Voice of Amida-shu, Amida-kai and The Amida Trust: Pureland Buddhism: Absolute Grace, Total Engagement: Issue 16, Autumn 2008 £2.50/€4.25/US$5.00
RUNNING TIDE IF I RULED THE WORLD AMBEDKAR DAY
Joan Court
saul deason
Creativity, Death, Love, Prasada Caroline brazier
and
Truth
ORBITING THE BUDDHA Dharmavidya David brazier
Healing ourselves, healing others inga barker
PLUS modgala takes us on a Festival tour | The Amida Learning community courses and events | faith and art
Running Tide
In this issue
Offers a voice for faith and practice, as well as critical, existential and socially engaged enquiry within the broad framework of Pureland Buddhism. We publish short articles, poetry, pictures, interviews, comment and Buddhist resource materials. Opinions expressed are those of the contributors and do not necessarily reflect the position of the Amida Trust, Amida-shu or Amida-kai. Running Tide is distributed by: Amida Trust The Buddhist House 12 Coventry Road, Narborough Leicestershire LE19 2GR, UK Correspondence and contributions Submissions for consideration should be sent to the Editor at: runningtide@amidatrust.com Amida Trust A religious charity established in UK, registration number 1060589, for the furtherance of Buddhism. The Trust sponsors a wide range of Buddhist activities. The Amida Trust is a member of the Network of Buddhist Organisations in UK, the European Buddhist Union, and has mutual affiliation with the Buddhist Peace Fellowship as well as The World Buddhist University. Amida Order & School The Amida Order and Amida School are a religious order and communion, respectively, following the Pureland tradition, established under the auspices of the Amida Trust. In this periodical the letters OAB after a name indicate membership of the Order of Amida Buddha and the letters MAS indicate membership of the Amida School. The Amida School is also referred to as Amida-shu. All Order members are also School members. Amida-Kai The Amida Association, an association for spirituality and its application. Amida-kai is the association for everybody interested in the Trust's work, for the application of spiritual principles to empirical world problems, and to the exploration of the meaning of spirituality irrespective of faith alignment.
RT 2
Features JOAN COURT RECEIVES AWARD Starting as a nurse, then midwife, then campaigning to protect children and then animals. At the age of 88, she receives RSPCA Lord Erskine Award. PLUS An interview 4 with JOAN COURT by Alice Ryan
Articles and essays Dharmavidya David Brazier Orbiting the Buddha
8
Jeff Harrison Distance Learning Programme
10
Regulars
Inga Barker Healing Ourselves, Healing Others
15
Prasada Caroline Brazier Creativity, Death, Love & Truth
16
Alan Oliver Practicing with Faith
20
Modgala Duguid Festival Friends and More . . . Membership Of Amida-Kai Open to anybody who supports Amida Trust and is interested in spirituality and its application, on payment of an appropriate subscription. Membership of the Kai does not imply membership of the Amida Order or School or any particular religious affiliation. For subscription queries contact: The Buddhist House
AMBEDKAR DAY Jai Bhim! A slogan used amongst followers of Dr. Ambedkar, known as Amdedkarite Buddhists. Saul Deason writes about the new Indian Buddhist movement and how they are inspired and desperate for more teachings on the Dhamma so that they can change 6 and transform society at large.
COURSES AND EVENTS
11
BUDDHIST TRAINING
18
OTHER PERSPECTIVE
19
VOLUNTEERING
24
FROM THE KITCHEN
25
FAITH AND ART
26
22
The Buddhist House 12 Coventry Rd Narborough Leicestershire LE19 2GR Great Britain +44(0)116 286 7476 info@amidatrust.com
Sukhavati 21 Sussex Way London N7 6RT Great Britain +44(0)207 263 2183 Amida France La Ville au Roi Bessais le Fromental 18210 Cher, France +33 (0)2 48 60 70 19
Editorial
When all is well and everything is flowing smoothly and effortlessly we seem to be able to make adjustments for all the things that roll in with the tide. We let the waves wash over us, polishing those rough edges while filtering out some of the finer but unnecessary grit in our lives. The general understanding in Buddhism is that humans are great builders of castles. The number of karmic dust particles that make up the ‘self’ is as numerous as sand grains in the Ganges, and because of this, we find pleasure in decorating our castles with shiny pebbles. At the same time, we are driven to protect them from the waves that wash up on shore using odd bits of driftwood. The reality is that our efforts are tested as waves come crashing in along the shore. In the aftermath of a storm, we might feel ruined and destroyed, merely traces of self strewn along the beach, however, time heals and we usually manage to pull ourselves together, and start the process of building, again. The desire to make and create is often too great to stop oneself from building another castle, but sometimes a new kind of feeling takes over that pushes one to look at the sand and waves differently. Buddhism offers us an alternative way of doing things: look, acknowledge dukkha (affliction), feel and harness the energy that has come, and sublimate it to benefit all sentient beings. In this issue of the Running Tide, we get a glimpse of something ‘other’ that is and has always been out there when we look at the vast ocean, toward the horizon, at the skies above, and at the long stretch of the coastline. Some of the sections stand out like lighthouses along the coast; bright and inspiring as the section on Faith and Art (p.26); or providing us with something to look forward to in the coming months like the section on Courses and Events (p.11). Other sections are embedded with personal insights and views about Buddhist practice, faith, and feeling alive. Our features highlight influential figures who have stopped building castles to embark on changing the world for the benefit of all sentient beings. In an interview with Joan Court (p.5), a leading light within our midst, we see how the world would shine if she were in charge. Another important figure in the 20th century is Dr. Ambedkar. He was a formidable politician, Father of the Indian constitution, and before his death in 1956, converted to Buddhism. Read about the potent Buddhist movement that he has left behind and which is gaining momentum in India (p.6). The ocean is vast and the treasures that abound in the deep blue sea are fathomless. The number of ways in which one can experience the wonders of the Buddha’s love seem to increase exponentially when one immerses oneself in the great ocean. And the possibilities in life open up to us like the endless sky above. The Dharma is everywhere and the Running Tide is delighted to share several jewels with you.
Susthama
Web sites www.amidatrust.com http://amidatrust.ning.com/ www.amidatrust.com/runningtide.html www.buddhistpsychology.info http://amidatrust.typepad.com/amidashu http://www.amidatrust.typepad.com/amidakai/
Amida Centres/Groups Newcastle: http://lotusinthemud.typepad.com/amida_newcastle/ Sheffield: http://pureland.wordpress.com/ London: http://www.amidalondon.org.uk/ Belgium: http://www.namoamidabu.be/
The tide rushes in
MAKING WAVES
Citation Ms Joan Court RSPCA Lord Erskine Award 2008
Photo of Dharmavidya and Joan Court. Oxford 2006
Joan Court lays lie to the myth that animal people only care for animals. After qualifying as a midwife, Joan obtained a sponsorship from the Quaker movement and travelled to Calcutta to set up a midwifery service. Returning to this country Joan obtained a Masters degree in social work and went to work for the NSPCC. Joan is a firm believer in the sanctity of life in all forms and on moving to Cambridge in the 70s she has spent much of the last 30 years campaigning for animals. She has run an advice line for animal owners in Cambridge for over 12 years and in 2005 she went out on the high seas with Sea Shepherd to fight against the killing of whales. Joan has taken part in direct animal rescue, hunger strikes and where there is a demonstration against animal abuse Joan will be there. She is an inspiration to us all and a worthy recipient of the Lord Erskine award.
