practice at Tassajara Zen Mountain Monastery from 2000 – 2002. He is now Abbot of Hartford Street Zen Center in San Francisco. (http://www.hszc.org)Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, April 24th, 2023 by Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah (3.4 MB, 15 min).
Rev. Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler KatonahBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Ino, or head of the meditation hall. She studies in the Soto Zen lineage with Sojun Diane Martin, founder and guiding teacher of Udumbara Zen Center in Illinois and Rev. Val Szymanski, Head Priest of Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in California. She was lay ordained in 2008 and priest ordained in 2019. She served as head student for the Spring practice period at Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha this May 2022. She offers Practice Interviews upon request.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, April 17th, 2023 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (12.5 MB, 54 min).
Rev. So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period.Please specify the URL of your file
Dharma Talk given on Saturday, April 10th, 2023 – Rev. Mary Mocine (14.6 MB, 1hr).
Gambō Berry CrawfordOther Sangha Leaders
Berry has been a Zen practitioner since 1992. In the mid 90’s he lived for a year at a Soto Zen monastery and afterwards practiced with Diane Rizzetto in Charlotte Joko Beck’s Ordinary Mind Zen School. He is a fully ordained priest in the Clear Mind Zen school. Ecumenical by nature, he continues his Zen practice in various Zen traditions. At Valley Streams he is a member of the Dōan-ryo, serves as Valley Streams’ webmaster and representative on the Sacramento Dharma Center Board. He is the host of the Simplicity Zen Podcast (https://simplicityzen.com/) and maintains the Science of Zen website (https://scienceofzen.org/).Right-click to Download File Talk Notes:Science_of_Zen_Lecture_NotesDownload
Dharma Talks given on 3/1/2023 by Kokyo Henkel
Rev. Kokyo HenkelVisiting Teacher
Kokyo Henkel has been practicing Zen since 1990, in residence at Tassajara Zen Mountain Center, most recently as Tanto (Head of Practice), Green Gulch Farm Zen Center, No Abode Hermitage in Mill Valley, Bukkokuji Monastery in Japan, and Santa Cruz Zen Center.He was ordained as a Zen priest in 1994 by Tenshin Anderson Roshi and received Dharma Transmission from him in 2010. Kokyo is interested in exploring how the original teachings of Buddhadharma from ancient India, China, and Japan are still very much alive and useful in present-day America to bring peace and harmony to this troubled world.Part 1:Right-click to Download File Part 2:Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Saturday, March 27th, 2023 – Rev. Mary Mocine (12.2 MB, 48 min).
Rev. Zenki Mary MocineVisiting Teacher
Reverend Mary Mocine is abbess of Clear Water Zendo in Vallejo. She was trained at San Francisco and Berkeley Zen Centers, and Tassajara Zen Monastery. She was ordained in 1994 by Sojun Mel Weitsman, former Abbot of San Francisco Zen Center and continuing Abbot of the Berkeley Zen Center. Reverend Mocine has also trained with Abbess Zenkei Blanche Hartman and former Abbots Zoketsu Norman Fischer and Tenshin Reb Anderson of the San Francisco Zen Center. She received dharma transmission from Sojun Mel Weitsman in May 2005.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Saturday, March 20th, 2023 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (10.0 MB, 43 min).
Rev. So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period.Right-click to Download File
Way Seeking Mind talk given on Monday, March 13th, 2023 – Jody Ansell (7.5 MB, 32 min).
Jody AnsellBoard of Directors
Jody Ansell started meditating in 2008 with One Drop Rinzai Zen’s Water Moon Sangha. She has been sitting with Valley Streams since 2014. She is retired, a hiking and biking enthusiast and a poet.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, March 6th, 2023 – Myo Lahey (10.3 MB, 44 min).
Rev. Myō Denis LaheyTeachers
Rev. Myō Lahey is the guiding teacher for our sangha. Rev. Myō became interested in Zen as a teenager and started full-time residential practice at the San Francisco Zen Center in 1982. He received dharma transmission from Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1999 and served as head of practice at Tassajara Zen Mountain Monastery from 2000 – 2002. He is now Abbot of Hartford Street Zen Center in San Francisco. (http://www.hszc.org)Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Saturday, March 4th, 2023 by Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah (6.3 MB, 26 min).
Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler KatonahBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Ino, or head of the meditation hall. She studies in the Soto Zen lineage with Sojun Diane Martin, founder and guiding teacher of Udumbara Zen Center in Illinois and Rev. Val Szymanski, Head Priest of Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in California. She was lay ordained in 2008 and priest ordained in 2019. She served as head student for the Spring practice period at Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha this May 2022. She offers Practice Interviews upon request.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, February 27th, 2023 – Hoka Chris Fortin (10.2 MB, 43 min).
Hoka Soko Chris FortinVisiting Teacher
Chris began her practice in 1976 at the San Francisco Zen Center, and received Dharma Transmission from Zoketsu Norman Fischer. She is founding and guiding teacher of the Dharma Heart Zen sanghas in Sonoma County, an Everyday Zen senior priest and teacher, and guiding teacher for Sky Island Zen in Tucson, AZ. She offers retreats and practice groups through SF Zen Center that include Jizo Bodhisattva Journeys through grief and change, Jizo Ceremonies, Wildland Firefights Retreats. She co-founded Veterans Path for current era veterans and co-facilitates (with Valley Streams Ino Doralee Grindler Katonah) an ongoing Racial and Social Justice as Dharma Practice group.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Saturday, January 20th, 2023 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (11.7 MB, 50 min).
So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, February 13th, 2023 – Rev. Shōku Kathy Early (15.6 MB, 57 min).
Shōku Kathy EarlyVisiting Teacher
Shōku Kathy Early came to zen practice in 1994 through classes with Tenshin Reb Anderson at the Yoga Room in Berkeley while working as a semiconductor engineer in Silicon Valley. She then practiced for several years with Keido Les Kaye at Kannon Do Zen Center in Mountain View, after which she trained at San Francisco Zen Center for 16 years. She was priest ordained by Tenshin Anderson in 2005. Shōku also spent a year and a half in residence at Toshoji International Training Monastery, in Okayama, Japan, including four angos (90 day training periods).Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, February 4th, 2023 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (12.5 MB, 48 min).
So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, January 30th, 2023 – Rev. Taiga Ito (8.66 MB, 37 min).
Rev. Taiga ItoVisiting Teacher
Rev. Taiga Ito, trained at Daihonzan Sojiji, one of the head monasteries of Soto Shu (Soto Zen in Japan). In 2016, Taiga Ito became Kokusaifukyoshi (international teacher of Soto Shu). He served as secretary of the Soto Zen Buddhism International Center between 2016 and 2018, and has served as its Assistant Director since 2019.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, January 2nd, 2023 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (12.8 MB, 55 min).
Shuji Cody MillerSenior Student
Shuji Cody Miller began practice in the Soto Zen lineage of Shunryu Suzuki at the San Francisco Zen Center in 2015. He was lay ordained in 2016 through Anshin Rosalie Curtis and began practicing with the Valley Streams Zen Sangha in 2020. When not working at the clinic as a Doctor of Chiropractic, he loves spending time hiking in nature with his wife and son.Right-click to Download File
Talk given on Monday, January 16th, 2023 by Sarah O’Gara (13.6 MB, t8 min).
Sarah O'GaraBoard of Directors, Practice Committee
Sarah has practiced in several different Buddhist traditions including Nichiren Shoshu’s Soka Gakkai, the Chan lineage of Master Sheng Yen and, since 2007, in the Soto Zen lineage of Shunryu Suzuki Roshi. She shares her avocation for botany and the natural world leading hikes for the Sacramento Valley Conservancy and volunteering at the Cosumnes River Preserve. She is a retired IT professional and former camp cook for Forest Service backcountry work crews.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Saturdat, January 7th, 2023 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (12.9 MB, 48 min).
So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, January 2nd, 2023 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (8.9 MB, 38 min).
So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, December 12th, 2022 – Susan Moon (14.1 MB, 1 hr 1min).
