February 2012 Sitting Schedule

Sangha members and friends,

Following is our Sitting Schedule for February :

Sun 02/05: Normal Sitting in Emerson Hall at 7:00 PM. For our talk tonight, David McMahan will introduce a few key concepts from both traditional and modern texts on Buddhist meditation traditions and begin to think through some ways of approaching practice.

Sun 02/12: Yoga In Preparation for Sitting in Founders Hall at 6:00 PM.

Normal Sitting in Emerson Hall at 7:00 PM. Tonight’s reading from Reb Anderson, “Everything Is Inviolable”, deals with the precept of not taking intoxicants. This precept is far from just a literal admonition against drugs and alcohol. Anderson shows how “the essential issue (of using intoxicants) … is that we are dissatisfied with our current experience.”

Sun 02/19: We will meet for Text Study at 5:30 PM today in Emerson Hall when we continue discussing Buddha by Karen Armstrong. Please read Chapter 5 “Mission” prior to our meeting. Joan Terwilliger will facilitate tonight’s session.

Normal Sitting in Emerson Hall will be held at 7:00 PM. Ed Sullivan will present tonight’s talk.

Sun 02/26: Yoga In Preparation for Sitting in Founders Hall at 6:00 PM.

Normal Sitting in Emerson Hall at 7:00 PM. Ken Delucca will present tonight’s talk.

If winter weather affects our plans for Sitting, an e-mail message to the group is the primary way we communicate a cancellation. We generally consider alterations the Church makes to its schedule and the parking situation around the Church in weighing whether to cancel Sitting. If you ever have any question about whether we are meeting, you may also contact me at 299-0170.

Gassho,
David Ganse

January 2012 Sitting Schedule

Sangha members and friends,

 

Following is our Sitting Schedule for January.  This month we are taking questions that have been asked recently, both by newcomers and by more experienced meditators, and using those as topics for many of our scheduled talks.

 

 

Sun 01/01 :  Normal Sitting.  As we start the New Year, Karin Bleecker will present tonight’s talk/reading on Beginner’s Mind. 

   

Sun 01/08 :  Normal Sitting.   ”108 on 01/08.”  Due to a number of recent inquiries about the practice, Ed Sullivan will talk tonight about Zen 108, sitting for at least one hour a day for 108 consecutive days.

 

Sun 01/15:  We will meet for Text Study at 5:30 PM today when we continue discussing Buddhaby Karen Armstrong.  Please read Chapter 4 “Dhamma” prior to our meeting.  Tom DePaul will facilitate tonight’s session.

 

Normal Sitting will be held at 7:00 PM.   EvAnn Hawley will present tonight’s talk entitled “Zen : Off the Cushion.”

 

For the next two Sundays, we will hold our annual collection for the Unitarian Church which allows us use of their facilities rent-free.

 

Sun 01/22 :  Normal Sitting.   Marti Early will present tonight’s reading on “Bringing more clarity to your meditation practice.”

 

Collection for Unitarian Church concludes.

 

Sun 01/29 : Normal Sitting.  Ken Delucca will present a reading on the Three Treasures (or Refuges) of Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha.

 

 

If winter weather affects our plans for Sitting, an e-mail message to the group is the primary way we communicate a cancellation.  We generally consider alterations the Church makes to its schedule and the parking situation around the Church in weighing whether to cancel Sitting.  If you ever have any question about whether we are meeting, you may also contact me at 299-0170.

 

Gassho,

David Ganse

 

 

Introduction to Buddhism at UUCL Sun 01/08/12 11:45 AM – 1:15 PM

Our own Milt Machalek will be leading an introductory program on Buddhism under the auspices of the Unitarian Church’s Lifespan Learning program on Sunday 01/08/12 from 11:45 AM – 1:15 PM. This program is intended for those who have little or no acquaintance with Buddhism and meditation practice.

Milt will be discussing Siddhartha Gautama’s awakening, the Four Noble truths, and Buddhist practice in the West, as well as taking questions.

Because this is taking place as part of the Church’s Lifespan Learning, the Church would like to get a headcount so that a space with adequate capacity can be chosen. People who wish to attend should notify Kate Prisby, Director of Religious Education (dre@uuclonline.org, 393-1733).

Therefore, if you have any friends or acquaintances who may be interested in an introductory program, please feel free to pass this information along.

Gassho,

David Ganse

Introduction to Buddhism

Buddhism is not some cult of shaved-headed, orangerobed

monks in the Far East. The Buddha is not that

funny fat guy. Buddhism is a practical way to

maximize happiness and bring peace into one’s life.

In his first sermon, Buddha said, “I teach only two

things: suffering and the end of suffering.” Buddhism

has no god, no theology, no dogma and no

commandments. Buddhism is compatible with any

religion: Catholicism, Christianity, Judaism, etc. The

Dalai Lama, Tibetan Buddhist spiritual leader,

exhorts us, particularly in the West, not to abandon

our native religion in exchange for Buddhism. The

two can coexist if we allow them to.

This workshop will present the story of how 2500

years ago Prince Siddhartha Gautama became the

“Awakened One” (i.e., the “Buddha”), the fundamental

principles he discovered to reduce suffering in our

lives, and how Buddhism is practiced today in the

West, where it is rapidly proliferating. Bring your

questions! Milt Machalek of Red Rose Sangha will

lead this gathering on Sunday, January 8 from

11:45-1:15. Registration is due January 3.

