Bernie Glassman at Upaya

Roshi Bernie Glassman, an American Zen teacher who blended Zen practice with social action, reflects on householders and sangha in everyday life. He contrasts monastic training with bringing practice into workplaces and cafés for the homeless. He urges engaging unfamiliar communities, making the world the training ground, and balancing oneness with responsibility.

Roshi Bernie Glassman, an American Zen teacher and founder of the Zen Peacemakers, speaks on council practice and bearing witness. He explores listening-from-the-heart, not-knowing in organizational life, and how to balance counsel with decisive action. He also reflects on adapting Zen forms into apt upayas for contemporary, culturally fit practice.

Roshi Bernie Glassman, a Zen teacher and social-justice leader who founded the Zen Peacemakers, discusses the Three Tenets: not knowing, bearing witness, and loving action. He applies these to the ecological crisis, ethics and power, personal conditioning, relationships, and practical street practice. Short stories and metaphors illuminate how listening and vows guide compassionate, non-attached action.

Roshi Bernie Glassman, a Zen teacher and social-justice practitioner who founded the Zen Peacemakers, reflects on how humans form exclusionary "clubs." He recounts the origins and rules of street retreats, shares striking stories from Auschwitz and the streets, and explores how bearing witness and simple liturgies restore connection and dignity.

Roshi Bernie Glassman, a Zen teacher and social activist who founded the Zen Peacemakers, discusses attachment to meditative states, preferences, and opinions. He contrasts tools of practice with clinging, recounts bearing witness at Auschwitz and in conflict zones, and offers guidance for listening into fraught family relationships. Several stories highlight practicing amid fear and embracing diverse faiths.

Roshi Bernie Glassman, a Zen teacher who founded the Zen Peacemakers and champions socially engaged Buddhism, shares a family bath story that leads into the three tenets: not-knowing, bearing witness, and compassionate action. He explores nonduality, everyday practice, plunges like street immersions, and how to bring intimate presence into wider social action.

Roshi Bernie Glassman, Zen teacher and founder of the Zen Peacemakers, known for socially engaged Buddhism and street retreats. He discusses creating cafés and street-retreats to serve communities. He tells stories from Staten Island Ferry waiting rooms and Auschwitz retreats. He explains bearing witness, not knowing, and how community-driven projects and leadership transitions shape lasting social change.

Roshi Bernie Glassman, Zen teacher and founder of the Zen Peacemakers, known for socially engaged Buddhism. He explores hope versus optimism, how expectations create suffering, and the practice of bearing witness. Conversations cover interconnectedness, technology’s cultural impact, learning by doing in the streets, and practical programs like PathMakers.

Roshi Bernie Glassman, a Zen teacher and social entrepreneur who founded the Greyston Foundation and Zen Peacemakers, shares stories of creating integrated social programs. He discusses bearing witness in service, building jobs, childcare and housing, and transforming helpers’ attitudes. Conversations explore hope, vows, and entering work with openness and dignity.

A candid conversation about letting go through zazen and the practice of shikantaza, or emphatic just sitting. A vivid origin story of the phrase bearing witness, linked to an Auschwitz retreat and a startling wartime memoir. Reflections on nonduality leading to compassionate action, clear language for dharma, and balancing local service with personal limits.