Sunday Sit with Washin - February 2nd, 2025

[Kotei]

Hello everyone,

led by our Washin from Odessa, we'll continue sitting for peace in the Ukraine and around the world this coming Sunday.
This time, Zazen will be shortened to 30 minutes, because of a schedule conflict.

You can check with the Treeleaf Practice Calendar for your local time, under the listing Sunday Sit (Zazen for Peace): https://www.treeleaf.org/now/#calendar
We meet in the Treeleaf Scheduled Sitting Room: https://www.treeleaf.org/now/go.php?l=ssr password if needed is << dogen >>

A livestream of the meeting can be found here:

The format of the sitting will be:

- Heart Sutra
- Zazen 30 minutes
- Verse of Atonement and the Four Vows

All are welcome. Please, join us! No prior experience is required - just follow along - come sit with us.

Gassho,
Kotei

[Jundo]

Sad news from Odessa this morning ...

Russian missile attack seriously damages historic centre of Ukraine's Odesa

Russian forces launched missiles on the centre of Ukraine's Black Sea port of Odesa, a UNESCO World Heritage site, seriously damaging historic buildings and injuring seven people, local officials said. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said the attack was "a deliberate strike" that underscored again the need to strengthen Ukraine's air defences. He said Norwegian diplomats had been among those "who were in the epicentre of the strike" in the historic district.

Odesa regional governor Oleh Kiper said seven people were injured and emergency crews remained at the scene.
Online pictures posted by Kiper and by Odesa Mayor Hennady Trukhanov showed the lobby and other parts of the Hotel Bristol, a luxury landmark built at the end of the 19th century, reduced to rubble. The Odesa Philharmonic concert hall, opposite the hotel, suffered damage with many of its windows smashed.

Online video showed fragments strewn on a street several hundred metres (yards) away near the opulent opera house from the same era. Museums in the district also suffered damage.
Kiper told national television that three explosions had resounded at intervals, which he described as a "well-established practice" by the Russian military of repeated attacks on the same target. "However, in this case a missile capable of penetrating concrete was used," he said while standing in a street near emergency crews.

"This means it was deliberately aimed at a civilian hotel to destroy the floors and structures inside, causing destruction and, of course killing civilians staying there at the time." Zelenskiy, speaking in his nightly video address, said the attack was staged "directly on the city, on ordinary civilian buildings." "Again and again, air defence is the top priority. We are working with all our partners to provide more protection for our country." LINK

Gassho, J
stlah

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