Creation

With palms together,
Good Morning Everyone,

Clearly fall is upon us here in southern New Mexico. The early morning sky was seriously overcast as the mountains were nearly hidden in them. Lightning flashed in the pre-dawn. It has rained a coldish, miserable sort of rain and much of the landscape has that gray look that always seems to accompany a seasonal temperature drop.

I stood outside by the rock wall cleaning i-robot of this morning gatherings of dust and dog hair. It was pretty wet and nippy. Marvelous light on majestic mountains was my backdrop. Robot is recharging now and I am enjoying a little coffee. Zazen went well, if not a tad droopy. Of late, I seem to have little energy.

Here's the thing: such things come and go and I firmly believe they are tightly connected to our inner self. When we are purposeful, we feel better; when we are in motion, we feel better. The key is to have an aim and be in motion at the same time while then re-enforce the positive thoughts and feelings as they naturally arise in the process.

Today is a good day to begin. Its the beginning of a new week, I teach my last Jewish Spirituality class for this session, and the clouds are supposed to break in the afternoon.

"For you see,
We are the result of the desire of awareness,
And the prayer of the Creator,
To comprehend itself."
Rabbi Lawrence Kushner

Clear Mind Zendo

With palms together,
Good Morning Everyone,

Clear Mind Zendo had a crowd last night. Hmmm. Two people, Bobby and John, came up from El Paso, very gracious of them both! And two local students, Rev. Kajo and Colette, were present. My maximum seating is six including myself, so it was a good test of the Zendo to accommodate a "full house" :)

This Zendo is intended for Zen students to come and sit with me. It is not a Zen Center, per se. I do not intend on incorporating, filing church papers with the state, or any other such nonsense. It is only a place to practice zazen and touch the Dharma.

So, I woke this morning with a sense of accomplishing a purpose. We all should have an aim in our lives, not an obsession, but a direction.
Mine I suppose is to be a religious teacher to any who approach me knowing I have nothing to teach. For a student to know this he must have some basis in practice already. Zen is like that.

Be well.

Announcements: We will sit this Saturday morning at 8:00 AM as it is the first Saturday of the month. If you wish to sit with me, please call in advance to reserve a space. Also, consider attending Rohatsu sesshin the first weekend of December. We will be in retreat at the Refuge in Cloudcroft. The sesshin will begin at 7:00 PM on Friday evening on the 5th and close at noon on the 7th. Phone reservations at 575-521-3711.

Thank you.

Peace

With palms together,
Good Morning Everyone,

I woke a little late this morning, passing by my wrist alarm as if it were a pesky fly. So, zazen will come after this missive. It is Wednesday. Today we sit at the peace vigil at 4:30 PM and again in the Zendo at 7:00 PM. For reasons I cannot recall other than the vague sense of family and moving issues, I have not been at the vigils for several weeks now. So, I look forward to returning to this practice. Especially now that the weather is not quite as hot. Besides, this is a new year for me and an opportunity to re-commit to peace action.

Peace is a tricky thing. Peace activists cover the waterfront from complete pacifists to those who are simply opposed to this war (the one in Iraq). Some Zen Masters might say we can be at complete peace while swiftly cutting the head off an opponent. Most others might say, surrender all violence and consider all alternatives to violent action in the cause of peace. I am somewhere in there. To not kill also means to support and defend life.

We must understand that there are those who do not believe in peace or hold it in esteem as a virtue. These are dangerous people who do not value life for itself but only life in service to a belief system, a state, or a practice. It makes no sense to surrender one's life to them in the cause of peace. On the other hand, it does not make sense to kill them either or celebrate their deaths.

We should strive to find a middle way, a path between violent action and complete surrender. A commitment to peace is a commitment to life itself. Let this be a guiding principle.

Be well.

Life As It Is

With palms together,
Good Morning and L'Shana Tova,

Last night was the beginning of the Jewish Days of Awe, the High Holy Days. Judy and I were blessed to be invited to sit at the bimah during the service as we each read parts of the liturgy. I must say, it was a wonderful experience!

I wasn't so sure I was going to be able to get through it. My body and mind do not do so well as evening approaches. We had been graciously invited to join friends at a New Year's Eve dinner celebration which began at 5:00 PM. I had taken part of my evening meds so that my leg would not go spastic during the evening service and they kicked in, masking it even more difficult for me to be both alert and physically stable. I ended up resting in my friend's study before and after the meal.

