May 3rd-4th, 2019 - OUR MONTHLY 4-hour Treeleaf ZAZENKAI! - featuring Shokai!

[Jundo]

Today's Talk will feature Rev. Shokai, who will look at Vesak and the Buddha's Birthday
(see below in this thread)

Please 'sit-a-long' with our MONTHLY 4-hour ZAZENKAI, netcast LIVE 8am to noon Japan time Saturday morning (that is New York 7pm to 11pm, Los Angeles 4pm to 8pm (Friday night), London midnight to 4am and Paris 1am to 5am (early Saturday morning)) ... and visible at the following link during those times ...

... to be visible on the below screen during those times and any time thereafter ...

LIVE ZAZENKAI NETCAST at YOUTUBE HANGOUT IS HERE:
CLICK ON THE TAB ON LOWER RIGHT FOR 'FULL SCREEN

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmbEDMvKtpI

Dharma Talk Audio / Podcast Episode:

https://treeleaf.podbean.com/e/may-2019-zazenkai-talk-vesak-and-the-buddhas-birthday/

FOR THOSE WHO WISH TO JOIN TO SIT LIVE WITH A CAMERA, A LINK TO JOIN WILL BE POSTED BELOW IN THIS THREAD ABOUT 15 MINUTES BEFORE START TIME. JUST CLICK AND JOIN. WE ARE NOW LIMITED TO 10 INDIVIDUALS WITH CAMERAS, BUT ANY NUMBER CAN WATCH LIVE 'ONE WAY' AND SIT-A-LONG VIA THE ABOVE SCREEN. IF JOINING WITH CAMERA, PLEASE MAKE SURE YOUR MICROPHONE IS MUTED:

The Sitting Schedule is as follows:

00:00 - 00:50 CEREMONY (HEART SUTRA IN JAPANESE / SANDOKAI IN ENGLISH) & ZAZEN
00:50 - 01:00 KINHIN
01:00 - 01:30 ZAZEN
01:30 - 01:50 KINHIN

01:50 - 02:30 DHARMA TALK & ZAZEN
02:30 - 02:40 KINHIN & HOKEY-POKEY

02:40 - 03:15 ZAZEN
03:15 - 03:30 KINHIN
03:30 - 04:00 METTA CHANT & ZAZEN, VERSE OF ATONEMENT, FOUR VOWS, & CLOSING


Our Zazenkai consists of our chanting the 'Heart Sutra' in Japanese and the 'Identity of Relative and Absolute (Sandokai)' in English (please download our Chant Book at the link below), some full floor prostrations (please follow along with me ... or a simple Gassho can be substituted if you wish), a little talk by me ... and we close with the 'Metta Chant', followed at the end with the 'Verse of Atonement' and 'The Four Vows'. Oh, and lots and lots of Zazen and walkin' Kinhin in between!

Please download and print out the Chants we will recite at the following link (PDF):

Chant Book (PDF)

or

Chant Book (SHORT VERSION HTML)

Not everyone realizes that they can join in the Chanting of the Heart Sutra, Identity of Relative & Absolute, Metta Verses, Verse of Atonement and Four Vows (although we ask that you keep your microphone down). Please follow along with the Chant Book, and let your voice ring!

I STRONGLY SUGGEST THAT YOU POSITION YOUR ZAFU ON THE FLOOR IN A PLACE WHERE YOU ARE NOT STARING DIRECTLY AT THE COMPUTER SCREEN, BUT CAN GLANCE OVER AND SEE THE SCREEN WHEN NECESSARY. YOUR ZAFU SHOULD ALSO BE IN A POSITION WHERE YOU CAN SEE THE COMPUTER SCREEN WHILE STANDING IN FRONT OF THE ZAFU FOR THE CEREMONIES, AND HAVE ROOM FOR BOWING AND KINHIN.

ALSO, REMEMBER TO SET YOUR COMPUTER (& SCREEN SAVER) SO THAT IT DOES NOT SHUT OFF DURING THE 4 HOURS.

I hope you will join us ... an open Zafu is waiting. When we drop all thought of 'here' 'there' 'now' 'then' ... we are sitting all together!


