Sunday, October 11, 2020

October 11, 2020

 Taking Refuge (Fall Sesshin theme)

Case 4 from the Book of Serenity:  The World Honored One Points to the Ground

As the World Honored One was walking with the congregation, he pointed to the ground with his finger and said, "This spot is good to build a sanctuary."  Indra, Emperor of the gods, took a blade of grass, stuck it in the ground and said, "The sanctuary is built."  The World Honored One smiled.














From Misha's talk about refuge:  Find your blade of grass, your flower petal, your rake or hoe, your keyboard, you car, your neighbor or your enemy...

and like Indra, stick it in the ground of your being while taking refuge in the sanctuary of Buddha Mind. 

_______________________________________________________________________

Our ZHS on-line schedule

  • Mondays: 7-8:30pm - zazen, short service, lecture/discussion
  • Tuesdays-Fridays: 5:30-6:10pm - zazen, offering of merit/bows
  • M-F: 7-7:30am - zazen
  • Saturdays: 8:00-10:15am - zazen, short service, tea, discussion/study
  • For more information:  www.zenheartsangha.org) 
_____________________________________________________________________

Special bows for today: 
  • Please offer bows for Charles Kennicott Leech, Nancy's father who died on 10/9/20
  • Please offer bows for all those families who have lost their lives or their homes in the recent fires in Oregon, California, and Washington
  • Please continue to offer bows of well-being for:   
    • David Shaw, who suffered a stroke on 9/30/20
    • Charles Kennicott Leech, Nancy's father who is in the hospital
    • Chief Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg who died 9/18/2020
    • Takiko Kawakami, Fumiko Arao's mother who died 9/2/2020
    • Phyllis Merrill, Misha's mother, who is dying
    • Rev. Les Kaye, Misha’s Zen teacher, who is recovering at home undergoing chemotherapy
__________________________________________________________


Wonderful links shared by sangha members and friends:
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Thursday, October 8, 2020

October 9, 2020



 






Let it Be

When letting go is not possible, it can be modified to a softer version of this practice called Let It Be.  

Whatever arises, whether it is pain, fear or struggle, instead of letting go, be aware of it, let it come and go,  "Let it be."  

"Letting be" does not mean getting rid of or avoiding, but simply releasing.  Allow what is present to arise and pass like the waves of an ocean.  

If crying arises, let there be crying.  If grief or anger arises, let there be grief and anger.  

This is the Buddha in all forms.  

Sun Buddha, Moon Buddha, Happy Buddha, Sad Buddha. 

...The spirit of letting it be was expressed beautifully in a poster advertisement for meditation and yoga that I saw years ago: "You can't stop the waves, but you can learn to surf."

 Excerpted from A Path with Heart, by Jack Kornfield

Artwork: Oda Heart Sutra submitted by Kathleen Dickey

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Our ZHS on-line schedule

  • Mondays: 7-8:30pm - zazen, short service, lecture/discussion
  • Tuesdays-Fridays: 5:30-6:10pm - zazen, offering of merit/bows
  • M-F: 7-7:30am - zazen
  • Saturdays: 8:00-10:15am - zazen, short service, tea, discussion/study
  • For more information:  www.zenheartsangha.org) 
_____________________________________________________________________

Special bows for today: 
  • Please offer bows for dharma brother, David Shaw, who suffered a stroke on 9/30/20
  • Please offer bows for all those families who have lost their lives or their homes in the recent fires in Oregon, California, and Washington
  • Please continue to offer bows of well-being for:   
    • Charles Kennicott Leech, Nancy's father who is in the hospital
    • Chief Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg who died 9/18/2020
    • Takiko Kawakami, Fumiko Arao's mother who died 9/2/2020
    • Phyllis Merrill, Misha's mother, who is dying
    • Rev. Les Kaye, Misha’s Zen teacher, who is recovering at home undergoing chemotherapy
__________________________________________________________


Wonderful links shared by sangha members and friends:

 



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Wednesday, October 7, 2020

October 8, 2020

 

New Moon, September 2020: Connections

- Kathleen Dickey

I have renewed my ritual of a morning cup of tea 

as I start my workday. 

In the cup of tea are 

old friendships.

This cup was a gift from 

my close friend of 50 years.  

It got stuck at the University 

during the shutdown, 

and I only recently 

retrieved it.

The packet of Gen Mai Cha was a gift from one of 

my former carpool mates - a carpool that, 

as so many other practices, may never be again!

_______________________________________________________________________

Our ZHS on-line schedule

  • Mondays: 7-8:30pm - zazen, short service, lecture/discussion
  • Tuesdays-Fridays: 5:30-6:10pm - zazen, offering of merit/bows
  • M-F: 7-7:30am - zazen
  • Saturdays: 8:00-10:15am - zazen, short service, tea, discussion/study
  • For more information:  www.zenheartsangha.org) 
_____________________________________________________________________

Special bows for today: 
  • Please offer bows for dharma brother, David Shaw, who suffered a stroke on 9/30/20
  • Please offer bows for all those families who have lost their lives or their homes in the recent fires in Oregon, California, and Washington
  • Please continue to offer bows of well-being for:   
    • Charles Kennicott Leech, Nancy's father who is in the hospita
    • Chief Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg who died 9/18/2020
    • Takiko Kawakami, Fumiko Arao's mother who died 9/2/2020
    • Phyllis Merrill, Misha's mother, who is dying
    • Rev. Les Kaye, Misha’s Zen teacher, who is recovering at home undergoing chemotherapy
__________________________________________________________


Wonderful links shared by sangha members and friends:

 

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October 7, 2020

 South China Morning Post:  Article by Randy Komisar, Pt. 3

What is the point?  In pure meditation there is no goal.  But beginners come with expectations.  Reducing anxiety, sleeping better, solving relationship problems, finding more energy, etc. If you commit to meditate over time you will find these goals and the fruits of your effort will change.  Don't get lost in ideas.  Your analytic mind is just a step on the path.  It is your Big Mind, the mind you share with everything, that eventually eclipses the petty needs of the small mind, the mind that gets us our cup of coffee and answers the phone. And usually gets in our way. You will know Big Mind when you see it :)

I find that by addressing my ego and accepting it as part of the human experience I am more accepting of others.  After all, the less there is of me the more room there is for everything else. When people ask what I have gotten in exchange for countless hours sitting on a cushion every day now for over 25 years I reply, "Not much.  Just peace of mind and understanding".

In the US mindfulness has become a meme. Certainly we all need more mindfulness. More awareness.  More attention.  But mindfulness is not meditation. Meditation may give us a sense of mindfulness, but the life hacking shortcuts being offered for achieving mindfulness will not convey meditation's deep awakening.  Use the techniques, but know that they are just knocking at the door that meditation can open.

Covid has only added to the anxieties that life in the 21st Century presents.  And it will certainly drive people to find more ways to survive in the maelstrom. Meditation is a practice that has proven its merit through countless generations.  It is certainly up to the task. But be prepared for surprises.  Be prepared to see others as part of yourself, not aliens threatening your existence.  Be prepared for the compassion that arises naturally when you see yourself as a part of and not separate from the world. Be prepared to be kinder to people.  Be prepared to be more grateful for every little thing.  And most importantly, be prepared to smile more.

 Life is short, savor the moments that meditation can illuminate

Photo contributed by Pixie Couch

_______________________________________________________________________

Our ZHS on-line schedule

  • Mondays: 7-8:30pm - zazen, short service, lecture/discussion
  • Tuesdays-Fridays: 5:30-6:10pm - zazen, offering of merit/bows
  • M-F: 7-7:30am - zazen
  • Saturdays: 8:00-10:15am - zazen, short service, tea, discussion/study
  • For more information:  www.zenheartsangha.org) 
_____________________________________________________________________

Special bows for today: 
  • Please offer bows for dharma brother, David Shaw, who suffered a stroke on 9/30/20
  • Please offer bows for all those families who have lost their lives or their homes in the recent fires in Oregon, California, and Washington
  • Please continue to offer bows of well-being for:   
    • Charles Kennicott Leech, Nancy's father who is in the hospita
    • Chief Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg who died 9/18/2020
    • Takiko Kawakami, Fumiko Arao's mother who died 9/2/2020
    • Phyllis Merrill, Misha's mother, who is dying
    • Rev. Les Kaye, Misha’s Zen teacher, who is recovering at home undergoing chemotherapy
__________________________________________________________


Wonderful links shared by sangha members and friends:

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Sunday, October 4, 2020

October 4, 2020

 South China Morning Post:  Article by Randy Komisar, Pt. 2


5. To start, find a cushion or a chair where you can place your feet flat on the ground. If you are using a cushion, cross your legs in front of you with your knees spread to provide support - forming a triangle of your two knees and butt to give you stability. Assume a straight posture, with your chin pulled in and your head extended toward the sky like a lotus emerging from a muddy pond. Place your hands softly on your lap, with your left palm below cupping your right hand and your thumbs lightly touching above.  If that is uncomfortable, then lay your hands on your knees with your palms up and each thumb and forefinger lightly touching. Posture is very important to meditation.  Too little and your energy escapes into the cushion, too much and you are impervious to the world around you.