She was presented this award at the society’s annual General Meeting Saturday, 28th June 2008. Lord Erskine was an eccentric pioneer in the 19th century - adored animals and got the first animal protection law through parliament. He kept his Newfoundland dog beside him in the Chamber. RT 4
If i ruled the world Joan Court
MAS
An Interview by Alice Ryan Printed in Cambridge News 15 March 2008
I would ban MOTORWAYS and cars with them. They’re a nightmare. I’d ban them because of both the noise and the pollution they cause. Motorways would be taken over by nature very fast, thank goodness. SUPERMARKETS. They are a nightmare too. They encourage car use, for one thing, and they encourage consumerism. They also encourage excess packaging which, as we all know, is not good news. CHEWING GUM. I think it’s disgusting. I hate to see people chewing it - especially that stuff they blow into great bubbles. I also hate to see it on the pavements, it looks awful. ZOOS. I don’t believe any animal should be caged, except as a temporary measure - that includes birds, of course. Animals should be preserved in their own environment, rather than bringing them over here and putting them behind bars. I’m appalled by the frustration animals suffer when they are shut up: watching a caged tiger walking up and down is very distressing, and it’s a bad education for children to see animals in those circumstances. EATING AND EXPLOITING ANIMALS. I’ve been a vegetarian since I was 18, with a few mishaps. Now I’m a vegan and it seems incredible that we should eat animals - it’s the ultimate betrayal.
I WOULD MAKE MANDATORY A WARM WELCOME FOR ASYLUM SEEKERS: I think we should welcome anybody who is in need and distress. FREE FOOD AND DRINK FOR THE HUNGRY. I would set up free cafes for everyone who is hungry. The idea is inspired by the Hare Krishnas who hand out food at King’s Cross station. The cafes would serve vegan food CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE AGAINST ANY FORM OF OPPRESSION. I think it’s fun actually. My favorite act of civil disobedience was walking into the Japanese embassy to protest against the murder of whales. RESPECT FOR ALL SENTIENT BEINGS. I became a Buddhist three years ago and believe we should respect all living things. Even snails and ants. REGULAR VISITS TO THE COUNTRYSIDE. I go to look at the bluebells every year, usually to Gamlingay woods, and it always recharges the
batteries. Doctors recommend nature as a cure for various illnesses now, don’t they?
MY MOTTO WOULD BE - As William Blake said: ‘ Everything that lives is holy.’ RT 5
JAI BH
Changing ourselves an
by Saul Deason Not so many realise that, apart from the mountainous fringes, Indian Buddhism was effectively a dead religion before 1956. One man had made a critical difference: Bhimroa Ambedkar. Ambedkar was a product of the Hindu caste system. He had been born a dalit, an untouchable, and had been fortunate enough to be sponsored to study law in the UK and later in the USA. On his return to India, he had become a tireless fighter for the rights of people in his caste eventually becoming Minister of Law in the newly formed independent India. Towards the end of his life, he looked back at his achievements and the tasks as yet incomplete, and he gave his people one last offering: Buddhism. In 1956, he converted publicly at Nagpur, together with 400,000 dalits, to Buddhism. Six weeks later he died. As one Ambedkarite put it “Ambedkar became more of a threat to the Indian establishment when he was dead than when he was alive�. Indian Buddhism quickly grew from thousands of converts to millions. The newly emerging Buddhism was visibly different. Unlike most waves of conversions, it was not accompanied by the patronage of the rich and powerful, and unlike other forms of Buddhism it was passionately concerned with social reform. There was no monastic establishment: the new Buddhism was overwhelmingly a lay movement that grew up among the poorest sectors of Indian society. In the decades after his death it grew among his followers, mainly the Mahar subRT 6
caste. 2006 saw another development. The 50th anniversary of Ambedkarite Buddhism witnessed mass conversions: the so-called Diksha (initiation) which included conversions not just among the dalits but also leaders of the excluded 'scheduled tribes' (indigenous groups recognised by the Indian government) converted, bringing with them many thousands more into the modern Indian Buddhist movement. In India, Buddhism has become identified with social reform and liberation from the oppressive Hindu caste system. It is difficult to accurately judge how extensive this change has been. The Hindu establishment often tends to obscure this development by classifying Buddhists as Hindus in official census figures. It is difficult enough to decide who is a Buddhist: is it someone who has gone for refuge? Or someone who belongs ethnically to a Buddhist family or tribe? Or is it someone who declares him/herself to be a Buddhist? To think and decide that modern Indian Buddhism is simply about social reform is to miss the point. Recently, I visited a Buddhist training centre in Nagpur where they included social activism as part of their Dhamma training. Some Western Buddhists are uncomfortable with this new form of Buddhism because they feel it is insufficiently spiritual. Often when I address meetings with non-Indian Buddhists about Indian Buddhism, I am told that these Buddhists only converted to escape from material poverty. To my mind, this view is to succumb to our own cultural conditioning. Being a spiritual
HIM!
nd changing the world practitioner only becomes meaningful when the most basic needs like food, roof, and self esteem are being met. To be a Buddhist practicing in conditions of abject poverty, and experiencing caste exclusion on a daily basis, is not such a simple task. To think otherwise is either ignorant or a misunderstanding of compassionate action. Talking to Ambedkarite activists we hear that the most pressing need is not improved educational, or medical, or self help facilities, although these are still urgently needed, but teaching of the Dhamma to the many millions of followers. Ambedkar had renounced Hinduism in 1933 declaring “I was born a Hindu but I shall not die as one�. Over the years, he had considered other religions including; Sikhism; Christianity; and Islam. He had even been wooed by these established religions. However, he had urged his people to convert to Buddhism because the Buddha considered all people as equal in their quest for liberation. For Ambedkar, the first step in liberation was to psychologically cultivate self esteem, and only when this first step was made could dalits start to escape the shackles of the caste system. Ambedkar was a tireless supporter of numerous educational projects for dalits because he felt an educated mind could escape imposed social constraints. He was a political radical and rejected the use of violence. He championed Buddhist ethics for his people, whereas, many Buddhists feel they have to achieve peace in
their own hearts before they can achieve peace at large. For Ambedkar, this was not a simple staged development but a complex interaction between peaceful action and the achievement of inner harmony. My own feelings are that with the increasingly complex nature of modern society any action or inaction done in the West affects people's lives throughout the world. There is a need for ethical social action. I also feel that Buddhists fail to appreciate that by helping Indian Buddhism it not only changes their Buddhism it will change our Buddhism too. JAI BHIM!
Celebrate Ambedkar Day Saturday 13th September North London Buddhist Centre 72 Holloway Road London N7 info@northlondonbuddhiscentre.com
A festive event with speakers, workshops, film, music, food and dance. Come and learn about the new Indian Buddhism!
