lotus light community

March potluck

2010-03-28T06:04:00.000-05:00

friends we love

2010-03-28T05:54:00.000-05:00

lovely sangha 12/4

2009-12-11T07:15:00.002-05:00

Wanted to share/remember Krista's lovely story at work about blessing chocolate covered strawberries with, "hope, love, peace" and transforming suffering to lovingkindness.

Also the theme of helping our minds lay down new paths and releasing ones that do not serve.

And the love and abundance of everyone flowing to the river for Karen's birthday. So joyful!

And finally, the tremendous gift and support of a sangha, and community in general. Love and connection are such wonderful things to share. :). Touching the world of spirit through playful guides and visions was fun, too! (Someone saw an angel and it sounds like that wasn't so unusual for anyone there either!).

Have a great day.

Karen's birthday sangha

2009-12-07T14:20:00.000-05:00

Potluck November 2009

2009-12-02T19:16:00.004-05:00

I finally got some of the (blurry) potluck pictures online! (I put a few of the river at the end since we were all here in spirit!). ;) For anyone that couldn't come, hope you can join us at our holiday potluck/sangha on Friday, December 18th at the river.

Here is another link to the slideshow on Picassa Web Albums so you can view larger pics...

Potluck November 2009

A day of Silence at O-An Zendo

2008-02-25T15:35:00.000-05:00

Please see my post on Tranquil Waters Sangha blog.

With Loving Kindness,

Robert

We are in this together

2008-02-21T15:32:00.002-05:00

I was recently reading the latest issue of Rightview Quarterly and was reminded AGAIN of how we are all in this together. In an article titled "Notes for a Buddhist Transformation" Dr. David Loy discusses how society is made up of our collective thinking and acting but also our individual thinking and acting is influenced by our social institutions. As I listen to what others say who have looked deeply into reality and contemplate their thoughts I keep finding more support for the truth of the underlying oneness of our world. Dr Loy explains that Buddhist social action is not about deferring our own happiness to help others. That just reinforces the idea of "us and them". He quotes an aboriginal woman who put it: "If you have come here to help me, you are wasting your time. But if you have come because your liberation is tied up with mine, then let us work together." If we want to work as engaged Buddhists we must work mindfully in a way that others see that we want to help end suffering for us - (singular). We haven't been taught to visualize a "singular us" but that's exactly what we must do. If we are to be effective we must always be asking: will this effort help end the suffering of all beings? All beings means no exceptions. All beings means we see that "us - singular" has a problem or problems. The problems can only be fixed if I do my part in eliminating greed, hatred, and ignorance. When we give up the idea of "me and mine" and work with sincere "Loving Kindness" and "Compassion" in our efforts to free "us-singular" from suffering we soon notice a change in all of the beings surrounding us. Let's all of us commit to a strong personal practice so that we can transform the seeds that nurture attack into seeds of loving kindness. With loving kindness and compassion we can transform our world but only if we work together for our liberation.

With Loving Kindness,

Robert

Please visit and support Right View Online.

Stephanie Kaza - Buddhist Environemtal ethics

2008-02-15T14:22:00.002-05:00

Hello all,

I just came across writing by Stephanie Kaza and thought that some of you might be interested.

http://www.shambhala.com/html/catalog/items/author/131.cfm

With Loving Kindness,

Robert

Meditation - February 1, 2008

2008-02-02T19:31:00.000-05:00

Lighting the Candles
Respectful of countless Buddhas who
have brought us the sacred teachings
of truth and compassion
I light these candles
brightening the face of the earth

Inviting the Bell
May the sound of this bell penetrate deeply
into the cosmos.
In even the darkest places may living beings
hear it clearly,
so their suffering will cease,
understanding arise in their hearts,
and they can transcend the path of
anxiety and sorrow.
( Lighting the Candles and Inviting the Bell from the Plum Village Chanting and Recitation book - published by Parallax Press)

Reading
From Faith in Mind - by the third patriarch Seng Ts'an - translated by Sheng Yen - Published by Shambhala
No need to seek the real
Just extinguish your views
Do not abide in dualistic views
Take care not to seek after them
As soon as there is right and wrong
The mind is scattered and lost
Two comes from one,
yet do not keep the one
When one mind does not arise
Myriad dharmas are without defect.

Guided Meditation - by Robert

Breathing in I am grateful for the fresh air
Breathing out I smile to my breathing

Breathing in I am grateful for the fresh water
Breathing out I smile to drinking water

Breathing in I am grateful for friends
Breathing out I smile to my friends

Breathing in I am aware of Joy
Breathing out I experience Joyfulness

Breathing in I am aware of happiness
Breathing out I experience happiness

Breathing in I am aware of Joyfulness
Breathing out may my friends experience joyfulness

Breathing in I am aware of happiness
Breathing out may my friends experience happiness

Breathing in I am aware of Joyfulness
Breathing out may all beings experience joyfulness

Breathing in I am aware of happiness
Breathing out may all beings experience happiness

Fourteen Mindfulness trainings of the order of Interbeing

Each of us read one of the first five Mindfulness trainings
These Mindfulness trainings dealt with:
Openness
Nonattachment to Vies
Freedom of Thought
Awareness of Suffering
Simple, Healthy Living

Reading
from Zen and the Art of Happiness - by Chris Prentiss
Published by Power Press
Adapting to Change - pg. 87
The author tells how he bought a new car and had it parked in the alley. He came out just in time to see it get scratched by an old VW. The driver got out and was very distraught and obviously had no money to pay for the damage. The author told him that it was perfect. Now he will not worry about his new car being scratched. The driver was so happy he danced in the alley and the author gave him a contact with a friend where he got a job. He later came back to pay for the damage but the author refused it saying that he liked the scratch and that it reminded him that the universe is perfect. The story is very moving the way that it is presented int he book.

Silent Meditation
We had 15 minutes of silent meditation

Open discussion
There was some discussion of transcending ego and truely touching the absolute
Chris shared how through his poetry he is reaching out to young people who feel lost and are looking for meaning.

