With palms together,
Good Morning Everyone,
When we appreciate our lives our lives assume meaning. Appreciation requires us to stop, open, and experience. We stop our self talk, that constant chatter going on in our mind by directing our attention to something outside of ourselves, then we experience that something. We can experience with all of our sense organs: our eyes, ears, nose, tongue, skin, and mind. These organs become gates and we should practice to keep them open, not closed.
Our sense organs are conduits, not containers. We should not hold onto our experiences, try to possess them, retain, them, or even treasure them. In holding on to an experience, we deny new experience by a constant comparative process. We discriminate. We hoard. We suffer. We fail to truly appreciate.
Often we try to experience. We set out with great deliberation to have an experience. Our mind becomes charged with anticipation. And while anticipatory joy can be nice and can actually extend our experience, it can also be a cause of not actually being able to experience the thing we really set out to experience. Our anticipatory thoughts become a sort of litmus test: is this the real thing? The thing we imagined?
We experience this often when we read a new book or watch a new film. But sometimes we experience it with far more devastating consequences, such as having a baby or getting married or adopting a pet. The imagining does not meet our expectations. We suffer. Our children can suffer. Our pets become disposable.
To avoid this, we should try to keep the conduits open and selfless. We are anticipating only to experience the anticipation, not to retain it and call upon it later to test reality.
Live your life to be a blessing.
Be well.
Organ Mountain Zen
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Sunday, August 10, 2008
Daily Life
With palms together,
Good Morning Everyone,
In another day or so I will continue my brief commentary on the Faith Mind Poem. I find this poem to be a clear reminder of how we should make our lives our practice. Its a challenging life, the Zen Way. Open, flowing, without attachment, yet at the same time, in the very midst of things. We practice to love without possessing, care without concern for being cared about, and do these with no self. A tall order in a materialistic, self-absorbed culture.
This is why it is practice. No one can live it all the time and without fail. What we can do is practice to stay self-aware. This is the core of mindfulness practice. We lift a cup knowing we are lifting a cup, knowing the cup is not a cup, but just what we call a cup. We listen to others knowing we are listening to others, recognizing when our ears turn to our own thoughts and away from the person in front of us. We gently return our attention to the other.
This is excellent practice. It is a practice that can, and should, be done every moment of our waking day.
Be well.
Good Morning Everyone,
In another day or so I will continue my brief commentary on the Faith Mind Poem. I find this poem to be a clear reminder of how we should make our lives our practice. Its a challenging life, the Zen Way. Open, flowing, without attachment, yet at the same time, in the very midst of things. We practice to love without possessing, care without concern for being cared about, and do these with no self. A tall order in a materialistic, self-absorbed culture.
This is why it is practice. No one can live it all the time and without fail. What we can do is practice to stay self-aware. This is the core of mindfulness practice. We lift a cup knowing we are lifting a cup, knowing the cup is not a cup, but just what we call a cup. We listen to others knowing we are listening to others, recognizing when our ears turn to our own thoughts and away from the person in front of us. We gently return our attention to the other.
This is excellent practice. It is a practice that can, and should, be done every moment of our waking day.
Be well.
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Sitting Still
With palms together,
Good Morning Everyone,
Last night our small group of dedicated meditators sat Zazen at Temple Beth El. We sat upright, focusing our attention on our breath, and were simply present. The sanctuary has its own sounds. Temperature changes as the sun goes down cause buckling sounds to crack and pop slicing through the silence that otherwise pervades the building.
Two periods of Zazen, one period of Kinhin. I talked about moving our Zen mind from the cushion to our relationships, how self arises to defend, agree, or parry our partner. We talked a little about how thoughts seem to race sometimes, teasing us almost, to break away from our concentration. It was an open and easy discussion. Then we went into the social hall for tea and cookies.
Earlier in the afternoon, with the sun blazing and the temperature at about 100 degrees, I sat Zazen holding a small umbrella on the sidewalk at the Federal Building. I propped my small placard, which simply reads, "PEACE" against my knee. As I sat, I heard horns "Honk for Peace" , felt the sweat bead and flow down my nose, drip off my eye brows, and fall into the dark oblivion of my samue pants. The sweat seemed to measure the minutes.
These two periods of meditation were very different. One challenged me to sit still under very adverse conditions, the other challenged me to be present and not drift away into the wonderful stillness of the Temple sanctuary. In the end, our practice is like that, we practice according to the conditions of our lives. In this way, our very lives become our practice.
Be well.
