Great Cloud Retreat

I flew out to Cincinnati Ohio on Thursday to lead our first 3-day retreat in our permanent location for the Great Cloud Zen Center. The trip was uneventful and I met up with Reverend Jigen who also flew in from California to attend the retreat. Rev. Jigen lives in Oakland and is a priest in the Five Mountain Order. He rented a car and we embarked upon the short drive from Northern Kentucky to our location in the heart of residential Cincinnati. It was cold and rainy as we left the airport and when we reached the street where the center was located, it was a bit difficult for us to find the address in the dark rainy night. After several passes, we managed to see the sign out front that said Great Cloud Zen Center.

When we got upstairs, there were several of the retreatants along with our Daechuji Sunim (Reverend Jiun, SDPS) in the Kitchen drinking tea and munching on pizza. Rev. Jigen and I were hungry and were thankful for the pizza and the time to warm up. Once we got our bags and possessions settled we all retired for the evening.

When I woke up for our first day of our three day Yong Mang Jong Jin (to leap like a tiger while sitting) I noticed a light frosting of snow on the ground and cars outside my window. It was refreshing to feel the briskness of the cold weather and still I was glad to be inside of a warm and sheltered Zen Center. In addition, when we got up several of the (semi) local attendees had arrived and we all met for a review of what we would be experiencing for the next three days. Rev. Jiun and I had decided to allow the participants to experience formal meals and this meant that meals had to be cooked and served as a group effort.

A few weeks prior to the retreat, I had contacted my old Dharma Brother Barry Briggs to ask him if he could share some of the extensive work, he had done when he was the Abbot of Dharma Sound Zen Center in Seattle. Barry graciously shared his menus, recipes and shopping guides with us to facilitate our formal meals. This turned out to be a monumental help in allowing our retreat to run as smooth as any I have attended with experienced practitioners.

There were four of us who had attended our 5-day retreat last year at a rental facility in Grailville and four who had never sat with us before. Therefore, we reviewed the forms and assigned the jobs, as much as they are within our Korean tradition. Our form tends to not structure too much the distribution of work and looks more for spontaneous involvement at the moment a job needs to be filled. I could not have been more happy with the balance of work and the flawlessness of the daily duties. Of course, we did have a Tenso (Cook) for the whole retreat who was Adam and he had let me know that he really had not cooked anything in his life. By the end of the retreat, we were all so happy with the results of his efforts that we all enjoyed each and every meal. Adam was very thankful to Barry for his efforts and his help in allowing him to grow as cook and to take away any worry he had that existed prior to the retreat. Within this, our friend Barry Briggs was manifest as the ninth member of our retreat.

Rev. Jiun and I worked on an eclectic liturgy for our morning and evening chanting. The new liturgy was drawn from his time as a Tibetan Monk, our Korean tradition as well as my involvement with the Boundless Way Zen Group under the direction of James Ford Roshi. Everyone kept a just do it mind and managed the bell and the mogaku instrument assignments that were rotated around during the retreat. This was definitely a try mind and just do it retreat.

I did the initial interviews with everyone and then sat in for the rest of the retreat working with Rev. Jiun on interviews with students. We all had a wonderful time discovering the ineffable truth and bonded as our sangha emerges slowly. At the end of the retreat we had three of the retreatants taking precepts. Two of the participants who took the first five householder precepts are students in the Five Mountain Seminary and they were Laura and Glenda. Additionally, Reverend Jishou who is also a priest in the Japanese Tendai lineage took the 74 Precepts in the Five Mountain Order and became a Bodhisattva Priest. It was a great pleasure to share a beautiful weekend of discovery with all our new family. 

Inka Dharma Speech

[Hold stick over head then hit table]

Zen Master Sǔngsan once said; “Some of my Zen Masters have their own individual styles and some of them will make their own schools. Slowly, this Korean style will disappear and be replaced by an American style of Zen.”

[Hit again]

Zen Master Jibŏng once said; “I am pretty conservative as a first generation Zen Master, and I think we have to be very careful when discarding any part of the thousands of years of tradition that we have inherited. On the other hand, there is no question that American Zen will eventually become Americanized.”

[Hit again]

Zen Master Sǔngsan predicted that perhaps some of his Dharma Heirs would make their own schools. Zen Master Bomun founded the Single Flower Sangha and Zen Master Jibŏng founded the Golden Wind Zen Group while the other remaining eleven Zen Masters have remained in the Kwanum School of Zen. So, the Single Flower Sangha, the Golden Wind Zen Group and the Kwanum School of Zen, are the same or different?

KATZ!

Today is April 9^th and this beautiful Dharma Room is full of many smiling faces. There has been much work and preparation leading up to today, and I want to thank everyone who has supported Sŏnsa-nim and I on this incredible path of waking up. 

