Monday 22 December 2014

Study and practice with others

I was sent this Dogen quote, from Tanahashi & Levitt's The Essential Dogen:

Enlightenment and clarity of the mind occur only in response to the sustained effort of study and practice. Endeavoring in the way ripens the conditions of your practice. It is not that the sound of the bamboo is sharp or the color of the blossoms is vivid. Although the sound of the bamboo is wondrous, it is heard at the moment when it’s hit by a pebble. Although the color of the blossoms is beautiful, they do not open by themselves but unfold in the light of springtime. Studying the way is like this. You attain the way when conditions come together. Although you have your own capacity, you practice the way with the combined strength of the community. So you should practice and search with one mind with others.

The "strength of the community" is something I've always reached out to and relied upon for my practice - perhaps more than entirely necessary at times. Three bows to all those who have sat with me since the first time I entered my late teacher's zendo in Johannesburg all those years ago.

Friday 19 December 2014

Zen holiday...?

Just a quick note to say that the next meeting will be in the New Year, on Monday 5th January. We'll be closed until then - merry, merry, merry!

Monday 8 December 2014

Thursday 4 December 2014

Mailing list

The StoneWater (Northampton) mailing list has been idle for some time now, but I'm going to resurrect it and try to ensure that some form of contact goes out at least monthly. The first one (basically the Rohatsu post below) went out today.

If you'd like to receive this email, you need to sign up at the main StoneWater Zen Sangha page: www.StoneWaterZen.org. Alternatively, you could send me an email at alasdair@gordon-finlayson.net, and I can do it for you.

To sign up at the SWZ page, scroll right to the bottom of any page on the website, and fill in this form:

Monday 1 December 2014

Rohatsu zazen in Northampton

This year, Rohatsu falls on a Monday - so it seems a good idea to take advantage of this and have a slightly out-of-the-ordinary Monday meeting.

Rohatsu (which is merely Japanese for "8th December") is, in the Zen tradition, the day upon which we remember the Buddha's enlightenment. It's not merely the fact of the Buddha's realisation that we remember, of course: it's more personal than that. Recognising ourselves as Buddha, we use this time to manifest our implicit Buddha-nature. In our sitting, Buddha sits. We don't have to do anything about it: just sit.

At Rohatsu, though, we also remember the Buddha's great determination to resolve the problem that he'd been afflicted by over the previous years. How do we match this seemingly purposeful striving with the goal-less-ness of 'just sitting'? I suppose there are many ways to answer that, but for myself I can only say: get on the zafu. Don't fight with this, just sit. And return to the cushion and sit and sit again.

So next Monday, we'll observe Rohatsu with an extra period of sitting followed by a service. To ensure we leave at roughly the right time, we'll cut back on the discussion. I'm sure we'll manage a cup of tea at least!

If you've not been in a while, Rohatsu is a good opportunity to reinvigorate your practice and to re-dedicate yourself to the cause of sitting-doing-nothing. Hope to see you there.

Sunday 9 November 2014

Questions about secular mindfulness practice

In the previous entry I talked of the mindfulness conference I helped to organise at the University last month. This was the annual conference of the British Psychological Society's Transpersonal Psychology Section, and was on the theme of "Contextualising mindfulness: Between the sacred and the secular." My brother monk, Shinro, wanted to know a bit more now that he conference was over. He has, he says, "a lot questions about secular mindfulness ... and no formulated answers," and I have much sympathy with that view.

I wrote a long response to his comment, but it turned out to be too long to publish as a comment, so I've tweaked it a little and it's turned into this new post.

First - reflecting on Shinro's concerns, I will admit that I also have a lot of questions about secular mindfulness. I think perhaps it would help me if I were to prepare a 'position statement', to force me to clarify for myself where I stand on mindfulness.  I find myself very torn - and the conference served to express both my reservations and my enthusiasms in equal measure. I'm afraid I too have few formulated answers myself.

