Joan Halifax: The Puzzle of the Golden Carp

In this dharma talk, Roshi Joan Halifax discusses the heart of our practice, which is to develop the ability to sit in a sea of fire, to be with the suffering of the world and our own mind. “A lotus only blooms in a sea of fire”. We are reminded that to be with suffering is not to be undisturbed by it, but to allow our grief and sorrow to open us up completely. Here is where our buddha-nature blooms. As we practice deeply, we meet our hindrances, which Roshi explores in the context of the koan of the golden carp. In Eastern myth, the carp represents determined effort, leaping up waterfalls finally transforming into a dragon upon reaching the top of the falls. Roshi encourages us, “keep leaping up those falls so that your dragon nature can be revealed.”