ORBITING THE BUDDHA In our morning ritual (puja) at The Buddhist House we begin with the chanting of nembutsu: verbal recitation of Namo Amida Bu. Our practice revolves around nembutsu, which is our way of taking refuge in Buddha. What does this mean? Buddha is the 'all good'. By taking refuge, we place something at the centre of our life, and that centre of gravity then has an influence upon us. We are drawn to it. At the same time, our ego propels us in the opposite direction. We settle into an orbit through the balance between the two forces. Even though our ego energy is strong, through having taken refuge, we do not sail off into outer darkness. Actually, once we have taken refuge we can never become entirely lost. After the initial chanting, the priest enters. The priest is in the role of shaman. He or she enters the sacred area and stands before the relics of Shakyamuni Buddha, who is the representative of all Buddhas here in our world, makes offerings and expresses deep respect on behalf of the community. Then the whole congregation circumambulates the Buddha shrine in our Nien Fo rite. This rite is extremely ancient. Circumambulation of the shrine of a sage is probably a ritual going back to pre-Buddhist times, and has certainly been practiced by Buddhists since the time of Shakyamuni's death. As we walk around we chant “Amitabha”, which means limitless light. The meaning is that the light of the Buddhas shall go out from this spot limitlessly. It is a bit like a slogan, as if one were saying “Vive la Buddha!” Having taken refuge, we imagine that our lives now circulate around the centre of goodness. We hope to be part of the process of that goodness going out into the world. This is all symbolised and enacted in the ritual. I like to think of it a bit like a light-house. In a light-house, the light has a rotating reflector that sends the beam out across the sea. As the reflector goes round, the beam of light rotates. From a distance, it will look like an intermittent light, but, in fact, the light never ceases. Buddha's attention may be now here, now there, but Buddha is always engaged in sending love. We are like reflectors going round the Buddha. We do not have light of ourselves, but by means of the light of Buddhas we become part of a process that saves beings from going aground on the rocks. All this is a ritual. What is the significance? Ritual is an enactment. When we enact something we operate at two levels at the same time. One level is that we enter into it and feel that we are now in the presence of Buddha and of all Buddhas. The other level is that we know that it is an enactment, and that we are a group of people reciting a liturgy. We are 'believing' and 'not believing' both at the same time. This is the correct attitude. This is called being at the right distance in relation to the ritual. This is the same as going to the theatre - one is caught up in the drama and also aware that this is a meeting of actors and an audience both at the same time. This is the optimum condition. RT 8
The ultimate sphere of Love By Dharmvidya David Brazier OAB
The same applies to many aspects of our religious practice. We have the simple faith of 'foolish beings', and also sophisticated 'secondary faculties' that enable us to operate in the artificial world of human economics and social affairs. We need both. We need to be attuned to the love that is fundamental even when we are in the midst of socially ritualised transactions that we need in order to express that love. For instance, the fact that we sometimes express our love for our children by engaging in the market place and buying them something does not make that love unreal, but if we engaged without love it would be meaningless. Similarly, when we conduct a ritual we celebrate together the goodness and love that is in our lives through our refuge in Buddha, and if our refuge is true then we take it out into the market place of life. We conduct our ritual as a community. Doing it together is important. It expresses our common commitment and our love for one another. Many people these days eschew ritual in principal, but they still engage in the social and commercial rituals of society and so simply live a secular religion. In most of those rituals, however, the meaning is more remote - the love is harder to see. There is nothing magic about our ritual. It is not superstition. It expresses our refuge. Actually, we could change the form of the ritual and find other ways of doing the same thing differently. Ritual can be creative. At the same time, people find something reassuring about continuity, and reliability, so we tend to do it, more or less, the same each day. The sense of varied ritual is, however, also valuable. All day long we are engaging in different rituals - at work, when we meet people, when we transact business, in the ordering of our homes everybody is helped by a degree of ritualisation. The important thing, however, is that the love at the heart of the enactment should be sensed. The meaning of the ritual should be wholesome. We are always orbiting the Buddhas, and their light is always shining. Whatever we are doing through the day; in the big and little decisions and rituals of life, we have the opportunity to be part of that greater light, and to help it spread and be a beacon for all sentient beings.
RT 9
Distance Learning Programme in Buddhist Psychology Jeff Harrison is an Amida student on the Buddhist Psychology programme. He has just finished the first year of the distance learning programme and writes to RT about his overall impression of the course.
The first thing to say is that the course is both interesting in itself and extremely useful as an underpinning of the psychotherapy training that Amida offers. It is thorough and well-staged, and offers a nicely judged mixture of the academically challenging and the experientially stimulating. Each unit presents core material; but Amida archives are frequently cross-referenced and there are further valuable links to the plethora of Buddhist material on the internet. Because of the way the course unfolds, the modular essays are seen by most students as less an imposition, more an opportunity to clarify thinking and exchange ideas.
sight of cultural difference and historical provenance. There is enough in Buddhism about the universal human condition without the need to translate terms and insights in ways which are misleading rather than liberating. The course treads this fine line in fine style.
The ongoing dialogue - a real community of learning - both with others at the same stage of the course and with the wider Amida family is, I think, a key aspect of it. Sharing ideas and comparing responses is not only an exercise in academic manners; it is part of a deeper desire to honour the phenomenological reality of others. In other words, the distance learning while interesting in its own right is entirely And, while the course is accessible to the non-specialist, there is congruent with the wider aims and values of the therapeutic training; some intellectually demanding material there, too. Buddhism is and that overarching ethos comes through very strongly. Authenticity, not a singular entity, and the interplay and overlap between the empathy, and respect are valued just as highly as getting things 'right'. various skandha* models, the challenges of interpreting some of That is not to say, of course, that shoddy thinking is entirely ignored, the key Sanskrit terms, and the doctrine of anatma (non-self) can after all, there is a cognitive element to interpersonal relationships and all be challenging. But the human mind is complex and a to all models of therapy. But what it does mean is that the distance simplistic analysis would be inappropriate and reductive. learning course is not simply dry and theoretical. The emphasis is on Nevertheless, the Buddhist emphasis on conditioning is relatively how people live and how they might live better in the 'felt world'. The straightforward and offers a way in to some of the more subtle Buddha's whole emphasis was not on simply accepting what he said, material. One of the strengths of the course is the way it balances it was on trying things out for oneself; and Amida's distance learning overarching themes, on the one hand, with the finer detail, on the programme respects that approach entirely. other. The tutors are very aware of the danger of not being able to see the wood for the trees; and are always on hand with In short, the course shows that self-understanding and the value of guidance and clarification in particularly tricky bits of terrain. other-centredness are not at odds. On the contrary, they are, however, paradoxically mutually reinforcing. A particular interest of mine is the relationship between eastern and western models of mind and psychology. The course The second year of the distance learning is more overtly concerned addresses this area; and does so with the necessary degree of with applications of theory. Obviously this will be invaluable to care. The potential danger is twofold: it lies in seeking to reduce someone in my position (involved in therapeutic training) but would no one model to another (or unintentionally doing so); or in crudely doubt be equally rewarding for anyone interested in how their own superimposing one onto the other. Far from bringing valuable mind creates what they call 'reality' and that must include almost material together for mutual illumination, either of these would everyone! simply disfigure both traditions. Amida's approach seeks to use Buddhist teaching in a western environment, but it never loses *Skandha - Commonly known as the five aggregates. Five elements that make up the person. Five stages in the process of self-creation, which form a cycle. RT 10
The Amida Learning Community Enrolled students can come and stay at The Buddhist house. Where else can you get: Private guest rooms Library Shrine room Art Room Great conversation with people who write the books Computers with internet access Study tapes and CDs Gardens Vegetarian food Countryside In-house seminars and classes Possibilities for therapy retreats and complementary therapies Join the house schedule or do your own thing
NEW! Students can now meet online at http://amidalearningcommunity.ning.com/ Register today and connect with other students from around the globe. EMAIL courses@amidatrust.com
The amida learning community COURSES AND RETREATS AUTUMN 2008
SEPTEMBER
Buddhist Psychology
19 - 21 September Please arrive Friday evening
Hearing the Real Other
Introductory Retreat
Caroline & David Brazier & Gina Clayton
Learn the basics of Pureland practice and experience chanting the nembutsu. This introductory retreat is open to all. We will introduce some basic concepts found in the Amidist approach to Pureland Buddhism and spend some time practicing together. Amida retreats are friendly, informative, and replenishing. This will be a good time for those interested in taking time out from a busy or stressful life to relax, chant, explore one's faith and spirituality and experience life in a Buddhist community.
OCTOBER 4 - 5 October
Meet Amida
The Amida Community This is a good general introductory weekend for all who would like to be involved with the Amida Trust as students, volunteers, community members or Buddhist practitioners. The course covers the formal and informal organisation, philosophy, principles and practicalities of the Trust, the Amida Order, Amida-shu, its project work, educational programmes, artistic and cultural activity. You will find out what goes on, who is who, and how it all works. This course is one of the best ways to start or deepen involvement with the work of the Trust and Amida-shu. Attenders in previous years have gone on to a variety of projects and roles within the Amida Network.
