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page 1 Buddhist Correspondence Course Newsletter

Volume 6, Issue 1January-March 2010

Just as the great ocean has one taste, the taste of salt,

so also this Dhamma and Discipline has one taste,

the taste of liberation.

Uposatha Sutta

buddhist correspondence course

newsletter

INSIDE THIS ISSUE...

ArticlesThe Concept of Emptiness, CarleeHinesDoes a Buddhist Practitioner Have

Faith?, JulieWhat Is Enlightenment?, Bill RitterUntitled, Michael CollierFoolishness, Christopher BrainerdWatching Your Company, Ariya Bantu

PoetryHaiku, James DavieUntitled, Willie E. CampbellContemplating Enlightenment, JamesDavie

Art

Untitled, Brian AlbererOrchids in the Wind, Travis L. Adams

Ancient Eye, Travis L. Adams

LettersCesar Correal HenaoTravis L. Adams

James L. HalbirtRonald Couch, Jr.Minister Willie Campbell

The Concept of EmptinessCarlee Hines (St. Louis, MI)

What is emptiness? Emptiness is the heart of the Dharma, what elevates youto Buddhahood. That entities have no fixed or independent nature is afundamental Buddhist concept; nothing exists independently. It rejects as false the

belief of one who envisions himself as being absolute and independent of all oth-er existences. People think emptiness means nothingness, but it is not empty orbeing empty. It means that all things are changing every moment. If things trulyhad a definite, enduring substance or entity, then no change or flow would bepossible. Because nothing has self-nature, everything is possible.

Emptiness teaches how to destroy the mental fantasy and hallucinations broughton by ego. It brings you an entirely different experience of reality. When youhave strong contact with your senses, your ego arises, incredibly strongly. For ex-ample, this morning, the hungry I went to breakfast and ate. Even when Iwas eating I still thought hungry me is eating. However, whatever you have ex-perienced in your life right up until this moment is not you. The moment you identi-

fy yourself as something, you are something else. You will really begin toexperience emptiness only when you look simply and practically at your ownegos view. It is not our sense perceptions that cause us to grasp, its our mentalconsciousness, the conceptions of our ego. Ego is at the root of separateness.

How do you practice with emptiness? Disciples should be on their guard to keepthe mind under constant control. They should neither grasp nor become attachedto the passing things of the senses or concepts and moods of the mind.

With mind training you can easily experience emptiness and thereby releaseyour egos fantasy, for example, releasing your concrete projection of I, whichis in fact completely nonexistent, opposite to the vision of emptiness. With intens-ive awareness, you will see the strongly hallucinatory projection, which then dis-

appears. At that moment, you experience emptiness. When you realize thenon-self existence of the concrete projection of I, it completely disappears intonothingness. Everything becomes empty when you realize emptinessall con-crete concepts of ego vanish. When you realize emptiness, you can truly realizeattachment, delusion, ego, impermanence, nonexistence, the nature of reality,etc. You will stop thinking of the way things should be and start seeing them asthey really are. Thus, emptiness is the vehicle to the path of liberation.

Emptiness is symbolized by a sword, the wisdom sword of emptiness. It penet-rates all obstacles and cuts through all delusions.

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continued on p. 3

Does a Buddhist Practitioner Have Faith?Julie

Many Westerners who come to Buddhismwere raised in a different religious tradi-tion, such as Christianity, Judaism, or Islam. Inthose religions, the role of faith is relatively straightforward; faith is directed to-ward God. But how do we think about faith in the context of a non-theistic reli-gion like Buddhism? Is faith wholesome or unwholesome? What did the Buddhasay about faith? How does faith develop?

In different teachings, the Buddha lauded different sets of qualities as conduciveto enlightenment. An often cited set of wholesome qualities that he taught arecalled the five spiritual faculties. Faith is one of these five spiritual faculties. Thefaculties are:

1. faith or conviction or belief (saddh)

2. energy or persistence or perseverance (viriya)

3. mindfulness or memory (sati)4. concentration or focus (samdhi)

5. wisdom or understanding or comprehension (paa)

In Buddhism, faith is directed toward the Buddhas awakening, toward theDharma, which is the truth of his teaching, and toward the sangha, the com-munity that practices together. These are called the three jewels or triple gem.Faith in Buddhism is also a belief in our own Buddha nature; a confidence in ourown capacity for spiritual development and liberation. So from this perspective,faith is wholesome

However, we are also cautioned against one spiritual faculty overpowering and in

hibiting the other faculties. To prevent one faculty dominating another, it is recom-mend that the five spiritual faculties be developed in counterbalancing dyads.Faith and wisdom are one of these dyads.

