Henkel, K.

From Buddha-Nature


Kokyo Henkel

Kokyo Henkel has been practicing Zen since 1990 in residence at Tassajara Zen Mountain Center (most recently as Head of Practice), Green Gulch Farm Zen Center, No Abode Hermitage in Mill Valley, and Bukkokuji Monastery in Japan.

He was ordained as a priest in 1994 by Tenshin Anderson Roshi and received Dharma Transmission from him in 2010. Kokyo is interested in exploring how the original teachings of Buddha-Dharma from ancient India, China, and Japan can still be very much alive and useful in present-day America to bring peace and openness to the minds of this troubled world.

Kokyo has also been practicing with the Tibetan Dzogchen (“Great Completeness”) Teacher Tsoknyi Rinpoche since 2003, in California, Colorado, and Kathmandu. (Source Accessed Nov 20, 2020)

Library Items

Article
All Buddhas and All Living Beings Are Just This One Mind: Teachings of the Buddhas and Zen Ancestors on Buddha Nature, Empty Awareness, and Nonduality—Compiled by Kokyo Henkel
This is a compilation of several sources that speak about buddha-nature. These include:

Pabhassara Sutta
Kevaddha Sutta
Nibbana Sutta
Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita Sutra
Samdhinirmochana Sutra
Mahaparinirvana Sutra
Shrimaladevi Sutra
Tathagatagarbha Sutra
Lankavatara Sutra
Bodhidharma’s Breakthrough Sermon
Sengcan’s Song of the Trusting Mind
Hongren’s Treatise on the Supreme Vehicle
Huineng’s Platform Sutra
Yongjia’s Song of Realizing the Way
Shitou’s Record
Shitou’s Song of the Grass-Roof Hermitage
Dongshan’s Song of the Jewel Mirror Samadhi
Caoshan’s Verse
Guishan’s Record
Mazu’s Record
Baizhang’s Record
Huangbo’s Transmission of Mind
Linji’s Record
Nanquan’s Record
Changsha’s Record
Yunmen’s Record
Yuanwu’s Letters
Hongzhi’s Record
Dogen’s Treasury of the True Dharma Eye
Ejo’s Absorption in the Treasury of Light
Keizan’s Transmission of Light
32nd Ancestor Hongren
34th Ancestor Qingyuan
38th Ancestor Dongshan
40th Ancestor Dongan
46th Ancestor Tanxia
49th Ancestor Xuedou
52nd Ancestor Dogen
53rd Ancestor Ejo
Chinul’s Complete Sudden Attainment of Buddhahood
Chinul’s Secrets of Cultivating the Mind
Bassui’s One Mind
Bankei’s Record
Hakuin’s Four Cognitions
Menzan’s Self-Enjoyment Samadhi
Shunryu Suzuki’s Mind Waves (from "Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind")
Shunryu Suzuki’s Resuming Big Mind (from "Not Always So")
Padmasambhava’s Self-Liberation through Seeing with Naked Awareness
Dakpo Tashi Namgyal’s Clarifying the Natural State
Karma Chagmey’s Union of Mahamudra and Dzogchen

Jamgon Mipham’s Lamp that Dispels Darkness
Henkel, Kokyo. "All Buddhas and All Living Beings are Just This One Mind: Teachings of the Buddhas and Zen Ancestors on Buddha Nature, Empty Awareness, and Nonduality." Unpublished manuscript. n.d., PDF file. https://kokyohenkel.weebly.com/uploads/1/2/7/4/127410773/one_mind_buddha_nature_-_kokyo.pdf.
Article
Buddha Nature: The Inconceivable Inseparability of Emptiness and Compassionate Awareness
No abstract given. Here are the first relevant paragraphs

