7/4 - The Direction of the Universal p. 131

[Jundo]

Re: 7/4 - The Direction of the Universal p. 131

... the problem of being too passive occurs to me then. I mean, we can't just take everything that life or other people dish out to us without trying to change things for the better, can we ? And an undiscriminating mind seems to me to be just a pretty blank mind. How could we have any conversation with anyone if we can't say that we like this don't like that, or how can we have any opinion about anything ? We can't even say "it's a nice day isn't it" without making a discriminating judgement about the weather
...
Hurricanes, droughts?

Yes, sure, from an enlightened point of view these are just weather doing it's normal thing, but for ordinary conversational communication, especially with my non Buddhist friends, I find it better to use conventional modes of speaking, even if I don't think that way any longer.

Hi John,

I have told you this before: Stop viewing these matters as an either/or choice.

Dropping all preferences and judgments through and through, and (from another perspective) having some preferences and judgments ... we can be both these ways at once, hand in hand without the slightest conflict. Some preferences and judgments we may drop for all time as a result of our practice (for example, the need to hang our self worth on fame or material success), while other preferences and judgments we can maintain as necessary for life ... EVEN AS we drop, through and through, each and all preferences and judgments from other angles!

Right and wrong forgotten ... and thus we put our finger in the wind and choose what we think is right.

So, as the hurricane heads for our house, we board up the windows, secure the roof times, stock up on food and water. We drop some thoughts forever (such as imaginary "what ifs" and baseless fears about how the future may or may not turn out). And, as it all blows away, we smile in equanimity, even joy ... all while perhaps shedding a tear.

Please learn that we can do all this at once, Master Dogen's way of leaping over the universe without moving an inch.

Gassho, Jundo

[Alberto]

Re: 7/4 - The Direction of the Universal p. 131

Only here can you have your cake and eat it too. The trick however ain't in the cake, but in the you.

[John]

Re: 7/4 - The Direction of the Universal p. 131

..while other preferences and judgments we can maintain as necessary for life ... EVEN AS we drop, through and through, each and all preferences and judgments from other angles!

Thanks Jundo. I'm trying.... I understand the theory, I think, but I also notice the necessity for using conventional modes of expression in ordinary conversation with non-Buddhist friends.

Gassho,
John

[CinnamonGal]

Re: 7/4 - The Direction of the Universal p. 131

This chapter particularly resonated with me, probably because I felt Uchiyama was addressing my questions as soon as they came up and it reminded of a dialogue. I really appreciated everyone's comments - there's a lot to catch up on in terms of reading everyone's profound insights.

Janice, thanks for sharing those bits from Zen Commandments (it doesn't seem to be an easy book to find). The quite from the book made total sense to me but we do form expectations and have all those formal and informal structures to support us in everyday lives, to make it easier for us to navigate in our everyday lives. I was wondering how I could liberate myself from expectations I form about myself and others and the way things should be and then realised I knew the answer already: just living out my self, living in the moment would be enough! As Uchiyama writes:

...living straight through whatever reality of life we are presently faced with... (p. 132)

Sometimes I tend to reduce this idea to more "important" issues, something in line with what Uchiyama calls "heaven" or "hell" (p. 132), like making a decision. Say, the next day I regret the decision and then somehow feel this is not it, the place to be: not only do I have an aversion to my decision but also towards regretting the decision. Now I learn to settle in moments like these too, relax with regretting the decision and accepting this moment. The decision itself is made, that is in the past and what I have now is the regret so I can just be there and regret and be - wholeheartedly - my regretting self. This is truly liberating because I don't have to be tense and make an effort to - as Linda so beautifully put it - "making the moment something that it is not". I see now that a lot of my tension comes from trying to live a different self, not the one that I am in the moment which often results in a sensation of dissatisfaction and a feeling that I am not being true to my self and therefore not entirely honest.

As to "discriminating between better and worse using our heads" (p. 132), isn't doing zazen not discriminating the choice of not doing zazen? :shock:


Gassho,

Irina

[CinnamonGal]

Re: 7/4 - The Direction of the Universal p. 131

Quoting myself:

As to "discriminating between better and worse using our heads" (p. 132), isn't doing zazen not discriminating the choice of not doing zazen? :shock:

And then I read John's post and Jundo's reply to it. ops:

Thank you John for writing about this. I still can think this way, friends or no friends, hurricanes or my just a rain drop.

Thank you Jundo:

I have told you this before: Stop viewing these matters as an either/or choice.

Gassho,

Irina

[Shui_Di]

Re: 7/4 - The Direction of the Universal p. 131

Thanks Jundo....

What you've said is right.....

....Dropping all preferences and judgments through and through, and (from another perspective) having some preferences and judgments ... we can be both these ways at once, hand in hand without the slightest conflict....
....Right and wrong forgotten ... and thus we put our finger in the wind and choose what we think is right......

What we learn is not to cling to anything. not to cling into right or wrong ways.
Then, we can use any ways freely...

In my opinion, let our mind function freely, without clinging to anything.
Including not to cling to my own opinion.....

........................................... :| [silent]

WAKE UP SHUI DI.....!!!!

Gassho, Shui Di :wink: