My only contact with Cheryl Huber has been to read about half of a book she wrote, called something like 'There is nothing wrong with you.' it was not especially my style, and it is still sitting on my 'being read' shelf of books.
I have not heard of a Mountain View Zen Center, but I will look into it. I have been sitting with Angie Boissivin's San Jose sangha when I am with a group. Their sesshin was quite pleasant. As far as attention and life, I find my constant challenge comes from finding more parts of my life that I have trouble paying attention to, ao my life seems to be rather more than i imagine. i prefer Karen Maezen Miller's formulation that what we attend to florishes. For my personal psychological work, I have distinctly non verbal wounds and a generally non verbal way of thinking, more geometric than wordy, so I favor more physical and experiential ways of de-conditioning myself over all these 'working with voices' sort of stuff. While I was victimized as a child, I also grew up as an educated, intelligent white apparently straight male who was super good at programming while computers were becoming ubiquitous, so I think the sort of totalizing powerlessness that Cheryl's technique is aimed at was not my lot. I have had a bias against believing that I deserve kindness and respect, but I have no doubt that I can please people by doing stuff they can't do with math or computers. I haven't had much depression, at least since getting out of adolescence, or desire for suicide, so I do not have much comment about the uses of mindfulness for those struggles. My own therapy was rather conventional trauma recovery therapy, based on shoring up daily routines, learning that I am safe basically, that it is ok to feel actual feelings, and that the body/mind is a fairly reasonable system (rather than rational). I regard it as being good prep work for Zen. Thanks, Chris Austin-Lane Sent from a cell phone On Mar 8, 2011, at 10:03, "Healthyplay1" <[email protected]> wrote: > Chris, > > I haven't followed the postings recently, but as I was looking over the > thread topics, I saw your comment here, and have a quick question.. > > Being in No. Cal, have you attended any classes /retreats or such with Cheryl > Hubert? I think her center is near Murphys-- ( Mountain View Zen Center), > but she has been at Spirit Rock and other centers in the Santa Cruz area. > > As I honor much of your practice style, I'm curious--in light of your > statements here-- how you would respond to her belief that your life is what > you give your attention to, and how to work constructively and > compassionately with what Cheri calls "the negative voices in the head". > > I-- of course, do believe in actively engaging in compassionate service and > actions. For me, zen is a means--not an end. But I will be teaching with her > & others next fall, on how mindful practices influence depression and suicide. > > Just interested in your thoughts. > > Thanks...k > > > > --- In [email protected], Chris Austin-Lane <chris@...> wrote: >> >> On Tuesday, March 8, 2011, mike brown <uerusuboyo@...> wrote: >> >>> Chris, >>> >>> My apologys if I've got my wires crossed. I thought your original post was >>> referring to compassion when you said that, "sit, allow your body/mind to >>> stop twisting itself up, see that we are all one, all changing, and >>> fundamentally ok, and allow that belief to soak into you body so that your >>> body/mind components are confident and able to see when action is >>> appropriate", then perhaps that is more acceptable. >> >> That paragraph was in contrast to the one above it, a straw man >> statement "just get enlightened and all the worlds problems >> disappear." >> >> That paragraphis my attempt at the marketing of no-marketing. >>> >>> And also: >>> >>>> Many Zen groups do sponsor outward facing activity; many more individuals >>>> who undertake training also perform actions of benefit to others; >however >>>> the zen model is to make no more fuss about that than a hand adjusting the >>>> pillow for the head; of course that's what the hand does, no big >deal. >>> >>> I took the above as talking about compassionate 'action' and my point was >>> referring to how that action was performed - by thought or 'thoughtless' >>> intuition. The point about Red Cross parcels being sent to orphans wasn't >>> really being addressed to what you said, but rather that compassion arises >>> in every action of the awakened rather than just the obvious ones (which >>> anyone can do - even cynically). >> >> Yes, that paragraph was responding to ED's saying that his local zen >> center visits the imprisoned. >> >> As for how the action is performed, action is action, how can it be >> performed by thought? >> >> I rather find this dogged desire to split things into thought filled >> vs intuitive to be tedious. People do what they can. Certainly >> blindness to my own beliefs and my own nature makes it easier to piss >> off my neighbors when I thought i was being helpful, but to postpone >> responding to the people around you until you climb some mountain of >> enlightenment seems like another form of placing an idea above your >> actual life. Acting as we can as we are, with that little openness to >> the chance that we may be missing something quite important, is >> something we can do right now. >> >> Note: by my own nature, I do not mean no-self, I mean the stuff that >> all my friends and acquaintances well know about me which I do not >> like to see at all. >> >> Cheers, >> >> --Chris >> >> >>> >>> Mike >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> From: Chris Austin-Lane <chris@...> >>> To: [email protected] >>> Sent: Tue, 8 March, 2011 23:17:13 >>> Subject: Re: [Zen] Re: Two Potent Quotes >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> It is just clear. My original post wasn't about sending food to the hungry >>> orphans, I am not sure where you got that; or compassion either. >>> --Chris >>> >>> On Mar 8, 2011 3:38 AM, "mike brown" <uerusuboyo@...> wrote: >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> Chris, >>> >>> >>>> At the time, in the moment, it is clear. >>> >>> Do you mean it is consciously clear (as in an active judgement) or >>> intuitively clear, without thought? For me, I still see compassion arising >>> from any >>> action performed in the awakened 'state'- sending Red Cross parcels to >>> children in Eithiopia is beside the point. >>> >>> Mike >>> >>> >>> >>> From: Chris Austin-Lane <chris@...> >>> >>> To: Zen_Forum@...: Tue, 8 March, 2011 13:54:13 >>> Subject: Re: [Zen] Re: Two Potent Quotes >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> At the time, in the moment, it is clear. I did not mean something which >>> would be labelled approp... >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> Current Book Discussion: any Zen book that you recently have read or are >>> reading! Talk about it tod... >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >> > > > > > ------------------------------------ > > Current Book Discussion: any Zen book that you recently have read or are > reading! Talk about it today!Yahoo! Groups Links > > > ------------------------------------ Current Book Discussion: any Zen book that you recently have read or are reading! Talk about it today!Yahoo! 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