lotusinthemud

this very body....with its aches and its pleasures....is exactly what we need

It's also helpful to realize that this very body that we have, that's sitting right here right now... with its aches and it pleasures... is exactly what we need to be fully human, fully awake, fully alive.

~ Pema Chodron

the three fundamentals of amida-shu pureland buddhism

Dharmavidya writes:

We say that there are three fundamental teachings in Amida-shu:

The threefold nature of Buddha
The twofold nature of the practicer
The singular nature of the practice.

The Buddha is the object of refuge and source of grace in three ways: as absolute truth, as spiritual presence and as physical manifestation.
The practicer is 'bombu' in being fallible and vulnerable.
The practice is singular in that nembutsu encompasses all.

Taking refuge in Buddha we choose the nembutsu as our single practice and, when we have done so, all practice becomes nembutsu.
We take refuge because we realise that we are fallible and vulnerable and incapable of saving ourselves from spiritual danger by our own power unaided.
We are able to take refuge because we attain faith by perceiving with our own senses, by having that faith enhanced by spiritual realisation, and by grounding it upon the intuition of absolute truth that lies beyond our immediate comprehension.

This summary encompasses the whole doctrinal and practice basis of Pureland.

Namo Amida Bu
Dharmavidya

the fresh air fund needs hosts.....

...and funds so that children growing up in New York City’s toughest neighborhoods can experience the joys of Fresh Air vacations - these are for children, 6 to 12 years old, who reside in low-income communities in New York City and are eager to experience the simple pleasures of life outside the city.

::please check out the website, look at the excited faces, see what you can do to help, and pass this request on to others - thank you

meeting of amida order members

I was delighted to spend time with other members of the Amida Order at our main centre in Narborough, Leicestershire:

Members of the Amida Order met over the weekend of 7-8 March to take stock of current developments in Amida-shu. There was a generally bouyant atmosphere and considerable enthusiasm for the possibilities that seem to be opening up for spreading the Dharma more widely. The meeting was also greatly cheered to receive news of the refuge ceremonies that took place on the Sunday in Delhi and a Skype link enabled those present at the Order meeting to talk with the Order members who are in Delhi. ::link

a valentine's day thought on beginning with befriending ourselves

The practice of metta (lovingkindness), uncovering the force of love that can uproot fear, anger, and guilt, begins with befriending ourselves. The foundation of metta practice is to know how to be our own friend. According to the Buddha,

"You can search throughout the entire universe for someone who is more deserving of your love and affection than you are yourself, and that person is not to be found anywhere. You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection."

How few of us embrace ourselves in this way! With metta practice we uncover the possibility of truly respecting ourselves. We discover, as Walt Whitman put it,

"I am larger and better than I thought. I did not think I held so much goodness."

~ Sharon Salzberg, Lovingkindness

the prayer of shantideva

THE PRAYER OF SHANTIDEVA
TRANSLATED BY H.H. The Dalai Lama

May all beings everywhere,
Plagued by sufferings of body and mind,
Obtain an ocean of happiness and joy
By virtue of my merits.
May no living creature suffer,
Commit evil or ever fall ill.
May no one be afraid or belittled,
With a mind weighed down by depression.
May the blind see forms,
And the deaf hear sounds.
May those whose bodies are worn with toil
Be restored on finding repose.
May the naked find clothing,
The hungry find food.
May the thirsty find water
And delicious drinks.
May the poor find wealth,
Those weak with sorrow find joy.
May the forlorn find hope,
Constant happiness and prosperity.
May there be timely rains
And bountiful harvests.
May all medicines be effective
And wholesome prayers bear fruit.
May all who are sick and ill
Quickly be freed from their ailments.
Whatever diseases there are in the world,
May they never occur again.
May the frightened cease to be afraid
And those bound be freed.
May the powerless find power
And may people think of benefiting each other.

the amida bodhi retreat: distance participation by video continues

The video streaming from The Buddhist House has been a great success. I was able to connect from 7:15 - 9:30 this morning for Morning Service and the Entry into the Amida School ceremony. We've been joined from Singapore, Texas, Israel and many other places around the world.

And there's more to come - I've just received an email saying:

Bodhi Retreat Video Schedule

We're now about half way into the Bodhi Retreat, and just getting to grips with live video streaming, log on to www.amidatrust.ning.com to tune in to our live events.

Today 11.15 GMT Q&A with Dharmavidya David Brazier

            13.00 GMT Midday service

             17.00 GMT Tai Shi Chi Chanting

Tomorrow 5th December

             7.20 GMT Sutra Chanting
              8.00 GMT Morning Service
             12.30 GMT Midday Service
              16.00 GMT Freeform Nembutsu

Saturday 6th December
 
             7.20 GMT Sutra Chanting
              8.00 GMT Morning Service
             9.00 GTM Shu-Admissions ceremony
             12.00 GMT Service

Sunday 7th December

            7.20 GMT Sutra Chanting
              8.00 GMT Morning Service
             9.00 GTM Ordination Ceremony
           12.00 GTM Quan Yin Chanting

Monday 8th Decmeber BODHI DAY

          6.45 Sutra Chanting
          7.00 Service
          8.00 five hour nembutsu chanting
          15.20 closing ceremony

live - 24 hour nembutsu, from mid-day 1st december (gmt)

I'll be following the 24 hour chanting at The Buddhist House. Kaspa emailed to say:

In a couple of hours we begin our annual Bodhi Retreat, a time of coming together and celebration. As ever we begin with our 24 hour chanting session, this year we'll be streaming video live from The Buddhist House. You can access the video at both www.amidatrust.com and on friends of Amdia at www.amidatrust.ning.com.

Also, new on Friends of Amida, the Amida chat room. I'll be logged in there over the 24 hours, feel free to log in and say namo amida bu!

alice walker's letter to president-elect obama

An Open Letter to Barack Obama
By Alice Walker

Dear Brother Obama,

You have no idea, really, of how profound this moment is for us. Us being the black people of the Southern United States. You think you know, because you are thoughtful, and you have studied our history. But seeing you deliver the torch so many others before you carried, year after year, decade after decade, century after century, only to be struck down before igniting the flame of justice and of law, is almost more than the heart can bear.

::and more here

the night americans wept for joy

By Sherwood Ross

November 4, 2008, will be remembered as the night Americans wept for joy. It was not only the hundred thousand partisan Chicagoans gathered in Grant Park that were moved to rapture. Good people across the nation wept with gratitude that America at last had taken a giant step to overcome its racism, just as the martyred Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. had dreamed in his historic speech at the Lincoln Memorial 45 years ago. They wept because Barack Obama had scored a smashing victory over his rival that could not be denied by any combination of vote thieves or by the U.S. Supreme Court. They wept because the better man won.

The most gifted orator and erudite political figure to grace the American scene in memory, Barack Obama’s star shone ever brighter during the campaign the better the public got to know him. He outperformed previous Democratic presidential candidates with his message of hope and “Yes we can.” As predicted in this space a week ago, based on my interviews with Miami area early voters leaving the polls, Obama would be the likely winner in Florida. Voters that could not remember casting a ballot for the Democrats marked him as their man. As it turned out, he got the votes of many Republicans that recognized his intelligence, charisma, and cool under pressure. “Among the Republican-leaning groups that moved into the Democratic column for Mr. Obama were mothers and Catholics,” the New York Times reported November 5th.