Close, Inseparable, No Gap
Suzanne Taikyo Gilman, Senior Monastic
Zen Mountain Monastery, Mt Tremper, New York, Thursday 7/23/2026
As human beings, we rely on language—words and concepts—to make sense of nearly everything we do. But how do we come closer to the self that is direct, unmediated, and free from the dualities inherent in language? How do we encounter the meaning of words that speak most deeply to the heart? Senior monastic Taikyo looks at “Intimate Language”, a fascicle by Master Dōgen, which illuminates the practice of the spacious mind that exists before conceptual thought—a direct, unmediated awareness beyond the limits of language.
