May 9, 2021

Happy Mother's Day!

Buddhist tradition and folklore is full of divine maternal figures who offer compassion, loving care, and protection, from the radiant wisdom mother Prajnaparamita, to the Earth Mother goddess Prithvi, to Tara, the Mother of all Buddhas.

There's a Tibetan teaching that recognizes all beings as having been a mother in a previous lifetime.  The teaching also asks us to contemplate the kindness of our own mother or whomever it was that took care of us when we were young.  What would it look like to bring this wisdom into our lives today?

This Mother's Day, we're celebrating the sacred role of the mother in Buddhist teachings as well as the mother features in our own lives--however difficult or imperfect our relationships with them might be.  May we honor those who gave us life, knowing that there is no one right way to be a mother.

From Tricylce Magazine, submitted by Bill Clopton

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Special bows for today: 

• Please continue to offer bows in honor of:
• Shanti, Steven and Selora Lane's dog who died on May 2, 2021
• Shirley Snell, Merrill Snell's mother, who died on April 23, 2021
• Kenny Merrill, Misha's cousin, who died from ALS on March 20, 2021
• Lally Hass, Kathleen Dickey's aunt, who died 3/7/2021  
• Jesse Schouboe, dear friend of GJ Scove, who died on 2/27/21 in a car crash
• Please continue to offer bows of well-being for: 
• Fritz Hartog, Sue Jensen's brother in law, who had surgery today and is in ICU
• John Hass, Kathleen Dickey's uncle who has entered hospice
• Les Kaye, who has begun another round of chemotherapy
• David Shaw, who is continuing the process of recovery from a stroke

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Wonderful links/recommendations shared by sangha members and friends:

• From Nancy:  https://youtu.be/KGoKsv2omBU

• From Jim:   Tricking your brain into learning--the Super Mario Effect:   https://youtu.be/9vJRopau0g0

• From Misha:  Amazing dog video:    https://drive.google.com/file/d/1HFthXKHpSBr7jVDV4uYPsS3GDCLOzUK4/view?usp=sharing

• From Nancy:  Taylor Swift singing us back to nature:   https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/12/opinion/taylor-swift-grammys-nature-lyrics.html

• From Alisa Tu:  A beautiful iSing production with Alia Tu as one of the soloists:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z267hxrAOHM

• Zen Heart Sangha website: resources about COVID-19: www.zenheartsangha.org

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• To leave a comment on this blog:  Here is a quick video on how to--it's from 2017, but should work:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8T4RflO5Wgg