bring it on down, TOO

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if you got=food=water=shelter=friends,what more do you=need to ride out the=storm=y2k?fear>magnifies-if you let it.so no more cozy=can have anything i want=life. BIG-DEAL=NOTHING LASTS FOREVER.in every=TRIAL lesson,s are learned.besides=GREED drives the economy,and the greedy don,t quit-easy.they gotta have customer,s too survive. WHEN we have an earthquacke=SUCH AS THE WORLD has never known,then you got something 'to worry about.geesh maybe we can go back too buying>[made in america clothes that FIT.]

-- fear=sux (dogs@zianet.com), August 11, 1999

Answers

The necessity of faith in religious life and practice is something the "faithful" take for granted. The "Awakening of Faith" is considered an essential step in Buddhism, and while Zen may be thought of as nonconformist by some, on this point there really can be no disagreement. After all, taking up a practice that leads towards "enlightenment," a state that cannot be known until experienced, implies a faith that such an experience really does exist. Yet faith, as understood in Buddhism, is a very simple thing. It is gentle, flexible, and does not depend upon belief systems. We can see examples of faith like this in operation all around us if we look. It finds expression in a positive and gentle attitude towards life, and is identical with the acceptance that lies at the base of everything positive we do. Faith as the basis of everyday actions? Many people would find that absurd, if not insulting. We want to believe that the choices we make are essentially rational ones. We tend to think that others, society in general, the whole world even, behaves that way. But when you think about it, the rational process comes a long way behind more gut level feelings as a basis for everyday behavior. How much reason is involved in a purchase of clothing, a record album, a set of dishes, even a house or car? When we feel hungry, how much of our desire is for calories, and how much is for Chinese food, or Mexican food? Economies and political structures rise and fall on intangibles like hope and confidence, or anxiety and fear of loss. Consider something even more basic. We drive on busy highways with nothing separating us from oncoming traffic but a line painted on the road. We will step out into an intersection with oncoming traffic in full view, with nothing to stop the cars but a red light on top of a pole. In these situations it is, I think, more a matter of trusting that the drivers of those cars hurtling towards us want, and will tend to act, in their own self interest. Without that trust it would be impossible for us to step off the curb, or to keep our minds on the business of controlling our own cars when driving. But underneath this trust is a deep intuition. In these situations we sense that other people, at their very core, think and feel much the same way we do. Accepting that is an act of faith. This simple kind of faith, forming the foundation of action in everyday life, is really the same faith that opens the door to the experience of complete unity with the entire universe. Like fish within the great ocean, we are at all times sustained and supported by this unity. We can never be separate from it, yet we are usually ignorant of it. Realizing this unity is the mystical experience of Zen. Awakening to simple, positive faith is a first step.

While we may not be quite so rational as we would like to believe, faith is much more natural to us than we think. This very natural faith requires no strain, just a little acceptance. So what is this "honest doubt" that Tennyson connects with faith? To hold an honest doubt is to want to know, above all, "What is true?" It is not negative skepticism to ask "Is my understanding of this correct?" or, "Is this really what it represents itself to be?" An honest doubt, with a little humility, is necessary for the recognition that Truth is so immense, so vast, that our understanding of it can only be quite small. While humbling, this recognition leaves us open to endless possibilities. In comparison, a negative, skeptical doubt is confining because with it we lose the sense of wonder so essential for uncovering what is not yet known. With an honest doubt we wish to understand, but not to limit other people, or other ways of understanding and expressing the Truth. So often a "creed" carries the implication "This is the Truth. Therefore, all else must be false." Belief in such a creed can squeeze out the space for questioning "What is True? Do I really understand?" It seems to me that when belief becomes rigid, without gentleness and flexibility, without room for honest doubt, real faith ceases to exist.

With an honest doubt we can recognize the imperfections in things, weigh them against their merits, and understand the value of a teaching or a practice. Eventually an honest doubt, along with gentle faith, will lead to an understanding of the real perfection, which lies hidden in all things. Religious traditions, and Zen is no different, is made up of individuals with strengths and weaknesses, faults and foibles, and, of course, the potential for enlightenment. If faith permits us to see enlightenment manifesting around us, and in the actions of others, honest doubt permits us to accept human nature as it is. The miracle of transformation that Zen training works upon us requires both of these. Gently accepting our own limitations, we can at last come to know enlightenment at work within ourselves too. To understand honest doubt, though, there is something else to consider. An honest doubt is one that is directed inwardly as much, if not more so, than it is toward outward things. To hold an honest doubt is to first say to oneself "I could be wrong," and then, secondly, to admit that "They could be wrong, too."

