Satya Robyn leads a Buddhist practice session with group chanting, refuge recitations, and a reading from Shinran's Kyōgō Shinshō. The group explores bodhisattva practice through reflection on no-discrimination, generosity, and self-awareness, preparing for a continuous chanting event.
Chapters
Good evening everyone. This morning we will begin with Dharma Glimpse by Philip, read by Dave. Thank you.
When Things Fall Apart, glimpse by Philip Walbridge. I've learned sometimes things fall apart in life. It happened to me recently. Things build up, things built up I couldn't let go of or process. There was— so there was an inevitable falling apart. A few days later, as I was piecing myself back together, I was walking towards the Malvern Hills. I was more present now. Things felt fresher and more vibrant. As I walked onto a wooded path, I noticed how many leaves were lying gently there in a beautiful mosaic. I realised a tree is always shedding the leaves each year. It does it quietly and gracefully.. It doesn't seem to cling on to its leaves, and those leaves are essentially— they are essential for the ecosystem. The system needs things to fall apart and be let go of, just as perhaps we do. Things are impermanent. By letting go and opening up, new things can enter and grow. The wound is where the light enters, as Rumi said. I used to think it sounded clever, so I would say it. The depth of its meaning is starting to dawn on me more and more. I won't be the same as I was a few weeks ago. Maybe I'm never the same as I was a few weeks ago. And things falling apart sometimes can perhaps be a positive thing. It reminds us that we are— sorry, we aren't infallible and inviolate. We are vulnerable. Constantly changing creatures with bomboo, ordinary person, nature. Persons, perhaps I'm learning to embrace that vulnerability and ordinary nature rather than fight it. It's okay to fall apart sometimes. Namah Amida Butsu.
Namah Amida Butsu. Thank you very much. We will move into a little bit of silence, but then we're going to have a longer period tonight of chanting, and we will be trying out the new continuous Nembutsu chant that Kusuma channeled from Amida to give, uh, to give us a chance to get to know it a little bit before the continuous chanting in 2 and a half weeks' time on the Saturday after practice. That's 2 weeks on Saturday, I think.
I am sure.
2 and a half weeks. And the words for the chant are Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, so you can just join in with me when you get the hang of it. It's very simple. And if we do find ourselves moving into harmony, that's fine, but that may be a little bit much to expect for today. No need to be.
Nam-myoho-renge-kyo! Amida-butsu— nam myohami dabutsu... amida butsu— nam myohami dabutsu— nammyahamidabutzu— namyhami dabusuuu! Namoha mi dabutsu! Namo Amida Butsu— namo amita butzu... nemo ami da bu tu? —namohami tabutsoh na moa me dabo tsuu! Na mohamidabutoosoo?! Nanomamidebuttoozooo!?
Huh?? I don't know what that was about to be called there for some reason.
...Namu Amidabootsuum??? Now Mo Ame Dabbootsuoouhuhoophaahmehi Da Bu Tsummaaa Ummumumu Mu Namoo Mumushimashima Eeeyeeeiiiiehhiiihiiiihiyeeeahhhh!!!
Nahmo hamidae boo-tsssss-u-hoooo-chen-na-moho-amideboo-tsukku-kun-nomo-a-me-da-boot-su!
