With palms together,
Good Morning Everyone,
Well, we got a good drenching here in southern New Mexico and west Texas yesterday afternoon and evening. I was sitting in El Paso at Pho Tre Bien Vietnamese restaurant with Zen Master Brad Warner and Students, Bobby HenShin Byrd and Rev. Bonnie Bussho Hobbs (Student Rev. Celia Kajo Villa was delayed and would meet up with us later). The rain was so thick we could not see through it. I drank a Chinese beer, then sipped espresso. We waited, talked, but mostly watched the torrents.
Brad Warner is an unassuming young man in his forties. He dresses simply: a t-shirt with a monster movie character, a simple long sleeved print shirt, and plain cotton pants. No beads, no robes and hair on his head cut in shaggy strands. I enjoy his presence.
When we got to the El Paso UU Church, it quickly filled. People seemed eager to meet this anomalous Master. Rev. Bussho and Rev. Kajo assisted by setting up books to sell and preparing to video record the talk. I politely welcomed people at the door, but otherwise stayed in the background: this was not my show, and when it was time to start, I sat against the rough stone wall of the beautiful sanctuary and listened.
Brad talked about his life and entry into Zen practice. He talked about his practice itself and his relationship with his 90+ year old Master, Nishijima-roshi. He was decidedly grounded. No fancy jargon here. I could hear his thoughtfulness, as well as his intuitive flashes, which brought a fresh, truly "Zen" life to the room.
Zen is, if anything, iconoclastic at its roots. It is the most pure form of Buddhist practice and by this I mean, it is, at base, unadorned and direct. We in the West seem to have fallen in love with the forms, the outer garments, if you will: robes, beads, incense, bells, shaved heads, talking the talk...but, while these are important containers, they are not the thing itself.
The audience was mystified this, I suspect. Like many, they expected a Buddhist persona, the sort of thing we see in commercials. Yet, what they got was the real thing. Unadorned. Simple. And deeply human.
Zen takes us into our humanity. Our practice, like psychotherapy, takes to the deep, hidden crevices of who we think we are and demands that we chip away the cover and expose ourselves. Like water dripped on a hot burner, tssss! Gone.
Yet, this is an internal burning away and so often it fails to reveal itself even to us. We burn and recover; burn and recover only to eventually ask ourselves what we are doing this for. In the end, we do it just to do it. It is life itself, this practice of Zen, and if it yields a concept we have gone too far.
I would highly recommend Brad Warner and all three of his books: Hardcore Zen, Sit Down and Shut Up, and Zen Dipped in Chocolate Wrapped in Karma.
Brad will be at the UU Church in Las Cruces Saturday evening at 7:00 PM and at the Zen Center of Las Cruces to practice Zazen on Sunday at 10:00 AM. If you are in the area, I would encourage you to meet him.
Be well.
Organ Mountain Zen
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Friday, May 22, 2009
The Word for World is Balance
With palms together,
Good Morning Everyone,
Water is a wonderful metaphor. It yields, yet is so strong it erodes mountains into canyons. It remains water as it moves from liquid to vapor and back. Water reveals its essential nature in its visible life cycle for all of us to see and, in this, it is a wonderful teacher.
As I look out my bedroom window, I see heavy clouds. They seem pregnant and the weather site suggests they will give birth today. Water is so necessary, rain is the seed of life.
I consider Mars, the angry planet, and understand it is bereft of water. A thin atmosphere, distant from the sun. Anger burns away love. When we are angry, we cannot nurture. Where there is anger there can be no life.
Venus, clothed in heavy clouds, close to the sun, thought to be a metaphor for love. Venus teaches me that to be draped in heavy bonds may be lethal. While love can nurture, it can also suffocate.
We have the beauty of residing on a planet where the metaphor is balance. Too little love, arid. Too much love, suffocation. Both Venus and Mars are inhospitable to life. On Earth we are in harmony. A lesson here as we are moving out of harmony: consuming, burning, suffocating in our own waste. Teachers are everywhere When we let our arrogance drop away we are able to see them.
As Buddha taught, when the string is too tight, it will break; when too loose, it will not play. The Middle Way is the Living Way.
Be well.
Good Morning Everyone,
Water is a wonderful metaphor. It yields, yet is so strong it erodes mountains into canyons. It remains water as it moves from liquid to vapor and back. Water reveals its essential nature in its visible life cycle for all of us to see and, in this, it is a wonderful teacher.