It was a very powerful and positive evening. I offer gratitude to those who attended and contributed

With Loving Kindness,

Robert

Beautiful Tara Song and Meditation

2008-01-20T22:16:00.000-05:00

Information on Tara Deity

Another great potluck

2008-01-20T17:04:00.001-05:00

Hey everyone,
Here are some pics from the last wonderful potluck at Jane and Marianne's last evening. It is such a gift to share that time together!

Here also are a couple of wonderful entries from a great blog at from www.lotusinthemud.typepad.com

first step of a socially engaged buddhism
It is noteworthy... that the story of the Buddha's spiritual journey climaxes with his enlightenment but does not end there. Even as he was savoring the blissful state that followed his awakening, he was approached (in the traditional account) by a delegation of gods, who begged him to give up his private ecstasy so he could share his awakening with those who still suffered. This encounter and its outcome, however legendary, make the point that spiritual maturity includes the ability to actualize transcendent insight in daily life. The Buddha is said to have wandered across northern India for forty years, tirelessly teaching the dharma. His decision to arise from his seat under the Bo tree and go out into the world can be considered the first step of a socially engaged Buddhism. The Buddha's discourses, which had revolutionary force in the society of his time, include countless passages dealing with "this-worldly" topics such as politics, good government, poverty, crime, war, peace, and ecology.
~ Kenneth Kraft, Inner Peace, World Peace

we must actually be present
There is a sign outside a casino in Las Vegas that says, "You must be present to win." The same is true in meditation. If we want to see the nature of our lives, we must actually be present, aware, awake. Developing samadhi [concentration] is much like polishing a lens. If we are looking to see the cells and workings of the body with a lens that has not been ground sufficiently, we will not see clearly. In order to penetrate the nature of the mind and body, we must collect and concentrate our resources and observe with a steady, silent mind. This is exactly what the Buddha did: he sat, concentrated his mind, and looked within. To become a yogi, an explorer of the heart and mind, we must develop this capacity as well.
~ Jack Kornfield, Seeking the Heart of Wisdom

Love you!
Marykaye

Tranquil Waters Sangha

2008-01-15T16:04:00.000-05:00

Just a reminder that I am posting a summary of our meditation at TWS each week. There are references to the readings for anyone who may be interested. This past week we had a reading on "Right Speech" from Thich Nhat Hanh and a reading on a real life application of tolerance from The Chocolate Cake Sutra by Geri Larkin (Section 3, Tolerance). I love Geri's work because to me it helps us to develope our own American zen. Buddhism in China took on it's own style and form as it was influenced by Taoism, Confucianism and other elements of Chinese culture. The resulting Chan Buddhism was taken to Japan where it again adapted and was influenced by Japanese culture. I believe that Zen is just beginning to adapt to our culture and become Americanized. This is an application of skillful means and will help many people here find a path out of suffering that is appropriate for them.

With Loving Kindness,

Robert

Meditation at Tranquil Waters Sangha

2007-12-31T10:56:00.000-05:00

Just want to share a summary of the Tranquil Waters Sangha Meditation. It can be viewed at the Tranquil Waters Sangha blog.

With Loving Kindness,

Robert

Recipes for potluck dishes

2007-12-18T19:32:00.000-05:00

We had a great potluck and even with the weather threatening there was a good turnout. I promised recipes for dishes that I brought

Rice and Carrots with Hijiki

2 TBS tamari
2 c. short grain brown rice, rinsed and drained
1 large carrot
1 tsp. sea salt (I used herbamere)
1 c. apple juice
1/2 oz. dried hijiki

1. Bring tamari and enough water to equal 4 cups to a boil in a large sauce pan.
Add the rice, carrot, and salt and return to boil. Reduce the heat to very low, cover, and simmer, without removing the lid, until the rice is tender, about 50 minutes. Let stand covered for 10 minutes so the starches in the rice firm up.

2. Meanwhile, bring the apple juice to a boil in small saucepan. Remove from the heat, add the hijiki, cover, and let stand for 30 minutes. Drain the hijiki; discard the apple juice.

3. Mix the hijiki gently but thoroughly into the rice, using the side of a wooden spoon, so as not to break up the grains of rice. Serve immediately.

Servers 6-8. Recipe from the book: 3 Bowls; Vegetarian Recipes from an American Zen Buddhist Monastery.

Dulse Chowder

1 c. water
1 medium onion, diced
2 to 3 medium potatoes, chopped
1 oz. dulse
1/2 lb. fresh or frozen corn
1 qt. plain soymilk
White or yellow miso to taste ( I used about 2 TBS. )
Black pepper to taste
1/4 - 1/2 tsp. tarragon (optional)

Bring 1 c. water to boil in a medium pot.
Add the onion and potatoes, and cook for 5-10 minutes. Add the dulse and corn, and cook for 1 minute.

I added some extra corn to the soymilk and pureed for the base.

Add the soymilk and reduce the heat to a simmer. (Do not boil the soymilk) Stir occasionally. The dulse will separate into pieces after a few minutes.

Add the miso, pepper, and tarragon, stir, and serve.

I used an extra potatoe and added two scallions.

Raw sprouted grain crackers

2 cups of 2 day rye sprouts
1 cup of 2 day wheat berry sprouts
2 small jalapenos
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp red pepper powder (ceyanne)
herbamare

Clean the jalapenos.
combine all ingredients in food processor or a high speed blender except for the Herbamare. I've made them both ways.
Add enough water to form a batter that can be poured and spread on teflex sheets for the dehydrator. Pour the batter onto the sheets. Sprinkle on herbamare(or sea salt). I spread it with a frosting spatula to about 1/8 in. You can make it thick or thin as you like.

dehydrate at 115 deg. for about 12 hours or until you can turn it. Remove the teflex sheets and dehydrate for about 6 more hours or until crackers are desired crispness.

