In the ancient, Shinto, belief system of Japan, a legend says, that the Japanese people descended down from the heavens by climbing down the tall, sacred, cypress trees of the island. As someone who is in awe, admiration, and respect for our noble trees, I find this creation story to be deeply, spiritual. The other aspect I admire, is how it echoes the Buddhist teaching that we are interdependent upon nature for our very lives. As a Zen Buddhist, I find much within Shinto that I admire and respect; not the least of which, being nature veneration.

May we all find freedom atop the great tree of Dharma. All branches, regardless if they are Theravada or Mahayana, contribute to the strength and vitality of the tree. Do our branches bend a little differently, of course!! But, when was the last time you saw two tree branches that were the exactly same?!! Diversity is the strength of any system--it takes all sizes, shapes and age of branch to sustain a strong tree. This is true, by the way, for humanity. If everyone was supposed to be the same, then everything would be one color; imagine how boring that would be?!!

Voila!! Our new Chinese, kanji scrolls (click picture to enlarge). Here is the site where I bought them--they were hand painted by a trained calligrapher. The closest meaning of the left-hand character, in English, is "love" but to explain it further I have included the description from the website:

This character can also be defined as affection, to be fond of, to like, or to be keen on. It often refers to romantic love, and is found in phrases like, "I love you". This may be hard to imagine as a westerner, but the strokes at the top of this love character symbolize family & marriage. The symbol in the middle is a little easier to identify. It is the character for "heart" (it can also mean "mind" or "soul").

I guess you can say that no matter if you are from the East or the West, you must put your heart into your love. I suppose you could say that the full meaning of this love character is to love your family, spouse, and friends with all of your heart, since all three elements exist in this character.

James: The scroll on the right-hand side, is best translated into English as the following:

The simplest form of peace and harmony. This can also be translated as the peaceful ideas of gentle, mild, kind, and calm. With the more harmonious context, it can be translated as union, together with, on good terms with, or on friendly terms. Most people would just translate this character as peace and/or harmony. This is a very popular character in Asian cultures - you can even call it the "peace symbol" of Asia. In fact, this peace and harmony character was seen repeatedly during the opening ceremony of the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing (a major theme of the games).

James: The picture in the middle, is a close up of a forest of bamboo that I often gaze upon in meditation and contemplation. On days when I can't get to the meditation cushion because of depression, or a busy schedule, I find a picture of nature to be an effective way to concentrate my energy and ground myself in the richness and stability of the present moment.

The present moment, is the only moment, and therefore, connecting with that moment keeps us growing and remembering that the depressing days won't always hang over us. But, it also means keeping us from getting too arrogant and comfortable in our successes by remembering that everything changes. In this way, we are better able to enjoy the pleasures when we have them because we realize they will soon fade.

A stand of trees or bamboo doesn't fight the wind; it survives the inevitable winds of change by swaying with its energy. If it tried to resist powerful gusts, it would break apart. It's deep roots help anchor the tree by steadily pushing deeper and deeper into the ground. In this way, the tree itself can bend and adapt without uprooting itself from overwhelming stress upon a weak root system.

We deepen our roots by staying anchored in the knowledge that the present moment is where growth occurs. If a mature tree's roots stopped growing deeper than the surface area it occupied as a sapling, then the smallest breeze would uproot it and knock it down. The same is true if we stubbornly stop growing, out of fear of failing, or just plain arrogantly thinking that we know it all already and can therefore stop adapting. This is when the roots of a tree rot from neglect; as well as from failing to dig deeper to create stronger roots that widen out into a broad network of stability.

I have been happily reminded of this with a recent slump in my Dharma practice; it's been awhile since I've formally meditated. However, I adapted (like the trees) by meditating other ways; such as focusing deeply upon nature, simple breathing exercises while sitting upon the couch and letting music break down my perceived walls of imprisonment. And, within the past few days, I have found I weathered the storm; the deep and diversified root system, I've been growing these past ten years of Buddhist practice has helped me bend with the strong head-winds but not break.