Good Morning Everyone,
Last night our small group of dedicated meditators sat Zazen at Temple Beth El. We sat upright, focusing our attention on our breath, and were simply present. The sanctuary has its own sounds. Temperature changes as the sun goes down cause buckling sounds to crack and pop slicing through the silence that otherwise pervades the building.
Two periods of Zazen, one period of Kinhin. I talked about moving our Zen mind from the cushion to our relationships, how self arises to defend, agree, or parry our partner. We talked a little about how thoughts seem to race sometimes, teasing us almost, to break away from our concentration. It was an open and easy discussion. Then we went into the social hall for tea and cookies.
Earlier in the afternoon, with the sun blazing and the temperature at about 100 degrees, I sat Zazen holding a small umbrella on the sidewalk at the Federal Building. I propped my small placard, which simply reads, "PEACE" against my knee. As I sat, I heard horns "Honk for Peace" , felt the sweat bead and flow down my nose, drip off my eye brows, and fall into the dark oblivion of my samue pants. The sweat seemed to measure the minutes.
These two periods of meditation were very different. One challenged me to sit still under very adverse conditions, the other challenged me to be present and not drift away into the wonderful stillness of the Temple sanctuary. In the end, our practice is like that, we practice according to the conditions of our lives. In this way, our very lives become our practice.
Be well.
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
The Zen of Relationship
With palms together,
Good Morning Everyone,
This morning Judy, Eve, Allen and me hiked through the desert, a desert saturated by summer rains. I have never seen our desert so lush, green everywhere. There were grasses growing on the desert floor and flowering plants in bloom everywhere. We took a trail we don't take very often and then went up an arroyo. The arroyo was a wide swath cut wider and deeper by the recent raging water coming down from the Organ mountains. From the arroyo we bush whacked across the ridges to get back to another trail that would take us to our starting point. By the time we were done, we were really feeling the effects of rugged hiking. After a breakfast of cold cereal we talked extensively. Judy and I do this from time to time. Sometimes its pleasant, sometimes not, but in the end, we feel closer together for it.
How does Zen fit into our relationships with each other? Buddhists are often accused of being self-absorbed naval gazers. Zen is often practiced in silence, facing a wall, and is known to be quite introspective. What then is the Zen of relationships? As My Little Honey has often pointed out, "There is the Zen of everything, why don't I ever hear about relationships?"
What might be the practice principles of relational Zen?
I suspect they are similar to all Zen principles: a focus on attending to the moment, as it is, and for the activity occurring within it. It is not about blanking out or zoning out when in the middle of a stressful conversation with a loved one. Nor is it about not being upset or angry. The Zen of relationships is about our relationship to our relationship. And its about being authentic in the process.
Are we present in our relationship? Do we open ourselves to our partner? Do we allow ourselves to be vulnerable? Are we compassionate or do we close the door to our open heart as soon as the going gets tough?
I know from my point of view, a view not always shared by My Little Honey, I am a compassionate and caring person, present in the moment most of the time. But I am not always there for her and I am not always open or compassionate. The balance is not just between who and what am I there for, it goes deeper than that.
We speak of non-self, of dropping away of self, of the fact that self is itself an illusion. Yet, wherever we go, there we are. Self is present. Its our relationship to it that matters so much. When we start with self, big problem. When we start with other, also big problem. Our start and finish really must be in our relationship with everything.
When I say "I", I am including the universe within that construct. I and other are one. Maybe we should replace "I" with "we" in most of our conversations, including internal conversations. Maybe "We" Zen is the Zen of relationship. Sort of like Martin Buber's I-Thou word pair. We must consider Big Mind and Small Mind as One Mind. Just so, "I" and "You" are "We", a singularity of its own, but complete and universal.
Yet all of this comes to nothing, is mere mental masturbation, if we do not have the willingness or develop the skill to apply it.
What do you think are the skills necessary to apply the Zen of Relationship?
Be well.
Good Morning Everyone,
This morning Judy, Eve, Allen and me hiked through the desert, a desert saturated by summer rains. I have never seen our desert so lush, green everywhere. There were grasses growing on the desert floor and flowering plants in bloom everywhere. We took a trail we don't take very often and then went up an arroyo. The arroyo was a wide swath cut wider and deeper by the recent raging water coming down from the Organ mountains. From the arroyo we bush whacked across the ridges to get back to another trail that would take us to our starting point. By the time we were done, we were really feeling the effects of rugged hiking. After a breakfast of cold cereal we talked extensively. Judy and I do this from time to time. Sometimes its pleasant, sometimes not, but in the end, we feel closer together for it.
