#230 Enlightenment: demystification June 21 18

                                                Enlightenment: demystification

I am practicing Zen since 2002 and received the Spiritual Transmission from my teacher Yangil Sunim 5 years ago. It means I became “awakened” or enlightened and may teach.

To be awake in a spiritual way means to mindfully experience the existing reality of the moment inside and around self. Nothing to boast about, nothing to do with bliss, miracle or special divine power.

To find it is an inside job thru practice and not thru reading, Master or PhD degrees. (more…)

#229 Serenity vs. Happiness June 10th 18

                                                             Serenity vs. happiness

The following Serenity Prayer addresses our needs and the frustrations that arise when we don’t like, don’t want or cannot control how people, events and things are. It goes like this:

“O God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference. Living one day at a time, enjoying one moment at a time”.

Very Zen but it was written by Reinhold Niebuhr (1892-1971), an American theologian.

Wonderful way of life. Do we follow them? (more…)

#228 SUFFERING: “NOW & ZEN “…or THEN June 3rd 18

                                                 SUFFERING: “NOW  & ZEN/THEN”

Zen Buddhism teaching has been criticized for putting too much emphasis on suffering meaning that everything that has a negative impact either physically or mentally.

The word suffering is a poor translation. The Sanskrit word “Dukkha” means not only physical and mental pain but also any negative feelings such as unhappiness, dissatisfaction, anger, fear, anxiety, guilt, impatience, stress, etc. The sources of suffering are numerous but most of them are coming from the inside that is our ego-driven mind – desire, hatred and illusion). Few causes are from and few from the outside.

(more…)