Round the city’s four walls
He saw men’s suffering,
That through Three Periods never knows an end.
Ephemeral joys darkened the eyes of men,
Yet His deep insight understood it all.
When we are young we fret that time goes slowly,
As we grow old decay comes on apace.
So swiftly this deceiving dream is over,
That sudden as storm or lightning once arose.
I knew that my good karma was not ended,
But time was flying past and would not stay.
Sincerely I copy His actions on Vulture Peak,
Remembering the rules He gave in Jetavana.
A waterfall goes flying past the courtyard,
A lofty forest dazzles at the window.
In this house of meditation we realize all is void,
In this temple of debate we analyse subtle truths.
XIE LINGYUN (385 – 433 AD)
Zen artist Kano Sansetsu’s four sliding-door panel painting “Old Plum” (1646) was at one time in Myoshinji temple in Kyoto. Featuring the thick, black, twisting trunk of a plum tree, this work would have once been the backdrop to a room used for study in a Zen monastery.
The Shinshoji Zen Museum and Gardens to experience the ways of Zen. Practices such as tea ceremony, mediation, walks through Zen gardens, and taking a Japanese bath are available for experience. The concept is to embody and explore Zen. The campus consists of museums and art installations. This is a place where one can immerse oneself in the attributes of Zen, both traditional and modern.
Home Coming
Through the wisdom of Nangaku’s guidance and the safe support of the Grounded Earth Module training, I have experienced monumental shifts in my life in a very short space of time.
By recognising parts of myself through the gentle filter of Mother Earth’s Elements, I am moving closer and closer to home. I am grateful to feel and trust the abundance of our Earth Mother in a way that is new, yet familiar.
The abundance of love I have for the self I call me, is growing moment by moment. I am choosing to continually gift myself with the realness that is me, for as I truly experience my self, so I truly experience the Earth and the full all-encompassing abundance within her.
Reflecting upon my journey with the Grounded Earth Module … golden honey comes to mind, nectar so sweet, shimmering and transmutable – a deeply intimate, expressive, indescribable experience.
I continue to relish in the glow of this liquid gold … thank you to Nangaku and all those who courageously walk this path beside me.
Helen H.