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New podcasts every Tues, Thurs and Sat. Here you can find talks from various teachers involved with the Zen Community of Oregon. We share talks from our retreats, as well as our different weekly offerings between Great Vow Zen Monastery and Heart of Wisdom Zen Temple.
Zen Community of Oregon's purpose is to express and make accessible the wisdom and compassion of the Buddha’s teachings, as transmitted through an authentic, historical lineage. To support and maintain Zen Buddhist practice in order to realize and actualize our Buddha nature in everyday life.
For more information, please visit zendust.org.
Hello, and welcome. This is the Zen Community of Oregon, making the teachings of the Buddha Dharma accessible to support your practice. New episodes air every week.
Speaker 2:We always begin by taking refuge in the transcendental virtues, things that that go beyond our our small mind. And the way we phrase that in this tradition is I take refuge in the Buddha, the Buddha mind that is the the inclusive nature of reality. I take refuge in the Dharma, is all teachings in all traditions that point to the truth, that point to the inclusive nature of reality, that point to the the creative nature of reality, that point to the the ever present reliable nature of reality. And I take refuge in the sangha. The sangha is the community of people of good hearts who come together in an effort to help support and encourage one another.
Speaker 2:So we always begin by take refuge in the Buddha, I take refuge in the Dharma, I take refuge in the Sangha. Thank you all for coming tonight. There's a number of new people here, so let me just do a little introduction. My name is Hogen. I'm one of the leaders of the community here.
Speaker 2:I've been around for a few decades, and this is a lineage that is derived from a Japanese Buddhist Zen tradition. We are not Japanese. I don't speak more than three words of Japanese, but at the same time my teachers were in Japan. I was just in Japan a couple of weeks ago, and we have where we we sit in rows and have some some of the forms, but the Dharma teachings that we have inherited are part of the lineage of the great Buddhist tradition of India, China, Korea, Japan, America. There's a common denominator across the board, but our particular flavor is infused with Japanese Buddhism.
Speaker 2:A couple of weeks ago, I was in Japan. One of our members, a young woman named Bushin, who has lived at the monastery for a long time was lives in Hokkaido, the farther northern northern most island in Japan. And she was part of a mountain seat ceremony. Now mountain seat ceremony is is a name for when someone takes over the head of a community, head of the the monastery, the traditional way of viewing Dharma centers is there are mountains of Dharma, are mountains of wisdom, are mountains. And so a mountain seat ceremony is someone who is attending, ascending, stepping into into that role.
Speaker 2:So we went to Hokkaido for a mountain seat ceremony, and there were a 150 priests from around the world and around Japan who were there for that. Roshi was part of it, it wasn't her particular ceremony. But we were deeply involved with the flavor of that transmission, and then we went from there to Kanazawa and spent a couple of days in Kanazawa, is a very nice kind of vacation place. Beautiful gardens and very very, you know, great food, simple simple beautiful part of Japan. Wasn't bombed in World War two, so there's lots of old buildings and old parts of it.
Speaker 2:Lots of Japan was rubble after World War two, but fortunately Kyoto and Kanazawa and a few places up north were spared the bombing and so they have a lot more historical background. And then we went down to, Okuyama and went to a place called Toshoji Monastery and a place called Sogenji Monastery. And Toshoji and Sogenji were both founded probably four hundred years ago. So they are traditional, sodas, traditional places of training, and and they're they're quite amazing if you're if you're ever in 400 year old buildings that have been lived in and practiced in by generations after generations of people. They're they're infused they're infused with a deep rich, rich quality.
Speaker 2:There's a silence, a presence. So Gingji is the place that I've spent a lot of years or not years, a lot of weeks, going to retreats. The long retreats that we have here called Sashen, and they're often seven to ten days long. Actually, in our case, we're six to ten days long. And I've gone to Japan many times to do week long retreats in this 400 year old monastery with my teacher there, Shoto Hogen Roshi.
Speaker 2:So we went, we touched, hello to Haraduroshi, we went to a place called Toshoji, which is in the same region, and just, you know, basically said hello and said we were how grateful we were. We've had the the good fortune to touch these these amazing rich wells of of practice and being. We came back and I I I was got sick for two weeks, so I I was here last week because of that. I just got bad bronchitis, and so that's why haven't been around for a while, and now we're back in full full steam. When I left, we were were talking about the the Mangala Sutta.
Speaker 2:The Mangala Sutta is the Sutra that we chanted right at the beginning this evening. It's a Sutra called the Sutra of the Highest Blessings. And, you know, I've been talking about the different kind of blessings. But the essential teaching of the highest blessings is this life. We have a life.
Speaker 2:The fact that we are alive, the fact that we are are here and can see and hear is the highest blessing. I mean, what more could be? It's the greatest gift. They say the gift your parents gave you of life is the greatest gift because without that gift nothing else is possible. And so the highest blessing is to have this life, this this mind, this ability to breathe, this ability to be present is such a blessing.
Speaker 2:And we can do all kinds of things with it. We can make it a total disaster. We can make it a total, you know, a total gift to the world. We can make it rich and interesting. We can shrink it down till it's a little raisin of our self.
Speaker 2:We can do all kinds of things with it. But it's a blessing. So this particular little chat that we do says, the highest blessing is this life and here are some ways that this life can be unfolded that that enrich the world. Each of our lives has the ability to enrich the world. Enrich the place that we stand.
Speaker 2:To give life to our life. To give life to the life of those around us. So that's what this challenge is is really about. Just affirming. Affirming that that richness.
Speaker 2:And we were I think we were talking about patience and willingness to accept one's faults as a a place of practice. If if when we practice is about, first off, I want to be present with love. And love means we have to have acceptance. You can't say I love you, I hate you, I love you, I hate you, I love you. That's not love.
Speaker 2:We have to have deep acceptance. When we accept things as they are, we can respond to them. We can we can meet them. We can shape them. We can When we hate things as they are, when we hate ourselves, when we dislike ourselves, then we're immediately at war.
Speaker 2:And when you're at war, you use lots of resources. And you can't you can't you can't act. You can't be be you can't offer something. So the first place of practice of this particular sutra is acceptance. And what do we do?
Speaker 2:We're met we're coming here. We bring all of our stuff. We sit down, and we start with the body. We have to start with our body. Whether it be big or small or old or young.
Speaker 2:Whether it be well or sick. We have to start with this body. Okay. Right here, this is the blessing that I have. I will I can practice acceptance of this is the way it is right now.
Speaker 2:It will change. It's it's been different in the past. It will be different in the future. But right now. So that's what meditation first is, is we'll come back, we'll bring the the mind which is so busy, I hate this, I like that, I should be doing this, I should be doing that, I should be going here, I should be better, I should be And we go crazy.
Speaker 2:We say, okay, stop. Let me come back and let me feel the blessing of being breathed. The blessing of I am right here being breathed. Oh, isn't it amazing? If you don't think it's amazing, try holding your breath for a while and, you know, taking a deep dive into the water.
Speaker 2:You'll appreciate your breath very very quickly. If you're almost drowning, I guarantee it. So meditation first off starts with, I'll be present with what is. I'll begin to really rest in harmony with what is, with appreciation for what is. And then, by being in harmony with reality, we can respond.
Speaker 2:You know, I've got to do this, I've to do that, I want to help here, want to help there. When we're busy, if our first stance is fighting with ourselves, I don't like me, I don't like what's going on, I don't like this, I don't like this, I don't like this, I'm wrong, I'm I'm failure, I don't like the world. It's wrong. It's it's not We can't really engage. We can't really be effective.
Speaker 2:Without acceptance of the way things are, we can't then engage and try to be of help with changing because we're we're busy battling our own ideas. Now, could say that this blessing is whole and complete. We're being breathed. We're being We can see. We can hear.
Speaker 2:We we have this this life. We can say it's it's just fine the way it is. And then our mind gets in and has ideas of no no, according to me, according to me, according to my opinion, the world should work according to me. According to my opinion, you know, everybody should be da da da da. According to my opinion, the government should work.
Speaker 2:According to my opinion. According to me, my partner should be. According to me, according to me, my boss should. According to me, according to me, according to me. And what if what if that's all wrong?
Speaker 2:What if according to me is the the place that we begin creating friction? It's the place that we instead of responding to reality, we get caught in our own fantasies of according to me, it should be this way. According to me, we get caught in our picture, our fantasy of how it should be. And we lose touch with the reality of this moment. And we're no longer responsive because we're so caught up in our, oh, what what about me?
Speaker 2:What about me? What about this? What about that? The world should work according to me, according to me. Why isn't it working according to me?
Speaker 2:The weather should be cooler, the weather should be hotter, the government should be more kind. Greatest blessing is starting off right here, we're alive. Starting off right here, I'm breathing. Starting off right here, I can feel and hear. To sink into that, to sink into that, we actually find that it's not even about me.
Speaker 2:With me is actually an idea. We can sink into it and find that our natural state is to be connected. Our natural state is is to be a part of community, family, relationship. Our natural state is we're not alone and afraid in a world we never made. But that's what meditation is about.
Speaker 2:It's it's about recognizing reality by stepping out of our fantasy. So this particular sutra says, you know, patience and willingness to accept our faults, you know. We have deep acceptance, and then we can work on ourselves. I always I always appreciate the the 12 step, beginnings, you know. You know, hi, I am am Joe.
Speaker 2:I'm an alcoholic. And everybody says, hi Joe. We're alcoholics too. You know, when you accept things are, then you can begin to change. Then you can begin to work with them.
Speaker 2:So this sutra says, okay, you've got a blessing here, accept it. Then you get to work with the reality of it. Oh, hallelujah. Acceptance. Now, of course, we all have unskillfulness and you know, the foundation of of practice is to to We we talk about the precepts.
Speaker 2:It's important to have a a foundation of intention, not to lie, but to speak a truth, not to kill, to respect the things of others, not to misuse drugs or alcohol, not to misuse sexuality, you know. It's really important to have that foundation as an aspiration rather than as a source of of judgment. Always working to try to to bring ourselves into harmony with the loving kindness, with the the acceptance, with the blessing that we have. We actually feel the blessing that we have. It's amazing how our behavior suddenly rectifies.
Speaker 2:So it's part of part of practice, part of this particular sutra. Now, one of the things that also happens is, and I'm supposed to talk about that this evening, is you know, because we are human beings, if you are born, we are going to die. It's just part of the package. If we are If we got a human body, it's gonna get it's gonna get sick. It's part of the package.
Speaker 2:Now, one of the things I was supposed to talk about this evening is I have got a diagnosis of prostate cancer. It's an aggressive form of prostate cancer that's metastasized into the bones. You know, it's normal. It's what happens to old men. Know, nothing unusual.
Speaker 2:We all have our own particular version. Regardless of what our our life is bringing us, our job is to be accepting this is the way it is. I gotta respond to it. I gotta respond to it. So I'm doing appropriate treatments.
Speaker 2:I'm doing, you know, androgen deprivation therapy and other kinds of things working at Night Cancer Institute. It's just stuff. It's not important. It's just stuff. So I feel like when we're working with our own faults, we're working with our own sickness, our own challenges, we just have to meet it.
Speaker 2:Okay. That's normal. How do I respond? How do I respond? How do I respond?
Speaker 2:When we can respond with equanimity, when we can respond with clarity, when we can respond with ease, I guarantee our response is much more effective. So we have a relationship with someone and there's something bad happens in the relationship. Can we respond with clarity, equanimity, and connection? Then the best outcome will happen even if it means they're they're leaving, even if it means that somebody's gotten very sick. So in my particular case, you know, I've been talking about birth and death for decades and decades.
Speaker 2:If you encounter yourself or someone else with with a We all have the terminal illness of life. We all have the terminal diagnosis of life. You know, I'd say it comes with it comes with the diagnosis of being alive is you're going to die. Just given. Not anything special.