Susan MoonVisiting Teacher
Susan Moon is a writer, editor, and lay teacher in the Soto Zen tradition. She is the author of a number of books about Buddhism, including the humor book The Life and Letters of Tofu Roshi and This Is Getting Old: Zen Thoughts on Aging with Humor and Dignity. For many years she was the editor of Turning Wheel, the journal of socially engaged Buddhism. Her short stories and essays have been published widely.Sue has been a Zen student since 1976, practicing in the lineage of Suzuki Roshi at Berkeley Zen Center, Tassajara Zen Mountain Monastery, Green Gulch Farm, and now with Zoketsu Norman Fischer’s Everyday Zen sangha. She received “entrustment” as a lay teacher in 2005.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Sunday, December 4th, 2022 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (9.3 MB, 36 min).
So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, November 28th, 2022 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (11.1 MB, 48 min).
So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period.Right-click to Download File
Way Seeking Mind Talk given on Monday, November 21st, 2022 – Brendan O’Brian (12.3 MB, 53 min).
Brendan O’BrianSenior Student
Shi Shin Brendan O’Brien has been a member of the Valley Streams community for the past three years. He is also a member of the Hartford Street Zen Sangha in San Francisco. Recently, in October, he received the Bodhisattva precepts from Rev. Myō Lahey and Rev. So’On Jim Hare. Brendan is a student of history at Sacramento State University and works as a civil servant for the State of California.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, November 14th, 2022 – Myo Lahey (12.9 MB, 55 min).
Rev. Myō Denis LaheyTeachers
Rev. Myō Lahey is the guiding teacher for our sangha. Rev. Myō became interested in Zen as a teenager and started full-time residential practice at the San Francisco Zen Center in 1982. He received dharma transmission from Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1999 and served as head of practice at Tassajara Zen Mountain Monastery from 2000 – 2002. He is now Abbot of Hartford Street Zen Center in San Francisco. (http://www.hszc.org)Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, November 7th, 2022 – Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler Katonah (11.6 MB, 49 min).
Parāvṛtti Doralee Grindler KatonahBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Ino, or head of the meditation hall. She studies in the Soto Zen lineage with Sojun Diane Martin, founder and guiding teacher of Udumbara Zen Center in Illinois and Rev. Val Szymanski, Head Priest of Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha in California. She was lay ordained in 2008 and priest ordained in 2019. She served as head student for the Spring practice period at Bamboo in the Wind Zen Sangha this May 2022. She offers Practice Interviews upon request.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, October 24th, 2022 – Robert Rosenbaum (13.3 MB, 57 min).
Meikyo Robert Rosenbaum, PhDVisiting Teacher
Meikyo Robert Rosenbaum, PhD, received lay entrustment in Soto Zen from Sojun Mel Weitsman. He is also authorized as a senior teacher of the Taoist practice of Dayan (Wild Goose) Qigong in the lineage of Yang Meijun by Master Hui Liu. In addition, he has received denkai in Ordinary Mind Zen from Karen Terzano. Bob teaches Zen and Qigong at the Meadowmind Center in Sacramento.Bob is the author of several books including Zen and the Heart of Psychotherapy, Walking the Way : 81 Zen Encounters with Tao Te Ching and most recently, That is not your Mind! Zen Reflections on the Sarangama Sutra.Right-click to Download File
Talk given on Monday, October 17th, 2022 – Dave Jarrell (11.2 MB, 48 min).
Dave JarrellBoard of Directors
Dave was first attracted to Buddhism, and Zen in particular, through the writings of Thich Nhat Hanh and Shunryu Suzuki Roshi. He works on the staff of Child Advocates of El Dorado County, and when not engaged with work or sangha, he enjoys wandering through the Sierra Nevada.Right-click to Download File
A Talk given on October 10th, 2022 by Tony Wallin-Sato (16.9 MB, 1 hr 12 min).
Tony Wallin-SatoTony Wallin-Sato is a Japanese American who works with formerly/currently incarcerated individuals in higher education and is a long time Zen practitioner. He received the Jukai precepts in October 2022. He is on the board of directors of the Boundless Freedom Project.Right-click to Download File
Dharma Talk given on Monday, October 3rd, 2022 – Rev. So’on Jim Hare (12.2 MB, 52 min).
So'on Jim HareBoard of Directors, Practice Committee, Teachers
Serves as Tanto, or head of practice. He lived in the San Francisco Zen Center community from 1980 to 1984, was lay ordained by Tenshin Reb Anderson in 1985, and priest ordained by Myo Lahey in 2016. He served as Head Student at Green Gulch Farm during the spring 2002 practice period.Right-click to Download File
Practice Talk given by Rhonda V. Magee on Monday, September 12th, 2022 – (Audio Version: 17.9MB, 1 hr 13 min 10 sec).
A program presented by Paravrtti Doralee Grindler-Katonah and Sarah O’Gara in preparation for the September 12th program with Rhonda V. Magee, MA, JD. Recorded on Monday, September 5th, 2022 – (Audio Version: 16.0 […]
Practice Talk given by Oscar Balaguer on Monday, August 29th, 2022 – (Audio Version: 11.4MB, 56 min 10 sec).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. So On Jim Hare on Monday, July 18th, 2022 – (11.4MB, 47 min 3 sec).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. Renshin Bunce on Monday, August 8th, 2022 – (13.7MB, 56 min 13 sec).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. So On Jim Hare on Monday, July 18th, 2022 – (13.5MB, 59 min 10 sec).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. Paravrtti Doralee Grindler Katonah on Monday, June 27th, 2022 – (12.4 MB, 44 min).
Dharma Talk given by ev. Eijun Linda Cutts on Monday, June 13, 2022 – (13.6 MB, 37 min 50sec).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. Zenki Mary Mocine on Monday, June 6, 2022 – (12.5MB, 37 min 50sec).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. So On Jim Hare on Monday, May23, 2022 – (13.5MB, 37 min 50sec).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. Paravrtti Doralee Grindler Katonah on Monday, May 17th, 2022 – (10.6MB, 44 min).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. Hoka Chris Fortin on Monday, April 11th, 2022 – (12.8MB, 49 min).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. Paravrtti Doralee Grindler Katonah on Monday, April 4, 2022 – (4.7MB, 19 min).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. So On Jim Hare on Monday, April 2, 2022 – (9.5MB, 37 min 50sec).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. So On Jim Hare on Monday, March 21, 2022 – (4.74MB, 20 min 24sec).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. So On Jim Hare on Monday, March 14, 2022 – (14.1MB, 1 hour 1 min).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. So On Jim Hare on Monday, February 21, 2022 – (8.8MB, 37 min).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. Paravrtti Doralee Grindler Katonah on Monday, February 14, 2022 – (12.5MB, 51 min).
Dharma Talk given on Monday, February 7, 2022 by Shoku Kathy Early (15.9MB, 1 hour 3 min).
“Who Am I?” – Dharma Talk given by Rev. So On Jim Hare on Saturday, February 5, 2022 during a one day sitting – (10.7MB, 41 min).
Dharma Talk given on Monday, January 31, 2022 by Rev. Taiga Ito, Assistant Director Soto Zen Buddhism International Center (3.2MB, 59 min).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. So On Jim Hare and Raphael Calix on Monday, January 24, 2022 – (18.8MB, 1 hour 13 min).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. Paravrtti Doralee Grindler Katonah on Monday, December 6, 2021 – (13.1MB, 51 min).
Following are four dharma talks given by Rev. So On Jim Hare during Valley Streams Zen Sangha’s annual Rohatsu sesshin which took place on November 28, 2021 – December 5, […]
Dharma Talk given by Rev. So On Jim Hare on Monday, November 29, 2021 – (12.9MB, 53 min).
Dharma Talk given on Monday, November 22, 2021 by Rev. Nyokai Laurie Senauke (15.9MB, 58 min).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. So On Jim Hare on Monday, October 11, 2021 – (13.6MB, 54 min).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. Paravrtti Doralee Grindler Katonah on Monday, August 2, 2021 – (14.1MB, 55 min).
“Benefitting All Beings – The four Immeasurables of Loving Kindness, Compassion, Sympathetic Joy and Equanimity” – two Dharma Talks given by Rev. So On Jim Hare on Saturday, July 3, […]
“Benefitting All Beings” – Part 1 – Dharma Talk given by Rev. So On Jim Hare on Monday, June 28, 2021 (13.8MB, 54 minutes).