Namenowame-daabooth-sohm eemowo amidooboom tsum ma amo muda-buru TSUUM!! ami dabootu! Namoo ani da boo too? Now mo ame tabo to nammo armi dabo tu na muhammi dabutam— Namo Amida Bu... To la muhami Daburu Tu Na Muha Mi Da Boo Tum Nah Mo Ame Tabuu Namoha mi dabu tu! Namhoa me da buh? Tu namoa mida-buh-tsu na-moami-da-booh-to nahmooa-me-dabooth-uu namo ami dabo to naamowa mí dá bú tchu— Nāmo Ami Da Bu To... "Namohana." Namoo ami dabootu! Namoo ani da boochoo— namoomi dabooshuu... Namoami Dabutthiu? Nahmooo ammi Da Boochhoo?! Na moo-ah-mee-da-booth-chew!? Nanwoo-am-mee-daaa-bboo-thchuw??? Now who am I to tell you what's true?? Anymore!! Whoa-hoaammmii dih buwwtchuw!!! Namoha mi dabutsu! Namo ami da butsu— namo amida buchu... namoami dabusuu? —namohamidabutshhu. namohamidadbusushyu ...Namo hami dadusu?! Namoo ami dabootu! Namo Amida Butsu— namo amidabutsu... namo amidabooshuu? —namooda buddhu na moami dhabutshhiii! Na moo amy da boodchu?! Namu Amida Butsu! Namo Amidabutsu— namo amidabutso... namo amidabutsu... namo ami dabusu... nama ami dabusuuu... namo ami dabussssss? Namo Amida Butsu! Namo Amida Butsu! Namu Amidabutsu— namo amidabutzu... nami wa midabuzu na mo ami dabutsu namo amidabu tsuu nanmo ami dabooshuu namo amis da boo. Namu Amida Butsu! Namo Amidabutsu— namo amidabutzu... nammu ami dabuu tsuu? Namo amidabuttsu— namooami da bu tssuuu?! "Namu ami dabbuu tsuu!" Namu Amida Butsu! Namo Amidabutsu— namo amidabutzu... namo amidabutzu... namo ami dabutsu... namo ami dabutsu... namo ami daboosuuu... namo ami da boo? Namo Amida Butsu! Namo Amida Butsu! Namu Amitabha— —Butsu... Namu Amidabutsu... Namu Amidabutzu... Namu Amidabuttsu... Namu Amidabhu... Namu Amida Butsu! Namo Amidabutsu—Namu Amita Buzu... Namu Amida Butsu! Namo Amitabha— Su? Namu Amidabhu... su? Namu Amidabhu... su? Namu Ame Dhabbu... namo amitabhutzu! Namu amidahbuttu!
For refuge, I go to Amida. For refuge, I go to Amida, the one who is awake and full of love. The one who is awake and knowledgeable. Namo Buddha. Namo Buddha. For refuge I go to the Dharma.
For refuge I go to the Dharma.
All that guides us to wisdom and compassion. All that guides us to wisdom and compassion. Namo Dharmaya. Namo Dharmaya. For refuge I go to the Sangha. For refuge I go to the Sangha. Those who live in the Buddha's light. Those who live in the Buddha's light. Namo Sanghaya. Nam-myoho-renge-kyo— With faith in The Three Jewels , And in light of my human tendencies, I pray that I may become aware... Of when I take life? I pray that I may become aware of when I fall into wrong speech? I pray that I may become aware I pray that I may become aware of when I take what is not freely given—of when I say 'what is not really good.' Then I pray that I may become aware—I pray this time they come away—when I fall into sexual misconduct—sexual misconduct. I pray that I may become aware—that's fine—they've been coming over—of when I become intoxicated—or we might be from me toxicated. No blame. No blame. Be kind. Be kind. Love everything. Love everything.
Innumerable are sentient beings. We vow to save them all. Inexhaustible are deluded passions. We vow to transform them all. Immeasurable are the Dharma teachings. We vow to master them all. Infinite is the Buddha's way. We vow to forfeit Completely.