Speaker 2:But if you encounter somebody who who who suddenly has discovered a cancer or had an accident or had some kind of trauma, what I always recommend all of us doing is what is it that's alive right now? We have this blessing of we are being breathed. We have this blessing right here of this life. We have this blessing. What is it that's alive in there?
Speaker 2:What is it that's awake? What is it that sees and hears and smells and tastes and touch? It can be answered clearly. It's not a thing. But that that curiosity about the very nature of what's alive, you know, always is a really good foundation when you encounter something really really difficult.
Speaker 2:It doesn't mean there won't be hard hard times, doesn't mean there won't be pain, doesn't mean you know you that the cancer goes into your bone, and your bone gets friable, and you have a break, and you can't Walker said, it doesn't mean that won't happen, but the attitude, the mind state that we reap, that we meet our particular challenges and the challenge of this world is so important. And that's where spiritual practice comes in. It's not about I am better than others. It's not about I am different than others. It's not about, you know, we have our particular karmic patterns, particular lives.
Speaker 2:But the spiritual practice is, can I find right here in my own heart, can I find equanimity, clarity, stability, and the ability to respond effectively? Whatever that means. Effectively and appropriately. So that's That to me means, you know, we all get up to have our particular challenges. We lose a job, lose a leg, we lose an eye, we lose a life.
Speaker 2:But can we keep the that which is so essential? Can we keep that alive? Can we keep our not alive? Can we recognize what is always alive? Now, the other thing that's interesting if you're investigating these things, because I just coughed that thought out of my mind.
Speaker 2:So, often when I'm talking to people about these things, I end with have deep confidence, Have deep faith. Have deep confidence and faith. You're already alive. There's already something free. There's already something un bounded right in your own life.
Speaker 2:But we lose track of it because you get so caught up in, you know, the world should be according to me, the world should be according to I. So please have confidence. Now when we're talking in these these kind of terms, it's also very important to verify for yourself. The the the teachings that that strike us as important to verify. Because, you know, I'm talking to you out of my my experience, but if that's not your experience, you have to verify.
Speaker 2:So I encourage some of those people take take the deepest truth that that that you connect with, the deepest truth that resonates with you, and just say, okay, I've got to verify that. I've got to know it. I've got to be able to to access it throughout the day, throughout the week. I've got to be able to access it through easy times. I have to be able to access it through hard times.
Speaker 2:Then it becomes a real practice. It doesn't become a should or an ought. It becomes a real visceral investigation. In Buddhism, we say that the the purpose of this investigation is first off freedom. Freedom from dukkha, freedom from suffering, freedom from the friction of life so that we can both live life freely and fully, and because we see that we're not separate from anybody, we can also be a benefit to everybody.
Speaker 2:We can be a benefit to helping others. And everything that happens to us, we can digest and turn it into wisdom to be a benefit to others. So, the next line is seeking seekers of the truth and sharing words of the Dharma. So these things I'm talking about here, I'm just trying to share my my experience, my my my taste of these profound teachings. Hoping by sharing them with you, I can encourage you to have confidence and faith in your own practice, in your own life.
Speaker 2:That that is the foundation, that's the blessing. And that's what we mean by sharing the Dharma. We're sharing the teachings that keep pointing over and over and over. And there are lots of, you know, technical teachings, know, the hindrances and the this is and the that. But the number one piece of of Dharma is people are suffering.
Speaker 2:It is possible. It is possible to transform that. It is possible to to see the sacred blessing that we already have. It is possible, and it is also possible to to function and to grow and to learn and to function and how far we can do it in way that benefits others. Alright.
Speaker 2:Now I packed a whole bunch of things into that. I can expound to any one of them. Anybody have any comments or anything you'd like me to unfold a little bit about?
Speaker 1:Thank you for listening to the Zen Community of Oregon podcast, and thank you for your practice. New episodes air every week. Please consider making a donation at zendust.org. Your support supports us.