How does Zen fit into our relationships with each other? Buddhists are often accused of being self-absorbed naval gazers. Zen is often practiced in silence, facing a wall, and is known to be quite introspective. What then is the Zen of relationships? As My Little Honey has often pointed out, "There is the Zen of everything, why don't I ever hear about relationships?"
What might be the practice principles of relational Zen?
I suspect they are similar to all Zen principles: a focus on attending to the moment, as it is, and for the activity occurring within it. It is not about blanking out or zoning out when in the middle of a stressful conversation with a loved one. Nor is it about not being upset or angry. The Zen of relationships is about our relationship to our relationship. And its about being authentic in the process.
Are we present in our relationship? Do we open ourselves to our partner? Do we allow ourselves to be vulnerable? Are we compassionate or do we close the door to our open heart as soon as the going gets tough?
I know from my point of view, a view not always shared by My Little Honey, I am a compassionate and caring person, present in the moment most of the time. But I am not always there for her and I am not always open or compassionate. The balance is not just between who and what am I there for, it goes deeper than that.
We speak of non-self, of dropping away of self, of the fact that self is itself an illusion. Yet, wherever we go, there we are. Self is present. Its our relationship to it that matters so much. When we start with self, big problem. When we start with other, also big problem. Our start and finish really must be in our relationship with everything.
When I say "I", I am including the universe within that construct. I and other are one. Maybe we should replace "I" with "we" in most of our conversations, including internal conversations. Maybe "We" Zen is the Zen of relationship. Sort of like Martin Buber's I-Thou word pair. We must consider Big Mind and Small Mind as One Mind. Just so, "I" and "You" are "We", a singularity of its own, but complete and universal.
Yet all of this comes to nothing, is mere mental masturbation, if we do not have the willingness or develop the skill to apply it.
What do you think are the skills necessary to apply the Zen of Relationship?
Be well.
Monday, July 28, 2008
Getting Through
With palms together,
Good Morning Everyone,
This morning I see the sun shining in through sporadic cloud cover. We have been flooded with rain over the last three days beginning Friday. I hear the Rio Grande is close to cresting near El Paso. A news story suggested we had nine inches of rain in the Sacramento mountains which includes Ruidoso and Cloudcroft. Our Refuge is in the mountains east of Cloudcroft.
We shared the weekend there with two other couples, close friends of ours. Who knew it would be such a weekend! Sheets of rain all day and night over two days left the dirt road a river. We spent the weekend reading and talking, cooking and eating. One set of friends had a camper, the other set, a tent. It turns out both camper and tent sprung leaks. The second night we spent together inside the refuge. I practiced much meditation, the non-apparent kid. Sitting in a recliner focusing on just being present. I read through Thich Nhat Hahn's wonderful little book on The Energy of Prayer, as well as several chapters from a book (Brave New Judaism) on the collision between science and scripture within Judaism. I also read through a few of Suzuki Roshi's teishos in Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind (I keep a hardcover copy of this at the Refuge). Other people read novels and whatever else they could find in the library. We had no radio, no television, and no computer Internet connection.
When it was time to leave we discovered the west exit was blocked by a river that eclipsed the road and followed it for some fifty or sixty feet nor could anticipate the flooding along the west exit, the same single lane dirt road that winds its way through the mountains down to the main road. We were prepared to spend additional days at the Refuge, but really were feeling a bit anxious about it all. A call to the Sheriff's office by us and a neighbor's ranch was responded to by a brave young man in a big Sheriff's truck. He informed the ranch people that the size of their vehicles (horse trailers and RVs) would prohibit their exit on the west exit. He thought we had a chance of getting out and he was willing to lead us out.
Our friend, pulling a camper, got seriously stuck on the muddy bottom of the refuge near the gate. We detached the camper and the Sheriff's Deputy was able to free him from the mud. We all then proceeded very gingerly out the west exit. There were moments when I really didn't think the little Honda Fit Judy and I were driving was going to make it. Some places the dirt road was a virtual river with six to eight inches of rushing water over fifty or sixty feet in length. Very scary stuff indeed.
We are now home safe and sound. I feel a great sense of relief. Yet I also feel very good about our group of friends, none of whom panicked, all of whom gathered together to meet the challenge.
Observant Jews are obligated to recite a prayer of thanks to God after surviving a harrowing circumstance like a flood. The prayer is as follows:
Transliteration: Baruch A-tah Ado-nai E-lo-hei-nu Me-lech Ha-olam Ha-go-mel Le-cha-ya-vim To-vot She-ge-ma-la-ni Tov.