The evidence is very clear that there is something in mindfulness that has a reliable, replicable effect on people which seems to relieve their suffering in a wide variety of ways, but chiefly in the management of stress and notably also in the prevention of relapse of depression. In psychological terms, exactly what mechanisms are involved have yet to be entirely mapped out, and much of the work to understand what mindfulness does is clothed in modern cognitive language around emotional reactivity, cognitive appraisal and regulation of mechanisms of attention. However, underlying much of modern psychology is, I repeatedly find, a harmonisation of views with those of Buddhist psychology: notably the refutation of a fixed self (anatta) and a focus on process and change (anicca). Dukkha, it seems, has yet to be found by psychologists! (Interestingly I always thought the existentialist philosophers of the early 20th century certainly discovered dukkha an even its causes - but never quite made it to Noble Truths Numbers Three and Four!)

My reservations around this secular thing, like those of many others, are around issues of instrumentality (mindfulness for something) and also very much around ethics. The Buddha talked not only of mindfulness but of Right Mindfulness. Is it OK that the US Marine Corps teach their troops mindfulness? This is the equivalent of "Godwin's Law" when discussing mindfulness, so apologies! But... one response to this prototypical reservation that I've come across (and I wish I could find the source, but it's slipped away!) was from a westerner ordained in the Thai tradition, who wrote not too long ago that he was entirely fine with Marines learning mindfulness. He wrote that his faith in the Buddha's teaching was strong enough that he is of the opinion that should a Marine engage steadfastly in mindfulness training that he will come to a point where he will put down his weapon.

Right now, I think it's important that these conversations are happening, that enough people are asking questions about the nature of this thing - what one (actually pro-secular-mindfulness) speaker at the conference called the "mindfulness epidemic"! - that they can serve as a brake on the van, not perhaps changing course and certainly not moving backwards, but keeping speeds down to so that the curves ahead can be negotiated safely.

Soon, hopefully, we'll have audio & video of the keynote speakers up on a Youtube channel - I'll definitely share the link here - and perhaps you'll get a flavour of the range of opinions expressed at the conference. Tellingly, Peter Malinowski (a mate of mine from Liverpool days, pictured below) talked in his keynote about his dual role as neuroscientist and as teacher of Diamond Way Buddhism and the tensions and contradictions involved there. Think you may find that of particular interest.


I do worry that some of the people teaching people to meditate right now have very limited experience of their own. In some cases, it seems they're not even regular practitioners at all, and yet are introducing what is potentially a very powerful transformative tool to people without having experienced much (or any) of what can come to pass on the cushion. I also worry about the current model, based on Kabat-Zinn's model (which in turn was based on the length of an academic term at U Mass Medical School!!!) of an 8-week intervention with little or no follow-up (and certainly no life-long supervision).

I've actually recently started delivering a 'secular mindfulness' programme myself at work. It's called MEOW (not my acronym...) - Mindfulness for Enhancing Ongoing Wellbeing. The notion here is to start with a standard length eight-week programme that focuses very strongly on a core mindfulness technique (observation of the breath) rather than a bunch of 'toys' / 'tools' (though we do cover some of those too). This will then be followed by the establishment of some form of ongoing engagement with a community of practitioners - what I'm calling for now a 'secular sangha' but feel I need to rename! Exactly what form of ongoing support this becomes is something that will be decided upon between the participants, not handed down from on high by myself.

I will admit, though, that I'm not entirely at ease with this programme. I worry that I've not gone far enough in redressing some of the possible harm done by 'secularisation'. I worry that the institution is getting mileage out of my programme both in the hope that it will reduce resistance to changes currently ongoing at the uni and in serving as an 'easy tick' on the 'are you looking after your staff' checklist. I worry that my roles as researcher, secular mindfulness "teacher"/guide, practitioner and Zen priest may become blurred. I worry that I'm not serving the attendees as well as I could in how I've designed MEOW, and I worry that I'm not being a good servant of the Buddhadharma by engaging with this secular space at all.

So - no easy answers here either.

But some fascinating questions!

Thursday 9 October 2014

Mindfulness conference in Northampton

Well, this weekend the University hosts the BPS Transpersonal Psychology Section's 18th annual conference, on the theme: "Contextualising Mindfulness: Sacred and Secular". Yours truly has been roped in as the "Arrangements Chair" (organiser basically), so here's hoping the whole thing doesn't come crashing down around my ears...! You find find more details on the conference website: bit.ly/TPconf2014.

I'm really looking forward to some of the speakers, and to reflecting critically (and yet I hope open-heartedly) on the secular 'mindfulness' surge in Western culture, healthcare, business etc.

While I welcome the use of mindfulness in most of these contexts - honestly, how coudl I not at least to some extent?! - I do have some concerns. This conference is about asking questions about how secularised mindfulness is being applied, and whether this secularisation involves throwing babies out with bathwater. Questions include, as Prof Lancaster suggests on the conference site, "To what extent is mindfulness practice as promulgated in therapeutic and social contexts true to its roots in the spiritual traditions? Have the bounds of the term ‘spiritual’ become so elastic as to be of little value? What impact is the widespread incorporation of what is at core a spiritual practice having on contemporary society? And is the popularization of meditation practice leading to a distortion of the root traditions from which it has been extracted?"

So, assuming my lack of organisational skills don't stop the whole thing in its tracks, I'm looking forward to a fascinating weekend.

Friday 3 October 2014

Current reading - Living by Vow

We've made a start on the first chapter of Rev Shohaku Okumura's wonderful book Living by Vow: . This chapter deals with the Four Vows that we chant at the end of each of our Monday meetings:

Sentient beings are numberless, I vow to save them.
Desires are inexhaustible, I vow to put an end to them.
The Dharmas are boundless, I vow to master them.
The Buddha Way is unsurpassable, I vow to attain it.

How many times have I chanted this mindlessly? Too many! How central are these vows, and the 'Bodhisattva Vow' (the first of these) in particular? Well, according to Rev Okumura, they're utterly foundational. I thought I'd paste in a paragraph from his introduction to the book that we didn't read:

...all Mahāyāna Buddhist practice is based on the bodhisattva vow. The vow has two aspects: becoming a buddha and helping all beings become buddhas. These two cannot be separated. We vow to become buddhas together with all beings. That is, we vow not to become a buddha until all beings become buddhas. We vow to stay in samsara on purpose to walk with all beings. This explains why the Zen master Guishan Lingyou (Isan Reiyū) said he would be reborn as a water buffalo, for the water buffalo, which walks in muddy water to help farmers grow rice, symbolizes bodhisattva practice. The bodhisattva vow is an essential point in Mahāyāna teachings and practice. All the verses and sutras discussed in this book are based on or relate to this concept.

What a wonderful antidote to the fear that my practice is selfish: that my practice can be entirely for others, and a reminder that others are no different to self.

So again, back to the cushion. And again, again, again.

Sunday 14 September 2014

Getting hold of me...

So I've finally managed to get my phone account sorted, and for the first time in over a year, I now have voicemail!

I wonder how many people have called but not been able to get through to me? If that describes you and you haven't been able to get in touch, please try again - or email me.

 A brief update: over the past months, we've been working through Blofeld's The Zen Teaching of Huang Po. Some may be relieved to know that we've now finished that! It could be pretty tough going at times, I agree. For the next months, we'll be taking a more eclectic approach, with talks taken from more accessible writers and occasionally audio talks from some of our own teachers (Keizan Sensei and Tenshin Roshi). I think this will be a nice change of pace, and I think more accessible for those who have only recently got into Zen practice and teaching. Ultimately though: practice!

Saturday 23 August 2014

Not meeting on Bank Holiday Monday

Just a reminder that as usual, we won't be meeting on this weekend's Bank Holiday Monday - back again on Monday 1st September.

Have a restful break, everyone...

Friday 15 August 2014

Buddhism in one phrase

Spotted in my inbox today...

