Paul leads a group Buddhist practice session with guided breathing and chanting. The session includes Nembutsu recitation, refuge and precepts, and commentary on Buddha-nature, along with an incense offering.
Chapters
Welcome everybody. It's Paul with some training this evening, and joined by Beth and Philip. We'll begin with a Dharma glimpse by Dziamey, who isn't here, but Anja is going to read it for us. Since the beginning of the year, I've been engaged in the Million Man Bhutsi to practice 2,700 a day for 365 days, recited rapidly over 25 minutes.
I found that it has really reignited my love for practice just for the sake of practice. I didn't feel lacking in my spiritual life or a particular need for stronger faith. Just felt like a nice thing to do. My memories of the practice from previous years left me with a warm and inspiring feeling that I have felt many times in my spiritual life and I now associate with devotional practices. It feels like my gesture of love for the Buddha is being reciprocated. As the Nembutsu acts like a conductor between myself and Amida. Practice is inseparable from awakening. The art— the act of practice is imbued with the seed of faith. To take part in spiritual practice is to embody the principles of enlightenment as demonstrated by Shakyamuni thousands of years ago. We are still benefiting from his vision and his inspiration, but without our participation, there would be nothing to enjoy. Nothing to pass on. We might exist in very different worlds and lead very different lives, but when we come together, we collectively manifest the things that we love by turning up for and engaging in practice, we make the heart of Buddhism beat. We breathe life into our dreams and spiritual aspirations.
Namu Amida Butsu. Thank you.
So we'll go into a period of quiet sitting together. And I want to make an invitation to you that is similar to an invitation that was made to me when we were doing koan practice in the retreat a couple of weeks ago. Rinryu led the practice, and the invitation was, as you breathe out, to say the words of koan or a particular question. And as you breathe in, just to see what response appears, not trying to work anything out, just noticing what's around and what's arising. So recently I've taken that form, but using the words of the Nembutsu in my practice. As I breathe out, saying to myself, Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. And as I breathe in, noticing what returns. Sometimes that's a clearer sense of myself, sometimes a sense of the Buddha, sometimes just what's happening, you know, what's around for me on that particular day. So that's the invitation as we breathe out, saying the words Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, either perhaps inviting connection with the Buddha or remembering connection with the Buddha. And as we breathe in, just noticing any response. And there's no right or wrong response, just, uh, yeah. Well, I guess that's enough instruction. So if you're curious, joining with me in this practice So we'll move into a chanting practice, chanting Om Amidaewa, free Tibetan form of Nembutsu. I'll put the words in the chat.
Om Mani Deva Hari. Om Mani Deva Hari.
Om Mani Deva Om Ami De Wa Rie.
Om Ami De Wa Rie. Om Ami De Wa Rie.
Omami de wa ri.
Omami de wa ri. Omami de wa ri.
Omami de wa ri.
Oh, Mami de Wari. Oh, Mami de Wari. Oh, Mami de Oh, Mami de Wari. Oh, Mami de Wari.
Omami de wa ri.
Omami de wa ri. Omami de wa ri.
Ama mide wa ri.
Oh, mide wa ri. Oh, Mami de Wari.
Oh, Mami de Wari.
Om Amitewari. Om Amitewari.
Om Amitewa. Om Amidevaari.
Om Amidevaari. Om Amidevaari.
Oh, ma mi de wa ri.
Oh, ma mi de wa ri. Omami Deva Hari.
Omami Deva Re.
Omami Deva Om Amideva Hari.
Om Amideva.
Om Amideva.
For refuge I go to the Buddha.
For refuge I go to the Buddha.
Namo Buddhaya.
Namo Buddhaya.
For refuge I go to the Dharma.
For refuge I go to Dharma—
Namo Dharmaya! For refuge I go to Sangha— Namah Sangaiah!
With faith in the Three Jewels—I pray that I may not take life—with faith in the Three Jewels—I pray that I may not steal; I pray I may not steal—
With faith in The Three Jewels . —with Faith In 3 jewels? prayed that...
...may fall into sexual misconduct...] With Faith In The Three Jewels... ...)with them at three tools.....
I prayed that I made out for all wrong speeches....
...might praise him enough or two long-speech...) .....with Faith In The Three Jewels With faith in the Three Jewels, I pray that I may avoid intoxication. I pray that I may avoid intoxication.
No blame. No blame. Be kind. Be kind. Love everything.
Love everything.
Innumerable are sentient beings.
We vow to save them all. Inexhaustible are the rooted 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 fulfill it completely.
Namo Amitabha.
In the Alta Sutra it says, who would have expected that the self-nature is fundamentally pure and clean? Who would have expected that the self-nature is fundamentally beyond birth and death? I just read that earlier from a website called dailyzen.com that does a different quote each day. And beyond birth and death. So the Buddha nature persists beyond this lifetime. There is something outside of birth and death. Often in Buddhism just means this world with all its suffering. But of course also it means an encapsulated lifetime, a lived lifetime. That Buddha nature is beyond a lived lifetime. Reverend Koshin Schomburg talks about the eternal, the Buddha as eternal. And here it's talking about self-nature, something in us that is of the same quality as the Buddha, that persists beyond birth and death, that is fundamentally clean and pure. So the, the heart-mind of Amida and all the cosmic Buddhas are fundamentally clean and pure. Emptiness is fundamentally clean and pure. It is without the three defilements, without greed, without ill will, without ignorance. And Amita's always dwelling in that place with his big spacious mind, with their big spacious heart, welcoming all beings, a natural outpouring of loving kindness into the whole universe. I was going to say we're not always dwelling in that place. Maybe some of you are. I'm not always dwelling in that place. Fundamentally, my self-nature may be of the same quality, the same stuff, the same emptiness, but relatively speaking, that's covered up. With the three defilements on day-to-day basis. Sometimes when we're meeting the Buddha, trusting that energy is out there. Or sometimes it's a real felt sense that our heart-mind clears and we're in that space for a moment, and the Buddha's in that space, and we're both Buddhas together. That could be a really lovely experience. Sometimes we're in our everyday minds calling out to the Buddha, and it feels more like asking Is anybody there? Like when Roshi comes into the house going, wow, wow, wow, wow, and at some point to go, oh hi, hello, welcome back. And maybe one day he's telling me that he's wet, and maybe one day he's telling me he's bored to leave him, but mostly I think what he's saying is Is anybody there? Is anybody there? And I really trust that when we call out that, something responds. And it's not just an echo. It's not like standing under a bridge and calling out and hearing a kind of an echoey version of our own voice coming back. There is something distinct that sometimes responds, or that always responds, but sometimes As well as calling out, we also have our fingers in our ears. Sometimes it responds with some specific suggestion or guidance or nudge. And sometimes, more often than not, it's simply, 'I'm here, I'm here, I'm here. You're not on your own.' Mostly that's enough, just to be loved, just to have a loving presence next to us. Yeah, so sometimes nembutsu is one fundamentally clean and pure mind, heart-mind. Speaking out to another. And sometimes it's one relatively defiled heart-mind calling out for a completely clean and pure one. Occasionally, recently, when I have been doing nembutsu, I get the sense of the kind of, a kind of felt sense of a presence behind me, and I take this almost to be the Buddha saying I've got your back. Namaste.
We offer this incense to all Buddhas and Bodhisattvas throughout space and time. May it be fragrant as Earth herself, reflecting our careful efforts, our wholehearted awareness, and the fruits of understanding slowly ripening. May we and all beings be companions of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. May we wake from forgetfulness. Realize our true self.
Blessed by Amitābha's light, may we care for all living things and the holy land.
Nam-myoho-renge-kyo.