RT 12
11 - 19 October
Buddhist psychology suggests that psychological problems arise when we are locked in the deluded worlds that we have created. What we experience is a function of our need to maintain personal stability, and to this end, our minds insulate us from others by distorting perception. We see selectively or unconsciously distort what we see so that our perception fits with our preconceptions. The way out of this psychological rigidity is through more direct encounter with others, and the therapeutic relationship can be a forum in which this encounter is explored. 11-12 October : RELATIONSHIP AND DIFFERENCE. A core skills weekend looking at the creative power of helping relationships. The helping relationship involves a meeting between two people. Many therapists appreciate the value of finding common ground as a basis for empathic understanding. The resonance between therapist and client that comes from shared experience of the range of human emotions supports the building of trust and mutual understanding. On the other hand, it also carries the danger of collusion and it is often the points of difference that emerge in the course of the therapeutic relationship that create opportunities for psychological shift. It is at these points that the person to person nature of the encounter may be revealed and a real perception of the other emerges. The balance between empathic confluence and honest engagement with difference is therefore crucial to the relationship's healing quality. This skills weekend will explore the nature of this balance through practical exercises and will help participants to develop skills in building helping relationships with others. 13-16 October : SENSITIVITY IN ENCOUNTER This four day experiential course will use group sessions, discussion and other activity to explore
the way that we relate to one another and the assumptions, habit patterns and attachments that may be activated in those relationships. We will look at the healing power of being together and the human warmth that emerges when we recognise one another in all our complexity and contradictoriness. Pureland Buddhism recognises the frailty inherent in being human, and the healing quality of real engagement with others. The programme will include facilitated group process sessions, experiential exercises and periods for reflection upon and learning from what happened in those sessions. 17 October : CROSS CULTURAL ISSUES IN COUNSELLING & THERAPEUTIC ENCOUNTER In this day seminar we will focus on particular examples of difference that arise when counsellor and client are of different cultural backgrounds. We will explore the possibilities for misunderstanding and miscommunication as well as the positive aspects of difference as a route to healing, creativity and social change. We will investigate our own preconceptions. We will consider how all counselling is, in one sense, a meeting across personal cultures, and also, how significant differences of culture between therapist and client can affect the process for good or ill. 18-19 October : OTHER PEOPLE, OTHER WORLDS A core skills weekend working with object relation work, a key area of skill for the Buddhist therapist. The term object relation refers to the conditioning of the mind by its object as described in the Buddhist Abhidharma and is a quite different theory from object relations theory in psychoanalysis. The Buddhist theory has implication for exploration of the "object-world" that the client inhabits: the mental images and scenes that predominate in the client's process. It also has implications in understanding the real environmental factors that condition the person's life on a daily basis. Continuing the theme of counselling across “cultures�, we will explore how different environments create different psychological constellations and how the therapist can work to understand and facilitate the client's process in ways that are sympathetic to this.
NOVEMBER Chaplaincy Development Programme 1 - 4 November
1-2 November : SPIRITUAL RELATIONSHIPS, COMPLEX RELATIONSHIPS, HEALING RELATIONSHIPS (this first weekend can also be taken by psychotherapy students)
Chaplaincy and other spiritual support work provides opportunities to meet people in many different circumstances. The context is often one in which the person is facing particular changes or life traumas, and may be open to reviewing life and seeking the spiritual dimension in new ways. Meetings may have been requested and planned, or may be casual and informal. They may be in depth or brief, and it is not always clear at the outset what is required. This two day workshop will explore the different types of relationships involved in chaplaincy and other spiritual work. We will look at styles of interaction which are appropriate in different circumstances, at the opportunities to support personal spiritual transformation which emerge in this kind of work. In particular, we will discuss the sorts of boundary issues which need to be taken into account in the sort of mixed relationships which can exist in the spiritual context and how to avoid some of the pitfalls 3-4 November : BLESSINGS, WEDDINGS AND FUNERALS Creative Approaches to Personal Ceremony. Spiritual groups offer ceremonies to the important mark life transitions of their members. In the last couple of decades, interest in the creative use of ritual has grown, and people increasingly seek more
personalised events. Some Buddhist groups already have traditional ceremonies to mark rites of passage, but many Western groups are daunted by requests from their members and others. Learning to facilitate personal ceremony is an art which takes practice, resourcefulness and a dramatic presence. Ritual is a language, mastered through experience and repetition. This two day workshop will look at the art of ceremony as well as creating a special occasion relevant both for those committed to a religious path and to those who have a less aligned sense of the spiritual. It will be practical, suitable for anyone who might take a role in such events, but particularly for those who may be called on to lead them. We will look at resources: readings, music, and chants; and at commonly used elements of a service, including making offerings, creation of the ceremonial space, invocations, symbolic acts, blessings and dedications. We will draw on both Buddhist sources and other spiritual traditions. We will discuss the structuring of event, the poetic and metaphoric frame, and the sequencing of elements. We will look at those small details which become so precious to participants. There will be opportunities to practice ceremony and pool resources. This course is an important opportunity for all Vow 22 students but will be useful to Buddhists of any background.
Why not make a week of it? Stay on for 3 days and join us for
... the ultimate Buddhist House Gathering Time to study, catch up on taped Dharma talks and join in exciting discussions.
RT 13
The amida learning community RETREATS 2008
8-9 November 2008 EXILE & RETURN RETREAT led by Dharmavidya David Brazier Please arrive Friday evening
It is traditional in Pureland Buddhism to hold a retreat in the autumn in memory of the exile of Honen Shonin and other founders of Pureland in Japan. From about the year 1200 onward the traditional Buddhist temples in Japan began to be more and more alarmed by the spread of the nembutsu teaching throughout the land. In 1204 they petitioned for the abolition of the nembutsu practice. In 1207, Honen, then 75 years old, was exiled and his leading disciples were all exiled to different parts of the country. This eventually led to the dissemination of the nembutsu through Japan and to its becoming the largest school of Buddhism in the country. The banishment was repealed a couple of years later and Honen eventually returned to the capital where he died in 1212. At this retreat we will remember these formative events and also look at the theme of exile and return as it manifests in our own lives. A time to practice together, share experience, learn about the tradition and celebrate our connections as a sangha.
DECEMBER 1 - 8 December
The Bodhi Retreat with teachings by Dharmavidya David Brazier, head of the Amida Order, and other sangha members Always the most important and exuberant event in the Amida annual calendar, the Bodhi Retreat has grown in significance as the Amida-shu and the Amida Order have developed. It is traditional to hold a retreat at this time of year in memory of the enlightenment of Shakyamuni Buddha on 8th December. The retreat includes teachings, seminars, formal and informal gatherings, nembutsu practice, beautiful and affecting ceremonies, and opportunities for personal sharing and making friends. This is also the retreat at which ordinations, commitment ceremonies and renewals of refuge, membership and precepts take place. There will be school, order and ministry meetings. If you are a present or intending member of Amidashu, do make every effort to attend. If you are contemplating an advance in your commitment, please arrange to discuss this ahead of the retreat with one of the teachers at The Buddhist House. The retreat commences with a session of “prayer unceasing� in the 24 hour nembutsu chanting 1-2 December. The actual chanting continues from noon to noon. Preliminary events and gatherings commence with brunch at 9.00am Monday. If you wish to immerse yourself in the Amida culture in a wonderful way, this is it.
EMAIL courses@amidatrust.com RT 14
Healing ourselves by Inga Barker
In an increasingly busy world, where it can be hard to keep our focus positive and our energies high, more people are coming back to basics and wanting to learn more about healing themselves and others. This is the main focus for our latest Women and Spirituality Group. The group is run through the Maitri Project, and goes for 6 weeks, and we have just past the half-way mark. So far, we have touched on auras and keeping them healthy, our own energy and how it feels, what people do when they are low in energy and how this affects others. We also looked at and experienced using nature to heal as well as silent walking meditation in the garden. We have also looked at the use of crystals in healing and how they can affect our moods, feelings and thoughts. We also intend to use music and silence in our meditations and will be running a separate day around hypnosis and healing which includes past life regression - the focus is on understanding our past to heal our present. We will be covering all aspects of hypnotism, so it should be a most exciting day. With therapies such as Reiki (a form of spiritual/energy healing), massage and colour healing readily available on the high street (and also via the internet) people are becoming more aware of alternative types of healing, and thus, beginning to ask more questions and wanting to get involved. However, not everyone can afford to pay high street prices for healing or activities that nurture the spirit. We are hoping to help people realise that just by instilling calm from simply being in nature we can begin to heal on all levels: mind, body and spirit. After all, if we can keep our energy levels high, we can maintain a healthy immune system and so have enough energy to ‘help’ heal others. As a Reiki therapist, I am more than aware that we can only help if the individual ‘wants’ to be healed. We can give someone energy, but it is up to them how they choose to use it. It can be used to heal, or it can be spent by the use of other emotions that drain us, such as anger, jealousy, or even hate. These emotions will deplete our energy, leaving us open to catching colds and generally feeling run down. If the situation isn't kept in check, the physical problems will worsen. If we can help people to understand energy and how easy it is maintain healthy levels of it in our bodies, the world would be a better place!
