Zengriff-v2 - Zengriff

"Because Zen seekers are searching too eagerly, they think there must be a special principle, so they try to describe it to themselves mentally, in a subjective way. Thus they are swept by the machinations of emotive and intellectual conciousness into something that is created and will perish." - Yingan Tanhua (1103-1163)

Awkwardness is natural when you don’t fit into the choreography of the consensus.

Meet awkwardness with mindfulness; keep your sense of humor but do not conform.

Be at ease amidst discomfort. You’re good.

Therein can be found a lovely balance between charming and subversive.

If we are completely present to whatever is arising, we can stretch beyond our self-imposed limits; we can endure what may seem unendurable.

- Shinge Roko Cherry Shayat Roshi

"When we take refuge it means we understand that we can only find a remedy for our suffering in the enlightened aspect of ourselves, in our own inner primordial awareness"

Dr Nida Chenagtsang

“When you go out into the woods, and you look at trees, you see all these different trees. And some of them are bent, and some of them are straight, and some of them are evergreens, and some of them are whatever. And you look at the tree and you allow it. You see why it is the way it is. You sort of understand that it didn’t get enough light, and so it turned that way. And you don’t get all emotional about it. You just allow it. You appreciate the tree. The minute you get near humans, you lose all that. And you are constantly saying ‘You are too this, or I’m too this.’ That judgment mind comes in. And so I practice turning people into trees. Which means appreciating them just the way they are.”

— Ram Dass

Today, I found myself heading to a Buddhist temple for an addiction recovery meeting and meditation session. Initially, I was overwhelmed with anxiety, my mind racing with all the ways things could go wrong. Why? Because the mind, though a powerful tool, is just that—a tool. It should be used only when needed; otherwise, it will create problems simply to justify its own activity, becoming an addiction in itself.

As I made my way there, I became aware of the vibrations of the music resonating in my ears, the wind brushing against my face, the comfort of my seat—each moment was rich with joy. Yet, we so rarely tap into the immediate joy available to us in the present.