Lostcoin notes: June 3, 2008

Today is Daniel's teacher, Gempo Roshi's Birthday, he is 64 years old.  Daneil's other teacher is seriously ill with lung cancer that has metastized.  Time passes quickly ,there is a limited amout of time, it is important to know this, this is not forever.

Daniel did not find Florida enticing enough to live in Florida part of the year.  The students were not particularly strong.  Daniel has asked, Carol, his friend of 40 years to run the group down there, 25-50 people.

Some of Daniel's students want to take preceps, this will probably happen during the Sept retreat to Moab.  If you are planning to do this, you have to have your racksu sewn and to Daniel some time prior to the retreat.  Daniel will then give you a Zen name and place it in the racksu.

Daniel's name, Doen, means the way, circle, a person that is very broad and inclusive.  Your Zen name includes your best quality, and the quality you want to minimize.  Doen is inclusive but at times maybe too broad.  Both qualities in the same name.

We have a day long retreat at Kim's house June 14th, 9-5:30.  For the first time we will do our own form, we will focus on loosing belief.

The I's: the lost resources and the common ones that run and rerun.  In the east methods of thought developed without diety, not pro or against diety but philosophies/trainings.  This is an educational not religious group.  Anyone can do jakai, any religion.  It was a philosophy and psychology even though there was not a name for psychology back then.  Many of the teachers agreed on many things.  The emphasis was on how do you relieve suffering.  The thought was that the cause of suffering was desire.  The Judeo Christean tradation  believed desire means sexuality, money, etc.  That was not the eastern philosophy's intention.  In the east, the penis was natural and good, they even had a tradition called Butter the Lingum: meant to pour butter over the statue of a penis.  Desire meant to want things to be diferent than they are.  Every moment we are in constant discontent, constant dis ease.  It did not mean reduce your desires to nothing.  The I they were pointing to is the I tha chooses "what is".  When you meditate y ou do this, allow yourself to be with what is, choose what you get, choose what you have.  Otherwise, you have a lifetime of putting things off to the future and regretting what has happened.  ou can change things, the process is 'what is'.  To choose what we have this is living not putting it off, not regretting it.  Chose the weather, the time, the surroundings, etc.

Q:  If you are in a bad marraige do you choose to stay in it?
A:  No, choose being alive and aware of the bad marraige, but you may choose to leave the marraige.  That is different than feeling you will be happy when something happens different.

You always have choice and awareness of your actions.  Be in the present moment, even though it may be in the midst of change, don't wait for it to be over with.  Desoto school defines enlightment as being one with your Karma.

Q:  Are you bigger than your surrouondings?
A:  If you define you as what you are at any given moment, when you are one with it is where life and happiness lives.

Q:  Can being in the moment be disconnected or transient?
A:  Doesn't have to be that way, choose all of it this moment.

Q:  Can you be wrong?
A:  Choosing what you've got is a process, I don't think it can be wrong.  Accept the fact that you are in a state where a previous action causes not being able to know what to do.  Where I am now is in this process of indecision, is what I choose.  I may to choose a change.

When You choose what you've got you'll be happy, this is it!  If you keep trying to get here, you'll never get it.  You've got what you've got anyway.  What is, is, and what is not is not.  It does not hamper your way to change it.  Do you know anyone that says,"I made the perfect choice and now life is right"?

I'm going to, I'm going to, I'm going to...dead!
If only, if only, if only....dead!

This process - forget it, it's going to be, it is!  The only I that people are willing to see is the one that is enlightened.  You already are where you want to be.  You can always strive.  You will go through your whold life, you can't go through it without making a choice to be here.  This I is the lostcoion or Buddha Nature.  You remember what you had- the lost coin.  Nobody gets this.

There are 2 differences in the group in Florida and this group.  Daniel started this group, not from a Zen Center.  This group was founded in the fourth way tradition, attracted people who are engaged in life and it is expensive and people are willing to pay for learning.  The result is when we talk it is with people who can live their lives.  The students in Florida are neither choosing to be monks or living their lives.  Daniel loves this group and needs to push us harder- time gies by.  We need to meditate on Thursday nite.  What ever you do you need to take the power, be what you are.  This is the difference between knowledge and being.

DO THIS WEEK:

CHOOSE WHAT YOU HAVE, CHOOSE WHAT YOU GET. THIS DOES STOP THOUGHT AND WHEN YOU KEEP CHOOSING WHAT YOU GET YOU CUT OFF THOUGHT ABOUT IT.  BE ALIVE NOW, TOMORROW YOU WILL BE DEAD.

Karma- eastern way is cause and effect.  Is a law like time a physical law.  What you create is what happens to you.  You live more than your personal Karma.  In your life you can influence it alot.  Everything happens by cause and effect.  Just start liking people and you'll be surprised how much they like you.

CHOOSE WHAT YOUR LIFE IS NOW AND BE HAPPY WITH IT.

Daniel tells a story of a teacher of The Forum:  He is in the lobby of a hotel and can't remember where he parked his car.  He is thinking about where it could be and realizes it is certainly not in the lobby.

GET OUT OF THE LOBBY!
