Once again I opened up this wonderful book “Teachings of Zen” getting ready to write the next section of my newest blog. It is the first week of our new year 2019 and I was thinking about what I accomplished in 2018 and what I might accomplish in 2019 and then I read these words:
“You do not plunge into sentiments of the ordinary, nor do you fall into the understanding of the sage. Empty and spiritual, serene and sublime, you do not tarry anywhere but attain fulfillment everywhere.
At this time you should know there is a final statement; only then are you a mature person. Completing the task of the mature person is called transcending the world in the midst of the world, highest of all. Hai-yin (page 142).”[1]
The first paragraph resonated with me as I thought about the juxtaposition of these two ideas. The ideas that we hold in Zen Buddhism are just exactly as Hai-yin describes: empty and yet spiritual, serene and at the same time sublime. It is exactly like all of our lives the opposites that seem to attract each other, the time on the cushion when we attempt to “empty” the mind and yet think of our spiritual character and that being the reason we are trying to “empty” the mind. Yikes! The juxtaposition of the conundrum of the teachings of Buddhism.
And yet Hai-yin ends these thoughts saying: Empty and spiritual, serene and sublime, you do not tarry anywhere but attain fulfillment everywhere…. Completing the task of the mature person is called transcending the world in the midst of the world, highest of all (page 142).”[2]
Your challenge of this year will be transcending the world while being in the midst of it. Let’s not be bogged down in this process and adding to our troubles and woes. Let us just be aware of the juxtaposition of life and stroll through it with ease, peace, and compassion for self. Let’s look down on our selves as if we were out of our bodies simply watching and listening without judgment. Let’s transcend our fears, likes, and dislikes and remember it’s “just this” and nothing more and nothing less.
[1] Cleary, T. (1998) Teachings of Zen. New York: Barnes & Noble, Inc by arrangement with Shambhala Publications, Inc
[2] Ibid.
n uses the image of a dewdrop reflecting moonlight to describe the state of meditation. He suggests that just as the entire moon is reflected in a dewdrop, a complete awakening of truth can be experienced by the individual human being (page 12).”
Or are you like Bartholomew in Dr. Seuss’ book The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins creating the same old hat over and over! Are you sitting in the same old chair with the same old ideas one on top of the other over and over?
As I read on he shared with the reader two important words in Buddhism anicca and dukkha in English impermanence and suffering. I did not live permanently in that cold old house, but I sure did suffer while I was there. That was, of course, before I began studying Buddhism!
The Secret to a More Fulfilling Life: Part 10 The Practice of Letting Go
Posted in attachment, BUddhism, cause and effect, clinging, fears, happiness, illusions, love, meditation, Mindfulness, self-help, suffering, Uncategorized, wisdom, Zen, tagged Buddhism, dualism, faith, feelings, inspiration, Kazuaki Tanahashi, learning, letting go, life, questions, relationships, thoughts, Truth, Zen Chants Thirty-Five Essential Texts with Commentary on July 22, 2018| 2 Comments »
I love this quote by Kazuaki Tanahashi from his beautiful book Zen Chants. It brought to mind what often happens when I sit down to meditate. Up come all the nodes and knots that I’ve experienced throughout the day or the week. I focus on how hard they were to surmount or maneuver around. When I catch these thoughts arising I think to myself, I need to let this go. It is disrupting my meditation! And thus, the simple thought of letting go is now the catalyst for more thinking, self-recrimination, and more.
Round and round on the merry-go-round I go until my head is spinning and I’ve made myself dizzy. So how do I “pass through the barrier of dualism?” How about becoming one with the barrier? One with the thought, feeling, or idea. To give it the freedom to be, to go, to sustain, or disappear without judgment, fear, or insistence.
To breath into it slowly, lovingly, and kindly. We are so quick to provide loving kindness to a friend or family member in need. To hold back recrimination or judgment. To give them space to find themselves to live their life as they need to. To respect their boundaries, dreams, and desires. Yet, how often do we not give ourselves the space, advice, room, or love?
How often do we give ourselves permission to let go, to make mistakes, to get up in the middle of a sit when we have a cramp in our leg? I recall some time ago when I was sitting in dokusan with one of my favorite teachers, Lou Mitsunen Nordstrom, and I told him I was going to start my own zendo and name it “If it itches, Scratch it.” I may go to the fictious “Zen Hell” for that idea. Luckily the only hell I have is between my own ears! And for sure I need to “let go” of that idea!
Wow! Maybe I should start my new adventure by letting go of the idea that hell is between my own ears! What a great ending for my workbook on The Secret to a More Fulfilling Life.
Definitely THE END!
[1] Tanahashi, K. (2015) Zen Chants Thirty-Five Essential Texts with Commentary. Shambhala: Boston and London
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