Selected portions of “Allowing Emptiness to Fill the Page: a Sitting & Writing Retreat” – given by Beth Jacobs on Saturday, June 5, 2021 are set forth in this recording […]
Dharma Talk given on Monday, June 7, 2021 by Rev. Korin Charlie Pokorny (19.9MB, 1 hour 15 min).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. So On Jim Hare on Monday, May 24, 2021 – (16.6MB, 1 hour 2 min).
“Riding the (Mind) Donkey” – Dharma Talk given by Rev. So On Jim Hare on Saturday, May 1, 2021 during a one-day sitting – (15.8MB, 1 hour).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. So On Jim Hare on Monday, April 5, 2021 – (17MB, 1 hour 5 min).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. Doralee Grindler Katonah on Saturday, April 3, 2021 during a one-half day sitting – (400 KB, 33 min).
Practice Talk given by Sho Kan Clement Spring on Monday, March 15, 2021 – (15.6MB, 1 hour 2 min).
Luzu asked Nanquan, ” ‘People don’t recognize the wish-fulfilling jewel which is intimately obtained from the tathagata-garbha (heart/womb of buddha)’. What is the garbha?” Nanquan said, “It is that in […]
Dharma Talk given on Monday, February 22, 2021 by Rev. Taiga Ito, Assistant Director Soto Zen Buddhism International Center (12.6MB, 50 min).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. So On Jim Hare on Monday, February 15, 2021 – (18.2MB, 1 hour 10 min).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. So On Jim Hare on Monday, January 25, 2021 – (13.2MB, 50 min).
“Program Inspired by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.” – a panel discussion given on Monday January 18, 2021 (19.9MB, 1 hour 15 min).
“Practicing Kind Speech” – Dharma Talk given by Rev. So On Jim Hare on Saturday, January 9, 2021 during a one-day sitting – (10.3MB, 39 min).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. So On Jim Hare on Monday, December 14, 2020 – (13MB, 50 min).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. So On Jim Hare on Saturday, December 5, 2020 during virtual Rohatsu Sesshin – (13.7MB, 53 min).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. So On Jim Hare on Monday, November 30, 2020 – (7.8MB, 31 min).
“Resting the mind in the midst of the habitual activity of thought is the ultimate form of relaxation” – Dharma Talk given by Rev. So On Jim Hare on Saturday, […]
Dharma Talk given on Monday, November 2, 2020 by Rev. Hozan Alan Senauke (13MB, 52 min).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. Doralee Grindler Katonah on Monday, October 26, 2020 – (15MB, 58 min).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. So On Jim Hare on Monday, September 21, 2020 – (14.5MB, 54 min).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. So On Jim Hare on Monday, September 14, 2020 – (17.5MB, 1 hour 5 min).
Dharma Talk given on Monday, August 31, 2020 – Rev. Zenju Earthlyn Manuel (16.2MB, 1 hour 4 min).
Dharma Talk given on Monday, August 10, 2020 – Shosan Vicki Austin (14.7MB, 1 hour 1 min).
“Rollin’s Excellent Adventure – A Wholehearted Effort to Find My Way”. A Way-Seeking Mind Talk given on Monday, July 13, 2020 (5.9MB, 53 minutes).
“The Healing Practice of Still Sitting” – Virtual Dharma Talk given by Rev. So On Jim Hare on Saturday, July 11, 2020 during a one day sitting via Zoom videoconference […]
“The Courage to Live Beyond our Stories” – Dharma Talk given by Rev. So On Jim Hare on Monday, June 15, 2020 – (6MB, 58 min).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. Mary Mocine on Monday, June 8, 2020 via Zoom videoconference (8.2MB, 1 hour 2 min).
Dharma Talk given by Rev. Konjin Gaelyn Godwin on Monday, May 11, 2020 via Zoom video conference (10.3MB, 1 hour 13 min).
Teaching given on Monday, May 4, 2020 via Zoom video conference – David Loy (10.6MB, 1 hour 14 minutes).
Dharma Talk on Hakuin given by Rev. Mary Mocine on Monday, March 2, 2020 (5.8MB, 42 min).
“A Good Voyage of Nothing” – Dharma Talk given by Rev. So On Jim Hare on Saturday, February 1, 2020 during a one day sitting – (6.2MB, 41 min).