Evil Desire

According to Buddhism or Buddha's teaching, evil desires itself, if we understand it properly, is enlightenment itself, buddha-nature itself.  -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-07-21 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

Both sides

As long as you experience it in terms of a good stage or a bad stage, a high or low stage, that is not perfect enlightenment. We do not expect anything perfect, but we do not reject it. We always have it, but ideal is ideal and reality is reality, and in our practice we have to have both sides. This is the original nature of Buddhism. -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-06-29 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

Not Possible

 In Soto practice, you know, we do not put too much emphasis on enlightenment. When we say enlightenment, we mean some perfect stage you will attain. But actually [laughs] that is not possible.
-------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-06-29 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC .u

On Bill Sterling.

A cuke page for William Wallace (Bill) Sterling who died on the morning of December 1st.

Bill with wife Yvonne Rand at Tassajara, 1986.
photo by Barbara Wenger

Please send anything you may wish to add to Bill's page to dchad at cuke dot com. 

No Need

We understand Buddha as the ideal, as a perfect, you know, one. At the same time we understand him as a human being. Although we have this ideal there is no need for us to be bound by the ideal. The same thing is true with rituals and precepts. There is no need to be bound by precepts and there is no need to be bound by, to observe, our rituals as some formality. -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-06-29 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC .u

Bill Sterling update

As posted a few days ago, William Wallace Sterling, Yvonne Rand's husband died suddently, I believe on the morning of December 1st. Yvonne was with him and stayed at his side until his body was taken away. Her daughter Hillary has been with her taking care of things. Yvonne's son Chris has been there too.

There have been over 100 responses to my post on Facebook.

Would love to have a photo of Bill.

Accept

we should not treat ideal or reality something desirable or something not satisfactory. We should, you know, accept ideal as ideal and reality as reality. So even though our practice is not perfect, you know, we should accept it, without forgetting, without rejecting ideal. How to do that is to live on each moment. On each moment we include reality and ideal. So everything is included on each moment. So, there's no other way to be satisfied with what we have on each moment. That is only approach to the ideal. -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-06-29 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

Ideal

In our way, there is no idea of complete success, complete enlightenment. And yet we are aiming at, we have some ideal. But we should note that, the ideal is something which we can’t reach. Ideal is ideal and reality is reality. Now, we should have both reality and ideal, or else we cannot do anything. So ideal and reality, both ideal and reality will help our practice. -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-06-29 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC .u

RIP Bill Sterling

Just got word that dear old friend and husband to Yvonne Rand, Bill Sterling, has passed away. More on Bill as it's received. Gya te gya te.

Satisfaction

When we are satisfied with our attainment moment after moment, with some improvement, we have there composure of life. We have satisfaction.  -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-06-29 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC .u