Is it possible to move through life with a sense of ease in this stressful world we inhabit? Can we embrace a way of being that is not forced and free from excessive striving, that is true to nature? There is a natural rhythm in nature that is in tune with the rhythm of ourContinue reading “easy”
Tag Archives: zazen
Depending On No-Thing
I heard it said: “Don’t let circumstances control your happiness. Let your happiness control your circumstances.” When our perceived needs are not being met we feel unhappy, ill-at-ease. “If only my circumstances (people, place, things) were different…then I could be happy” Clearly, we could say these are expectations. Expectations are premeditated suffering. They are theContinue reading “Depending On No-Thing”
The Way of Everyday Life
The effortless nature of being requires effort on our part. It’s been a while since I’ve written to you. I have spent a couple of months away from group practice. It has been a time of reflection and rediscovery. Delving deeply into the roots of Zen practice there was something I knew before, something I’veContinue reading “The Way of Everyday Life”
Get Comfortable
“Sometimes we live, no particular way but our own Sometimes we visit your country and live in your home Sometimes we ride on your horses, sometimes we walk alone Sometimes the songs that we hear are just songs of our own” Eyes of the World, Grateful Dead In Zen practice we find ourselves striving to seek a betterContinue reading “Get Comfortable”
Earth Body Propelling at the Edge of the World
Notes on circumventing Torres del Paine in Chilean Patagonia, “The O-Trek.” by Madison Sokukai McClintock Late Autumn, end of the season. Distance: ~75 miles / 119 km. Total Elevation Gain: ~16,309ft / 4,971 meters 8 days walking, weighted by basic survival supplies, 24+ meals worth of food, the non-negotiables – camera, watercolors, binoculars. Feeling theContinue reading “Earth Body Propelling at the Edge of the World”
Ceaseless
“Nothing is there to guard and nothing to demonstrate or practice. Whatever flies off the spindle is perfectly fashioned and equal to the task in the event. Technique is for the birds. The organism is a genius and when left alone in the natural state of being it is perfection itself.” Keith Dowman How weContinue reading “Ceaseless”
Elixir
Wu-Men Kuan, Case 24: It All Outside Words A monk asked Wind-Source Mountain: “Word or silence- either way you cross over into its all broken between Presence and Absence, the differentiated and the undifferentiated. How do I avoid that transgression altogether? Master Wind-Source replied: I always remember, south of the river, that third month: mountain-partridgeContinue reading “Elixir”
No Gate Zen Center 