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Talks by Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee
Talks by Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee
I & A Publishing

Talks by Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee

Self-ImprovementBuddhismEnglish

This is a series of newly digitized talks by spiritual teacher, Lola McDowell Lee, spanning two decades—from the early Seventies through the Nineties.

Lola was a Zen Roshi whose Rinzai lineage included Doctor Henry Platov and renowned Zen master, Shigetsu Sasaki. Lola was a religious scholar as well as an ordained Christian minister.

While the talks are focused mainly on Zen and Buddhism, Lola drew on many spiritual traditions—including those of Jesus, Plato, Lao-Tzu, the Hindu Vedas, Meister Eckhart and Gurdjieff.

If you find Lola’s talks valuable, more will be posted in days to come. RSSVERIFY

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Episodes

Where Taoism, Christianity and Zen meet. Delivered August 17, 1986
12 July 2026

Where Taoism, Christianity and Zen meet. Delivered August 17, 1986

Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee explores the interplay between ego, consciousness, and the spiritual path, drawing on Taoist, Buddhist, and Christian traditions.She explores the Taoist message of flowing with existence, free from effort or resistance. By aligning oneself with the totality of life, one can move beyond fear and obstruction.Lola recounts the biblical narrative of Adam and Eve and the...
Unlearning and existential trust. Delivered Aug 10, 1986
04 July 2026

Unlearning and existential trust. Delivered Aug 10, 1986

Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee, explores the concepts of unlearning, existential trust, and the structural dynamics of the ego.Lola describes the state of an enlightened individual as one whose nature has completely sunk back into its roots in the One. True spiritual power, she argues, is not achieved through cleverness, daring, or accumulated knowledge, but rather through an intense process of...
The Trap of Words - Delivered August 3, 1986
27 June 2026

The Trap of Words - Delivered August 3, 1986

Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee, recounts Chuang Tzu’s advice: the purpose of a fish trap is to catch fish, and once the fish are caught, the trap is forgotten. So too with words — once an idea is truly grasped, the words that carried it should be released. Yet we find this nearly impossible. Words stick. They cling to the mind and take on a life of their own, trapping the very people who use...
Zen is not an intellectual exercise. Delivered Jun 20, 1986
12 June 2026

Zen is not an intellectual exercise. Delivered Jun 20, 1986

(Note on the recording: Thank you for your patience. Many of the remaining cassettes of Lola’s talks have substantial noise and echo issues. To overcome that, I’m trying out a different software to clean the audio. This software removes the noises, but it also sounds slightly clipped. Just so you know...if this sounds a little different from what you're used to. For those of you that follow her...
Emptiness is not nothingness. Jul 14, 1986
16 May 2026

Emptiness is not nothingness. Jul 14, 1986

Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee, discusses the concept of the "Unborn," the central teaching of Master Bankei.Lola recounts the story of an arrogant Abbot trying to challenge Bankei. The Abbot told his congregation, “If I put a difficult question to him, I can stymie him with just one word. So saying this, he went off to see this supposed master. And here in this large crowd, in the middle of the...
How to enter a gateless gate. Delivered July 6, 1986
09 May 2026

How to enter a gateless gate. Delivered July 6, 1986

Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee, opens with the core question: How does one enter the gateless gate? Lola points to a mountain stream, suggesting that "listening" is entering. She distinguishes between the someone’s simple interest in Zen and the actual acquisition of a Zen mind.Lola says the spiritual path begins only when the soul moves beyond a mild interest in Zen and raises the question: "Who...
The Basic Teachings of Zen Meditation. Presented on June 29, 1986
02 May 2026

The Basic Teachings of Zen Meditation. Presented on June 29, 1986

(Note: Although there is some remaining quiet delayed echo from the original cassette tape, this talk by Lola about the basics of Zen meditation is still a good primer for a new student of the discipline)---Zen Roshi Lola McDowell Lee, explores the essence of Zen practice, noting that while the era of the 1960s opened Western minds to Eastern traditions, it often lacked the rigorous supervision...
Accumulating knowledge versus attaining true wisdom. June 22, 1986
11 April 2026

Accumulating knowledge versus attaining true wisdom. June 22, 1986

Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee, Lola discusses the distinction between accumulating knowledge and attaining true wisdom.Lola shares the koan about a monk who asked his teacher, “Is there a teaching no master ever preached before?” And the teacher said, yes, there is. What is it, asked the monk. And the teacher replied, it is not mind, it is not Buddha, it is not things..We require a different kind...
The Lesson of True Listening. June 15, 1986
01 April 2026

The Lesson of True Listening. June 15, 1986

Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee, explores the difference between merely seeking reality and actually experiencing it through the practice of true listening.Ancient Zen master, Tokai, is abruptly awakened from a nap by a frantic monk shouting about a fire under the kitchen floor. Rather than panicking or leaping into action regarding a future threat, Tokai requests that the monk wake him only when...
An exploration of the subject of death. Delivered Jun 8, 1986  
12 March 2026

An exploration of the subject of death. Delivered Jun 8, 1986  

Zen Roshi Lola McDowell Lee, opens by recounting the classic Zen koan of Master Dogo and his disciple Zengen. When visiting a deceased parishioner, Zengen asks if the person is alive or dead, to which Dogo refuses to answer either way. Even after Dogo’s passing, another master, Sakeso, repeats this refusal, telling Zengen, "No saying whatever".The story illustrates that life and death are not...