"The Buddha in the Classroom: Zen Wisdom to Inspire Teachers," by Donna Quesada is primarily a book that long-time teachers, new teachers and students studying for a teaching job will find helpful. I must say, however, that while there are some helpful Buddhist tips for anyone, they are fairly basic and can be found in greater depth in books that are primarily about Buddhism in general. But, for less ardent students of Buddhism, it might just be the right amount of Dharma mixed with career advice.

This book is really geared toward the teaching community, and how they can use mindfulness techniques to keep teaching fresh for both teacher and student. The book advertises itself as helpful to anyone and while that it's true, you have to read through a lot of specific advice to teachers. Still, I can see how the tips the author gives would be helpful to anyone who feels stuck in a rut with their career.

I get a lot of books and this one wasn't horrible but it wasn't great, either. I'm probably give it a 6 out of 10 rating; one being worst on that scale and ten being best.

I've written on this subject before but seeing how it's in the news again, I figured it was time to revisit the topic:

As our ancestors emerged from the ancient mists of the Neolithic age, they carried with them a deep reverence for spirituality. It was as beneficial to their survival as their closely guarded fire. Even to their rudimentary brains, they understood that the universe around them was special, and radiated with a spiritual energy. All of nature seemed to be pulsating with a vibrant glow that echoed a timeless message of divine power. In reverence of that energy, they began marking their bodies with tattoos. These also served as messages before the time of written texts and languages. Tales of their history and spiritual beliefs were laid out upon their bodies as a sort of semi-permanent record.

It is a tradition that is carried forth by modern humans who mark their bodies to honor ancestors and their spiritual beliefs. They often carry inspirational meanings for those who wear them. Some believe that tattoos are a sign of disrespect for a body that is considered a sacred temple. However, for those who believe in the power of tattoos, they see it a bit differently; those with tattoos often agree that the body is a sacred temple, and that they are honoring that temple by adorning it with sacred and personal symbols of spiritual inspiration.

The belief by some Buddhists that tattoos are disrespectful of our bodies is odd given that Buddha spoke of not attaching too much importance upon the body due to it's impermanent nature. Despite this, some Buddhists in Thailand are decrying Buddha tattoos done in their country as insensitive; which puzzles me a bit because Buddha didn't even want his image to be used at all!! So, if getting a Buddha tattoo is disrespectful than so is adorning Buddhist temples with gilded Buddha statues (as is common in Thai Buddhist temples). The bigger lesson here, in my view, is to not get so attached to an image that we become angry, distressed or otherwise thrown into suffering over an image that is nothing but a symbol.

So, if you want a Buddha tattoo, I say, go for it. Just don't expect that tattoo to bring you long term happiness, or forever stay beautiful. Just like all things of this world, it will one day fade and completely disappear with the death of your body. I personally feel it's also important not to get a tattoo with the intention to "impress" people. Then it becomes purely about the ego. In addition, seeing it as something that protects you from suffering is a misguided view within the Buddhist teachings; as there is no magic in this world to help us avoid doing the work to over-come suffering. There are no short-cuts in samsara. No symbol, chant, ritual or prayer will take the place diligently following stepping stones of the Dharma toward ultimate liberation from suffering. No one can do the work for us. No symbol has the power to help us avoid the process of personal refinement.

A tattoo is no different than any of the helpful symbols in life; they are fingers pointing at the moon. In other words, they are helpful but only as guide posts pointing the way. The guide posts can't transform your suffering into the pure freedom of Nirvana. But, still, tattoos aren't any less disrespectful than a bird pooping on a Buddha statue in the temple garden!! Or, the ornate carvings that add to the beauty of most Buddhist temples. I don't believe that we shouldn't have a little fun in this life, either. We shouldn't take ourselves so seriously all the time.

Well, that was a short hiatus!! I'm glad I didn't force the inspiration though--force never works. It fights the natural flow of the stream of life. Now, on with the new post!!

By Richard A. Serrano, Los Angeles Times

May 26, 2011

A federal judge ruled Jared Lee Loughner mentally incompetent to stand trial in the Jan. 8 shooting spree that gravely wounded an Arizona congresswoman after two medical experts agreed he suffered from schizophrenia and for several years has been troubled by delusions and hallucinations.

