June 2nd, 2012- OUR MONTHLY 4-hour ZAZENKAI!

[Jundo]

Dear All,

NOTE: OUR FIRST SITTING TODAY IS 10 MINUTES SHORTER THAN THE SCHEDULE DUE TO TECHNICAL NON-PROBLEMS. THE FIRST ZAZEN IS ABOUT 10 MINUTES SHORTER THAN USUAL.

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)) ... and visible at the following link during those times ...

LIVE ZAZENKAI NETCAST at JUSTIN.TV:
CLICK ON THE TAB ON LOWER RIGHT FOR 'FULL SCREEN

http://www.justin.tv/treeleafzen (http://http://www.justin.tv/treeleafzen)

But FEAR NOT if not possible for you to join 'live' in your location at those times, as the entire sitting is recorded in 'REAL TIME' and available for full participation 'ON DEMAND' at ANY TIME after that, no different from the 'live' sitting . Just click then on the links below:

THE 'REAL TIME, ANY TIME' recorded version is divided into 3 parts as follows (click on the links) :



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
ZAZENKAI PART I LINK:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5HI3_n5_ix0

01:50 - 02:30 DHARMA TALK & ZAZEN
02:30 - 02:40 KINHIN
TALK & ZAZEN PART 2 LINK:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xa2hBCoGwZ4

02:40 - 03:15 ZAZEN
03:15 - 03:30 KINHIN
03:30 - 04:00 METTA CHANT & ZAZEN, VERSE OF ATONEMENT, FOUR VOWS, & CLOSING
ZAZENKAI PART 3 LINK:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6jOZmLO47I8



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 Chant Book (PDF) at the following link:

viewtopic.php?f=11&t=2231 (http://http://www.treeleaf.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=2231)

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

[Dosho]

I'll be there.

Gassho,
Dosho

[Khalil Bodhi]

I'm going to try to make this one but I'll be a little late because 7 is the kids' bed time.

[RichardH]

I'll be there...

Gassho, kojip

[Mp]

I will try my very best to be there. :D

Gassho,
Michael

[Kyonin]

I'll be there!

[Dosho]

My thanks to Jundo, all who sat, will sit or are sitting...as well as my cat Dewey who decided to sit the second half with me.

Deep bows to all!

Gassho,
Dosho

[RichardH]

Thank you.


Gassho, kojip.

[Kyonin]

Thank you, Jundo.

As soon as I can I will listen to today's talk. I really liked your final word...









Thank all who sat / will sit. Have a great weekend :)

[Mp]

Thank you Jundo and to all who sat. It was great to see everyone. :D Have a great weekend.

Gassho,
Michael

[Koshin]

Thank you, it was a great Sitting, I enjoyed the talk very much :)

Gassho

[Yugen]

I'm sorry I could not join you all live - will sit the Zazenkai this afternoon.

Gassho
Yugen

[Rich]

Thanks Jundo and all sitting. Will complete the zazenkai today. Very grateful to all.

[Myoku]

Thank you for this wonderful, down-to-earth dharma talk and
thank you for everyone's practice
Gassho
Myok

[Daijo]

I'll be here sitting with you all this afternoon.

[Daijo]

Thank you Jundo! It's been awhile since I've participated in the full 4 hour Zazenkai, so I have to admit I took a break :cry: before the 3rd session began. I thank you for your Koan explanations, they were very non-thought provoking. I hope your nieces fellow survived without any permanent damage. j/k

Gassho,

Chuck

[Shokai]

Thank you to all who sat and will be sitting :D
And, Jundo, thank you for your skillful means of teaching us beginners. You reminded me of when i used to tell the kids to listen to the radio in their head when they asked to use their walkman* when camping. Also remember, when you turn the soil to kill the weeds, you cultivate all the seeds in that soil. :roll: :lol:

* What's an Ipod? :shock: 8)

[Gary]

Thank you Jundo, the talk was very helpful, thank you to your visitors and all who sat.

Big Gassho
Gary

[Nenka]

I've been wondering . . . where is the "sound of one hand clapping" koan, anyway? Or the "if a tree falls in the forest and there's no one there to hear it, does it make a sound" one? I've never come across either of them in a book of koans.

Anyway, thanks to all who sat, or will.

Gassho

Jen

[Jundo]

I've been wondering . . . where is the "sound of one hand clapping" koan, anyway? Or the "if a tree falls in the forest and there's no one there to hear it, does it make a sound" one? I've never come across either of them in a book of koans.

Anyway, thanks to all who sat, or will.

Gassho

Jen

Hi Jen,

I believe that "what is the sound of one hand clapping" is actually a Koan created by the great Rinzai Master Hakuin, although he did not use that exact phrase ...




The master wrote about "one hand" and Kannon Bosatsu, or Avalokiteshvara Bodhisattva as depicted in Japan -- "'Kannon' means to observe a sound. It is the sound of one hand. If you understand this point you will be awakened. When your eyes can see, the whole world is Kannon."

He also said, "When you hear for yourself the voice of One Hand, whatever you are doing, whether enjoying a bowl of rice or sipping a cup of tea, all of it you do in the samadhi of living with one bestowed with the buddha-mind."

http://buddhism.about.com/od/whoswhoinb ... hakuin.htm (http://http://buddhism.about.com/od/whoswhoinbuddhism/a/hakuin.htm)

'Tis (as Taigu recently wrote) a "soundless sound" ... the sound heard by the ears without ears ... the sound you hear everywhere yet without a "you" to hear "it" ...

The other question, however, about "a tree falling in the forest" is not a Koan by origin... but just a Western philosophical conundrum, only a little more serious than "if my dog meows, is it my cat"?.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/If_a_tree_ ... n_a_forest (http://http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/If_a_tree_falls_in_a_forest)

Gassho, J

[Myozan Kodo]

Hi Jundo,
Thanks for the Zazenkai. What a crowd! This Zen thing is catchin' on.
Gassho
Myozan