• June 6th-7th, 2014 - OUR MONTHLY 4-hour ZAZENKAI!

    THE LITTLE TALK TODAY WILL BE ON THREE KOANS OF 'THE BOOK OF SERENITY', BELOW IN THIS THREAD.

    Dear All,

    Please 'sit-a-long' with our MONTHLY 4-hour ZAZENKAI, netcast LIVE 8am to noon Japan time Saturday morning (that is New York 7pm to 11pm, Los Angeles 4pm to 8pm (Friday night), London midnight to 4am and Paris 1am to 5am (early Saturday morning)) ...

    ... to be visible at the following link during those times and any time thereafter ...

    LIVE ZAZENKAI NETCAST at GOOGLE+ IS HERE:
    CLICK ON THE TAB ON LOWER RIGHT FOR 'FULL SCREEN


    http://youtu.be/6BH_tnypQuU

    FOR THOSE NOT ALREADY MEMBERS OF THE CIRCLE WHO WISH TO JOIN TO SIT LIVE WITH A CAMERA, INSTRUCTIONS are posted AT THIS LINK. WE ARE NOW LIMITED TO 10 INDIVIDUALS WITH CAMERAS, BUT ANY NUMBER CAN WATCH LIVE 'ONE WAY' AND SIT-A-LONG VIA THE ABOVE SCREEN. IF JOINING WITH CAMERA, PLEASE MAKE SURE YOUR MICROPHONE IS MUTED:

    The Sitting Schedule is as follows;

    00:00 - 00:50 CEREMONY (HEART SUTRA / SANDOKAI IN ENGLISH) & ZAZEN
    00:50 - 01:00 KINHIN
    01:00 - 01:30 ZAZEN
    01:30 - 01:50 KINHIN

    01:50 - 02:30 DHARMA TALK & ZAZEN
    02:30 - 02:40 KINHIN

    02:40 - 03:15 ZAZEN
    03:15 - 03:30 KINHIN
    03:30 - 04:00 METTA CHANT & ZAZEN, VERSE OF ATONEMENT, FOUR VOWS, & CLOSING



    Our Zazenkai consists of our chanting the 'Heart Sutra' and the 'Identity of Relative and Absolute (Sandokai)' in English (please download our Chant Book at the link below), some full floor prostrations (please follow along with me ... or a simple Gassho can be substituted if you wish), a little talk by me ... and we close with the 'Metta Chant', followed at the end with the 'Verse of Atonement' and 'The Four Vows'. Oh, and lots and lots of Zazen and walkin' Kinhin in between!

    Please download and print out the Chants we will recite at the following link (PDF):

    Chant Book (PDF)

    or

    Chant Book (SHORT VERSION HTML)

    I STRONGLY SUGGEST THAT YOU POSITION YOUR ZAFU ON THE FLOOR IN A PLACE WHERE YOU ARE NOT STARING DIRECTLY AT THE COMPUTER SCREEN, BUT CAN GLANCE OVER AND SEE THE SCREEN WHEN NECESSARY. YOUR ZAFU SHOULD ALSO BE IN A POSITION WHERE YOU CAN SEE THE COMPUTER SCREEN WHILE STANDING IN FRONT OF THE ZAFU FOR THE CEREMONIES, AND HAVE ROOM FOR BOWING AND KINHIN.

    ALSO, REMEMBER TO SET YOUR COMPUTER (& SCREEN SAVER) SO THAT IT DOES NOT SHUT OFF DURING THE 4 HOURS.


    I hope you will join us ... an open Zafu is waiting. When we drop all thought of 'here' 'there' 'now' 'then' ... we are sitting all together!


    Gassho, Jundo
    This article was originally published in forum thread: June 6th-7th, 2014 - OUR MONTHLY 4-hour ZAZENKAI! started by Jundo View original post
    Comments 32 Comments
    1. Jundo's Avatar
      Jundo -
      The little talk today will be on three Koans of the 'Book of Serenity', being sailed in our 'Beyond Words & Letters Book Club' ...

      http://www.treeleaf.org/forums/forum...TERS-BOOK-CLUB

      Also, something of the sailing films and stories below ...



      Are they three separate Koans? One Koan? Others' Stories? Our Story? This too is a Koan!




      Case 36: Baso's Illness

      http://books.google.co.jp/books?id=i...llness&f=false

      http://www.treeleaf.org/forums/showt...NIMITY-Case-36

      Case 39: Joshu's Bowl Washing

      http://books.google.co.jp/books?id=i...0books&f=false

      http://www.treeleaf.org/forums/showt...NIMITY-Case-39

      Case 40: Ummon's White and Black

      http://books.google.co.jp/books?id=i...0Black&f=false

      http://www.treeleaf.org/forums/showt...NIMITY-Case-40



      I will be referencing this recent sailing movie, pretty good by the way ...

