Summary: Episode Description: In this, his debut dharma talk as a Sensei, Shinzan addresses the questions: "what is the meaning of practice? What is the meaning of path?" He approaches answering these questions from the very personal perspective of his own life. Offering the story of how he happened upon Zen. How he came to practice with Samu Sunim in Toronto. How he first met Roshi Joan and subsequently decided to come to Upaya. This talk is full of many beautiful gems of insight and wisdom that he picked up along the way. While on one hand Shinzan's journey is "nothing special," on the other it is truly remarkable and definitely inspirational. Bio: Sensei Shinzan Yoko Palma was born in Veracruz, Mexico. He has been practicing Zen since 1996. He met his former teacher, Korean Master Samu Sunim, in Mexico City and trained under his guidance for 8 years. He did a residential training for 4 years at the Zen Buddhist Temple in Toronto, Canada and was ordained as a novice priest by Samu Sunim in 2004. After leaving Canada, he was invited by Roshi Joan Halifax to come to Upaya in 2006. Shinzan asked Roshi to be her student and he was re-ordained as a Priest in 2007. Since then, he has been at Upaya practicing with the community. He is now Head Priest and Temple Coordinator, giving guidance to the residents on Zen training. He received dharma transmission in January, 2015. He has a sincere and strong heart committed to the Dharma.
