Greetings SA,
Zazen. Yes, this is what my little episode the other night
demonstrated. I was between dreaming and being awake, and very
aware. It was never so clear. I wondered what was the difference
between the two. The awareness was the space between thoughts. Yes,
Zazen. Just sitting.
Why am I avoiding the obvious? I'm all too human...
Marsha
At 07:33 PM 8/20/2008, you wrote:
SA previously:
> >What do you mean, Marsha, a lot of
> "flip-flopping"? The author or
> >history itself?
Marsha:
> I meant the history. Busy little analytical beavers they
> were. I wonder if they had families and walks in the woods.
SA: Nice. Exactly. And I wonder why the flip-flopping. Sounds
like a lot of indecision. A culture unsettled. A civilization
unsettled and not clear minded. I would say much of this indecision
has to do with a lack of something to practice that sustains a
natural inclination of mystical proportions/significance. The
christian church has its' scriptures and rituals, but they have
become very objective and that was one reason why I kept on reading
Buddhism when first introduced to it. Buddhism was attractive due
to a simple practice of meditation at the heart of
enlightenment/realization/expansion of consciousness. It was
something I could easily do. Same with the attraction of
shamanistic, vision quest practices of old, which teach one how to
understand anger and fear so these nightmares don't control you, the
vision quest is all about patiently waiting out the fear, going
through the fear, knowing that once you ride out that storm peace and a
clear vision of life will be revealed. I could easily do these
things - just go in the woods and life will reveal itself.
I would read the Bible and couldn't find a practice that would
help me love my neighbor. Great ideas in the Bible, with great
doings, but how to cultivate these ways. Jesus is said to have
gone into the wilderness and faced the devil's temptations just as
Buddha did. Was it the simple experience of being in the
wilderness? Jesus did have the scriptures and old people to help
teach him the philosophy of their spirituality. That's about as
close as Christianity has come to any stable practice that can be
ritualized by any one person to achieve enlightenment (the
suggestion that the experience of the wilderness, being alone, such
as Moses in the desert). Another long lived ritual is
prayer. Yet, what does one do in the wilderness? What does one do
during prayer? Not just asking God to do this or that, but what
does the human do. If anything mythology teaches us that something
profound goes on in our experience and it is full of tests,
challenges, and subtle occurrences. If we simply walk in the
woods and pray is that it? Know the scriptures? Buddhism
discusses emotions, right thought, and suggests not only how, but
what happens during the how and gives detail courses of
action. It's as if the wisdom is in Christianity and other western
religions, but the teachings have been lost. This is probably why
so many could read the scriptures through western history, but had
a very difficult time putting them into practice. A daily stable
practice to cut into the day and keep the focus sustained was
missing in the lives of everyday people. This is also why westerns
find Tai-Chi or other Eastern practices so amazing. It is the
incorporation of wise teachings into exercises that many people
look at these eastern practices and right away think how spiritual
those ways are. Muslims have incorporated the prayer to Mecca
(what is it - 5 times a day?) no matter where they are. It's a
practice to help stabilize and sustain their spiritual life. The
practices of fasting for a month once a year in Islam. Maybe this
is what you find attractive about coven? The rituals throughout
the year centered on natural events so the circle is completed in
our lives during different times of the year. I found the Bible
answers why a lot, which seems to be western culture in general,
but the eastern philosophies answer how. Nothing wrong at the core
with any of these, as far as I can see. It was that moment in my
life when I wanted to know how and what to practice to help sustain
a good spirit that Buddhism was providing, and eventually Zen
points this very event out. That's how Zen was started in the
first place. It's what Zen is all about. Zen points at the moment
of enlightenment of Buddha, the sitting and zazening, and so you
have people like Dogen saying "Just sit". I know just sitting
isn't the final story as Dwai or somebody once
pointed out to me, and we all know Dogen didn't mean "Just sit" -
there is much meaning in this context of "just sitting" that is to
be realized. We can all understand that. Dogen and Zen is
pointing out the ordinariness that spirituality is, an ordinariness
as significant as the sun rising each morning. It's tremendous.
Does the author of that introduction suggest or point out
anything in reference to this discontent of western
civilization? It probably would help if I read the introduction,
sounds very interesting. I'm currently reading, as everybody
probably figured out by now, "The Hero with a Thousand Faces",
which has been suggested here on this forum and I've read some of
Campbell's other books in the past, but now it seems I have the
time to start reading more of the books that have been suggested on
this forum. What some people write here is very lovely and
revealing and some of the books they've suggested surely encouraged
them, so, by reading some of what people have suggested here would
be the same as learning more about where those people suggesting
such books are coming from. I do have new priorities and sometimes
I work as fast as turtle, but I'm slowly gettin' to some things.
crickets in the evening,
SA
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