When I was in training at the monastery, I noticed that sometimes people would arrive there with unbridled enthusiasm and intensity. But often that enthusiasm would dry up in a day or two, and off they would go in search of something else. I remember one man, a university student, who arrived at the gate in the afternoon and announced that he had given up everything. He had come to spend the rest of his life in meditation at the monastery. All this without ever having visited or even written to the monastery before. He was sent to join me digging holes in the garden, which was part of our effort to put in a new septic system. I dug my holes, but his mind was elsewhere. He wanted to talk about Zen. He wanted me to understand how deeply he felt about becoming a monk. He was gone before dinner. His was a rather extreme case, perhaps, for he had the drive and the desire for enlightenment, born of dissatisfaction with his life. But he did not have the patience, the sense of direction, and the caution that comes with an honest doubt. Those seeking a "quick fix" will soon be disappointed with the simple practice of training within everyday life, and so they quickly set off to search for something else.

"When people stop believing in God, the problem is not that thereafter they believe in nothing, it is that thereafter they will believe in anything."



-- Richard Noggin (richardnoggin@hockeymail.com), August 11, 1999.


So, What is Zen? It's a word that gets tossed around a lot in this society. I suppose the pop cultural meaning is something like, 'concentrating with intensity upon tedious tasks'. Zen probably entered the mainstream American vernacular through the efforts of the Beats of the '50's, although their excessive use of drugs goes against the spirit and practice of Zen. The phrase is now used by rock groups, mass-media pundits, and my mom.

-- Richard Noggin (richardnoggin@hockeymail.com), August 11, 1999.

DELETE

-- SgtSchultz (SgtHansSchultz@stalag13.com), August 11, 1999.

if you got=food=water=shelter=friends,what more do you=need to ride out the=storm=y2k

We need guns. Lots of guns.

-- (neo@the.matrix), August 11, 1999.


DELETE!!!

-- For (your@info.com), August 11, 1999.


NO, don't delete. Both the topic post and Richard's post about Zen are very relevant to Y2K. Fear does suck. I was reading about stress this morning, and a medical study proved that fear and anxiety increases cholesterol levels, triggers allergies, disrupts the immune system, contributes to heart disease and can trigger arthritis attacks, among other health problems.

Richard's post on Zen is also very relevant. Zen is something I've always been interested in as a "gentle faith," rather than the hell fire and damnation of the Christian religion in which I was raised and rejected at an early age. That does not mean I rejected my faith in something more than we can see in this world. I just prefer something with less guilt and fear attached to it. Something that helps me be less fearful, critical and more in tune with understanding my own limitations, and more kindly and understanding in my dealings with others.

Also, I liked the example of enthusiasts for Zen losing their enthusiasm when it came to digging holes. I had a similar experience when planting my wildflower garden. A young person was so excited with the idea of hundreds of butterflies and birds that she wanted to help. But when it came to digging holes for the Butterly bushes, Spice bushes and all the other plants needed to attract the guests, her enthusiasm wore out in a hurry. Yet I find a lot of satisfaction in digging a hole and preparing it for plants, which I trust will thrive, to attract butterfles, bees and birds for my enjoyment and for their much needed food supply.

I have no problem with gun ownership either. A gun is no more responsible for killing than is a hammer, a car, or a butcher knife. It is the mind of the killer that is at fault. I've had three people in my family killed by autos, which was the fault of the other drivers, and no one is suggesting we ban, or put more control on autos, or sue auto makers for manufacturing vehicles. When a person is killed by another person's driving negligence, it is called an "auto accident." And the killer seldom serves jail time. So guns are only as deadly as their owners. All of my extended family owns guns, but not one member has been killed by a gun, except druing war.

I thought this whole thread was good. Worrying about events before the fact is living in a future that may be quite different. Prepare, but live in the today, for today is all we can count on for sure.

-- gilda (jess@listbot.com), August 11, 1999.


Very nice, Gilda.

Yesterday is history

Tomorrow is mystery

Today is a gift

That's why it's called the present!

-- (Hallyx@aol.com), August 11, 1999.


Believe me, Charlie and I debated this one for quite a while about 0330 this AM and we decided to fix the respondents then and leave it up as relevant.

chuck (feeling a little schizoid today, today we are. (dislexic too))

-- Chuck, a night driver (rienzoo@en.com), August 11, 1999.


Hallyx, I've always loved that little verse; it is so true.

Chuck, thanks for not deleting the post. Just one question, what does "fix the respondents" mean. No doubt we need fixing, but I'm sure that's not what you meant. hee hee

-- gilda (jes@listbot.com), August 11, 1999.


gilda,

This time around, the best thing about this thread has been your post. Nice going.

-- Elbow Grease (LBO Grise@aol.com), August 11, 1999.



Elbow Grease, I'm so touched that I'm squirming like a puppy.

-- gilda (jess@listbot.com), August 11, 1999.

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