New Resource.

Hi,

This blog was formerly assigned to a zazen group in Co Leitrim which has since ceased to be. People occassionally contact me about Zen and Masters Nishijima and Dogen though, and to enquire about events in Ireland, so I thought I'd transform this blog into a resource for interested people even though Dogen Sangha does not currently have a formal group in Ireland.

There are plans for a retreat here next Summer however, and possibly an event before that time. Please feel free to contact me for further details.

Regards,

Harry.

Zazen Posture.

There was a nice turnout last Tuesday, the first of our weekly meetings after the summer break. Thanks to everyone who came along to try out zazen.

Some people sat on chairs, while some sat on the zafus (the small, round cushions) and zabutons (the bigger, flat ones). We have to start practicing zazen from whatever point our body is at, and, while sitting in a cross legged pose is recommended, it simply is not possible for all of us. This is fine.

The cross legged position on the floor offers the great stability of a tripod (made by our two knees and the sitting bones of our backsides). Remember we sit towards the front edge of the zafu and allow our pelvis to drop forward, which, if we are sufficiently flexible, should allow our knees to fall towards the zabuton (you can use a folded blanket on a carpeted floor at home as an alternative to a zafu and zabuton). This stability allows us to make the upright (but not rigid!) posture with our upper body.

If we're sitting on a chair it's important not to slump back in on ourselves in the lower back region, and we don't lean against the chair's back (as in the 'traditional seat' image at the top of this post). We should sit forward, towards the edge of the seat if possible, and gently stick our rears out allowing for a gentle inward curve in the lower spine (as in the 'saddle seat' image up top... this can feel a bit odd at first!) We should support our own upper body on this base, remembering to allow the shoulders to drop naturally with our hands in the mudra position. The mudra is formed around the part of our body which is the pivot area of our torso; this serves to bring a sense of centeredness and balance to our posture.

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Remember: Getting into the routine of doing 3-5 mins, or whatever, twice a day (usually morning and evening) is better than doing 20 mins or half an hour infrequently!

... And be careful not to try to do too much everyday at first, so as not to burn yourself out on it and make doing it a drag. The length of time we sit daily can be built up very gradually as we get used to it.

You'll find links to some info on stretches to help open the legs, hips and back HERE... and check out the 'How to do Zazen' link in the links section up on the right hand side of this page.

Zazen Meetings Recommencing Tuesday 14th September, 7 - 8pm.

Well, I hope everyone had a nice summer break. Our zazen meetings in The Dock Arts Centre, Carrick-on-Shannon are starting up again on the 14th of September. All are welcome, as you'll see in the blurb provided below (which I wrote for The Dock's events programme):

Long River Zen Group.

Try out zazen (zen sitting meditation) and learn about Buddhist philosophy at this weekly group meeting. There are two 15 minute meditation periods and an open discussion. Buddhist practice is about encountering our life here and now just as it is, it does not require that we adopt or reject any particular beliefs, so everyone is welcome to participate.

For more info and bookings contact: longriverzen@gmail.com

Maybe we'll see you there.

Summer Break, Brad Warner Visit, 'Dropping Views/Opinions', Zombies etc etc...

Firstly, the evenings at The Dock have finished for the summer to resume in early September. This is to follow the format of other classes/workshops there: It's a pain for The Dock to open the place up just for us. I hope you can continue to do some zazen at home during this time. Remember that it's generally advised that establishing a practice of a few minutes each day, or twice a day, is more important than doing a longer sitting just once or twice a week. You can build up the sitting time as you get used to it. Good luck, and thank you for all your efforts.