Healing others There’s room to explore, create, and heal at Amida France by Susthama OAB Spending time in nature is healing for the mind, body and spirit. Seeing decay, destruction, and death, as well as rejuvenation, restoration, and renewal in the natural environment awakens us to the infinite cycle of life. The benefits of living so closely to nature and feeling part of the web of life are great. There is always space for individuals to come and do a personal retreat. The program in France has not been set yet, but here are some of the events we hope to see happen in the coming year: Workshops in Buddhist Psychology; healing; religious art and icons; creative vegetarian cooking; as well as gardening therapy; and faith encounter groups and more. Check out Amida France on the web: http://amidatrust.typepad.com/france/
LOOKING IN THE MIRROR OF ART, we see reflected the world: a world. Do we see the world that is, the world the artist saw, or yet, perhaps, the world which lies beyond the mirage of the seen, a transcendent reality distilled in the created image. Does art bring depth of insight, or decorate the surface of appearance?
recycles cell on cell, molecule on wheeling molecule, star dust becomes creatures, plants become soil; the bug becomes the butterfly, the child becomes the crone. In such primeval turmoil is the artefact born, a new assemblage of the old, a juxtaposing of the familiar with a fresh interpretation.
Art at its best is multi-layered. The universal is manifested in the particular, the global in the detail, the abstract in the concrete. Lightly held, its metaphors are not interpreted, drawing our mental process into relationship with the universal questions for which there are no answers and not even language. The simple object becomes the container for the divine, the sound of a frame of words encompasses the dance of time.
Old elements in a stark configuration, stripped down by honesty and providence to the bones of experience. Nothing new, the image in the camera reflects the scene in raw precision. Nothing new, the novel parades its characters in gritty scenes of love and conflict, grief and confusion which we recognise immediately and personally for their human familiarity. Nothing new, our ears perceive the gentle fragility of a melody that follows the common scale, recoiling with its discords and enjoying its harmony.
Both of the artist, and yet unowned, the hand of creativity is guided by unseen forces which we attempt to name at our peril. Personal yet universal, the artefact speaks with as many facets as a diamond, catching light reflected from a myriad directions. Its voice is heard according to our need as much as through the will of the creator. Unpredictable, its power must rest in the perceiver to be appreciated and as much as in its author. An act of faith, the interaction between artist and audience is mediated by grace. In the creation of art there is always an element of the uncontrollable, the other. We invite the muse but cannot force her to appear. Untamed, the flames of creativity are not our own. Mysterious as a misted peak, they hide within the clouds of the invisible, a presence which we may come to trust but not to possess.
So does the artist convey to us the world, sharpened, heightened, accented, or perhaps simply conveyed in its unadulterated truth. Presented in shades which are borrowed from the common stock, the revelation is powerful for lacking our contaminating interpretation. Prised from our habitual stance, we are offered a loan of the artist’s different view. We are shown a new vision, which, being new, has the capacity to break through our preconceptions. For mostly we languish in the bubble of our thoughts, our view conditioned by the furrow long since made. We circle samsara, seeking confirmation in our identity and world view. We cling desperately to our constructed reality, though it is but projected perceptions. We hide from
Creativity, Death, Like the prophet and the oracle, the power of creativity is not in the artist’s sway, but from afar. Clinging too tightly to the script, the process dies. The artefact becomes a fossil, cast in stone. The measureless becomes a shrunken shell. Only by opening to the other does the artefact find birth. In another sense, all that we see, hear, speak, and create is in the circle – nothing new. The artist, gathering the colours of life’s fabric, simply redistributes threads already spun. Shapes and hues jostle and re-convene across the canvas. Phrases regroup, metamorphosing into new tunes, which yet are drawn from earlier notes. As the great web of life RT 16
discomforting truths in our familiar dream. Only occasionally a point breaks through. Only rarely is our airtight membrane pierced. Then usually it is the knowledge of impermanence which breaks the seal of our delusion, that cracks open our false assumption of continuation. Death is of this kind. That which we fend off offers the greatest hope: dukkha, affliction, in its many forms. Death and its many imitations force our hand, shaking our grandiose defenses, and showing us that we are not self-sufficient. Each rend an opening, these moments proffer opportunity. Engage or retreat, we may choose to grasp life or deny it, to live or
kill, to love or to reject. Only such unadulterated otherness, beyond our capacity to manipulate or control, reveals the truth. But only when the seal is broken can we love. Only the force of otherness, whether the inevitability of death or the stirring magnificence of a symphony, the poignancy of a personal story or the stark representation of a squalid truth, can wake us from our self-obsessive loop. In this, the role of death, art, or love becomes the same, the power of intervention which is strong enough to bring awakening. We see, we meet, we are changed. And in the art transaction, artist, world, and audience crystallise positions around the artefact. Each is a stranger to the other, engaging in silent dialogue. Each plays its part in an ever changing drama of perception. This drama is on the one hand conditioned by all three elements, and on the other unbounded, arbitrary and expansive, a dance in which participants draw closer, finding new interpretations of one another. Participating, do we learn to love? How much derives from straight reflection, channelled directly? What is the expression of the artist’s soul, the deeper, darker reaches of human mind? How much interpretation? All play their part, and all are present in varying degrees. Sometimes the channel, other times the origin, the artist is gatekeeper to experience. And so, the artist offers succour to our curiosity. Sometimes baring his own process to the world, other times a neutral commentator, orchestrating communication between ourselves and the world.
and his objects of love, to appreciate the beauty in the ugly, and the fascination in the plain. Certainly we learn to engage, to meet the others in the dance, to know the artist and to know his world. Can one have such engagement without love? Art lives in its technicolour capacity to break us out of our complacency. It shouts to us across the divide of our preconceptions and tears down the barriers of our mental filters. It transcends our habitual interpretations. Good art, like death, shocks us. It breaks us out of dormancy by its uncompromising otherness. Poor art mimics our nature, creating bland wallpaper for our lives; the pastel image that matches the colour coordinated room, the Muzak which lulls us into extravagant indulgence in the supermarket: these are designed to soothe the cravings of self and support our slumbering nature. They throw a blanket across our mental activity, and cocoon us in familiarity. They do not disrupt. The artist, trickster, calls to question our life scripts and our expectations; blasts through the niceties of social convention with a fresh wind of perception. The alchemist of the modern age, the soothsayer, the seer, bringing to us the messages of the gods, the artist straddles worlds and offers through the gift of second sight, perspectives beyond convention. He cracks the social mirror. Good art, like death, intrudes. It upsets our illusions of permanence and predictability. It shows us we are not in charge and that experience is not amenable to our dictation. Whether through beauty or through horrific imagery, its raw
Love & Truth
a response to one of Dharmvidya’s seminars 2008 summer teachings at Amida France
by Prasada Caroline Brazier OAB
Importantly, art is communication, a dialogue in which we are invited to participate with the artist in a shared regard. Our place already marked by open space, a platform created for the viewer of the image, hearer of the words, prescribed in its direction of view if not its interpretation. The artist may be a communicant, but more often is the interpreter, the medium, the embroiderer, or the lens. Thus we have choice and yet do not have choice, are free and yet directed.
reality throws out a lifeline across the straights of Mara. It melts our defensive assumptions with emotion and invites us to relate. Is this love? Art draws us into encounter. Such meeting is a crucible of spiritual discovery. Only in truly meeting can we discover love. In truly meeting can we avoid its pull? To know another is to deeply understand; to understand without the hesitancy of self-interest is to embrace. From such encounter wisdom and compassion rise, shaping the flow of response but not confining it and by this means the meeting may be consummated.