They said on the news that they will "attempt" to make him fit for trial. If he's not fit for trial, then he clearly wasn't mentally fit when he committed the crime. However, if we dope him up enough, we can throw him in prison and exact our revenge on a mentally sick man??? How can he be thrown in prison, after treatment supposedly makes him "fit for trial" when he wasn't mentally fit at the time of the crime? I don't for one minute excuse his actions, and firmly believe he should be isolated from society, in a hospital, for the criminally insane, for the rest of his life. However, that said, how can he be convicted as a mentally fit man, after the crime was committed as an mentally unfit man? By that logic, a prisoner who committed a crime as a mentally fit person should be able to be acquitted, if he later develops a mental illness that renders him insane.

Being someone with a mental illness, you can't just "make it go away." Now, I'm not a danger to society, like Loughner, (nor am I defending him) but it seems our justice system, and much of America, (if not the world) is ignorant as to the fact that a mental illness isn't curable--at this present time. The last place we should put this individual is in prison, where he will only be agitated further, which could place the staff and other inmates in danger. I think it's safer for everyone to put him in a treatment facility where they have the medications, staff and experience with such cases. As distasteful as it may sound, he does deserve humane treatment. Just because he committed barbaric acts, doesn't give us the right to be barbaric in return. This isn't just a test of his sanity, but a test of how we will behave toward someone who has caused a lot of suffering. If we treat him with brutality in return for how he treated the Congresswoman, then we have just as much a lesson to learn about compassion as he does.

It scares me sometimes how vengeful people can be when they talk of torturing and tormenting prisoners for their crimes. I always look at people who speak that way in a different light. It makes me wonder what's going on in their heads!! It's scary how quickly their religious values and moral beliefs about laws and behavior go out the window when the target is a criminal. It's never ok to treat people in such a way--even if they are hardened criminals. Why? Because then we lose our humanity as a society--and within ourselves. If we behave that way toward criminals, then are we really that different from them?

As many of you can see, I haven't written much lately. Well, it appears that I've been bitten by the "writer's block" bug. Be sure to subscribe by email to the blog for my return. In the meantime, check out the vast archives, located on the lower right hand column of the blog. I will try to return soon, replete with fresh ideas and insights; it might be later today, or a couple weeks from now!! But, rest assured, I won't go far, dear readers!! As always, I'll be reading my fellow bloggers' posts in the meantime. May the time apart be filled with smiles, love and happiness for you all.

Thirty years ago, Bob Marley died. It was a life cut far too short. He was so much more than a musician and icon of the popular musical style, reggae. He was a visionary, a healer and an inspiration to the down-trodden, listless American kids drowning in the chaos of modernity and especially to those of African heritage who have been oppressed. He was a rebel but one who eschewed violence in favor of radical love. I say radical, because it's easy to respond with violence to the problems Bob described in his songs. But, his answer was to trust in a higher power--love, which unites all beings. As the Dalai Lama says, no being wants to suffer.

Marley, woke up a sleepy, middle-class America to the injustices of the black man but his lyrics spoke to anyone facing a struggle against the corrupt powers of man poisoned by greed, hatred and delusion. In other words, the three poisons that Buddha warns us about. Come to think of it, I hear a lot of spirituality in his songs that Buddhist would agree with; along with his over-all energy of peace, love and simplicity. Unfortunately he wasn't with us that long but the sheer weight of what he has inspired in countless people spanning many generations shows that it doesn't take a lifetime to positively change lives forever. So, let us take inspiration from his example and be the change we want to see the world--today.

I will leave you with this quote, from then Jamaican Prime Minister, Edward Seaga about Bob Marley, said at his funeral:

"His voice was an omnipresent cry in our electronic world. Bob Marley was never 'seen.' He was an 'experience,' which left an indelible imprint with every encounter. Such a man cannot be erased from the mind." He certainly changed my life forever when I began my life-long love of his music at the age of 13. If you're a fan, let's take a moment to listen to his music and rededicate ourselves to his vision. May his legend live long and strong!! One people, One heart, One love. The video below is of musicians from around the world singing Bob's classic song, "One Love." For lyrics in English, click here. Enjoy!!