Strived

There's no Buddha, we say. We say that because there is no natural Buddha. Buddha is someone who strived—strived faithfully through difficulties.                   --------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki  lecture - 66-08-17N - as found on shunryusuzuki.com, from one of the newly discovered (2021) lecture tapes. 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. Go to https://www.instagram.com/cuke_archives/ for more daily Shunryu Suzuki lecture excerpts - with a photo.

Breakthrough

When we find real joy of life in pain and in difficulty, that is true joy, according to Buddhism. We say there is no natural Buddha. Buddha is someone who attained enlightenment with a human body, who has a\breakthrough the human life, and who found eternal joy in human life—in immortal life.                  --------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki  lecture - 66-08-17N - as found on shunryusuzuki.com, from one of the newly discovered (2021) lecture tapes. 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. Go to https://www.instagram.com/cuke_archives/ for more daily Shunryu Suzuki lecture excerpts - with a photo.

Tom Silk

Longtime SFZC and personal friend Tom Silk passed away peacefully on the morning of January 25th. His wife Kathleen and daughter Nicole were with him. Kathleen wrote, "Tom passed away yesterday morning.  His health had been deteriorating for quite some time, and the last downward slide was mercifully short.  Until the end he was fully conscious, upbeat, humorous, planning changes to his garden, and speculating about the newest 2020 election revelations until almost the last minute.

He died at home, with characteristic grit and serenity, attended by his daughter Nicole and me. As much as he influenced the development of your organizations, he was in turn influenced by them himself and those influences stood him in good stead personally for the rest of his life."

***

How sad to hear Tom has left us here to be without him. What a great and wonderful person he was. I'm deeply indebted to Tom for his support and advice through the years - and a lot of fun. I was just thinking of him and a song we recently recorded that I wanted him to hear. I will think of him a lot for a while now and I'll send him messages with my heart. I'm glad we've had the talks we've had in recent times, the last one just a couple of months ago. - DC

Please share any thoughts, anecdotes, memories, or, photos of Tom that you are inclined to share here on the Kudoboard.  

Causality

So, characteristic of Buddhist understanding of causality is: one way is mechanical, and we do not ignore freedom. On the other hand, it is teleological, and we do not believe in any perfection. But people believe in perfection, this is a mistake. So, we should be free from those three mistakes: to have idea of perfection as a human bein and to be bound by causality, or to ignore the theory of cause and effect. These three points, at least as far as I know, should be understand to understand causality in its true sense.                 --------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki  lecture - 66-08-17N - as found on shunryusuzuki.com, from one of the newly discovered (2021) lecture tapes. 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. Go to https://www.instagram.com/cuke_archives/ for more daily Shunryu Suzuki lecture excerpts - with a photo.

RIP Thomas Silk

Tom Silk, SF Zen Center's long time tax attorney and good friend and close friend to many of us, has just passed away peacefully at home in Marin County. More on Tom tomorrow. He was a good, kind, generous, brilliant man. Especially important in my life. Thanks for everything Tom! I'll miss you. Gyate Gyate...

Succession

You will find out Buddhist understanding of causality is both materialistic and spiritualistic. And it is endless effort—succession of effort. There is no end, or there is no beginning. There is no beginning and no end; it’s our understanding of life.                --------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki  lecture - 66-08-17N - as found on shunryusuzuki.com, from one of the newly discovered (2021) lecture tapes. 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. Go to https://www.instagram.com/cuke_archives/ for more daily Shunryu Suzuki lecture excerpts - with a photo.

Film on Thich Nhat Hanh streaming for Free for a brief time

Thanks to the Buddhist Film Foundation for streaming Peace is Every Step for free for a short time in honor of Thich Nhat Hsnh. 

Here's their page for Thich Nat Hanh with another link to the film.

On and On

Here, people have some misunderstanding. They think we human beings can attain some goal. But for the human being, and for all the rest of the existence there is no limit in achieving things. Things will go on and on and on. We don't know when it will end.               --------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki  lecture - 66-08-17N - as found on shunryusuzuki.com, from one of the newly discovered (2021) lecture tapes. 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. Go to https://www.instagram.com/cuke_archives/ for more daily Shunryu Suzuki lecture excerpts - with a photo.

A Page in a Book

In her podcast, Liz Horowitz tells about how a single story in a book turned her on to Zen.

The book is called Zen Buddhism: an introduction to Zen with stories, parables, and koan riddles told by the Zen Masters - with cuts from old Chinese Ink Paintings. It was published in 1959 by the Peter Pauper Press, Mt. Verson, New York with no other information so the Peter Pauper Press gets the author credit.  

Here's the book cover, the title page, and the brief story that turned her on all in one PDF. 

Plan

 

So, if your plan is right, to have some goal in your life means to follow the dynamic change of the world. In this way, our life will go on and on and on endlessly. This is right understanding.              --------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki  lecture - 66-08-17N - as found on shunryusuzuki.com, from one of the newly discovered (2021) lecture tapes. 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. Go to https://www.instagram.com/cuke_archives/ for more daily Shunryu Suzuki lecture excerpts - with a photo.