Sandy Hollister

Shunryu Suzuki student Sandy Hollister died last month - as posted a few days ago. Here she is around 1970 making a rakusu in the Buddha Hall at the City Center. That's Fran Keller behind her.

Sandy Hollister cuke page

No Ice Cream

Student F: How do you, in your daily life keep a healthy mind from not expecting when some people, without knowing it, want you to get into expecting it with them?

SR: Yeah. If you don't know the nature of suffering, you know, you will suffer more. But if you know why you suffer, then you think, “I expect too much,” you know. “There is no ice cream here,” [laughs] so I shouldn't think about ice cream. That there is no ice cream is already not so good. But if you expect it, if you want [laughs, laughter] to have it, you make yourself worse [laughs, laughter]. So by not expecting it when you can't have it, you will be relieved from a lot of suffering.      --------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki  lecture - 69-03-15 - as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC  - Going through Suzuki lectures and posting anything that can stand on its own. Not looking for zingers or "the best of." I find that following these excerpts daily provides another way to experience Suzuki's teaching. 

Cuke Archives on Instagram

 Thanks to Katrinka's urging and Peter Ford's persistence, we now have 

https://www.instagram.com/cuke_archives/

with a daily Shunryu Suzuki lecture excerpt or quote that is different from what's on Cuke What's New Blogger.

Suffering

Student E: Roshi, why do people suffer?

SR: Suffer? Yeah. Suffering means, you know, spiritual suffering especially or physical suffering too. When you expect something, you have already suffering, because actually things doesn't go as you expect. So there is suffering already. When you are ill, if you do not try too much to get well, it is pretty good. It is not so bad. But if you try to get well too much, that is suffering. So when you are ill, you should accept it. “Oh, I am not so well [laughs]. Maybe someday I shall be all right.” Then you have not much suffering. So, you know, when you expect something, we have already suffering. And that expectation is not realistic enough, usually.              --------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki  lecture - 69-03-15 - as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC  - Going through Suzuki lectures and posting anything that can stand on its own. Not looking for zingers or "the best of." I find that following these excerpts daily provides another way to experience Suzuki's teaching. 

Peter van der Sterre on Jay simoneaux

Peter van der Sterre included his thoughts on Jay Simoneaux and Jay's recent passing in an Everyday Zen talk. It's on a cuke page for Jay at http://www.cuke.com/people/simoneaux-jay.htm#peter

Deep Breathing

Student D: In the beginning of my practice of zazen it was suggested that I count my breaths. Are there other methods I could use? Should I just experiment around with different ways.

SR: Yeah. For instance, maybe, you know-- usually our breathing is very shallow. If you do shallow breathing always, you know, it create problem. So I say take deeper breaths. You should try to make your breathing deeper. Hai.             --------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki  lecture - 69-03-15 - as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC  - Going through Suzuki lectures and posting anything that can stand on its own. Not looking for zingers or "the best of." I find that following these excerpts daily provides another way to experience Suzuki's teaching. 

Happy Mother's Day

 

RIP Sandy Hollister

Just learned that Sandy died on April 7th of cancer.

Cuke page for Sandy Hollister <http://www.cuke.com/people/hollister-sandy.htm>

Sandy began sitting at SF Zen Center in 1967 and later got involved with Gengo Akiba and Yoshi's Oakland Zen Center

Gya te gya te...

Whatever

 SR: Hai.

Student C: Do you think it's important to continue practice even when we're not feeling well? When we're ill?

SR: Sometime it may be better to sit even though you are ill. But sometime you cannot, you know. Or sometime it may be better not to take formal posture. But you can sit-- not sit, but you can practice our way whatever the situation is. Even though you are lying in bed, you can practice zazen-- not zazen but-- we can practice our way.             --------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki  lecture - 69-03-15 - as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC  - Going through Suzuki lectures and posting anything that can stand on its own. Not looking for zingers or "the best of." I find that following these excerpts daily provides another way to experience Suzuki's teaching. 

Link Disappeared again

The link to Tano Maeda's Buddhist Film Channel disappeared just like the prior link did. I thought if I checked it after posting that would do it but I did check and it was good. But today it was gone. Or maybe this is a complex senior moment. Anyway - I updated it with a hot link and checked it and added the URL https://buddhistfilmchannel.com/ and I'm going to start doing that so that when this happens there will be some recourse for the frustrated visitor.