Anthony wrote:
We have been doing some renovation and painting in the house. We also rented a big garbage bin 20 ft long and started throwing out a lot of old junks that had built up over the years. Little did I know how traumatic the whole exercise was? You come face-to-face with your past and start discarding them, almost on a wholesale basis. Everything has its memories and a lot of emotions invested in them. You really have to live in the moment (當下) and practice equanimity (捨). I have taken on responsibilities, and also letting go of them in the past, but definitely letting go is so much more challenging.
So when you say, ‘Have fun cleaning up’, it is almost like saying ‘Have fun doing Buddhist practice’, it is pregnant with meaning.
Another topic I want to address while everybody are in attendance, albeit in a cyber-sense, is our study of "The Enlightenment Sutra" 圓覺經.
We have been studying the three dharma doors: Samantha, Samaputti, and Jnana, and are ready to move on to the next chapter, which deals with some of the mistakes in our practice. However, I feel this chapter is really crucial to our understanding of meditative practices and unwilling to move on until we have squeezed all its meanings out, so to speak. This would be a tremendous opportunity for everybody to share their experiences and understanding of the path.
Off the top of my head, I could think of some of the issues that we could tackle: how are the three dharma doors related to our practice?
What kind of practice are we currently doing? What is the difference between gradual practice 漸修 and the three dharma doors? What is Huayen Ch’an? How does it relate to "Samantha and Vipassana" 止觀法門 as discussed in "Beginner's Samantha and Vipassana"小止觀 and " Six Meditative Means"六妙門? How is it different to Ch’an as practiced in the School of Ch'an 禪宗?
If we are going to outreach and share meditative practice with outsiders through our meditative class, it does not hurt to have a better idea about the range of practices. Am I being too ambitious? I think we have a newly enlightened person back from India who are ready to share with us some of her insights.
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2 comments:
Stephen wrote:
"Dear Anthony,
Congratulations to your discovery of equanimity out of daily routine!
If my understanding is correct, equanimity also refers to the ability to accept "what is" without resistance; accepting things you can't control. In practical terms, it means don't fight with yourself - i.e. not interfering with the operations of the six senses... A state of mind not easily for most of us to achieve. Perhaps this is the technique of which Lung Zhi can share with us following her "Passage to India?" (Lung Zhi: can you help us?)
Some queries for you to meditate when you discarded "your past":
As most of us do not have an accurate view of the world around us, how do you KNOW "your past" is really your past? Is your past or your present the real you? Where do you get your sense of self, or sense of being from, and based on what?
Plsase let me know when you've the answers.
Stephen"
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Hi Anthony,
Wow, I did not expect a "passing remark" would incite such a response from you. But I should know better, shouldn't I .And I want to thank you for bringing up the topic. A Buddhist friend also once said to me:" even throwing out a piece of paper can be so difficult". Imagine at time of our death, the incredible clinging to everything we're used to that identify as ME , our own body for example. I am grateful that , at least now, with Buddhist teaching,I am aware of this attachment nature, albeit, still at a very coarse 粗 level.
Beverly
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