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                                                                                      6-29-19

Gain and Loss


We begin with an opening chant that sets our intention, both for ourselves and for others:   “Universal Well-Being”

May I/everyone abide in well-being
In freedom from affliction
In freedom from hostility
In freedom from ill-will
And may I/they maintain well-being in myself/themselves

This gives us an initial direction for our spiritual practice. We want to experience well-being which is more than just a temporary happiness. Rather it is something that is deeper and more lasting, something that can remain with us even during difficult times.

Another word for spirtual practice is cultivation (bhavana in Pali). This implies ongoing attention to what can be developed. Our aim in this thematic study is to learn from the example of nature and apply these lessons to our life. The Buddha chose to use similes from nature to illustrate many of his points, i.e. handful of leaves. 

Today we will look at gain and loss (aka success and failure) as part of the natural unfolding. How do we define gain and loss and is it a reliable measure of our well-being?  

Usually, we assess gain and loss based on our personal preferences: 


1.  If we want something and it happens, we consider that to be gain. 

2. If we want something and it doesn’t happens, we consider that to be loss. 
3. If we don’t want something and it doesn’t happen, that can also be gain (although less often recognized)
4. If we don’t want something and it happens, we consider that as loss. 

My own example from tending the garden: I planted many seeds. They germinated and began to sprout but insects ate them before they had a chance to get strong and resilient. Consequently, I don’t have a crop of beans, carrots or beets.

Problem: the sense of entitlement - these beans are "mine" just because I planted them (clinging/wanting/expecting). When the plants don’t survive, I suffer, thinking “I won’t have a harvest for myself and for other CSA members. How can I not suffer? 

    Let go of the sense of entitlement (it’s mine)
    Recognize impermanence/uncertainty
    Rejoice that the insects have food and that they are building soil
    Plant more seeds somewhere else
    Kill the insects 

Which of these responses demonstrate generosity, kindness and clarity (the three wholesome roots of action)?

Inquiry

Think of some examples from your own life (see the four types of gain and loss listed above).

Now ask yourself, "Is the gain really a good thing in and of itself"? Does it provide lasting satisfaction? Is there a way that it could lead to something that is not so helpful, i.e. complacency or harm to others who feel differently? Example: I get a raise at work. I use this money to go gambling so I can get even more money.

Is failure always a “bad” thing? Or is there a way that it could lead to something beneficial for you and/or be good for others?  Example: I don’t want it to rain on the day of my picnic. It rains. The plants and animals get a drink.

How does this apply to our meditation practice? Do  you consider the following to be gain/progress or loss/failure?

I have peace of mind when I meditate……
My thoughts are all over the place when I meditate…..
My body feels relaxed and at ease when I meditate…..
There is pain in my back and legs when I meditate….

What makes the difference in our experience? Is it what is happening or our how we view what is happening which then determines our reaction to our experience?  Can we see the same experience from a different angle and experience less/no stress? Consider this Chinese parable.

On a collective level, how does our society view gain or “progress”? Do you think that this way of measuring things is helpful? What does it lead to? How is it similar or different from the example of using one's raise to go gambling?

Revisiting the chant: “Universal Well-Being”

May I/everyone abide in well-being
In freedom from affliction
In freedom from hostility
In freedom from ill-will
And may I/they maintain well-being in myself/themselves

Is the affliction, hostility and ill will something that is imposed on me from the outside or does it have to do with my view and attitude toward what is happening? What helps me to abide free from affliction, hostility and ill will?
​        

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Earth Touching Mudra, 6-22-19

In most religions there are symbols, statues and drawings that represent  key teachings or are used as avenues of worship, reflection or practice. In Buddhism we don’t actually worship the Buddha and yet frequently there are Buddha statues and other iconography displayed in temples and Dharma halls. This iconography is something that we may or may not relate to depending on how we view them.
                    
Let’s look at a few.


In fact, the Buddha never asked anyone to make a statue of him and never encouraged people to treat him like a God. When asked how to deal with his body after death, the Buddha simply suggested the traditional way of honoring a teacher which was to pile a mound of rocks on top of the place where s/he died. Hence, we have the stupa which is a memorial often usually containing the ashes or relics of the teacher inside. It is usually rounded on the bottom and goes upward pointing towards the sky, possibly signifying the connection between the Earthly realm and the heavenly or sublime realm. 

You may have noticed that the Buddha statues vary in posture. They depict different events and qualities that were exemplified in the Buddha’s life. They can be inspirations for us if we understand their meaning. 

The Bhumisparsha or Touching the Earth Mudra depicts the Buddha sitting with one hand raised to show that he’s teaching, the other reaching down to touch the Earth below. It represents the moment that Buddha finally defeated all the snares of Mara and gained Enlightenment. Mara, the Tempter, asks who will stand as witness to his right to gain Enlightenment. Buddha reaches down and touches the Earth as he says, “The Earth is my witness.”