In entering the dance, perhaps we learn to love the artist RT 17
Buddhist training
Through The Eyes of a Trainee FULLY ALIVE AND FULL OF GRATITUDE by Alena Budkovska I'm fully alive. Each day brings something new, both outside and inside me. I can see that I am more complex than at anytime before joining the Buddhist community in Narborough. A lot of aspects of me are activated.
intellect created an explanation as to why I'm so glad to be part of the Amida community, but there is a much deeper reason. I'm aware that doing any of these kind of activities does not bring a feeling of being fully alive itself, what is vital here is the presence of Buddha, Dharma and Sangha. I'm really grateful to be part of this environment. While I'm writing this article I'm in Amida France. I'm living really close to nature, untypical in our western culture - digging the soil, freeing fruit trees from tall grass and nettles, drinking nettle tea, sharing an apple with a mouse, hearing the birds, the rain, the wind, storms and seeing lightening right above me. And, together, listening to a Dharma talk where Dharmavidya questions scientific western thinking: Is the shortest distance between two points a straight line? Good training for a strong ego, for a foolish being like me, who is still thinking that I can find certainty. I need to be in control of life. I have the desire to be, and anxieties about being right. I need a structure to hold and, apparently, it doesn't matter if the model is based on scientific secular proof or a dogmatic structure of the spiritual life.
When I came to England to work as a care assistant, one and half years ago, I had a strong need to work closely with people, to be closer to their feelings and needs. After leaving architectural design behind in my home country of the Czech Republic and not knowing exactly what I wanted to do, I had several areas of interest; working in a care environment; gaining experience in some kind of organic farm or garden; small creative arts projects; and interest in bodywork. To me, all of these activities connected with my search in the spiritual field, however, I had no idea how to connect all these things together. Now my RT 18
Saying nembutsu, my relationship with Amida, is something precious. It helps me to be aware that I'm a human being. It also helps me to keep my ego a little bit more aware of itself and to allow myself to do things without being afraid of failing and being wrong. I love it, even though sometimes my “bombu� is crying. So I'm trying to learn to have a more gentle and compassionate approach to everything, including myself. First written a few months ago and the only thing to add after re-reading it is that I’m still full of gratitude for having taken refuge in Amida, Buddha, Dharma, Sangha and Pureland. Namo Amida Bu
Other perspective As a Tibetan Buddhist I often go through stages of 'finding a practice'. I now ask myself what does it mean to 'practice'? How do I practice the Dharma? Recently I found myself walking through a park in London trying to 'find' my practice. Was it going to be the recitation of the Vajrasatva Mantra? The Avalokiteshvara mantra? The practice of taking and giving? Prostration? Mahamudra? Dzogchen? Zen? Pureland? Doing a pilgrimage to India? Reciting the Dhammapada? Maybe be a monk? If these practices are meant to enlighten me, why am I not getting happier and happier everyday? Perhaps there is no practice out there, perhaps I need to get off of my cushion: stop practicing and start doing. Very soon, I was engulfed by the idea that there is so much suffering in the world, and of what good am I if I just sit around meditating on the sound of one hand clapping? Surely the Buddha didn't want me to be of little benefit to others? Over the last month, my way of thinking has come to a drastic change. I had to force myself to see the first Noble Truth: suffering, it's everywhere. You cannot deny it! No one is exempt from it! To think of the atrocities of the wars in Afghanistan, the plight of the Tibetan people, the earthquake in China, the Burmese cyclone, the homeless, the sick, the dying, the starving… What exactly is my sitting on a cushion going to do for them? Perhaps I could sing, “OM MANI PADME HUM” on their behalf? My practice is not going to bring happiness to the homeless beggar, and I would be a fool to think that it is. Lets face it, the world is not full of joy and happiness, even the fleeting moments of happiness we experience are not very long lasting. I admire the outlook of Amida Trust, in that they are engaged Buddhist, they are out there helping the people who need help and doing a little something that could put a smile onto someone’s face. This should be every Buddhists 'practice' - to be happy and spread the happiness through random acts of kindness, and even go the extra mile to make sure that we are doing something, whether it’s protesting against nuclear waste, or recycling a coke can, every little thing helps. Being South African, I can definitely say that 3rd world countries need our help, and greatly admire the idea of ‘fair trade'. Just paying £1 extra for a can of coffee can feed a family in Kenya. This is just one way that we can help, and there are so many. Rice is a scarce commodity in many of the countries in which it is grown; simply by our cutting down on our consumption of rice we can feed a family in India. Don't think that you don't have the power to change the world, one action might be all it takes to stop a war. One word is all it takes to prevent a murder. One coin is all it takes to feed the hungry. We have the power to change the world. If everyone in Europe had to jump up and down at the same time they would feel it in Africa - our collective actions are a lot more powerful than we realise. Its time to stop practicing and start doing: no athlete could ever win the race by practicing forever. He has to run.
My New Mantra “Its time to stop practicing
and start doing. . .” …
by Nathaniel Whiteman
‘I happily rejoice in the virtue of all sentient beings, Which relieves the suffering of the miserable states of existence. May those who suffer dwell in happiness! I rejoice in sentient beings' liberation from the suffering of the cycle of existence, and I rejoice in the Protectors Bodhisattvahood and Buddhahood.’ -The Bodhicaryavatara. Shantideva.
RT 19
Practicing with Faith A Gateway to Universal Consciousness by Alan Oliver
WE LIVE WITHIN THE SEDUCTIVE entanglements of our conditioning. The separate ego is the fertile soil of our individuality. There we flail about, enjoy, cope and generally try to deal with the suffering that the egonic mind-set brings on itself from moment to moment. How to go beyond this deep feeling of separation, isolation and alienation is the stuff of dreams, relationships, addictions and the spiritual search. Philosophers, spiritual teachers, poets and seminal thinkers everywhere, and throughout history, have grappled with the core issue of ego vs. Being. Biologists and evolutionists have followed the trail of life back to single cell consciousness when a string of simple proteins following cosmic design principles encircled upon itself and created a cell with an inside environment that then became the outside. Physicists follow the quest to quarks and energy waves that sometimes are separate and sometimes act as one. This search for the primitive and universal oneness goes on. The illusion of separate beingness dominates the experiences of reality of our everyday lives and proves very useful in living that life. The negative effect, however, is that it prevents us from entering the central gateway of wholeness we face as spiritual beings. The Buddha knew this after his six year, persistent search, when he settled himself in meditation under the Bodhi tree. His six years of self development practices had been productive and harrowing (almost dying in the process), but these experiences did not give him the complete understanding he sought which would unlock the gateway to perfect oneness. It is at this point in his journey, he experienced a complete letting go of his separate ego, where he went beyond the practices of RT 20
a secondary state of self development. He instead returned to the root state of being where there exists oneness, freshness, and the emptiness beyond self. This root state of being is found through faith. It is a faith that is beyond techniques and any type of intellectual manipulation. The Existentialists call it a "leap of faith" since there are no logical steps that will take you through the gateway to universal consciousness, to emptiness, to enlightenment, to Nirvana or the Pure Land. Rather than a step by step developmental process, it is a total "letting go" to the "other" which has the power to diminish and expand you, often in the same breath. Faith is beyond logic and is the key which unlocks the gateway leading to oneness, wholeness and nonseparation. The power of the faith process is undeniable, and yet mystical and unexplainable. No logical argument can refute faith and when it is wholly embraced it connects being to a universal consciousness. That is its revolutionary power - it ends separation (Dukkha) and provides unlimited nourishment at the same time. All of the Buddhist traditions rely on some combination of faith and self development practices although the ones I am most familiar with, Zen, Tibetan, and Theravada, seem to stress more practical self development than faith. It often appears that faith is put in the teacher and institution rather than a more cosmic "other". Pureland Buddhism which I recently was exposed to more directly at the Living Buddhism Conference "Breaking the Mould" in May, emphasizes more directly, and centrally, the faith principle with self development as a secondary and supportive practice.
