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From: Harvey Hilbert
With palms Together,
Good Morning Sangha,
This morning I would like to talk to you about taking refuge in the Dharma.
This is the second of the bodhisattva vows.
Imagine you are going on a trip to an exotic destination. You have
never been in that part of the world before. Naturally you do some planning, but
you resolve to also be open to whatever the place has to show you. You
have a map. You have a travel guide. You have talked to others who have
taken this journey. You even have a tour guide. So you get on the plane
and take off.
This is rather like taking refuge in the Dharma.
Your map and travel guide are the sutras and commentaries. Your group
is the sangha. Your tour guide is the Teacher. But make no mistake,
these are not the journey, not the Dharma in its true sense! These are
only guides, the Dharma is the experience, the direct experience of your
journey..
In fact, tour guides, maps, others, can and do distort what you see.
They precondition you to see things in a certain way. So, while they
are useful, you must also see their limitations and be willing to let them drop
away.This takes courage and forbearance. It takes practice!
When you take refuge in the Dharma, you are in fact taking refuge in
yourself. In the true essence of yourself. In the stillness
within.
The Dharma, though, is not limited to that. It is also that which is
around you, speaking to you, it is that which you taste, smell, feel. It
is your world. When you experience this world without the maps, and you
experience it directly, you experience the Dharma.
Be well, Rev. Harvey Sodaiho Hilbert, Ph.D. On the web at: http://www.daihoji.org Opt out of military recruiter's getting your children's personal information: http://www.militaryfreezone.org/ (This email powered by clean, renewable, solar energy.) Current Book Discussion: Appreciate Your Life by Taizan Maezumi Roshi
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