About this episode
I wish I could tell you this was the talk where Emily unveils the secret Zen teachings on immortality, but alas, as you probably could have guessed, that's not what we do here (at least not publicly...). But just as helpfully (if not more), Emily instead gives us a thoughtful and thorough exploration of Zen teachings on death. Starting with Buddha's (quite graphic) recommended meditations on the ultimate fate of our bodies, she draws on her own fears around the idea to help us all confront what exactly it is we're so afraid of. From there she explores the more confusing Zen notions of "No Death" as chanted in the heart sutra and talked about by Dogen. I know we love our emptiness around here, but how can we talk about no death when we know it as the one great inevitability? And can understanding this "no death" help us to manage our fear and maybe live a more fulfilled life in the here and now by realizing the death and rebirth happening within every moment? (Spoiler alert: yes!). Along the way we get an introduction to Dogen's trippy notions of time and the sangha opens up and shares their own stories of love and loss.