Before that recent exposure, my view of Pureland Buddhism was confined to the most general and simplistic view of it. That view of it describes it as repeating Amitabha Buddha's name three times with complete faith which will insure you reach the Pure Land in the West. This approach to the spiritual path has many parallels with the Christian general message of taking Jesus as your savior (again faith) and you will be saved (i.e. go to Heaven). After rejecting this Christian simplistic message for the masses, I am not prepared to accept the same message from Buddhism. On delving a bit deeper into the origins of the Pureland tradition, exploring the roots of it based on the Chinese Pureland patriarch Shan-Tao in the 7th century CE and subsequent application and development by the Japanese teachers Honen and Shinran of the 12th and 13th centuries, it is possible to begin to understand and appreciate the basic theme with which they were struggling. There is some satisfaction in discovering that the basic pivot points of my disagreements with the general mass message of Pureland are not new. They are reflected in the long history of debate between the traditionalists and modernists within the Pureland tradition. I feel close to these great teachers as they expressed their doubts about whether the spiritual practices of self development through meditation, chanting, bowing and intellectual study among others would ever be a final and complete way to enlightenment. It could be debated that these practices, prevalent in many other traditions, also are based on faith. The faith in teachers, in the institution, and in Buddha's teachings are all present in Buddhist practice to some degree. But it is the elevation of the power of
faith to the highest level of practice that distinguishes Pureland Buddhism from the other traditions. There is an old saying "Don't throw the baby out with the bath water". In rejecting the mass message of Christianity and Pureland Buddhism (have faith and you will be saved), it is important and even crucial we not reject the power of faith (the baby in the folk saying). For this, we can thank Pureland Buddhism for reminding us of this powerful process of belief. The engine of faith may propel you forward through the gateway, but faith in what and to what result? On these topics, the opinions and debates are old and yet forever refreshed by our own inquiries along a spiritual path. It is not my purpose here to fully explore or account for these discussions that in Buddhism go back for 2,500 years. As stated above, the Buddha faced these issues under the Bodhi tree after six years of searching. To me it is his "leap of faith" in the Laws of Nature and his interpretation of these "laws" that come to mind as he completely let go and became one with the universe. There are four defining contexts on which my understanding depends: 1. The Power of Faith: I thank Pureland Buddhism for refocusing my attention on this supreme principle of spiritual practice. It has a power beyond logic which needs to be renewed every moment. Faith is challenged by logic as it should be, but, when entered into fully, places your consciousness in the realm of wholeness. It has a right to ‘rule over’ all other spiritual self development practices, and many modern practitioners have ignored it. 2. The Danger of Words: So many of our disagreements over religion are based on the words we use. Albert Einstein once said, ‘The word God is for me nothing more than the expression and product of human weakness.’ Translation between languages adds to the difficulties as the words the translator chooses are influenced by his or her culture, values and beliefs. We would do well when we discuss religious issues to spend half the time in defining what we mean by the words we use. 3. The Anthropomorphic Impulse: The world is often a dangerous and confusing place where we feel foolish, at risk, and lost. It is a natural, ego response to these situations to want a ‘father’ or ‘mother’ figure to comfort and help us. We feel a need to have someone on our side, an extra presence who is powerful, wiser and knows what should be done. And thus, we create the father or mother with all the personal pronouns as the object of our devotion. Whether it be the Buddha, Amitabha Buddha, Quan Yin, Allah, Jesus or Great Mother we lapse into this comforting and easy answer to our existential dilemma. The great spiritual teachers have always reached beyond the parental constructs, but the writings that came after them and the mass development of religion have often opted for this easier answer to comfort and supply a sure route for the personal need for ego survival. It is possible to expand our spiritual universe to go without the personal pronouns and the idealized human figures in gold, brass and ivory. Personalizing these god figures is as dangerous as elevating our egos as the sole definition of our being. It also prevents a greater level of union with the universe.
4. The Reality of Science: Science at its best, when it is not fragmented and mechanical, can show us a spiritual path to viewing and being in and a part of the universe. It is not opposite of religion, but a spiritual path in itself when it explores the nature of the universe we are a part of. In that sense it slowly reveals "God" to us, but not as father or mother. It shows us a cosmic design system that is truly worthy of respect and even worship. Science is our ally in the search for wholeness, universal knowledge and experience. At its best it is open and exploratory. The Buddha has been described as a psychologist, doctor and scientist of his time. Amitabha Buddha has been defined as "without measure" and what better definition could we have of the universe without and the same universe within. The teaching of "don't know mind" which is essential to Buddhism is also essential to science: always unfolding, challenging and being challenged. Instead of appealing to the "other" might we not just acknowledge with awe the "other" around us and inside us as one and the same? This is a true spiritual place on which to tread as we move along the path to enlightenment. The object of my faith is not the figure of Amitabha Buddha in all his "he-ness". It is the whole universe, the universal consciousness that is expressed in cosmic energies like gravity and electromagnetic forces, evolutionary development, a leaf, a bird, the emotions of love, and much more. These are among the cosmic design principles and systems that I am a part of which diminish (a feeling of awe and smallness) and expand me (I am god; I am the system) in the same breath. To return to Einstein, we can note his wish to "experience the universe as a single cosmic whole" is enough. The result of my faith in universal consciousness is not a Pure Land after death. That will take care of itself and is basically an ego concern. I prefer the modernist approach in Pureland who either saw it as a psychological state to be experienced here and now or a perfected state of human society which we could all contribute to building. As one modern viewpoint put it, "It (the world) becomes the Pure Land when society as a whole orchestrates mass movements to alleviate the sources of suffering within itself…". This attitude puts Pureland Buddhism in line with the current interest in engaged Buddhism. Our ego, and its belief in separation, wants immortality. And yet we are already immortal, the stuff of the universe of energy and form flowing constantly through our being. We have much work to do to reach beyond the separation: to experience the wholeness we are a part of. It will mean slowing down, creating non-logical relationships to the grass, sky and the life around us and in us. Even rocks deserve our attention and respect as they buzz with atoms, electrons, gravity and presence. Once through the gateway, with faith as our magic carpet, we can join the universal consciousness and conversation or perhaps dance is a better metaphor. We can fully be in the world and fully experience what we once called "God". Recognizing our role in these systems is our human destiny. RT 21
FESTIVAL FRIENDS AND M by Modgala Duguid OAB MY INVOLVEMENT WITH THE FESTIVAL SCENE began with Buddhafield some years ago, and then last year, we added a couple more festivals: Solfest and Raggedy Hedge Fair, where Jane, a friend of Amida, and Kaspalita helped us develop, refine and establish our work at mainstream music festivals. This year, we have been on the festival circuit - eight down and two to go, or three, if you count the climate camp where we will join with NEB folk and others, in protesting about the mess we are making of our planet and making a plea to prevent new generation coal-fired electricity stations from being built!
wonderful story telling each evening. However, perhaps two of the biggest draws were my lovely Amida assistants Sally and Rachel!
