Zazen hat drei Ziele: 1. Entwicklung der Kraft der Konzentration (Joriki), 2. Satori-Erwachen (Kensho-godo) und 3. Verwirklichung des Erhabenen Weges im täglichen Leben (mujodo-no taigen) (Kapleau, 1992, S. 81).

A blank page can be tantalizing, so many possibilities, so much potential. Will any of it be fulfilled? Will the potential be wasted on something trite and meaningless?

Life is much like the sheet of paper. It’s blank. You decide what to fill it with. It could the pursuit of the trite and meaningless or perhaps, something more.

As a Buddhist, I like to believe that I’ve decided to pursue something greater.

I’ve decided to walk a more definite path, a path that leads somewhere. However, it is often tempting to fill my page with random scribbling, to deviate off the path and cavort in the meadows. Whether that meadow be the latest fantasy series, video game, or sci-fi movie or television program, they are all deviations and lead to serious detours.

As such I’ve found that I must curtail what I take in. I try to limit my exposure to the modern media. It’s difficult to work in an office with those who gladly revel in the fleeting entertainments of the moment. I’m constantly being asked if I have seen this movie, or that tv show. Usually, I say no and they leave it alone, but not always. Occasionally I get badgered about my lack of interest in celebrities or movies or “pop” music.

I’m torn between celebrating American holidays for the sake of “fitting in.” I’m an American; I can appreciate Thanksgiving and what it means. It has decidedly Christian overtones that I’m not particularly in favor of, nor do I approve of the celebration of animal slaughter and gluttony that it has become.

Christmas is another problem. I want to participate in the merriment and I have no problem celebrating the possibly mythical birth of the possibly mythical Bodhisattva, Jesus Christ. The commercialism and greed that the holiday engenders is an issue for me. I know Christians struggle with this too. I can’t find solace in the “true meaning” of Christmas. The Christmas story is supposed to evoke the majesty of the Son of God. I don’t believe Christ WAS the Son of God, and I don’t care about his birth other than the reverence he might be due as an enlightened being. However, it’s always nice to celebrate someone’s birthday. We celebrate the Buddha’s birthday and our folks and friends’s birthdays, why not JC’s?

In the end it’s important to remember to fill my days with worthwhile activities. Watching the seven-hour Mythbuster marathon might seem like fun at the time but think of all the constructive things you could have done? Think of all the Dharma talks you could have listened to or all the zazen that could have been done in that time or even non-religious activities.

As a culture we have come to believe that we have the right to be entertained. Even if there’ always someone willing to entertain us just waiting inside the idiot box, maybe you shouldn’t turn it on. My days are usually more fulfilling if I don’t even hit that power button.

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

Rochester Zen Centerin sivuilla on tarjolla satakunta nauhoitettua opetuspuhetta. Vaikkapa “Free Will vs. Karma”,
“Zen Practice Maturing Beyond Special to Real”,
“The No-Thingness of Zen Practice and Teaching” tai “Working With Anger”. Ylläolevan linkin lisäksi niitä voi tilata vaikkapa iTunesin podcasteina.

Zenin juurtuminen on USAssa noin 40 vuotta edellä meitä. Esimerkiksi Chicagossa paikalliset zen-keskukset ilmoittavat sanomalehdessä lauantain opetuspuheen aiheen, ja ihmiset valitsevat mieleisensä.

“The Universal Mother – Making the Connection”
by Helen Laing

KEEP IT SIMPLE. Avoid making life more complicated than it needs to be.

PREGNANCY IS A TIME OF GROWTH – not just the tummy. Work through the emotional stuff that comes to the surface.

INTELLECTUALISING WON’T HELP.  It hinders birth. Get real and be honest!

PLENTY OF REST. Plenty of exercise and good food.

DON’T GIVE AWAY YOUR POWER. Honour the goddess!

TRY TO HAVE AS MUCH TIME AS POSSIBLE on your own with the baby for at least three or four weeks after the birth.

HAVE HEAPS OF CUDDLES with your man or a close friend.

USE YOUR INTUITION. You know what to do.

BE IN THE MOMENT. “Catch-life-as-it-flows.”

MAKE TIME FOR SOME ZAZEN each day. It is revitalising.

DON’T TRY TO BE SUPERWOMAN. And for God’s sake, keep your sense of humour. Otherwise, you are done for.

