PODCAST

Angel City Zen Center - Beginners Only Podcast

Angel City Zen Center

Weekly public talks recorded live at the Angel City Zen Center

religion & spirituality buddhism

All Episodes

36:20

Ordinarily Extraordinary (What Am I Doing Here??) w/...

Angel City Zen Center - Beginners Only Podcast ·

2025/12/19

Great sangha friend Beth Kaiserman brings us the story of what she’s doing and why she’s here; a story about spirituality for the irreligious and making a practice out of expressing yourself from the cushion to the page to the stage, even when deep down we might get the sneaking suspicion there’s nothing to explain. Who did we learn our resistance to authority from? Is it ever possible to truly do nothing? Can we, or should we even try to, make ourselves legible?? Find out here!

36:11

Dark mind, Radiant heart (Rohatsu) w/ Sara Campbell

Angel City Zen Center - Beginners Only Podcast ·

2025/12/12

In a rousing exhortation for retreat, Sara takes on the impossible question of what exactly happened to Buddha the night he sat too long under a tree and apparently fixed everything. Is Buddha’s enlightenment for everybody, or is that just an ego’s fantasy? Why is a sense of belonging often such a foreign concept? What are we bursting to say after days of learning to silently communicate?? Find out here!

43:51

Tiny Revolutions (Transmission) w/ Dave Cuomo

Angel City Zen Center - Beginners Only Podcast ·

2025/12/05

“ The revolution is in the individual spirit, or it is nowhere. It is for all or it is nothing. If it is seen as having an end, it will never truly begin.” Ursula Le Guin Dave passes the caretaker torch and talks about dharma transmission, continuous practice, and never ending revolutions. Can we honor the past without being doomed to repeat it? Were the great masters of the past ever supposed to be role models? Are our charismatic teachers what’s holding us back? Find out here!

32:17

Kerplunk! (Zen and the Art of Art) w/ Matthew Sherling

Angel City Zen Center - Beginners Only Podcast ·

2025/11/28

ACZC’s favorite poet in residence Matthew gives us a talk on Zen, creativity, and art and the many frictions and harmonies between them. Can we train spontaneity? Does Zen’s famous skepticism of the written word discourage or liberate our writing? If we’re so focused on letting our thoughts go, will we still be able to grab the good ones and get them on the page?? Find out here!

28:56

The Golden Tone (Nostalgia) w/ Sara Campbell

Angel City Zen Center - Beginners Only Podcast ·

2025/11/21

“You can go home again, so long as you understand that home is a place where you have never been.” - Ursula Le GuinSara kicks off the holiday season with a Zen look at nostalgia, going home, and living the past right here in the present moment. How do we honor where we’ve been without missing where we are? Does trying to live in the present mean we’re avoiding the past? Is the past a place never to be met again, or does it always exist everywhere?? Find out here!!

44:31

An Unwanted Koan (What Am I Doing Here??) w/ Resa...

Angel City Zen Center - Beginners Only Podcast ·

2025/11/14

“She said, ‘This isn’t the koan you wanted.’ And I thought about that. What do you do with a koan you don't want? Usually, if it's a koan, you didn't want it.” - Resa AlboherLong time sangha stalwart and dear friend Resa Alboher brings us the epic adventure of what brought her to ACZC across continents, decades of earth shaking world events, and moments of life altering personal ones as well. What do we with the koan we didn’t want? How do we sit still when lying down is all we can actually

34:13

The Authenticity Problem (Hopeless Faith) w/ Dave Cuomo

Angel City Zen Center - Beginners Only Podcast ·

2025/11/07

“What are you doing if you're not trying, or trying not to be doing something? Everything you're doing.” - Dave CuomoDave gives us an exhortation to hopeless faith for the hopelessly secular who might still be in the market for meaning and purpose. Can we really base a strong and sincere faith on literally nothing? Can skepticism and doubt be both the prison and the way out? Is it possible to believe in something you don’t already believe in? Is any of this up to us if the truth is it was never

32:11

The Economics of Enlightenment (Abundance?) w/ Sara...

Angel City Zen Center - Beginners Only Podcast ·

2025/10/31

Sara explores the trend of abundance mentalities and the uncertain economics of trying to do what you want with your life. Do we already always have what we need? Is manifesting actually a Zen thing? How much work does it take to have pulled your weight, and what’s a fair price for staring at a wall these days?? Find out here!

28:42

So Intimate (Not Knowing) w/ Heather Ross

Angel City Zen Center - Beginners Only Podcast ·

2025/10/24

Heather makes some big life changes and takes the opportunity to explore the intimacy of not knowing. Do we need to find clarity before making a leap? Is the easiest way to steer to now know where you going? Can awkward silence be the sweetest of intimacies?? Find out here!

38:58

Zen Love Stories (Famous Zen Couples) w/ Dave Cuomo

Angel City Zen Center - Beginners Only Podcast ·

2025/10/17

Dave brings us stories of famous Zen couples and pairings from throughout Zen history and his own life to see what we can learn about intimacy, leadership, followership, service & servitude, friendship, community, family, commitment, and our possible fears of any or all of those things. When do our loyalties become a liability? Does looking up to our bosses have to be a recipe for getting let down? Does this famously asexual tradition have a few things to teach us about intimacy?? Find out

37:57

Get Lost (True Teachers) w/ Gyokei Yokoyama

Angel City Zen Center - Beginners Only Podcast ·

2025/10/10

Gyokei explores what it means to seek and find a true teacher through the story of his own yearning and search for one. Is the idea of a true teacher just one more delusion, will reality always betray our expectations? Should we practice with those we feel comfortable with or those who challenge us? Is giving up on people the best way to show your faith in them? Find out here!

37:41

Can’t We All Just Get Along? (Accord) w/ Dave Cuomo

Angel City Zen Center - Beginners Only Podcast ·

2025/10/03

Dave takes a historical and personal look at getting along with others and the magic sauce to finding a teacher and community you click with. Do we get to pick our sanghas any more than we get to pick our family? Is self reliance actually a Zen goal? And how do we get along in places where we’d definitely rather not belong?? Find out here!

30:36

The Deserving & The Undeserving (Doormats &...

Angel City Zen Center - Beginners Only Podcast ·

2025/09/26

Jordan walks us through a wonderfully complicated talk on being a compassionate person in our complex modern world - what we think it means, what we might wish for it to mean, and what honestly brings out the best in you and me. Can we be the kind person we long to be? How do we avoid just becoming a doormat in our kindness, and do the old teachings even want us to avoid being doormats (and are we ok with that)? Are we qualified to wield Zen’s famous so called fierce compassion, or are we kidding

33:18

Maybe It’s Me? (What Am I Doing Here??) w/ Bryan Turley

Angel City Zen Center - Beginners Only Podcast ·

2025/09/19

Bryan brings us the story of growing up in a Zen that was not his own, going off to look for meaning everywhere else, only to find himself right back maybe where he started, and maybe not at all. What does it take to find ourselves enough to know when we’ve found our people? What lies underneath our ethics, and can finding it help bring us together? Is the problem actually me, or is it maybe you? Find out here!

37:51

Imperially Alone (Loneliness) w/ Sara Campbell

Angel City Zen Center - Beginners Only Podcast ·

2025/09/12

Sara takes a Zen look at loneliness and the isolations we so often lament and long for. What’s the difference between loneliness and being alone? Do we get to pick our friends and community? Why do they make it sound like the goal of practice is to not need to rely on others at all, while also telling us there’s no such thing as ever truly being alone?? Find out here!

39:17

Enjoy Your Self (Making Peace) w/ Dave Cuomo

Angel City Zen Center - Beginners Only Podcast ·

2025/09/05

Dave brings us a talk on how to make peace with ourselves, guaranteed, after a difficult retreat when he’s feeling anything but peaceful. Whats the fool proof recipe to make peace with yourself and the world around you? Is it healthy to get people together in a room and convince them there's a good reason (we won’t tell you) to be uncomfortable and likely unhappy for extended lengths of time, and that your reward will be nothing? What was the final sign Dave had completely and totally given up on

31:27

The Abstract Folder (Agency and Acceptance) w/...

Angel City Zen Center - Beginners Only Podcast ·

2025/08/29

Matthew takes us on a spiritual journey through his curious resistance to Zen’s boundless acceptance. Is acceptance a hindrance to growth and change? Do we ultimately fear the contentment we seek? Does our Zen have room for both aimlessness and agency?? Find out here!

33:30

Home Unbound (Safety & Anxiety) w/ Samm

Angel City Zen Center - Beginners Only Podcast ·

2025/08/22

Samm takes us on a lyrical and lucid walk through what it means to be at home wherever you are, with some infotaining side quests into the relationship between polyvagal theory and zazen along the way. Why don’t we feel safe even when we apparently are? What (if any!) control do we have over our nervous system? Is too much discipline just another distraction or is an inconsistent regimen the most disciplined kind?? Find out here!

01:12:11

Faith With Eyes Wide Open (Boundaries & Scandal) w/...

Angel City Zen Center - Beginners Only Podcast ·

2025/08/15

Good teachers go bad - which is confusing and upsetting. Dave does his best to walk us through best practices for managing boundaries, roles, and scandals in Zen as a balanced part of this complete practice. Is there something about Zen that makes it particularly prone to scandal? Are there things about Soto Zen that make it peculiarly well setup for healthy sanghas relationships? Were our teachers ever worthy of the roles we put them in, and do we even need such teachers at all?? Find out

33:24

The Big Gulp (Healthy Desire) w/ Sara Campbell

Angel City Zen Center - Beginners Only Podcast ·

2025/08/08

Sara takes an honest look at desire to see if she can afford a fulfilling life with less filling pay. How can desires lead to fulfillment? Is too little ambition just as dangerous as too much? If we really followed Buddha’s prescriptions could the internet even exist?? Find out here!

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Angel City Zen Center - Beginners Only Podcast

All Episodes

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