[Hold stick over head then hit table]

Zen Master Sǔngsan founded the Providence Zen Center and slowly added rituals and forms during the first ten years and the the Kwanum School of Zen style appeared.

[Hit again]

Zen Master Jibŏng founded the Golden Wind Zen Group and slowly and meticulously he is moving towards an American style of practice.

[Hit again]

Zen Master Sǔngsan gave Inka to more than 27 Western Students. Zen Master Jibŏng just granted Inka to two of his American Students. Is Zen Master Sǔngsan’s Inka and Zen Master Jibŏng’s Inka the same or different?

KATZ!

Today we have the appearance of the first two, second generation American Teachers in the Lineage brought to the West by Zen Master Sǔngsan and presented by our esteemed teacher Zen Master Robert Moore. This dharma wind has been blowing for more than two thousand six hundred years, I hope we all leave this room and can smell the beautiful feast that awaits us on the other side of this wall. 

Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring

If you haven't yet seen this movie, you should put it on your list.

Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring (UK: Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter... and Spring) is a 2003 South Korean film about a Buddhist monastery which floats on a lake in a pristine forest. The story is about the life of a Buddhist monk as he passes through the seasons of his life, from childhood to old age.

The movie was directed by Kim Ki-duk, and stars Su Oh-yeong, Kim Young-min, Seo Jae-kyung, and Kim Jong-ho. The director himself appears as the man in the last stage of life. The quiet, contemplative film marked a significant change from his previous works, which were often criticized for excessive violence and misogyny.

The film is divided into five segments (the five seasons of the title), each segment depicting a different stage in the life of a Buddhist monk (each segment is roughly ten to twenty years apart, and is physically in the middle of its titular season).

Is Science Showing That We Do Not Have Free Will?

see video
I removed the embedded video because it automatically runs and I couldn't figure out how to fix that.

Is Science Showing That We Do Not Have Free Will? - Daniel Dennett - University of Edinburgh

My Dharma Brother and teacher in the Boundless Way Sangha, Jay Risen Weik posted this video on Facebook and although it is long I watched it all the way through. This is a public lecture by Daniel C. Dennett, Professor of Philosophy at Tufts University, entitled "Is Science Showing That We Don't Have Free Will?" In his lecture, Professor Daniel Dennett discusses some of the current work in psychology bearing on this question. He also drew on Hume, Darwin and Turing, three Enlightenment heroes. The lecture was part of the University of Edinburgh's Enlightenment Lecture Series.

The reason this post caught my interest was an experience I had with Zen Master Seung Sahn in a private interview back in about 1992. I have spoken often about this particular interview and even posed Zen Master Seung Sahn's comments to many of the other teachers in the Kwan Um School of Zen, many of the comments I received were less than satisfying. Apparently, he hadn't made this particular statement to very many people so they weren't sure how to respond.

I don't remember the particular Koan I was working on at the time, but I had a question about it and honestly I wish I remember what question I asked him at the time; but his response really shocked me at the time and I was really confused. Anyway, his response to my question was "You don't understand! You have no choice!" I remember thinking, "WHAT? This isn't Zen Buddhism." So I said to him, "Did you just tell me that I have no choice?" Daesonsa-nim said, "Yes, everything is already determined and you have no choice."

This confused the shit out of me, so I said to him "That sounds like Catholic Determinism, are you telling me that everything is already determined?" He said "You don't understand, so you are confused." I asked him to please explain it to me and he said "Look, everything is already determined, and you have no choice. And until you realize that you have no choice, only then do you get a choice." At this point I bowed to him and thanked him for the interview and frankly I wasn't sure what it meant. His statement became a huatou for me and I sat with it for a very long time, and eventually I digested his comment. I believe that this is what Daniel Dennett is trying to say in this very in depth and lengthy lecture.

Listening to Daniel Dennett is much like reading Nagarjuna and his approach to the Dharma. I believe that Seung Sahn was correct in his statement and that the truth is dynamic and ineffable. Thanks again Jay for the post, it took me back to a time and a place as well as grounding me in this very moment.

The Elders

Richard Branson and Peter Gabriel share their thoughts on the founding of The Elders. The Elders are an independent group of eminent global leaders, brought together by Nelson Mandela.

Richard and his close friend, Peter Gabriel, had an idea about the need for a new leadership model for our ‘global village’. Inspired by the role that elders play in traditional societies, as a source of advice, wisdom and experience, they took the idea to Nelson Mandela and were thrilled when he agreed to help bring a group of ‘global elders’ together. Founded in 2007 with the support of Virgin Unite and a great group of partners, The Elders comprises ten visionary leaders including Graça Machel, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Kofi Annan and President Carter. They work both publicly and behind the scenes, collectively and individually, in areas of conflict such as; Kenya, Cyprus, Darfur and Zimbabwe and also work on a number of global issues, such as health and gender equality.

