The "Inner Switch" of Zazen

[j.champagne]

Thank you, Daiman and Jundo.

Gassho,

Jason

Sat today.

[Washin]

Thank you, Jundo

Gassho
Washin
stlah

[Kaitan]

I find this teaching quite empowering. Thank you

Gassho

St

Bernal

[Houzan]

Thank you [emoji120]

Gassho, Michael
Sat

[paulashby]

I want to thank everyone who shared their views. I have thought about this for days.
How do we flip the switch on the inner dialogue that shapes mood, action and outcome?
I have noticed words like faith and trust and the implied words of hope.
Many of us have needed to flip a switch during a sesshin. I have found help from two
major sources- the quiet groans of the sangha at 10pm for the last sit after a long ,long day and looking at
the messages of inner dialogues to let go of negative messages.
Jundo was inviting us to practice some zazen mental judo and flip the scripts that come from
the inner message system.

Gassho, peace, Paul sat lah

[Tai Shi]

I had completed 4 years of arduous therapy, one of the hardest things I had ever done, and my therapist said she would no longer meet with me, I took off for Iowa City, Iowa, one of the finest Universities in the US, with provisional acceptance into the MA English/ EdS higher education/college teaching; I took two graduate level classes, Creative Writing poetry, and Writing for Personal and Public Purposes. and I worked very hard, harder than usual because I so loved what I was doing, and I was admitted as regular student in my program. I finished with 3.7 GPA and marriage, accepted a tenured track position and eventually was awarded continuing contract or tenure, and marriage, of my love of my life eventually entered the Master Fine Arts program where I earned degree in creative writing with 3.9 GPA, we moved to within 90 miles of downtown Chicago, and in three years we moved to South Dakota, child of 4 in our car, and 8 thousand dollars severance pay from our college, which had not granted me tenure, and I began a life of part-time college English Teaching at various colleges and universities, when I left I had completed 25 years of full- and part-time teaching and eight years slinging burgers at fast food joints, so I have gained $1,000 a month Social Security, and my wife had completed 30 years with the Federal Government as 12.8 GS quality control officer in Comp and Pension one of the finest employees at the Veterans' Administration in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and we own our tiny three bedroom two car garage home in Hartford, South Dakota, now after more than 30 years of therapy, I am pronounced normal, but I see my therapist and psychiatrist, 6 times a year for check ups. I am a normal human being and a lay member in Treeleaf Zendo, and All Souls UU church Sioux Falls. What one sacrifices, one gains with a daughter, co-valedictorian, Phi Beta Kappa, Suma Cum Laude, 4.0 MFA, Fluent in Japanese, reading proficiency in Korean and Spanish, ABD Fulbright Scholar, MFA translation at University of Iowa, where mom had earned the BA in anthropology, Highest Distinction, Phi Beta Kappa, MA anthropology 3.95 GPA, daughter voted the most outstanding grad student Washington University, St Louis, runner up at Pen Award in London, Daughter with every accolade possible at Washington U. We are an Academic Family, and I choose Treeleaf Zendo because I could not move more than two hundred miles to Minneapolis thus becoming a member at a brick and mortar Zendo. So I add service to Treeleaf Zendo as one of the most important things, with member and volumeter at National Alliance on Mental Illness, as gold Hall of fame IOOV, National Alliance on Mental illness, past board member, I am in retirement a happy part-time poet and write almost every day at Treeleaf Zendo or for myself. Given 10 year service award NAMI Sioux Falls. Published my own books, and have written poems for more than 60 small magazines and academic journals among them the Connecticut Review, and the Sierra Journal. I consider myself a gifted and successful person who will publish his third book of poetry in a few months. I do not ever in any way try or in also. I am going to sneak in to the Amazon listing of my book, Edited by "my wife." because she volunteered to do so, and she deserves credit. One place I will never be recognized and that's my BA because I am average for Grinnell College, no matter what I claim or how hard I try. I am just a typical guy at my college. I finally admit I am just a guy. I think a guy with incredible luck.
Gassho
Deep Bows and respect to all at Treeleaf Zendo.
sat/lah
Jundo I will not post for several days, or months in the regular part here, or and only in the Poetry sections if you like, so sorry if I offended anyone here, and I have not published much here in the last three months except for poetry. Thank you please let stand or move to what you would see as a more appropriate place in our Zendo. Thank you, Tai Shi.

[Bion]

An audio version of this essay is also available either HERE or as an episode of our Treeleaf Zendo Podcast HERE

🙏🏼 Sat Today lah

[Guest]

Thank you

[emoji120][emoji120][emoji120]

Gassho
Kaiku
SatTodayLAH


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[Tai Shi]

Calming down! Family Dr. would not take me--I think, I need more than CNP of Internal Medicine 26 miles away. I could drive 12 miles to receive care from a Dr. of Internal Medicine, not 26 miles now (ca. 42 km) to the main campus, which is 52 miles for me(ca. 84 km). I take a 16-minute exam. Maybe soon, fewer miles--24 miles round trip: I don't drive; my wife does, will speak with CNP soon for an opinion. Issue? Sit Zazen.
Gassho
sat/lah