Saturday, September 4, 2010

Harmony (1)

In Zen we often say, "wherever you are, that is where your mind is."

How do we practice this? There are many ways. Here we talk about one: harmony.

Harmony with the environment, harmony with situations, harmony with people.
Harmony means:
When you are sitting on the meditation stool, that is the best place for you to be.
When your legs hurt, that is exactly what you need for your practice.
When you talk to a person, that is the most important person for you at this moment.

Every moment, any place, practice this way with a clear mind, you are in harmony with the world.

2 comments:

  1. Shifu,

    Amituofo!

    Thank you for your teaching, which struck me like a lightening because, a few days before attending the 3 daylong sitting meditation, I was reading Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh's Miracle of Mindfulness, which also discussed about Harmony and Mindfulness using Leo Tolstoy's short story about an emperor's 3 questions. Here is a weblink to the story retold by Master Thay:

    http://www.livinglifefully.com/flo/flothreeanswers.htm

    With Gratitude to the Triple Jewels and Jian Hu Shifu for upping the ante of my Mindfulness training with Harmony.

    Palms Together,

    傳運

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  2. Shifu,

    Amituofo.

    Even internet shoe shopping can turn into practice of Harmony. When the shipment is 3 weeks late and there’s a complaining child, is there still Harmony with the retailer? During our email exchange to flush out the problem a simple cliché “Live and Let Live” brought on deep meaning for me. Below is my reply to the seller:

    …Actually this life of ours is nothing but Live and Let Live. But most people only care about their own personal "live" and anytime the other’s "let live" gets in the way of their own "live", they become "lived.” How's that for a pun. Actually, live and let live are the 2 sides of the same coin: you're "live" is "let live" from my perspective; and my "live" is also called "let live" from your perspective.

    Thank you for your quick note, this has allowed me to penetrate deeper into the reality of LIFE:

    Live and Let Live,
    Heads and tails;
    Same coin - two sides -
    In this zero sum game.
    When well played and deeply understood,
    Both parties - win:win!

    Shifu, this experience has allowed me to look deeper into Harmony and its connection to Interdependence, which Shifu nailed with one word, “relationships,” during a Surangama Sutra Class. This sounds like the experience of “Live and Let Live.”

    Palms Together,

    Chuan Yun

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