With Loving Kindness,

Robert

Some food is so good it needs to be shared

2007-11-28T10:19:00.000-05:00

Olive - Hiziki Tapenade

Angie brought this treat and I promised to send the recipe to Liz. I decided it is so good it should be shared with everyone. So here it is.

Olive - Hiziki Tapenade

1 oz. Hiziki (sea vegetable)
1/2 cup olives, pited and chopped
(Angie recommends Kalamata, Alphonso,cerignola or any
combination - Giant and Wegman's have good olive bars)
1/2 cup capers
2 TBS olive oil
1-2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
1 tsp ume plum vinegar - more or less to taste
(Angie recommends Eden brand)

Soak hiziki overnight in water. Boil hiziki until tender
and strain away water. Combine all ingredients in food processor
and blend until smooth. Serve with tortilla chips or crackers.

The potlucks are always wonderful. For me they strengthen my faith in real love, the underlying energy of Lotus Light. It's great to be part of a fellowship of people committed to wishing happiness and well-being for all regardless of race, religion, sexual orientation or any of those differences which often divide people. It's a beautiful experience to get up in the morning and look in the mirror and feel good about yourself and grant that to all others. Just try saying it: "Today I hope every other person in the world can feel good about herself or himself." That wish includes the wish for immediate transformation of any unwholesome character traits.

Peace and Best Wishes

Robert

A poem for buttoning my jacket

2007-09-28T20:52:00.000-05:00

We had such a lovely meditation tonight--Pam brought the book "The Sun My Heart", by Thich Nhat Hanh. We spoke of the being and oneness beyond the mind and perceptions.

Some thoughts everyone shared:
"Beyond your concepts of right and wrong, there is a field. Meet me there" ~Rumi

"If the doors of perception were cleansed everything would appear to man as it is, infinite."~Blake

"While buttoning my jacket
I hope that all beings
Will keep their hearts warm
And not lose themselves."
~Master Doc The

August Potluck--a day to rest

2007-08-25T22:03:00.000-05:00

Hey you guys,
We had a lovely potluck day--Daniel was off so we were able to just move peacefully through the day, cleaning up, playing with River and making yummy food for potluck. It was a busy day in the area with great events including the Central Pa Women's Music Festival and Arts for Peace and Justice (which Daniel played at). It was just a few of us, but it was delicious to spend time together enjoying food, and then we all took a nap afterward! :) Tonight is open-mic drumming at Suba, so Daniel and friends are out enjoying the wonderful energy there.

Here are some pics from today:

We had an amazing storm after our nap, golden light, wild hot breeze and lots of rain:

The nicest part of all was just feeling so peaceful and surrendering and accepting what flowed today. We missed everyone that wasn't here but it was so beautiful to feel so connected to you guys even while we were all physically in different places!

Love you!
Marykaye

Sangha camp-out

2007-07-15T20:19:00.000-05:00

Wow! We just had the most amazing adventure--camping out in community is awesome!! It is such a joy to wake up in the trees on a clear, quiet morning and hear the sounds of your beloved sangha members eating breakfast. Loving, happy beings smiling over oatmeal and fruit prepared happily by Robert--the whole adventure facilitated so lovingly by he and his wife, Linda. The caravan was fantastic, so beautiful complete with canopy, a string of lights and set by a lovely campfire and tents for all of us to sleep in. We sat by the fire and talked about life and our spiritual paths, as the night grew cooler and the stars, brighter. I wanted to share it with everyone and hope others get to enjoy it next time!

Stillness and our True Mind

2007-06-01T10:36:00.000-05:00

In meditation today I had a very clear awareness of the true nature of my real mind. I found myself smiling at how I often jump from one thing to another believing that I need to do too many things, contribute to every good cause and consequently do not accomplish much of anything and live with a scattered deluded mind. I was able to see how important it is to commit to what is really important and let go of other things, organizations and groups that are already in the caring hands of those who have been given that mission. I experienced the truth of the teacher Dogen who taught that my practice is enlightenment.

Arguing over the Truth

2007-05-29T15:45:00.000-05:00

When we argue over the truth, we must be missing it - because to know the truth is to make peace with it, to need no argument for it. Like the Buddha, why not share the truth with compassion and wisdom instead? -Shen Shi'an

I Believe that it's our ability to share the many ways that we see truth that makes Lotus Light Community a very special Sangha.

Robert

Spirit music

2007-04-21T22:01:00.000-05:00

Robert played this wonderful instrument tonight at the beginning of his meditation; it is an ocarina. An ocarina is "a simple Peruvian wind instrument constructed of terra-cotta, stone, glass, or ceramic." It is one of a very old family of instruments, believed to date back some 12,000 years. Ocarina-type instruments have also been of particular importance in Chinese and Mesoamerican cultures. More info and links to sound files are here: www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocarina

Snow on the river Feb 2007

2007-04-06T17:23:00.000-05:00

May all beings everywhere, with whom we are inseparably interconnected, be fulfilled, awakened, and free. May there be peace in this world and throughout the entire universe, and may we all together complete the spiritual journey. ~Lama Surya Das

2007-04-04T17:05:00.000-05:00

While we're away from the blog, our community is still going strong! Many events: music/potlucks/births/passings. Here are some pics from recent history:

Tonglen Meditation

2006-09-24T21:16:00.000-05:00

We are still here practicing, sharing food and community, drumming together with new friends now too, but it gets so busy that I often don't take a minute to share in our blog! This week during our meditation together, we shared a brief Tonglen practice like the one that Karen shared last week. Here is some more information on what Tonglen is about--we experienced it together as a way to deeply connect with eachother in love and compassion and to extend healing and the desire for happiness to all beings. Hope all who reads this finds themselves happy, feeling connected and at peace, or aware of the reality and truth of Love each moment. Namaste!

