eMirror Vol 22, No. 44 (2018-11-02)

 

November Hostas, photograph by Ven. Shikai Zuiko sensei
Photograph by Ven. Shikai Zuiko sensei

eMirror Vol 22, No. 44

Friday, November 2nd, 2018
Edited by Ven. Jinmyo Renge osho

The White Wind Zen Community:
An international community practising and teaching Dogen’s Zen since 1985.



It is not just that Mahakasyapa received something that was transmitted by Sakyamuni. Sakyamuni is the Transmission. Mahakasyapa himself is the Transmission. Rujing is the Transmission. Dogen is the Transmission. And so the Dharma must be embodied and actualized by us. It must actually be practised and it must be practised between a Buddha and a Buddha, between a Teacher and a student.

Dogen says,

"If someone lacks the correct standards of the Buddhas and Ancestors it means that he lacks any kind of correct standards. Anyone who wishes to determine if a Teaching is correct or not should use the standards of the Buddhas and Ancestors because they are the original masters of the Wheel of the Dharma. Only the Buddhas and Ancestors have clarified and authentically Transmitted the expression “existence,” the expression “non-existence,” the expression “emptiness,” the expression “form,” and Transmit them correctly as ancient and present Buddhas.1"


Everyone who does this practice has been asked about it by relatives or friends or associates. Some of us immediately blurted out some nonsense and have felt ashamed about it later because we recognized that we were just trying to feel important and that our garbled jibber jabber has probably misled the person we spoke to entirely. Others just keep it simple and remember that we are instructed not to speak about the details of our practice but not to keep the fact that we practice a dirty little secret either. Most of us though recognize that we don’t really understand enough about what practice actually is in order to say anything meaningful. After all, sometimes we hate it and sometimes we love it. Sometimes we understand the teisho and sometimes we don’t. But we have seen that as our practice continues and deepens we understand even the same teisho more and more often and more and more completely. And that these understandings are more complete when our practice is more open and sincere and continuous.

We can only understand the Dharma by practising the Dharma. When we study, we must study what we practise with the whole bodymind.

The Dharma cannot be understood as a doctrine or a cosmology or a religion or a philosophical system. It is a way of opening to our actual experience as a whole and through this allowing the true nature of ourselves and all things to reveal itself. This is the standard that we apply and it is the standard that we must maintain.
    
1 Kobutsu-konbutsu. 古佛今佛 “Past-Buddha present-Buddha.” Buddhas throughout time.    
    
-Ven. Anzan Hoshin roshi, continuing teisho 3: "Turning and Shining," Sunday, February 15, 2004 in the tesho series "The Thread of the Buddhas," commentaries on Eihei Dogen zenji's Bukkyo. 


Upcoming Events



Fusatsu:  November 7th and 21st.

Hermitage:
The Roshi began a period of hermitage on Wednesday October 31st, which will end at 9:30 a.m. on Sunday, November 4th, when he leads monastics in Acalanatha Sadhana. 

Introduction to Zen Workshop
The next Introduction to Zen Workshop will take place at Dainen-ji on Saturday, November 3rd. For more information please see: http://www.wwzc.org/content/introduction-zen-workshop-ottawa
For information concerning our Long-distance Training Program, please visit this Web Page: http://www.wwzc.org/long-distance-training-program

November Two-day Sesshin
The November 2-day sesshin begins at 8:00 p.m. on Friday, November 9th and will end at 6:00 p.m. on Sunday,  November 11th. Formal students are reminded to send their schedules to schedule at wwzc dot org as soon as is possible.
On Saturday, November 10th, associate and general students may attend a sitting held in the Zendo. Arrival time is 9:15 a.m. (in time for First Bell). The sitting ends at 11:30 a.m. Students attending are reminded to remain on the first floor.

Daiko-ki
November 18th is the Memorial for the death of Anzan Daiko zenji.

Dharma Assembly
On Saturday, November 17th, Ven. Jinmyo Renge osho will lead a Dharma Assembly which will begin at 9:30 a.m. (please arrive by 9:15, in time for first Bell) and will end at 9:00 p.m. Dana is $40.00, which includes two meals: lunch and supper. Participants are asked to bring clothing and shoes appropriate for samu practice. To register, please send an email to schedule at wwzc dot org or leave a message on the office answering machine at 562-1568. Dharma Assemblies are open to all students.
Note: The 9:30 a.m. general sitting that would ordinarily take place on November 17th is cancelled owing to the Dharma Assembly.
 


What to do if you arrive late for a sitting



You don't need to turn around and go home. Ring the bell once and then sit on the bench on the front porch. If possible, we will come and unlock the door for you right away. If we are in the middle of the chants or listening to a teisho, we will come to let you in as soon as the teisho finishes.
 


Retreats



Beth Buerkle sat a one-day retreat on Wednesday, October 31st at her home in Chamcook, New Brunswick. 

To Schedule a Retreat
Please visit this Web page for information about scheduling a retreat and an explanation of the different kinds of retreat (duration and timing) you can sit: https://wwzc.org/retreats. Please note that retreats should be scheduled one week in advance.

Public students sitting retreats should send an email to schedule@wwzc.org to confirm they sat a retreat so that notice of it can be included in the eMirror. Please include the location of the retreat and the duration.
 


Fundraising for roof repair



Fundraising goal: The estimates we have received for this roof work total $30,653.63 for replacement of all three roofs. We hope to engage the contractor to do the work in spring 2019, but this will depend on whether sufficient funds have been collected.

Amount raised to date: $5,380

Three roofs at Dainen-ji are in need of replacement in the next twelve months: the roof of the Osho-ryo at the rear of the building, and the roofs of the bay windows in the first floor library and the covered balcony on the west side.

The roof above the Osho-ryo is currently covered in tar and gravel, an old roofing system that is in need of replacement with a modern membrane. UV light has (dried and) damaged quite a bit of the tar, especially at the edges of the roof, creating a danger of leaks. A leak into the Osho-ryo via the chimney flashing was patched recently. Due to sagging of the roof structure over time, water is pooling in a low spot that is no longer draining properly. This will be remedied with the installation of a new membrane. The old flashing has pulled away from the building and has been repaired many times, as you can see from the photos. Old wires and other fittings need to be removed safely or secured properly.

osho-ryo roof

Detail of Osho-ryo roof showing flashing in poor repair,
unsecured wires, and the deterioration of the old tar and gravel covering

 

Detail of Osho-ryo roof showing failing flashing and past patching; green is moss growing on gravel roof surface

Detail of Osho-ryo roof showing failing flashing
and past patching; green is moss growing on gravel roof surface

 

The roofs of the bay window of the first-floor library and the covered balcony are made of metal and are very old. They are rusty, and the leaking joints and flashing have been patched with tar many times over the years. These roofs will be replaced with modern shingles or a membrane as suitable. Both roofs have sprouted leaks numerous times in recent years, damaging materials for the suiseki arrangements stored there and putting books and other materials at risk in the first floor library.

Roof of covered balcony on west side of building showing rusting metal surface and patched seams

Roof of covered balcony on west side of building
showing rusting metal surface and patched seams

 

Roof of first-floor library bay window showing past patching and rusting metal surface

Roof of first-floor library bay window showing past patching and rusting metal surface
 


Teisho



Recorded Teachings Schedule

  • Saturday, November 3rd: “Without Difficulty”: Zen Master Anzan Hoshin's commentaries on Jianzhi Sengcan's “Xinxin Ming: Words on Trusting Awareness”:  “Water Within Water" (18 of 26)
  • Sunday, November 4th: SAkN "The Anatomy of Awakening" by Ven. Anzan Hoshin roshi: "Feeling Into Knowing: Sagara Mudra Samadhi" (9 of 9) 
  • Monday, November 5th: “Every Breath You Take” by Ven. Shikai Zuiko o-sensei: “Going to Advisors and Teachers” (Dharma Talk 14) 
  • Thursday, November 8th: "Remembering Reality" by Ven. Jinmyo Renge osho-ajari 
  • Saturday, November 10th: “Every Breath You Take” by Ven. Shikai Zuiko o-sensei: “Requesting Ordination” (Dharma Talk 15) 

Missed Sittings and Teisho

If associate students are unable to attend the Thursday evening associate sitting, they may attend one of the general sittings to make up for the sitting they missed. General sittings are held on Monday evenings at 7:30 p.m. (first Bell is at 7:15) and Saturday mornings at 9:30 a.m. (first Bell at 9:15 a.m.). Please send an email to request permission to attend one of these sittings.        

Teisho presented at general and associate sittings which are part of a series need to be listened to in the correct order and with none missed out. If you miss a sitting please borrow a copy of the missed teisho from the library or download it from the WWZC Media Site as soon as possible, so that the continuity of what is being presented is not disrupted. The weekly list of recorded teisho played at sittings is posted on the web site at:
https://wwzc.org/recorded-teachings-schedule

Online Access to Recorded Teachings

Students can access the password-protected online Recorded Teachings library on the WWZC website at https://wwzc.org/recorded-teachings or through the streaming site at http://app.wwzc.org. The custom-built media streaming site allows students to live stream recordings from the WWZC Recorded Teachings collection. It is optimized for use on smartphones and tablets, and works with most modern browsers, including Chrome, Firefox, and Safari. It can also be used on desktops.
 


WWZC Website


wwzc.org

Recorded Teachings for Public Access

While most of the online Recorded Teachings library is password-protected and only accessible to students of Zen Master Anzan Hoshin, a small selection of MP3 recordings of teisho are accessible to the public at https://wwzc.org/recorded-teachings. Additional recordings will be uploaded periodically.

MP3 recordings of five teisho are currently available:

 

Recent Dharma Talk

On Saturday, September 22nd, Ven. Jinmyo Renge osho-ajari presented "The Whole World is Already Ready", Dharma Talk 2 in the series "All Around, All At Once".
Direct link to transcript of Dharma Talk: https://wwzc.org/dharma-text/all-around-all-once-part-2-whole-world-already-ready 
Direct link to MP3 recording (accessible to students): https://wwzc.org/recorded-teachings/all-around-all-once
 


Samu on Sundays



Each Sunday afternoon (except during O-sesshin and Sesshin), Caretaking Council (Saigyo tando, Fushin shramon and Endai shramon) do samu from 1:30p.m to 4:30p.m. on the various small projects required around the monastery.  There are always a great many tasks that need to be done and so any students are welcome and encouraged to come to Dainen-ji to join the monastics in caretaking practice. If you would like to partake in the samu practice on Sundays please write to Saigyo tando at saigyo.cross@gmail.com.

 

image3.gif


Painted Cakes
(do not satisfy hunger)

by Ven. Shikai Zuiko sensei



Continuing on with “Painted Cakes: A Zen Dictionary” a limited edition text written by Anzan Hoshin roshi in the 1980s and last revised in 1994.

Sadhana (S) The written form of a practice involving extensive chanting. Used also for the practice itself, usually a Mikkyo or tantric practice.

Questions can be sent to me, Shikai sensei, at shikai.sensei@gmail.
 


Samu Weekend Report by Ven. Saigyo tando



Over the weekend of Saturday, October 27th and Sunday, October 28th we held our Autumn Samu Weekend. Here is a list of some of the "highlights" of the tasks completed by the 23 students who gave their time over the two days to do samu.

In the grounds, the wood shed was dismantled in preparation for the installation of air-conditioning units being installed in the Hatto and Zendo. (Work was also done inside in preparation for this). Work was also done to prepare for the winter season, including shutting down the waterfall and streams for the year, building a new shed for the snow-blower, preparing for wrapping the tender plants and doing much Autumn clean-up. Inside the building, new shelving was installed in the emergency supplies locker, the shelves in the first floor hallways were re-painted, the grab bar was re-installed on the basement stairs, extra ringers were added to improve the building's doorbell system and the summer air-conditioners and fans were cleaned and stored in the attic. The light fixtures in the Hatto were cleaned, the women's changing room shelf was varnished, some leaky windows were caulked with removable caulking and all of the building bugs screens were brought to the furnace room, labelled properly, cleaned and sorted (some will need repairs later). A small black butsudan, made by the Roshi many years ago, was repaired, sanded and painted. Sorting and cataloguing of archive materials was completed and the physical copies of the recent eMirrors were filed and added to the collection. Mishin ino completed much administration over the two days.  

Thank you to Jinmyo osho for designing and preparing the wonderful midday meals, with assistance from Mishin ino and thank you to Shikai sensei for baking the excellent and very well received afternoon refreshments. 

Thank you to the following students who offered samu over the weekend, partaking in the work of maintaining and improving the practice environment of Dainen-ji: Mishin ino, Fushin shramon, Isshin, Senbo, David Gallant, Ian Richard, Brandon Smith, Jean-Francois St-Louis, Leonardo Nobrega, Claude Schryer, Robin Whitehead, Louis Radakir, Tarik Kaya, Marc Valade, Hannah Kent, Kathleen Johnson, George Donovan, Jesse Steinberg, Constantine Tikhonov, Matt Broda, Alex Groarke and Sarah Goul.

