Training Fund

With Respect to All,


Good Morning Everyone,



Since opening the topic training with the Silent Thunder Order's abbot, Taiun-sensei, several members and friends of the Order have asked how to help financially. At our Order's bank we have a savings account. I am considering this account a "Training Fund" which will go towards Taiun's travel to and from New Mexico, as well as my travel to Atlanta for training there. Taiun is expected to train with us here in New Mexico in late September. His partner is now obtaining flight information. Fortunately, I am "retired" from the US Army and can fly on military aircraft "hops." So, my travel expenses will not be great. However, I am expected to offer Ango fees and dana to Taiun-sensei. The Ango fees are (at present) $1500.00 for the three months.



I am considering beginning Ango (a three month training retreat) in the first part of 2012 with Taiun's permission. I am working on a budget for myself which will allow me to save money towards the Ango fes and dana. I would personally appreciate any and all assistance I can get from you.



If you wish to support this effort, please make your donation either by check to "The Order of Clear Mind Zen" with 'training' in the memo section, or through Paypal on our website. If you chose Paypal, kindly send me an email so that I know that your donation was intended for the Training Fund as opposed to the general fund which supports the Temple itself.



Since it is the end of one month and the beginning of another, please do consider offering support to our temple. Your donations are greatly appreciated.



May you each be happy and free from suffering.



Yours,

Daiho

June 29th

With palms together,

Good Afternoon Everyone,



The Dharma is incomparably profound and minutely subtle…so, says the chant for opening a sutra. In fact, the Dharma is as plain as the nose on our face. It is the nose on your face. My face. Every face. No face. Because it is everywhere, it is nowhere. As one of the Ten Ox-Herding pictures suggests, “no thing.”



If it is nothing and it is everything, what is it?



We cannot say, because as we speak, falsehood flows from our mouths. One and all, all and one, yet both and neither. Goodness…we can certainly get a headache with this sort of stuff.



What difference does this Zennish nonsense make? Not much. The Dharma for me is the feel of the pc keys under my fingertips, the heat of the southwestern sun, the sweat dripping from my forehead as I work, or the taste of cold water as I take a sip from my glass. Everything in every direction manifests the Dharma. The flowing stream, once entered, is ours knowing in fact, there is no stream and that “the stream” itself is just a construct we use to assist us in getting in the flow.



So? Just sip some water.



Be well.

June 26,2011

With palms together,

Good Morning Everyone,



This morning I want to address some rather serious business: our relationship with the greater Zen world. My mission is to bring the correct Dharma into the world. This was Master Dogen’s mission, and it is the mission of all the Buddhas and Ancestors throughout history. This mission has been my life since taking Jukai in 1998. Our Order is growing both in its membership and its public profile. In tandem with this growth is a growing movement in the greater Zen world to create bodies which help seekers determine the authenticity of Zen Teachers and their Centers. And while I personally abhor such bodies, I understand their importance as it is possible for anyone to order a Buddhist robe, print a certificate and call themselves Zen priests.



Our Dharma Grandfather, Matsuoka-roshi, did not register his priests at Soto headquarters in Japan, he streamlined and collapsed much of the ceremonials, rites, and rituals, and made Zen practice centers much more “American” in feel. While this was in keeping with many of the early Japanese Soto priests who came to the United States to teach, few did it as effectively. Moreover, after these early Masters died, second and third generation Zen teachers, not fully matured (in my opinion) relied on Japan for guidance and sanctioning of their lineages. Matsuoka’s line did not to this, but with one exception, Taiun Elliston-sensei, from the Atlanta Soto Zen Center. Taiun has completed formal Dharma Transmission from Okamura-roshi and is now recognized by Soto Shu as a fully transmitted Zen priest in the Soto lineage.



Recently, I have made application to the American Zen Teachers Association. I have had a number of chats with one of its Board Members, James Ford, and at his suggestion, made application. He then suggested I contact Michael Taiun Elliston-sensei from the Atlanta Soto Zen Center.



Taiun and I have had several Skype interviews. At this point, I am seriously considering stepping onto that transmission path with him. This effort would decidedly not be for me, but rather, it would to legitimize our Order (both its priests and lay members).



Such a path would mean some great degree of hardship and I would need the support of this Sangha, its priests, and my partner, Soku Shin to complete it. First, we would need to bring Taiun out here to meet and practice with us for a Sesshin. Second, I would need to go out there to practice a 90 day Ango (extended retreat) with his Center. There may be other requirements in terms of sewing, travel and hosting, but these would be the main elements.



Once I complete the practice requirements, and meet with the approval of Taiun, he would perform a Dharma Transmission Ceremony and I would be accepted by Soto Shu as a fully recognized transmitted priest. This would mean our Order would be among the recognized lineages of Soto Zen. We would then be considered part of the mainstream and no one would be able to question our legitimacy.





To explore this further, I will invite Taiun to join us here in Las Cruces in August for a five day Sesshin. The dates are not set, but I am writing to ask him this morning. With this visit, we will together explore the implications, requirements, and benefits of such a move. We will have to purchase a ticket for Taiun. We will host him at our home and have him visit both our Temple here in Las Cruces, and our Sangha in El Paso. I am asking for donations to support this initial visit. Please be as generous as you possibly can. Or if any of you have travel miles you would be willing to use to obtain a ticket, please let me know.





As to the American Zen Teachers Association application. I will have further discussion with board member James Ford in a few days and will keep you informed. Due to Matsuoka-roshi’s contentious relationship with Soto headquarters, his line is not held in high esteem by many of the “powers that be”. I am told I have less than a fifty-fifty chance at acceptance even with my background and our extensive practice, training, and experience.





I am willing to undergo this training process, but only if the Order and its members support it.





Please give me your feedback as soon as possible.







As to Moving!

We have moved into our new home. Well, we should say, we have put all of our stuff in the house. Moving in, actually moving in, will take some time. Still, the place is wonderful, large, spacious, and very uniquely Mexican. As we get things put away, we will take pictures and post them. We hope to have an Open House sometime soon. Thanks to all of those who made this possible.



A bow to all,

June 24

With respect,


Good Morning Everyone,



Up front: We have cancelled the Zen Discussion Group. Our on-going Educational Groups are Comparative Religion, Introduction to Zen, and Women in Zen. Each meeting at 7:00 PM on their respective weekday evenings.



As you know, we are moving our new residence tomorrow morning. We would love to have your assistance. Please consider joining us at 6:30 AM at 2190 Mars Avenue, Unit 6 to begin. My phone is 575-680-6680. I will take calls.



Throughout next week, we will be attempting to settle in there. We will continue to operate the Temple in the Alameda Zendo. I will office there and we will conduct all Temple functions there.



Moving is always a chore, it seems. More than a chore, it is a psychological and emotional deconstruction. Very, very Zen. We read in the Shobogenzo, that it is essential to "leave home." Yes, we must leave what we know and step into the light of the living moment. I have said once too often, "this is my last move!" Who am I kidding? We practice so that each breath is a move, each step, a step into the present, leaving no trace behind.



May we each "move" today.



Be well.

June 23, 2011

With palms together,

Good Morning Everyone,



This morning I woke feeling good. Our move to our Mesilla Zen House is on schedule, things seem to be coming together, and the Temple on Alameda is doing well. Moreover, we have a start date for the implementation of our J. Paul Taylor Correctional Facility Contemplative Practices Program and we are certainly looking forward to this experience.



Over the last few days I have been sitting Zazen at the Temple for many hours. I have been considering our Order and its future. Ever since I was a novice professional Social Worker, I have believed in the value of supervision. Even with a Ph.D. and an Independent License, I still maintained a supervisory consultant, a peer-to-peer sounding board, if you will. As many of you know, my teaching relationship with my root teacher, Hogaku, has come to a close. I have been exploring options toward establishing a peer teaching relationship with another Zen Teacher. I am still in that process and will keep you informed. But this has little actual bearing on the Order of Clear Mind Zen, except that I want each of you to be aware that I know it is important that the head of an organization seek council from time to time.



As I see it, our Order is seriously beginning to unfold itself. Our mission is to practice Engaged Zen. We have three main venues at this time: hospice, corrections, and bearing witness for peace. We have established a Membership Council, a new and very rigorous daily practice schedule, and have been hard at work tweaking our website. In addition, we have improved our advertising in the Bulletin and added a banner ad on SweepingZen.com Traffic to our website and blog is on the rise.



Perhaps as a result of these efforts, we are experiencing an increase in attendance, drop-in activity, and an increased interest on the part of the general public as to who we are and what we do. It may be time to seek volunteers to staff our Temple a few hours a day. If anyone would care to volunteer to staff the Temple an hour or two on any given weekday, please email me.



