Practice in lay life Discourse to the White-clad disciple

20101218 e-talkPlum Blossom Sangha Austin, Honey Locust Sangha Omaha,

Blue Ocean Sangha Miami, Heartland Sangha KansasCity

Introduction

• The 4th e-talk of the 1st of 4 year training program of the OI

• Breathe• Now• How (today’s talk)

The sutra opening• The Buddha teaching to:– Shariputra– Anathapindika and– 500 lay men and women

• “….if they study and practice the Five Mindfulness Trainings and the Four recollections, they will realize without hardship the capacity to abide happily in the present moment”

• Buddhism is an art, a way of life– Happiness for self and others– In the here and the now– Faith in something true, good and beautiful

Contemplation of Buddha 1 of 2My mindfulness shining near and far• 10 characteristics of the Buddha• 36 beauties; visualization• Recitations• Art works, statues, prostrations• Reading – Old path white clouds

Contemplation of Buddha 2 of 2 • Awakening, enlightenment, understanding and love are very

concrete: you can touch it and taste it• Faith born from the results of the practice (daily food): the mother

of all realizations• Bodhicitta: faith in something True, Good and Beautiful (energy)• Aspiration for a more meaningful life• Faith in Buddha and self: protection and shining light – wisdom• Evoking the name, contemplating: reading, talking, singing … about

his life, his actions, his love, his wisdom• A refuge• “As a result, their thoughts are clear, they feel joy, and the arrive at

the first of the 4 contemplations, abiding happily in the present moment with ease and without any hardships”

Contemplation of Dharma my breathing, guarding body and mind

• the teachings, the practices, which bring about mindfulness, serenity, understanding, love and emancipation

• it is subtle, deep and lovely• reciting the sutras, practicing the way of awareness• good for all walks of life (the ocean: deep and shallow; the taste of

liberation)• you can taste it for yourself, here and now• relief of suffering: transform and liberate• timelessness, universal• selective watering• prajna, maitri and karuna are fruits of the practice, not concepts to

discuss and to study

Contemplation of the Sangha my 5 skandhas, working in harmony

• the community that practices the dharma under the guidance of the Buddha

• four-fold sangha; manifestation of the dharma and the Buddha• on the way of liberation and awakening; understanding and love• living the dharma; making it alive• living according to the 5 Mindfulness Trainings, realizing samadhi,

prajna, vimukti (liberation)• no coming, no going, no being, no non-being• an inspiration, a consolation and a refuge• its qualities: harmony and awareness• individual practice makes us become better elements of the

sangha; quality of sangha improves• sangha building is a practice

Contemplation of the Mindfulness Trainings

• the Mindfulness Trainings:– 3 parts: the essence, the form and its effects– faith and belief: it is possible

• practice, experience and understand, taste the results• they become essential if we do not want to fall into the realms of sufferings

– peace and happiness– guiding light– a refuge– True, Good and Beautiful

• Living in mindfulness, living in accord with the Mindfulness Trainings– Not imposed on us– A protection and a practice tool– Mindfulness brings about understanding and love: NOT blind faith but a practice that is born

out of Mindfulness of suffering– Keep us in the land of the Buddha; protection and refuge; in the realms of the 4

immeasurable minds and out of the realms of animals, hungry ghosts– Interbeing nature with Dharma and Buddha– Necessary for the successful practice of mindfulness meditation

Interdependence• True Buddha: – mindfulness, understanding and love

• True Dharma:– impermanence, non-self and nirvana

• True Sangha = manifestation of the Buddha and the Dharma– sila, smrti, prajna; openness, freshness and happiness

• Mindfulness trainings:– Each one contains the 3 Jewels– Each contains the 4 other ones

Practice in daily life

• Wake up Austin• Tricycle: your life is your practice