The Dharma of Each Other

As a Buddhist teacher, author and founder of the Upaya Zen Centre, Roshi Joan Halifax has dedicated her life to service.  Christopher Mccann listens to her stories.

Photo by: Meridel Rubenstein

I am sitting with Roshi Joan Halifax. She is propped up on pillows, her eyes steady and deep despite the pain in her body. She has slipped on a wet bathroom floor and broken her hip in four different places. She emerged from surgery with a certain equanimity, coming back to do her work in the world with the new addition of a steel plate and screws in her hip.

It’s been close to two years since we’ve seen each other, and we are happy and easy in each other’s presence. I have brought her a picture of her dog, Dominga, which she raised to her forehead like a picture of a saint before placing it on the table beside her. After spending thirty hours strapped to a gurney in an emergency room, she was moved to a private room, where we are sitting when she tells me this story:

“Imagine you’re flying in an airplane, with the wide, shimmering expanse of the sea below you. You rest comfortably in your seat, watching sunlight glint off the waves.

“Out the window you see a smaller plane come into view, flying parallel to yours and just below. There is a moment’s pause, and then the smaller plane begins to throttle back and forth, dipping and diving. And then suddenly, from the side of the plane hidden from your view, a man falls out and starts hurtling, end over end, toward the sea.

“You gasp, pressing your face closer to the glass, feeling a flash of fear course through your body. Entering into the man’s fall with him, you feel it from his body, see the ocean rushing toward you through his terrified eyes. Then with a violent splash the man plunges headfirst into the water.

“And you are still strapped in your seat, hundreds of feet above him, hardly able to breathe.”

I lean forward in my chair toward her. Where is this story going? It’s shocking and strange to me to imagine a man falling to his death, but then Roshi Joan reveals one vital detail.

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Quiet Place

(Each day before breakfast the founder and abbess of Sravasti Abbey, Thubten Chodron, gives a morning motivation for residents and guests. Below is a teaching given during March 2008.)

Quiet Place.

Have you ever had this experience? You walk outside, and all of a sudden the silence strikes you–it’s in such sharp contrast to the chatter that’s going on in the mind.

Photo by Jody Miller

We live in a very quiet place. We walk outside and it’s pretty quiet–a few birds chirping, sun shining. Then suddenly the chatter in the mind stops because we see that it’s just chatter. It’s in such stark contrast to the silence that’s outside.

We want to learn to notice that chatter before we even have to walk outside. And we want to be able to find that quiet place inside ourselves and keep it with us, so that even when we’re in a place where there is a lot of noise, the mind can be quiet.

All that mental chatter is basically negative conceptualization. If we were thinking about emptiness or developing compassion with that kind of mental activity, fine! Continue that outside, inside, everywhere. But most of the time what’s going on is, “I like this. I don’t like this. I want this. I don’t want that. Why does this person do this? Why don’t they do that?” That kind of mental activity makes the mind quite stressful as well as accumulates negative karma and wastes a great deal of time.

As soon as we can catch it and be aware of what’s going on in our mind, and come back to that silent space inside, the more peaceful we’ll be. Our lives will be more productive in terms of having the Dharma grow in our hearts, and we’ll be more focused in whatever daily activities we’re doing. We won’t be quite so distracted.

Thubten Chodron is the author of numerous books, including Buddhism for Beginners; Taming the Mind; Open Heart, Clear Mind; and Working with Anger

Daily Dharma 02: Do Good Work

(Guest post by David from DailyDharma.net)

Day 2: Do Good Work.

“Be well, do good work, and keep in touch.” – Garrison Keillor

So many of my friends come to me from time to time and say, “I’m just so unhappy at work.” I understand. I sympathize with them, because at times I have been very unhappy with my job, too. But in order to lead a happy life, an unavoidable step is to put your soul into the work you do — even if it means learning to love an unlovable job.

Photo by Daquella Manera.

Today, Do the Best Job You Can

I used to commiserate with them, tell them I disliked my work too, discussed the possibility we had not found our callings, and fantasized with them about quitting.

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Daily Dharma 01: Be Present. Live Here and Now

(Guest post by David from DailyDharma.net)

Day 1: Be Present. Live Here and Now.

“Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment.” – Buddha

How can we can we be conscious, enjoy living, or accomplish anything, if we are not aware of where we are, who we are, and what we are doing right now?

Photo by Stuck in Customs

Today, practice being present.

Focus your mind on your actions, whether you are brushing your teeth, eating a sandwich, or hard at work, and avoid daydreaming.

If you are driving to work, simply drive. Do not worry about Monday’s meeting, about last night’s fight with a loved one, or about what another driver is doing behind you. If you are breathing, simply breathe. Notice each breath coming in and going out. Feel the air that sustains you entering your lungs. If you are sitting, simply sit. Pull your mind back to right now. Notice your surroundings. Notice your feelings. Notice your suffering. Notice, but do not worry. Just be.

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