As I look out my bedroom window, I see heavy clouds. They seem pregnant and the weather site suggests they will give birth today. Water is so necessary, rain is the seed of life.
I consider Mars, the angry planet, and understand it is bereft of water. A thin atmosphere, distant from the sun. Anger burns away love. When we are angry, we cannot nurture. Where there is anger there can be no life.
Venus, clothed in heavy clouds, close to the sun, thought to be a metaphor for love. Venus teaches me that to be draped in heavy bonds may be lethal. While love can nurture, it can also suffocate.
We have the beauty of residing on a planet where the metaphor is balance. Too little love, arid. Too much love, suffocation. Both Venus and Mars are inhospitable to life. On Earth we are in harmony. A lesson here as we are moving out of harmony: consuming, burning, suffocating in our own waste. Teachers are everywhere When we let our arrogance drop away we are able to see them.
As Buddha taught, when the string is too tight, it will break; when too loose, it will not play. The Middle Way is the Living Way.
Be well.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Notes
With palms together,
Good Morning Everyone,
This morning I am alone in bed looking at the morning light open a view of the Organ mountains out my window. Judy is at the Refuge. Pepper, my old dog, is beside me in Judy's place, and Pete Kitty is at my feet. This morning I plan to attend a breakfast meeting of a clergy group. We will meet at Mesilla Valley Hospice. From there, its on to Breakfast with the Boys. I will try to eat only one breakfast :)
Tomorrow evening I will attend a presentation by Brad Warner, that renegade sort of Zen monk who writes odd, but refreshing books, such as Hardcore Zen. This will be the second time I have met him, though we have corresponded a bit. While I enjoy his innovation and his thorough grounding in Master Dogen's work, I have often wanted him to mature some. Perhaps he has with his new book, Zen Wrapped in Karma Dipped in Chocolate: A Trip Through Death, Sex, Divorce, and Spiritual Celebrity in Search of the True Dharma. We will see.
As to my own maturity at 62, I am not too overly concerned with it. I have made a few decisions, though. I will begin my streetZen practice again and I will involve myself much more in the Las Cruces community as a Zen priest. I have kept that in the background in deference to Temple Beth El since I was on their Board. Fundamentally, however, my calling is as a Zen priest and spiritual educator. A recent request to not use my title, "roshi" in matters related to the synagogue has brought that into clear focus and I am thankful for that.
Still, I will work wherever I am needed and wanted. I will continue to work with Temple Beth El in my capacity as Chair of the Academy and as an educator in contemplative practices, as well as in my new role in their Communications/Marketing department. This work will be as a Jew and I will leave my priesthood out of it. It is my Plan B, as Norm Fischer, that other, more famous Jewish Roshi :), outlines in a recent article in the summer 2009 issue of Buddhadharma. But, in terms of the larger community, I live to free all beings from suffering. That is my Plan A.
Be well.
Good Morning Everyone,
This morning I am alone in bed looking at the morning light open a view of the Organ mountains out my window. Judy is at the Refuge. Pepper, my old dog, is beside me in Judy's place, and Pete Kitty is at my feet. This morning I plan to attend a breakfast meeting of a clergy group. We will meet at Mesilla Valley Hospice. From there, its on to Breakfast with the Boys. I will try to eat only one breakfast :)
Tomorrow evening I will attend a presentation by Brad Warner, that renegade sort of Zen monk who writes odd, but refreshing books, such as Hardcore Zen. This will be the second time I have met him, though we have corresponded a bit. While I enjoy his innovation and his thorough grounding in Master Dogen's work, I have often wanted him to mature some. Perhaps he has with his new book, Zen Wrapped in Karma Dipped in Chocolate: A Trip Through Death, Sex, Divorce, and Spiritual Celebrity in Search of the True Dharma. We will see.
As to my own maturity at 62, I am not too overly concerned with it. I have made a few decisions, though. I will begin my streetZen practice again and I will involve myself much more in the Las Cruces community as a Zen priest. I have kept that in the background in deference to Temple Beth El since I was on their Board. Fundamentally, however, my calling is as a Zen priest and spiritual educator. A recent request to not use my title, "roshi" in matters related to the synagogue has brought that into clear focus and I am thankful for that.
Still, I will work wherever I am needed and wanted. I will continue to work with Temple Beth El in my capacity as Chair of the Academy and as an educator in contemplative practices, as well as in my new role in their Communications/Marketing department. This work will be as a Jew and I will leave my priesthood out of it. It is my Plan B, as Norm Fischer, that other, more famous Jewish Roshi :), outlines in a recent article in the summer 2009 issue of Buddhadharma. But, in terms of the larger community, I live to free all beings from suffering. That is my Plan A.
Be well.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Walking and Talking
With palms together,
Good Morning Everyone,
Friends Allen and Eve just finished hiking a 2.8 mile out and back desert trail hike with Judy and me. Allen and I walk together, while Eve and Judy pair off, and we tend to talk about a variety of issues. I have found this to be a very cleansing habit, one that when I fail to go, I miss very much. There is much to be gained by opening one's heart to others. Of course, the other obvious benefit is in the walking itself. While I also enjoy runs alone and biking alone, long walks with a friend are of a wholly different order.
Zen, on the other hand, is a quiet, introspective practice. We sit facing a wall in silence. Talking is discouraged. Of course, this is an excellent practice, as well. It is quite possible we Americans talk entirely too much. The conversations that occur on long walks are of a very different variety. These are conversations that uncover and release; conversations that bridge and unite; conversations that deepen the bonds between human beings. Along the way, they are also conversations that free us from the bonds of ourselves. In Zen we might say we are "presenting ourselves as we will."
Many of us go along emotionally constipated. We squeak out meaningless words here and there, words without authenticity or personal import. We can even talk incessantly about nonsense. As a result we do not touch ourselves. Too bad really, we could use a little emotional Ex-lax, once in awhile. Maybe with such medicine we wouldn't be such an uptight and paranoid culture. Maybe we would actually be able to relax and enjoy the ride. And get to know ourselves more completely in the process.
For me, a desert walk with a friend three or four times a week is very much what the doctor ordered,. I would encourage us all to do the same.
Be well.
Good Morning Everyone,
Friends Allen and Eve just finished hiking a 2.8 mile out and back desert trail hike with Judy and me. Allen and I walk together, while Eve and Judy pair off, and we tend to talk about a variety of issues. I have found this to be a very cleansing habit, one that when I fail to go, I miss very much. There is much to be gained by opening one's heart to others. Of course, the other obvious benefit is in the walking itself. While I also enjoy runs alone and biking alone, long walks with a friend are of a wholly different order.
Zen, on the other hand, is a quiet, introspective practice. We sit facing a wall in silence. Talking is discouraged. Of course, this is an excellent practice, as well. It is quite possible we Americans talk entirely too much. The conversations that occur on long walks are of a very different variety. These are conversations that uncover and release; conversations that bridge and unite; conversations that deepen the bonds between human beings. Along the way, they are also conversations that free us from the bonds of ourselves. In Zen we might say we are "presenting ourselves as we will."
Many of us go along emotionally constipated. We squeak out meaningless words here and there, words without authenticity or personal import. We can even talk incessantly about nonsense. As a result we do not touch ourselves. Too bad really, we could use a little emotional Ex-lax, once in awhile. Maybe with such medicine we wouldn't be such an uptight and paranoid culture. Maybe we would actually be able to relax and enjoy the ride. And get to know ourselves more completely in the process.
For me, a desert walk with a friend three or four times a week is very much what the doctor ordered,. I would encourage us all to do the same.
Be well.
Sunday, May 17, 2009
On Pebbles and Boulders
With palms together,
Good Morning Everyone,
Many of you have privately asked about me, both in person, and via email. Thank you for your thoughtfulness and your sensitivity. I am well. Of course, life has offered both its typical and atypical stones-to-boulder's in the road, but that is to be expected. My Little Honey and I celebrated our 28th wedding anniversary yesterday. My son Jacob is in treatment for both emotional and chemical issues, the dream of a family restaurant collapsed and laid bare. We are struggling to keep the pieces and values of family together. Bronchitis and allergies haven't helped. Still, I say I am well.
Our lives are what they are: a gift to us. This gift is perfect regardless of what we think or feel about it. Every facet is a teacher, every turn, a lesson. Our challenge is to be open and present each moment.When we are willing to see this way, everything is an opportunity
This is difficult. Life can wear us down. I often want to withdraw to my Zendo or bedroom. I turn on a television show and drift away.I feel such limited energy, yet I have the experience to know that down under the stinking thinking is a vast reservoir of vitality, love, and compassion. This energy is the stuff of the universe and it is everywhere. I tapped it at mile 22 of a 26.2 mile race. I tapped it in the jungle in the middle of a firefight. I tapped it in graduate school and a thousand other places and moments during my life.
The Zen of Living is the Zen of each moment: taste life in all its flavors. Embrace life in all its forms and stages. And in each space and each step embrace peace.
