Suggested Brief Video

 Suggest watching Don't Make This Deadly Mistake now featured over at Cuke nonZense Blog. - dc

Humble

When you accept teaching with a non-selfish, a humble attitude, you will have a true understanding of the teaching. That is why a teacher is necessary for students.              --------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki  lecture - 69-04-08-bn - 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.

Donn's Photo of Shunryu Suzuki

The subject of today's Cuke Audio Podcast is this photo

It's from this Brief Memory 

Stick

Some teaching which was told by someone, if you stick to it, that is not true teaching.              --------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki  lecture - 69-04-08-bn - 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.

Ted's Email

For those who didn't listen to the podcast with Ted Howell's email, here it is. I felt like the points he makes about breath counting in zazen is important dharma for us to absorb.

David - 

Let me thank you for the episode about counting the breaths (where I did understand Suzuki Roshi). You mentioned that sometimes you just keep on counting. I never considered doing that. I’ve been mostly a shikantaza kinda guy but interestingly about a month or two ago I decided to return to counting the breathing. I discovered that sometimes I found myself forcing my breathing and counting quickly - like I am trying to get to “10” before I get distracted🙂. To counter-act that I began to stop at 9, to rid myself of any sense of the “goal” being to get to 10. 

I became curious about how many breaths an average person takes each year. I looked it up and found that, on average, a person at rest takes about 16 breaths per minute. This means we breathe about 960 breaths an hour, 23,040 breaths a day, 8,409,600 a year. I turn 66 next month, which would be 555,033,600 breaths. So I considered starting my counting like this:

555,033,601, 555,033,602, 555,033,603, etc

But then I listened to your podcast and decided to start at one and just keep on counting each time I sit. This is a brand new zazen practice for me. I’m finding that the counting can just keep on going, not necessarily connected to the breathing. Just counting. Sort of in the background, behind the distractions. I like it.

Ted Howell

****

Limited

When we forget all about the intellectual limitation of the teaching, then true Buddhism will be extended forever. In that way, Buddhism will have eternal future.               --------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki  lecture - 69-04-08-bn - 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.

Counting Breaths

 I recommend today's Cuke mini Podcast in which I read an email from fellow SFZC alum Ted Howell on counting breaths. It's about nine minutes long.

Extend

If it is all right to understand teaching literally and stick to the teaching, Buddhism cannot be transmitted to us. When we limitlessly extend, try to extend, our true nature, instead of selfish, limited self, then Buddhism is there.              --------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki  lecture - 69-04-08-bn - 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.

Referring to Yesterday's Story

Before he was enlightened, he thought, “I understand what is Buddhism.” And he thought, “My understanding is perfect.” That is why his understanding was not perfect. When he gave up his intellectual understanding, his limited understanding, and sought for some more truth, his mind was open and enlightened.             --------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki  lecture - 69-04-08-bn - 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.

Fire Seeking Fire

 Today's Shunryu Suzuki lecture excerpt is also the subject of today's podcast.