Lastly, many thanks to Student Tamra and friend Artie for securing a door to our office so that Dokusan will have a more private feel.



We will be moving Saturday morning. If you can help us, please contact Soku Shin.



Be well.

Our Work

With palms together,

Good Morning Everyone,



The days are being filled with new and exciting people. The first two days of this week, which included our new schedule, were very full. We had a number of drop ins, several new visitors at our Zazen periods, and an apparent excitement about our simply being there. At our six o’clock Zazen periods, we had eight practitioners, not including myself or Soku Shin, who was on her way to El Paso to practice with our Sangha there. Very nice.



Our weekday schedule includes Morning Services at 9:30 AM, Zazen at 3:00 PM, and Evening Services at 6:00 PM. People are welcome to join us for these practice periods. If new to the practice or the center, we ask that you arrive a half hour early in order to be given instruction.



Our Order is working hard toward defining itself as an Engaged practice organization. Several of our members are entering Hospice Training programs, entering Prison Work, and doing a variety of volunteers jobs to assist those in need in our communities.



We will be offering Staff Development and Training in Contemplative Practices at J. Paul Taylor Correctional Facility on the 28th and hope to begin our work there on the following week. We are now about to enter our third month of a “Year of Solace” the Hospice Training Program offered through Camille Adair at Ambercare, and we have sharpened and settled into our own educational and practice programs at the Temple.



I wish to announce that Student Tamra has accepted the position of Tenzo for our Order. She brings with her thirty years of practice in the Maezumi White Plum Asangha tradition and was a student of his in LA. I am also thankful that Student Steve has accepted the role of Jikido in our Temple. He will act as our Temple Attendant, correcting posture, ensuring our offerings of incense, light, and water are continuously refreshed.



Lastly, my own jisha, Soku Shin will enter the priesthood as a Novitiate in July. Her ceremony is tentatively scheduled for Sunday the 17th at Clear Mind Zen Temple.



As is always the case, we look forward to seeing you in person at our Temple. In lieu of that, we are always available through Skype. Consider arranging a Skype interview in you are interested in working with us. Simply email me at clearmindzen@yahoo.com.



Yours,

Schedules

With respect,




OK, we discussed the temple schedules during the discussion period after Zazen this morning and I took in a couple of replies from members at large upon returning. Below please find our tentative new schedule for both the Temple and the Priests. At this point there are two of us who will be practicing the Priest's schedule. You are welcome to do so at home if you wish or join us at the Temple. There are some important changes. Please let us know if you will attend any of our functions. Yours,





Clear Mind Zen Temple Schedules









Temple Schedule





New! Monday through Friday:





Morning Services 9:30 - 10:30





(NOTE Mesilla Sangha Meets Tuesday/Thursday Morning 9:30 – 11:00 AM)





Evening Zazen at 6:00 - 7:00 PM, Closing Services at 8:00 PM













Sangha Activies









Monday at 7:00 PM - 8:00 PM Comparative Religions Group





Tuesday at 7:00 PM - 8:00 PM Zen 101





Thursday Women in Zen 7:00 - 8:00 PM



Friday Zen Group --- Cancelled





Saturday: CLOSED.





Sunday: Formal Zen Service 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM













Priest's Weekday Schedule



New!



5:00 Wake (residence)



5:30 Zazen (residence)



6:30 Breakfast (residence)



7:30 Morning Business and Exercise (residence)



9:30 Morning Service (Temple)



Includes: Sanpai, Robe Verse, Atonement Verse, Refuges, Heart Sutra, Zazen/Kinhin/Zazen



10:30 Contemplative Practices (Samu, Engaged Zen, Dokusan)



12:00 Lunch (Oryoki)



1:00- 3:00 Comptemplative Practices (Samu, Engaged Zen, Dokusan)



3:00 -3:30 Zazen



3:30 - 5:00 Contemplative Practices (Samu, Engaged Zen, Dokusan)



5:00 Dinner (Oryoki)



6:30 Zazen (Temple)



7:00 Sangha Activity (Temple) (Educational/Discussion Groups)(Meetings)



8:00 Closing Service (Temple)



Includes: Shin Gyo, Four Great Vows, Incense Offering, Fueko



9:00 Retire (Residence)



__________

Daiho Hilbert-roshi, OCMZ

abbot