To understand what is meant by “Buddha Nature,” we can look at the story of the three turnings of the wheel of Dharma taught by Shakyamuni Buddha. The first turning of the Dharma wheel is the four noble truths: that discontent arises from grasping the ever-changing phenomena of body and mind as “me,” and that freedom from this discontent is revealed through the path of not grasping anything as truly me. The four noble truths is a kind of deconstruction method. However, in this first turning, all the different elements that we can deconstruct this person into really do exist. Earth, wind, fire and water, for example: those kind of physical elements, when you break them down into their smallest bits, are indestructible elemental energies or physical matter, atoms. Early Buddhists, who were first turning exponents, had this kind of theory—that the world is made up of atoms—several centuries B.C., long before modern scientists discovered atoms. We don’t really exist as independent “persons”; we are a conglomeration of all this stuff that we think is a real “me,” but if we look closely, we only find atoms. This turning of the Dharma wheel was only the first.

Read more here
Henkel, Kokyo. "Buddha Nature: The Inconceivable Inseparability of Emptiness and Compassionate Awareness." Unpublished manuscript. n.d., PDF file. https://kokyohenkel.weebly.com/uploads/1/2/7/4/127410773/buddha_nature.pdf.
Interview
Buddha-Nature in Early Chan and Japanese Zen by Rev. Kokyo Henkel: Conversations on Buddha-Nature
In this video, part of the ongoing series entitled "Conversations on Buddha-Nature" produced by the Tsadra Foundation, Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho and Rev. Kokyo Henkel discuss buddha-nature in early Chan and Japanese Zen and comparisons with Tibetan Dzogchen. They also discuss some Koans, Dōgen, and many textual sources from Indian sutras in Tibetan and Chinese translation to sources for key schools of Buddhism in China and Japan up to more modern texts.

Kokyo Henkel has been practicing Zen since 1990 in residence at Tassajara Zen Mountain Center (most recently as Head of Practice), Green Gulch Farm Zen Center, No Abode Hermitage in Mill Valley, and Bukkokuji Monastery in Japan. He was ordained as a priest in 1994 by Tenshin Anderson Roshi and received Dharma Transmission from him in 2010. Kokyo is interested in exploring how the original teachings of Buddha-Dharma from ancient India, China, and Japan can still be very much alive and useful in present-day America to bring peace and openness to the minds of this troubled world.

