Reflections

The Fifth Vow Before those who walk with me And those who have already walked Before all beings living and non-living Before my teacher Who has lit the way: I vow this day to stay awake Body, speech and mind For the rest of my life That every one of my breaths sustain the rising sun Of perfect awareness, That every step I take be humble as a bow, That I know each moment to be the expression of complete wholeness, Sure of this Light that nothing can extinguish Because it has shined since before the beginning of time, That fear and uncertainty crumple like paper in the flames Of this most precious gift: To stay awake I devote myself entirely and with gratitude To unceasingly fulfill the four vows. Le cinquième vœu Devant vous qui cheminez avec moi Devant tous ceux qui ont cheminé avant nous Devant tous les êtres, Devant mon maître Qui a éclairé la voie: Je fais vœu aujourd’hui de rester éveillée De parole, de corps et d’esprit, Pour le reste de mes jours : Que chacun de mes souffles ...

Tired with all these, for restful death I cry, As to behold desert a beggar born ~ William Shakespeare I am now capable of feeling humiliated, vexed, without any other feeling in me than the feeling of this state, and of remaining there motionless, my understanding having wiped out my reflex attempts at flight. ~Hubert Benoit  What should I do when I have been humiliated, violated or disgraced by someone else’s actions? Does it make any difference whether the action was intentional, or not? Objectively, there isn’t any difference. That is why, from a karmic point of view, one is responsible for the consequences of even unconscious actions. Subjectively, however, at the level of intentionality, there is a difference. When a harmful action is undertaken knowingly or, worse, deliberately, then, in addition to being responsible for its consequences, one is morally accountable as well. When I trip over someone’s foot, it is relatively easy for me to pick myself up, brush off the incide...

The torch of chaos and doubt -- this is what the sage steers by. (Chuang Tzu) Homage to all seekers! A prayer for sesshin Lord, have mercy, give me Doubt! That my cup o’erfloweth with the fire of my own thirst Until I am thoroughly drenched with my own torment Bewildered but unlost The ship the shout the step away From One divided Amidst the bedlam and confusion Into the gap between exile and home Pray I hear The sound of silence Sing the ocean’s silver starried hush And be myself The hallowed hum of OM