For the past many years, Clouds in Water starts the New Years off with an Intention and Vow Workshop. It was my answer to the failure, year after year, of my New Year’s Resolutions. Does Zen allow future goals? i.e. if you live in the present moment, can you have a future goal? Concurrently, there … Continue reading Intention and Vow, New Years
Tag: Uchiyama roshi
Face in the Direction of your North Star
After I wrote the long post about the 4 Noble Truths, I also felt that I could answer my son using the idea of Right Intention or Right aspiration or Right vow; all different translations of the Second Limb of the 8-fold Path. Semantically speaking, I’ve trained myself not to use the word “goal”. Goals … Continue reading Face in the Direction of your North Star
Self Receive Use Oneness
“Self Receive Use Oneness” is one translation of the characters that make Jijuyu Zanmai. It is sometimes translated as “Self-fulfillment Samadhi” or “self-fulfillment and enjoyment Samadhi” or “Samadhi of receiving and using the self”. This is the middle section of the Bendowa by Dogen in Shobogenzo. This section is an incredibly poetic expansive description of … Continue reading Self Receive Use Oneness
Shikantaza and Jijuyu Zanmai
Shikantaza (just sitting) and Jijuyu Zanmai (self-fulfillment Samadhi) In order to understand jijuyu zanmai, (self-receiving oneness Samadhi) one has to understand the underlying principle of shikantaza. as presented by Dogen Zenji. Jijuyu Zanmai may be translated ji-as self or in oneself, ju-to receive or accept, and Yu-to use, work or function in concentrated union. … Continue reading Shikantaza and Jijuyu Zanmai
The Total Personality
“Practice with our total personality,” Katagiri Roshi repeatedly said. What does that mean? How can we live our lives coming from oneness, which includes both our historic self and our universal self? They work together, mysteriously, simultaneously and constantly. Commonly we think, either/or. Either I am deluded (most of, if not all, the time) or … Continue reading The Total Personality
Intentions for the New Year
Our present direction is clearly defined but without having a goal. When we stop projecting goals and hopes in the future, and refuse to be led around by them, yet work to clarify our lives, that is, the “direction” of the present, then we discover an alive and dynamic practice. — Uchiyama Roshi Our practice … Continue reading Intentions for the New Year
Setting the self out in array
From Uji or Being-Time by Dogen, a fascicle in the Shobogenzo: We set the self out in array and make that the whole world. We must see all the various things of the whole world as so many times. — Waddell and Abe Translation The way the self arrays itself is the form of … Continue reading Setting the self out in array