Teachings
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The World is Made of Stories, by David Loy, Part 1 of 3
March 7, 20163 min read
Believing we've moved beyond religious myth, we mistake our culture's newest story for the world itself. The American poet Muriel Rukeyser famously wrote that “the universe is made of stories, not of atoms.” We are not just animals that use language: we are storytelling creatures, for telling stories is a fundamental activity of all people in all cultures. The Canadian cognitive neuroscientist Merlin Donald expresses this well: Language is basically for telling stories. . . ....
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The Zen Teacher as Midwife, by Ruben Habito, Part 2 of 2
March 4, 20163 min read
..the task of the Zen teacher is to help the practitioner be tamed by the Breath... Click for Part 1 of The Zen Teacher as Midwife. Zen spirituality can be described simply as the art of living in attunement with the Breath, and it is the Breath itself that will be the most reliable guide in the entire journey. Ultimately... the task of the Zen teacher is to help the practitioner be tamed by the Breath, to be...
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Teisho: Book of Equanimity Case 27, Hôgen Points to the Bamboo Blinds
March 3, 20162 min read
“A monk asked, What is the ultimate teaching of all Buddhas? Hogen answered, “You have it too.” Description: Case 27: Hôgen Points to the Bamboo Blinds Hôgen pointed to the bamboo blinds with his hand. At that moment, two monks who were there went over to the blinds together and rolled them up. Hôgen said, "One has gained, one has lost." Henry explores this penetrating koan. Gain and loss are amongst the most deeply ingrained concepts and assumptions that...
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The Zen Teacher as Midwife, by Ruben Habito, Part 1 of 2
February 29, 20166 min read
The midwife is by no means the source of that life, but is simply one who sees to it that the way is cleared and the conditions made favorable for the new life to come through and see the light. In Zen practice, one cannot emphasize enough the vital role of the Zen teacher who has charted the paths of this arduous journey to the core of one’s being and is familiar with the terrain. There...
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Recovery of Our Shadow, by Ruben Habito, Part 4 of 4
February 26, 20163 min read
That thou art. Click to read Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3 of Recovery of our Shadow The practice of seated meditation in Zen, where we place ourselves fully in the here and now as we follow our breathing, enables us to become more and more transparent to ourselves and thus cut through our ego-centered consciousness to listen to the deeper realms of our being. There, as our practice ripens and becomes more and more transparent...
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Teisho: Book of Equanimity Case 26, Kyozan Points to the Snow Lion
February 25, 20161 min read
“In every realm of suffering there is a Buddha; flowers fall amid our longings; weeds spring up amid our antipathies…” Description: Case 26: Kyôzan Points to Snow Kyôzan pointed to the snow lion and said, "Is there anything that goes beyond this color?" Unmon said, "I would have pushed it over for him at once." Setchô commented, "He only knows how to knock it over, but he doesn't know how to help it up." Henry unpacks this startling koan to...
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Recovery of our Shadow, by Ruben Habito, Part 3 of 4
February 22, 20164 min read
The recognition of and reconciliation with our shadow is a crucial element in our healing. Click to read Part 1 and Part 2 of Recovery of our Shadow. This ego-centered consciousness functions not only on the individual level, but likewise on the corporate level, as we identify ourselves with a larger entity such as a nation-state, a financial corporation, an ethnic group, a neighborhood gang. Such a corporate ego-centered consciousness takes on the attitude of “we versus...
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Recovery of Our Shadow by Rubin Habito, Part 2 of 4
February 19, 20164 min read
As long as we live our lives with the I, me, mine at the center as the controlling factor in our lives, then we fall into that trap of tending to idealize ourselves and seeing only the good, the beautiful, the bright side of our being that the “I” wants to identify with. Click here to read Recovery of Our Shadow, Part 1. The bipolar nature of our existence as presented by depth psychology is dramatically portrayed...
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Recovery of Our Shadow, by Ruben Habito, Part 1 of 4
February 15, 20162 min read
A dimension of our existence that depth psychologists have called to our attention is that of our shadow. This refers to that “dark” side of our being buried in our unconscious that we would rather not see, that aspect which we would describe as negative, destructive, violent, chaotic, evil. As we look around and within ourselves, we can see an interplay of opposites that make up our concrete existence in this world bound in time and...
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Rediscovering the Breath, by Ruben Habito, Part 2 of 2
February 12, 20163 min read
...familiarization with the breath is what we experience as we go on in our practice: the connection between our zazen and the rest of our daily life... Excerpted from Healing Breath (Orbis Books) Click here to Read Part 1 of Rediscovering the Breath by Ruben Habito. In seated meditation, with one’s back straight, one is enjoined to breathe naturally but deeply, intentionally and slowly, so that the breathing is centered on the lower diaphragm. One thus becomes aware...
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Teisho: Hakuin Zenji’s Song of Zazen, Rohatsu Part 5 of 5
February 11, 20161 min read
Description: Henry closes his Rohatsu series on Hakuin’s Song of Zazen with “l'esprit d'escalier” ("staircase wit”), a French term for thinking of the right repartee just too late, as one is leaving the party. We learn more about Hakuin’s life and death. Hakuin’s fear, and also his pride, made it difficult for him to settle into really being himself, and seeing through into his intrinsic life and nature. Henry directly equates Haiku’s willingness to face suffering...
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