One strong in faith and weak in understanding has confidence uncritically andgroundlessly. Faith that is not balanced by wisdom is blind faith. We can see thisin religious fundamentalism of all sorts. Indeed, in the Kalama Sutta the Buddhahimself argues against "blind faith." This kind of faith is unwholesome.

On the other hand, one strong in understanding and weak in faith may becomecunning and scheming. Such a person may be a good debater, but their heart ishard and their reasons for learning lack compassion.

In one sutta, Sariputta, one of the Buddhas beloved disciples says this about thefive faculties: These five faculties, if cultivated and regularly practiced, lead to theDeathless, are bound for the Deathless, end in the Deathless." In other words,practicing these five faculties can lead to enlightenment. So, we are instructed tostrive for a balance of faith and wisdom.

For me, my faith was sparked the first time I saw a bikkhuni (nun). She was sobeautiful and happy. I could see that she knew how to lead a good life. She in-spired faith in me. Now my faith is strong. I entrust myself to the triple gem.

The BCCN is distributed at nocharge to those taking the

Buddhist Correspondence

Course. This is your newslet-

terby you, about you, and for

you. You are the major contribut-

ors, so send us your questions,

problems, 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 andInstitutionalized 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.

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What is Enlightenment?Bill Ritter (Eloy, AZ)

What is it to obtain enlighten-ment? In our Sangha, few oth-er topics have inspired such intimateand intense discussions and caused

such thought and contemplation as themeaning of the term to reach enlight-enment. Is it a sudden spark of clarityin which a person is able to under-stand the true reality of the world inwhich we exist? Is it a sudden insight

into ourselves which in turn leads to the ability to understand the connectednessof all sentient beings? Is it the ability to realize, like the Avatamsaka Sutra says,The entire universe is created by mind alone?

We are taught that to search for enlightenment is to only put our goals further outof reach. It is said that enlightenment is indescribable and unimaginable. It is de-

scribed as a state which takes many lifetimes to achieve. In the Seekers Glossaryof Buddhism, a description of enlightenment is to achieve Buddhahood. Accord-ing to the Mahayana view this is the true, immutable, and eternal nature of all be-ings.

After much contemplation and thought, I cant help but wonder that since theword Buddha means one who is awakened, that maybe enlightenment isnt astate of mind or consciousness at all. Maybe enlightenment is the never-endingsearch for more wisdom, more compassion, and more personal insight. Maybe tobecome enlightened really means to become truly aware that as humans weneed to constantly keep trying to better ourselves by becoming more compassion-ate with each other and the world around us. Maybe it is the search for never-end-ing wisdom in a time when so many are content to stay stuck in a state ofignorance and egoism. If so, enlightenment is an unobtainable state, a daily jour-ney to better ourselves for the selfless reason to benefit others. Maybe this is thetrue meaning of god-like state.

No matter what the true meaning of enlightenment is, it is useless to spend muchenergy on what might be or what might happen. Instead, as one member of mygroup said, we should put our efforts into the present moment by continuing tobetter ourselves, and being ever more conscious of the suffering of those aroundus. We should stay focused in the present moment, because only in the actionswe make in the present moment do we change our future for the better.

Haiku

James Davie (Brent, AL)

From chaotic clouds

To a sea of sadness

Venomous visions fall

False impressions

Invented imaginary things

Nothing is real

Falling from grace

Stepping into dukkha

My shoes are messy again.

Travis L. Adams (Raiford, FL

Brian Alberer

We are all at different places on ourspiritual paths. Your faith in the begin-ning may be very small. You maycome from a background where clev-erness and scheming was valuedmore than faith. Enlightenment may

seem a long way off. But, we canhead in that direction.

What about you? How can you waterthe seeds of faith that lie deep in yourconsciousness? The truth is, you arealready watering those wholesomeseeds. You are cultivating faith by tak-ing this Course, reading this newslet-ter, taking up a practice that will leadyou in toward truth and beauty. Youhave cultivated good karma that has

brought you to the Dharma, and thatis already very good.

Faith, cont'd from p. 2

Its often said that the Buddhist way is not to grasp. But that can be-

come just another statement that we grasp and hold on to. Its a Catch 22:

No matter how hard you try to make sense out of it, you end up in total

confusion because of the limitation of language and perception. You have

to go beyond language and perception. And the only way to go beyond

thinking and emotional habit is through awareness of them, through

awareness of thought, through awareness of emotion. The Island that you

cannot go beyond is the metaphor for this state of being awake and

aware, as opposed to the concept of becoming awake and aware.

Ajahn Sumedho

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FoolishnessChristopher Brainerd (Eloy, AZ)

I need this body to pursue the Way.

I must not risk harm.

I need this mind to seek the Way.

I must not risk unwholesome influences.

I need time to practice precepts.

I must avoid distractions.

I need a wholesome mind to clear the

Way.

I must avoid evil.

I need material things to live and give.

I must not waste.

I need this life to progress towards

Enlightenment.

I must not squander it.

Anything that deters me from the Way

must be avoided. Not for my sake, but

for the sake of my future lives, the

goal of Enlightenment, and the

eventual relief of others suffering.

Be selfless but dont be foolish.

How do I know when I am acting

wisely?

Ask myself:

1) Does this serve my Path to

Enlightenment?

2) Is it selfless?

3) Is it not an undue burden, following

the Middle Way?

How do I prepare myself to act wisely?

1) Nurture a clear mind through

meditation.

2) Expel intoxicating emotions through

mindfulness.

3) Learn selfless behavior by

practicing the Precepts.

UntitledMichael Collier (Iowa Park, TX)

I am not a Buddhist, but I do seektruth through an inner way. I alsoseek peace within myself and with mybrothers. Many of the concepts Ive

found in Buddhism I believe are moreclearly stated and better understoodby its teachers and students than inother religions. But still its just a reli-gion, a system that depends on our un-derstanding and the quality of ourinterpretation of the principles the sys-tem embodies. Just as religion is madeup of a universal principle or truth, weeach are made from a single sourceas well. This source has no beginningor end, encompassing the whole of

creation of which it is not only a partbut the whole of what we really are.

Whether rich or poor, male or female,white, black, brown, yellow, or red,we are all a single entity. The spark oflife in every living thing is the same.Only in the lower realms of expressiondo we see this differenceor ratherits appearanceand have the abilityto be fooled by it. To understand thespiritual teaching of the Buddha, onemust think and apply these concepts

to his or her own life. You can do thisin any physical location, loud or not,by turning inward, by thinking aboutwhat you have studied, your own life,and the world around you. The physic-al world is an illusion and as long aswe are fascinated by the illusion, wellbe bound to it. Let us look to what isthe same for all of us and to ourstruggles to turn inward to that same-ness and the wellspring of knowledgeshared by one and all rather than tothe esoteric differences that are a partof our suffering.

Letting Go

The easiest way to work on letting

go and letting be is to notice your

tendency to want things to be

different from what they are and

to practice giving up that strong

preference. The Third Chinese

Patriarch of Zen sang, "The Way

is not difficult for those who havefew preferences."

There are many means to letting

go, from surrendering to God's

will, if that is your faith, to

undertaking the mind-training

techniques of Buddhism. The

following are a few simple steps

that aid the practice of letting go,

regardless of your beliefs or

religious affiliation.

Fundamentally, letting go

requires just two steps: (1)

becoming aware of whateverarises within the field of your

experience or consciousness, and

then (2) becoming aware of how

you relate to it.

Because our minds cycle through

so many thoughts in the course of

a day, or even a minute, they are

a good place to start in the

practice of letting go.

First, practice being aware of

whatever arises in your

experience--a physical sensation,

thought, or emotion--rather thanrepressing, suppressing, or

ignoring it.

Second, try to observe whatever

arises, without judgment or

reaction.

Third, investigate and examine

the feeling, thought, or emotion,

without bringing external or

internal activity to bear on it.

Fourth, if the thought, feeling, or

sensation requires that you act,

decide how to channel yourenergy into action, or

Fifth, simply release the

sensation, thought, or feeling,

recognizing the transitory, empty

nature of all experiences.

Lama Surya Das

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Watching Your CompanyAriya Bantu (Chippewa, MI)

It is extremely important to guardyour mind. This means watchingyour company, for they can disruptand poison your mind and spiritual en-ergy. The Dhammapada, verse 61,specifically states: Avoid companion-ship with the foolish. If as the dis-ciple fares alone, he meets nocompanion who is better or equal, lethim firmly pursue his solitary career.There is no fellowship with the foolish.

Verse 76 specifically states: Associatewith the wise who try to correct you.Should one see a wise man, who,like a revealer of treasure, points outfaults and reproves; let one associate

with such a wise person; it will be bet-ter, not worse, for him who associateswith such a one. This reminds me of awonder story regarding the assimila-tion of the mind as it concerns compan-ionship.

