Grass Hut - 24 - "Protection, Shelter, Refuge"

[Jundo]

Dear All,

Let us safely move on to Chapter 19, "Protection, Shelter, Refuge".

Suggested Topics:

- What do you feel you need to have in your life to feel safe?

- Is it the case that you truly need all that?

Gassho, J

[ForestDweller]

The two suggested topics automatically assume that the respondent needs "all that" to feel safe. I suppose it's a fair assumption. The theme of "rest" that is called out in Chapter 19, and that pervades the poem, is the antidote to any tendency to rush around accumulating things and people to feel safe or for other reasons. Abraham Maslow's hierarchy suggests that "safety" is second only to "survival" in the array of human needs. I would suggest safety depends more on NOT having than in having. The more one has, the more one tends to protect and keep those things safe. Same goes for possessive relationships. What is really needed to be safe is to "be happy and at peace." If that mindset prevails, we must feel safe as well. Still, it's worth noting that the phrase right after that one is, "may you be safe and protected." It's true that we can't downplay the importance of taking care of the "basics of our external, material world." The question is, of course, how we define that and where we seek refuge. ^^ForestSatToday^^ CatherineS / Forest Dweller

[Rich]

I tell you love, sister, it's just a kiss away
From gimme shelter by the rolling stones

With love and compassion for yourself and others , you are about as safe as you can be. It's expression is a smile.
Without love

[Rich]

War, children, it's just a shot away
SAT today

[Jishin]

Dear All,

Let us safely move on to Chapter 19, "Protection, Shelter, Refuge".



- What do you feel you need to have in your life to feel safe?

- Is it the case that you truly need all that?

I need to have me in my life to feel safe. I truly need all of me.

Gasho, Jishin, _/st\_

[Joyo]

Dear All,

Let us safely move on to Chapter 19, "Protection, Shelter, Refuge".

Suggested Topics:

- What do you feel you need to have in your life to feel safe?

- Is it the case that you truly need all that?

Gassho, J

Thank you, Jundo, for this week's reading.

What I need is to be myself. Not in a selfish sense as in it's all about me. I need to be me, be able to make mistakes, learn, grow, figure things out without people trying to fit me into their mold.

Yes, it is the case that I need that. If one loses a sense of self, we become vulnerable to people's opinions and validations, always looking for ways or for people to fill that hole in your soul. This can potentially become a very dangerous place to be.

Gassho,
Joyo
sat today

[Myosha]

Dear All,

- What do you feel you need to have in your life to feel safe?

- Is it the case that you truly need all that?

Gassho, J

Hello,

- Was stumped, till the realization that safety is something to provide. Urban upbringing created an instinct of what is dangerous so . . . forewarned is fore-armed.

Creating safety is a life pursuit toward, and as, all beings.

- Need air, food, shelter. The universe provides.


Gassho
Myosha sat today

[justdillon]

Hello All,

To be honest I feel as if the only thing that keeps me feeling safe is the practice of zazen. Not just seated zazen but my entire life as a meditation. Shikantaza is not just a form of seated meditation, it is my entire approach to life. Living this way, I have no fear, no fetters, I feel as if I could enter the darkest storms and come through with a smile on my face. Of course, the only other thing that gives me this feeling is the Heart Sutra. Those amazing words, "With no hindrance in the mind, no hindrance therefore no fear, far beyond deluded thoughts, this is nirvana".

The best part about all of this is that I can practice zazen IN ANY SITUATION, therefore I can bring safety with me EVERYWHERE.

Thanks for reading,
Dillon

#Sattoday

[Rich]

If you are going to live with awareness then you know that anything can happen, there is no certainty, no complete safety. So now you have the freedom to accept that and be loving and compassionate or adopt some kind of dogma or belief system that will shield your ego from harsh reality.

SAT today

[Getchi]

Reading this chapter I realised "Protection, Shelter, Refuge" is (for me at least) actually the the Three Jewels. A wish fulfilling Triple Gem; it makes anger into compassion (Buddha), delusion in to wisdom (dharma) and desire into giving (sangha). Let this little hut stand as long as it will, and I will abide there.

Do I need all these things? Absolutely. With them, all the actions I need to carry out in this world can come from buddha nature (citta). I can trust my actions will be in accord with my level of desire, and that is good for my family, my community and my planet.


Gassho,
Geoff.
SatToday.

[BrianW]

Hi all,

I was just born with a sense of hypervigilance about life. At times, when there is nothing to worry about, my mind just tries to find something. Nevertheless, I do agree with the statement, “A single medication cushion and one is completely protected.” Zazen is a wonderful refugee from racing thoughts and over the years I’ve gotten pretty good at not chasing after thoughts when they do pop up during zazen.

Gassho,
Jisen/BrianW
Sat2Day

[Jika]

Thank you for this reading, good timing.
There is no shelter for a me from anything, nor is it necessary.
There is just this.
And yet, taking refuge wholeheartedly, the entire world is joyful abundance.

Gassho,
Danny
#sattoday

[Byokan]

- What do you feel you need to have in your life to feel safe?

There really isn’t anything that can make me feel safe. If you live a while, sooner or later life will probably jump up and go, boo! Safety is an illusion. No matter how well you prepare, something unexpected, unpreventable, unforeseeable can happen at any time. All you can do is your best to be prepared and to help the best possible things to manifest. Worrying and dreading the worst is living in illusion too.

Here in the moment is where peace can be found. Practice helps develop equanimity and the realization that all is unfolding according to the laws of the universe, karma, causality. Now this, and now this. Letting go of the illusion of control, and the resistance to change, allows one to flow freely and respond appropriately. Resting in the moment fully, are you safe? Maybe you are, maybe you’re not. But peace and freedom from fear are available in the full embracing of just this.

Gratitude is one important aspect of this acceptance as well. Appreciating in this moment that things are actually ok, probably better than ok. Taking stock of what’s going well, and all those “little things” we take for granted. Right now I have plenty to worry about and fear and stress over. But actually in this very moment, I am sitting here, warm and dry, with a cup of tea, with a roof over my head and food in the cupboard and $12 in my pocket. If I was homeless I’d give anything for that. A few people actually love me. If I was unloved I’d give anything for that. My health is such that I will probably live tomorrow. If I was dying I might give anything for just one more day. I take refuge with Buddha, Dharma and Sangha. Yea, though I walk through the Valley of the Shadow of Death, here and now there is a peace that transcends.

What do I need to feel safe? Safety is an illusion. I’d rather embrace the uncertainty and learn to live peacefully inside it.

Gassho
Lisa
sat today

[AlanLa]

Yeah, what she said, because I am stumped.

[Risho]

Lisa; thank you


I know that what I actually need for safety, which is quite simple, is quite far from what I grasp for to feel safe. Sitting has helped to show me that, but I just sit with it and come back to it again and again; my habits are really deeply ingrained, and even though I know something is true or a wiser path, I repeat old mistakes. I'm not discouraged; I just think it's the nature of the game and it helps us empathize with others who also live out of their ingrained habits.

Gassho,

Risho
-sattoday