 

 

KimchiJuly2016


Office of the Tenzo



Dogen zenji taught in the Tenzokyokun that the work of preparing and serving meals is "a matter for realized monks who have the mind of the Way or by senior disciples who have roused the Way-seeking mind." In alignment with this, part of Zen Master Anzan Hoshin's samu for the Community involves personally overseeing the activities of the ancient office of tenzo. Ven. Jinmyo Renge osho serves as tenzo and Mishin ino and Saigyo tando offer assistance as tenzo-anja.

Meals Served Prior to the Evening Sittings:


Monday Yakuseki:
Thai white rice mixed with sauteed new potatoes with lots of garlic; bulgogi tofu (deep-fried tofu, chopped orange, yellow and green bell peppers, cubanelle peppers, poblano peppers, Spanish onion, bulgogi sauce, shoyu, garlic, ginger, sesame seeds; baechu kimchi.

Tuesday Yakuseki:
Sliced roasted peameal bacon finished on the griddle; coleslaw (green cabbage, carrots, white onion, mayonnaise, lime juice, Dijon mustard and horseradish); Ace Bakery baguettes. Vegetarian option: assortment of hummus. 

Thursday Yakuseki:
Colcannon (mashed Yukon gold potatoes, sauteed green cabbage, poblano peppers and Spanish onion, mixed together); garlic tofu (deep-fried tofu sauteed in butter with lots of garlic and lime juice); shitake mushrooms braised in chili sauce. 

Baking by Shikai sensei:
Raspberry bars; date squares.

 

Gassho (palm to palm image)


Thank You



If you would like to thank someone for a contribution they have made, please feel free to send an email to Jinmyo osho at rengezo at Gmail dot com, but be sure to type "eMirror" in the subject line.

From Shikai sensei: 
Thank you to Louis Radakir for “Old Croc” smoked Australian Cheddar cheese with a “delightfully bold bite”. 

From Endai shramon:
Thank you to Shikai sensei for the "Every Breath You Take" series of Dharma Talks, which consists of 138 recordings based on the translation that the Roshi and she made of "The Practice of Purity," Book Eleven of the Avatamsaka Sutra. Thank you to Jinmyo osho for her Dharma Talk "Tada". Both Sensei and Osho's Dharma Talks were played at the general and associate sittings this week. Thank you to Saigyo tando for organizing and overseeing the Samu Weekend. Thank you to all the monastics who took over my responsibilities at the monastery while I was on a business trip last week.

From Hannah Kent:
Thank you to Shikai sensei for discussing a personal issue with me and introducing me to Barre class at Inside Out Studio Barre. Thank you to Jinmyo osho for daisan that helps me see my patterns and work with them. Thank you to Mishin ino for overseeing my samu on Sunday and to Saigyo tando for organizing the samu weekend and a helpful practice interview. 

From Sarah Goul:
I am thankful to WWZC for the opportunity to practice in community. Thank you to WWZC monastics, who I look to as an example for deepening my practice. Thank you to Roshi for a MeWe invite and for founding Dainen-ji. Thank you to Dharma Teachers and Practice Advisors for patience and time spent in relation to my changing schedule and shifting priorities, and for all of the effort related to supporting my retreats. Thank you to office of the Tenzo for delicious and colourful retreat meals. Thank you to Sensei for a tea, non-Daisan meetings, and baked goods during retreat. Thank you to Osho for Daisain over the past few months and for editing the e-Mirror. Thank you to Ino and Tando for leading kata. Thank you to Ino for Saturday eggs, and for several extremely useful and clarifying Practice Interviews recently. Thank you to Tando for organizing samu on Tuesdays and Sundays, and for taking the time to give tips and explanation related to the various tasks. Also for time spent adding and readding my schedule into the tracker, for reviewing a letter, and for fun and clarifying Practice Interviews over the past while. Thank you to Fushin Shramon and Endai Shramon for keeping the beat during the Maha Prajna Paramita Hridaya sutra. I am also thankful to have been involved with rearranging the first floor library and with placing the rocks near the walking onions during the summer samu weekend.

 


Ongoing Project:
"All is Change"



Dainen-ji, being a 140-year-old building, is continuously in need of maintenance and the costs associated with this can be astronomical when such things as porch repairs or exterior painting are needed. This is something that we cannot afford to do, yet must do and so the "All is Change" project has been created. The "All is Change" project is very simple. Most of us have a bowl or a jar or some other kind of container that we keep somewhere at home and fill up with loose change because it's too heavy to carry around. Several hundred dollars has been collected so far both in loose change and Canadian tire money which has been put towards the building maintenance fund. If anyone would like to contribute to this fund, each penny will be appreciated. The “All is Change” container is on the wooden wall shelf under the Sangha Board in the cloak room.

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