Kokyo has also been practicing with the Tibetan Dzogchen ("Great Completeness") Teacher Tsoknyi Rinpoche since 2003, in California, Colorado, and Kathmandu.
Henkel, Rev. Kokyo. "Buddha-Nature in Early Chan and Japanese Zen." Conversations on Buddha-Nature with Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho. Produced by the Tsadra Foundation Research Department, June 26, 2021. Video, 1:23:03. https://youtu.be/j_V3v-oqnNU.
Audio
Entire Being Is Buddha-Nature: Dōgen's Shōbōgenzō Busshō
In this audio series of seven class talks, Rev. Kokyo Henkel teaches on Dōgen's Busshō 仏性 (buddha-nature), part of his major work Shōbōgenzō. These talks were recorded at the Santa Cruz Zen Center from October–December, 2012.
Henkel, Kokyo. "Entire Being Is Buddha-Nature: Dōgen's Shōbōgenzō Busshō." 7 pts. Recorded at the Santa Cruz Zen Center October–December 2012. Audio, pt. 1, 49:15, http://archives.sczc.org/wp-content/uploads/dharma-talks/2012_12_06%20Sesshin%201%20-%20Bussho.mp3; pt. 2, 1:10:25, http://archives.sczc.org/wp-content/uploads/dharma-talks/2012_12_07%20Sesshin%202%20-%20Bussho.mp3; pt. 3, 51:29, http://archives.sczc.org/wp-content/uploads/dharma-talks/2012_12_08%20Sesshin%203%20-%20Bussho.mp3; pt. 4, 1:17:00, http://archives.sczc.org/wp-content/uploads/dharma-talks/2012_12_09%20Sesshin%204%20-%20Bussho.mp3; pt. 5, 1:07:11, http://archives.sczc.org/wp-content/uploads/dharma-talks/2012_12_10%20Sesshin%205%20-%20Bussho.mp3; pt. 6, 1:20:35, http://archives.sczc.org/wp-content/uploads/dharma-talks/2012_12_11%20Sesshin%206%20-%20Bussho.mp3; pt. 7, 1:11:22, http://archives.sczc.org/wp-content/uploads/dharma-talks/2012_12_12%20Sesshin%207%20-%20Bussho.mp3.
Article
Glimpses of Buddhanature: Untouchable Peace (Henkel 2023)
Glimpses of Buddhanature: Buddhist teacher-practitioners from across traditions share personal moments that gave them insight into the true nature of mind.
Henkel, Kokyo. "Glimpses of Buddhanature: Untouchable Peace." Buddhadharma: The Practitioner's Guide, Fall 2023, 84–85.
Audio
Kokyo Henkel on Buddha-Nature
This page presents a collection of talks given by Kokyo Henkel on the topic of buddha-nature between 2011–2015. The first talk entitled "Three Turnings of the Dharma Wheel and Buddha-Nature" was given at the Santa Cruz Zen Center (SCZC) on August 4, 2011. A talk entitled "Buddha Nature, the Inconceivable Inseparability of Emptiness and Clarity" was delivered on August 10, 2011 at SCZC. A talk called "The Cloudless Sky of Buddha Nature" was given by Henkel at the San Francisco Zen Center on September 6, 2011. "Buddha Nature and Trust" was given at SCZC on August 1, 2012. Another talk on this same theme entitled "Searching for the Sound in the Lute, Three Qualities of Zazen and Three Types of Zazen" was given on December 5, 2012 at SCZC. And a talk titled "Zhaozhou’s Dog and the Middle Way of Buddha Nature (Book of Serenity, case 18)" was given on January 21, 2015.
Henkel, Kokyo. "Kokyo Henkel on Buddha-Nature: A Collection of Talks on Buddha-Nature." Recorded at the Santa Cruz Zen Center and San Francisco Zen Center (Tassajara) 2011–2015. Audio. "Three Turnings of the Dharma Wheel and Buddha-Nature," August 4, 2011, 50:16, http://archives.sczc.org/2011/08/04/three-turnings-of-the-dharma-wheel-and-buddha-nature/; "Buddha Nature, The Inconceivable Inseparability of Emptiness and Clarity," August 10, 2011, 56:14, http://archives.sczc.org/2011/08/10/buddha-nature-the-inconceivable-inseparability-of-emptiness-and-clarity/; "The Cloudless Sky of Buddha Nature," September 6, 2011, 1:30:01, https://www.sfzc.org/teachings/dharma-talks/cloudless-sky-buddha-nature; "Buddha Nature and Trust," August 1, 2012, 1:00:48, http://archives.sczc.org/2012/08/01/buddha-nature-and-trust/. "Searching for the Sound in the Lute, Three Qualities of Zazen and Three Types of Zazen," December 5, 2012, 52:54, http://archives.sczc.org/2012/12/05/searching-for-the-sound-in-the-lute-three-qualities-of-zazen-and-three-types-of-zazen/. "Zhaozhou’s Dog and the Middle Way of Buddha Nature (Book of Serenity, case 18)," January 21, 2015, 1:01:23, http://archives.sczc.org/2015/01/21/zhaozhous-dog-and-the-middle-way-of-buddha-nature-book-of-serenity-case-18/.
Video
Rev. Kokyo Henkel: Does the Zen Tradition Have an Equivalent to Mandala Practice in Vajrayana?
Henkel, Rev. Kokyo. "Does the Zen Tradition Have an Equivalent to Mandala Practice in Vajrayana?" Conversations on Buddha-Nature with Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho. Produced by the Tsadra Foundation Research Department, June 26, 2021. Video, 3:05. https://youtu.be/7BXKaoiMcZ0.
Henkel, Rev. Kokyo. "Does the Zen Tradition Have an Equivalent to Mandala Practice in Vajrayana?" Conversations on Buddha-Nature with Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho. Produced by the Tsadra Foundation Research Department, June 26, 2021. Video, 3:05. https://youtu.be/7BXKaoiMcZ0.
Video
Rev. Kokyo Henkel: On Dogen's Articulation of Buddha-Nature
Henkel, Rev. Kokyo. "On Dogen's Articulation of Buddha-Nature." Conversations on Buddha-Nature with Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho. Produced by the Tsadra Foundation Research Department, June 26, 2021. Video, 3:58. https://youtu.be/he2iN7V23g8.
Henkel, Rev. Kokyo. "On Dogen's Articulation of Buddha-Nature." Conversations on Buddha-Nature with Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho. Produced by the Tsadra Foundation Research Department, June 26, 2021. Video, 3:58. https://youtu.be/he2iN7V23g8.
Video
Rev. Kokyo Henkel: On His First Encounter with Buddha-Nature Teachings
Henkel, Rev. Kokyo. "On His First Encounter with Buddha-Nature Teachings." Conversations on Buddha-Nature with Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho. Produced by the Tsadra Foundation Research Department, June 26, 2021. Video, 4:10. https://youtu.be/S-5SXBcPnd8.
Henkel, Rev. Kokyo. "On His First Encounter with Buddha-Nature Teachings." Conversations on Buddha-Nature with Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho. Produced by the Tsadra Foundation Research Department, June 26, 2021. Video, 4:10. https://youtu.be/S-5SXBcPnd8.
Video
Rev. Kokyo Henkel: On Mazu's Statements: "Mind Itself Is Buddha" and "Ordinary Mind Is the Way"
Henkel, Rev. Kokyo. "On Mazu's Statements: 'Mind Itself Is Buddha' and 'Ordinary Mind Is the Way'." Conversations on Buddha-Nature with Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho. Produced by the Tsadra Foundation Research Department, June 26, 2021. Video, 3:01. https://youtu.be/CpEBZZnL-sE.
Henkel, Rev. Kokyo. "On Mazu's Statements: 'Mind Itself Is Buddha' and 'Ordinary Mind Is the Way'." Conversations on Buddha-Nature with Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho. Produced by the Tsadra Foundation Research Department, June 26, 2021. Video, 3:01. https://youtu.be/CpEBZZnL-sE.
Video
Rev. Kokyo Henkel: On the Connection between Zen and Dzogchen
Henkel, Rev. Kokyo. "On the Connection between Zen and Dzogchen." Conversations on Buddha-Nature with Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho. Produced by the Tsadra Foundation Research Department, June 26, 2021. Video, 7:56. https://youtu.be/3jhWo3MtvxY.
Henkel, Rev. Kokyo. "On the Connection between Zen and Dzogchen." Conversations on Buddha-Nature with Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho. Produced by the Tsadra Foundation Research Department, June 26, 2021. Video, 7:56. https://youtu.be/3jhWo3MtvxY.
Video
Rev. Kokyo Henkel: On the Differences between Zen and Dzogchen and the Practice of Shikantaza, or "Just Sitting"
Henkel, Rev. Kokyo. "On the Differences between Zen and Dzogchen and the Practice of Shikantaza, or 'Just Sitting'." Conversations on Buddha-Nature with Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho. Produced by the Tsadra Foundation Research Department, June 26, 2021. Video, 8:07. https://youtu.be/PkEA0bYGLAM.
Henkel, Rev. Kokyo. "On the Differences between Zen and Dzogchen and the Practice of Shikantaza, or 'Just Sitting'." Conversations on Buddha-Nature with Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho. Produced by the Tsadra Foundation Research Department, June 26, 2021. Video, 8:07. https://youtu.be/PkEA0bYGLAM.
Video
Rev. Kokyo Henkel: On the Famous Mu Koan
Henkel, Rev. Kokyo. "On the Famous Mu Koan." Conversations on Buddha-Nature with Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho. Produced by the Tsadra Foundation Research Department, June 26, 2021. Video, 4:26. https://youtu.be/YPAoanRK0F4.
Henkel, Rev. Kokyo. "On the Famous Mu Koan." Conversations on Buddha-Nature with Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho. Produced by the Tsadra Foundation Research Department, June 26, 2021. Video, 4:26. https://youtu.be/YPAoanRK0F4.
Video
Rev. Kokyo Henkel: On the Term "Big Mind"
Henkel, Rev. Kokyo. "On the Term 'Big Mind'." Conversations on Buddha-Nature with Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho. Produced by the Tsadra Foundation Research Department, June 26, 2021. Video, 3:56. https://youtu.be/IlSnKFUTH80.
Henkel, Rev. Kokyo. "On the Term 'Big Mind'." Conversations on Buddha-Nature with Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho. Produced by the Tsadra Foundation Research Department, June 26, 2021. Video, 3:56. https://youtu.be/IlSnKFUTH80.
Video
Rev. Kokyo Henkel: On the Use of the Term "Atman" in Buddha-Nature Scriptures
Henkel, Rev. Kokyo. "On the Use of the Term 'Atman' in Buddha-Nature Scriptures." Conversations on Buddha-Nature with Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho. Produced by the Tsadra Foundation Research Department, June 26, 2021. Video, 5:02. https://youtu.be/XlKbPTxJE3o.
Henkel, Rev. Kokyo. "On the Use of the Term 'Atman' in Buddha-Nature Scriptures." Conversations on Buddha-Nature with Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho. Produced by the Tsadra Foundation Research Department, June 26, 2021. Video, 5:02. https://youtu.be/XlKbPTxJE3o.
Video
Rev. Kokyo Henkel: On the Various Early Influences on the Formation of the Zen Tradition
Henkel, Rev. Kokyo. "On the Various Early Influences on the Formation of the Zen Tradition." Conversations on Buddha-Nature with Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho. Produced by the Tsadra Foundation Research Department, June 26, 2021. Video, 8:05. https://youtu.be/6w6KD6Ez8Yc.
Henkel, Rev. Kokyo. "On the Various Early Influences on the Formation of the Zen Tradition." Conversations on Buddha-Nature with Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho. Produced by the Tsadra Foundation Research Department, June 26, 2021. Video, 8:05. https://youtu.be/6w6KD6Ez8Yc.
Video
Rev. Kokyo Henkel: Resource Recommendations for Learning about Buddha-Nature in the Zen Tradition
Henkel, Rev. Kokyo. "Resource Recommendations for Learning about Buddha-Nature in the Zen Tradition." Conversations on Buddha-Nature with Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho. Produced by the Tsadra Foundation Research Department, June 26, 2021. Video, 5:25. https://youtu.be/GaTapNdwKRo.
Henkel, Rev. Kokyo. "Resource Recommendations for Learning about Buddha-Nature in the Zen Tradition." Conversations on Buddha-Nature with Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho. Produced by the Tsadra Foundation Research Department, June 26, 2021. Video, 5:25. https://youtu.be/GaTapNdwKRo.
Video
Rev. Kokyo Henkel: Sources of Buddha-Nature Teachings in the Zen Tradition
Henkel, Rev. Kokyo. "Sources of Buddha-Nature Teachings in the Zen Tradition." Conversations on Buddha-Nature with Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho. Produced by the Tsadra Foundation Research Department, June 26, 2021. Video, 20:56. https://youtu.be/vvdgwHudOrU.
Henkel, Rev. Kokyo. "Sources of Buddha-Nature Teachings in the Zen Tradition." Conversations on Buddha-Nature with Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho. Produced by the Tsadra Foundation Research Department, June 26, 2021. Video, 20:56. https://youtu.be/vvdgwHudOrU.
Video
Rev. Kokyo Henkel: Zhiyi's Six Dharma Gates to the Sublime and the Relationship between Tiantai and Zen
Henkel, Rev. Kokyo. "Zhiyi's Six Dharma Gates to the Sublime and the Relationship between Tiantai and Zen." Conversations on Buddha-Nature with Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho. Produced by the Tsadra Foundation Research Department, June 26, 2021. Video, 4:14. https://youtu.be/6n8SpHNZC4o.
Henkel, Rev. Kokyo. "Zhiyi's Six Dharma Gates to the Sublime and the Relationship between Tiantai and Zen." Conversations on Buddha-Nature with Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho. Produced by the Tsadra Foundation Research Department, June 26, 2021. Video, 4:14. https://youtu.be/6n8SpHNZC4o.
Audio
Teachings on Not-Self and True Self in the Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra by Kokyo Henkel
In this series of talks, Venerable Kokyo Henkel teaches a seven-part course of study entitled "Not-Self and True Self in the Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra" from October 27, 2019–December 5, 2019 at the Santa Cruz Zen Center.
Henkel, Kokyo. "Teachings on Not-Self and True Self in the Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra." 6 pts. Recorded at Santa Cruz Zen Center, Santa Cruz, CA, October 27, 2019–December 5, 2019. Class Series. Audio, pt. 1, 1:30:18, http://archives.sczc.org/wp-content/uploads/dharma-talks/2019-10-27%20Kokyo%20-%20Mahaparinirvana%20Sutra,%20class%201.mp3; pt. 2, 1:26:34, http://archives.sczc.org/wp-content/uploads/dharma-talks/2019-11-04%20Kokyo%20-%20Mahaparinirvana%20Sutra,%20class%202.mp3; pt. 3, 1:23:24, http://archives.sczc.org/wp-content/uploads/dharma-talks/2019-11-10%20Kokyo%20-%20Mahaparinirvana%20Sutra,%20class%203.mp3, pt. 4, 1:24:50, http://archives.sczc.org/wp-content/uploads/dharma-talks/2019-11-17%20Kokyo%20-%20Mahaparinirvana%20Sutra,%20class%204.mp3; pt. 5, 1:23:43, http://archives.sczc.org/wp-content/uploads/dharma-talks/2019-11-24%20Kokyo%20-%20Mahaparinirvana%20Sutra,%20class%205.mp3; pt. 6, 1:34:42, http://archives.sczc.org/wp-content/uploads/dharma-talks/2019-12-01%20Kokyo%20-%20Mahaparinirvana%20Sutra,%20class%206.mp3.
Audio
The Radiant Light of Buddha-Nature
This is a two-part dharma talk titled “The Radiant Light of Buddha-Nature” by Rev. Kokyo Henkel. It was given during a one-day sitting on the afternoon of Saturday, September 22, 2018 at Valley Streams Zen Sangha, a Soto Zen Meditation Center in Sacramento, CA.
Henkel, Kokyo. "The Radiant Light of Buddha-Nature." 2 pts. Recorded at Valley Streams Zen Sangha, Sacramento, CA, September 22, 2018. Audio, pt. 1, 1:02:09, http://valleystreamszen.roptercreative.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/KokyoHenkel-2018Sept22.partone.mp3?_=1; pt. 2, 1:14:38, http://valleystreamszen.roptercreative.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/KokyoHenkel-2018Sept22.parttwo.mp3?_=1.

Other names

  • Kokyo Yakai (Luminous Owl, Midnight Liberation 光梟夜解) · other names

Affiliations & relations

  • Soto Zen · religious affiliation
  • Anderson, R. · teacher
  • Tsoknyi Rinpoche · teacher
  • Personal Website · websites
Retrieved from "https://buddhanature-new.tsadra.org/index.php?title=People/Henkel,_K.&oldid=55329"
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