Shunryu Suzuki November 30 1966

""Dogen-zenji said, “You should establish your practice in your delusion.”  Even though you think you are in delusion but there is your pure mind.  So, if you realize the pure mind in your delusion that is practice. If your have the pure mind, the essential mind, in your delusion – delusion will vanish.  It cannot stay when you say, this is delusion.  He will be very much ashamed of it.  He will run away.  So you should establish your practice in your delusion.  To have delusion is practice.  “To attain enlightenment before you realize it.”  So you will attain enlightenment before you realize it.  Even though you do not realize it, you have it.  So, when you say ‘This is delusion’ that is enlightenment.  But when you try to expel the delusion it will stay and your mind will become busier and busier to cope with the delusion you have.  That is not so good.

Just say, ‘this is delusion’.  That is enough and don’t be bothered by it – ‘oh, this is just delusion’.  When you see delusion you have your true mind – calm, peaceful mind.  When you start to cope with it you will be involved in delusion.  So, when you sit, whether you attain enlightenment or not – just to sit is enough.  When you try to attain enlightenment, then you have big burden in your mind.  So your mind will not be clear enough to see things as they are.""

http://suzukiroshi.sfzc.org/dharma-talks/?p=552

the baboon won't let go of the pebble

A few years ago, I saw this National Geographic type of show where a hunter in Africa or Asia tricked a baboon into trapping itself.  I thought this was amazing.  The hunter found a huge termite mound (i think that's what it was), and put a pebble into one of the small holes.  The baboon saw this, and when the hunter got far enough away, the baboon went over and stuck his hand in the hole grabbing the pebble.  Only, its fist was too big to pull out with the pebble in hand.  So, the baboon was stuck.  As the hunter approaches, the baboon struggles to become free, but cannot do so....even though all it has to do is let go.  The hunter had tricked the baboon into trapping itself.  This is a powerful analogy for us about "clinging."  Also, it's about letting go.

So, anyway.....i thought this was a good analogy to share.  I write to myself as much, if not more than anyone. Cheers!!

Alan Watts & Chögyam Trungpa - Right Here And Now

At the beginning of time, there was just that moment.  There was NO past yet.....therefore, the past is a result of the present moment.  At the beginning of time, it was now [then], and its still NOW.

Dogen said, "Time goes from present to the past."   It's a revolutionary way of approaching life.....and quite a challenge in trying something like this in our culture.  Cheers!!!

the oil spill

Just had to vent a little bit about the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.  It is such a shame of what's going to happen to the wildlife there.  We forget that our relationship to the land, to the water, to the oceans..we are connected to what happens.  When we don't respect our land, our environment, we don't respect ourselves....and the land/environment won't take care of us back.  The land is a garden, and if we don't take care of it........it won't produce what we need...whether its fruit/veggies...or oxygen...or fish....or coral....or important chemicals to treat cancers, among other diseases.  If we don't take care of it.....we aren't taking care of ourselves.

I don't have much more to say, but if you do, please share your thoughts.  Thanks.

Hello from the road

I've been quite busy lately.  Trying to find work, working, and trying to start a relationship. I hope everyone is well.  When I get a good chance, I'll sit down and catch up with everyone.
Until then, i guess....here's some stuff I've been thinking about:

The Buddha sits on top of the lotus flower.  The mud supports and nourishes the lotus flower that the buddha sprouts from.  Let us embrace everything in our lives....the good, the terrible, the unthinkable.....all of it is an opportunity.  Let us not forget this for our own sake, and for the sake of others.  We can be an example to the young ones.  You can be the buddha on top of the lotus.  So can your enemy.  We all have the capacity for both good and also not good............and awakening from both.  Become a master of yourself........while you enjoy this existence.  "Play serious..." as Bruce Lee would've said. ;)

This is from "The Heart of the Buddha's Teaching" by Thich Nhat Hanh:
"When you realize your own capacity to be happy anywhere, you can put down roots in the present moment.  You can take whatever the conditions of the present moment are and make them the foundation of your life and happiness.  When the sun is shining, you are happy.  When it is raining, you are also happy.  You don't need to go anywhere else.  You don't need to travel into the future or return to the past."

In a way the practice is to realize that there is no path to happiness.......happiness is the path to itself in the present moment(the present moment is the only time there is at any given moment).  Just like the saying, no path to peace, peace is the path.  We're creating our realities in each moment by choosing to keep patterns, or create new ones by choosing to be happy in each moment.  It can be a fresh kind of happiness.

