July 21

 

The Buddha’s Last Instruction -  by Mary Oliver

“Make of yourself a light,”

said the Buddha,

before he died.

I think of this every morning

as the east begins

to tear off its many clouds

of darkness, to send up the first                                    

signal -- a white fan

streaked with pink and violet,

even green.

An old man, he lay down

between two sala trees,

and he might have said anything,

knowing it was his final hour.

The light burns upward,

it thickens and settles over the fields.

Around him, the villagers gathered

and stretched forward to listen.

Even before the sun itself

hangs, disattached, in the blue air,

I am touched everywhere

by its ocean of yellow waves.

No doubt he thought of everything

that had happened in his difficult life.

And then I feel the sun itself

as it blazes over the hills,

like a million flowers on fire --

clearly I'm not needed,

yet I feel myself turning

into something of inexplicable value.

Slowly, beneath the branches,

he raised his head.

He looked into the faces of that frightened crowd.

- Submitted by Jill Kaplan

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Special bows for today: 

• Please offer bows for:
• Rosemary Catherine Scarlett, Angela Scarlett's mother who died on the evening of July 20th
• Please continue to offer bows in honor of:
• Enzo, the Sanchez/Luna family's dog who died on July 4th
• John Witter, Kathleen Dickey's uncle who died on May 11, 2021
• Please continue to offer bows of well-being for: 
• Dainuri Rott who has been operated on for a brain tumor
• Les Kaye, who is finishing 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 Skanda:  Hugh Jackman on the nature of God: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pF7iE6kG2xM&t=1318s

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

• 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