|
||||||
![]() |
Out of rocks and thorns, |
|||||
Home PageAbout the TeacherLetters from Musai RoshiDharma TalksUpcoming EventsRecent EventsSupporting Prajna ZendoProjects2008 CALENDARS:
|
May 18, 2008 Dear Sangha and Friends, We recently completed a 7 day sesshin * at Prajna Zendo. Although our numbers were small, the sesshin was strong. I am very glad that we can offer two 7 day sesshin during the year, for those who wish to pursue an intensive practice. Henning, a German man who I met last January on Ameland, came over to participate in this sesshin. His wife, Claudia, accompanied him, thinking she might participate for only a day or two. She stayed for the full week. [* link takes you to the sesshin schedule, typical of 7-day-sesshins at Prajna Zendo--in .pdf format] During the sesshin we continued to investigate THE PLATFORM SUTRA through the Big Mind process. As we proceeded with this work, questions arose from participants about free will, suffering, and cruelty. When these questions arise in any spiritual practice, they are often answered by dogma or by complicated philosophical explanations. It is deeply satisfying to me to realize that, with the proper method of inquiry, each of us already knows the answers. Truly, the wisdom of the Buddha is within each of us, and Big Mind provides a way to access that wisdom. ************************************ Next Saturday, the Prajna Zendo Board of Directors is having a retreat to discuss the future of our facility and our sangha. Daishin established Prajna Zendo in 1998, and I have been teaching here since 2002. Now David Daishin Brighton has received shiho, to become my dharma successor, and Jim Kando Green has received hoshi, to become a dharma holder. We are starting a sitting group in Santa Fe, at Body, beginning June 1. Every year, in April, I hold a Big Mind workshop for therapists, and I may begin teaching a class in Zen Buddhism at the Community College this Fall. Where do we go from here? How do we increase participation at PZ? I have some ideas myself, and I look forward to what the other Board members will contribute to this dialogue. *************************************** With the death of Tukey Cleveland, Prajna Zendo received a generous bequest. Tukey began practicing with us when she was 80, and died last November at 85. Throughout her practice and into the illness that took her from us, Tukey continued to express her deep gratitude for this practice that she said transformed her life. She was an inspiration to all of us, and a clear affirmation that it is never too late to embrace Zen practice and change your life. Gassho, **************************************
Winter fades
May 2, 2008 Dear Sangha and Friends, As I mentioned in my last sangha letter, Jim Kando Green is starting a sitting group in Santa Fe. The group will begin June 1st, and will continue each Sunday thereafter, from 1:15 to 2:15. Either Jim or myself will be present for instruction, to answer questions, and to offer private interviews. The location for the group is Body, on Cordova Road.We are excited about this extension of Prajna Zendo's programming. I have been wanting to form a sitting group in Santa Fe for some time, and now that Kando has been empowered as a Dharma Holder, the time is ripe. Gassho, Musai |
|||||
|
April 23, 2008 Dear Sangha and Friends, On April 12 & 13, I held my annual Big Mind workshop for mental health professionals. It’s not limited to them, and they can receive continuing education units, to satisfy licensure requirements. This year I followed a day-long Basic Big Mind Workshop with a day in which we investigated the Ten Grave Precepts through the Big Mind process. The workshop was so well attended that we needed a bigger space than Prajna Zendo could provide, so we held it in the auditorium of the Medical Dental Center, in Santa Fe. I get tremendous satisfaction out of bringing together two worlds that are very important to me--the world of psychotherapy and the world of Zen practice. The workshops probe deeply into questions that concern both communities, and the response from my psychotherapy colleagues is very positive. The feedback I get tells me that the therapists develop significant new insights from these workshops, and I always learn something more about how to convey the Buddhadharma through the Big Mind process. The more I engage in Big Mind work, the more I am convinced that Genpo Roshi, with the development of Big Mind, has created a way of teaching the Buddhadharma that will transform the teaching of Zen Buddhism in the West. Inviting the psychological/dualistic mind into Buddhist teaching and practice, rather than treating it as an objectionable relative that has to be tolerated, but that we would really be better off without, is groundbreaking. The accessibility of this teaching, and the enthusiastic response of those who experience it, convince me that many more people in our culture will realize and actualize Buddha Mind than would have been possible without this skillful means. ******************************* On April 20, I made Jim Kando Green a Dharma Holder. This empowerment recognizes that he is on his way to becoming a dharma successor, and allows him to teach through private interviews with students. Kando has practiced Zen for many years with different teachers, and has been studying and practicing now with me for more than five years. Because his commitment to practice, to me as his teacher, and to Prajna Zendo has been wholehearted, and because his Realization of the Buddhadharma is deep, broad, and continually developing, I am