 6. Close your eyes halfway.  Not completely, this is not an excuse to dream.  It is a time to shut out the distractions while awakening to this world. Now breath.  Not deeply, but naturally.  Through your nose.  Quietly. Feeling the air enter your body and circulate through you until you exhale it back into the world.  Feel and understand the lack of separation between you and every molecule that has found its way through millenia into the air you breathe. Some people count their breaths, to ten repeatedly, to focus the mind and reduce the chatter. But when the chatter falls away, stop counting.  It will only get in your way. 

 7. Thoughts will endlessly try to fill the space your meditation is creating.  If you fight them you will miss the moments that arise. Instead, accept them for what they are - the random bodily function of the mind - and but don't hold on to them. Don't get stuck.  Let them move across your mind like clouds.  Eventually they will slow down and create openings for your awareness to shine through. These may be fleeting at first, but relish them.  This is what enlightenment looks like. 

 8. How long should you meditate?  As long as you can.  Most committed meditators try to meditate for 30-45 minutes a sitting.  But 5 minutes will do.  Or even 1 minute.  Sure, the longer you sit the more the chatter dissipates and the deeper you will plumb the truths of this existence. But I believe it is better to give yourself even 1 minute of quiet breathing and centering a day than it is to put it off until you can spend 30 minutes or more. A regular daily practice is more important than a long sitting.  And like a tasty sweet, 1 minute most often leads to 2, and 2 then to 3, etc. 

 9. It is easy to get discouraged at first. So find a group of like-minded meditators and sit with them to encourage each other.  Find a teacher who will help you navigate the journey and point out the gold along the way.  Yes there are apps for meditation too, and if that helps use them.  But don't think meditation can be delivered in an app.  It is just like counting breaths, simply a tool to get you on your way.

 10. There is no finish line.  There is no state of nirvana we can reside in. There is only the moment.  And that moment is always coming and going. So meditation is like exercising, you do it everyday to be fit knowing that if you stop you will lose your wellbeing.  I meditate every day to clear myself of the delusions that characterize our daily routine. To let go of my self-centered view of the world and the things happening around me.  Of my desires and frustrations in not achieving them.  Of my emotions, anger and greed, that color my perception of things.  Of my ideas that keep me from seeing the world for what it is.  I eat, I sleep, I meditate, because those things are essential to living a full and satisfying life.

Photo contributed by Pixie Couch

(To be continued tomorrow...)

_______________________________________________________________________

Our ZHS on-line schedule

  • Mondays: 7-8:30pm - zazen, short service, lecture/discussion
  • Tuesdays-Fridays: 5:30-6:10pm - zazen, offering of merit/bows
  • M-F: 7-7:30am - zazen
  • Saturdays: 8:00-10:15am - zazen, short service, tea, discussion/study
  • For more information:  www.zenheartsangha.org) 
_____________________________________________________________________

Special bows for today: 
  • Please offer bows for dharma brother, David Shaw, who suffered a stroke on 9/30/20
  • Please offer bows for all those families who have lost their lives or their homes in the recent fires in Oregon, California, and Washington
  • Please continue to offer bows of well-being for:   
    • Charles Kennicott Leech, Nancy's father who is in the hospita
    • Chief Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg who died 9/18/2020
    • Takiko Kawakami, Fumiko Arao's mother who died 9/2/2020
    • Phyllis Merrill, Misha's mother, who is dying
    • Rev. Les Kaye, Misha’s Zen teacher, who is recovering at home undergoing chemotherapy
__________________________________________________________


Wonderful links shared by sangha members and friends:
Posted by at No comments:

Saturday, October 3, 2020

October 3, 2020

 South China Morning Post:  Article by Randy Komisar

1. Meditation is more than a means to an end, it is an end in itself.  It has a rich lineage from its inception in India to its migration to Chinese Chan and Japanese Zen. And while it has been recently touted as a panacea for the anxious ills of our hectic lives, it is not prescription.  It is a way seeing the world and oneself that enriches our brief time on this earth. You can take confidence in the power of meditation as realized by many generations of practitioners and teachers.

