In Buddhism one of the major positions in the monastery is the person called the Tenzo. The Tenzo is in charge of the food. Dogen in his book, How to Cook Your life: From the Zen Kitchen to Enlightenment, gave specific directions for those who would become the Tenzo.
He wrote this about the Tenzo: Use your way-seeking mind carefully to vary the menus from time to time and offer the great assembly ease and comfort (page 53).”[1] He goes on to say that the Tenzo is not the same as an ordinary cook or waiter.” Thus they are asked to “respect the food as though it were for the emperor (page 54).”[2]
When you are cooking for yourself or your family do you really focus on the task of cooking, on the food itself, how it is prepared, how it is handled? Or do you simply throw something together as fast as you can, so it can be eaten quickly? Then you rush to clean up the dishes and pots and pans, so you can get to those “more important” things on your To-do List?
Dogen encourages us this way, “When you wash rice and prepare vegetables, you must do it with your own hands, and with your own eyes, making sincere effort. Do not be careful about one thing and careless about another (page 54).”[3]
To me this is such a beautiful way to see everything in life, not just the big things like the birth of a child, or graduation from college, or a great promotion at work. It is the little everyday things that grow into a life filled with good memories. My ideal life is filled with good friends, a happy family, a fulfilling job, two adorable little doggies, and a life lived with few regrets. How about you?
Are you living one moment at a time mindful of your thoughts, actions, and deeds. Really being there, really being present in mind, body, and spirit. Or is your mind wandering into the past or the future with thoughts of fear, anger, and pain?
Either way when your focus is off the task at hand your rice will be over cooked or underdone or tasteless because your focus and passion and love have gone elsewhere. Or your anger and fear will have gone into the food. Yes, it does go into the food and it gets burned through neglect or tossed with anger. Which food would you prefer to eat? The one prepared with love and focused attention or the one prepared with anger and animus? The choice, of course, is up to you…
[1]Tanahashi, K. (1985) Moon in a Dewdrop Writings of Zen Master Dogen North Point Press: New York
[2] Ibid.
[3] 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).”
It is one thing to read something and another thing to remember what you’ve read. How often do we read something at work and quickly forget what it said? When we are studying the texts and the writings of Buddhism we really want to absorb what we’re reading. We want to understand the meaning behind the words. We want to embody the teachings in such a way as they make a palpable difference in our lives. In such a way that we generate an aura of peace, love and compassion for all things and it is evident in our thoughts, words, and deeds. We do this through contemplation of the Buddhist teachings.
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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