So we'll just be doing 8 or 9 or 10 times as long as we did today, just for starter, and then we can build up to 24 hours again. I missed that. So today I'm reading from the Kyōgō Shinshō, which is Shinran's kind of magnus opus. And I have to confess that I don't know it very well. I haven't spent much time with it because it's mostly quotes from other Buddhist texts that Shinran's kind of using to prove his his thinking or to, um, to make a point. Um, I prefer to read the, the texts that are just Shinran. But I just opened this before coming upstairs tonight, and this was the section that I, um, found, which, which is Shinran speaking. So he says There is no world where the bodhisattva's light does not shine on the Buddha assemblies, with no exceptions. Innumerable multitudes of beings who are gathered there, with no exceptions, make offerings to all Buddhas, pay respect to them, and praise the merits of the Buddha Tathagatas. The gatha reads: Showeringly heavenly music, flowery robes, wondrous incense and other things. The Bodhisattva makes offerings to all the Buddhas and praises their merits, yet he possesses no mind of discrimination. With no exception means that he visits every assembly under every Buddha in all the worlds, that there is not one world, not one assembly that he does not reach. I just really enjoy the description of the offerings that he made with the robes and the wondrous incense, but it makes me think about that quality of bodhisattvas, that they are making offerings to all the Buddhas and to all the Buddhas' assemblies, that there is no discrimination. Um, so what that means is if we're heading towards being bodhisattvas, or if we're aiming in that direction, that we can't just make lovely offerings to the people that we really like, or the people that we want something from, or the people that are easy to make wondrous offerings to. We have to have a mind of no discrimination. And make offerings to everyone. And as soon as I have that thought, I have various parts in me that go, ah, no, um, just thinking back over my week and some of the people that have been maybe a little bit tricky, or people that have been annoyed at me, or people that have, um, thought of themselves and not of me in ways that have been quite distressing. Uh, how can I have no discrimination? It, it sounds impossible. And so there's another piece which I feel has been really helpful to me as I've got older, which is really acknowledging when it's difficult for me to make offerings to certain people. And sometimes it's difficult for me to make an offering to anyone because I just haven't got anything left in my tank, in which case I need to find some way, if I can, of filling my tank back up. And sometimes it's a particular person or a particular part of a particular person that makes it really hard for me to access that feeling of generosity, in which case I need to be curious about what it is, what's going on there. What is it about the other person that's really bugging me? What does that show me about myself? What seems to be really annoying for me, at least, is that the qualities that I really don't like in other people are the qualities that parts of me really don't like in myself and, um, kind of go to try and avoid at all costs or deny the existence of all costs. So sometimes that's what's being shown to us when we find it difficult to offer something to someone, is that they are displaying qualities that are kind of repellent to us. In our own selves. And so these two things together are really important, that we, that we know where we're heading for, which is to have no discrimination, that we're just as generous to stranger on the street than we are to our best friend. And then on the other hand, really deeply acknowledging the reality of our own systems, of our own psychology, of our own history, of our own present day, our own parts, and not expecting that we're going to be able to just push that away. That we can do that in the short term, but in the long term it leads to trouble, to resentment, to passive aggression, to burnout, to all kinds of unfortunate things. And as Pure Land Buddhists, our bomboo nature is something that we can return to. How, um, how am I bomboo? What is Satya Robyn nature? What are my tendencies? What are my, um, blind spots? What are my habit patterns that get me into trouble? Um, and of course remembering as a container to the whole thing that with all that bambu nature, with all that Satya Robyn nature, all that feeny bambu nature, all that Angie bambu nature, that we are acceptable and lovable just as we are. Namaste.
Namaste.
Namaste.
Namaste. Namaste.
We offer this incense to all Buddhas and Bodhisattvas throughout space and time. May it be fragrant as the Earth herself, reflecting our careful efforts, our wholehearted awareness, and the fruits of understanding slowly ripening. May we and all beings, the companions, the Buddhas, other disciples, may we awaken from ignorance and realize what you are. A reminder that after the closing verse, we'll leave the shrine room itself. Oh yeah, we're gonna try me going first, so that means someone else will need to open the door. We'll do that, shall we? Yeah, yeah, so if you can, that'd be great. Thanks, Anne. That's what we used to do in the old days. So the celebrant leaves first, but someone else goes to just prop the door open, just to kind of formally end, and then everyone else leaves. Blessed by Amitabha's light, may we care for all living things and may they be at peace.
