Life and death, as my teacher used to point out, are just different names for different states. These are not permanent states. If we have to give it a name, Life with a capital "L" is the basic reality. Ours is not an inert universe, it's an alive universe; so what we call birth and death are just temporary states, temporary transformations, names for our true self at one time, and in one situation.
– Philip Kapleau Roshi, "Life with a Capital "L": An interview with Philip Kapleau Roshi"
Friday, October 14, 2011
Most of the time I get to think about anything that is not a perceived urgency is when I am waiting for a bus. It is almost a time of meditation for me. Today the clouds were moody in the way Joni Mitchell described them in a song on the work Hejira. Let me look up that lyric quickly.
Ah I couldn’t grab the lyric but here is the link.
Today I was thinking about just the ritual of life, the cycles that nature imposes on us. Day falls into day. Bus ride follows bus ride. Work is what work is. Existence does not allow for easy enlightenment. It takes work, it takes practice. To transform what we do with this “L”ife we have to work at freeing ourselves from the easy capture of our minds/our souls in ritual. Just saying.
1 comment:
Lose self, find truth.
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