Weekend Dichotomy

As the Clash song goes: "Well, I just got back and I wish I never leave now..."

I jut returned from Las Vegas for a work event. Last week, Zen Retreat, this week Las Vegas. I have only heard one suggestion that would be farther off and that would be if I went to Amsterdam. I have never been a Vegas fan. We went there about 10 years ago at the suggestion that "you just have to see it". I agree, to some degree, that it is a spectacle to see, a unique place in our country, a famous landmark to a degree, like the Mount Rushmore of excess.

I understand if you enjoy gambling, enjoy nightlife and walking the streets with oversized drinks this would be a great place, and I don't really fault those who enjoy it. I don't. Even less so lately.

I tried get involved, I played a slot machine (Star Wars) and was really bored in about the time it took half of my $2 to go through a penny slot. There is no strategy, just the repeated pressing on the button that makes your money go away. This machine, by the way has been designed to slowly remove you from your money. Slowly, so you feel like you are winning, but ultimately, its main purpose is to remove your money from you. Some people enjoy the process, they are entertaining to a degree, but I really just can't stand more then a few minutes watching, then I get bored.

One thing that Vegas does have that I am a fan of is good restaurants. I really do like trying all sorts of food and they have some really great ones there. One night we went to "Tao" (the restaurant, not like the "unnamed" source of all things). This place was really beautiful - looked like a huge temple complete with 2 story Buddha statue and decor. Now, I was really, actually kinda torn by this place. The food was great, but pricey and I really liked the interior, but part of me was really getting upset over the commercialization of the statues and the theme in general. Here was all of these great pieces of art and what they represent is not the debauchery of a vegas restaurant. They even had a large photo of a Tibetan monk on the wall. I doubt he expected his image to sit over this place when it was made.

So again - this Dichotomy of approaches came into my head. I enjoyed myself, food was great, it was nice to be in a cool restaurant with my wife, having fun. Although, by doing so, I add to the "ok-ness" of using a figure of Buddha as decor. This type of thing never really bothered me as it does now. I wonder what response people would have if they had a nightclub with a two story Jesus statue over the dinning room and pictures of nuns on the wall (no doubt this concept will be a night club there by next year). They certainly didn't like that I started doing prostrations in the middle of the walkway (I didn't really do that, but maybe should have).


Ultimately, these are just statues and nothing more. There is nothing "holy" about them. Heck, Holy isn't really a part of the Buddhist concept, and these are no more then carved wood and plaster. They could be in the shape of a ScoobyDoo or a Bust of Elvis, but in this case they are in the shape of the Buddha. So, does that make it a bad thing - or just ridiculous? Some people don't think its a good idea to put a Buddhist statue in the bathroom. I used to feel the same. I think the zen approach wouldn't be so upset by that - taking a shit is as Buddhist as prostrations and beads. Maybe we should put more statues in the bathroom to remember that.

One thing that I find being in these situations, like in Vegas, and maybe its what bothered me more, is that it was easier to be tempted to do things I am trying not to do. Like drink alcohol in excess, like eat in excess, or spend money in excess (which happens there whether you try or not). But putting myself into those situations, it is harder to act how I would like to. So, why do it? I can tell you I didn't do any prostration while I was there, even though I intended to. I didn't meditate once, as has been my practice lately.

Living in the "mundane" world as we are said to be, is hard enough without the added tempation. Monks who live in monestaries are doing so to remove themselves one more step from the "mundane" world and avoid even regular temptations that distract us from practice. Living in the shit makes your job harder, but can also make your practice stronger.

So, I didn't like Vegas before I went, and still don't, but this time I actually knew why. I put myself in check alot. I considered my precepts much more then I normally have to. I learned that between the choice of prostrations, sleeping on the floor and eating my food out of a begging bowl, or a cushy hotel room and nightlife, I am happier and more comfortable in the first situation. I guess that is all part of the trip.

So, as they say "what happens in Vegas, stays in vegas". My hope is that it all stays in Vegas, contained and at a great distance.

