On Our Way
Morning Star: Represents Shakyamuni Buddha's enlightenment, based on a legend that he attained the way when he saw the morning star while sitting under the bodhi tree. - from the "Glossary and Index," Moon in a Dewdrop, Zen Master Dogen, K. Tanahashi, ed. (my emphasis)
Dear Friends,
Buddha meditated through the night, facing demons personal and universal, and attained "the Way" as he sat under the Bodhi Tree, just as the morning star arose. This can call to mind, for a Western practitioner, that Christ calls himself the Way (John 14:6) and also the "bright and morning star" (Revelations 22:16), while his position on the cross seems to unify him with the earthly wood of that tree. (Themes here overlap, too, with those of the first Psalm, which we have meditated in years past). We'll talk about the similarities and differences today, but note that in all three cases these archetypal images are used to describe someone who has developed a kind of peace through being present to life's most extreme trials. How can we participate in this peace?
In our practice today we will identify ourselves with the earth and its beings, with the starry heavens, and with our infinite path.
How provocative of the traditions to emphasize walking, the way, the path, rather than a destination. Buddha only seems to be sitting still.
This cosmic Way includes an evolving relationship to our earth-bound delights and losses. For an intimate view of how grief can seem stuck but then keep on moving, please read Jennifer Senior's Pulitzer-winning article from the Atlantic.
with love,
Michael
P.S.: I do have a new book out -- Be: An Alphabet of Astonishment. It is available at Scout House in G.B., the Bookstore in Lenox, Bookshop.org and Amazon.com. I hope you enjoy it!