Translation: Blessed are You, Lord our God, Ruler of the universe, Who bestows kindness upon the culpable, for God has bestowed goodness to me.
Zen Buddhists, on the other hand, might have a somewhat different take. We might say there is never any danger, that danger is a mental construct built from fear and anticipatory thoughts. In circumstances such as driving through flooding waters on desolate mountain roads, we should just drive. In the end was it God who got us through? The cars? The circumstances? Our driving? The Sheriff? We should recognize and appreciate all of these. We are aware that everything is One. It is our faith in ourselves, God, and this interconnected universe that can get us through.
Be well.
Good Morning Everyone,
This morning I see the sun shining in through sporadic cloud cover. We have been flooded with rain over the last three days beginning Friday. I hear the Rio Grande is close to cresting near El Paso. A news story suggested we had nine inches of rain in the Sacramento mountains which includes Ruidoso and Cloudcroft. Our Refuge is in the mountains east of Cloudcroft.
We shared the weekend there with two other couples, close friends of ours. Who knew it would be such a weekend! Sheets of rain all day and night over two days left the dirt road a river. We spent the weekend reading and talking, cooking and eating. One set of friends had a camper, the other set, a tent. It turns out both camper and tent sprung leaks. The second night we spent together inside the refuge. I practiced much meditation, the non-apparent kid. Sitting in a recliner focusing on just being present. I read through Thich Nhat Hahn's wonderful little book on The Energy of Prayer, as well as several chapters from a book (Brave New Judaism) on the collision between science and scripture within Judaism. I also read through a few of Suzuki Roshi's teishos in Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind (I keep a hardcover copy of this at the Refuge). Other people read novels and whatever else they could find in the library. We had no radio, no television, and no computer Internet connection.
When it was time to leave we discovered the west exit was blocked by a river that eclipsed the road and followed it for some fifty or sixty feet nor could anticipate the flooding along the west exit, the same single lane dirt road that winds its way through the mountains down to the main road. We were prepared to spend additional days at the Refuge, but really were feeling a bit anxious about it all. A call to the Sheriff's office by us and a neighbor's ranch was responded to by a brave young man in a big Sheriff's truck. He informed the ranch people that the size of their vehicles (horse trailers and RVs) would prohibit their exit on the west exit. He thought we had a chance of getting out and he was willing to lead us out.
Our friend, pulling a camper, got seriously stuck on the muddy bottom of the refuge near the gate. We detached the camper and the Sheriff's Deputy was able to free him from the mud. We all then proceeded very gingerly out the west exit. There were moments when I really didn't think the little Honda Fit Judy and I were driving was going to make it. Some places the dirt road was a virtual river with six to eight inches of rushing water over fifty or sixty feet in length. Very scary stuff indeed.
We are now home safe and sound. I feel a great sense of relief. Yet I also feel very good about our group of friends, none of whom panicked, all of whom gathered together to meet the challenge.
Observant Jews are obligated to recite a prayer of thanks to God after surviving a harrowing circumstance like a flood. The prayer is as follows:
Transliteration: Baruch A-tah Ado-nai E-lo-hei-nu Me-lech Ha-olam Ha-go-mel Le-cha-ya-vim To-vot She-ge-ma-la-ni Tov.
Translation: Blessed are You, Lord our God, Ruler of the universe, Who bestows kindness upon the culpable, for God has bestowed goodness to me.
Zen Buddhists, on the other hand, might have a somewhat different take. We might say there is never any danger, that danger is a mental construct built from fear and anticipatory thoughts. In circumstances such as driving through flooding waters on desolate mountain roads, we should just drive. In the end was it God who got us through? The cars? The circumstances? Our driving? The Sheriff? We should recognize and appreciate all of these. We are aware that everything is One. It is our faith in ourselves, God, and this interconnected universe that can get us through.
Be well.
Monday, July 21, 2008
Three Prnciples of Zen
With palms together,
Good Morning Everyone,
This week I go to Peace Village again to offer meditation instruction and practice to the younger children. I have found that young children can practice Zazen very well for short periods. They have open minds and are willing to learn. This openness is key. It is awareness itself. To be open with no closed openings is to allow everything to flow. One of the principles of Zen is open-mindedness.