Gassho, Jundo

SatTodayLAH

PS - There is no "wrong" or "right" in Zazen ... yet here is a little explanation of the "right" times to Bow (A Koan) ...

The other video I mention on Zendo decorum is this one, from our "Always Beginners" video Series:

Sit-a-Long with Jundo: Zazen for Beginners (12) - Basic Zendo Decorum At Home
https://www.treeleaf.org/forums/show...093#post189093

[Jundo]

Today's Talk will be by Rev. Shokai, who will speak on Vesak and the Buddha's Birthday ...

Birth of the Baby Buddha

This passage is from the Buddha-charita, the first complete biography of the Buddha, written by the poet Ashvaghosha, probably in the first century C.E. The Buddha-charita is made up of twenty-eight songs recounting events in Shakyamuni Buddha’s life up to the time of his great awakening. These verses speak of Shakyamuni’s family and the events that surrounded the birth of the historical Buddha. Original spellings and usages from this 1893 translation by Edward B. Cowell have been retained throughout:

Then one day by the king’s permission the queen, having a great longing in her mind, went with the inmates of the gynaceum into the garden Lumbini.
As the queen supported herself by a bough which hung laden with a weight of flowers, the Bodhisattva suddenly came forth, cleaving open her womb.
At that time the constellation Pushya was auspicious, and from the side of the queen, who was purified by her vow, her son was born for the welfare of the world, without pain and without illness.
Like the sun bursting from a cloud in the morning, so he too, when he was born from his mother’s womb, made the world bright like gold, bursting forth with his rays which dispelled the darkness.
As soon as he was born the thousand-eyed (Indra) well-pleased took him gently, bright like a golden pillar; and two pure streams of water fell down from heaven upon his head with piles of Mandara flowers.
Carried about by the chief suras, and delighting them with the rays that streamed from his body, he surpassed in beauty the new moon as it rests on a mass of evening clouds.
Having thus in due time issued from the womb, he shone as if he had come down from heaven, he who had not been born in the natural way—he who was born full of wisdom, not foolish—as if his mind had been purified by countless aeons of contemplation.

[Doshin]

I will sit with you all for some of the Zazenkai.

Gassho
Doshin
Stlah

[Ryokudo]

I will attempt to join the birthday party from rainy old England.

Gassho,

Neilio

Sat Today

[Kyonin]

Hi all!

I'll be there live with instruments ready

Gassho,

Kyonin
Sat/LAH

[Kakunen]

Good morning from East.

I will sit on one way from Japan.

Because I have a meeting with staff of Child nursing home at same time.
This is my Zen style.

Gassho
Sat today
Kakunen

[Shinshi]

I'll be doing my usual time warp. See you all soon.

Gassho, Shinshi

SaT-LaH

[Shonin Risa Bear]

probably will sit with YT tomorrow sometime; thank you for this opportunity.

gassho
doyu
sat today

[Jakuden]

I’m going to try to get there for part, if time and technology cooperate.

Gassho
Jakuden
SatToday/LAH

[Jundo]

I believe this is the LINK

https://hangouts.google.com/hangouts/_/r2gkfdy4xfehthctejjr3fjxree

[Shokai]

Thank you all; Jundo, Kyonin, Jackuden, Onkai, Shokai(oops, that's me). Have a wonderful week.

gassho, Shokai
stlah

[Doshin]

Thanks to all and than you Shokai for the talk. I enjoyed the discussion of myth vrs “just a guy” or all the above.

Gassho
Doshin
Stlah

[Jakuden]

Thank you Jundo and Kyonin, and thank you for a lovely talk Shokai! Sorry I had to leave early, I have work tomorrow, will sit the rest later.
Peace to all ✌️
Gassho
Jakuden
SatToday/LAH

[Onkai]

Thank you all, including Shokai, for sharing the myths and humanity of the Buddha. Have a great weekend!

Gassho,
Onkai
Sat/LAH

[Jundo]

Thank you all.

Here was our Hokey Pokey from Vietnam ...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_NbcP3m7Ls

Gassho, J

STLah