December 2011 Sitting Schedule

Sangha members and friends,

Following is our Sitting Schedule for December :

Sun 12/04 : Normal Sitting. Ed Sullivan will give tonight’s talk on stages of meditation practice. This talk will be especially useful to those who are newer to practice.

Sun 12/11 : Normal Sitting. To conclude our readings for 2011, I will share excerpts from the final chapter of John Tarrant’s Bring Me The Rhinoceros , a text I have used for much of the year. This chapter summarizes Tarrant’s view of koans as a living tradition, not a dated collection. He encourages us to bring “Don’t Know Mind”, the seemingly illogical way of solving riddles, to the challenges and questions of daily life.

Sun 12/18: We will meet for Text Study at 5:30 PM today when we continue discussing Buddha by Karen Armstrong. Please read Chapter 3 “Enlightenment” prior to our meeting. Peggy Ankney will facilitate tonight’s session.

Normal Sitting will be held at 7:00 PM. For the fourth year, as part of our final sitting of the calendar year, we will have our annual Remembrance Ceremony. This moving ceremony allows Sangha members the opportunity to light a candle and remember the significant people in their lives who have passed on in 2011 as well as previous years.

Sun 12/25 : No Sitting due to Christmas/Church closed.

If winter weather affects our plans for Sitting, an e-mail message to the group is the primary way we communicate a cancellation. We generally consider alterations the Church makes to its schedule and the parking situation around the Church in weighing whether to cancel Sitting. If you ever have any question about whether we are meeting, you may also contact me at 299-0170.

Gassho,
David Ganse

The wind blows hard along the pines

Toward the beginning of an endless past.

Listen : you’ve heard everything.

– Shinkichi Takahashi

Han Installed In Emerson Hall

 

Last Sunday, we installed a Han on one of the walls in Emerson Hall. Traditionally, a han is struck with a wooden mallet in Zen monasteries as a call to meditation. We will use this piece similarly before our Sunday Sitting. This han is made of mahogany wood and was crafted by Gene Cestrone and our own Ken DeLucca.

On August 13, 2011, during our annual Zazenkai, Rev. Eric Daishin McCabe from Mount Equity Zendo performed an “eye-opening” ceremony, thereby dedicating the han for the Red Rose Sangha. The Japanese calligraphy, written by Rev. McCabe, is the Evening Gatha, a traditional recitation which is performed daily in most Zen monasteries and reads:

Let me respectfully remind you,

Life and death are of supreme importance.

Time passes swiftly and opportunity is lost.

Each of us should strive to awaken, awaken!

Take heed: Do not squander your life.

.

For more photos of the Han and Daishin writing the calligraphy, please go to the Photo Gallery section of our website : http://www.redrosesangha.org/photos.html

Gassho,

David Ganse

November 2011 Sitting Schedule

Sangha members and friends,

Following is our Sitting Schedule for November :

Sun 11/06 : Normal Sitting. Marti Early will present tonight’s reading from Insight Meditation teacher Larry Rosenberg’s book “In the Light of Death”.

As a reminder, today is when we end Daylight Savings Time by setting our clocks back one hour.

Sun 11/13 : Normal Sitting. John Miller or I will present tonight’s talk.

Sun 11/20: We will meet for Text Study at 5:30 PM today when we continue discussing Buddha by Karen Armstrong. Please read Chapter 2 “Quest” prior to our meeting. Noel Heitmann will facilitate tonight’s session.

Normal Sitting will be held at 7:00 PM. Ed Sullivan will give tonight’s talk.

Sun 11/27 : Normal Sitting. In tonight’s reading – “Thanksgiving : A Life of Gratitude” – Roshi Phillip Kapleau discusses why gratitude is central to a spiritual life. “Of all our national holidays, none is more in accord with the spirit of Buddhism than this one (Thanksgiving).”

If winter weather affects our plans for Sitting, an e-mail message to the group is the primary way we communicate a cancellation. We generally consider alterations the Church makes to its schedule and the parking situation around the Church in weighing whether to cancel Sitting. If you ever have any question about whether we are meeting, you may also contact me at 299-0170.

Gassho,
David Ganse

A heart subdued,
Yet poignant sadness
is so deeply felt :
A snipe flies over the marsh
as autumn dusk descends.

– Saigyo

October 2011 Sitting Schedule

Sangha members and friends,

Following is our Sitting Schedule for October :

Sun 10/02: Normal Sitting. Ken Delucca will speak on the subject of “Zen 101″.

Sun 10/09: Normal Sitting. John Miller will present tonight’s talk.

Sun 10/16: We will meet for Text Study at 5:30 PM today when we start discussing Buddha by Karen Armstrong. Please read the Introduction and Chapter 1 “Renunciation” prior to our meeting. Milt Machalek will facilitate tonight’s session.

Normal Sitting will be held at 7:00 PM. In tonight’s reading, “Sitting In The Heart of Suffering”, Reb Anderson reminds us that we always practice with, and for the benefit of, all beings. This reading reminded me of some of the teachings that Daishin shared with us at our August Zazenkai.

Sun 10/23: Normal Sitting. Marti Early will present tonight’s talk.

Sun 10/30 : Normal Sitting. In tonight’s reading, John Daido Loori uses the koan “Are you awake ?” to encourage us to take responsibility for our lives — “The question ‘Are you awake?’ is the same as ‘Are you enlightened?’, ‘Are you aware of your life?’.”

Gassho,
David Ganse

In dense fog
what is being shouted between
hill and boat.

– Basho