A second principle is the principle of moving from inside out. We begin our practice, that is, come to Zen, with an interest in ourselves. We wish to improve, remove an obstacle, solve a problem, find happiness. As we develop our practice we discover our deep interconnected nature, we release our interest in ourselves and open ourselves to an interest in others. We come to an awareness, a recognition, that we and others are actually one. Taking care of ourselves is taking care of others: taking care of others is taking care of ourselves. The universe is our home and we are our universe.
The third principle, then, is the principle of deep caring. Deep caring is based in an opening that allows our compassionate heart to emerge and guide us through our daily activity. This compassionate heart is our Buddha-nature. Tenderness, love, a willingness to listen: these arise from our Buddha-nature. Zazen puts us in touch with these. Mindful practice allows us to touch these.
May you each be a blessing in the universe today.
Good Morning Everyone,
This week I go to Peace Village again to offer meditation instruction and practice to the younger children. I have found that young children can practice Zazen very well for short periods. They have open minds and are willing to learn. This openness is key. It is awareness itself. To be open with no closed openings is to allow everything to flow. One of the principles of Zen is open-mindedness.
A second principle is the principle of moving from inside out. We begin our practice, that is, come to Zen, with an interest in ourselves. We wish to improve, remove an obstacle, solve a problem, find happiness. As we develop our practice we discover our deep interconnected nature, we release our interest in ourselves and open ourselves to an interest in others. We come to an awareness, a recognition, that we and others are actually one. Taking care of ourselves is taking care of others: taking care of others is taking care of ourselves. The universe is our home and we are our universe.
The third principle, then, is the principle of deep caring. Deep caring is based in an opening that allows our compassionate heart to emerge and guide us through our daily activity. This compassionate heart is our Buddha-nature. Tenderness, love, a willingness to listen: these arise from our Buddha-nature. Zazen puts us in touch with these. Mindful practice allows us to touch these.
May you each be a blessing in the universe today.
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Stillness
With palms together,
Good Morning Everyone,
Its a gray morning this morning. Although the temperatures are lower, the humidity is higher, and things feel close. At 7:00 AM our neighbor, who just recently moved in, rang our doorbell. She held her kitty in her arms. The cat was dead, killed by accident in her garage door. We invited her in, listened, and helped by calling until we found a local veterinary clinic that was open. We took her and her cat to the vet to have it cremated. Life is so unpredictable.
From there, Talmud class and a discussion surrounding issues related to "times of danger" when Jews were vulnerable to having their newly wed wives deflowered by local rulers. Was she obligated to kill herself or submit? Legal discussions blend with morality and ethics, culture and culture clash, through a long history closely documented and richly discussed.
And now, at home with a cup of coffee and dogs sleeping at my feet, I am looking forward to being still for awhile. I have my living room windows open, a fan on, and the light is a wonderfully muted gray. It is Shabbat. A day of rest, study and prayer. I am reading two books simultaneously. A book on Jewish ethical issues related to science and a Thich Nhat Hahn book on prayer. One balances the other. We should always be willing to reflect and consider, bringing mercy and compassion into the equation.
Whether its Zen for a few minutes a day, or Judaism with morning prayers, or Christians in prayer, time in stillness is essential to making sense of both our world and our lives. May you each build stillness into your lives.
Be well.
Good Morning Everyone,
Its a gray morning this morning. Although the temperatures are lower, the humidity is higher, and things feel close. At 7:00 AM our neighbor, who just recently moved in, rang our doorbell. She held her kitty in her arms. The cat was dead, killed by accident in her garage door. We invited her in, listened, and helped by calling until we found a local veterinary clinic that was open. We took her and her cat to the vet to have it cremated. Life is so unpredictable.
From there, Talmud class and a discussion surrounding issues related to "times of danger" when Jews were vulnerable to having their newly wed wives deflowered by local rulers. Was she obligated to kill herself or submit? Legal discussions blend with morality and ethics, culture and culture clash, through a long history closely documented and richly discussed.
And now, at home with a cup of coffee and dogs sleeping at my feet, I am looking forward to being still for awhile. I have my living room windows open, a fan on, and the light is a wonderfully muted gray. It is Shabbat. A day of rest, study and prayer. I am reading two books simultaneously. A book on Jewish ethical issues related to science and a Thich Nhat Hahn book on prayer. One balances the other. We should always be willing to reflect and consider, bringing mercy and compassion into the equation.
Whether its Zen for a few minutes a day, or Judaism with morning prayers, or Christians in prayer, time in stillness is essential to making sense of both our world and our lives. May you each build stillness into your lives.
Be well.
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