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Tuesday, July 18, 2017

Downward

When we go to Tassajara and climb up from Jamesburg to the high mountain and go down to Tassajara -- we go both ways -- way upward and way downward and we put emphasis on way downward. But everyone wants to climb up to the top of the mountain to have some view. When I was seeking for the site for the monastery almost all the people showed me the sight which commanded wide, great view, where you can see the town, where you can see the ocean, where you can see San Francisco Bay. But I rather like the bottom of the valley where we cannot see anything. It is quite natural for us to appreciate something beautiful, something wonderful. That is alright; that is our true nature so there is no problem. I don’t ask why do you like such a beautiful thing. It is quite natural. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture 67-06-22-B as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC - Many Shunryu Suzuki lecture excerpts on cuke.com - from there links to much more. Going slowly through Suzuki transcripts featuring whatever is next that seems okay, not just the super cool ones,