REMEMBER, we are all sisters on this amazing journey through life.

An extract from Helen Laing’s wonderful book “Birthing in Paradise – An alternative approach to child birth”

Torstaina oli jälleen dharmakeskustelu. Tuntuu paremmalta kirjoittaa aiheesta keskustelun jälkeen, niin pohdinnasta tulee avarampaa.

Buddhalaisuus siirtyi noin sata ensimmäistä vuotta suullisena perinteenä, ja tietenkin listat olivat hyvä muistisääntö. Siksipä buddhalaisuudesta löytyy 4 jaloa totuutta, 8-osainen polku, 6-10 paramitaa, 6 maailmaa, 3 jalokiveä, 5 skandhaa, 6 aistiporttia, 5 mielenmyrkkyä, jne.

Mahayana buddhalaiset 6 paramitaa löytyvät Lotus sutrasta:

1. Dana paramita: pyyteetön anteliaisuus, itsestään antaminen
2. Sila paramita: hyveellisyys, moraalisuus, kurinalaisuus, sopiva toiminta
3. Ksanti paramita: kärsivällisyys, sietokyky, hyväksyminen, kestävyys
4. Virya paramita: energia, ahkeruus, vireys, ponnistelu
5. Dhyana paramita: yhteen asiaan keskittyminen, meditaatio
6. Prajna paramita: viisaus, oivallus

Keskustelimme ainoastaan ensimmäisestä, pyyteettömästä antamisesta. Kaikki paramitat kuvaavat samaa, vain eri näkökulmasta.

Keskustelu polveili aluksi konkreettisessa antamisessa, rahalahjoituksissa, hädänalaisten auttamisessa.

Miten oikein voin antaa pyyteettömästi? Ajatus “antamisesta” sisältää minän(1), joka omistan(2) jotakin hyvää(3), josta luovun(4) pyyteettömästi(5) toisen(6) hyväksi(7). Aika paljon oletuksia ja käsitteitä. Näyttää siltä, että kun yritän antaa pyyteettömästi, sillä varmasti on mielenkiintoisia seurauksia, mutta jotakin muuta kuin pyyteetöntä antamista.

Joskus tulee auttaneeksi toista sen kummemmin ajattelematta. Silloinhan minää ei ole, vain tekeminen.

Pyyteetön antaminen liittyy oleellisesti zazeniin. Sitä ei kannata erikseen “harjoitella”, muuten yllämainittu ajattelu astuu kuvaan.

Kun zazen hieman syvenee, läsnä vain tekeminen (1), joka ei ole erillinen toisesta (6). En tiedä mikä on hyväksi mikä ei (7)(3). Zazen on niin turvallinen paikka, ettei minun tarvitse turvautua omistamisen illuusioon (2) eikä hyödyn suunnitteluun (5). Annan huomioni, joka minulla on taas seuraavassa hetkessä, en siis oikeastaan menetä sitä (4).

Itseasiassa annan siis jotakin, jota on rajattomasti. Minulla ei ole mitään syytä huolehtia. Mistä sitten vaikeus? Kyseessä on meditaatioharjoituksen keskeisistä ilmiöistä.

Sisäinen maailmani on itsemääräämisoikeuden perimmäinen linnake. Olen äärimmäisen tottunut pakenemaan sinne, silloin tällöin ja vähän väliä. Joskus lepäämään, joskus muuten vain pakoon. Tässä mielessä zazen on hyvin karu harjoitus. Siinä luovun viimeisestäkin vapaudesta, vapaudesta huvitella eristyneessä mielikuvituksessani. Haaveilusta luopuminen on vaikeaa, koska olen sallinut itseni tottua mielikuvilla leikkimiseen, sisäiseen television tuijotteluun.

Poisoppiminen vaatii kärsivällisyyttä. Tuosta turvapaikasta ei voi luopua väkivaltaisesti. Saatan kuvitella, että “zen sanoo”, muodostan “zen ihanteita”. Ehkä ajattelen, että joku auktoriteetti, Buddha tai opettaja, käskee. Tuo synnyttää vastarintaa ja alitajuista kapinaa. Se väsyttää ja tarvitsenkin haaveilun turvaa enemmän, pakenen zen-unelmiin.

