bill!..
excellent.. however is it not possible to slip and slide along the path... one time nearly there and next time only just beginning?.. is not the beginning the end and the end the beginning and all in the middle of beginning and end the sum total of the path that in many ways is no path at all only an illusion that there is a path and an illusion that there is a beginning and an end and 10 ox herding pictures?... ho hum merle Merle, Yes you do "...get these dudes going to retreats, etc..going to christian churches etc and they think hey presto that's it..done my bit..". And also you get people that just say 'Everything's Zen so whatever I do whenever I do it is Zen, and I do my bit all the time'. Both are wrong. Take another look at the 10 Ox Herding Pictures. They depict the progress of a student of zen from the very beginning (Seeing the Footprints) to the very end (Entering the Marketplace). As the stages progress the commitment increases - both in time and in focus (quantity and quality). It might be interesting for you to study these and then try to decide where you are along this path before you decide absolutely how much time and effort you need to/want to put into zen practice. ...Bill! --- In [email protected], Merle Lester <merlewiitpom@...> wrote: > > > >  I was thinking that what edgar means..correct me if incorrect please edgar.. > > you get these dudes going to retreats, etc..going to christian churches etc > and they think hey presto that's it..done my bit.. > > i'm now squeaky clean so to speak..full of self righteousness..and how many > times have we witnessed this?... > > one needs to practise 24/7 in the real world... > > in the so called supermarket... > > the compassion and universal oneness and interconnection that one experienced >  in the sitting surely...?... > > you can sit till you drop..you can go to sermon after sermon however if > nothing "sinks in" then it becomes a farce... > meaningless "bullshit" just for appearances and to satisfy some ego hungry > soul... merle.. > > whoops sorry group..no soul..just a very hungry ego > > >  > Merle, > > "24/7" ? > > Some -- many -- attend retreat, and sit that way. But maybe they don't open > this time. They -- we! -- keep practicing, and keep coming back to retreat. > This is called practice. It's all practice. If we keep it simple, and are > dedicated, it is practice. There is no "opening" the mind. There is just > attending to your method of practice. Will the mind open? Maybe. But > that's not something to attend to. Only the Method. If the mind "opens", > you'll *experience* THEN what that means. We must not assume we know what > that means. We DON'T know. Even when it opens. > > --Joe > > > Merle Lester <merlewiitpom@> wrote: > > > > edgar...it's still quality of sitting..as he says he has the "empty > >cup"..you might sit 24/7 and it would be useless if you did not open your > >mind surely?...merle >