Tonglen meditation in the Lojong tradition : Sending and Taking Should Be Practiced Alternately. These Two Should Ride the Breath: "Sending and taking is a very important practice of the Boddhisattva path. It is called tonglen in Tibetan: 'tong' means 'sending out' or 'letting go' and 'len' means 'receiving' or 'accepting'. 'Tonglen' is a very important term; you should remember it. It is the main practice in the development of relative Bodhicitta.
...
"The practice of tonglen is actually quite straightforward ; it is an actual sitting meditation practice. You give away your happiness, your pleasure, anything that feels good. All of that goes out with the outbreath. As you breathe in, you breathe in any resentments and problems, anything that feels bad. The whole point is to remove territoriality altogether.

The practice of tonglen is very simple. We do not first have to sort out our doctrinal definitions of goodness and evil. We simply breathe out any old good and breathe in any old bad. At first we may seem to be relating primarily to our IDEAS of good and bad. But as we go on, it becomes more real.

Sometimes we feel terrible that we are breathing in poison which might kill us and at the same time breathing out whatever little goodness we have. It seems to be completely impractical,. But once we begin to break through, we realize that we have even more goodness and we also have more things to breathe in. So the whole process becomes somewhat balanced...But tonglen should not be used as any kind of antidote. You do not do it and then wait for the effect - you just do it and drop it. It doesn't matter whether it works or not: if it works, you breathe that out; if it does not work, you breathe that in. So you do not possess anything. That is the point.

Usually you would like to hold on to your goodness. you would like to make a fence around yourself and put everything bad outside it: foreigners, your neighbors, or what have you. You don't want them to come in. You don't even want your neighbors to walk their dogs on your property because they might make a mess on your lawn. So in ordinary samsaric life. you don't send and receive at all. You try as much as possible to guard those pleasant little situations you have created for yourself. You try to put them in a vacuum, like fruit in a tin, completely purified and clean. You try to hold on to as much as you can, and anything outside of your territory is regarded as altogether problematic. You don't want to catch the local influenza or the local diarrhea attack that is going around. You are constantly trying to ward off as much as you can.

...The Mahayana path is trying to show us that we don't have to secure ourselves. We can afford to extend out a little bit - quite a bit... if you develop the attitude of being willing to part with your precious things, to give away your precious things to others, that can help begin to create a good reality.

How do we actually practice tonglen? First we think about our parents, or our friends, or anybody who has sacrificed his or her life for our benefit. In many cases, we have never even said thank you to them. It is very important to think about that, not in order to develop guilt but just to realize how mean we have been. We always say "I want", and they did so much for us, without any complaint... If we do not have that, then we are somewhat in trouble, we begin to hate the world - but there is also a measure for that, which is to breathe in our hatred and resentment of the world. If we do not have good parents, a good mother, or a good person who reflected such a kind attitude toward us to think about, then we can think of ourselves.

...

Just relate to the technique: the discursiveness of it doesn't matter. when you are out, you are out; when you come in, you are in. When you are hot, you are hot; when you are cool, you are cool... Make it very literal and simple. We don't want to make this into a revolutionary sort of imagery, mind-oriented social work approach or psychological approach. Let's do it properly."

From Training the Mind & Cultivating Loving-Kindness by Chogyam Trungpa , copyright 1993 by Diana Mukpo.
(Official Chogyam Trungpa Website)
Published by arrangement with Shambhala Publications, Inc., Boston.

Loving as God Loves

2006-06-02T22:24:00.000-05:00

What a gift to give and receive love and friendship, community--to experience love for ourselves and eachother and in doing so, to experience big Love, reality, truth.

Here are some wonderful words from Bo Lozoff's book, "It's a Meaningful Life, It Just Takes Practice", that we shared from tonight at sangha. The excerpt is about love in marriage--it feels relevant to all meaningful relationships, to walking the earth in human form:

"This is what it means for marriage to be a path of service. Two people become one couple. They serve the world in how they manage their marriage as much as any activism they may engage in. They wear rings on one particular finger so that anyone can recognize at a glance that they're not just individuals anymore. It's no less of a symbol than monks wearing robes to identify themselves as people who have chosen a full-time, committed spiritual path.
This is the potential marriage holds. Don't settle for less. You can know what it means to truly taste the salt of your beloved's tears. And then you can begin to understand what it means to taste the salt of the world's tears. From that place comes true compassion, and a deep desire to be of service to the world. These are qualities that saints from every tradition have told us are the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven.".

How beautiful to have friends and to live these truths together, to share insights, loving appreciation and deep, meaningful conversation. Thank you to our sangha for helping me to experience all beings as my family, my Self, for as long as I can until I fall asleep and forget again, till next time!

Forgiveness and the heart of compassion

2006-02-13T15:09:00.000-05:00

This week Pam facilitated with another reading from meditation teacher Sharon Salzberg, this one from her book, “Lovingkindness: The Revolutionary Art of Happiness”. We shared a Forgiveness meditation, followed by a visualization of the extension of the love and peace from our meditation to the world and all sentient beings.

