Soto

All the Soto believers in Japan are not Zen students. But they know somehow who is a good teacher and who is not. And they believe in him rather than believe in his teaching, or Buddha's teaching, or teaching of Dogen, or Shobogenzo. They just believe in his way or his character. In this way, Soto developed. This is the characteristic of Soto school.   -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-07-24 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

Fil Lewitt has a new novel

And this one is Zenish.

Hover Over Bear River:  a novel of meditation & mayhem.

Amazon link for Hover over Bear River

Amazon page for all his books

The four books are: ARCHEOPOETICS (Stone Age humans); CANYON WREN’S RAG (poems for pathfinders); THE ZEN FOLLIES; and now HOVER OVER BEAR RIVER (Vipassana Insight Meditation, plus some mayhem).

Fil Lewitt cuke page

Help

For a Buddhist it is necessary to make some special effort to help people. That is a duty for the enlightened one. But the enlightened one has some ability to help people in various ways. Whether they understand it or not, he is actually helping people. In this way, you know, our religion exists in a social framework.   -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-07-24 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

Lew Richmond has a new book

NEW BOOK ON AGING FOR MEN. Lew Richmond's new book on Aging--The Final Mountain: Aging With Honor and Dignity--a Guide for Men  will be published in October, 2020 by North Atlantic Books.  This book follows on his earlier aging book Aging as a Spiritual Practice, but is specifically geared toward men's aging needs (though women can buy it for themselves or the men in their lives).  The theme of this new book is that aging is emotional and intuitive, and men need to open themselves to those aspects to really negotiate growing older.  See Lew's latest blog post to learn more click HERE. Lew Richmond Cuke page with a link to books by Lew

Are, are Not

Everyone is Buddha. But for those who are not aware of it, they are not Buddha.   -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-07-24 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

Kill

Student asks if it's okay from a great samurai to kill, "through and through, is it all right for him to kill?"
SR: Maybe [laughs]-- but that kind of thing will not happen to him [laughter]. He should have complete freedom, but there will be no need to use all his ability. In all of his ability, you know -- one phrase is enough. That is one of the ten powers. To save people just by one phrase or one blink of eye is enough.  -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-07-24 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

RIP Ruth Friend

Received the following message on Facebook:

Our beloved Ruth died on Saturday, February 8th. She was at home, peaceful and with her family. Please send her love and encouragement as her spirit transitions towards her next adventure.

She touched so many of our lives as a friend, mentor, mother, sister, partner and fun loving companion. We will be holding a memorial in the coming months, please feel free to reach out here for more information.

Now we carry on all that she instilled in us about love, about making the world a better place, about taking care of each other and about taking care of ourselves.

Boiling Heart

You know, Japanese people think anger is [laughs, laughter] [probably gestures]. His heart is boiling [laughs, laughter] and his face is, you know, as calm as water [laughs, laughter]. And this is not so good, you know [laughter]. If that is to be more kind to others or something, it may be all right, but if it is to keep his own prestige or something, it is not good [laughs, laughter]. It's much better to be natural. And to be natural some effort is necessary, some special kind of effort like “just to sit” without leaning like this or without too much tension.  -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-07-24 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

Thunderstorm

Anger should be just anger, but unless you practice our way or unless you understand what “form is form” or “emptiness is emptiness” means, it is rather hard to be just angry like a thunderstorm [makes sound like thunder] [laughs]. Next moment nothing [laughs]. That is beautiful, you know. [Makes loud sound like thunder.] [Laughs, laughter.] That's all. This is very good for who can do that and for others too. If you could do so-- I wish I could... [makes sound like thunder] [laughs, laughter].  -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-07-24 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

Form

Student: What does “form is form” mean?

SR: Form is form-- form is form means, you know, form is emptiness, emptiness is form, and form is form, and emptiness is emptiness. There are four meanings in it. Before you say, in its true sense, “form is form,” you should get through “form is emptiness” and “emptiness form.” Or else “form is form” doesn't mean anything.   -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-07-24 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC