karuna center, monchique, portugal, april 2024 silent retreat ____________________________________ everywhere hills undulating on the pathless path whom or whatever we may meet we meet as fellow travelers no one walks here alone even when at times walking feels lonely treading the same footpath with ants looking up at the stars and moving thunderstorms maybe it's in their slumber that we are sleepwalking

_______________________________ " If time merely flies away, you would be separated from time. The reason you do not clearly understand the time-being is that you think of time only as passing. / uji - master dogen ___________________ ? passage of time rather we are the same time of both being the passage where time slides and the oblivion carrying its traces along... ? passage du temps plutôt nous sommes à la fois le chemin chemin par où passe le temps et l'oubli qui porte s

december retreat 2023 bali it rained heavily the morning of our last day of retreat in december. i was in a contemplative mood, not surprising given the stillness and silence and the many hours of sitting during the week. the downpours were compelling. i wrote the lines below when it struck me that the common expression; it is raining outside, was no longer the experienced reality of that moment as i could no longer say something is happening outside for it no longer felt th

candi dasa, bali, november twenty-three " as one side is illumined, the other is darkened. - master dogen" sunday you are vast and without limit your midnights unstoppable you are of time true yet released by time sound of waves breaking on the reefs out of the ocean's breath to just be this succession of what arises and falls this bottomless blue where shadows play with the breeze supreme messenger our sole remembrance of earth blowing us to the far and near

silent retreat october twenty twenty-three monchique * no entry no exit point to silence enter or leave it you cannot * in the midst of noise it never leaves you it is what carries you wherever you go * it is what carries along everything unnoticed unheard in a silent way * in the midst of silence we are forgetful of it lest we listen to raindrops pattering on the roof to a crow’s cawing as it flies over treetops on hillside slopes * forgetful of it though it indwells the dee

curtains drawn from the paddies sunlight pouring in cicadas screeching pouring in inside no one outside no one the dweller left his: nowhere a dwelling will you find in praise in waves golden to no end pouring in

orange moon sailed-off before i came to the river to watch the boats light begins to turn time to prepare for fall love of summer your glitters down to the sea you go Jisei, or death poem, is a genre of poetry established since the early days of Zen where the author, usually a monk or practitioner, would offer their reflection on death when the encounter with it seemed imminent but more broadly would express an understanding or worldview informed by Buddhist teachings; a sent

I rainy season sheets of water freely traveling illusion of you are going anywhere accompanying you wherever you go adds embellishment to...

hua hin, july 2023 carnet de voyage _____________________ seasons of rain sheets of water freely traveling anywhere the illusion of...

in whatever state the old buddha’s mind i’ve always been here sitting in the palm of his hand heart a silent flooding of grieving and love

the ultimate path is not difficult just avoid picking and choosing seng t'san - hsin hsin ming circa 6th century...

poem written about twenty years ago. it evokes meeting my teacher zen master ryotan tokuda a few years before. over a period of time i...

not time enough to practice the teachings many maybe just enough to unwrap a gift or two what are they the teachings windblown words in...

silent retreat october twenty-twenty two monchique * silence to you closer than you morning raindrops on the round black stone in front...

report from a silent retreat serra de monchique summer twenty twenty-two _____________________________ approaching silence stepping into...

karuna center, monchique silent retreat, april 2022 ___________________________ seeker path goal merge into silence and disappear...

notes from a silent retreat I early hours waking up in the early hours sitting here with you you unbeknown to me closest though late for...

after long travels facing black letters on the wall white the wall behind the letters colorless the empty all around reading my way...

keep telling leo not to get confused zazen and relaxation being two things pourtant les instructions sont simples simple and sparse sit...

how i would appear before the world that lifelong concern with mirrors mirrors now broken mostly shimmers on the surface of waters...