 2. Meditation may bring with it calm and wellbeing, but it is not a tool for hacking performance or solving mental health issues.  It is a way of digging deeply into the human experience and our sense of self to understand more clearly our connected existence. Non-separation is the Buddhist term. In a meditation practice you can develop the skillful means for navigating the challenges of life.  Accept that meditation is a means, not an end.

 3. Meditation is not a relaxation technique.  It is not an excuse for a nap.  It is a practice that requires quiet effort to peel away the layers of self importance and callousness that pervade our daily existence. It is a process of stripping away, not adding more.  It creates a hole in the pail so the stagnant water can run out and leave us with room to bring in fresh awareness and wisdom. Be prepared to do the work of penetrating the self, not just closing your eyes. 

 4. Meditation starts with a clearing of the mind.  The Budhhist concept of emptiness is generally misunderstood. Emptiness is not nihilism, it is an openness to seeing beyond the life our mind has constructed and view the world as it is.  The inner chatter we all hear when the distractions cease is a challenge in the beginning.  The silence can be deafening. But the sense of truth and connectedness that fills the void is enriching.

Photo contributed by Marya Shahinian

(To be continued tomorrow...)

_________________________________________________________________________

Our ZHS on-line schedule

  • Mondays: 7-8:30pm - zazen, short service, lecture/discussion
  • Tuesdays-Fridays: 5:30-6:10pm - zazen, offering of merit/bows
  • M-F: 7-7:30am - zazen
  • Saturdays: 8:00-10:15am - zazen, short service, tea, discussion/study
  • For more information:  www.zenheartsangha.org) 
_____________________________________________________________________

Special bows for today: 
  • Please offer bows for dharma brother, David Shaw, who suffered a stroke on 9/30/20
  • Please offer bows for all those families who have lost their lives or their homes in the recent fires in Oregon, California, and Washington
  • Please continue to offer bows of well-being for:   
    • Charles Kennicott Leech, Nancy's father who is in the hospita
    • Chief Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg who died 9/18/2020
    • Takiko Kawakami, Fumiko Arao's mother who died 9/2/2020
    • Phyllis Merrill, Misha's mother, who is dying
    • Rev. Les Kaye, Misha’s Zen teacher, who is recovering at home undergoing chemotherapy
__________________________________________________________


Wonderful links shared by sangha members and friends:
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Thursday, October 1, 2020

October 1, 2020

 A Year in the Life...

This month marks our first year living in Salinas.  So many things have transpired since the move, and of course so many things within just the last six months.  This is the first time in 25 years that we have lived in a house without children and without pets.  I am a "dog person", and my wife is an "animal person".  And one day in March as we were walking around the block, a young cat found us, and of course my wife scooped her up in her arms to cuddle.  The cat, fairly well cared for, gladly accepted the attention. We let her go and continued on our way, covered in cat hair.  And of course, who follows us?

 Although we are not allowed to have pets in the house, this little one took up residence in our garage that day.  I try to play catch with her, or other "dog" like things, but that just doesn't work.  She on the other hand will "gift" us things that SHE thinks we want.  Ick! 



But I have to say that she arrived at the right time.  I count myself lucky to have her during this tough time (virus, fire, hurricane) and she is the piece of the puzzle that fits right in for living day-to-day with our challenges.  Okay, maybe I'm more of a  "cat" person now.

 From Jim Little, a 'cat' person now!



_________________________________________________________________________

Our ZHS on-line schedule

  • Mondays: 7-8:30pm - zazen, short service, lecture/discussion
  • Tuesdays-Fridays: 5:30-6:10pm - zazen, offering of merit/bows
  • M-F: 7-7:30am - zazen
  • Saturdays: 8:00-10:15am - zazen, short service, tea, discussion/study
  • For more information:  www.zenheartsangha.org) 
_____________________________________________________________________

Special bows for today: 
  • Please offer bows for Charles Kennicott Leech, Nancy's father who is in the hospital
  • Please offer bows for Chief Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg who died 9/18/2020
  • Please offer bows for all those families who have lost their lives or their homes in the recent fires in Oregon, California, and Washington
  • Please offer bows for Takiko Kawakami, Fumiko Arao's mother who died 9/2/2020
  • Please continue to offer bows of well-being for:   
    • Phyllis Merrill, Misha's mother, who is dying
    • Rev. Les Kaye, Misha’s Zen teacher, who is recovering at home undergoing chemotherapy
__________________________________________________________


Wonderful links shared by sangha members and friends:
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