Here is the reading we shared together:
“In order to be released from deeply held aversion for ourselves and for others, we must be able to practice forgiveness. Forgiveness has the power to ripen forces of purity such as love, and affirms the qualities of patience and compassion. It creates the space for renewal, and a life free from bondage to the past.
When we are held prisoner by our own past actions, or the actions of others, our present life cannot be fully lived. The resentment, the partially experienced pain, the unwelcome inheritance we carry from the past, all function to close our hearts and thereby narrow our worlds.
The intention of forgiveness meditation is not to force anything, or to pretend to anything, or to forget about ourselves in utter deference to the needs of others. In fact, it is out of the greatest compassion for ourselves that we create the conditions for an unobstructed love, which can dissolve separation and relieve us of the twin burdens of lacerating guilt and perpetually unresolved outrage.
It is much more difficult to forgive than not to forgive. Political leaders seem to rely on this fact: it may be much easier to unite people with a bond of common hatred than with shared love. It is not so easy to access that place inside of us which can forgive, which can love. Remember, to be able to forgive is so deep a letting go that it is a type of dying. We must be able to say, “I am not that person anymore, and you are not that person anymore.”
Forgiveness does not mean condoning a harmful action, or denying injustice or suffering. It should never be confused with being passive toward violation or abuse. Forgiveness is an inner relinquishment of guilt or resentment, both of which are devastating to us in the end. As forgiveness grows within us, it may take any outward form: we may seek to make amends, demand justice, resolve to be treated better, or simply leave a situation behind us.
The sense of psychological and spiritual well-being that comes from practicing forgiveness comes directly because this practice takes us to the edge of what we can accept. Being on the edge is challenging, wrenching, and transforming. The process of forgiveness demands courage and a continual remembering of where our deepest happiness lies. As Goethe said, “Our friends show us what we can do; our enemies show us what we must do.”
It is indeed a process, which means that as you do the reflections, many conflicted emotions may arise: shame, anger, a sense of betrayal, confusion, or doubt. Try to allow such states to arise without judging them. Recognize them as natural occurrences, and then gently return your attention to the forgiveness reflection.
The reflection is done in three parts: asking forgiveness from those you have harmed; offering forgiveness to those who have harmed you; and offering forgiveness to yourself.

Sit comfortably, close your eyes, and let your breath be natural and uncontrolled. Begin with the recitation (silent or not, as you prefer): “If I have hurt or harmed anyone, knowingly or unknowingly, I ask their forgiveness.” If different people, images, or scenarios come up, release the burden of guilt and ask for forgiveness: “I ask your forgiveness.”
After some time, you can offer forgiveness to those who have harmed you. Don’t worry if there is not a great rush of loving feeling; this is not meant to be an artificial exercise, but rather a way of honoring the powerful force of intention in our minds. We are paying respects to our ultimate ability to let go and begin again. We are asserting the human heart’s capacity to change and grow and love. “If anyone has hurt or harmed me, knowingly or unknowingly, I forgive them.” And, as different thoughts or images come to mind, continue the recitation, “I forgive you.”
In the end, we turn our attention to forgiveness of ourselves. If there are ways you have harmed yourself, or not loved yourself, or not lived up to your own expectations, this is the time to let go of unkindness toward yourself because of what you have done. You can include any inability to forgive others that you may have discovered on your part in the reflection immediately preceding—that is not a reason to be unkind to yourself. “For all of the ways I have hurt or harmed myself, knowingly or unknowingly, I offer forgiveness.”
Continue this practice as a part of your daily meditation, and allow the force of intention to work in its own way, in its own time.”

Sharon Salzberg has studied and practiced meditation for the past 25 years with various teachers (Burmese, Indian, Tibetan). She is also the author of “A Heart As Wide As the World”, and “Lovingkindness Meditation” on audiotape. Lovingkindness or metta meditation is an ancient method for touching the boundless healing resources of both the heart and compassion.

If you would like to learn more about Sharon Salzberg, you can find her books on amazon.com, or you can check out the website for the Insight Meditation Society and the Barre Center for Buddhist Studies , which Sharon cofounded and where she currently resides and teaches. The site can be found at www.dharma.org.

Faith

2006-01-25T14:59:00.000-05:00

This week's sangha had many special guests: Betty, Rudelle, Sterling, and Karen!
Karen facilitated with readings and meditation, sharing from "Faith, Trusting Your Own Deepest Experience" by Sharon Salzburg.

Here is text from one of the readings:

"One of the best depictions of awareness comes from Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche. In a class he was teaching he drew a loose V shape in the center of a large white sheet of paper. "What it this a picture of?" he asked. The students all responded, "It's a bird", "No" Trungpa Rinpoche said, "It is a picture of the sky, with a bird flying through it". Like the sky, awareness is open and spacious. If we focus on this space rather than on any particular thought or feeling arising in it, we are free.
There are so many birds that fly through the sky of our awareness--myriad thoughts and feelings like lilting nightengales, drumming woodpeckers, chattering parrots, elegant herons, imposing hawks, and the vultures that seem to be circling some days, tempted by our exposed and wounded hearts. But if we become entranced by any of them, we forget the sky. None of the birds will give us freedom and will take us off to its own particular realm of endless change. Each will tempt us to adopt its identity and forget the vast spaciousness of our buddha nature.
We can place our faith in this awareness because no matter what passing thought or feeling arises, the nature of awareness remains unchanged--pure, open, unimpeded."

Have a wonderful week!

Communion and Community

2006-01-20T10:24:00.000-05:00

If we use anger at injustice as the source of our energy, we may do something harmful, something that we will later regret....Compassion is the only source of energy that is useful and safe. With compassion, your energy is born from insight; it is not blind energy.
~Thich Nhat Hanh (from It's a Meaningful Life, by Bo Lozoff)

We had a lovely sangha this week, a meeting of new friends and old--it was wonderful to see Daniel's mom Nancy, Sierra, Dorothy and Yasmin from the Dances of Peace there. It was also a great blessing to experience how every sangha flows in the most perfect way. This week Jane facilitated an open sangha where we all shared the experiences of the week, and it was very joyful and healing to be together for that. Daniel shared some challenges he'd been working with this week, and we were all reminded how connected we all are, in both our sorrow and our joy. We also discussed the subjects of anger and equanimity, and Yasmin shared a beautiful metaphor describing the ability to be like the ocean: through practice, to be able to hold and absorb the energy of all the creatures that lurk in the depths--by nature of our vastness, to accept them and allow them to be, but also to be equally aware of the sun reflecting on the surface and the reality of love and joy simultaneously existing in us as well. To be unafraid to acknowledge those energies within us and to be able to accept and have compassion for them--to hold them, in equanimity, and further to extend that equanimity to embrace our life experience, and to those that we love as well as those we don't know. Once again, it was exactly what we needed--a time to connect and be loved and know that it's ok to be real. Everyone's courage, compassion and love was so apparent, and the sharing continued to nurture the blessings of communion and community. Hope you all have a great week and that we see you at the next potluck on Saturday, January 28th at 4pm.

