Hakuin Ekaku, one of the two most important figures in the history Japanese Zen, died on this day, the 18th of January, in 1769. He was born on the 19th of January, in 1686, in a village at the foot of Mount Fuji. As a child he attended a lecture given by a Nichiren priest on hell. The talk captured the boy’s imagination. He became obsessed with the idea of the hell realms. And he determined to escape them... Read more
Today, the 14th of January, was celebrated throughout Europe during the Middle Ages as the Feast of the Ass. I find it one of those small sadnesses that this observance has passed from common use. And, well, I, for one, advocate for its reclamation. According to my google searches the feast is generally seen as related to the ever popular Feast of Fools. But focused on celebrating all sorts of variations on donkey stories. Of course among these... Read more
I consider Swami Vivkeananda one of those signal figures in the dawning of our modern era of world religious encounter. This was true for me personally, where an exploration of Vedanta, Sri Ramaakrishna, and his great disciple Swami Vivekananda were my first tentative exploration beyond Christianity… The Swami was born in Calcutta on this day, the 12th of January, in 1863, as Narendranath Datta. His was a professional family, his father an attorney. From childhood religion was Narrendranath’s... Read more
What is now quickly receding in memory, back in the summer of 2000, Jan, auntie & I moved out to New England where I would serve as senior minister of the First Unitarian Society in Newton, Massachusetts. We would end up spending fourteen years in New England, first there, and later in Providence, Rhode Island. Not long after we’d settled in, Jan & I drove out to the Cambridge cemetery with flowers for the James boys. James carrying hers... Read more
The sages of the intimate way tell a story. Once upon a time, a very long time ago, and, of course, very, very far away there was a man. In his youth he’d been called into the practices of the intimate way. And even considered becoming a monastic. But, well, life. He entered the family business, buying and selling cloth. It involved travel. He experienced much and he learned many things. Eventually both his parents died. He had no siblings.... Read more
STARTING AGAIN A Meditation on Calendars, New Year’s Resolutions, and Possibility Delivered at the Unitarian Universalist Church in Anaheim 5 January 2020 James Ishmael Ford The year turns. 2019, of lamentable memory, is gone. And, now, 2020 has its turn around the fiery globe. You may have noticed things are not beginning all that well. Who knows what’s going on with Iran? Or, for that matter throughout the Middle East. Or in North Korea. Well, with much of the... Read more
Ernest Hunt was born in Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire, England, on the 16th of August, in 1878. It’s said he encountered Buddhism in Asia as a merchant marine. It is said that he was preparing for ordination as an Anglican priest when he decided his heart led him to formally convert to Buddhism. One version I heard had him making the decision on the eve of his scheduled ordination. That seems unlikely, but I do like the sense of conflict and... Read more
Yesterday felt a perfect way to conclude the old year. A small band of us from the Empty Moon Zen sangha and the Zen meditation group of the Long Beach Buddhist Church gathered at the church at four in the afternoon for two hours of Zen meditation. We then moved over to the Hondo, the sanctuary, where we were joined by members of the church for a traditional Japanese Zen service reciting the Heart Sutra and the Daishin Dharani... Read more
Here we are. It’s the eve of the eve of a new year. And, for me the time I like to annually note it was on this day, the 30th of December in 1916, that Grigori Yefimovich Rasputin was murdered. There’s a small connection for me. And that’s part of why I notice the date. To retell. Many years ago I was working at the venerable and now lost Wahrenbrock’s Book House in downtown San Diego. And with a... Read more
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THE PRICE OF POTATOES IN IDAHO A Small Meditation on a traditional Zen Koan
THE PRICE OF POTATOES IN IDAHO A Small Meditation on a traditional Zen Koan James Myoun Ford Empty Moon Zen A student of the intimate way asked master Qingyuan, “What is the essence of Buddhism?” Qingyuan replied, “What is the price of rice in Luling?” Book of Serenity, Case 5 I’m very fond of this case. Admittedly, for a number of reasons. Among the reasons I love this case is that it features Qingyuan Xingsi. This is the only... Read more