Kun annan huomioni tälle hetkelle, luovun haaveilusta, ajatuksilla leikkimisestä. Luovun siis erillisen itsen tiedostamisesta ja antaudun kosketuksiin sen kanssa mitä on tässä hetkessä. Se on toisaalta ponnistelua vaativaa ja uuvuttavaa, toisaalta äärimmäisen palkitsevaa. Onneksi se tarvitsee tehdä vain hengitys kerrallaan, pakottomasti, vaivattomasti.

Crédito: Assírio e Alvim

“Sentarmo-nos por um momento na nossa mais profunda paz, será isso, por exemplo, ajudar toda a humanidade? Sim, isso ajuda! Devido à não separação entre a nossa paz profunda, a paz do mundo, e a ajuda a todo o universo; estas coisas são inseparáveis, são uma ajuda, um amor e um mesmo corpo-terra. O vosso zazen verdadeiro é meu, é da humanidade, é um zazen universal. Cada um de nós devia encontrar esse sentar, estar e andar zen durante todo o tempo, passo a passo.
Mesmo que toda a humanidade se sentasse em meditação e trabalha-se arduamente em acção durante mil anos, mesmo assim a paz real não chegaria à Terra e o sofrimento continuaria a existir para sempre. Mas, agora mesmo, a paz real (a ajuda à humanidade) está aqui onde você (nós) está sentado em meditação (nesta uma única expiração)”

Hôgen Yamahata, “Folhas caem, um novo rebento”

Parte 1 del documental Shobogenka “Canto del Ojo del Dharma”.
En el templo Shobogenji el maestro Kosen comenta el texto Shodoka, Canto del Despertar Inmediato, del maestro Yoka Daishi.

Thesis 8 from Marx’s “Theses on Feuerbach”

All social life is essentially practical. All mysteries which lead theory to mysticism find their rational solution in human practice and in the comprehension of this practice. (Marx’s emphasis)

Do that whenever you are sitting on a bike or bus, at a restaurant or movie theater—even on your zafu or with your breath.

If you have been following this blog for any length of time, you know that I have been studying Buddhism.  There is much to love about this practice for a heathen scientist, but it is tarnished with myth and a willingness to fall for anything just like other religions are.  It’s not supposed to be a religion, yet it has adherants who worship the Buddha rather than following the teachings of Siddhartha the human buddha.  And the writings of the human Buddha are rife with the influence of the age and place in which he lived.  How could they not be?  We learn by interactions with our environments. 

Mindfulness and meditation have made a huge difference in my life in the short time I’ve been practicing them.  I’ve been disillusioned by the beliefs of so many learned Buddhists that some guy was really and truly born out of a lotus flower, and that we can all become clairvoyant as we ascend to nirvana and other such nonsense. 

What mindfulness can really offer is the ability to observe one’s life better and stop running away from reality– the exact opposite of most religious practices.  And that’s pure science. Instead of distracting ourselves with doing acts because we are told to by mythical or historical characters who threaten us with rebirth as a toad or with hellfire and damnation, we can do things because we observe and figure out what the antecedents and consequences are for our actions. Once we know that we can adjust them to improve our lives and that of those around us. That’s behavior analysis.  That’s real. Meditation and mindfulness help us get there.

In my last post I wrote that I’m not really a Buddhist.  I am studying Buddhism, but I don’t want to be defined as a Buddhist any more than I want to be defined as a Christian. Both faiths are enmeshed with superstitions I choose not to embrace.  I embrace evidence.  When contradictory evidence comes along, I adjust my beliefs.  People aren’t born from Lotus flowers, nor are they born from virgins.  I know lots of folks who have edited their Christianity to exclude the silly stuff and include only the good stuff, like “turn the other cheek” and all that. But you’ve got to keep in mind, in the Christian scriptures, Jesus cursed a fig tree to death when it wouldn’t give him fruit, and God refused to save his only son when he was being crucified.  These aren’t stories that comfort me.  They make me nervous.  They make it okay to kill those who don’t serve you and to walk away from the one person they are supposed to love most.  If I had to worship a god, it would be one that whisked his kid off the cross, healed his wounds, and said, “Yo, People!  I’ll do the same for you!” 