deeply pleased to confer this empowerment. Kando and I will soon be starting a sitting group in Santa Fe. I will send another letter when we know place and schedule. ****************************** May 4-11 we will hold a seven day sesshin at Prajna Zendo. Beginning last year, we added this seven day retreat to the schedule, so that those who wish to practice intensively can have the benefit of two 7 day sesshin each year, and so those who are unable to attend our rohatsu sesshin in December have another opportunity for a seven day sesshin. Participants may sign up for all or part of the sesshin. Call 505-699-1464 for more information or to register. We always offer instructions for beginners. If you decide not to attend, still consider using this opportunity to intensify your practice. Anyone may join us for dawn and evening zazen (6 AM and 7 PM) and anyone who has had previous experience with the Big Mind process may join us in the afternoon (3:20 PM) for Big Mind work on THE PLATFORM SUTRA. Gassho,
Thirty-five years
February 24, 2008 Dear Sangha and Friends, Jim Kando Green and I are just back from ten days on an island in the North Sea, at Genpo Roshi’s Mahasangha Retreat. Genpo Roshi has several dharma successors and a large sangha spread out over much of Europe. At the annual Mahasangha (tr: Great Sangha) Retreat, fifteen or so teachers, all successors of Genpo Roshi or his successors, along with about 250 other participants at all levels of Zen practice, meet for ten days of zazen, Big Mind practice, discussion and socializing. For me, it is an opportunity to talk with other teachers, learn new Big Mind processes, and offer my services as a psychotherapist/ Zen teacher to students who are struggling with some aspect of their lives and practice. A rich experience. Before I go on to write about what was most significant for me during the retreat, let me say a few words about my long relationship with Genpo Roshi. We first met when we sat next to each other during a sesshin at Zen Center of Los Angeles, in 1972. I had been practicing for a couple of years, and that sesshin was Dennis Merzel’s first taste of Zen. After that sesshin, Genpo’s career in Zen was like an arrow shot from a bow, and he went on to become a dharma successor of Maezumi Roshi in what must have been record time. My Zen career, as with most developments in my life, has been much more a meander. Our paths crossed many times over the years until 2002, when it changed dramatically. In 1995, I helped Jitsudo Sensei, a dharma successor of Bernie Glassman Roshi, to found Hidden Mountain Zen Center, in Albuquerque. I received dharma transmission from Jitsudo Sensei in 1999 and practiced with him until 2002, when he left Hidden Mountain. Suddenly I was thrust into a leadership role for which I felt unprepared. I turned to Genpo Roshi, and he offered me whatever help I needed in assuming this new role. Since then, Genpo has never failed to respond when I needed him, and I have called upon him repeatedly. I completed koan study with him. I studied Big Mind, and became a Big Mind facilitator. I received denkai (priest empowerment) from him, since I had been a lay sensei. Whenever I needed his guidance on matters pertaining to leading a sangha, he made himself available. Genpo’s generosity has been boundless, and my gratitude toward him is immeasurable. On January 23, I received Inka from Genpo Roshi. Inka is a feature of our Rinzai lineage, and it is considered “the final seal of approval.” It signifies that both Roshi and Sensei, old teacher and new teacher, now have confidence that the new teacher can function with full independence. Both now carry the title of “Roshi.” It certainly does not mean that I have no more to learn, nor even that I have no more to learn from Genpo Roshi. I expect our continuing association to be dynamic and fruitful for both of us. I hope to go forward in my teaching career in the spirit of Joshu. When his teacher, Nansen died, Joshu began a pilgrimage to deepen his Realization that was to last for 40 years. As he set off on this pilgrimage he vowed, “If I meet a seven year old child who has something to teach me, I will learn from her; if I meet a one hundred year old man who has something to learn from me, I will teach him.” ******************************* February 7 through 10, Prajna Zendo will hold a three day sesshin. During this sesshin, we will continue to do Big Mind work, on Friday and Saturday afternoons, on Hui-neng’s Platform Sutra. This is a seminal document of Zen Buddhism, and the Big Mind process allows us penetrate its meaning. In this sutra, Hui-neng says: “Don’t misdirect your attention. The sutras only say to take refuge in the buddha of yourselves. They don’t say take refuge in some other buddha. If you don’t take refuge in your own nature, there’s no other place of refuge.” Our Big Mind work shows us the way--and The Way. On Sunday, February 10, Karen Klinefelter, Corazon Halasan and Melani Burcham will receive jukai. In this ceremony they will take vows expressing their commitment to the Buddha Way. They have been preparing for this ceremony for several months. Please join us in celebration and support of their practice. The ceremony will take place at around 10:30 AM, after service and two periods of zazen. ************************************* There will be a zazenkai (one day of sitting) on March 15, and a two day Big Mind workshop April 12 and 13. April 12 will be the basic Big Mind workshop and on April 13 we will use the Big Mind process to investigate the Mahayana Precepts. Psychotherapists and Social