Secondly, someone last night said (quite sensibly) that they were uncomfortable with the idea of 'dropping our views and opinions' in Buddhism. It's important to stress that this statement about dropping views and opinions only refers to zazen where we allow everything to come and go for a time, where we stop our usual judging and evaluating when we notice that we're doing it. In this way we can get a broader perspective on our views and opinions for a time. The point is not to makes us zoned out, blank-minded zombies all the time: that would actually be a dangerous way to live, as we're required to evaluate and make judgements as part of our everyday lives. The problem is that we sometimes mistake our own views and opinions as some sort of real, exterior reality. Zazen addresses this and allows us to see our thinking and evaluating from a more realistic perspective. Doing it regularly also develops an intuitive understanding of the way things really are... but that's another story.

Thirdly, if anyone is interested in hearing about one-day events or other Buddhisty things that may be going on during the summer in this area then please drop me a line with your contact details and I'll include you on our info list.

One event that springs to mind is that the US Buddhist teacher and author Brad Warner is visiting Belfast next month. Details can be found HERE (scroll down the page a bit).

...And check out the July/August retreat in lovely Co Clare in the links menu up on the right hand side there.

...AND (phew!) a few of us are talking about meeting up weekly at my house in Boyle for zazen during the summer. Contact me for details.

Hope you have a great summer!

Not One Other Thing to Hide From.

Zazen can sometimes be misused as a place to hide, as a place to protect ourselves from the world, or to feel superior, 'transcended', 'more enlightened' etc etc. Sometimes we might get absorbed in aspects of our self in doing it and abuse it to protect, and even enhance, such thoughts and feelings about our self. This, of course, is inherently selfish and is not the very real, tangible conduct of 'dropping body and mind' as proposed in Buddhism.

Zazen allows us to receive everything and everybody without exception as our own life. We can drop our involvement with our usual comfort zones and narratives for a time and revel in the great diversity of our life unlimited. In sitting firmly upright, and allowing ALL our usual 'stuff' to just come and go, we can learn and clarify what Buddhism is really about.

I came across this quote from a great Chinese Master in a book by Robert Aitken Roshi last night:

You who sit on the top of a hundred foot pole,
Although you have entered the Way, it is not yet genuine.
Take a step from the top of the pole
And the universe in the ten directions will be your entire body.

(Ch'ang-sha)

Summer Retreat in West of Ireland.

Peter Rocca Sensei (on left, with Nishijima Roshi) will be conducting a weekend retreat this summer July 31st- August 2nd in Ireland.

It'll be held at the very nice Sunyata Retreat Centre which is situated in the rolling countryside of lovely East Clare. The timetable will not be too intensive and so it will suit beginners.

You can read about it and make a booking here.

(...Although the website doesn't work for me every time I try for some reason. If it doesn't work, try later!)

Sitting Upright: An Amazing, Mysterious Feat Beyond Our Comprehension!!!

Someone last night asked the very sensible question: 'Why do you do it [zazen]?'

In response to this question Kodo Sawaki, the celebrated 20th century Japanese Zen Master, might boldly roar 'Zazen is useless!' or 'There is no reason!', one of his students, Kosho Uchiyama might say 'Do zazen for the sake of doing zazen'. Gudo Nishijima Sensei might say 'Do zazen to balance the autonomic nervous system', and that such balanced action brings clarity and poise to our life...

All these answers are valid and true. The most important thing is to actually do it if we want to understand it... And remember that doing it involves dropping off all our expectations of it, and all the demands of it that we will find ourselves thinking up (which is what Kodo Sawaki was getting at maybe):

'Be like an open gate'.

The issue came up of spiritual teachers who can (allegedly) perform miraculous feats (such as levitating, manifesting solid objects out of nowhere etc etc)... We can believe or disbelieve whatever we want about this stuff, but doing zazen is not directly a matter of belief, nor cynicism: What is of central importance is that we actually do it and just let go of our values, beliefs and disbeliefs for a while... and then maybe we can learn something about our values and beliefs, and ourselves.

Our bodies constantly manifest anew from moment to moment so that we may move and grow. We can know a person's mind by the smile on her face or the tear in his eye. We can fly in a plane, or hang-glide, or bungee jump or dance around like big kids... now that is miraculous!