Ryokan and the Way of the Heart [53:13m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (658)

Recorded at Upaya Zen Center, September 28th, 2006

In this talk, Eido Frances Carney Roshi discusses the ways of opening the heart and the subtle work required to perform this act. She uses one of Ryokansan’s poems to show this as a basic teaching of an enigmatic master. Eido Roshi is excellent at correlating this Chinese-style prosody-an approach typical of Ryokansan-to everyday experience.

The poem explored was:
“In its innocence, the heart is like water pure and bright, boundless it presents itself to the sight of its beholder. Should a proud desire rise, however, to disturb its peace, Millions of wicked thoughts and pictures will bog it down. If you take these fancies to be real enough to engage you, you will be led farther and farther away from tranquility. How sore it is to see a person crazed about earthly thoughts, a heart bound closely by the chords of the ten temptations. To hear the words of truth, you must wash your ears clean. You will not otherwise stand true to what you hear. You will ask what it is I mean by washing your ears clean It means to rid yourself of all you have heard beforehand.

If only one word of your previous learning remains within, You will fail to embrace the words when they come to you. Resembling what you know, a plain lie may sound acceptable and a simple truth strange to your ears may sound false. How often, alas, we have our judgments made in our hearts When truth lies outside, in a place beyond our conception. Let us not commit such folly as to steep a stone in water, to hide it for a moment knowing it will show in due time. ”
Translated by Nobuyuki Yuasa in THE POETRY OF RYOKAN

We gratefully thank our friend of Upaya, Ottmar Liebert for his contribution of music and bells used in our Podcasts.

 

 The World Come Home to Me [43:13m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download (455)

Recorded at Upaya Zen Center, September 13th, 2006

In this talk recorded during their writing retreat held at Upaya, Natalie Goldberg and Wendy Johnson speak on writing and Zen. They use the interdependence of these domains to show that living through writing is natural and can be fluid.

Natalie discusses her time teaching children - her most treasured occupation. She also delves into the aspect of writing without separation, or “closing the gap.” This entails writing and reading without judgments.

Wendy talks of growing up in Connecticut and shares her fondness of farming communities and families. She reads from her upcoming book, Gardening At The Dragon’s Gate, and with this excerpt, brings alive family life in the 1950s.

We gratefully thank our friend of Upaya, Ottmar Liebert for his contribution of music and bells used in our Podcasts.