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 Adult practice | Sorry, no adult practice this time. Will be continued next time.ഀഀഀഀഀ ഀ(Docho)ഀ ഀഀഀ | ഀഀഀഀ
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ഀഀ ഀഀ ഀഀLetter from a Novice Monk – Part 4ഀഀ ഀLike you would do for one you loveഀ | ഀഀഀഀഀഀഀIn my previous letter, “Just do the best you can”, I tried to look at the matter of Right Action, the behavioural aspect of the Eightfold Path. Today I have a simple story which in one way or another relates to Right View, or the wisdom aspect. Dharma gateways are countless. The Buddha’s teachings and teachers seem to be wherever we are: Here and now, on a zafu, and in all kinds of unlikely places.ഀ ഀAn example of this came to me recently. The soles of my shoes had holes in them and needed replacing. So I went to a shoe repair shop. Actually, it was not really a shop so much as a tiny room behind an old brick wall. An open window served as a makeshift shopfront. Next to it was a small sign that read: “Cohen the Cobbler”. Sitting at a bench inside the tiny room was an old man amidst countless pairs of shoes and cobblers’ paraphernalia. ഀ ഀOnly two steps to the right of Cohen’s window was a bright red door. It was not the door to Cohen’s shop, however, but to a sex shop and perhaps a massage parlour. The shared brick wall had a large “XXX” painted on it in bright red letters. There were no pedestrians on the sidewalk, but a continuous flow of passing cars and trucks on the road.ഀ ഀStanding at Cohen’s window, I took off my shoes and handed them to Cohen. Due to the loud traffic noise, there was a choice between shouting to communicate or not speaking at all. Cohen smiled and shouted: “If you need them fixed while you wait, I can do it in twenty minutes.” I nodded and smiled at Cohen. Through the window he then handed me a mat and pointed to my feet.ഀ ഀI stepped on the mat, and turned around towards the road and the traffic. As I stood there, different thoughts came and went, including that most of the passing drivers no doubt saw me as just loitering around the sex shop. It also occurred to me that the two businesses, sex and shoe repairs, were possibly one integrated operation anyway: Clients of the sex shop being accustomed to leaving their shoes with Cohen, and those waiting to have their shoes fixed being expected to pass the time behind the red door? Life itself as one operation. ഀ ഀAfter a while, my mind returned to my just standing there on the mat. Remembering my shoes, I turned around, and through the window could see Cohen preparing to fit the new soles. Next I heard myself say to him in a voice that seemed more whining than the traffic: “Could you please use r-e-a-l-l-y tough soles to last for a long, long time …” Cohen turned his head, smiled at me, and said: “Your shoes, you and I – nothing lasts”. With that he returned to what he was doing. The red door swung open, and Shen-hsiu and Hui-neng, coming and going, bumped each other’s heads:ഀ ഀThe body is the Bodhi tree ഀThe Bodhi is not a tree ഀYour body like a searchlight ഀMy poverty revealed ഀ ഀThe mind is like a clear mirror standing ഀThe clear mirror is nowhere standing ഀI stand in ruins behind you ഀWith your broken sandal strap ഀ ഀTake care and wipe it all the time ഀFundamentally not one thing exists ഀOh take this longing from my tongue ഀAll the useless things my hands have done ഀ ഀAllow no grain of dust to cling ഀWhere then is the dust of grain to cling? ഀLet me see your beauty broken down ഀLike you would do for one you loveഀഀഀഀഀഀഀ ഀ(Gassho, Seikan)ഀ ഀഀഀ | ഀഀ
