"Tough Times for Tolerance"

It seems like it’s human nature to focus on the negative. There’s an expectation that everything is always going to be just how we want it to be, all sunshine and good food. But in reality, most of these things we perceive as negative are mere inconveniences. The Buddha pointed this out when he stated that life contains some difficulties, unpleasantries, and struggles. He advised us to stay in the middle of the road, not veering off into the ditch of despair on one side, or eternalism on the other. Two of the habits we can develop are kshanti paramita (patience and tolerance) and virya paramita (taking energetic action, having zeal, persevering).

Even though our nature may be to exaggerate our inconveniences, there are times when things really are bad. Undeniably not right. And they can be dismissed as “empty,” or “impermanent,” but there are times when kshanti & virya need to be exercised. The equanimity of patience, tolerance, and acceptance isn’t apathetic. The energy and action of not settling doesn’t have to be a grand gesture that calls attention to ourselves as much as it does the issue at hand. 

This can be seen as how we accept events, but not settle for them. We accept that there are indeed serious difficulties, struggle, pain and suffering. They’re there, and our attitude toward them doesn’t change them any or make them go away. My dismissing as “empty” the suffering of a starving child doesn’t fill their belly. 

There have been a couple self-immolations recently outside the Israeli Consulate in Atlanta, and outside their embassy in DC. We may be aware of the number of the same happening in Tibet, in protest to the PRC’s actions there. And we may be familiar with the photo of the Vietnamese monk who set himself alight in Saigon/Ho Chi Minh City—which technically wasn’t about the war, but against the Vietnamese regimes treating of Buddhists and Buddhism. These weren’t suicides of despair, centered on “I” feel bad, “I” can’t get out of this, but rather to call attention to a situation that seems to be met with a combination of apathy and lethargy. Their sacrifices were for the benefit of others, a benefit that the suicide knows they won’t enjoy personally.

Keeping these things in mind, how does a bodhisattva display patience, tolerance, forbearance, and energy? How do we not only practice as if our hair was on fire, but extend our practice in all matters in life? Do we have to literally set ourselves on fire because there is injustice and suffering? Probably not. But we can ask ourselves, “Who have I helped, and what action did I take today?” 

Myeong Jin Eunsahn gave the Dharma talk February 24, 2024.

"A Single Breath"

In the Sutra in 42 Sections, the Buddha asks, “How long is the human life span?" The Stream Enterer replied, "The length of a single breath." The Buddha said, "Excellent. You have understood the Way." Our lives consist of a series of inhales and exhales with a self-created events that keep us occupied, from the first inhale after birth to the last before death. Some event-moments are enjoyable experiences, some not so much. Some are useful, others frivolous. Some are doing good, some are evil, and some neutral. Regardless of what they are, they’re just filling time.

When we sit on our cushions, it’s easy to focus on those inhales and exhales. That’s what we’re trained to do. Aside from the occasional bout with monkey-mind, sitting and observing the breath is a pretty effective and simple way way not to create these actions. It’s less-often mentioned that those breaths away from the cushion are worthy of our attention too. Not the just breathing per se, but realizing that those distractions we create for ourselves are nothing more than activities subject to causes and conditions and our whims, between and among the breaths. It’s easy for “I, I, I” to come out when all we’re doing is falling prey to our own senses and sensations. We pursue pleasure, avoid pain, get bored when there’s neither. Noticing breathing, and all that entails, can be relegated to the rear when the shiny new object/person/activity catches our eye. 

While between the first inhale after birth and the last exhale before death, it is important that we are mindful of the activity we use as filler. Has our focus been on ourselves, or all beings? Have we performed evil deeds or good ones? Have we been lazy and distracted in our pursuit of the Way, or been diligent in our focus? Have we been loving, compassionate, joyful, and even tempered throughout our time? Most important, have we breathed for the sake of just keeping ourselves alive to wallow in sense-pleasures, or for the benefit of all beings?

Haengdal Citta gave the Dharma talk February 21, 2024.

"Duck Rabbit!"

The old trope is, “You are whet you eat.” In our practice, “We are what we think,” or “The world is what we think.” That’s not to say that what I think actually creates the world, but it creates the view I hold onto so I can make sense of the world. Empty as they are, our perceptions give rise to the thinking, the thinking gives rise to contact, the contact is with the world as we perceive it to be. Yogacara Buddhism, “The Mind Only” school of the Mahayana, is based on this, as is the Lankavatara Sutra. 

We are what we think we are, the world is what we think it is, not that either set of thoughts is necessarily an accurate encounter with reality as-it-is. I create a person according to my thinking, and I tell myself stories about myself, and I believe them. Just because I think I’m the “Greatest Person the World Has Ever Known” doesn’t mean I actually am, neither am I “The Most Reviled Creature Whoever Stained the Earth With My Presence.” Odds are that I’m somewhere in between, but my ability to perceive that and think that are at best a roll of the dice. I might get it “right” from time to time, but just as easily likely to be off by a mile.

These thoughts and perceptions also create our views, and not necessarily Right View. Just a random collections of neurons firing in a particular sequence that creates the thought, that creates the story, that creates the (false) sense of self, and in turn, a false sense of the world. We cling to views, opinions, outlooks, etc. because we take comfort in them, or even familiar discomfort. We may not like to feel angry, but we may have a soft spot for “justified” anger. It creates a world where we are superior to others, as if the world we’ve created revolves around us, which of course, it does. These views are hindrances to our being able to realize our True Nature, where views, perceptions, and consciousness are seen to be characterized by Emptiness and Openness, and there is no problem with that.

Look at the image in the video. Do you see a duck, a rabbit, or a cute kitten? Say Duck, Dae’An will hit you 30 times. Say Rabbit, he’ll hit you 30 times, and if you say kitten, he will roll his eyes. He gave the Dharma talk on February 14, 2024.

4 R’s

https://youtu.be/JYKIVl1qWdI?si=9rbu6as2tKBBGobU

Zen is a practice of reflection and intuitive reaction. Seung Sahn would use “situation, relationship, function.” When we are in contact with a situation—reality as-it-is—we react to it appropriately given the set of circumstances. Questions arise, however. How do we accurately perceive the situation? Do we correctly understand the relationships among the people, places, and things present and interconnected? Do we understand what our correct function is—what do we do—given the situation and relationships?

When we calm our minds through meditation, our minds become clear. When our minds become clear, the world becomes clear. Our direction becomes clear. When our direction is clear, correct action is clear. “How may I help you” is reflexive, requiring nothing—no thinking, no additional pondering, no second-guessing. It’s the unquestionably the obvious course of action. We react reflexively. 

Our direct experience of reality as it happens and changes from moment to moment is honed through our ability to pay attention to it. What once may have taken much thought and time becomes intuitive, before thought. Our direct experience of reality becomes our meditation, and correct action just happens.