I have been reading about Dogen's views of nature.... has lead me to read several fascicles from Shobogenzo.... Mountains and Waters (Sansui-kyo), Voices of the River Valley and the Form of the Mountains (Kesei-sanshiki)....
My views of mountains and oceans and other natural vistas has been very anthropocentric - I have viewed nature as an object of beauty and wonder (nothing wrong with that), but very much in a subject/object relationship.
By letting go a bit, and realizing that mountains express themselves now, totally and radically in the present, as the totality of the universe in this moment (and walk at the same time!) I realize that in the realm of nonduality distinctions between sentient and nonsentient disappear.... mountains walking are like humans walking. And my feeling of connectedness to everything around me only deepens.... I feel so much more awareness of my actions and their (potential) consequences/impact - not all of which I can understand and even begin to foresee. I have always mouthed the belief that "we are all connected" but this understanding moves it to such a profound and intimate understanding for me that I am humbled... mountains and pebbles express themselves as well as humans... though not always in the "voices" or fashion that we assign or project onto them. My challenge is to apply this understanding to how I conduct my life.. with respect and consideration for everything around me... not just in the human realm, but all beings....
There are so many threads and ideas that Dogen cultivates and repeats in many of the Shobogenzo fascicles.... his views on nature, the totality of existence in the present, and time (every moment has in it past, present, and future, but stands as a discrete unit) are woven throughout his work. It's amazing stuff.
I begin to understand the power of mountains in various religions, and the reason why seekers travel to the mountains to abide, study and practice.... not only to remove themselves from the distractions of urban and secular life... but to be closer to understanding this radical oneness and immediacy of being... the universe displaying the totality of existence, in every moment, before our eyes....
Wow.
Gassho
Yugen
My views of mountains and oceans and other natural vistas has been very anthropocentric - I have viewed nature as an object of beauty and wonder (nothing wrong with that), but very much in a subject/object relationship.
By letting go a bit, and realizing that mountains express themselves now, totally and radically in the present, as the totality of the universe in this moment (and walk at the same time!) I realize that in the realm of nonduality distinctions between sentient and nonsentient disappear.... mountains walking are like humans walking. And my feeling of connectedness to everything around me only deepens.... I feel so much more awareness of my actions and their (potential) consequences/impact - not all of which I can understand and even begin to foresee. I have always mouthed the belief that "we are all connected" but this understanding moves it to such a profound and intimate understanding for me that I am humbled... mountains and pebbles express themselves as well as humans... though not always in the "voices" or fashion that we assign or project onto them. My challenge is to apply this understanding to how I conduct my life.. with respect and consideration for everything around me... not just in the human realm, but all beings....
There are so many threads and ideas that Dogen cultivates and repeats in many of the Shobogenzo fascicles.... his views on nature, the totality of existence in the present, and time (every moment has in it past, present, and future, but stands as a discrete unit) are woven throughout his work. It's amazing stuff.
I begin to understand the power of mountains in various religions, and the reason why seekers travel to the mountains to abide, study and practice.... not only to remove themselves from the distractions of urban and secular life... but to be closer to understanding this radical oneness and immediacy of being... the universe displaying the totality of existence, in every moment, before our eyes....
Wow.
Gassho
Yugen
Taigu - the words go direct to the heart.
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