Prostrations. Buddhist head banging?

So another thing that we did a lot of during the retreat and is now part of my daily practice is prostrations. Its somewhat traditional to do 108 prostrations in the morning, or derivatives of 108 (54, 27 etc). Doing prostrations can be physically difficult, especially if you are out of shape, have bad knees, or don't enjoy doing a ton of squat thrusts. I am starting to get through this better since I have been working up to doing 108 every morning. I started doing 27, then 54 and then made the jump to 108. I have been able to keep this up now for a few weeks, maybe skipping a day here or there, but for the most part, I do them.

So, what they hell is a prostration? Why do this?

It throws off a lot of people I can tell you when they come to visit the temple. I have heard more college students say or ask this after visiting as part of a religions class visit: "Are you worshiping? Worshiping idols? Bowing and worshiping false idols? Are you IDOL worshipers?"

So, first, I have to say, so what if we are (we are not, but I will get there)? I think it is funny that people see what we do, immediately make the jump to compare to their belief or religion and then get offended or upset. You are visiting what we do, this isn't a satan rally. Second of all - we are not worshiping a statue of Buddha when we do prostrations. Its more like bowing, shaking hands, smiling - all forms of polite respect. We are paying respect to the concepts and teachings the Buddha represents. Its a humbling gesture, like bowing your head lower then a senior person. We do prostrations to our teacher when he visits. The action is generally misunderstood, since we don't know how to be humble in this country. We are too often running around with our foam fingers up high, instead of knocking ourselves down a bit. Humility is important, how else will you ever learn anything if you think you are the smartest person in the room, or the world?


When people take the precepts in our order, they are expected to do 3,000 prostrations prior to the event. These can be broken up, 50 day for so many months, etc. Its a sign of commitment and respect to what you are about to undertake. Some orders do many more, up to 10,000 in the Tibetan groups.

We did 108 on Saturday morning before the precept takers arrived. On Sunday, after morning worship (there is that word again) the clergy did 108. Well, the precept takers were supposed to do 108 as well that morning, so some of us did them again with them! So we did 216 prostrations that morning, within about 45 minutes. When I took my precepts the first time, we did 324 the night before. It was tough to walk the next day. It can be hard to get through, but after a while it becomes very meditative, much like walking meditation. By the way, there are also walking prostrations: take three steps, do a prostration, stand up, three more steps, etc. There are pilgrims who do this for hundreds of miles to get from their home to Bodh gaya sometimes leaving big welts on their foreheads.

I have heard a lot of reasons for prostrations, but the one I like the best is that when we do prostrations, we are bowing to the Buddha nature in ourselves. So try and lower your head every now and then, the world is a huge place and its very likely that you don't know much.

Hey brother, can ya spare a dime...(Now with Bonus Photo)

So one of the bigger events for me this past weekend was officially receiving my begging bowls. The term Bhikkhu (for male - Bhikkhunis for females) is used to describe Buddhist monks but translates as "beggar". The original sangha (Buddhist community) was a commune of beggars. They would go through the surrounding towns at a certain time each day and the shop keepers and people living in the town would put small amounts of food in their bowls. So the bowl is a pretty important thing to have. No bowl, no food.



The Korean style of bowls (4 or 5) are used to this day three times daily in the "bowl ceremony" during meals. This exact way of doing meals has been going on for over 2000 years in Buddhist monasteries in different parts of the world.



The ceremony we were taught the last retreat we were able to perform this time (but with more people). I won't go into mass detail, but basically, each move is signaled with a chugpi (a bamboo clapper). We unwrap the bowl set which has the outer tie, a cloth placemat, a holder for chopsticks and spoon, a napkin, the bowl cover and the bowls.





After everything is out - there is a specific way to lay out the bowls (using your thumbs). Each bowl is used for something different: rice, soup, vegetables and water.



Then the junior person will get up and serve water (which we use to wash the bowls) and in turn, rice, then soup, etc...

After is all is passed out, we chant briefly and then we have three minutes to eat. I'm not kidding, we have to eat quickly, and each time we switch food, we put one bowl down, then pick up another. Also we eat in silence. As the monk says in the movie "Hi, Dharma": "We are eating rice and vegetables, not spoons and chopsticks, so there should be no noise."

We also have to eat everything we take, down to the last grain of rice. I was shown a trick last time to make this easier - by sprinkling a little soup broth into your rice the grains don't stick to the bowl. I was never the last one to finish, but was also never the first. I was able to eat everything without much issue, I just learned early on that you don't stop - I went in a circuit of rice, then soup (which helps washing down a mouthful of rice) then vegetables (Kimchee!), then back to rice, etc...

At the end, we use water to wash out the bowls, and we leave a little piece of Kimchee or pickle to wash out the bowls with our chopsticks. Its like a little brillo pad. We move the water from bowl to bowl, washing and moving and then we drink the water and eat the brillo pad! It was kinda gross at first, but you get over it. The bowl ceremony is completed by drying out each bowl and reassembling the whole deal. Then the bowls get placed in order for the next meal. It is simple, wastes nothing and is very efficient...

Our teacher was placed in the kitchens when he was growing up as a novice monk. He said even after he was fully ordained he was put in the kitchens to work. Good luck for us, because he does all the cooking. I volunteered to be the kitchen assistant this time which was a lot of fun for me assisting him and learning how to make these great, yet simple dishes. Korean temple food seems to have a couple of general ingredients: garlic, garlic, vegetables, broth and garlic. Oh and Kimchee. The result is simple dishes that have great flavor. Also the Kimchee and pickles help digestion. He made soup every morning and evening, starting with German Potato Soup which had sausage, potatoes, celery, zucchini, garlic and ketchup in the broth. Many of the soups he made were like this: simple ingredients, broth, some oil and a few spices.

Wait, did I just say sausage in the soup? That's right, meat was in the soup. Vegetarian diets are a stereotype of Buddhists (one I was perpetuating for seven years). Remember what I said at the start? Buddhists were beggars - if someone throws a steak in your bowl, you eat it. Even if it's medium rare, and you like it rare, and there is no A-1. Bhikkhus can't bhichoosers. The Buddha ate meat. Don't want to shock anyone, but that is pretty well known. In fact there is a great story about him eating spoiled meat at the end of his life...(doesn't sound great - but I will elaborate at a different time). Some Buddhist cultures do not eat meat, many, if not most, do...

As Teacher told me the first night when we were prepping the most of the food to get us through the weekend, that "you can't be a monk if you don't know how to cook!"

That is all for now. When we finish our meals we shout this - and so I will shout it to you: "Kamsa Hamida!" (thank you!)

BONUS PHOTO!

Birth

So - another attempt and starting a blog and maintaining it. I wonder if this will actually take root. I have tried a few times, not being much of a "journal maker", yet I think some may be interested in the current path I find myself walking. Specifically, that of a novice Buddhist seminary student, someone who after many years of scratching the surface itch has decided to get out the back scratcher and really "get in there"...

I was ordained as a Dharmacari last year for the second time (first time I took my precepts was in 2004?). This time was with the Taego Order, a Korean Zen tradition (the second largest in Korea). However, by comparison to the Chogye Order, we have less than half the monks they do. The Taego order is also looked down upon from some traditional monks since the rules are a little different in this order. The biggest (and it is a big one) is that Taego monks can be married. In fact, family is encouraged. It seems to make good sense to me, but apparently not everyone.

We are also a small group in America currently. There are about a dozen people at different levels throughout the country and we are growing, but not really represented well here at this time. Its actually an exciting time to be involved with the group and our teacher Dr. Jongmae Park (Kunsunim - Bishop of the overseas Sangha). The people I meet through our retreats are the very people forming the future of this order in America, shaping it into what ever form it may take.

I will write a new post about the past weekend retreat, but it was a great experience - one of the best so far.

So, with that - here is the first post. Maybe there will be more. Maybe this will be it.