From the Gospel of Thomas(Jesus spoke about the PRESENT MOMENT):

90 Jesus said, "Come to me, for my yoke is comfortable and my lordship is gentle, ² and you will find rest for yourselves."

91 They said to him, "Tell us who you are so that we may believe in you."

²He said to them, "You examine the face of heaven and earth, but you have not come to know the one who is in your presence, and you do not know how to examine the present moment."

I think most people who've lived long enough, can appreciate letting go of old thought patterns.  It is a relief.....the sense of happiness already comes back....that sense of freedom from clinging to an idea or concept we had of our selves or our lives....or even someone else or a situation.

Letting go and/or acceptance of "what already is" both seem to be the hardest to learn in life.  At least for myself.  Even though I don't study only one type of religion or philosophy......as i get older, I see that Buddhism is similar to "old timers philosophies."  If you ever listen to older folks, they've got old sayings that get to the heart of life's struggles and how to keep yourself happy on your journey.  They didn't ever study buddhism or any eastern philosophy........but anyone who's lived long enough and thought/reflected enough about their life, will have something useful to help you in your life.  That, to me....is what buddhism is.  It is just down to earth stuff that you can partially get from your grandparents, great grandparents and so on.  It can go deeper.....but that's up to us to journey there. Anything that helps us in life is useful and ought to be considered. The best stuff is the stuff we learn on our own and then reflect on how others have went through something similar.  When we know we're not alone in sharing an experience.........it doesn't make us feel alone or like an alien.

I wish you all well on your paths and send bundles of good thoughts/energy your way.   Take it easy.

Cheers

The ever-brilliant jewel of awakened heart

Excerpted from the chapter "The Love That Will Not Die"
from "When Things Fall Apart"
by Pema Chodron

In the midst of loneliness, in the midst of fear. In the middle of feeling misunderstood and rejected is the heartbeat of all things - the genuine heart of sadness.

Just as a jewel that has been buried in the Earth for a million years is not discolored or harmed, in the same way this noble heart is not affected by all of our kicking and screaming. The jewel can be brought out into the light at any time and it will glow as brilliantly as if nothing had ever happened.

No matter how committed we are to unkindness, selfishness or greed, the genuine heart of bodhicitta cannot be lost. It is here in all that lives, never marred and completely whole.

We think that by protecting ourselves from suffering we are being kind to ourselves. The truth is we only become more fearful, more hardened, and more alienated. We experience ourselves as being separate from the whole. This separateness becomes like a prison for us, a prison that restricts us to our personal hopes and fears, and to caring only for the people nearest to us.

Curiously enough if we primarily try to shield ourselves from discomfort, we suffer. Yet, when we don't close off and let our hearts break, we discover our kinship with all beings.

His Holiness The Dalai Lama describes two kind of selfish people - the wise and the unwise. Unwise selfish people only think of themselves, and the result is confusion and pain. Wise selfish people know that the best thing they can do for themselves is to be there for others. As a result they experience joy.

When we see a woman and her child begging on the street, when we see a man mercilessly beating his terrified dog, when we see a teenager who has been badly beaten, or see fear in the eyes of a child, do we turn away because we can't bear it? Most of us probably do.

Someone needs to encourage us not to brush aside what we feel. Not to be ashamed of the love and grief that it arouses in us. Not to be afraid of pain.

Someone needs to encourage us that this soft spot in us could be awakened and that to do this would change our lives.

The practices of Tonglen, sending and receiving, is designed to awaken bodhicitta. To put us in touch with genuine noble heart. It is a practice of taking in pain, and sending out pleasure, and therefore completely turns around our well-established habit of doing just the opposite.

Tonglen is a practice of creating space. Ventilating the atmosphere of our lives, so that people can breathe freely and relax. Whenever we encounter suffering in any form, the Tonglen instruction is to breathe it in with the wish that everyone could be free of pain. Whenever we encounter happiness in any form, the instruction is to breathe it out, send it out with the wish that everyone could feel joy.

It a practice that allows people to feel less burdened and less cramped, a practice that shows us how to love without conditions.

Thich Nhat Hanh Links and a video

Thich Nhat Hanh (tick not hawn) is a very useful resource for anyone whether they're interested in Buddhism OR NOT.  He compliments just about everything I've already read or learned in Eastern Philosophy & Buddhism, and adds very practical/useful practices for one's daily living........even if you're not into Buddhism per se.
For Mp3's and Video Dharma Talks:  http://www.plumvillage.org/dharma-talks.html  (look to the right)
Also:  http://tnhaudio.org/
***On these audio pages, look for English OR English translation.  He does talks in several languages.