A freedom of the heart

2006-01-15T22:26:00.001-05:00

Here's a lovely reading clipped from a wonderful Amida Buddhist website that we link to: lotusinthemud . I shared it with another dear friend and wanted to pass it on to all of you--please check their site out if you like it...

A freedom of the heart
Of all the ways you can think of, none has a
sixteenth part of the value of loving-kindness.
Loving-kindness is a freedom of the heart
which takes in all the ways. It is luminous,
shining, blazing forth.

Just as the stars have not a sixteenth part
of the moon's brilliance, which absorbs them
all in its shining light, so loving-kindness
absorbs all the other ways with its lustrous
splendor.

Just as when the rainy season ends and the
sun rises up into the clear and cloudless sky,
banishing all the dark in its radiant light, and
just as at the end of a black night the morning
star shines out in glory, so none of the ways
you can use to further your spiritual progress
has a sixteenth part of the value of loving-kindness.
For it absorbs them all, its luminosity shining forth.

-Itivuttaka Sutta

Paths to God: Living the Bhagavad Gita

2005-12-19T19:58:00.000-05:00

This week Pam shared readings from Ram Dass’s book, “Paths to God: Living the Bhagavad Gita”, a collection of Ram Dass’s thoughts and experiences of teachings he received during his time with his guru, Maharajji Neem Karoli Baba (also Bo Lozoff and Ram Dass’s guru).

Here are some of the readings Pam shared, and a detailed discussion of ashtanga yoga:
“In the East, there are systems of yoga built around practices of purification and renunciation. One of them is the Hindu tradition called ashtanga yoga—the “eight-limbed” yoga. It was enunciated by Patanjali sometime between 200 B.C. and A.D. 400, but it emerged from much earlier yogic practices. Ashtanga Yoga is a structured sequence of steps that help us to get the various parts of our game in order. It’s a whole curriculum for going to God, and by looking at it in some depth, we can get a sense of the way practices like renunciation are meant to work within the structure of a total system of yoga.

Ashtanga yoga has an elaborate program for working with purification, and with some related practices called observances. They constitute the first two limbs of ashtanga yoga, and they’re called yama and niyama, respectively. The five yamas, which are the five purifications or self-restraints, are non-harming, non-lying, non-stealing, non-lustfulness, and non-possessiveness. The five niyamas, or observances, are purity, contentment, discipline, scriptural study, and surrender to God.
(After yama and niyama comes the third limb, made up of the postures, or asanas, which is what we most often think of as hatha yoga. Then comes pranayama, or breath control, which is also traditionally seen as part of hatha yoga. That’s the first four.
The last four limbs are all concerned with meditation. First comes pratyahara, the initial stage of meditative work, which starts to withdraw the mind from the senses; it’s a process of drawing back the mind, until we can watch our senses doing their trip and at the same time keep our mind on the breath. Then the last three limbs of ashtanga yoga are increasingly intense levels of deeper and deeper meditation called dharana (or concentration), dhyana (or deep meditation), and samadhi (or Oneness), which takes you right into Brahman).

The ordering of these eight steps is not random. The first things necessarily precede the last things, and you move through the sequence in order. You can’t jump the line. When I was in India, Maharajji said to me one day, “Nobody does hatha yoga anymore.” I was surprised; I said, “No? Bit it’s very big in America, Maharajji.” He said, “No, nobody does it anymore, because hatha yoga assumes that you’ve already finished with the first two practices of yama and niyama, and nobody does any of that now.”
So there are eight sequential steps in the practice of ashtanga yoga, and we can see that it’s the first step, yama, that has to do with the practice of renunciation. Think about it: We imagine we’re so spiritually advanced because we’re considering becoming renunciates, and we discover that it’s the very first rung on the ladder. We’re just beginners!”

“The second yama is satya: truthfulness, non-lying. Gandhi said, “Truth is God, and God is Truth,” an his life was the statement of someone who was trying to live as close to truth as possible. A woman once came to Gandhi with her young son. She said, “Mahatma-ji, please tell my little boy to stop eating sugar.” Gandhi told the mother, “Come back in three days.” Three days later the woman and the little boy returned, and Mahatma Gandhi said to the little boy, “Stop eating sugar!” The woman was confused, and she asked, “But why was it necessary for us to return only after three days for you to tell my little boy that?” Gandhi replied, “Three days ago, I had not stopped eating sugar.” That sets the bar pretty high; that’s a high level of truthfulness to demand of ourselves, and the practice of satya has to do with shaping our lives to that level of inner truth.”.

Hope you guys are feeling the joy of so many hearts contemplating the great master, Jesus’ birth and path this season. We love you and hope you are well!

2005-11-23T11:17:00.000-05:00

All one.

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Looking deeply into the present moment.

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Ahhh...

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Jane

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Kirtan moment

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Riv and MK

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River and Bree chillin'.

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Sacred sounds.

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Pam and Jane.

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Jamming.

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Flatley moment.

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River with big shoes to fill.

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Buddhysattvas Jane and Karen

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Frank's traditional potluck Seva

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Jimbo

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Jane and Alamap

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New (old?) friends.

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Little Bodhisatvas

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Milissa and Susan

Human Kindness Foundation Sacred Readings

2005-11-16T12:40:00.000-05:00

HKF Sacred Readings: "Morning Readings"

Here's a beautiful reading from Bo's Lozoff's site, www.humankindness.org :

"We find it extremely valuable to begin each day with a spiritual reading, generally in the form of a story. We will change them from time to time at this site, and encourage you to consider printing these stories out and sharing them with your family."

(They also have a Sacred Readings tape available in their catalog at --all the money goes to support Human Kindness Foundation, which helps prisoners reintegrate back into society).