May you each be a blessing in the universe.
Good Morning Everyone,
Many of you have privately asked about me, both in person, and via email. Thank you for your thoughtfulness and your sensitivity. I am well. Of course, life has offered both its typical and atypical stones-to-boulder's in the road, but that is to be expected. My Little Honey and I celebrated our 28th wedding anniversary yesterday. My son Jacob is in treatment for both emotional and chemical issues, the dream of a family restaurant collapsed and laid bare. We are struggling to keep the pieces and values of family together. Bronchitis and allergies haven't helped. Still, I say I am well.
Our lives are what they are: a gift to us. This gift is perfect regardless of what we think or feel about it. Every facet is a teacher, every turn, a lesson. Our challenge is to be open and present each moment.When we are willing to see this way, everything is an opportunity
This is difficult. Life can wear us down. I often want to withdraw to my Zendo or bedroom. I turn on a television show and drift away.I feel such limited energy, yet I have the experience to know that down under the stinking thinking is a vast reservoir of vitality, love, and compassion. This energy is the stuff of the universe and it is everywhere. I tapped it at mile 22 of a 26.2 mile race. I tapped it in the jungle in the middle of a firefight. I tapped it in graduate school and a thousand other places and moments during my life.
The Zen of Living is the Zen of each moment: taste life in all its flavors. Embrace life in all its forms and stages. And in each space and each step embrace peace.
May you each be a blessing in the universe.
Monday, May 11, 2009
Everyday
With palms together,
Good Morning Everyone,
The dishwasher is changed out
and the kitty litter replaced:
everyday chores, everyday Zen.
The Zen of the Everyday
is the highest and the lowest
form of practice.
It is ubiquitous.
Wake up!
Unfold your mind
and open like a flower in the morning light.
Wrap your self in extinction
and the universe is your Teacher.
This dish wounded, this one fine:
make no distinction,
only wash the dish
and put it away.
Be well.
Good Morning Everyone,
The dishwasher is changed out
and the kitty litter replaced:
everyday chores, everyday Zen.
The Zen of the Everyday
is the highest and the lowest
form of practice.
It is ubiquitous.
Wake up!
Unfold your mind
and open like a flower in the morning light.
Wrap your self in extinction
and the universe is your Teacher.
This dish wounded, this one fine:
make no distinction,
only wash the dish
and put it away.
Be well.
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Dharma
With palms together,
Good Morning Everyone,
Today I would like to talk to you about the Dharma. What is this thing we call "Dharma" anyway? The term has become popular to the point that there was a TV show with Dharma in it's title. Dharma comes from the Buddha's mouth. Dharma comes from the Buddha's heart. Dharma surrounds us. Everything is Dharma. Yet Dharma is nothing. It is a finger pointing to the moon.
One meaning is that Dharma is the teaching of the Buddha transmitted either 'mind to mind' or in oral history or in scripture. Another meaning of Dharma is that it is the unadorned, absolute truth. Still another, is that it is reality itself.
Dharma just is. We discover Dharma as we unfold our minds and hearts to manifest it, to receive it, and to transmit it.
Again, keep in mind, all dharmas are empty. This is to say that even the truth, even reality itself, even the Absolute, has no permanence. Everything, every idea, every thought, feeling, sensation, everything, is in process. The universe is flow.
And if flow is the essential nature of the universe, what is the Universal? Flow.
Take refuge in this.
Be well, be open.
Good Morning Everyone,
Today I would like to talk to you about the Dharma. What is this thing we call "Dharma" anyway? The term has become popular to the point that there was a TV show with Dharma in it's title. Dharma comes from the Buddha's mouth. Dharma comes from the Buddha's heart. Dharma surrounds us. Everything is Dharma. Yet Dharma is nothing. It is a finger pointing to the moon.
One meaning is that Dharma is the teaching of the Buddha transmitted either 'mind to mind' or in oral history or in scripture. Another meaning of Dharma is that it is the unadorned, absolute truth. Still another, is that it is reality itself.
Dharma just is. We discover Dharma as we unfold our minds and hearts to manifest it, to receive it, and to transmit it.
Again, keep in mind, all dharmas are empty. This is to say that even the truth, even reality itself, even the Absolute, has no permanence. Everything, every idea, every thought, feeling, sensation, everything, is in process. The universe is flow.
And if flow is the essential nature of the universe, what is the Universal? Flow.
Take refuge in this.
Be well, be open.
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