Buddha's Birthday!

On Sunday, May 19, 2019, the day of the full Flower Moon, Shao Shan Temple celebrated Buddha's Birthday with flowers, parasols, bubbles and bells.  An enthusiastic group came together on this perfect spring day to join in a colorful procession, listen to the story of Buddha's Birth, offer sweet tea and partake of festive refreshments!

The Heart of the Way- Judy (Newsletter Article)

HEART OF THE WAY

by

Judy Harden

Every one of us has some pull towards what is true, a pull to wake up. Sometimes this can feel like a search for “something more.” In Japanese this is expressed as “do-shin,” literally “Way – Heart/Mind.” Looking back over our life to see how The Way, The Dharma, The Bodhisattva Mind arose and got cultivated in our life can be a helpful new way to review our own life story. It can also help us to read someone else’s story. Sometimes there is an event or burning question that sparks this deeper aspiration or inquiry in our life.  The following piece by Judy Harden is the 2nd article in this series.

I was an only child, and my parents were estranged from their families. I sought connections beyond those available at school, which led to an early involvement with a church in Alabama. My parents took me and dropped me off. At that church, I had a family of friends my own age and all other ages. I became more and more involved in church activities and saw Jesus as my savior (which startled my parents no end). This involvement began to come apart during my college years, and no other spiritual path emerged for me for many years. I was quite lonely and confused during these years.

I became interested in meditation sometime in my 30’s, partly through my interest and profession in clinical psychology. This eventually led me to Buddhism, and eventually to Joko Beck, one of Maizumi Roshi’s heirs, but a renegade. I practiced with her for many years, going to four sesshins a year from Vermont, and having Dokusan with her by phone every other week. When her health failed, I studied a couple of years with Myotai Treace, another renegade, from Zen Mountain Monastery. She was based in New York, so this was another relationship from a distance, with periodic sesshins at the Garrison Institute. I received the precepts from her and made my first Rakusu. This practice fell apart with her health. I then practiced with Barry Magid from the Ordinary Mind Zendo in New York City; as one of Joko’s heirs, his practice was based in her teachings. I attend 

sesshins there twice a year and have Dokusan with him regularly by phone. I am also in touch from a distance with other students of Barry’s by Zoom every two to three weeks or so.

This is sounding like some kind of “Butterfly Zen” practice, spanning over 30 years. Writing this piece has shown me that what was missing throughout this journey was a face-to-face sangha, the grounding I was struggling to find.

I learned about Shao Shan when I heard they were opening a temple, though Taihaku insisted vehemently that she was NOT a teacher, and she was away in Japan a lot. I was taken aback by the formality of the statues and rituals, given the simplicity of the other settings I had been involved with. I decided not to return.

Then I heard about the Study Group, and thought, “Hmmmm...” Then one amazing opportunity after another emerged. The strong sense of community and generosity here, the diversity of activities and opportunities, the affection and support expressed for each other in so many ways, the respect for ritual, the incomparable teachings and guidance provided by Taihaku and Kenzan; all of this binds us together. I have a strong sense of family here, at last.

That deep loneliness is present at times.  That has not disappeared, but now I know how to experience it when it comes without the fear I used to feel. This is because of our sitting practice together, the Dharma teachings, and the connections I experience at Shao Shan Temple.  To paraphrase Dogen Zenji, “To study the Buddha Way is to study the self; to study the self is to forget the self; to forget the self is to be embraced by the 10,000 things.” This is true for me.

Judy’s Dharma Name, given to her by Rev. Taihaku in 2016, is “JoZen” - meaning “Always-Whole”.

The Story of the Buddha on Shao Shan Temple’s Altar (Newsletter Article)

The Story of the Buddha on Shao Shan Temple’s Altar

By  Rev. Taihaku Priest

When entering the temple, the first impression is the altar directly in front of you.  It is bright, impressive, and energetic. High in the center is a woodcarving of Buddha sitting in zazen posture. It is a common misunderstanding that we worship the altar and the Buddha. This statue is not to be worshiped but to remind us that by practicing zazen, we too can cultivate a full flowering of spirit.

Our Buddha was gifted to Shao Shan Temple for the Opening Ceremony in the year 2000. It was gifted by my teacher, Shinkai Tanaka Roshi (Dochosan). At that time, he had a temple in the outskirts of Kyoto, Japan. There was a temple member from the small hamlet which was clustered below on the terraced hillside who heard that my teacher would be leading the opening ceremony in America for Shao Shan Temple. This person was deeply affected by the significance of Buddhism being transmitted to America and wished to make an offering to Shao Shan. It was suggested that he could sponsor the commission to have a Buddha statue carved. And so it happened.

The sculptor and I had known each other for many years and he was my teacher’s friend. I sent the sculptor the measurements of the altar and of the space within which the Buddha would sit. With this information, he designed a statue of perfect proportions for its current location. The wood of the statue is the heartwood of a cherry tree which had been immersed and cured in a river for 50 years. When I was sent the initial sketch of the Buddha, I was concerned because the features of the face appeared stern. It would be a predicament for me if I did not like the face of the finished Buddha.

On the day that the Buddha arrived in a large wooden crate, I was full of anticipation. Coincidentally, on this day, Jun-san, a Buddhist nun, had come to visit. Together we knelt down and uncrated the Buddha. When the face was revealed, I was completely delighted and exclaimed, “She is beautiful” And she/he is. The face of our Buddha, which reigns throughout Shao Shan, is gentle and accessible. We prepared wildflowers and offerings of incense and water and had a spontaneous welcome ceremony for our new Buddha. It was still sparkling with the gold dust of the newly born Buddha. Jun-san brought from her car a stainless steel serving dish, which she had just received from an Indian restaurant. We placed the water offering on top of this pedestal. And to this day, we still place the water offering bowl on this Indian restaurant serving dish.

During our very first meditation retreat in our new temple (Rohatsu Sesshin in December, 2000), the woodstove was slowly crackling away. This was the temple’s first winter. The rafter timbers were green. From time to time, the air would split with a CRACK! as the timbers dried and twisted in the heat. Out of concern for the statue, I called the sculptor and asked how to protect the statue with the wood heat. He assured me that this wood was absolutely stable and there was no chance of fracture. But, during that very first sesshin a tremendous thundering crack resounded, shocking our afternoon zazen. The Buddha had burst. It exploded as if in a thundering admonishment to us all - “Wake up! Wake up NOW!” I’m here. You’re here. In the dry winter air, you can see this crack across the chest, but in the summer it closes with the moist air.

This particular statue is a representation of Shakyamuni Buddha (the historical Buddha that lived in India 2500+ years ago). A statue of Shakyamuni Buddha on the altar is traditional in Soto Zen Monasteries in Japan. Around the base of the statue, there are carved Japanese characters which refer to the Wondrous True Dharma Eye.

The Buddha’s hands are in zazen position and there is a crystal globe resting in the hand mudra. This is the traditional “wish fulfilling” Buddha representation. And this wish, at Shao Shan Temple, is tied to peace on our planet. And so, this crystal globe is our wish for global peace. So our lovely Buddha is our companion in practice and reminds us that by our effort and practice goodwill radiates to all the world.