The Mani Man

A prayer wheel, or mani wheel, is a wheel filled with innumerable mantras and inscriptions wrapped clockwise around a central axis. Some prayer wheels are tiny, like tops; others are huge, filling an entire room, and one turns the wheel by holding its handles and walking clockwise around it. Others are attached to running streams or waterfalls so that they can harness the natural energy and spread benedictions throughout the land. The faithful believe that spinning these prayer wheels or hanging prayer flags in the wind actualizes the inscribed prayers.

The Tibetan province of Kham is akin to America’s Wild West. The people of Kham are great equestrians, and like all who ride regularly, they love their horses. Until about a century ago, Kham was carved into dozens of smaller kingdoms, each of which had its own army, raised by forcible conscription.

There was once an old man in far eastern Kham known as the Mani Man because day and night he could always be found devotedly spinning his small homemade prayer wheel. The wheel was filled with the mantra of Great Compassion, Om Mani Padme Hung. The Mani Man lived with his son and their one fine horse. The son was the joy of the man’s life; the boy’s pride and joy was the horse.

The man’s wife, after a long life of virtue and service, had long since departed for more fortunate rebirths. Father and son lived, free from excessive wants or needs, in one of several rough stone houses near a river on the edge of the flat plains.

One day their steed disappeared. The neighbors bewailed the loss of the old man’s sole material asset, but the stoic old man just kept turning his prayer wheel, reciting “Om Mani Padme Hung,” Tibet’s national mantra. To whoever inquired or expressed condolences, he simply said, “Give thanks for everything. Who can say what is good or bad? We’ll see…”

After several days the splendid creature returned, followed by a pair of wild mustangs. These the old man and his son swiftly trained. Then everyone sang songs of celebration and congratulated the old man on his unexpected good fortune. The man simply smiled over his prayer wheel and said, “I am grateful…but who knows? We shall see.”

Then, while racing one of the mustangs, the boy fell and shattered his leg. Some neighbors carried him home, cursing the wild horse and bemoaning the boy’s fate. But the old man, sitting at his beloved son’s bedside just kept turning his prayer wheel around and around while softly muttering gentle Lord Chenrayzig’s mantra of Great Compassion. He neither complained nor answered their protestations to fate, but simply nodded his head affably, reiterating what he had said before. “The Buddha is beneficent; I am grateful for my son’s life. We shall see.”

The next week military officers appeared, seeking young conscripts for an ongoing border war. All the local boys were immediately taken away, except for the bedridden son of the Mani Man. Then the neighbors congratulated the old man on his great good fortune, attributing such luck to the good karma accumulated by the old man’s incessantly spinning prayer wheel and the constant mantras on his cracked lips. He smiled and said nothing.

One day when the boy and his father were watching their fine horses graze on the prairie grass, the taciturn old man suddenly began to sing:

“Life just goes around and around, up and down like a waterwheel; Our lives are like its buckets, being emptied and refilled Again and again. Like the potter’s clay, our physical existences Are fashioned into one form after another: The shapes are broken and reformed again and again, The low wall will be high, and the high fall down; the dark will grow light, and the rich lose all. If you, my son, were an extraordinary child, Off to a monastery as an incarnation they would carry you.

"If you were too bright, my son, shackled to other people’s disputes at an official’s desk you would be. One horse is one horse’s worth of trouble. Wealth is good, But too soon loses its savor, And can be a burden, a source of quarrel, in the end. No one knows what karma awaits us, But what we sow now will be reaped in lives to come; that is certain.

"So be kind to one and all And don’t be biased, Based upon illusions regarding gain and loss. Have neither hope nor fear, expectation nor anxiety; Give thanks for everything, whatever your lot may be. Accept everything; accept everyone; and follow The Buddha’s infallible Law. Be simple and carefree, remaining naturally at ease and in peace.

"You can shoot arrows at the sky if you like, My son, but they’ll inevitably fall back to earth.”

As he sang, the prayer flags fluttered overhead, and the ancient mani wheel, filled with hundreds of thousands of handwritten mantras, just kept turning. Then the old man was silent.

The Five Hindrances

2005-11-04T18:30:00.000-05:00

This week Robert shared wonderful teachings in his ongoing meditation class, reading from "A History of Zen Buddhism". We shared walking meditation, and a very beautiful sense of stillness in sitting meditation. Afterward, among other things, Robert discussed the Five Hindrances, negative mental states that impede practice.

They are:
1. desire
2. anger or hatred
3. sloth/torpor
4. restlessness (worry/fear)
5. doubt

In searching for the hindrances, I also came upon the seven factors of enlightenment on Wikipedia--they are: mindfulness, investigation of dharma, energy, joy, relaxation, concentration (translated as Samadhi), and equanimity. It is considered a practice to study and contemplate all of these in meditation. Please check out the blog-city blog later in the week for a more expanded discussion of Robert's teachings... Here are some other pics from the meditation.
Love you guys!

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The text for the evening.

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Celebrating Linda's birthday.

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River-sun

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We love you!

Sharing readings from Thich Nhat Hanh

2005-10-30T09:27:00.000-05:00

This week we shared readings and insights from a compilation of Thich Nhat Hanh's essays, "The Wisdom of Thich Nhat Hanh". It is such a blessing to hear everyone's beautiful voices and wisdom shared in community. Here is one of the readings and some of the pictures (thanks Pam!!).

"In the time of war
Raise in Yourself the Mind of Compassion
Help living beings
Abandon the will to fight
Wherever there is furious battle
Use all your might
To keep both sides' strength equal
And then step into the conflict to reconcile" ~Vimalakirti Nirdesa

("Take the situation of a country suffering war or any other situation of injustice. Try to see that every person involved in the conflict is a victim. See that no person, including all those in warring parties or in what appear to be opposing sides, desires the suffering to continue. See that it is not only one or a few persons who are to blame for the situation. See that the situation is possible because of the clinging to ideologies and to an unjust world economic system which is upheld by every person through ignorance or through lack of resolve to change it. See that two sides in a conflict are not really opposing, but two aspects of the same reality. See that the most essential thing is life and that killing or oppressing one another will not solve anything." ~Thich Nhat Hanh)

We are all One! :) Love you guys!