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ഀ ഀ ഀ ഀWarum Moench?ഀ | ഀ ഀ Die Frage "wie lebe ich dieses Leben" ist schon laengere Zeit in mir ഀ ഀgegenwaertig gewesen und ist es auch heute noch. Es ist eine Notwendigkeit sich immer wieder ഀ ഀdarum zu bemuehen ein lebenswertes Leben zu fuehren. Wie wir dies praktisch umsetzen darueber ഀ ഀgilt es sich immer wieder aufs neue Klarheit zu verschaffen. Eine allgemeine ultimative Formel ഀ ഀgibt es hier nicht, denn das Leben ist unbegrenzt und auch in 10.000 Buechern laesst es sich ഀ ഀnicht einfangen oder beantworten. Merken wir das es um uns Selbst geht ist dies ein guter ഀ ഀAnsatz. Dann gilt es nur noch zu ergruenden was dieses Selbst denn ist und wenn ｗir dann vor ഀ ഀder Tatsache stehen das jeder von uns eins mit dem Universum ist bekommt dieser Ansatz ഀ ഀdurchaus eine Richtung die eine Werteverschiebung mit sich bringen wird. Eine Aktivitaet aus ഀ ഀeiner anderen Haltung heraus wird freigelegt, d.h. die koerperliche Aktivitaet stimmt ueberein ഀ ഀmit den universalen Gesetzmaessigkeiten und dies ohne jegliche Absicht in der Handlung. Im ഀ ഀMahayana reicht es nicht eine gute Absicht zu haben. So eine gute Absicht kann katastrophale ഀ ഀFolgen haben. Beispiele gibt es genug. Auch wenn unsere Absicht noch so gut ist muessen wir ഀ ഀuns darueber im klaren sein das wir selbst die Konsequenzen fuer unsere Handlungen tragen auch ഀ ഀwenn sie sich als katasrophal erweisen. Wirft man 1000 Kg Scheisse auf einen Menschen wird ഀ ഀdieser daran ersticken aber auch bei 1000 Kg geworfenem Gold sind die ueberlebenschancen eher ഀ ഀgering. Die konsequenzen beider Handlungen warden uns selbst wieder erreichen wir wissen nur ഀ ഀnicht genau wann, wie und wo. Deshalb ist es wichtig eine leidenschaftliche Hingabe und ഀ ഀMitgefuehl zu Allem zu entwickeln um im Augenblick einer jeden Handlung im Tiefsten verankert ഀ ഀzu sein. ഀ In einer gewissen Weise fuehle ich mich “schuldig”, in einem positiven ഀ ഀSinne, mich ernsthaft um dieses Leben zu kuemmern und immer wieder einen weiteren Schritt ഀ ഀueber meinen eigenen Tellerrand hinaus zu gehen. ഀSo hat es mich auf meinem Lebensweg am 15. Sept. 2005 nach Antaiji verschlagen. Hier kann man ഀ ഀein ehrliches Leben fuehren und u.a. diese Tatsache liess den Entschluss in mir reifen mich ഀ ഀals Moench ordinieren zu lassen. ഀ Jetzt heist es fuer mich das Leben immer wieder Frisch und neu zu leben, ഀ ഀdurch die stete Praxis das was sich zu Begriffen geformt hat und starr geworden ist immer ഀ ഀloszulassen und: in Zazen Milliarden von Malen aus zerstreutheit und Truebsinn aufzuwachen ഀ ഀMilliarden von Male den Geist zu erwecken und uebend zu bezeugen” (Uchiyama Roshi). ഀ Mit herzlichem Dank, ഀ ഀ ഀ ഀഀ ഀഀ ഀ(Zui Getsu)ഀ ഀ ഀഀ | ഀ ഀ ഀ ഀ
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ഀ ഀ ഀOn becoming monk at Antaijiഀ | ഀ ഀ ഀ ഀ ഀ ഀ Since I have started practice of zazen over 20 years ago I wanted to become ഀ ഀbuddhist monk. But somehow through all these years my karma wasn't ripe to do so. Or maybe on ഀ ഀdeeper level I wasn't ready for this committment. This year at last I was able to fulfill my ഀ ഀyearning for buddhist priesthood. ഀ ഀ Of course the first question asked by anybody would be but why and what for ഀ ഀyou would like to become ordained. The answer is not an easy one. On deeper level my answer ഀ ഀwould be I don't know. This was just the thing I had to do. Some kind of inner pull... But ഀ ഀtrying to explain this in words the most reasonable answer which comes to my mind is: that I ഀ ഀalways wanted to fully engage in the practice of Zen. Becoming Zen monk – the person who is ഀ ഀtotally committed to Zen practice – is for me natural expression of this committment. ഀ ഀ Docho said that it is up to me what I do out of this ordination. I trust it ഀ ഀwill be something meaningful... ഀ But at this moment it just feels good TO BE a buddhist monk.ഀ ഀഀ ഀഀ ഀ(Doko)ഀ ഀ ഀഀ | ഀ ഀ ഀ ഀ
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