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page 1 Buddhist Correspondence Course Newsletter

Volume 5, Issue 2April-June 2009 To avoid all evil, to cultivate good, and to cleanse one's mind

this is the teaching of the Buddhas.

Dhammapada, 183

buddhist correspondence course

newsletter

INSIDE THIS ISSUE...

ArticlesRipening of Karma,Ariya BantuBuddha's Message, Charles Carter

Awaken, Esca WC Elwood

Question for the Sangha,Eisai Hakuin

My Past Cannot Defeat Me,James Halbirt

What is Our Life About?, Josh Lyle

PoetrySanctuary, Julio C. Collazo

A Suffering Transformation,James Davie

Come What May, Erik FiteMy Path to Liberation,

James L. Halbirt

Prison Life, Upsaka Lhamo SamadhanaHaiku, Upsaka William Hoagland

LettersTravis L. Adams

James BettisMichael CollierScott HernandezGuy Richard

The Buddha's MessageCharles Carter (Cottonport, LA)

Im presently reading and understanding the message. The Buddha formulatedhis teaching in a way that directly addresses the critical problem at the heart ofhuman existence, the problem of suffering. All religions say, follow our path

and you will find peace. The world right now is hurting for a solution to the prob-lems facing humanity. The mindset of the world for sure needs to change. TheBuddha says, By oneself is evil done, by oneself is one defiled. By oneself is evilleft undone, by oneself is one purified. Purity and defilement depend on oneself,no one can purify another. (Dhammapada, V 165) We are prisoners, so tospeak, the way the world society labels us. We are in a very good position tosee the world just as it is: its corrupt, falling apart. We have a chance to get intouch with ourselves and develop the way of thinking that a normal human beingis supposed to have The world scene isnt normal, its abnormal. When peopledont know how the mind works, problems surface. Man has dominated man tohis own injury.

What normal human normal could find fault with the heart of Buddhism, thesabba papassa akaranam: refrain from all wrongdoing, do not commit anywrongdoing, either through body, speech, or mind. Wrongdoing arises in bodily,verbal, and mental actions. The source of all ood, evil, and harm lies with ac-tions, speech, and thoughts. When we know the truth of suffering, we throw outsuffering. When we know the cause of suffering, then we dont create thosecauses, but instead practice to bring suffering to its cessation. The practice lead-ing to the cessation of suffering is to see that this is not a self, this is not me ormine. Seeing in this way enables suffering to cease. Thats getting close to nib-bana.

Buddha helps you understand yourself better. The literature Ive read so far is

very helpful to me, and what attracted me to want to read more was the Buddhasaying: If I were to give you a fruit and tell you its delicious, you should takenote of my words, but dont believe me offhand, because you havent tasted ityet. Im enjoying the literature and I advise anyone who wants to know why weas humans suffer to listen to what the teachings say. The world right now for sureneeds some kind of direction. We in prison need direction. My final word: theteachings work.

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Suffering Spares No OneHung Le

Suffering spares no one, it hits people

outside the cell and inside the cell.

Those outside the cell are at most onlymarginally, slightly better off. Why

are you so sure about this, you might

ask. Our Lord Buddha said so: "If it's form, it's fake; if there's a self, there's suffer-

ing." Okay, that's not exactly His word, I just added some flavor to make it easier

for my dull brain to absorb. Bottom line is, keep moving forward, for you never

know if it's the dude in the cell or his own coach in the entoring program, who

will reach Nibbana first. It's all up to you and your own individual diligent effort.

Nothing else.

The BCCN is distributed at no

charge to those taking theBuddhist Correspondence

Course. This is your newsletter,

by you, about you, and for you.

You are the major contributors,

so send us your questions, prob-

lems, solutions you've found to

difficulties in practice, thoughts

you have on practice, artwork, po-

etry, etc. Due to limited space,

some editing may be necessary.

We also welcome your comments

on the newsletter and sugges-tions for ways we might improve

it to serve you better. Please mail

all correspondence to:

Buddhist Correspondence

Course

c/o Rev. Richard Baksa

2020 Route 301

Carmel, NY 10512

Let us know if we may use

your full name or just initials.

To receive copies of any of the

resources listed below, please

write to Rev. Richard Baksa at

the address above.

A listing by state of Buddhist

groups that may be able to

send volunteers to your prison

to conduct Buddhist activities.

The "Religious Land Use and

Institutionalized Persons Act of

2000." This guarantees equal

access for all religions to prison

facilities for the purpose of reli-

gious meetings.

What is the Religious Land

Use and Institutionalized Per-

sons Act? This explains the

Act and how it is to be applied.

HaikuUpsaka William Hoagland(Daytona Beach, FL)

The pearl from the deep

Shining, lustrous to behold,A gift from the sea.

The sun-dragon roared,

Its dying act of the day,And was quickly gone.

Rocks in the garden,Sand raked into lines and whorls,Quiet, subtle beauty.

Sakura, she sang,

As she strummed her samisen,And the blossoms fell.

Cherry blossoms fall,

Drifting slowly to the ground,Softly, quietly.

The leaf, broken free,

Soared swiftly, high on the wind,Lost in the forest.

Brilliant falling stars

Streak across the midnight sky,Bringing good fortune.

The great tree stands tall,

A lone sentinel in green.Over the forest.

The lakes calm surface

Mirrors the heavens above,The lone bird, winging.

The face of BuddhaLooks down upon the sanghaWith infinite calm.

Curving roofs and spire,

The majestic pagodaRises to the sky.

Prayers offered at dawn

Often bring blessings all dayTo those of pure heart.

The seed in the earth

Raises its head up to breatheA flower is born.

Buddhist bells ringing

Reverent monks sit, chanting

The name of Buddha.