“Suzuki Roshi, I’ve been listening to your lectures for years,” a student said during the question and answer time following a lecture, “but I just don’t understand. Could you just please put it in a nutshell? Can you reduce Buddhism to one phrase?”
Everyone laughed. Suzuki laughed.
“Everything changes,” he said. Then he asked for another question.

Zen Is Right Here: Teaching Stories and Anecdotes of Shunryu Suzuki, David Chadwick (ed.), page 37.

Monday 11 August 2014

Service

Last week, we held a service after zazen for the first time in ages - probably since last summer when the groups we share the building with took a break. A wee bit rusty, but we made it through to the end...

We've got the building to ourselves for the rest of August, so we'll have service each week that there are enough people to man the bells & the mokugyo (well, the much cheaper tulip block anyway!).

If you've not been in a while and are curious about service, perhaps a good opportunity to drop in on us? If you've questions about the 'form', or the ritual aspects of our practice, you're not alone: it's something that many people are confused about or struggle with. There's a famous story that addresses this:

The morning after Philip Kapleau and Professor Phillips arrived at Ryutakuji Monastery, they were given a tour of the place by Abbot Soen Nakagawa. Both Americans had been heavily influenced by tales of ancient Chinese masters who'd destroyed sacred texts, and even images of the Buddha, in order to free themselves from attachment to anything. They were thus surprised and disturbed to find themselves being led into a ceremonial hall, where the roshi invited them to pay respects to a statue of the temple's founder, Hakuin Zenji, by bowing and offering incense.
On seeing Nakagawa bow before the image, Phillips couldn't contain himself, and burst out: "The old Chinese masters burned or spit on Buddha statues! Why do you bow down before them?"
"If you want to spit, you spit," replied the roshi. "I prefer to bow."
From Sean Murphy's One Bird, One Stone: 108 Zen Stories (2002, p.23)

Tuesday 8 July 2014

See you next week...

And here's a Dogen quote to keep you going...

The real way circulates everywhere;
How could it require
Practice or enlightenment?
The essential teaching is fully available;
How could effort be necessary?
Furthermore, the entire mirror is
Free of dust; why take steps to polish it?
Nothing is separate from this
Very place; why journey away?
- Fukanzazengi

Back to regular hours on Monday 14 July.

Friday 27 June 2014

Impromptu summer break...!

So for a number of reasons, it looks as though it is going to be impossible to hold our regularly scheduled sessions for the next two weeks; I.e. Mon 30th June and 7th July.

So: a sudden summer break! We will be back into the swing of things on Mon 14th July -- same time, same place. And given that the Music Appreciation lot are of until September, we should have some opportunities to conduct a service or two.
_/|\_

Friday 4 April 2014

Zazen not cancelled during Crosby Easter sesshin

Just a note that there will be regular zazen on the Monday preceding the Easter weekend (14 April) - thanks Rob.

The following Monday is of course a Bank Holiday, so no zazen on the 21st as per usual.

Monday 10 March 2014

Gratitude

Thanks to the prickly folk, the uncomfortable, the rude, the presumptuous ones. Thanks to the ones who piss me off. Thanks to the ones who embarrass me, who enrage me, who make me feel a little small.

This is where I practice.

Tuesday 25 February 2014

"Facing our Demons" - Keizan Sensei

You may have already had a copy of this in your inbox (and if not, go to the main StoneWater Zen site and sign up using the form at the bottom of the page), but in case not:

Facing our demons

Feeling trapped or disappointed or unable to express ourselves as fully as we would wish are some of the reasons we first come into Zen practice. For many of us we then hope that we can put aside our feelings of isolation or limitation and quickly experience interconnectedness and wisdom. With one leap we will be free! We will throw off body and mind and self clinging. That this is generally not how it is, is one of the most difficult discoveries of our spiritual path. Inevitably the practice involves struggling with our grooved patterns and resistance to life over and over again. We discover then that the way forward to embracing our lives comes through facing our limitations and pain not from turning away from them. We may then find that there is really nothing but this unborn, undying ‘one’ just freely doing without obstruction. Not seeing this is called in our tradition ‘looking away.’