Which is why the Buddha was originally so appealing.  He was born wealthy, but when he saw how the rest of the world was, he gave up his wealth and tried to figure out what was up with all that.  He finally determined that The Middle Way is the best way.  Not extreme asceticism… which makes me confused about why Buddhist monks are supposed to support themselves by begging.  Not extreme wealth… which makes me confused about all the gold encrusted Buddha statues and offerings.   But the Middle Way.  Moderation in all things. I think the Buddha has been skewed just like the Christ has.  But I also think I’m going to have a hard time with a guru that existed in a time when fact-based science and equality were hazy at best.

I found this article online and all the way through I was thinking, Yes!  Yes!  I’ve copied some quotes, but please go to the source, the Shambala Sun, to read the entire article:  http://www.shambhalasun.com/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=2903Itemid=247

“Given the degree to which religion still inspires human conflict, and impedes genuine inquiry, I believe that merely being a self-described “Buddhist” is to be complicit in the world’s violence and ignorance to an unacceptable degree.”  Sam Harris, author of Tne End of Faith in the Shambala Sun.  [Harris was commenting on the general idea most people have of Buddhism as a religion.  Among the people who hold this idea are some practicing Buddhists.]

Harris continues, “…there are ideas within Buddhism that are so incredible as to render the dogma of the virgin birth plausible by comparison…Among Western Buddhists, there are college-educated men and women who apparently believe that Guru Rinpoche was actually born from a lotus. This is not the spiritual breakthrough that civilization has been waiting for these many centuries.”  [Indeed.]

Harris:  “For the fact is that a person can embrace the Buddha’s teaching, and even become a genuine Buddhist contemplative (and, one must presume, a buddha) without believing anything on insufficient evidence… In many respects, Buddhism is very much like science.”  [Wow.]

Harris:  “…the methodology of Buddhism, if shorn of its religious encumbrances, could be one of our greatest resources as we struggle to develop our scientific understanding of human subjectivity.”  [Yes!]

“Why is religion such a potent source of violence? There is no other sphere of discourse in which human beings so fully articulate their differences from one another, or cast these differences in terms of everlasting rewards and punishments.”  [Yes, yes!]

“Religion is also the only area of our discourse in which people are systematically protected from the demand to give evidence in defense of their strongly held beliefs. And yet, these beliefs often determine what they live for, what they will die for, and—all too often—what they will kill for.”  [So true!]

“…once we develop a scientific account of the contemplative path, it will utterly transcend its religious associations.” 

A scientific account of the contempletive path.

This makes me want to go back to school and conduct mindfulness research. 

Good Karma,

Meditator Tot

Here’s my excuse:  Apparently Kindles need a break every now and then.  My Kindle has been returned to me.  (See yesterday’s entry.)  It is like a boomerang. Here’s the history of my Kindle.

I received it sometime this summer, with great excitement and glee and it instantly became my dearest inanimate companion.  (You can read yesterday’s entry for more on that.)  I bought it a purple leather cover.  I made a shrine to it… okay, I didn’t, but I love it.  No more teetering stacks of books on my bedside table.  Just one sleek electronic device.

In late June I took the Kindle to Sequim Washington where Jesus and I were doing a seminar on the Constructional Aggression Treatment.  I had to leave early because I received a call that my ailing father had taken a turn for the worse.  I and all my stuff were taken to the tiny airport where I would hitch a ride to Seattle and fly to Dallas, then drive to East Texas where my Dad was entering hospice care.

I stepped off the teeny plane and walked across the tarmac dragging my suitcase and lugging a carry on and got all the way inside the airport before realizing I’d left the Kindle in the seat pocket.  I panicked and asked someone to help because the plane was ROLLING and I was afraid he was going to taxi off to the runway with my Kindle.  A very nice young man (probably in his 40s) went out and got it off the plane, and returned it to me wearing a bemused… nay… annoyed… expression.

I went out front and got on a bus which would take me to the big airport.  I started chatting with the folks around me.  I hopped off the bus and went off toward the airport terminal, and realized I’d forgotten my Kindle in the seat pocket.  Note to self: DO NOT PUT KINDLE IN PUBLIC TRANSPORT SEAT POCKETS!!!!  I dashed back.  Dashing is something less than running, but still took my breath away.

