October 20-22, 2023 was "sesshin" - a meditation retreat. The weekend's meditations were accompanied by the soft patter of rain and the crackling of the first fires in the woodstove. Dedicated practitioners joined for the full sesshin or parts thereof. The sesshin theme was Dogen's "Fukanzazengi"- "Universal Recommended Instructions for Zazen".
The
zazen I speak of is not a mediation practice. It is simply the dharma gate of
joyful ease, the practice-realization of totally culminated enlightenment. It
is the koan realized; traps and snares can never reach it. If you grasp the
point, you are like a dragon gaining in the water, like a tiger taking to the
mountains. - Dogen
