This content was created by Satya Robyn. This content was uploaded by Satya Robyn. This is a YouTube recording titled "Practice - weather & nothing to say" (created 2022-11-02) of a Buddhist practice session. The excerpt includes a short Dharma glimpse/read by Jamé (Jahmay Dunsby) about illness, uncertainty, and human vulnerability; guided meditation instructions; group chanting of Amitabha Buddha and recitation of the refuges and precepts/Bodhisattva vows; brief Dharma reflections by the leader (on silence, rest, and Pure Land teachings); prostration instructions; and logistical announcements about a retreat and a book group. Participants include Jamé (Jahmay Dunsby), a practice leader/facilitator (Speaker B), other attendees referenced as Speaker A and Speaker D, and named community members (Beth, Casper, James, See, Graeme, Angie, Naga Priya). The content is a religious/practice talk and group ritual rather than a multi-party conversational transcript.
Chapters
Namaste.
Lovely to see you all. So we will begin this evening with a Dharma glimpse, um, by Jamé. A Dharma glimpse is just a little story with a flash of insight in it. Um, so James has kind agree to read it for us. I will hand the mic over to you.
Murphy's Law, Dharma Glimpse by Jahmay Dunsby. As I set out for a walk in the rain during a period of COVID convalescence the other day, I realized that I was too cold without my hat. I had already walked about 100 yards but turned back and trapsed upstairs to find a suitable covering to protect my balding head from the elements. When I set off again, I realised in my weakened state that my legs were too cold and I could already feel dampness in my jeans as the wind drove sheets of rain sideways into me. So I made my way back to the house to get another layer. After a third trip back to get a brolly, I was finally set to enjoy some quality time in nature. Despite the continuous nagging of my worry, reminding me how fragile I was. When I emerged out of the front door, it had stopped raining altogether, and the wind had dropped significantly. I suddenly felt overdressed, too hot, and bored of the idea of having a walk. However, I was somewhat amused by what felt like a universal conspiracy to teach me a lesson about my human nature. I realized that this is a pattern that repeats itself over and again in my life. I tried to insulate myself against suffering, building defenses in every direction, only to find that the worst of my troubles has tunneled underneath, undermining the very ground that I stand on. But what is the lesson here? Because I don't believe that it can be to reach an attitude of indifference towards the trials and tribulations of being human, or to be more efficient in the defenses that we create. Ensuring that we're ready come what may. I think it is more just a gentle nod, a friendly pointer towards the fact that we are not and never can be fully in control of our circumstances. It is uncertainty itself that prepares us for adversity, and adversity that informs the way we proceed in troubled times. Namo Amida Butsu.
Namo Amida Butsu. Thank you so much. Welcome, Beth. Lovely to see you in. Okay, so, uh, we will have some silence together. Um, I was just pausing to see if I could hear the rain, but it sounds like it might have stopped for a little while. I always like listening to the rain in meditation. Um, so instead you can listen to the no rain. As we sit in silence, just allow the noises around you, or the lack of noises around you, to be present. And you can use the sounds a little bit like you might use a candle if you were looking at a candle, or your breath if you were focusing on your breath. I heard once the instruction that you sh— you don't get caught in a single sound or follow that sound. See if you can hear it like a symphony, all the different sounds just kind of together, um, just let them all be there. Um, if that doesn't work, then paying attention to your breath is also good. And we'll have some silence together, and then I will start chanting, um, the name of Amitabha Buddha. So do join in with the chanting when you roughly get the tune, and then we'll have a bit more silence, and then we'll do something else. Nam-myoho-renge-kyo.
Taba, ami taba, ami taba, ami taba. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha. Amitabha.
So now we recite some words together, and they're on your bit of paper, or you can just repeat after me. And we begin with the refuges. For refuge I go to the Buddha.
For refuge I go to the Buddha.
The one who is awake and full of love.
The one who is awake and full of love.
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. For refuge I go to the Sangha. For refuge those who live in the Buddha's light.
Those who live in the Buddhist life.
Namo sanghaya. With faith in the Three Jewels—
with faith in three jewels—
I pray that I may not take life.
I pray this I may not say bye.
With faith in the Three Jewels.
With faith in the Three Jewels.
I pray that I may not steal.
I pray that I may not steal—
With faith in The Three Jewels! —With Faith In 3 Jews — I pray that I might fall into sexual misconduct— —with faith in The Three Jewels! —We have to pay attention for sure also—I pray that time you're falling through wrongspeech— —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. 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. Infinitus, the Buddha's way. We vow to fulfill it completely.
So often—
sorry, carry on.
I was carrying on. Often when I sit in silence, one of the things that happens is ideas kind of shift around, and one kind of settles and says that it wants to be my Dharma talk for the evening. And as I was sitting in the silence today, there was radio silence. I was kind of aware of how many things have been happening this week, both kind of practically and emotionally. And the weight of that. And also this kind of counterbalance, this, this, this sort of desire for blankness and rest and time out. And an idea for something I could talk about arrived, and then I thought, oh yeah, but then I'd have to connect it with those things, and that's a bit complicated, and it just felt a bit much. So then the thought came, maybe my Dharma talk could just be silence. And then I was thinking about about Gyamé's Dharma glimpse and the contrast between the, the picture he so humorously and with such humility kind of draws of himself as not actually able to even get out of the house into the weather. That kind of, you know, still feeling weak from being ill and not being able to make his mind up about how comfortable he needs to be, or, and the trick that the weather played on him. That kind of beautiful little illustration of a human being, which I identify with very much, contrasted with the Bodhisattva vows, which we've just chanted. Innumerable are sentient beings, we vow to save them all. If you can't even get out for a walk, what hope do we have? What hope do any of us have to even save a single sentient being? If I haven't got the energy to, to give you a dharma talk, which is a little bit complicated, then What hope do we have? And luckily we're Pure Land Buddhists here, or we, we, uh, we lean into the teachings, the Pure Land teachings, because there are many wonderful teachings. And Pure Land Buddhism not only gives us permission to be that kind of person that can't get out of the house, or the person that can't give a damn at all, but pretty much says, that's who you are. This is how it is to be human. We get tired, we get grumpy, we get jealous, we get confused, we feel despair, we feel grief. And we are seen in all our messiness and loved just as we are. So the very last thing that happened in the silence before, um, the, the talk is that is that I kind of came to a little deal with the Buddha. The Buddha said, just rest now, don't worry, don't worry about what you're going to say. I'll give you something to say when the time comes. And they did. And it wasn't an effort, and I didn't have to work hard. I often find that when I step out of the way, when I stop working so hard, when I can let those parts of me that are kind of laboring— and I remind them that there is such a thing as the Buddha, as, as the light, as Buddha nature then everything relaxes, and what happens is maybe not brilliant, maybe not the best talk in the world, but good enough. So feeling grateful to Djamé for his sharing and Grateful to your ears and grateful to the Buddha. Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. So in a minute, Phi will ring a bell and we'll all stand and face the shrine and we'll do prostrations with, um, a chant alongside. So just do whatever, however much your body feels capable or is able to do. Nam-myoho-renge-kyo.
In gratitude, we offer this incense to Buddhas and bodhisattvas throughout space and time. May it be as fragrant as Earth itself, 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 awaken from forgetfulness and realize our true home.
If you'd like to come and stand at your seats again, we always finish by bowing to each other, and I will begin by bowing to Casper, and James will bow to See, so you work that out and then turn the other way. Wait for it, Graeme, wait for it. Sometimes when people are new, they think they just have to bow to everybody. It's quite nice. And then we bow to the Buddha. And then we tidy our seats, bow to our seats. We finish with the closing verse, which is on the paper. Blessed by Amitabha's light, May we care for all living things. So just a couple of announcements. There is a golden bowl in the hallway for donations. Um, this Saturday, me and Angie are running the retreat day. I called it— what did I call it? Finding— finding our center. So there may be some references to that during the day. But there will definitely be a talk at 9:30 by Naga Priya and a kirtan at kind of 10:45-ish if you want to just come for that. I highly recommend it. Might be— are you going to come? Would it be your first one, kirtan? Um, and there is a book group starting on the 20th of November. We have one space or possibly two spaces left, one on the Zoom definitely. Possibly one here. It depends if you want to. We've got one extra book, so we could sneak someone in at the temple or on Zoom, but do let us know soon or it'll be snapped up. Anything else? Okay, now, moment to breathe.
Cup of tea? Yeah, moment to breathe.
I'm just going to say a brief hello to Beth.
