Impermanence is everywhere in our lives and yet no one likes impermanence. We all hope for our newest relationship that is going so well will be permanent, or that great new job we have will be permanent, or that new car will stay divinely perfect with no scratches or dents forever! Oh well, they won’t!
Bhante Gunaratana writes about this in his wonderful book The 4 Foundations of Mindfulness in Plain English as he tells the story of a student of the Buddha. As he was meditating he heard the voice of the Buddha saying:
Destroy attachment to self,
As you could an autumn lily in your fist.
Cultivate the path to peace,
The Nirvana taught by the Well-Gone-One.When he opened his eyes, the young monk saw that the beautiful lily, once so bright, fresh, and lively, had withered away. So, he meditated on the impermanence of the beauty, freshness, and life of the lily. Reflecting that his own handsome, young, healthy, and strong body would grow old and wither just as the flower had, he attained liberation from attachment to his body, feelings, perceptions, thoughts, and consciousness (page 58).[1]
And thus, we too get all caught up in this world of attachment and impermanence even though we don’t realize it. One of the things I learned early on in Zen was about attachment and so I began to see how long I could go without being attached to anything. I had a new car and one day I saw a scratch on my door where someone must have knocked into my door with theirs. My first response was to start to get mad, then I remembered my goal of “non-attachment” and so I let it go and continued to run my errands.
I was very proud of myself and as I went through the day I praised myself off and on for not getting attached to the scratch on the car until I realized that all
I had done was switch my attachment from that to being attached to my ability to “not be attached.” Yikes! I had just attached my attachment to something else, oh boy! It ain’t
easy being green as Kermit the frog would say. And it ain’t easy being me trying to be a Buddhist.
Wow, that Buddha guy sure didn’t make anything easy! Now I do know that my beautiful Kermit green Ford Fiesta is impermanent and after many years it will be worn out and I will have to give it up and get a new one and maybe even take it to the junk yard and watch it be torn apart or squeezed into that big car crusher and god only knows where MY car is going!
But little-by-little after 12 years of studying and practicing Buddhism I am able to be less attached to things. I can throw out old clothes that don’t fit me anymore, I got rid of my old silverware that had nothing matching and bought a new set, and I can give up eating ice cream before I go to bed.
Okay that last thing was a lie! But I’m working on my attachment to the Heavenly Hash ice cream (How’s that for an oxymoron?). I only eat it once or twice a week now. Soon all attachments will be gone for it and I just hope and pray I don’t switch it for chocolate peanut butter ice cream instead! Oh well, I guess I’m still a work in progress. How about you?
[1] Gunaratana, B. (2012) The 4 Foundations of Mindfulness in Plain English, Wisdom Publications: Boston
[2] picture of Kermit: upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/…
Atonement is not a word we use much in America, especially today. Yet, with what is going on in our country and around the world we sure do need more work on it, more thinking about it, and more doing something about what we need to atone for. I don’t think we can atone for the “sins of our fathers” as they say, but we can atone for our own negative thoughts, words, deeds, and behaviors.
Many of us may remember the wonderful play and movie “Oliver! the Musical” with warmth and laughter. There is a song in it that is so powerful and yet sad if you really listen to the words. Watched by his fellow orphans, Mark Lester, as Oliver Twist, dares to ask for more, in the film “Oliver!” (Columbia Pictures). [1]
She represents the feminine energy of the world as the “holy spirit” represents the feminine energy in the Christian triad of the “father, son, and the holy spirit.” She represents the fundamental aspect of Buddhahood: Great compassion. In China she is named Kuan-yin, in Japan Kannon (or Kanzeon or Kwannon), and in Tibet Chenresi. In some cultures, Avalokiteshvara is a man not a woman so which ever pronoun you prefer to use for Avalokiteshvara is perfectly divine!
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The Secret to a More Fulfilling Life!: Part 7 The Power of Contemplation
Posted in attachment, BUddhism, cause and effect, chant, fears, happiness, Kazuaki Tanahashi, love, meditation, Metta Prayer, Mindfulness, prayer, religion, self-help, sickness, The Four NOble Truths, The Four Sufferings, The Heart Sutra, Uncategorized, wisdom, Zen, Zen Chants Thirty-Five Essential Texts with Commentary, tagged bodhisattvas, Buddha, Buddhism, dharma, inspiration, Kazuaki Tanahashi, learning, mahasattvas, Prajna Paramita, relationships, religion, Ten directions, the great prajna paramita, three worlds, Truth on June 29, 2018| Leave a Comment »
You can, of course, change the pronoun from we to I if you are studying alone. There is a veritable encyclopedia of great works of Buddhism to read and digest and contemplate. The more we study and learn and embrace the words of the great teachers from Shakyamuni Buddha to our current writers and translators the more we will be able to embody the teachings until they become a part of who we are.
Then and only then can we begin to automatically, without thinking, act in a kind, loving, helpful, and nonjudgmental way. No longer will the questions of “What would the Buddha do” enter our minds. Our brain will automatically know and go to that action or find those kind and loving words so quickly you will wonder where they could have come from.
Being a Buddhist is not simply putting on a robe and expecting everyone will look up to you and think you are grand or special or knowledgeable. It is with or without a robe acting like a person with merit gained from your studies having penetrated into your words, deeds, thoughts, and actions. That lets people know you are a student of the Buddha. It is not easy to be a “real” Buddhist. In fact, it is very challenging in the beginning. Why? Because goodness must swell up from within you in all situations and with all people regardless of the circumstances of the moment.
I am not always the best Buddhist and I know when I have slipped away from my vows and have to begin anew. How do I know that? –through knowledge of the teachings, through my time spent on the cushion contemplating and studying the sutras and the teachings of Buddhism through the ancients to the modern authors–that’s how.
It’s quite like the world class chefs. They do not learn how to be a great chef by eating, they learn by studying with other great chefs, and cooking, and cooking some more. Creating recipes takes a lot more time, thought, and effort then eating! What recipe are you using? Jell-O Instant pudding or one made from scratch with great ingredients, time, effort, studying, concentration, and love of the teachings?
[1] Tanahashi, K. (2015) Zen Chants Thirty-Five Essential Texts with Commentary. Shambhala: Boston and London
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