As the legend goes, the Buddha made a strong determination not to get up from his seat until he achieved full enlightenment. Mara comes with his army to defeat the Buddha because Mara would rather have people remain in ignorance. Whether or not we look at Mara as external or internal, the temptations to move away from clear seeing are strong. In the case of the Buddha they came in several forms:

temptation to power, gain, honor and reknown
temptation toward sensual pleasures which are fleeting
tempation toward an easy life without challenges or struggle
temptation toward excitement 

That’s when the Buddha touches the Earth, claiming it as his witness. Why does the Buddha touch the Earth? How does the Earth serve as his witness?

Here's one of many commentaries that I have found useful for contemplation: 

“When Buddha touched the Earth, he accepted the Earth, just as it is. Not an Earth that was re-made into what HE wanted, but the Earth, sky, oceans and rivers, just as they were at that moment. No waiting for it to be better, no waiting for it to change. But the Earth, with all it’s beauty and horror and disasters, as it was in that moment. It introduced an entirely new way of looking at time. Time, for the Buddha, stopped existing. 

 Not in the literal sense, of course. But from a practical viewpoint, time had effectively stopped. Because Buddha never again obsessed over the past, or feared what the future might bring. He didn’t worry about yesterday or tomorrow. He simply existed outside of the flow of time: Past or future.
 
With that one act, he found the timelessness inside of time. He found that true time is only to be found in THIS moment. Not tomorrow, not yesterday, not this morning, but right now. There IS no time if you live in the moment, going from moment to moment to moment, accepting what is and what is not. 

Simply saying to yourself, “This moment will never exist again. I will savor and capture it fully. I will experience it fully, right now, before it escapes. We say, “Time marches on.” With that one act of touching the Earth, Buddha stopped the march with a single gesture. He taught us to look for the timelessness within time. To stop, not to smell the roses, but to save ourselves. To stop the endless march toward an unknown future somewhere out there. To stop running from past regrets. In the end, to just stop. Because this moment of timelessness is all we ever really have. Just this moment. No other. Just this one timeless moment which includes everything.”            
                                                                                           Cindy Bird, Huffington Post

Here's another commentary that adds a different perspective: 

“Just before he realized enlightenment, it is believed that the demon Mara tried to frighten him with the armies of demons and monsters including his daughters who tried to tempt him to get out of meditation under the Bodhi tree. While the demon king Mara claimed the throne of enlightenment for himself, his demon army claimed to be the witness for Mara's enlightenment. Mara then challenged Siddhartha about the witness. Then the former prince reached out his right hand to touch the earth as it is believed that the earth itself roared "I bear you the witness!" Hearing the roar from the earth herself, the demon king disappeared. The following morning saw the first appearance of the one who is awakened, the Buddha. 

Hence, it is believed that the Bhumisparsha mudra, or "the earth witness" mudra commemorates the Buddha's victory over the temptation by the demon King Mara.This particular mudra does not only represent the defeat of Mara and his demonic army by the Buddha, it also represents the unwavering or firmness shown by the Buddha while he was in the pursuit of enlightenment by meditating under the Bodhi tree.”

Whether you think of this legend as fact or parable, please take the essence of the teaching and see how it applies to your life. Here are a few of my own observations of Mara’s temptations compared to the Buddha’s response:

Mara’s temptation                                            The Buddha’s example__

​power over the Earth - using                                                     connection with the Earth, humble
force over people and nature                                                    non-combative (turning arrows into flowers)


promises satisfaction in the future                                          discovers satisfaction in the present moment      
 
attention directed outward                                                       attention directed inward                                                                    


distracting with excitement of                                                 recognizing the impermanence of all                  
sensual pleasures                                                                         conditions leads to dispassion and contentment



What does the Buddha touching the Earth mudra signify to you?

Inquiry and Discussion Questions:
​

1.  What snares of Mara do you experience in your life? What gets you off track, distracts you, or undermines your confidence?

2.  Do you ever feel like taking the easy way out instead of looking directly at a situation to see how things really are -either internally or externally?

3.  What fears come up when you are faced with looking at matters deeply?

​4.  In this very moment - leaving aside both past and future - upon what can you rest with confidence? What do you connect with that serves as a witness to your capacity to awaken?

Tell us what you think.

7/2/2017 1 Comment

What is certain?

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   "When nothing is certain, everything is possible."

One of the central teachings of Buddhism is impermanence or uncertainty (Pali: anicca). As a concept, it is pretty easy to accept on an intellectual level. And yet we continually resist it's application throughout our lives. Intrinsically, it is a law of nature that is neither bad nor good; only our relationship to the circumstances in which it arises makes it appear to be so. For example, if I like something, I don't want it to change and tend to resist or get angry when it does. If I dislike what is happening, I welcome the change. If I am indifferent or ignoring of a particular condition, then I usually don't pay attention the transition because it doesn't impact me personally. Nonetheless change happens.