I got off the bus again and scurried (slower than dashing, faster than walking) through the very long airport to catch the next plane only to realize that I had my Kindle … but I didn’t have  MY SUITCASE!!!!  This wasn’t a normal lay over.  It was a wee-plane to big-plane switcheroo, and I had zoned out thinking about my Dad and forgot that it was do-it-yourself service from thither to yon.

I ran back (literally ran… if you can imagine that) back to the other end of the airport only to see two men standing with my suitcase, scratching their heads.  Between gasps I called out, “That’s mine!”  They looked at me as I slowed to a dash and then a scurry and finally a stertorous stop. One of them said, “Well, did ya forget your luggage now?” I refrained from offering a clever retort only because I was out of breath. He said, “We were just deciding what to do about it and here you came running!” I replied something like, “Pant, pant, pant… Thank pant you pant pant… so pant pant… much pant pant pant.”

“Are you alright then?  Anything else I can help you with?”  The other man was just grinning.  I wondered if they knew the guy who went to grab my Kindle off the wee plane.

There have been nights when Kindle spent the night at one of my offices.  There have been days when my Kindle was at home and I wished it were with me, where ever I was.  But I got the DX… a bigger version of the Kindle… and it didn’t fit well into any of my purses so I was always leaving it elsewhere because I have so much stuff to tote at work.  That lead to me buying the nice purple tote I wrote about yesterday.  I’m hoping it will resolve my Kindle forgetting.  We’ll see.

So, what have I learned from all this?  That I do indeed have an attachment to inanimate objects problem. I wonder what I would have felt if I had forever lost a couple dozen of my favorite hard copy books.  Would I have felt the sense of panic … and of dukkha … that I felt last night when my Kindle was missing?  I don’t think so.  I think it was the $500 bucks we doled out on the device and the $50 more on the cover that made it such a big deal.  It is actually a device I coveted but didn’t need, and certainly didn’t miss before I got it.  But I had an attachment to getting it.  I really wanted it. And when I found out I could get a purple cover for it… well… it was mine.

Another lesson in dukkha.  What do you do about the attachment when something is lost then returns to you?  If I were a good Buddhist I might get rid of the Kindle.  Sell it on Ebay, donate the money to the SPCA?  But I would still have my attachment to books.  I would still have attachments to all sorts of things.  And I’ve learned much of what little I know about Buddhism on my Kindle.  So.  I don’t know what else to say about that except that I’m keeping my Kindle.  Unless I lose it for real sometime.  (I’m not really a Buddhist, I’m just saying…and I’m going to write separately on the Complete Buddhist… stay tuned.)

And that brings to mind what I automatically did last night.  I quickly came to the conclusion that it had been stolen, possibly by one of the two women standing in the bag section looking at wallets.  I very quickly dismissed the notion that maybe I forgot it somewhere again. I did fleetingly think that if I had left it in my cart (which I had) someone had already swiped it.  But I had, they handn’t, and no one did any swiping.  It was just me being forgetful.  (Forgetfulness drives me crazy but I’m SOOO good at it!) And me learning that blaming people isn’t too helpful.

Here’s what I did with my dukkha last night.  Whenever I would think about the Kindle and feel angry or sick, I would stop myself and say, “Okay, be with that feeling.”  And I would think about the knot in my stomach and just make myself stay there with that physical sensation.  And the sensation went away.  By the time I went to bed I was still disappointed, but I was okay. I had let go.  I was doing okay with the loss.  I still had work to do on it, but I was very nearly okay.

This process seems to have desensitized me to the loss.  This morning when I first woke up and thought about it, I felt a lesser sense of loss, but went into it, just went to that dull feeling and stayed with it.  It diminished.

So when I checked my voice mail and got a message saying the Kindle had been found in the shopping cart where I’d carelessly left it, I felt a little bewildered.  Really?  I was so sure it was gone for good.  I’d done my homework in letting go of the attachment.  I’d refrained from ordering another Kindle, not just because it was expensive but because I wasn’t sure I needed to have one.  (Okay, to be sure I did peek at the new Kindle model when I went online to cut off my Kindle service last night.  It’s smaller and will fit in more purses, AND it has global wireless, not just in the USA.  I don’t leave the country that often, but that would be cool… At cocktail parties I could say, “Oh, yes, I downloaded that book while vacationing in Belize.”  Of course I haven’t been to a cocktail party in 20 years. And I’ve never been to Belize. But the DX has a rotating display, and that does come in handy sometimes.  So, yeah, I would have ordered another Kindle.)

