One way to measure how our study, contemplation and meditation are working for us is by checking in with the eight worldly concerns. When any of these rear up in our mindstream, we can feel the grip of samsara and–if we can bring awareness to our state of mind–maybe we can use it as an opportunity to remind ourselves to let go a little bit. Each time we do this, we wear away a little bit of our habitual pattern of attachment and aversion.
PTC Monastery was graced with a visit last Saturday, September 15, from Master Hai Tao, a master of Mahayana Buddhism from Taiwan. He came to meet Lama Norlha Rinpoche and to see the Maitreya Center, our new monastery building currently under construction.
The Maitreya Center is unique in that it incorporates both a traditional Vajrayana and a traditional Mahayana shrine room. The construction of the building’s exterior is nearly complete, while the inside is framed out just enough that the dimensions of the respective shrine rooms are visible. A shrine had been set up in each of these spaces, overflowing with offerings and adorned with pictures of Buddhas. Master Hai Tao and his entourage toured the Maitreya Center with Rinpoche and paid homage at each of the shrines. It was a very touching moment of pure devotion shared across cultures and traditions.
This morning Pema Chödrön’s Facebook page shared a quote from her book, No Time to Lose: “The next time you go out in the world, you might try this practice: directing your attention to people—in their cars, on the sidewalk, talking on their cell phones—just wish for them all to be happy and well.“
A discerning reader inquired as to why there was only one aphorism, since the topic merited a tag. So I looked back through the list I kept in retreat and found a few more that might be of use in the world at large. Today’s featured aphorism, which I have thoroughly tested yet often forget:
~The best way to deal with any issue: write a note and tear it up the next day.~
As explained in the introduction, I got permission at the beginning of my three-year Tibetan Buddhist retreat to keep in touch with the New Hampshire sangha by means of a monthly letter that would be posted on their website. When I was in retreat, I didn’t think of it as a “blog.” I just wrote a new “post” every once in a while (once a month for most of Year 1, much more sporadically as retreat progressed), mailed it to Arlo/Orlan, and never saw the result. I added my retreat graduation speech last spring and occasionally thought about continuing….but I wanted to reorganize the whole thing and it just seemed too complicated and amorphous, like a lot of things immediately following three years of one-thing-at-a-time. Plus life is very busy at the monastery!
Over the course of three-year retreat, I compartmentalized some of the things I learned in the form of aphorisms. This is the one I refer to the most often; it seems to apply to many situations and helps me avoid (somewhat) engaging in criticism and arguments. Thanks to Jean Frostick for the expansion of category three:
~Your way works better 30% of the time, my way works better 30% of the time, either way works 90% of the time, and the other 10% is going to be a disaster no matter what.~
April 17, 2011
It’s so nice to see everybody. You know . . . you guys all fell off the map for THREE YEARS! Nice to see you’re back.
From the little we’ve heard, it sounds like the world started falling apart the minute we were sealed into retreat. More than one person wrote me that we picked a good three years to miss.
March 2010
Dear friends,
After our six months of silence last year, a frequent question from correspondents was, what was it like?
In one way, not much different from the rest of the two-plus years of retreat so far, since we are silent anyway all but one-and-a-half hours of each day.
But…in other ways, very different.
February 2010
Dear Friends,
Losar Tashi Delek! Happy Tibetan New Year! (as of February 14)
I don’t know if our local groundhog saw his/her shadow on February 2. (As you know, every day is Groundhog Day here in retreat.) My bet is s/he didn’t, as it was overcast most of the day and it’s been wicked cold for weeks. But, groundhog or no, one thing this February is guaranteed to bring is:
Warning: Another exhortation to meditate!
December 2009-January 2010
I rarely have time to look out the window these days, as I sometimes did earlier in retreat. Looking at the mind turns out to be much more compelling anyway. But I do occasionally have a chance to rest my mind in the winter view of the Hudson River. My favorite time is sunrise.