Another translation of the word anicca is "uncertain". We readily accept this law of nature as it pertains to the weather, the stock market and the price of gas but we tend to overlook or even deny that it applies to significant relationships, our health or our eventual death. Moreover, we cling to beliefs, ideas and emotions as being substantial, thereby creating an  identity that we falsely rely upon. When our assumptions and beliefs are countered, we become offended or feel undermined as an individual or group. Furthermore, our investment in this self-made illusion requires sustaining, defending and embellishing if we take it too seriously.

Underlying this craving for certainty is the feeling that we need to control our circumstances in order to face what we perceive to be a potentially threatening future. We are living in times where there is much anxiety in relation to the political, social and ecological influences that bear heavily on our lives. The powers that be are unpredictable and the game is not being played according to the rules we used to count on. Hence, fear, aggression and despair are on the rise, leading to a variety of divisive and harmful consequences.

We can easily feel justified and righteous in the position that we take, rarely acknowledging that other viewpoints have validity. It requires discernment to sift through the myriad and diverse "facts" that are presented by the media. Most often, we select the ones that confirm the perceptions that we have already adopted. Once the Buddha was asked by some villagers how they should know which of the many assertions made by itinerant teachers was true. In response, he cautioned against believing in things simply because they seem agreeable, are popular views or are touted by authorities. Instead, he encouraged us to know directly how our beliefs impact the way we live. Do they lead to wholesome actions - those devoid of greed, hatred and delusion - and are they for the welfare of all beings?

Rather than shrinking from uncertainty, what would happen if we embraced it? Before labeling something as "good" or "bad", "right" or "wrong", can we be open to the possibility that the change we experience may lead to a variety of responses. In the long run, some events may even prove to be necessary and helpful? The fact that we don't know for certain what the outcome of events will be does not limit the fluidity of the situation (except in our mind where the contraction is felt as suffering).

Without the reactivity of grasping or pushing away, we come into an intimate relationship with what is happening in the moment. Only then can we begin to see the situation clearly. By observing our own body and mind, we can know directly the effect that our views have on our well-being. Are we tense, agitated, riled up with anger or are we calm and circumspect with a heart that is open to the pain of others?  As we learn to relate with honesty and clarity to what is happening, it becomes possible to transform our stressful experience into one that yields insight. With deeper understanding, compassion arises. Together the two open the way for the most creative and skillful response possible.
 


1 Comment
Ayya
6/23/2019 11:29:17 am

Here are a few quotes by different people that relate to the above theme:

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the difference in being optimistic and hopeful. I would say that I am a hopeful person, though not necessarily optimistic. The pessimist would say, “It’s going to be a terrible winter. We’re all going to die. The optimist would say, “Oh it will be alright. I don’t think it will be all that bad. The hopeful person will say, “Maybe somebody will still be alive in February so I’m going to put some potatoes in the root cellar just in case.”(Barbara Kingsolver)

Wise hope is born of radical uncertainty, rooted in the unknown and unknowable. Wise hope requires that we open ourselves to what we do not know, what we cannot know, that we open ourselves to being perpetually surprised. In the spaciousness of radical uncertainty, of surprise, is also the space in which we can engage.It’s when we discern courageously and deeply and at the same time realize we don’t know what will happen, that wise hope comes alive. It comes alive in the midst of improbability, impermanence and possibility. We cannot know what will happen between now and the future, yet we can trust that things will change…they always do…But our actions, how we live, what we care about, how we care really do matter all the same. (Roshi Joan Halifax)

We are not victims of fate or a higher power…From this perspective we can say that hope opens us to a wider horizon or to deeper and unexpected possibilities. (Thanissaro Bhikkhu)

But you can do something. The difference between doing something and doing nothing is everything. (Father Daniel Berigan)

Do not find fault with the present…see it, don’t flee it. (Zen Master Hazan)

Hope is not the conviction that something will turn out well but that something makes sense regardless of how it will turn out. (Vaclav Havel)

To live without hope is to cease to live. Indifference kills. (Dostoevsky)

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    ​Ayya Dhammadhira is a Buddhist monastic trained in the Thai Forest Tradition in lineage of Ajahn Chah. She spent eleven years at Amaravati and Chithurst Buddhist Monasteries in England from 2001-2012.  In 2012,  she took the higher ordination as a bhikkhuni in Los Angeles, CA.  As an alms mendicant bhikkhuni living outside the support structure of a monastery, Ayya Dhammadhira relies on the ongoing support of individuals like you to continue her practice and service in community.

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