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BUDDHISM IN INDIA

Buddhism emerged first in

Bihar, India. Following the

death of the Buddha in

approximately 483 BCE,

Buddhism rose and spread in

large part through the support

of Buddhist rulers. Chief amongthese was the emperor Ashoka

(304-232 BCE), whose

conversion was sparked by grief

over the deaths arising from his

conqueroring the Kalinga

people. Ashoka built many

monuments that helped

established Buddhism and

propagate the teachings of the

Buddha. He also sent envoys

who spread the seeds of

Buddhism to many far-off

lands, including present-day Sri

Lanka and Afghanistan.

By the 13th century CE,

Buddhism was extinguished in

India. Many causes and condi-

tions converged to spell its de-

cline. The religion had relied

heavily on royal patronage, and

as non-Buddhist rulers ascen-

ded, Buddhism weakened. At

the same time, Hinduism was

undergoing changes that made

it more appealing. The incursion

of Muslims into India is gener-

ally recognized as the final blowto Indian Buddhism. In their at-

tempts to establish Islam, the

new rulers destroyed many

Hindu and Buddhist sites. This

had a much more devastating ef-

fect on Buddhism than on

Hinduism.

In the last century, however,

Buddhism has reestablished

roots in India. Its revival began

in 1891, with the efforts of the

Sri Lankan Buddhist leader

Anagarika Dharmapala. In1959, the 14th Dalai Lama es-

tablished his home in India fol-

lowing his escape from Tibet.

Also in the 1950s, Dr. B. R.

Ambedkar founded a movement

that resulted in the conversion

of hundreds of thousands of Dal-

its ("untouchables") that has

continued to the present day.

The Ripening of KarmaAriya Bantu (Kincheloe, MI)

Although I never watched the movie, a fellow prisoner told me that in themovie The Bucket List, actor Morgan Freeman told actor Jack Nicholsonthere are two questions the Egyptian gods would ask after death upon resurrec-tion: (1) Have you found joy in your life? and (2) Have you brought joy into otherpeoples lives? Obviously Im paraphrasing, but Morgan Freeman went on to saythat Buddhists believe in reincarnation and you come back to life either better orworse depending on how you lived your life. In response, Jack Nicholson, in hissarcasm, asked what a snail had to do to come back better leave a perfecttrail of slime? Because the concepts of rebirth and karma are extremely profoundand complex, I will simply explain how a snail receives or can receive the meritto take a fortunate rebirth in one of the upper realms, hopefully, the human realm.

All rebirths are dictated by ones karma, and the realm in which ones conscious-ness is propelled is likewise determined by ones karma. Karma is created by ouractions whether those actions be physical, mental, or verbal, and falls in the cat-egory of negative/unwholesome and positive/wholesome. Karma is like seedsplanted in our subconscious minds: when the conditions are ripe, our karmic

seeds sprout, growing to fruition. Our actions leave these imprints deep withinour storehouse consciousness, inevitably later resulting in our future experimentalpicture. Karma is impressionable, like the film of a camera. When a picture istaken, the image is imprinted subtly in the film and remains there until the condi-tions are ripe for that film to project a picture that will coincide with and bringback an exact reflection of the original image, impressed upon the film. Karma isthe same way. Karmic seeds do not necessarily ripen in this lifetime or the nextlifetime, but can ripen over many, many lifetimes, depending on the conditions.

Just like the impressions left on the film will only manifest when the time and con-ditions are ripe, i.e., when someone takes it to the film store for developing. Youmay not have the film developed during your lifetime, and your children may notin turn have it developed, but it may actually be your great-grandchildren, curi-ous to know what impressionable imprint seeds are found in the film, who decideto finally have it developed. Once developed, a precise, accurate picture will de-pict the exact actions that were captured by camera so many years ago. Karmais no different.

This being the case, although one may have created the negative karma to havebeen reborn in the animal realm, or as a snail, one may have also created posit-ive karma in previous lives by generating great merit by performing virtuous actsduring those lives, but the conditions for those karmic seeds simply have notripened yet in order for the film to reflect those acts. However, once ones karmato live as a snail or any animal burns out, then this necessarily means the condi-tions are ripe for other karmic seeds to sprout, and these seeds could be the

seeds of our own virtuous acts, positive karma, and may merit a fortunate rebirthin one of the three upper realms, hopefully, the precious human realm. The snailis literally enslaved by his previous actions, a slave to karma. Karma, and karmaonly, can liberate the snail from existing as a snail.

But a good question remains: What if the subconscious imprints, the seedsplanted in the storehouse consciousness, contain no positive karma, but instead

continued on p. 5

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AwakenEsca WC Elwood (Corcoran, CA)

This is the first time I have ever satdown and placed my opinion on pa-per regarding our newsletter. Before Istart, be forewarned that those whodidnt leave their feelings at the gateprobably shouldnt read any further.

Anyway, I have never heard or readso much crying, sniveling, and com-plaining in all my years of incarcera-tion. I read all those different letterssubmitted to our teacher, and to sum-

Question for the SanghaEisai Hakuin (Sarasota, FL)

This question comes in by way of apoem written by one of the femaleancestors by the name of RyonenGenso, a Japanese woman who livedin the 17th century. Her name ischanted in the Japanesetemples/zendos. Its part of theliturgy. When looking at this poemhonestly, ask yourself, Who am I?,the great question of life and death. Ittook me close to seven months reallyspending time with its meaning inmany different ways to come to arealization. But I have no one to reallybounce it around with. Please treat itas a koan, because it is. Its a genjo

koan, and it lies within a koan itself. Itis a koan within a koan, butunderstand that theres nounderstanding when working througha koan.

Many different perspectives arise fromthe mind, carrying you through thegreat barrier gate to final realizationof meaning through a directexperience. Its the only way. A koanis meant to help us move beyond thewords and ideas that describe realityand to experience that reality itselfdirectly, intimately. The answer to akoan isnt a piece of information or anew way of seeing. It is ones ownintimate and direct experience of theuniverse and its infinite being. Its astate of consciousness. Do youunderstand? If you dont, yourealready there. One of the greatestsayings in the Blue Cliff Record camefrom Bodhidharma when he said to

Emperor Wu, I dont understand.Here is Ryonen Genso's poem:

Im sixty-six years old. It is autumn. I

have lived a long life.