It is interesting to witness these changes in my body and mind. I used to be such a night person, often staying awake until near dawn only to go through the next day with a high degree of energy. At this point I feel good if I am able to be alert until 8:00 PM. My leg is giving out on me. I find it more and more challenging to get it to move, let alone move correctly. And so on.

Its not me I feel so much about, and I do not fear the future, what does nag at me is the sense I have that others are so worried about me. The Rabbi last night made spoke to me after the service saying he would try to have me be more involved in the mornings. My friends are understanding, but I see concern in their eyes and hear it in their voices. I have always been such an independent cuss. And this independence and desire to take care of myself has been good for me, but not always so good for those around me. I do not easily ask for help, and am not as gracious as I would like to be in receiving help.

Life is as it is: I do not prefer it to be otherwise. I would like to be free to chose to accept or decline a task or an invitation rather than have it taken from me by the concern of others. Yet, I know this will not always be possible: we cannot control other's feelings or need to be of help.

In the end, I have great faith in my practice and my ability to be flexible, although these are not always so readily apparent to those closest to me. These challenges are offering me many practice opportunities. I am sure each of you have such opportunities, as well.

May we each be waves at one with the water we are, and in this way, be peace even in the midst of a storm.

Moon in a Dew Drop

With palms together,
Good Morning Everyone,

Koans are an interesting form of Zen practice. In the Soto school, we do not use them very much, but there are many Soto teachers who are also trained in the Rinzai sects' methods and use them more extensively. Master Loori of Zen Mountain Monastery in New York state comes to mind. Soto's reluctance to train with koans is not to be taken as dogma. Master Dogen himself was thoroughly conversant with the various koan collections and, indeed, created a collection himself. Master Dogen founded the Soto sect of Zen Buddhism.

What we should not do is replace koan practice with shikantaza. Shikantaza, the practice of just sitting, is foundational to our way. Sitting with a koan in mind is not shikantaza. On the other hand, we have ample opportunity throughout our day to examine life itself: the most profound of koans. And everywhere it presents itself to the mind that sees.

Master Dogen had a phrase, 'moon in a dew drop'. This phrase penetrates deeply the true state of things. Consider it. Is the moon in the dew drop or not?

Be well.

Zazen, the Pause that Refreshes

With palms together,
Good Morning Everyone,

Ancient traditions have us practice zazen several times daily. I suppose the old ones, beggars that they were, had little else to do! Today we sit often zazen begrudgingly. We feel as though we steal time from activities or loved ones in order to gather ourselves together in a Zendo just to be still. So precious do we feel our actual presence in everything actually is! Oy.

So, sit zazen we must. Learning to take the time to bring ourselves to a stillpoint, allowing the universe to continue without our hustle and bustle, is incredibly important. Such a stillpoint is the seat of the Infinite. In this stillpoint we open like flowers and receive. It is very nurturing.

Not only do we receive, but we offer, as well: we offer our peace, love, and compassion, all rolled up into one practice, the practice of zazen.

In the quiet of the morning, it is good to sit zazen. In the quiet of the late evening is a good time to practice zazen. At odd times during the day, perhaps at your desk, in your sofa, at your kitchen counter: take just a few breaths with eyes half closed. This sort of thing is a real pause that refreshes. As the pause brings us back to ourselves and our true nature.

May you each be a blessing in the universe!

A Good Week!

What to Do!

With palms together,


Strong Zen: we are now wireless and untethered from a hard-line to the laptops, but one of our phone jacks is inoperable. Thank goodness for wireless, walkaround, phones. So, our bedroom is a maze of wires and blinking lights, but I am able to sit at the desk in the living room and write to you.

This was a several day, many continuous hour process. I am pleased that it is over, but also pleased that we managed to get through it with a minimum of serious stress.

I look forward to getting back to short dialog and daily posts.

I was studying koan case Number 36 in the Gateless Gate collection translated and commented upon by Senzaki roshi outside on the patio this morning in the pre-dawn hours. The case is entitled, Meeting a Master on the Road.

Gaso said, "When you meet a Zen master on the road, you cannot say speak, you cannot remain silent. What will you do?

Dear Zen students, what is your answer?

Be well.