Kindle is home now, and fortunately I did not return the purple Kindle Purse, although I have yet to find a bag for inside the Kindle purse.  Maybe Ziploc makes something suitable. (See yesterday’s post for more on that, too.)  I re-registered her immediately.  It was super easy to do… even a thief could have done it.  See?  There I go again.

Good Karma to you,

Meditator Tot

I had a Kindle DX.  It was the object-love of my life.  Aside from my Element, my Kindle was my favorite inanimate object.  Well, except for my angled rug hook, my sock monkey slippers and my computer.  And my Merrell’s work shoes.  And our Tempurpedic bed.  In fact, the Kindle and the Tempurpedic … does anyone need anything else, really?  Really?

I was having this problem with the kindle.  It didn’t fit in my main purse, and any other bags I had were too giant and irritating, so I went out looking for a bag for my Kindle.  It’s own pursey bag to be carried in.  I went to TJ Max.  (You can get the max for the minimum at TJ Max.)  Brought my Kindle.  Let it try on several purses.  Settled on a purple tote that somewhat matched my Kindle’s outfit, a purple Kindle Cover. I was happy, Kindle was happy.  I paid for the bag, and some hand lotion, and went to my car.  I drove home.  I started to get out of the car, and Kindle wasn’t there.  I panicked.  I said Burma.  I freaked out.  I searched the car and SPED back to TJ Max.  The manager was quite pleasant but hadn’t had one turned in.  I wanted to have an anxiety attack or something.  I was just sick.  I retraced my steps through the store, when it dawned on me that it had been stolen.

The store was packed.  It looked like Christmas shopping going down in there.  I had pulled up next to a couple of women looking at clutches… I was hoping to find a small bag to fit inside my Kindle bag that could be pulled out when I wanted to go places Kindle didn’t need to go.  (Not many places, but I was in a very consumer mood.  A purse for my Kindle, a bag for my Kindle’s purse.  Made sense to me.)

I realized that just before that was the last time I saw Kindle.  I called home and my hubby dearest got online and realized, no, there isn’t any insurance on it, and no, Amazon doesn’t really have any way to stop people from re-registering a device as stolen and preventing downloads … or at least no policy of doing that.  Apparently Kindles are big business in the Thieving and conniving business these days.  They could easily make a stolen Kindle worthless by never allowing it to be registered again without certain backflips, but no.  All I could do was “Deregister” the Kindle and feel like crying.  I didn’t actually cry but I really, really felt like it.  I LOVE MY KINDLE AND WANT IT BACK.  It had my business cards in the pocket with my work phone number, but my work cell hasn’t rung, and it’s not going to.  At least not with someone saying they have my Kindle and want me to have it back.

So I drove back home, feeling just like crap, really.  I mean, really!  I was BUYING my KINDLE a PURSE and someone STOLE it!  Now I have a stupid purple tote that doesn’t have even one Kindle DX to its name.  I was driving and it was dark and people are SO STUPID when they drive at night.  They just cruise along like they have all the time in the world and don’t even CARE that someone MIGHT have had her KINDLE stolen, DAMN THEM TO HELL AND BACK!!!

So, I’m driving in the dark and I happened to touch my neck and a tiny little pendant I got in the mail today.  It is a silver circle.  On one side is a Japanese character, and on the other, the meaning translated into English.  Zen.  Meditate.  Be here now.

I didn’t want to be there, because there was very, very VERY very annoying and I wanted to be anywhere but there.  But I wasn’t somewhere else, I was there.  I was there, in my car on a dark Irving Texas road with someone else reading my Zen library… what is someone else going to do with 20 Zen Buddhism books?  Only I need them, do you hear me?