To see this requires steady and constant practice. In doing so your life may begin to vibrate in a new way and now the wish to practice arises naturally and without resistance. Stop and start (like throwing water into a simmering cauldron) very rarely works. If the present conditions of your life allow you to practice may I encourage you to do so. Time really does pass swiftly by and conditions can change in a flash.

Kind wishes,
Keizan Sensei

Gassho.

Tuesday 11 February 2014

[Audio] Kiezan Sensei - Living the paradox

Fresh on Youtube today - a teisho by Kiezan Sensei from (I think) Weds 5th Feb.
_/|\_

3 March closure

Just a quick note to say that the Northampton zen group won't be running on Monday 3 March.

I'll be in Liverpool that day - unfortunately I won't have a chance to catch up with the Sangha as there's no sitting on a Monday. A shame... However, should be an interesting (for me anyway!) trip nonetheless as I'll be giving a lecture to the final year Psychology students at the University of Liverpool on Buddhism and psychology.

Other than that date - and perhaps a week at Easter, will keep you posted - sitting continues each Monday. We've recently started looking at the writing of 9th century Master, Huangbo (Huang Po). Good stuff!

Wednesday 5 February 2014

Late on Monday - sorry!

Apologies for a late arrival on Monday - nothing serious, just general 'life stuff' delayed my departure. Unfortunately, apparently this was a week when someone new arrived for the first time, or so one of the regular Music Club folk from downstairs let us know.

If that was you - sorry! I'm usually around by 6.45 or 6.50, and we did eventually get going last Monday, and of course sitting continues next week etc.

In other news - we've finally finished our examination of the Platform Sutra, which has taken us quite a while...! Next up, at Will's suggestion we start to look at some of the work of Huang Po (d.850CE), the influential Tang dynasty Chinese Zen Master. I'm not familiar with this material at all, so looking forward to getting stuck in.

Friday 31 January 2014

Passing of Nishijima Roshi

I read with sadness today of the passing of Gudo Wafu Nishijima Roshi, a Japanese Soto Zen teacher who has had a wide influence on the landscape of Western Zen practice.

Link: sweepingzen.com/obituary-gudo-wafu-nishijima/

He was an interesting figure, who moved from the centre of the Soto Zen establishment (he received Dharma transmission from the head of the Soto Zen sect) but was also influenced by Kodo Sawaki Roshi and his emphasis on restoring zazen to the heart of Buddhist practice.

Many will know him only though his two successors - Brad Warner and Jundo Cohen. Both Brad and Jundo, though very different, seem to reflect much of their late teacher's characteristics, bridging the conservative and radical tendencies in Soto Zen. Jundo leads a fairly typical existence as an abbot in Japan - but has started a very successful sangha that exists online, the Treeleaf Sangha, while Brad is famous for is iconoclastic approach to Zen practice and literature through books like Hardcore Zen and Sit Down and Shut Up, while at the same time showing a fierce zeal in protecting a pure zazen practice from anything he sees as corrupting it.

With Nishijima Roshi's passing, another line of succession is now firmly in the hands of Western Zen teachers and their students, with less and less institutional or cultural oversight from the Sotoshu.

What will we make of this wonderful gift as our various lineages grow into adulthood?

Gate, gate, paragate, parasamgate: Bodhi svaha!

Tuesday 14 January 2014

Emails have gone astray...!

Apologies to everyone that's tried to use the "Northampton@StoneWaterZen.org" email address - turns out it hasn't been working for some time. I'm changed the details now - please in the meantime send any emails directly to me at alasdair@gordon-finlayson.net.

Thursday 9 January 2014

The Sacred & the Mundane - A dharma talk by Keizan Sensei

On the new Youtube channel for SWZ, a dharma talk by Sensei from a couple of weeks ago. Looks like this could develop to become a great resource!