From the time it all began, our Buddhafield friendship has grown and continues to grow through working together with the wonderful Dharma Parlour crew and NEB (Network of Engaged Buddhists) friends. The Dharma Parlour This year’s festival season began in London with the ‘Capital Woman’ and ‘Mind, Body and Spirit’ events. Working as a team with our London Sangha was possibly the best part of these events though we reached out and met many interesting people too. Then the camping began! I am not a natural camper, never camped until I started this Amida trail and my poor old bones protest. However, it is all superbly worthwhile. At Wychwood festival, supported by the inimitable Kaspa, this year’s camping trail began.
tent offers a welcoming and inspiring place at the heart of Buddhafield. For the first two days, I hardly left the tent as old friends came to chat and catch up. A succession of excellent teachings in the Dharma Parlour tents as well as thought provoking workshops in the NEB tent threaded through each day. The Amida tent offered a homely refuge for many and the Buddhist psychology workshops in the NEB tent drew much interest as did the volunteering programme, plus, of course, the hot chocolate and RT 22
How do you put up a tent and encourage people along when faced by a bog??? Aided by the other healers, we put it up and then went on the scrounge to find plastic sheets and planks so that people would not sink up to their knees (a little exaggeration) in the muddy bog. We surrounded it with prayer flags and set up Quan Yin in the centre to guide us. And people came. We chatted and offered counselling and a Buddhist psychology workshop and met many nice people. Above all we came to know more of the lovely people who tread the festival circuit offering healing in quiet(er) areas of the festivals. Womad (World of music and dance) offered us all a
MORE . . . wonderful space, in the arboretum of a large country house. Many of our old friends from healing circles were there too. Initially we were offered a space in the middle, but soon realised counselling next to someone playing gongs would not work and so we were moved to a shady position between two spreading chestnut trees close to where all the campers came through to the arena. As the sun shone strongly, we were glad that it gave a cool space for us to offer individual counselling, which by the way were well received, and daily Buddhist psychology workshops. In the mornings, a large group joined us for a meditation and were introduced to our two spiritual exercises Nei Quan (inward enquiry) and Chih Quan (calm abiding) as well as a little nembutsu chanting. A small group also joined us in the tent for sunset chanting as the sun went down. Local London events also helped us make new friends. Islington council sponsored a health and bike fest at Arsenal's Emirates stadium where along with a few healers Amida offered some more gentle health care. The Rise festival at Finsbury Park drew tens of thousands in its anti Racism event and provided wonderful music culminating with songs from Jimmy Cliff, my hero in the seventies, who wrote and performed the protest song “Vietnam” now updated to cover today’s tragedies of Afghanistan and Iraq.
Leamington Peace Festival also had its serious side as many people gave three-minute talks between acts on the theme “One thing we can do for Peace”. In my talk, I remembered my early days in Amida when a fellow student and the chair of the trustees went to Sarajevo, not long after the war ended, to see what Amida could offer. I phoned them soon after their return and felt the force of their experience and the main message they brought back was that people want to be heard - they need to tell their stories and also to know that others will hear them and know what happened. So I talked about listening and learning to truly listen. Sudana and I talked to many people there, however, I will never forget the gaunt, drunken man who accosted me at the end of that day. “Its right what you said, I know, I was there in '98”. As his friend hovered, encouraging him to talk to me, he showed me his mutilated legs, blown up by a landmine and he told of going into villages where ethnic cleansing had taken place. He spoke of joining the army to try to help and of the lack of support on his return and of his brother on his third tour of duty in Afghanistan. He and the many others we spoke to are the reason we go to festivals. Yes, we introduce people to Buddhism, and to Amida and what Amida Trust offers, however, above all, we offer the hand of friendship to many who would never normally come near Buddhism or its healing touch. This new form of chaplaincy helps the hands of Amida reach out further so that new and precious friendships are forged. Namo Amida Bu!
RT 23
VOLUNTEERING NEWS INDIA Sahishnu is preparing to return to Delhi in October for six months. Interviews are currently taking place so please do contact us, as soon as possible, if you wish to volunteer any time between October and March. Training this year will be more condensed and specific to India. Three days with Modgala in Narborough or London and then two weeks with Sahishnu in Bolsover. Followed by further training on arrival in India. The work will continue in the form it took last year with a focus on outreach into the very poor areas reaching the women and younger children in particular. Advanced conversation and grammar will be offered to our Indian volunteers most of whom are ex students, who will be helping in the outreach. For more details please contact modgala2004@lycos.com
FRANCE We are pleased to announce that Amida’s retreat centre in France will remain open all year round. Work has been ongoing throughout the summer months to improve the buildings and grounds and will continue right through until next year. Volunteers with a willingness to help improve the centre are most welcome. There may be scope for skills sharing workshops depending on the jobs that need doing and volunteers’ abilities. There will also be opportunities to work on artistic projects to add to the natural beauty already found there. The conditions during colder months will most likely be physically demanding and challenging and so volunteers are expected to be reasonably fit and healthy. This environment will naturally help us to see how ordinary and foolish we really are and propel us to practice the 6 Paramitas: generosity, ethical conduct, patience/acceptance, meditation/samadhi, and wisdom. Please contact susthama@amidatrust.com for more information.
England Maitri Project, Leicester The Maitri Project, Leicester is a welcoming community space that offers spiritual support and befriending to people of all faiths, and none. Run entirely by volunteers, it is creative and inclusive and will offer a variety of services including drop-in-activities, and groups to nurture the health and well being of those who visit us. Please contact mudita@amidatrust.com for details. Opportunities to live and volunteer at The Buddhist House in Narborough is also available. For any further details of the work of Amida Trust
modgala2004@lycos.com Sukhavati, 21 Sussex Way Finsbury Park N7 6RT 0207 2632183 Please Contact
RT 24
For the love of baking by Sue King MAS
(recipe adapted from “Vegan cupcakes take over the world” By Isa Moskowitz and Terry Romero)
1 cup soya milk 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar 3/4 cup sugar 1/3 cup canola oil 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/2 teaspoon almond extract 1 cup all purpose flour (not self-raising!) 1/3 cup cocoa powder 1 cup dark choc chips 3/4 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1/4 teaspoon salt Pre heat oven to 350f/180c - Line cupcake tin with paper cups - In a mixing bowl whisk together soya milk and vinegar, set aside to curdle slightly - Add the sugar, oil, vanilla and almond extracts to the soya milk mixture and beat until foamy - In a separate bowl sift together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt - Add in 2 batches to the wet ingredients - Add the choc chips and beat until there are no lumps - Place into cup cake cases (filling ¾ full) - Bake for 18 to 20 minutes - Transfer to cooling rack Frost them with your favourite frosting
And the joy of eating
Faith and art I Hear You Calling I hear your secret calling In the bidding night When regrets become most galling And the lashes from each mauling Plight my silence to your light
Haiku the cloud deepens we gather plums in the rain a deluge of grace Rob Evans
I hear your strident calling In the urgent morn As if the caterwauling Of the city traffic stalling Might cause me to be born I hear your soothing calling In the high noon hour As the shade shrinking And the thirsty drinking Mark the ebb of human power I hear your raucous calling In the far gone dusk As if revellers a-brawling Or broken hearts a-squalling Might wrest me from my husk
Buddhism is good for you As long as you have an open mind. Closed mind never gets you anywhere. Look and You might not see Peter Hammond
I hear you always calling In the hale and the diseased As the clatter of my falling As a hurt child bawling Sends me whither all is eased Dharmavidya http://dharmavidya.wordpress.com/
Faith and Art RT 26
Poetry Pulled and Pushed the pull is pushed and push is pulled in virtuous circle never stalled. ask not the pull who pushes whom nor ask the push whose is the womb. all that is known is all that need be, push pushes pull and pull pulls he. Lokutus Prime http://my.opera.com/lokutus_prime/blog/
Paradox What then of paradox Indeed is there such? Think not for the gap lies in our awareness not our knowledge O-forsaken truth And for what but realm of starkness of opposite unreal from righteous to evil as pretension with nurture A betrayal of both And embrace of none So yield to bridge, A gilden bridge An arc of dream Shadow of Light in the dark be it seen Beyond each thought Of space Of time of alchemists gold What then do we find? All is still - as an empty sky A Love absolute But where then in universe Is it without? Mere dropping away my body my soul A bidding to enter Far reach through mind SHUNYATA Such fullness the way of AWAKENED kind Lobsang Kunsel Di Purdue
1 - 8 DECEMBER 2008 The BODHI RETREAT
Patricia Obregon 2005
The retreat commences with a session of “prayer unceasing” in the 24 hour nembutsu chanting 1-2 December. The actual chanting continues from noon to noon. Preliminary events and gatherings commence with brunch at 9.00am Monday.
IMMERSE YOURSELF IN AMIDA’S LIGHT AND LOVE TO BOOK EMAIL susthama@amidatrust.com OR PHONE 0116 286 7476