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Liz

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Marykaye

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Marianne

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Bree and River

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"It's a super-string thing"

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Jane and Marianne

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Robert

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Robert and Pam

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Jane and Marianne

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Bree and Al.

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Sangha twins.

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Sharing snacks at the meditation.

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Have a great week!

Miracle sangha

2005-10-29T20:05:00.000-05:00

Last week Liz led sangha with teachings from ACIM. Everyone shared readings from a wonderful book, "Gifts from a Course in Miracles", followed by sharing of gratitude, prayers and forgiveness. It was wonderful to experience these teachings again, and brought to the present moment the joy of the form Jean-Pierre first introduced us to many years ago.

2005-10-29T20:00:00.000-05:00

Angel on my shoulder. :)

Listen, listen

2005-10-19T21:53:00.000-05:00

The Bell of Mindfulness is the voice of the Buddha calling us back to ourselves. We have to respect that sound, stop our thinking and talking, and go back to ourselves, with a smile and breathing. It is not a Buddha from the outside. It is our own Buddha calling us. If we cannot hear the sound of the bell, then we cannot hear other sounds which also come from the Buddha, like the sound of the wind, the sound of the bird, even the sounds of cars or a baby crying. They are all calls from the Buddha to return to ourselves. Practicing with a bell is helpful, and once you can practice with a bell, you can practice with wind and other sounds. After that you can practice not only with the sounds, but with forms. The sunlight coming through your window is also a calling from Dharmakaya for the Buddhakaya to be, and also for the Sanghakaya to be real. "Calming, Smiling, Present moment, Wonderful moment."--Thich Nhat Hanh.

Some pics from this month's potluck

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Everyone loved Sterling's music.

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Listening to wise teachings...

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We love you Karen and Robert--they are so scrumptious!

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Jenny, also very cute...

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Frankie.

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Stevie...

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Frank.

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Liz...

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BreeAlPam...

All delicious.

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River sandwich with Todd.

(What's with all the food metaphors? It's a potluck, everything was yummy!).

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Sterling and Bree with sacred flute sounds on the river bank in the evening.

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River and Richard

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You are all so beautiful, have a wonderful week!
Love you guys!

Transformation, Liberation and Love

2005-10-06T09:39:00.000-05:00

Would you like to liberate yourself from the lower realms of life?
Would you like to save the world from the degradation and destruction it seems destined for?
Then step away from the shallow mass movements and quietly go to work on your own self-awareness.

If you want to awaken all humanity, then awaken all of yourself.
If you want to eliminate the suffering in the world, then eliminate all that is dark and negative in yourself.
Truly, the greatest gift you have to give is that of your own self-transformation.

So find a teacher who is an integral being, a beacon who extends his light and virtue with equal ease to those who appreciate him and those who don't.
Shape yourself in his mold, bathe in his nourishing radiance, and reflect it out to the rest of the world.
You will come to understand an eternal truth: there is always a peaceful home for a virtuous being.

From the Hua Hu Ching, theTeachings of Lao Tzu
(translation by Brian Walker)

A poem from Sierra Tree

2005-09-24T16:46:00.000-05:00

a moment of peace on gaia

hazy humid peacefulness surrounds
as i gaze into the west
end of summer quietness
river low yet moving briskly by
sun approaches the ridge of the mountain
lowering so the moon can glow
her show of light and luna~minosity!
trees appear as puffy spires
on the distant mountain side
among the smooth river rocks i walk
feeling the peace of the land
and praying for peace in her people.

by sierra willa tree
sept 17, 2005
harvest moon

inspired by earthdance prayer for peace ~
and a place i've called home and still feel akin to
the land of the river sanctuary...

Potlucks, traveling gurus and sacred readings

2005-09-10T19:00:00.000-05:00

Hello everyone! To all those who enjoy our blog, I'm so sorry for the long absence from posting! It has been an abundant few weeks, filled with meditations, a trip to see a traveling speaker and a wonderful potluck with our friend and teacher Karen visiting from Boston. Looking back, there are many wonderful teachings and images that come to mind, so many are included in this posting.

Immerse yourself in the kaleidoscope (hope it doesn't make you dizzy!).
Miss you and love you all!

Last Wednesday, the sangha traveled to a local Unitarian church to hear a buddhist monk and activist speak. His name is Bhante Wimala and he was sponsored by a wonderful sangha in the area, the Mindfulness Meditation Group of Harrisburg (check out their site at www.uchuua.org/mmg.htm). At the gathering, Bhante spoke about the importance of a practice that helps us to generate compassion, so that we are able to relieve the suffering of others and promote peace and happiness through service. He has experienced this teaching firsthand with his relief work in Sri Lanka since the Tsunami last year--you can read more about his work and his path at his website: http://www.bhantewimala.com/

Here is a quote passed on by our friend Sierra Tree that exemplified what Bhante Wimala talked about. Forgive my amendments to expand to include Bhante's teachings:

"Courage (and lovingkindness, compassion) is not the absence of fear,
but rather the judgment that something else
is more important than fear. (or anger or judgement!)
-Ambrose Redmoon"

The previous two Wednesdays, Pam and Robert shared beautiful teachings from various texts. Pam from Jack Kornfield's book, After the Ecstasy the Laundry and Robert from many texts including Thich Nhat Hanh's The Blooming of the Lotus, and the Dhammapada. At all the sanghas, we send out love and light to our sangha, to those who are suffering and to all beings, in peace. Here are some images and a reading:

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Some pics from our potluck over Labor Day weekend

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Many friends

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Some of the potluck food

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It was also a birthday party for baby Jason

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With a pirate treasure hunt

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And a pirate cook

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And fun down by the river

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Baby Jason 1 year old

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His sisters Kayla and Jada

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mom Heather and sister Leah

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A new friend