Moonlight shines strongly on my face.

We dont need to discus the koans.Just listen to the wind in the cedarsoutside.

My question to the sangha: Howdoes this relate to our practice and toour inner spiritual calling? Who areyou and why do we practice?

Now the door is off the hinge, themind is free. Boundless are the Gatesof Zen. The shosan is before you,

theres no place to hide.

marize, they are mostly all sob stories.I am not going to go into detail, but itseems to me that very few actually un-derstand and/or apply what they aresupposed to be learning. For ex-ample, location has absolutely nothingto do with your path. Simply put, weall do the best we can.

On a more personal note, I am a stu-dent of the Theravada tradition andmy primary focus is on those teach-ings. However, I am also studyingTibetan Buddhism to develop a broad-er understanding of all teachings,which in this case would include thewheel of life or wheel of death, de-pending on your perspective. I guesswhat I see an abundance of is prison-ers who havent been able to rise

above mere survival. Theres a lot offrustration and self pity coming fromprisoners who feel there is no mean-ing or purpose in their lives. One ofthe basic, fundamental things welearn as Buddhists is inner reflectionand awakening within, and always be-ing aware of the ego. All of us thatact within these walls are and havebeen conditioned by the ego. In a nut-shell, the ego loves to complain andfeel resentful not only about other

people but also about situations. Solets all try to work on our indifferenceand mindfulness while focusing on pos-itive aspects. Misery loves company. Iwill close with a quote of wisdomwhich has greatly assisted me in myjourney toward emptiness. It is fromthe Vajra Prajna Paramita Sutra [morecommonly known as the DiamondSutra, Ed.]:

Upon realization, I do not reproach

myself for the past;I know that in the future I can rectify

mistakes.

Aware that I am not too far down the

muddled path

I have now awakened to todays

rights and yesterdays wrongs.

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six realms of existence. Due to thisgrace on behalf of the mahabodhisat-tvas, beings trapped in unfortunatebirths of suffering may gain the neces-sary merit to take a more fortunate re-birth.

The mahabodhisattvas, having gone

beyond the ignorance of karma, cantake rebirths through their own freewill, i.e., they can direct their rebirthsspecifically, and frequently do sowhere needed, in any realm of exist-ence. They stay in this cycle for thesole purpose of helping suffering sen-tient beings free themselves from suffer-

ing. Thus, the first of the four GreatBodhisattva Vows is, Sentient beingsare innumerable, I vow to save themall. For example, the BodhisattvaKshitigarbha (The Bodhisattva of theTreasure-chamber of the Earth) is wellknown as the hell-frequenter. Manymay not believe this is possible, a

mere Buddhist trip, but this is far fromthe truth. Many religions stand for thisproposition in some form or other.

In ancient Africa, far before Christian-ity and Islam invaded the originalblack African people, those black

African people had their own spiritual-ity, a spirituality thats similar innature to the teachings of the Buddhaand the concept of rebirth. In theseblack African local religions, they, too,

believed in rebirth. The black Africansthat lived south of the Sahara believedeverything in nature contained a spiritand believed the spirits could live inanimals. They worshiped, prayed, andoffered gifts to the spirits to gain favorand obtain particular benefits fromthem. They honored and worshipedtheir ancestors. Departed blacks were

all negative karma. Will one remain asnail forever, only taking perpetual re-births as a snail? The answer to this isno. Although one will, under these cir-cumstances, perhaps perpetually takerebirths in the lower three realms, all

the negative karma do not necessitaterebirth as a snail or in the realms ofhell beings, hungry ghosts, or anim-als. Yet another question still remains:How does one living in the lowerrealms of animals, hell beings, orhungry ghosts, who has no positivekarma which will permit the rebirth inone of the three upper realms, ever es-cape the lower realms? Are theytrapped forever? Likewise, the answeris no!

In Buddhism, there are those NobleOnes, called Buddhas, Arhats, andBodhisattvas. The one thing these ma-habeings have in common is they allhave realized the wisdom of sunyata,and thus have attained liberation, arefree from suffering, from samsara, andare no longer forced to take a rebirthconditioned by karma. They haveachieved complete liberation from cyc-lic existence. However, differentiation

exists between those Noble Ones.Budddhas are fully enlightened, attain-ing Buddhahood, having moved allobscurations. An Arhat, although liber-ated from samsara, enlightened, andno longer subject to karma, is nonethe-less not a Buddha, for Arhats are notfully/perfectly enlightened. They stillhave subtle mental obstacles that havenot been completely removed, left be-hind due to subtle habits and predis-positions from past karma.

Bodhisattvas, like Arhats andBuddhas, are enlightened, free fromthe force of karma. Instead of abidingin the state of nirvana, they choose in-stead to remain in cyclic existence inorder to work for the enlightenmentand liberation of all sentient beingstrapped in the cycle of suffering in the

called ancestors upon death, and theancestors were believed to have goneon to live in another realm of exist-ence and/or in living things.

The Zulus, for example, refused to killor cause harm to certain snakes be-cause they believed the soul of their

ancestors lived in those snakes. TheSukuma black Africans, who are thelargest ethnic group in Africa, also be-lieved the departed dead were ancest-ors who were reborn and lived inother realms of existence. The Sukumafamily remembered their ancestorsthrough special prayers and offerings.The Sukumas believed their ancestralfamily members that lived in otherrealms were in the position to watchover their descendants.

The Mahasiddhas of India, who hadtheir own spirituality/religion, nowcalled Siddha Yoga, are well known,accepted, and actually part and par-cel with Buddhism. The Vajrayana tra-dition of Buddhism, which originatedin the third century C. E., was greatlyinfluenced by the eighty-four Ma-hasiddhas, two of whom were specifically responsible for the transmission ofthe important teachings of the Vajray-

ana (those two mahasiddhas were Vir-upa and Naropa). Siddhas believethere exists a World of Ancestors. TheSiddhas teach, like the black Africanspirituals, that offerings be made tothe ancestors. Regarding this, I quoteBaba, Swami Muktenanda, SiddhaYoga Master transmitter of the lin-eage: There can be no doubt thatthe various ritual offerings of waterand foodstuffs that we make to our an-cestors actually reach them in a subtle

form. It is true that they eat what wegive them, that they accept our offer-ings and give their blessings to theirdescendants, so we should pleasethem by giving them offerings. OSiddha students, you should not havethe slightest doubt about this.

Karma, cont'd from p. 3

Continued on p. 6

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The subtle form of the offeringreaches the world of the ancestorsthrough the mantras we repeat. Thesame Chit Sahakti carries it from hereto there by means of the mantras. Letme give an example from life today.

Suppose you have a friend in Amer-ica, and lets sup-pose America is veryfar from here. He cantell you on the tele-phone that he hassent you many dol-lars through his bankand that you can getthe money here. Youwill certainly get themoney. This is only a

material transactioncarried out throughphysical sound overa telephone this issomething you allknow. So why shouldyou doubt that thesubtle forms of the of-ferings are carried tothe world of ancest-ors through man-tras? In Siddha

Yoga, it is essentiallyvirtuous to make offer-ings to the ancestors.

Also in Islam, at leastto my knowledgeamongst the ShiiteMuslims, there is thebelief in the practiceof communicatingwith the spirits of thedead. Those beings

who are separated from the physicalflesh body upon death, and whohave attained a certain level of spiritu-ality, can travel to distant regionsthrough subtle realms to communicatewith other beings. By simply concen-trating their minds at a specific timein the human realm, two people cancommunicate over long distances

head trip. As the Great Zen BuddhistVenerable Dr. Thich Thien An oncewrote: The mind that has beendisciplined through practice ofmeditation becomes transformed intoa reservoir of power. Throughconcentration the mind may acquiremany paranormal powers, such as

clairvoyance, clairaudience, thoughtprojection, and thelike. Ven. Dr. ThichThien An taught itwas through thoughtwaves that the mindcould communicatewith minds evenacross great distancesof space. An examplethe Venerable gavewas in the relations

between mother andchild. When the childmeets some injury farfrom home, themother may not know,but she will feel acertain uneasiness inher heart.

So this is how thesnail could gain afortunate rebirth from

the animal realm, byvirtue and grace of itsancestors who live inanother realm, andtransmit merit unto theanimal or snail tobenefit its well-being.In the tradition ofBuddhism, these greatbeings are calledBodhisattvas, and willdirect a rebirth to

your specific realm, out of compassionfor your suffering, knowing well youfailed to generate the necessaryvirtuous karma to free yourself, so theymanifest in your form, in order to savefrom that ocean of suffering.

Karma, cont'd from p. 5 through thoughts and transmit mentalimages. According to Islamic ShiiteMuslim Sayyid Mujtaba Musawi Lari,those living in the intermediate realmcan establish contact with the materialworld and its inhabitants by virtue oftheir inner capacities developed bydeeds performed while still in the

world of humans and can acquire gen-

eral information about their relativesand friends.

Hence, these views also make for theproposition that the GreatBodhisattvas can manifest themselvesthrough a rebirth directed by sheerwill to a realm of animals, or snails, tohelp liberate them from such suffering.This is not a Buddhist superstitious

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My Past Cannot Defeat MeJames Halbirt (San Luis Obispo, CA)

In spite of my past behavior, I am ahuman being who today is sorryand regretful for my past tragic behavi-or. The past is over; I do not let itfester in my mind. Moreover, I am nota stranger in a terrifying universe. Iam not an anomalous disease crawl-ing on the face of an insignificantspeck in the vast emptiness of space. Iam not a nameless insect waiting tobe crushed by an impersonal boot. Iam not a miserable offender coweringunder the glare of an angry deity. Iam a man, a human being who hasmade mistakes in his life, some ofwhich were tragic and senseless to a

sane mind.It was evident in my past that fear dis-abled and crippled my relationships.It sapped my energy and interferedwith major progress and wholesomeendeavors in my life. Those fears I didnot understand. I was driven by fearand anger instead of drawn by hope.This fear often controlled me and dic-tated my responses. The fear of trust-

ing, the fear of rejection, the fear of

being abandoned, and the fear of be-ing embarrassed or outdone by mypartner became evident in many in-stances. The fear of losing what I con-sidered mine was always with me. Theloss of love was my great anxiety thatallowed my self-esteem to be comprom-

ised. The fear of such abandonmentwas sheer torture. My mind was disso-ciated from reality by my own ignor-ance and delusion.

My self esteem lacked the discipline tocompromise or to evaluate mystrengths and weaknesses that were ne-cessary for appropriate change. In oth-er words, I was as I knew how to be,although this is not an appropriate ex-cuse for my behavior. If I had known

how to do better, I am sure I wouldhave found a different way. Appar-ently, at that time, I didn't allow it tobe within my reach.

Additionally, I was not able to takethe risk of exchanging a known for anunknown. It was beyond my grasp. Idid not allow myself the ability to faceadversity adequately. I lacked the testof resiliency, and the ability to cope,

to stand back up, to recover from mis-fortune. I allowed myself to fall from re-sponsibility. My errors of omission andcommission were mine alone.

Instead, I gave up on my need to liveeffectively and my need to live sanely.My integrity eroded to the extent that

violence seemed like a painful teach-er. I fell to the depths of an overwhelm-ing anxiety disorder coupled withsleep deprivation and alcohol. It be-came too much for a troubled mind.The more I tried to control, the morecontrol I lost, and in the end, I was notable to control the lower nature of pan-ic.

However, today I have made manychanges in my life. I am no longer lostin the abyss of a troubling mind. Myself esteem is enhanced by seeing thebigger picture, no longer lost in theego of self and other. I learned how tobe true to the real self, to no longerwear the mask of evil karma. In learn-ing how to be more patient and toler-ant of others, I face myself and theobstacles and persevere patiently in

Continued on p. 9

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the moment-to-moment of being.Those defects and splits of personalityare no longer evident in my makeup.They do not exist. No attitudes of evilare within me. No fantasies of re-

course, revenge, or harm to anotherare in my true nature.

As a Buddhist practitioner, I have thecourage to be vulnerable and the ne-cessary strength to be weak with oth-ers. Further, I have no desire tomanipulate or control others. Being vul-nerable, as fallible human beings arewith one another, simply means thathurts are inevitable in life. We all suf-fer. I am able to handle my hurts to en-rich my joys.

I vow to never give up my true self,control, or discipline in matters of liv-ing as a human in the moment-to-mo-ment of pure being. I am fortunatethat I suffer less than a great manypeople. I am grateful to live in a grate-ful world. I have a great deal of em-pathy and compassion for all victimsof my violence and their families. Ihave cried for them many times. Myheart is heavy for their welfare. May

they have blissful rebirth and fortunatekarma in their new lives. I wish it so ...

All victims deserve my tiny drops of hu-manity. Those round wet balls of fluidtumble from my eyes, creep down mycheeks, and splash on the floor of myheart. They were there that day. I re-gret that I was the way I was, but I amfortunate to move beyond. I will ac-cept my karma, endure it, and hope-fully overcome it. I have forgiven and I

have been forgiven. It touched medeeply, and I can understand fullywhat love is. My tears are alwayspresent in times of reflection. Theyshould be; that is their job. Tears arethe miniature messengers on call 24hours a day to substitute for cripplingwords. They drip, drop, and pourfrom the corner of my soul, carrying

with them the deepest emotions I pos-sess. They cleanse me and nurtureme. They often tumble down my facewith announcements that range fromthe most blissful joy to the darkest des-pair for those who suffer.

The Buddha, the Dharma, and the

Sangha give me comfort and direc-tion. They free me from the demonsand misery brought to me and others.I vow that I will never be a contriv-ance of evil intent. It has no place inmy heart and soul. I will face my fateas it may be, but I will do so with be-nevolence and presence of a puremind. All evil karma ever committedby me since of old, on account of mybeginningless greed, anger, and ig-norance, born of my body, speech

and thoughts, now I atone for it all.In the moment-to-moment of pure be-ing, I am connected to all that exist-ing nature.

When words are most empty, mytears are most apt. And so it is ...

Directions change

Signs go unnoticed

We cant always merge

At the very last moment.

Exits are taken

Stop signs approach -

One way off ramp

Cant use reverse.

Compasses consulted

Blinkers are triggered

N, E, S, W

Which way, go figure.

Report on the BuddhistCorrespondence Course

You might be interested to know howmany others are taking this Courseand where they are from. As of thisnewsletter, there is a total of 449

students from 39 states and oneforeign country: 303 are taking theCorrespondence Course, 146 aretaking the Self-Study. Of theCorrespondence Course, 267 aremale, 36 are female. And of the Self-Study, 134 are male, and 12 arefemale. And of the students taking theCourse, 14 have been fully released(to continue the Course at home,Home Study) and one is in a halfwayhouse. The states with the most

number of students are Texas with 79students in 46 prisons,California with66 students in 27 prisons,Florida with44 students in 29 prisons, Indianawith 21 students in 7 prisons, andMichigan with 19 students in 12prisons.

Past, cont'd from p. 8

Go forth, go forward

Horse power all gallop

Gas gauge leans left

How many miles per gallon again?

Residential terrain

Metamorphoses to rural

Asphalt turns to dirt

Winds back to suburbia.

Pit stop after pit stop

Passenger after passenger

Vision impaired, collision repair

Make sure you fasten up.

Come What May

Erik Fite (Draper, UT)

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I live in a warehouse

Of hot, sweaty human beings,

Packed in side by side by side,

Upper, lower, upper, lower,

We are the wards of the stateJammed together in misery,

Breathing dank, dirty air.

Oh, its a big business for certain

Eighty thousand in many, many prisons

And fifty thousand more in jails

Generating a billion dollars a year

For the states largest industry.

They keep us as long as they can,

Making money from our misery.

The food is absolutely the cheapest

That contract money can buy

With loads of rice, dried potatoes,

Noodles, cabbage, and beans, beans, beans.

We get low-quality fruit, for healths sake,

Truckloads of rejected oranges, with

Skin too tough and hard to peel.

Our clothes are the cheapest of cheap

Made inexpertly by slave-labor prisoners,

As are our underwear, bunks, and lockers.

They give us Chinese cloth slippers, ruining our feet

Made abroad by other slave-labor prisoners.

The mattresses upon which we sleep

Are made from old rags, stuffed into a plastic bag.

Most of the lights go off at eleven,All eighty-four back on at 5:45 am.

March down the street, single file

For a skimpy breakfast, not at all filling.

During the day, pick up butts, sweep, and mop

Mow the grass, wash the laundry, sweat.

All day and night, its count, count, count.

In the evening, we read, listen to the radio,

Or be baby-sat by the video noise-box.

Most of us read, as an escape from reality,

Or study whatever we can find to learn.

There are canteens with over-priced junk food

For those who are fortunate enough

To receive money from a caring family.

This goes on, boringly, day after day,

Week after week, year after year,

With guards who harass and demean,

But ignore us when we need something.

No packages from home, no birthday presents,

Nothing to break the grinding monotony

Of being locked away from the real world.

Prison Life

Upsaka Lhamo Samadhana (Daytona Beach, FL)

What is Our Life About?Josh Lyle (Florence, AZ)

Our wish, our goal, our desire for a

genuine life, is to see the truth of who

we really are - that the nature of our

being is connectedness and love, notthe illusion of a separate self to which

our suffering clings.It is from this

awareness that life can flow!

And what is our life about? To learn to

reside in whatever the present moment

presents. To learn to attend to all

those things that block the flow of an

open life, and to see them as the very

way to awakeningall the building

blocks, the labels, the holding back,

the protections, all the fears, all that

separates us from just letting life be.

And what is our life about? To turn

away from seeking comfort and fromtrying to avoid pain. To be eager to

just be. No longer so willing to be

caught in the relentless monkey mind.

Life is about awakening to the true

selfno one special to be, nowhere

to go.

We are so much more than just this

body, just this personal drama. As we

cling to our suffering, we forsake the

gratitude of living from who we really

are. And when the veil of separation

rises, life simply unfolds. No longer

caught in self-centeredness, we can

give ourselves to others uncondition-ally.

Death is close! Dont hold back! Ap-

preciate this life! Gassho!

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Thoughts on Karma

The Buddhist tradition, however, is more interested in the

internal dimensions of action. Here the more important

questions include: What effect on our own well-being are

our decisions having? and How are we being changed by

our actions? What we do, from this point of view, is far

less important than how we do it. Karma is primarily con-

cerned with how we shape ourselves, and how we areshaped by ourselves, through action.

Andrew Olendzki

If we hope to change our karma, it means we have to stop

making those things happen that cloud mind and body and

color our every action. It doesn't mean doing good deeds. It

means knowing who you are and that you are not your

karma, whatever it may be at this moment. It means align-

ing yourself with the way things actually are. It means

seeing clearly.

Jon Kabat-Zinn

Buddhists...saw that karma acts in feedback loops, with

the present moment being shaped both by past and by

present actions; present actions shape not only the future

but also the present. This constant opening for present in-

put into the causal process makes free will possible. This

freedom is symbolized in the imagery the Buddhists used

to explain the process: flowing water. Sometimes the flow

from the past is so strong that little can be done except to

stand fast, but there are also times when the flow is gentle

enough to be diverted in almost any direction.

Thanissaro Bhikkhu

Every action has a result. Every time you're willing to ac-

knowledge your thoughts and come back to the freshness

of the present moment, you're sowing seeds of wakefulness

for your own future. You're cultivating innate fundamental

wakefulness by aspiring to let go of the habitual way

you proceed and doing something different. You're the

only one who can do this. Life is precious and it's brief and

you can use it well.

Pema Chodron

I treasure the time I have left, more for me to practise. I

want to generate energy of love, compassion and under-

standing so I can continue beautifully. I would like you todo the same. Use your time wisely. Every moment produce

beautiful thoughts, loving, kindness, forgiveness. Say beau-

tiful things, inspire, forgive, act physically to protect

and help. We know we are capable of producing beautiful

karma for good continuations and the happiness of other

people.

Thich Nhat Hanh

My Path to LiberationJames L. Halbirt (San Luis Obispo, CA)

Each morning while the earth revolves

The light from darkness soon evolves.

My shadow lies from east to westAnd moves until I stop to rest.

Although this shadow does not last.

What kind of shadow do I cast

On those who cross my path each dayDesiring help along the way?

Will taking refuge in the Life of Dharma?

Rest in the Sangha a place safe and warm from the

storm.

Will what I share be straight and trueTo help others, safely, make it through?

Will those in darkness see the lightMeditating I choose to do it right?

Will the things I do and words I sayDirect them to the only Way?

When others fall on shifting sand,

Will I be there to lend a hand?

To lift them onto solid groundWhere wisdom and safety can be found?

The Buddha shed his light on me;

From the mind of ignorance and shame, he set me free.

The shadow cast upon my enlightened soulHs cleansed and made me fully whole.

Now in the shadow of my death

Ill be gravely concerned about the loss

Of the Ego that crossed my path each day,

As someone in my shadow stands,

Youll cross my path in the Sangha of helping hands

Because the shadow cast by me can be found

In the true-self image of us all.

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Scott Hernandez (Boise, Idaho)

Hello, my friends in the Dharma. I am20 years old, doing a 4 1/2 to 8

year sentence in Idaho Maximum Se-curity Institute. I am quite new to thestudy and practice of Buddha but hererecently I came across a quote by YinGuang. I have read it over and overagain and never cease to be amazedhow simply put an almost perfect wayof living can be said. I strongly believemost people in prison do not live byany of these ways. I believe if wecould live as this quote states, prisonswould not be seen as a hard place tolive and get along in. Here in my pris-on, things are progressively gettingworse. Now we are almost to a pointwhere the prison is going to be a com-plete lockdown, or in other words, asuper max. The thing that bugs me themost is everyone complains on howmuch the c/o's are trying to mess withus, but these people are the sameones who dont want to change theways and help the problem. No, they

continue to smuggle their drugs, toharm other people and themselves.Anyway, I hope this quote can helpyou as much as it helped me. Pleasepass it around as I have been doing.Dont complain about a problem andthen not help if you can. Dont youagree? Thank you very much for listen-ing to me.

The Great Teachings of the Great Mas-ter Yin Guang:

Whether one is a layperson or has leftthe home life, one should respect eld-ers and be harmonious to those sur-rounding him. One should endurewhat others cannot, and practice whatothers cannot achieve. One shouldtake others difficulties unto oneselfand help them succeed in their under-

takings. While sitting quietly, oneshould often reflect upon ones ownfaults, and when chatting withfriends, one should not discuss therights and wrongs of others. In everyaction one makes, whether dressingor eating, from dawn to dusk, oneshould not cease to recite the

Buddhas name. Aside from Buddharecitation, whether reciting quietly orsilently, one should not give rise toother improper thoughts. If wander-ing thoughts appear, one should im-mediately dismiss them, andconstantly maintain a humble and re-spectful heart. Even if one has upheldtrue cultivation, one should still feelones practice is shallow and neverboast. One should mind ones ownbusiness and not the business of oth-ers. Only look after the good ex-amples of others, instead of badones. One should see oneself asmundane and everyone else as Bod-hisattvas. If we can cultivate accord-ing to these teachings, one is sure toreach the western pure land of ulti-mate bliss.

Homage to Amitabha! Amitabha!Thanks again for everyones time.

In an earlier issue of the BCCN, Stevewrote about the problems he was hav-ing doing meditation in a prison envir-onment. Here are more responses forSteve:

Guy Richard (Chipley, FL)

Greetings, Steve. I found it very easy

to relate to the difficulties you de-scribed while trying to meditate in aprison environment. Although I am abeginner myself, Id like to take thisopportunity and share my thoughtsand experiences with you on this top-ic. I offer this with the hope that itmay be of benefit to you in someway, and to anyone else who finds

themselves in our situation.

Although I am in a two-man cell, I stilldeal with all the noise and distractionsyou described. I hate to say it, but moving to a two-man cell is no guaranteeof a more conducive environment.Theonly time I can expect to sit in formal

meditation without too much distrac-tion is late at night when everyone isasleep. It took some time and effort,but Ive been able to condition myselfto staying up and meditating duringthe late night hours. I do not knowthe details of your situation, but if it ispossible for you to be awake wheneveryone else is asleep, I would recommend meditating then.

On the other hand, if you have triedeverything you can think of and stillfind that its just impossible to medit-ate in your current environment, thenyou may find approaching the prob-lem from a different perspective to bethe best course of action. Sometimeswe may need to pause and take abreath, then step back and have alook at the bigger picture. Try to keepin mind that if we cling too tight to ourideas about how our meditation prac-tice should be, we will suffer when

things dont go according to our de-sires. Patient endurance is the key, myfriend. Did I ever learn that the hardway! What Im beginning to under-stand is that even during those timeswhen we cannot sit in formal medita-tion, we can, me must, still practicethe Path.

The Buddha taught that we should cul-tivate mindfulness when in four pos-turessitting, sitting, standing,

walking, and lying down. In otherwords we should be mindful or medit-ating all the time! Of course, we arenot likely to go into deep states ofmeditative absorption while standingin line at the chow hall. Were talkingabout a different level of mindfulnessand concentration here!

continued on p. 11

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What Im talking about is cultivatingmindful awareness of all our actions,speech, and thoughts through thecourse of a typical day, every day.This is every bit as important as any-thing we may experience while sittingin formal meditation, because withoutthis mindfulness we will not develop

our morality. And without morality asthe base, the foundation of our prac-tice, these is little chance we will getthe results we want when we do findan opportunity to set and develop themore refined states of mind.

So I believe that how we deal with thechallenges we face every day in pris-on is our practice. What we experi-ence tomorrow will be the result of ouractions performed through body,

speech, and mind today. Being in pris-on presents us with constant difficultiesand challenges unique to this environ-ment. These same challenges are alsounique and valuable opportunities forour growth and spiritual progress, butwe must keep our wits about us, or inother words, as Buddhists, we mustconstantly cultivate mindfulness.

If we cannot sit and meditate, we canstill watch the breath, no matter where

we are or what were doing. And wecan watch our minds, staying on topof our thoughts and emotions, investig-ating to find out why we react thisway or why we said that, etc. Whenwe do this, then when the time comeswhere we can sit and meditate, it willgo that much more smoothly. To the de-gree we cultivated mindfulness, we sillhave that foundation to work from, tobuild on.

So try not to let it get to you if youcant sit right now. If you work out atime for formal sitting meditation,thats great. If not, thats okay, too. Aspracticing Buddhists, every situation isgrist for the mill. Every minute ofevery day is an opportunity to devel-op insight about ourselves. TheBuddha didnt say, Make a refuge of

your meditation cushion. He saidMake a refuge of yourself.

Ive gone through a lot of pain andstruggle, a lot of very hard times be-fore I began to understand thesethings, take them to heart, and putthem to practice. And I certainly have

not reached any form of mastery, tobe sure! They say that the way to liber-ation is as easy or difficult as youmake it. Well, that may be true. But Iwould be a liar and a fool if I said itseasy for me. If youre saying All ofthis is easier said than done, I agree.

But I can say that it is getting less diffi-cult for me. Im finally beginning toglimpse the first light of results nowthat Im learning how to stop resisting

and fighting against my situation, andmyself.

So, to anyone reading this who maybe suffering with difficulties in theirpractice I say, please dont give up.

Work with whatever situation lifepresents you. Now, in this present mo-ment. I hope this has been of somehelp as that is my only intention. Maywe all swiftly progress in our practice.May all beings quickly come to knowtrue peace in their hearts. If anything Ihave written is not in keeping with theTrue Dharma, I sincerely apologize.These are only my own views and ex-periences. Fellow BCC member, andDharma friend, Guy.

The last issue of the BCCN carried

news of the death of mentor Rev.

Robert Saunders.

James Bettis (Clarinda, IA)

I'm so sorry to hear about Rev. RobertSaunders. He was a very smart andintelligent man. And he is going to bemissed by many, as you knowalready. I will pray for a wonderfulrebirth for him. You are all in myprayers. Thank you.

Michael Collier(Iowa Park, TX)

Robert was a beautiful and wonderfulfriend and I shall miss him always. Iam not ashamed to tell you that Ivecried a great deal this evening andthat my heart aches with Robs

passing. Though I am glad his suffer-ing has ended, I will miss his wisdomand caring heart. His insight is espe-cially a prize to me, and the time hetook to point out my mistakes meant agreat deal to me. I loved him dearlyas a friend and fellow. I wish merewords could convey a single momentof feeling so I could share with youthe joy and gratitude as well as thesadness the grace of Robs friendshipand mentoring and his loss have giv-

en me. For all that we discuss in ourlessons concerning the fleeting and il-lusory nature of emotions and bonds, Iwould not trade one moment of Nir-vana for all that Rob was.

I wish to continue with my studies andwhen I am able, I will take my vows.This is my faith and I take refuge inthe Buddhas teachings. The monthsahead will be a trial. My mothershealth is failing and another uncle is

dying. I am needed at home verybadly. Yet I am needed here evenmore and perhaps in that lies my truepurpose.

My heart has broken to so manypieces I did not think it could breakany more. Only just recently a manhere shared with me how he hadbeen raped and sold. I spoke theDharma to him with tears in my eyes. Iwill not forsake these men when I gohome. Your work, Robs work, thework of others like you it isnt for noth-ing.

I have made many mistakes, but theone I will not make again is to shirkmy duty to my fellow man. Love eachother, my friends. Our time is short,and there is much to be done in thisdark age. Love and light, Michael.

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Dhamma Without Rebirth?by Bhikkhu Bodhi

In line with the present-day stress on the need for religiousteachings to be personally relevant and directly verifiable, incertain Dhamma circles the time-honored Buddhist doctrineof rebirth has come up for severe re-examination. Although

only a few contemporary Buddhist thinkers still go so far asto suggest that this doctrine be scrapped as "unscientific," an-other opinion has been gaining ground to the effect thatwhether or not rebirth itself be a fact, the doctrine of rebirthhas no essential bearings on the practice of Dhamma andthence no claim to an assured place in the Buddhist teach-ings. The Dhamma, it is said, is concerned solely with thehere and now, with helping us to resolve our personalhangups through increased self-awareness and inner hon-esty. All the rest of Buddhism we can now let go as the reli-gious trappings of an ancient culture utterly inappropriate forthe Dhamma of our technological age.

If we suspend our own predilections for the moment and in-stead go directly to our sources, we come upon the indisput-able fact that the Buddha himself taught rebirth and taught itas a basic tenet of his teaching. Viewed in their totality, theBuddha's discourses show us that far from being a mere con-cession to the outlook prevalent in his time or an Asiatic cul-tural contrivance, the doctrine of rebirth has tremendousimplications for the entire course of Dhamma practice, affect-ing both the aim with which the practice is taken up and themotivation with which it is followed through to completion.

The aim of the Buddhist path is liberation from suffering, and

the Buddha makes it abundantly clear that the suffering fromwhich liberation is needed is the suffering of bondage to sam-sara, the round of repeated birth and death. To be sure, theDhamma does have an aspect which is directly visible andpersonally verifiable. By direct inspection of our own experi-ence we can see that sorrow, tension, fear and grief alwaysarise from our greed, aversion and ignorance, and thus canbe eliminated with the removal of those defilements. The im-portance of this directly visible side of Dhamma practice can-not be underestimated, as it serves to confirm our confidencein the liberating efficacy of the Buddhist path. However, todownplay the doctrine of rebirth and explain the entire im-port of the Dhamma as the amelioration of mental sufferingthrough enhanced self-awareness is to deprive the Dhammaof those wider perspectives from which it derives its fullbreadth and profundity. By doing so one seriously risks redu-cing it in the end to little more than a sophisticated ancientsystem of humanistic psychotherapy.

The Buddha himself has clearly indicated that the root prob-lem of human existence is not simply the fact that we are vul-

nerable to sorrow, grief and fear, but that we tie ourselvesthrough our egoistic clinging to a constantly self-regenerat-ing pattern of birth, aging, sickness and death within whichwe undergo the more specific forms of mental affliction. Hehas also shown that the primary danger in the defilements istheir causal role in sustaining the round of rebirths. As longas they remain unabandoned in the deep strata of the mind,they drag us through the round of becoming in which weshed a flood of tears "greater than the waters of theocean." When these points are carefully considered, wethen see that the practice of Dhamma does not aim at provid-ing us with a comfortable reconciliation with our present per-sonalities and our situation in the world, but at initiating a f

Admittedly, for most of us the primary motivation for enter-ing upon the path of Dhamma has been a gnawing sense ofdissatisfaction with the routine course of our unenlightenedlives rather than a keen perception of the dangers in theround of rebirths. However, if we are going to follow theDhamma through to its end and tap its full potential for con-

ferring peace and higher wisdom, it is necessary for the mo-tivation of our practice to mature beyond that whichoriginally induced us to enter the path. Our underlying motiv-ation must grow towards those essential truths disclosed tous by the Buddha and, encompassing those truths, must usethem to nourish its own capacity to lead us towards the real-ization of the goal.

Our motivation acquires the requisite maturity by the cultiva-tion of right view, the first factor of the Noble Eightfold Path,which as explained by the Buddha includes an understand-ing of the principles of kamma and rebirth as fundamental

to the structure of our existence. Though contemplating themoment is the key to the development of insight meditation,it would be an erroneous extreme to hold that the practice ofDhamma consists wholly in maintaining mindfulness of thepresent. The Buddhist path stresses the role of wisdom as theinstrument of deliverance, and wisdom must comprise notonly a penetration of the moment in its vertical depths, but acomprehension of the past and future horizons within whichour present existence unfolds. To take full cognizance of theprinciple of rebirth will give us that panoramic perspectivefrom which we can survey our lives in their broader contextand total network of relationships. This will spur us on in our

own pursuit of the path and will reveal the profound signific-ance of the goal towards which our practice points, the endof the cycle of rebirths as mind's final liberation from suffer-ing.

Buddhist Publication Society Newsletter cover essay #6 (Spring 1987)

Copyright 1987 Buddhist Publication Society

For free distribution only

vol 5 issue 2

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