Winter 2026:
Transmitting Tales​

Saturday, January 31, 2026
Beginning at 6:00 pm at
1730 S Maxwell St., Bloomington, IN

Buddhism has a deep and rich tradition of tale literature and storytelling.  We may think immediately of koan stories or the Jataka tales, but there's a whole genre of Buddhist vernacular stories and miracle tales that can contribute to our understanding of spiritual practice in the human experience.  Stories entertain and amuse while teaching the dharma, giving accessible spiritual guidance and showing us how to practice as everyday people while living as bodhisattvas.  Tales of personal experiences bring us the dharma from the informal point of view.  These are not academic lectures or cryptic teachings but ways to make a shared, emotional, and intellectual connection between our spiritual practice as individuals and the world of the human religious experience, making the dharma immediate and relatable.  (Plus, they're fun!)

Join us for an evening salon that offers sangha fellowship as the backdrop to discussion of the role of myths and stories in our practice of Soto Zen: transmitting the tradition, building connections and community, and encouraging personal and spiritual growth.

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About our panelists

​Michael D. May
Curriculum Advisor, Interior Mythos Journeys

Michael serves as a hay farmer and wildlife sanctuary groundskeeper in eastern Monroe County. A Bloomington native, his grandfather was a real stone cutter. When not spreading horse manure on hay fields, clearing brush, or practicing chainsaw therapy on hiking trails, Michael spreads a message of universal existential exploration and practice on the YouTube Channel of Interior Mythos Journeys through the Life Journeys video series.  This series is a set of sequential modules designed to nurture contemporary contemplative practitioners.  Each module can support solitary inquiry or serve as an artform for group discussion. The teaching of Okumura Roshi is deeply woven into this series, alongside the work of other contemporary and historical teachers.

Michael is a graduate of Indiana University, the Academy of the Ecumenical Institute, and the International Training Institute of the Institute of Cultural Affairs. A former faculty member of the Ecumenical Institute, he is a lifelong student and practitioner of contemplative exploration in the lineage of Søren Kierkegaard, Nikos Kazantzakis, Joseph Campbell, Thomas Merton, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, and many other existential guides.  Michael is passionate about nurturing depth-practice in a new generation and a world alienated from its center.

What is a salon?

Historically, a salon was a regular meeting of prominent or elegant people, such as artists, writers, or intellectuals, to discuss art, literature, or music.  These days, it's a living-room gathering of friends and friends-of-friends to enjoy food and conversation and, for an hour or so, learn more about an interesting topic by hearing from a couple of people who are engaged with it and willing to share their perspective to get the discussion started.  

A salon is not:

• Formal or fussy
• A lecture or dharma talk
• A debate or performance​

Let's see where the conversation goes!

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Plan for the evening

6:00 pm  Informal dinner and socializing are available
7:15 pm  Hoko gives a preview of the first half of the year at Sanshin
7:30 pm  Hoko facilitates discussion between panelists
8:00 pm  Questions, reflections and open discussion with all attendees
8:30 pm  Dessert, fellowship, and continued conversation
We end whenever we've had enough!

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Please let us know that you're coming and whether you're bringing a guest.  We want to make sure there's enough food and seating.  We're not charging a fee, but donations will be welcome to help cover costs.