Category: Zen

Contentment

“They say that once you are contented with what you are, you will have no growth, no progress. This is I think a superficial understanding. Real growth, true progress, begins when you get at the truth of what you are; when you can say “it is absolutely alright”, even though it may be very poor and miserable. So please observe your unsatisfactory situation more and more, and take better care of it as it is. Then you may see the door open to the next world. ”

Hogen-San, The Other Shore

An Ode to Slowness

I want to make my life a ceremony around slowness.
Time and space.
Open space.
In the desert there is space.
Space is the twin sister of time.
If we have open space, then we have open time to breathe, to dream, to dare, to play, to move freely, so freely, in a world our minds have forgotten but our bodies remember.
Time and space.
This partnership is holy.
In these redrock canyons, time creates space;
An arch, an eye, this blue eye of sky.
We remember why we love the desrt;
It is our tactile response to light, silence, and stillness.
Hand on stone patience.
Hand on water music.
Hand raised to the wind is this the birthplace of inspiration?

Terry Tempest Williams

Master Sheng Yen: Nothing can really annoy me

“In my life, I’ve never wished that everything goes smoothly or satisfactorily, or that I may be free of any adversity. When encountering an adverse situation, I cope with it in this way: First I will tell myself, “If there’s a mountain in my way that can’t be removed, I will make a detour. If no detour can lead to my destination, I will change my way of thinking.” Once you change your thinking, the difficult situation you’re facing will no longer exist, which will naturally lead you to a new way out. Another way is to “face it, accept it, deal with it, and let it go.” There are problems that simply cannot be solved no matter how hard we try. In that case, we should accept the reality. In a way, accepting the reality amounts to dealing with it. And then you should let it go. Having let it go, you shouldn’t allow it to prey on your mind any longer and keep regretting and resenting. If you’re still caught up in regret and resentment, you’ll have twice as much bad luck because your confidence and courage have disappeared. During my most difficult time, it is as if I have been tied up all over with ropes, but my mind can still be doing taijiquan with freedom. As long as I don’t think I’m having bad luck, nothing can really annoy me.”

http://www.dharmadrum.org/news/NewsDetail.asp?PKey={F0AE31D2-C55D-450C-9BCE-5F1B875AAD5F} 

Hokusai Says…

Hokusai says look carefully.

He says pay attention, notice.
He says keep looking, stay curious.
He says there is no end to seeing.
He says look forward to getting old.
He says keep changing, you just get more who you really are.
He says get stuck, accept it, repeat yourself as long as it’s interesting.
He says keep doing what you love.
He says keep praying.
He says everyone of us is a child, every one of us is ancient, every one of us has a body. He says every one of us is frightened.
He says everyone of us has to find a way to live with fear.
He says everything is alive- shells, buildings, people, fish, mountains, trees.
Wood is alive.
Water is alive.
Everything has its own life.
Everything lives inside us.
He says live with the world inside you.
He says it doesn’t matter if you draw, or write books.
It doesn’t matter if you saw wood, or catch fish.
It doesn’t matter if you sit at home and stare at the ants on the veranda or the shadows of the trees and the grasses in the garden.
It matters that you care.
It matters that you feel.
It matters that you notice.
It matters that life lives through you.
Contentment is life living through you.
Joy is life living through you.
Satisfaction and strength is life living through you.
Peace is life living through you.
He says don’t be afraid.
Don’t be afraid.
Look,feel, let life take you by the hand.
Let life live through you.

Roger Keyes, Providence Zen Centre

Uma Thurman: "Reality is an Illusion"

Uma 

“Reality is an illusion – that’s the principle of ancient Buddhist thought,” Uma continues. “And the basic idea of being reborn is that you erase the memory. Everybody is interconnected, and you’re working out your karma with people – so you get erased, but all work left undone has to be completed.”