{"id":145,"date":"2011-06-08T22:10:00","date_gmt":"2011-06-08T22:10:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/monkeymind\/2011\/06\/last-year-a-foolish-monk\/"},"modified":"2011-11-01T15:02:05","modified_gmt":"2011-11-01T19:02:05","slug":"last-year-a-foolish-monk","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/monkeymind\/2011\/06\/last-year-a-foolish-monk.html","title":{"rendered":"Last year, a foolish monk"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>
\n
<\/a><\/div>\n

This year, no change\u2026<\/p>\n

Ryokan<\/p>\n

Well, here I am at Garrison. Turns out the reason I didn\u2019t recognize many of the names is that the Zen contingent is quite small. Out of two hundred plus folk here, not twenty are Zen.<\/p>\n

So far as traditions go a pretty broad scope. The largest contingents would be the Vipassana\/Theravada crowd, or perhaps the Vajrayana folk. But there were some Nichirin people, a few Pure Land, somebody from the Won tradition, and a couple of others, as well. Mostly, as might be expected folk of European descent. But a bit more than a smattering of people of color, African descent and Asian, as well as a few Tibetans and other Asians. Mostly lay teachers, but a number of Vinaya monks and nuns. A few academics. Some writers.<\/p>\n

Not too bad a turn out. Also, I\u2019m impressed by a very large contingent of younger teachers, and of them a pretty large Dharma<\/a> punx representation. Some great tattoos\u2026<\/p>\n

This is part of an informal tradition going on for well over twenty years, including an event I attended at Spirit Rock fifteen or so years ago. Don\u2019t know how I ended up on the short list for Zen people, but certainly am glad\u2026 <\/p>\n

We checked in. Some shmoozing in the lounges and around. It\u2019s very hot, and only the Dharma hall is airconditioned. When we all gathered at seven thirty, after a few words from Garrison, Jack Kornfield did the honors introducing themes and getting us going.<\/p>\n

I can\u2019t stay right through to the end on Saturday, but I do look forward to absorbing as much as possible for the time I am\u2026<\/p>\n

I must admit I feel a bit like a kid in a candy store meeting folk I\u2019ve heard of, and often have read, but whom I\u2019ve not met before.<\/p>\n

And, I\u2019m embarrassed at how easily pleased I am when one or two of them actually knows who I am.<\/p>\n

More important, I think, I know, is this chance to meet folk who\u2019ve given their lives to the Dharma but in other streams, and hopefully, to begin some friendships that can profit my own practice as well as potentially, helping the folk in the sanghas I serve among\u2026<\/p>\n

Although for now, its time to turn in and get a little sleep\u2026<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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This year, no change\u2026 Ryokan Well, here I am at Garrison. Turns out the reason I didn\u2019t recognize many of the names is that the Zen contingent is quite small. Out of two hundred plus folk here, not twenty are Zen. So far as traditions go a pretty broad scope. The largest contingents would be […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":120,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-145","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nLast year, a foolish monk<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"This year, no change...RyokanWell, here I am at Garrison. 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