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Trimsatika (Thirty Verses) of Vasubandhu
Thirty verses on consciousness-only to be chanted. It is one of the core texts of the Yogacara school of Mahayana Buddhism. 1 Everything that is taken as a self; Everything that is taken as other: These are simply changing forms of consciousness. 2 Pure consciousness transforms itself Into three modes: Store consciousness, Thought consciousness, and…
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Buddha – Mindfulness
“Do not dwell in the past, Do not dream of the future, Concentrate the mind on the present moment.”
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Poem – When Darkness Becomes All That We Know
Grey infused frozen water consumes the last light before the fields darken. Distant planets follow me from dawn until dusk and a new world emerges where I have become one with beings and energy I do not understand yet make sense at levels I did not know existed. I left my field years before I…
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Poem – To No One
I sat down to write what’s consuming my mind day in and day out. I thought on the state of the world the wars, the drought, the famine – the social and environmental issues that continue to plague all beings. I thought about what can we do I thought about what can I do. What…
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Book Review – Cultivating the Empty Field
This is a follow-up to my previous post about the book “Cultivating the Empty Field: The Silent Illumination of Zen Master Hongzhi”. This book is edited and translated by Taigen Dan Leighton and Yi Wu. I would consider this a classic Zen text and one every practitioner, from beginnings to masters should have. Included are…
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Essay – Guides and Turning Points
How did I get here? An important question I throw into the air while reading, writing, and drinking coffee on a cold morning with early sunlight across the fields. In this current state of being, I awoke a few years ago after sleep walking through most of my life and leaving my path up to…
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Book – Not answers, but where to look
The one single book that has helped me to focus, let go, and where to find the answers is “Cultivating the Empty Field” by Zen Master Hongzhi. This was recommended years ago by Hanakia Zedek, and along with his friendship, has truly been life changing.
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Zen Master – Quote by Dogen
Eihei Dogen (1200-1253) Founder of Japanese Soto Zen “Studying the Buddha Way is studying oneself. Studying oneself is forgetting oneself. Forgetting oneself is being enlightened by all things. Being enlightened by all things is causing the body-mind of oneself and the body-mind of others to be shed. There is ceasing the traces of enlightenment, which…
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Masters – Shitou Xiqian – Song of the Grass-Roof Hermitage
Song of the Grass-Roof Hermitage, written by Shitou Xiqian (700 – 790). I’ve built a grass hut where there’s nothing of value. After eating, I relax and enjoy a nap. When it was completed, fresh weeds appeared. Now it’s been lived in – covered by weeds. The person in the hut lives here calmly, Not stuck…
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Masters – Shitou Xiqian – Harmony of Difference and Equality
The poem Harmony of Difference and Equlity (or Sameness) is a classic Chan Zen poem known for its concise and high-level insight of Buddhism, written by Shitou Xiqian (700 – 790). This translation below is courtesy of Sacred-Texts. Harmony of Difference and Sameness 竺土大仙心 The mind of the great sage of India 東西密相付 is intimately transmitted…