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<\/a>(Above is another shot of the enso<\/span> tree from the woods near Wild Fox Temple [aka, my house])<\/p>\nThis is post #108th<\/span> \u2013 #1 went up on May 10 \u2013 so, dear reader, cheers! Here\u2019s to delusion after delusion. \n
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Speaking of which, a few years ago I visited Great Vow Monastery in Oregon. I was packing to leave and decided not to carry back on the plane my reading material from the trip out. I went to the office with a magazine rolled up in one hand behind my back. <\/div>\n
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A nice young man who is now a Great Vow monk sat at the reception desk. With the most Bodhidharma-like intensity I could muster I leaned over the desk and asked, <\/span><\/div>\n
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\u201c<\/span>Do you want the <\/span>Buddhadharma<\/span>?!\u201d<\/span><\/div>\n
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The young man\u2019s face flushed red and he stammered, \u201cHuh, what \u2026 what are you asking?\u201d<\/div>\n
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I stood up straight and pulled the practitioner\u2019s quarterly, \u201cBuddhadharma<\/span>,<\/span>\u201c <\/span>out from behind my back. With a matter-of-fact tone I responded, \u201cDo you want this magazine \u2013 I\u2019ve already read it.\u201d <\/div>\n
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He quickly grabbed it and fled.<\/div>\n
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I wondered about that Great Vow monk today after I retrieved the current issue of \u201cBuddhadharma<\/span><\/span>\u201d from the mailbox. Inside, I flipped open the cover and saw the Wisdom Publications ad for a certain wild fox scoundrel\u2019s book, Keep Me in Your Heart A While: The Haunting Zen of Dainin<\/span> Katagiri<\/span>. <\/span><\/div>\n
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James Ford, the steadfast Monkey Mind blogger, wonderful human being, and Zen teacher with Boundless Way is quoted in the ad thusly<\/span>:<\/div>\n
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\u201cThis is a lovely, lovely book that can be read fruitfully by both beginners and those who are deeply familiar with the Zen way. [Fore mentioned scoundrel] writes with simplicity and clarity; he is a worthy heir to his teacher.\u201d <\/div>\n
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\u201cWorthy heir?\u201d \u2013 wow. I hope so \u2026 but that\u2019s another story. <\/div>\n
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Today though, in the spirit of the sweet delusion after delusion Buddhadharma<\/span>, I want to address Harry\u2019s question from the comments to my last post. <\/div>\n
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Harry writes, \u201cWhere religion is concerned I can\u2019t help feeling I have a certain responsibility in this troubled world not to blindly follow: so I\u2019m really not inclined to sit and contemplate anything other than what it is demonstrated to be a valid thing to contemplate. To be honest I personally find a lot of Zen to be pretty bullshitty<\/span>. Now, contemplating an inclination towards cynicism may well be valid!\u201d<\/span><\/div>\n
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Harry had first wondered about finding a modern way of conceptualizing Zen \u2013 rather than the old stories. We could slip into the false dichotomy of traditionalist vs. modernist (or interpretationist<\/span>). However, those are two foci<\/span> that we\u2019re all working. What to include from past generations and what to bring in from the modern world? It is an important, ongoing conversation within any living teacher and between any living student and his\/her teacher. <\/div>\n
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For me, the essential forms of sitting, clothing, inquiry and liturgy are essential. In my view, great intelligence and love springs forth from those simple forms. It is almost as if great intelligence and love were hidden there by our predecessors, such that it could be discovered by fearless spelunkers. <\/span><\/div>\n