A lion cub can never really be like adonkey; in its claws, its head, itswhole body, it is completely a lion. Butif it were to spend all its time with don-keys, it would start to lose its bravery,and the donkeys would begin to thinkit was one of them. It would graduallychange its own spirit, its nature, andits habits, and take on the characterist-ics of a donkey. It would start to braylike a donkey, eat filthy things, andbathe in dirty water in the streets, asdonkeys do. If it did this for long, thenonly its body would be a lion's. All itsinner characteristics would be a don-keys. It would slowly forget its braveryand courage, its love of the forest

solitude, its species, its habits, and allthe ways of a lion. It would live in thestreets of villages and towns. And thenone day a washerman would comealong looking for a beast to carry thedirty clothes of the town, and alongwith all the donkeys, the lion wouldhave to journey to and from the wash-ing place carrying dirty clothes. But it

would never think it was a lion thathad turned into a donkey. It wouldthink that, since donkeys are in the ma-jority, it had improved itself.

Just as the lion in the story spent all histime with donkeys and began to con-form to the donkeys way of life, hu-

mans, too, when immersed withnegative people tend to assimilate,over time, that negativity. Perhaps theMahasiddhas said it best:

You should not undermine yoursadhana by listening to the opinionsof evil, leering types of people whoseminds are perverted and whose habitsare bad. If you do find yourself in thecompany of some hypocrite who dis-torts everything, dont let yourself bedragged down into his world.

Never disparage the Guru. This willdeflect you from your sadhana andlead you into delusion. If there isenmity, jealousy, falsehood, and gos-sip among brother disciples so that thecode of conduct of the Gurus family isbroken, and if instead of meditatingand studying you allow your minds tobecome agitated by quarrels, then theinner shakti will gradually becomeweakened. Weeping, shouting, con-

ceit, and hurting other people are notthe marks of service to the Guru.

There is one thing that you must re-member: The shakti that is active andgrowing within you is the Guru him-self. You should therefore be carefulabout the company you keep, so thatthe purity of your sadhana is main-tained. Bad company is dangerous,even fatal, so make a firm resolve toavoid it. When a man keeps the

wrong company, all the bad featuresof a demon are automatically fosteredin him, and he behaves like a demon.The noble qualities are destroyed.

Just as a drop of sour curd can spoila whole ocean of milk, so bad com-pany can lead to every kind of evil. Itcan make you gossip about everyone

and talk ill of them; it can make you in-discreet, arrogant, impure, full of anim-osity; it can make you behavedishonestly; it can draw you to moviesand plays and to eat impure foods inrestaurants. Siddha students must beextremely careful to avoid bad com-pany, for it reduces the momentum of

the inner shakti.

Please, my Dharma Brothers and Sis-ters, guard your minds by watchingyour company. Otherwise, you will de-generate, descend from the pure landto the hell realms. Yours in theDharma.

I find it wrong that in our modern

society we tend to reject people

who have committed crimes -

prisoners, for example. The result

is that often the people

themselves lose hope. They lose

their sense of responsibility and

discipline. The result is more

tragedy, more suffering, and

more unhappiness for all. I think

that it is important for us to

convey a clear message to these

people: "You are also a part of

our society. You also have a

future. You must, however,

transform your mistakes or

negative deeds, and should nolonger make these mistakes. You

must live responsibly as good

citizens."

from An Open Heart:Practicing Compassion

in Everyday Life,by H.H. the Dalai Lama

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Orchids in the Wind

Travis L. Adams (Sarasota, FL)

Untitled

Willie E. Campbell (Angola, LA)

We dance a tune to Natures eternal form and

grace. Tis no limit to time

No limit to space.

From afar weve come

to manifest as sparks upon this canvas of life.

Were yet to truly know and understand

our eternity

to fully grasp our eternal light.

Sojourners along this path are we

temporarily houses in materiality.

The moment of our entry

Will be with blinding likeness in the end

for when and where this illusion of life will stop

The explosion of Reality will begin.

Contemplating Enlightenment

James Davie (Brent, AL)

I contemplate Enlightenment

for the welfare of all beings

And give thanks to the Buddha

for all that Im seeing

Im seeing a new way

to live out each day

As I get ready for another

and begin to pray

I pray for peace

for everyones mind

Loving kindness

is what I hope they will find

To find it and hold it

close to their hearts

May it stay and grow

may it never depart

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Dearest Dharma friends:

Years ago I was the most miserableperson you can imagine. I was full of

anger, hatred, attachment for women,money, and I could not love anybody,not even myself.