In 2009, Richard brought together a group of the world’s top entrepreneurs to initiate the Carbon War Room. The vision is to mobilise capital, innovation, expertise and international collaboration to increase the effectiveness of climate change efforts already underway and to focus on filling any gaps. These keen entrepreneurial minds will work together to help speed and scale solutions that will deliver a low carbon economy.

Buddhist leader Venerable Beopjeong dies at 77

Venerable Beopjeong, a Buddhist leader widely known for his best-selling books including “Non-possession,” died of lung cancer yesterday at 1:51 p.m. at the Gilsang Temple in Seongbuk District, northern Seoul. He was 77 years old.

According to the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism, he had been receiving treatment at the Samsung Medical Center as his illness worsened late last month but was moved yesterday to Gilsang Temple and passed away there. He had been suffering from lung cancer for more than three years. 

He spoke some of his last words to the monks of Gilsang Temple. “If you have anything left that you own, use it in activities to make a pure, fragrant society. I now need to leave behind time and space.”

Venerable Beopjeong was born Park Jae-cheol in Haenam, South Jeolla, on Oct. 8, 1932. In 1956, he was ordained under the tutelage of Venerable Hyobong and went on to serve as the editor in chief of a Buddhist publishing company, as well as a prolific translator of the Buddhist canon into Korean. 

His 1976 book Non-possession went on to sell more than three million copies and is perhaps his most recognized book, included in middle and high school curriculums throughout Korea. 

He opened Gilsang Temple in December 1997 and took the helm of all religious ceremonies and committee activities conducted there. 

During his lifetime, Venerable Beopjeong was noted for his efforts to tear down barriers between different religions. In 1998, he gave a special lecture at Myeongdong Cathedral in front of 1,800 Catholics on freeing oneself from earthly possessions as a religious person and coming together to overcome the Asian financial crisis. 

His funeral is set to take place tomorrow at 11 a.m. at Songgwang Temple in Suncheon, South Jeolla. It will be a small, private ceremony, in accordance with the monk’s wishes. Gilsang and Songgwang temples will be open to visitors wishing to pay their respects. 

By Cho Jae-eun [jainnie@joongang.co.kr]


To view an excerpt from Beopjeong's writings May All Beings Be Happy.

A little Engrish Humor for a change

What Superman was before his parents were born?

I guess Dr. Kevorkian has started a mass marketing program.

I always like Bamboo Flavored Crap Eggs for breakfast.

This is the Chinese Equivalent of the Complaints Department.

Why don't we sell bottled water in a can? I feel ripped off now.

Is this meant for bears or elephants?

I promise I won't do it!

I want to eat here.

Korean "No Smoking Sign"

I am glad he cleared this up, otherwise I would have never known.

Jerry Brown talks about buddhism and governing

From: 5:00 a.m. | Frank Stoltze | KPCC

Jerry Brown is a student, of sorts, of philosophy.

After serving as governor from 1975 to 1983 and losing a race for U.S. Senate, Brown traveled to Japan to study Zen Buddhism.

What’s Buddhism teach that might help him if he’s elected governor again?

“Illusions are endless and our job as human beings is to cut them down.”

The state capitol, Brown alluded, is full of allusions.

Brown, 71, sits in the bright light of a supporter’s Santa Monica living room. He leans forward and his foot taps, tossing the tassels on his loafers.

He is energetic and contemplative as a reporter asks him about his religious studies, including his four years as a young man in Catholic seminary.

“All great religious traditions focus on the dangers of vanity and pride and ego and that’s the continuous struggle, particularly in public life where there’s so much adulation and attention," Brown said.

The man who has run for president three times and serves as California Attorney General suggested governing in Sacramento presents challenges vanity, pride and ego.

"It is crucial that a person see through the emptiness of many of the thoughts and statements that people are given to.”

In announcing his candidacy last week, Brown said he is best suited to be governor because he is someone "with insider’s knowledge, but an outsiders mind."

Precepts

We had our first one day retreat in our shared facility at Sangha Center and it turned out very nice. Everyone pitched in to setup the room and to make it feel as much like a Zen Center as we could. The entire group sat very well and the participation was very strong. 


Two students took the 5 Precepts, Chris Hoff and Chris Mefford. Also, David Twicken took the 5 Precepts with Greg LeBlanc, SDPS in Berkeley. Our family has now grown to 10 who have taken precepts and we will have 3 more added to the family at the end of the month. We currently have 23 members of our growing Sangha. Congratulations to all, may we all grow in the Dharma. To see all of the pictures click here HB Precepts and Retreat