Workers can receive Continuing Education Units for this workshop. I will send out a separate mailing on the Big Mind workshop soon. ************************************** It is snowing as a write this, and Northern New Mexico is still very much in the grip of Winter. This has been a cold and snowy Winter, but the days have already begun to lengthen, and as the earth tilts more towards Spring, tender new leaves and flowers will emerge from the snow. Gassho, *************************** December 18, 2007Within light there is darkness, Dear Sangha and Friends, Rohatsu, our week-long sesshin in December, is always an especially intense retreat. It comes at the darkest time of the year and it celebrates the great enlightenment of Shakyamuni Buddha, on December 8. After many years of practices that failed to answer the questions that so deeply troubled him, Siddartha Gautama sat beneath a tree, vowing to remain sitting until he was enlightened. After seven days and seven nights, on the morning of the 8th day, he looked up to see the morning star and all the questions simply vanished in his realization: "Wonderful, wonderful! I and all beings and the great earth itself simultaneously attain the way." Having brought an end to his own suffering, the Buddha began teaching, in order to relieve the suffering of others. Knowing that like all of us he must die, the Buddha wanted to transmit his realization to another. In order that the teaching might continue with vigor, and not become some stale retelling of his own story, the Buddha needed to choose a dharma successor whose realization matched his own. The Buddha gathered together his disciples for a dharma talk, and instead of saying anything he held up a flower. No one responded, except Mahakashyapa, who smiled. The Buddha then said, "I have the True Dharma Eye and the Marvelous Mind of Nirvana. I now transmit this to Mahakashyapa." The Buddha's Realization and Mahakashyapa's smile have been passed down in an unbroken line for almost 2500 years through India, China, Japan and now America. During rohatsu I passed this transmission to David Daishin Brighton. Transmission is perhaps not such a good word--it is more of an acknowledgment that the successor has realized in his own heart and mind what the Buddha realized and what his teacher has to impart, and is ready to assume the role of teacher himself. The transmission ceremony extends over 7 days, and is emotionally and physically grueling. Rich Taido Christofferson Sensei, from Kanzeon Zen Center, and Liz Seiki Fox assisted me in this ceremony. My own feelings are of profound gratitude to all, and especially to Daishin, for his practice and realization. Throughout the week, the support of the Prajna Zendo sangha was magnificent. I feel very fortunate to have such dedicated students practicing here. I asked Daishin to contribute a paragraph to this letter, to say something about his experience of shiho. Here is what he wrote:
On December 31, we will host our usual New Year's Eve celebration. Sitting begins at 8 PM, with council at 10 PM, service at midnight, and a party after that. Arrive whenever you like. Contributions of food for a midnight snack are welcome. Daishin has offered to make breakfast for anyone who would like to stay overnight and avoid the perils of driving that night. If you decide to stay overnight, we have mattresses--bring your own sleeping bag. In January 12th, we will have a zazenkai. This all day sitting (9 AM to 4:30 PM) is a good opportunity for those who have begun to develop a sitting practice and would like to intensify it, as well as for seasoned practitioners. During our February 7-10 sesshin, four people will be receiving jukai. This is the ceremony where one commits to the Buddha Way and to living according to the sixteen Buddhists precepts. It is a lovely ceremony that will take place after the usual 2 periods of zazen on Sunday morning, 2/10. Whether or not you attend the sesshin, I encourage you to come to the ceremony and lend your support to the jukai recipients. I will be away for 2 weeks in January, at Genpo Roshi's Mahasangha gathering, on the island of Ameland, off the coast of The Netherlands. When colleagues ask me where I'm going, I tell them to a retreat on an island. Their eyes light up and they ask, "Where is the island?" When I respond, "In the North Sea," the light dims considerably. Daishin and the rest of the sangha will keep things going at Prajna Zendo while I'm away. Gassho, Musai *********************************** Water flows and returns to the sea November 2007 Dear Members and Friends of Prajna Zendo, We have just completed a three day sesshin, at the end of which Suzanne Seiko Barry presented a dharma talk on a koan from The Book of Serenity, then responded to questions that challenged her understanding of the dharma. This ceremony, shuso hossen, comes at the end of a year of serving as Practice Leader. The Practice Leader learns all of the service positions during the year, and is responsible for a myriad of organizational details. Seiko has done a wonderful job, and she now joins Kathleen Hoju O’Rourke and Jim Kando Green as senior students at Prajna Zendo I am very pleased to announce that David Daishin Brighton will receive shiho from me during rohatsu. Daishin will be my first dharma successor, and it is impossible for me to put into words what this means to me. To be able to acknowledge that someone I have taught has penetrated to the heart of the Buddhadharma fills me with gratitude and joy. Gassho,
|
||||||
|
||||||
© Prajna Zendo 2004-2008 |
Prajna Zendo
|
|||||