      ‘All Is Lost,’ With Robert Redford
      http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/18/mo...-sea.html?_r=0

      ... and also this 'real life' sailing story, in the news some weeks ago, of a sick baby and a sinking sailboat far out at sea (the story is told during the first 20 minutes here, from the US public radio show This American Life) ...

      http://audio.thisamericanlife.org/jo...shouse/525.mp3
      http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radi...525/transcript



      ... and this passage from Master Dogen's Shobogenzo-Zenki (The Whole Works) ...

      Life can be likened to a time when a person is sailing in a boat.
      On this boat, I am operating the sail, I have taken the rudder, I am pushing
      the pole; at the same time, the boat is carrying me, and there is no “I” beyond
      the boat. Through my sailing of the boat, this boat is being caused to be a
      boat—let us consider, and learn in practice, just this moment of the present.
      At this very moment, there is nothing other than the world of the boat: the
      sky, the water, the shore have all become the moment of the boat, which is
      utterly different from moments not on the boat. So life is what I am making
      it, and I am what life is making me. While I am sailing in the boat, my body
      and mind and circumstances and self are all essential parts5 of the boat; and
      the whole earth and the whole of space are all essential parts of the boat.
      What has been described like this is that life is the self, and the self is life.

      http://www.bdk.or.jp/pdf/bdk/digital...enzo2_2008.pdf
    1. Mp's Avatar
      Mp -
      Wonderful, I will be there live. =)

      Gassho
      Shingen
    1. RichardH's Avatar
      RichardH -
      I'll be there/here

      Gassho Daizan
    1. Kyonin's Avatar
      Kyonin -
      I will be there!

      Gassho,

      Kyonin
    1. Juki's Avatar
      Juki -
      I have to attend my niece's graduation ceremony this evening and will likely miss the first half. I am hoping to be home and on my Zafu in time for the Dharma talk and the second half. If not, I will sit with the recording.

      Gassho,
      Juki
    1. Koshin's Avatar
      Koshin -
      Will be there, until heavy rain leads to power outage
      Gassho

      sent from Tapatalk
    1. Matt's Avatar
      Matt -
      Will be sitting this one later this weekend. Gassho, Matt J
    1. Kyotai's Avatar
      Kyotai -
      I hope it would not be an issue if I join late...parents are up visiting

      Gassho

      Shawn
    1. Sekishi's Avatar
      Sekishi -
      Thank you all. I will see you in a few hours.
      Gassho,
      Sekishi
    1. Dosho's Avatar
      Dosho -
      I won't be here this week as my wife and I have the opportunity for a rare night out w/o kids!

      Gassho,
      Dosho
    1. Jundo's Avatar
      Jundo -
      Quote Originally Posted by Dosho View Post
      I won't be here this week as my wife and I have the opportunity for a rare night out w/o kids!

      Gassho,
      Dosho
      ... but will sit with us later ...

      Gassho, J
    1. Myosha's Avatar
      Myosha -
      Participating.


      Gassho,
      Myosha
    1. Sekishi's Avatar
      Sekishi -
      Got kicked and cannot get back in. Sitting with the YouTube. Gassho.
    1. Dosho's Avatar
      Dosho -
      Quote Originally Posted by Jundo View Post
      ... but will sit with us later ...
      Thank you for the reminder Jundo!

      Because we all know how often I blow things like that off.

      Gassho,
      Dosho
    1. Mp's Avatar
      Mp -
      Wonderful ... thank you everyone for sailing the seas of life. =) Have a great weekend.

      Gassho
      Shingen
    1. Juki's Avatar
      Juki -
      Thank you, Jundo and Kyonin. Wonderful voyage on the S.S. Zazenkai. Thanks to all who sat live or will sit later.

      Gassho,
      Juki
    1. Sekishi's Avatar
      Sekishi -
      Thank you all for your practice. Wonderful talk Jundo. It spoke to me both as a sailor AND as a human being. XD

      Gassho,
      Sekishi
    1. RichardH's Avatar
      RichardH -
      Arggh ye salty dogs.


      Gassho Daizan
    1. Koshin's Avatar
      Koshin -
      Thank you everyone, it was a great sitting.... so, back to chopping wood and carrying water, just remember, DO NOT CHOP THE MAST, DO NOT SPILL THE WATER INSIDE THE BOAT

      It is great to sail with you guys and girls

      Deep Gassho
    1. Joyo's Avatar
      Joyo -
      Thank you everyone, wonderful way to start the weekend

      Gassho,
      Joyo