Embracing the Moon (and Justin)

I haven't blogged about the fact that Justin Stone, the Originator of T'ai Chi Chih (who lived here in ABQ, NM for many years) died recently (3.28.2012) I wasn't close to him, like my teachers Rhonda and Carmen, but I had a lot of respect for his work and the fact he was astoundingly healthy and active into his 90s. That alone is a tremendous testament to the value of his short form of T'ai Chi.

One of his aides and publisher of his books and multi media (Kim at Good Karma Publishing) extended an offer for some of us to submit a piece for a memorial booklet. I'm not sure if mine will be included, but I sent in the following with the photo of my TCC journal:

I discovered T’ai Chi Chih the way I’m sure many others did, thanks to Carmen Brocklehurst’s teachings on KNME (our local PBS TV.) When I went to the TCC Center to study and practice, I met Justin, the originator of TCC, and knew we were blessed to have such an amazing resource right here in our midst. So for Justin’s 85th birthday, I wrote a piece called “Embracing the Moon.” It was part poem, part prose. Justin liked it enough to send me a postcard and comment on it. I have kept that card (shown here) along with another featuring Justin’s original art “Lover and Beloved” in my “yin/yang” T’ai Chi Chih journal since 2001.
The photo is one we called “Master and Students” that I shot in March 2008, at a TCC retreat in ABQ. At 91, Justin was still teaching and correcting our movements and when he told his stories, we all sat mesmerized.

Justin’s Heightened Awareness book (© Good Karma Publishing, 1988/1994) begins with a quote about the moon: “No matter how small the drop of water, it reflects the entire moon.” It was the first book I read of Justin’s and it inspired my piece. I would like to include a brief excerpt of my article here:

“The moon is simply the moon--an orb in the sky, but from our perspective its form is constantly changing. We watch the moon wax and wane, yin and yang, from fullness to a sliver of new moon; a graceful, cyclical, circular, ever-changing process. We embrace that motion in Tai Chi Chih!

Justin tells a story of a time while he was in the far East. Zen monks invited him to stay and sit zazen (in meditation) with them. Justin noticed the sun was setting and he had a long way to travel. He told the monks he felt he should leave while there was still daylight. An old monk, the Master, told him not to worry, to stay and sit. "After all," the master said, "the moon gives light too."

Moonlight is soft, reflective light. Like the moon, I am a reflection of All That Is. I am learning to embrace the moon. Today, after seeing you, Justin, at the Center for practice, I thought of this Haiku for your birthday:

Fall moonlight is soft,
reflective of All That Is.
We embrace the Moon.”

I have many delightful memories of Justin talking, sharing his “stories of the East”, and thankfully we have his books, tapes, CDs and DVDs to always gently remind us of our path and practice. Whenever I see the moon, Justin, I will think of you and that soft reflective light. Namaste Justin!

Meditation and Dharma

GREAT Post, Great site: Meditation Journal

Sometimes I write here, and sometimes I write in emptiness. Sometimes I write about meditation. Sometimes writing is meditation.

Calm Abiding

What I love the most about Pema (Pema Chodron) and her way of presenting age-old Buddhist teachings is how fresh and non-religious she makes the message. When she talks about addictions and desire it's more like listening to a young, modern counselor. You would not suspect you are hearing a 75-yr old nun teaching on Kleshas (our grasping nature.) If you haven't met Pema, take a moment and look at this brief discussion where Alice Walker (author of The Color Purple) expresses her gratitude and asks Pema if suffering serves any purpose.

I think everyone could benefit from Pema's messages. For some, like my friend Lesley, it has changed her life-- almost instantly. Lesley said HHDL (the Dalai Lama) didn't "speak to her." That floored me. But when I thought about it, I could see why. He's Tibetan and... a man. Pema is speaking directly to Americans and often to women. She is an American. She was married, has children and grandchildren, and knows exactly the kind of problems we face.

But for me the very best part of Pema, and any Buddhist teacher, including HHDL, is there is no proselytizing. If I sound "preachy about Pema" it's only because she's so wonderful and I want the world to know. I'm really not trying to recruit Buddhists. When you get down to it, it's really much more a philosophy than a religion. The Dharma (teachings) is more like a tool box -- techniques that can help quiet a troubled mind. As HHDL is fond of saying, "You can be a Buddha and a Christian, but usually it's the Christian churches who don't like the vice versa." He laughs a full belly laugh when he says that. Namaste! (which literally means I bow to you, or see myself in you.) OH, and for the exuberant, I posted a lengthy discussion as a link on the title.

Beginner's Mind

This is a famous book by Shunryu Suzuki called "Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind." It's one of the first Buddhist books I owned in the early 1970s. One of Suzuki's first topics is posture. I bet I rolled my eyes back then at his incredibly detailed description of how to sit, and tilt, and hold our hands -- not to mention his paradoxical references. In my impatient youthful years, no wonder I could never truly get into Zen. All that sitting, which I found unbearably boring, and the incomprehensible koans. But I liked the idea of it enough to continue reading over the years, even when I wasn't sitting. Liked it enough to call myself ZenWoman when I needed a "handle" for Compuserve in 1979. (I discovered Compuserve while working at a TV station back then. First for research and later as a fun diversion.)

Anyway, now I find myself endlessly fascinated by the subtle nuances of how to sit for meditation or stand for yoga. I just posted a note about this on Facebook. I feel compelled to try and explain some of these aspects of Buddhism in hopes of demystifying it. I really hate to see beautiful, helpful practices like meditation and hatha yoga (the physical part of yoga) and T'ai Chi all lumped into some "woo woo" category or to go the way of Islam, where people actually begin to hate it.

I hope with President Obama's call for civility and for us to tone down the vitriolic rheteroic, we can all try. I know it's hard. Even in the midst of writing these pieces I felt the old urge to start name calling and blaming the fundamentalist factions for our problems. But I am part of the problem unless I try to shed light on my own practice, walk my own walk, and make some of my tools accessible to others. You never know when someone is ready and you know what "they" say: When the student is ready, the teacher will appear. We are all each others gurus.