But I touched the little silver sliver and I came back to here, now, and I thought, “This feels really bad.”  Then I’d think of what kind of stinking jerk would steal a Kindle, of all things, and I said, “Okay, but be HERE now.”  And I stayed for a while, but I didn’t really want to at all, so I wondered how mad my husband really was… Kindles aren’t cheap, you know… and I said, “Okay, but be HERE now.”  So I stayed there for maybe a few blocks.  I felt how bad I felt, and I felt the attachment to this thing, this electronic book, this object that had taken on a life of its own.  I thought about attachment and how it causes dukkha (suffering).  I thought about my Kindle.  I thought about dukkha.  I was having a bunch of dukkha.  I hate dukkha.  I think a Buddhist teacher would say I made my dukkha more powerful by staying mad at the person that stole my Kindle.  But I don’t have a zen teacher, so I might as well not get too attached to that whole idea or I’ll have more dukkha.

I thought about the purple leather tote.  I got so mad.  How could I ever use that purse knowing I got it when my Kindle needed something to ride in and that now I don’t have a Kindle at all?  Damn, damn, DAMN!!  Damn, I miss my Kindle.

So I thought, “Be here now.  HERE now.”  I thought, “Damn, I miss my Kindle.  Missing my Kindle hurts.  Now hurts.  I miss my damned Kindle.  I have to let go of my Kindle because it’s gone and I don’t want to, I don’t want to, I don’t want to, damn it, damn it, damn it.  But that’s all there is to do. All I can do is miss my Kindle because it’s gone.  And most likely, no one is going to give it back.  It is gone.”  I breathed.  I felt the tightness loosen in my chest.  I didn’t feel like crying any more.  I didn’t feel like punishing myself for being so careless anymore.  I still felt sad, but that was valid.  I lost something I didn’t expect to lose.  I’m going to have an extinction burst since that form of reinforcement is no longer available.   There may be another Kindle in my future, but that one is gone.  Breathe.  Gone.  Breathe.  Gone.  Breathe.  Breathe.  Breathe.

I am not quite through being here with the idea that someone has it, but I really have to accept that they have their own Karma.  They have to live out their own choices. They wanted my Kindle, and they didn’t think about what dukkha that would bring on them.  I have no idea if everyone feels dukkha for wrong-doing.  I think they do, but I’m not sure.  What I do know is that it doesn’t help me to create my own dukkha by attaching to my anger at whoever it was.

I’ve lost so many people this year and last.  The Kindle was a little glimmer of happy in a sad couple of years. I could hide in my Kindle.  I felt so rich, knowing I was carrying not just one, but many, many books.  So much knowing in one little place.

I got home, called the Police who very politely took my story over the phone, although I did think they were going a bit far to ask my WEIGHT, for crying out loud.

I’m going to go watch a movie on TV with my husband.  I’m going to drink a glass of wine and I’m going to scratch my dogs where they love to be scratched and when I think about my Kindle I’m going to try to stay here now.  I’m just going to try.  That’s all I can do.

Meditator Tot

Dear Sangha members and friends of the Buddha-dharma,

I am pleased to recommend to you the, “7 Guided Practices to “Rebuild” Your Brain for Lasting Joy and Fulfillment” three disc CD program by Dr. Rick Hanson, PhD, and Richard Mendius, MD.

Science has proven what contemplative traditions have taught for centuries: MEDITATION holds the key to a life of balance, peace, and joy

Whether you are discovering meditation for the first time or looking for a way to deepen an existing practice, listening to “Meditations to Change your Brain” you have a full spectrum of techniques to make your brain your greatest ally on the path to personal fulfillment.

You can purchase this 3 CD set from Sounds True website here.

Please continue your Zen meditation daily.

Gassho,
Daito Zenei Thompson sensei
Spiritual Director Aspen Gold Dharma Zen Center

Shobogenka

Canto del ojo del Dharma

Parte 8

Parte 9

Éste es el primer fragmento (en dos partes) disponible del “Shobogenka”, un video documental-artístico-de-sabiduría, creado  con imágenes de la Vida en el Campo de Verano, el audio de los kusenes (enseñanza oral en zazen) del Maestro Kosen en el Templo Shobogenji durante los últimos Campos de Verano y  fragmentos de las filmaciones de una entrevista realizada al Maestro y de los Mondos (ceremonia de preguntas y respuestas entre discípulos y el maestro).

El Shobogenka fué realizado por el monje Héctor DoAn Ferreiro Dávila, realizador de cine y video, que reside y practica actualmente en la ciudad de México D.F.

Actualmente hay cinco partes disponibles online y se puede conseguir el DVD completo a la venta contactando al realizador, por ejemplo dejando un comentario.

MarianoS