However, it took coming to prison tofind the best gift I have ever had in mywhole life - the gift that I am talkingabout is the precious teachings ofBuddha Dharma.

By studying Dharma, I came to realizethe importance of mindfulness.Through mindfulness I can understandthe wrong concept of I or me. Thislabeled I or me have been thecause of my evil deeds that I havedone to others, and obviously it hasharmed me as well.

Through practicing the Path, we gradu-ally rid our mind of all its false concep-tions, dualistic attitudes, andnegativities. This achievement is pos-sible because the delusions obscuringthe mind are not one with the mind.

The mind is temporarily afflicted withthese delusions. The nature of themind is clear and vast, limitless like acloudless sky.

I send my love and prayers to eachone of you.

Cesar Correal Henao.

Garden City, GA

This is in response to Elton Houston

(BCCN Vol. 4, Issue 2), whoresponded to Carlee Hines(Buddhism and Its Purpose [BCCNVol. 4, Issue 1]).

Elton Houston stated that the end ofsuffering is not the final goal, that theultimate objective is the experience ofNirvana. I would like to comment onthat.

To speak the truth is very important inthis area. Although Mr. Houston maybe correct in this view, its to be noted,

and very important to be made crystalclear, this is the view of the Hinayanatradition and not that of the higherscope of the Mahayana. The sole pur-pose for ones enlightenment is in factto finalize all suffering. This is the trueteaching of the Tathagta within thehigher Tripitaka of the Mahayanatradition, as taught by the Yogacaraand Madhyamika schools. Nirvana isnot enlightenment and is a selfish stateof being. It is merely a state of awa-

kening of the third eye, the firstglimpse of enlightenment. And yes,Mr. Houston, even Buddhism, theDharma, in order to have a directrealization of emptiness, to seeemptiness directly and everything inone moment of existence, it must be letgo of. Please refer to the middle-wayteachings of the great Nagarajuna,also the Ornament for Clear Real-ization by Maitreya. This is alsosupported by the Great Shantideva in

Engaging in the Bodhisattva Deeds.Mr. Houston, sir, the ultimate goal ofthe Buddhist practice is far from thestate of nirvana, and yes, per theTathagata and everything ever taughtin Buddhism, it is to end all suffering.

And if this could be done withoutenlightenment, then so be it. Plain andsimply put, if there were no suffering,there would be no Buddhism, thus noNirvana. I will stop here, sir, beforewe go into 800 chapters of emptinessand true reality. As for the limitationsof the bodhisattva within the teachingskillful means, a bodhisattva maywork for the benefit of another, to endsuffering, participate in deeds of non-merit, and then enter into the puri-fication of the Tantric Vajrasattva. Thisis due to his understandings of notonly the workings of karma in relation

to emptiness, but the true under-standing of the entrance to the greatMahayana Path of Great Com-

passion it is different than merecompassion.

I wish you and your practice well, Mr.Houston. Gassho.

Travis L. Adams

Raiford, FL

In an earlier issue of the BCCN (Vol.

5, Issue 1, pages 8-9) Sanderson Beck

er wrote in response to an article by

James Halbirt in Vol. 4, Issue 4 (pp. 1-2), Prison Doesnt Work Unless You

Make It Work. Mr. Halbirt now re-

sponds to Mr. Becker.

Dear Sanderson,

I accept your apology while none isreally needed. No. I have never beenin a hard level #4 prison, but I havebeen in hell and I can sympathize withyour predicament. And I will not pre-

tend to make a judgment about it. Ican and will feel empathy and compassion for all those who suffer, includingyou.

After 38 plus years in prison, I have aknowledgeable understanding of pris-on life; which would include dropouts,including some from Pelican Bay StatePrison.

Ive found in my studies of life thatwhen we forgive, we tend to have lessmisery in our lives. Who knows whatkarmic obstacles you have created ina past life, and has matured in thisone? I have no idea what you did toget in such a super-max prison, butstill I can have empathy for your situ-ation. I have had some hellish mo-ments that I will not elaborate on, butbeing whipped with fan belts and oth-

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er abuse tends to influence your atti-tude.

My position today is to change that at-titude by living in a grateful world.Sometimes we just have to find it, butit lies within your reach. As for bedspace, come to CMC-E and you will

find you have less bed space thanwhere you are. And yes, youre right, Iam fortunate to be where I am, buteven this place is getting worse. Youcan pursue a path of wisdom by medit-ation, accusing you of being less a per-son than me. This was not my intent. Ihave some knowledge of some in-mates that have no soul and appearon the surface to be unchangeable. If Icould change places with you I would.Maybe I could teach the Dharma to

your keepers who are making youmiserable. I am also sure that many inyour situation are there because theymade choices that landed them there.Further, I hope you have it in you tofind the path to wisdom, to eliminateany affliction you may have. Some in-mates cannot even make it in this typeof prison. Far too many are in PC andwould rather live in confinement. Iwish you peace and happiness in yoursearch to be what you can be. In clos-ing, I have the privilege and honor toremain, yours in Dharma, in mettaand Gassho.

James L. Halbirt

Crescent City, CA

This is in response to James L. Hal-

birts article, "Hands," in the BCCN

(Vol. 4, Issue 3, p. 3).

Wooowww that was a profoundcompilation of realized thoughts. Imlooking forward to your advancingthe question from How have they[your hands] served or hundered you?To the context of the mind. Gassho.

Ronald Couch, Jr.

Beaver, WV

This is a comment for Abner Cham-

bers Old in Madras, OR, who asked

A Question for the Sangha (BCCN,

Vol. 4, Issue 3, p. 11).

First, Id like to offer you a suggestionregarding your fasting practice being

limited by institutional mandates. Co-ordinate your meditation and fastingschedule through the Chaplain so heor she may notify the appropriate staffof your nontraditional religious prac-tices. Should you require lawful author-ities, in addition to the ReligiousLand Use and Institutionalized Persons

Act of 2000 and the What is the Re-ligious Land Use and InstitutionalizedPersons Act? provided by the BCCNupon request, try 544 U.S. 712, as

well as the United Nations Declara-tion of Human Rights. The former is aU.S. Supreme Court case concerningnontraditional religions practitionersand rights of institutionalized persons.The latter provides that a human hasthe right to say/declare that their reli-gions, and practices thereof, arewhatever believed to be so by the ad-herent.

Secondly, not to be critical of your

statements, but on the one hand, yousay you dont earn enough to eat-in-cell as an alternative to avoid the dis-tractions of the visually pleasing boys in prison and after on the streets,yet you open your question revealingthat you face the threat of suicide-watch for going days without a mealbecause of meditation. That said, Idlike to share the famous anecdote ofSevering an Arm for the Pursuit of theDharma of the Second Chan Patri-

arch Lineage.

Huei-ko reached the cave at Shao LinTemple where the renowned MasterBodhidharma was meditating. At thegate of the cave, he earnestly be-sought the Masters permission to aska few questions concerning Dharmapractice. The Great Master, however,

simply kept on sitting there silentlyand motionlessly, and did not appearto notice that anything was gong on.Huei-ko knelt on his knees patientlyand perserverently at the caves en-trance, waiting for a response for along, long time. Gradually, as night-fall came, it began snowing veryhard. In no time, Huei-ko was coveredup to his ankles, calves, and knees; ul-timately being buried from his thighsdown. Still, Huei-Ko didnt stir, and asgradually as nightfall arrived, so itpassed.

At dawn, finally the Great Master Bod-hidharma suddenly spoke sternly,What are you trying to do overthere? Surprised and overwhelmedwith joy, Huei-ko implored anxiously,

I would like to ask Your Mastershipto instruct me concerning the Essen-tials of Buddhas Dharma. To this,much to Huei-kos surprise, Bodhid-harma snapped gravely, TheDharmas of the Buddhas are so pureand precious, and so hard to comeupon! And now, with all those impureKarmas of yours, your overridinghaughtiness, your outstanding pride,your unbearable arrogance togetherwith that slighting attitude of yours how could you ever expect to hearanything of it? How could you everwish to obtain the deepest secret insuch a causal and offhand fashion?By these remarks, the Master meantthat Huei-ko had not endeavoredenough to purify his Karma.

Huei-ko was confounded and des-paired for a while. He would notknow what more he could do to con-vince the Master about his faith and

sincerity, nor did he know what meritsor qualities he would need, and whatdeeds he should accomplish so as tobe accepted by the Master. All of asudden, Huei-ko had his mind madeup: producing a camping knife fromhis bag, he chopped off his own leftarm, and presented it to Bodhidharma.

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After the arm had been presented(which symbolizes relinquishing evenones own dearest and most cherishedbody for the sake of Enlightenment),the Master then inquired, What nowdo you want of me? Huei-ko immedi-ately went down on his knees and en-treated Master, my Mind is ill at

ease. Please, Great Master, help meease my Mind! At this, Bodhidharmaquickly responded, Fetch me yourMind, and I will ease it for you!

Quite taken aback by such a reply,Huei-ko hesitated and mused to him-self for quite a while, and then re-marked, Master, I have searched allover my being, and yet my Mind isnowhere to be found! As soon asHuei-ko had uttered these words, Bod-

hidharma snapped, Quite so! I havealready eased your Mind for you!

Quite so, Abner Chambers Olds, withall that impure Karma of yours, e.g.,fear of succumbing to your attractionfor visually pleasing boys, fear ofthe consequences of what other prison-ers may do to you in the chow hall forsuccumbing to your latter attraction,lust for visually pleasing boys bethey in prison and later on the

streets, and, essentially, attachment tothe human form finding it most beau-tiful and desirable (and loathsome?),and your overriding haughtiness, out-standing pride, and unbearable arrog-ance, together with that slightingattitude of yours (e.g., just read overyour preceding article addressing Mr.Dehart writing of the ego and emo-tions that are born thereof, and thenread again the entirety of your ques-tion for the Sangha) how could you

ever expect to hear anything of the Es-sentials of Buddhas Dharma whenyour tea cup is full?

Indeed, Abner Chambers Old, fetchme your Mind, and I will ease it foryou! showing you how one just eatsin a chow hall. And since your tem-perament uses the expedients of visual-

izations to release you from your dis-tractions, then dispense with torment-ing yourself with meditations on thehell realms, as well as the channelingof primal ignorance through the anim-al realms, and complete the circuit ofantidotes when you meditate on theloathesomeness of this human body.

For instance, your latter meditations re-sound in The Nine Visualizations ona Corpse. If this is the case, then thisantidote demolishes lust and all kindsof attachments. However, you seem toend up with a lingering aversion fornow discernably disgusting bodies.Because our path is one of equanim-ity, try adding The White Bone Visu-alization to cure your IllusiveDifferentiations, enabling you to seethrough the superficial layer of skinand flesh, and to see the UltimateReality of the Bones that all menare fundamentally alike or equal meaning, no more visually pleasingboys in prison or on the streets, andno more discernibly disgusting bodies just the ridiculous delusions of anim-ated skeletons caught up in perform-ing the same acts of individuationexpecting different results. Gassho.

Ronald Couch, Jr.

Beaver, WV

Dearest friends:

Recently, I was presented the follow-ing to ponder upon and respond to:

In remembering the past, what willyou do to contribute to a brighter fu-ture?

It is my pleasure to share my thoughts

with you:In remembering the past, an attemptis made toward linking what hasbeen to what occurs today. Thinking,which isolates transpiring manifesta-tions as a thing (or things) strictly un-folding in the instant, erases away thelongstanding fact of interconnected-ness between events that have left

seeds of evidence substantiating thetheory of ongoing experience fromone generation to the next.

It is often sensible to revisit the old ad-age: Those who do not learn fromthe mistakes of the past are doomedto repeat them in the present.

Contributing to a brighter future?Who can say that fifty years ago inthe past wasnt a step forward into abrighter future by those of that timewho believed themselves to be cultivat-ors of their knowledge, themed by theresults of their sowing and reaping?Or, that the founders of any past soci-ety didnt see that: each and everyflaw was nothing more than a swingdownwards of the karmic pendulum resulting, sooner or later, in a inevit-able upward swing into lessons welllearned, capitalized upon, and giventhem (that society they founded) as ne-cessary steps to growth and a bright-er future for those who were to comeafter them?

Like any other torch, we pass the lightof our experiences to the generationssucceeding us. Todays efforts aroundthe globe to uplift humanity fromevery personal slumber will have bril-liant effects for an impersonal, univer-sal realization of brotherhood.Knowing no bounds, no limitations,no selfish borders on seeing in othersthe strand of divinity we see inourselves, along with a gentle song ofproductive progress that will lookback on the pains of the past asblessed stepping stones for our col-lective growth and higher level of un-derstanding.

It is with the aforementioned realiza-tions that we who are incarceratedcan leap into the ocean of human pro-gress remembering the past and itslessons learned without anger aboutany former suffering we have not thepower to change. For we are each atiny speck of divine radiance shiningthroughout time, with other specks like

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ourselves: an illumination of todayswisdom within each of us thrives as anundeniable testament of all that weare from the cradle to the grave...along with all that we are here to bein the universal family of sojourners liv-ing, learning, experiencing, and even-tually sowing seeds of continual life.

