African Proverb

"The path is made by walking"

From 'Peace Pilgrim'

We must walk according to the highest light we have, encountering lovingly those who are out of harmony, and trying to inspire them to a better way. Whenever you bring harmony into any unpeaceful situation, you contribute to the cause of peace. When you do something for world peace, peace among groups, peace among individuals, or your own inner peace, you improve the total peace picture. No action is fruitless.

There is within the hearts of people deep desire for peace on earth, and they would speak for peace if they were not bound by apathy, by ignorance, by fear. It is the job of peacemakers to inspire them from their apathy, to dispel their ignorance with truth, to allay their fear with faith that God's laws work - and work for good....My simple peace message is adequate - really just the message that the way of peace is the way of love. Love is the greatest power on earth. It conquers all things...

The Zen Master and the Hot Dog Vendor

The Zen Master goes to the Hot Dog Vendor and says, 'Make me one with everything'. They both laugh...the Zen Master gives the Hot Dog Vendor his money and gets his vegi- dog and waits. The Hot Dog Vendor asks what he is waiting for. The Zen Master says he is waiting for his change...the Hot Dog Vendor replies, 'change comes from within'.

With this statement the Hot Dog Vendor made the Zen Master one with everything.

zen philosophy

Zen is often said to be a philosophy of life. It certainly can be about how we live our lives. But zen is more than a just a philosophy, it's as much about our mind; but it's not about how we think or what we think about; it's about being mindful of everything we do. So, it's more about the doing of things, and to experience our lives.

Experience our lives every moment of every day.

So how do we do this?

At Kanzeonji we just sit. Somehow in just sitting everything else becomes quite clear. I can't tell you how this happens, only that it does. It has been like this and taught like this for thousands of years. Time after time...again and again.

But people don't always just sit. So, we give them something to do. First watch our breath naturally in and out...from there our center becomes known to us. On the in breath our spine stands up and we sit upright. Relax now, on the out breath, vertebra upon vertebra...and just sit. Then stand up on the in breath the same way, living our life breath by breath, heart beat by heart beat, in an upright manner.

"The rose speaks of love silently, in a language known only to the heart" - Unknown

Quote

"The rose speaks of love silently, in a language known only to the heart." - Unknown

The Flower Story

In our tradition there is a story we call nengemisho(u) (pick up flower, subtle smile). This story is about the transmission of our tradition from Sakyamuni Butsu to Kasho(u), the second patriarch of Buddhism. Sakyamuni silently held a up a lotus blossom for his disciples. As the others waited for the sermon of Sakyamuni to begin, Kasho smiled. Sakyamuni then recognized him in front of all others as having truely received the tradition, and he was henceforth known as Makakasho.

This transmission was wordless not resting on words or sacred texts, but a transmission outside the scriptures.
Thus was born Fu-Ryu Monji, the tradition of Zen to 'not stand on words and letters (sacred writtings).

This transmission is a direct experience of the individual. A spontaneous realization born of spiritual insight.

Makakasho had stepped through the gateless gate.