The past is present today in the future;being made brighter with each stepwe take.

There is, truly, RIGHT now. This very in-stant. Humanity is right now. UniversalBrotherhood is right now. Human Kind-ness is right now. Loving ones neigh-bor as ones self is right now.Understanding past mistakes is rightnow. Recognizing the common goodin all mankind/humankind is right

now. Acknowledging the very best inourselves for the sake of those whowill come stumbling along in our oncewayward footsteps is RIGHT now.

I remember the past. I remember itNOT in terms of failures alone, but asa necessary step forward realized inheart, soul, and mind. I remember thetrials, the errors, the agony(ies) of hu-man injustice, the perils of human mis-understandings throughout time that

now serve as atrocities we can learnfrom and hope never to repeat again.

Right now, the opportunity is given tome to be the change I want to see inthe world. From being a living bless-ing to my family and friends, to doingwhat I can to enhance love in theworld.

I can only carry the load Im given,but will not fail to see the conditionsof others as my own as well. Ill want

for myself a heart big enough to sharemy light with everyone.

Thats the key. Thats the magic of re-membering where Ive come from.That is the truth I humbly embrace: abrighter future in this very instant; envi-sioned for those who come after me tocollect the torch of Universal Brother-

hood and compassion I carry. Andwhen it is time that I leave this planeof being, I will do so with hope that Ihave said and done things that havecontributed lovingly to brighter tomor-rows seen in the todays thereof.

With peace, love, and many blessings.

Minister Willie CampbellAngola, LA

DEFINITIONS

Some students have asked for

definitions of terms used in

Buddhism. We'll offer a few from time

to time. Please write if you have

particular terms you'd like us to

cover.

Buddha: An epithet of those who

successfully break the hold of

ignorance, liberate themselves fromcyclic existence, and teach others the

path to liberation. Derived from the

Sanskrit root budh, "to awaken," it

refers to someone who attains

nirvana through meditative practice

and the cultivation of such qualities

as wisdom, patience, and generosity.

Such a person will never again be

reborn within cyclic existence, as all

the cognitive ties that bind ordinary

beings to continued rebirth have

been severed. Through their

meditative practice, buddhas have

eliminated all craving anddefilements. The buddha of the

present era is referred to as

"Sakyamuni" ("Sage of the Sakyas").

He was born Siddhartha Gautama, a

member of the Sakya clan.

--fromA Concise Encyclopedia ofBuddhism, by John Powers

Dharma: As doctrine, Dharma means

the teachings of Buddha, and

Buddhism in general. Dharma is a

moral imperative for a Buddhist, for

it is through observing the Buddhas

teachings that one can reach

enlightenment and nirvana. By

following the Dharma one will see

immediate results; one will

experience it at once, without lag.

Dharma in this sense is a means

toward salvation. This then is the

religious imperative behind

Buddhism as a whole. Dharma is

what makes Buddhism relevant,

today as well as in the past. The

dharmas of existence: Early

Buddhism used the idea of dharmas

to mean elements of existence. The

idea embraced all aspects of reality,

including mind. Some schools also

included unconditioned aspects of

reality, such as those found in the

state of Nirvana, while other schoolsmeant the term dharmas to apply to

only the objects of consciousness.

--fromThe Encyclopedia oBuddhism, by Edward A. Irons

Sangha: The Buddhist community,

especially those who have been

ordained as monks (bhiksu) and

nuns (bhiksuni) but originally

referring to the fourfold sangha of

monks, nuns, laymen (upasaka), and

laywomen (upasika). The minimal

requirements for admission to the

Sangha are faith in the three jewels

(triratna) of the Buddha, the

Dharma, and the Sangha, usually

demonstrated in the act of taking

refuge. Laypeople are expected to

keep the Five Precepts while monks

and nuns follow code of over 200

rules.

--fromA Dictionary of Buddhism, byDamien Keown

Three Refuges and Precepts: The

three refuges, namely the Buddha,

Dharma, and Sangha, particularlywhen used as a profession of faith.

The formal procedure by which a

layman becomes a Buddhist is by

taking refuge, which involves

repeating three times the formula I

take refuge in the Buddha, I take

refuge in the Dharma, I take refuge

in the Sangha. The utterance of this

formula is followed by recital of the

Five Precepts. The three refuges are

also referred to as the three jewels

(triratna).

--fromA Dictionary of Buddhism, byDamien Keown

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