Dear Friends,
Please enjoy having 'nothing to do and nowhere to go' at this Saturday's Day of Mindfulness. In our sitting and walking meditation, eating, dharma sharing and mindful movements we will explore this 'nothing to do and nowhere to do.'
Thay [Thich Nhat Hanh] says that: "the businessless person is someone who doesn't run after enlightenment or grasp at anything, even if that thing is the Buddha. This person has simply stopped. She is no longer caught by anything, even theories or teachings....When we learn to stop and be truly alive in the present moment, we are in touch with what's going on in and around us. We aren't carried away by the past, the future, our thinking, ideas, emotions, and projects...Insight can't be found in sutras, commentaries, or Dharma talks....This is like hoping to find fresh water in dry bones....
The person who has nothing to do is sovereign of herself. She doesn't have to put on airs or leave any trace behind. The true person is an active participant, engaged in her environment while remaining unoppressed by it. Although all phenomena are going through the various appearances of birth, abiding, changing, and dying, the true person doesn't become a victim of sadness, happiness, love, or hate....In doing nothing, in simply stopping, we can live freely and true to ourselves and our liberation will contribute to the liberation of all beings"**
So the practice instructions will be simple: 'breathing in, I know I am breathing in [with nowhere to go] and breathing out I know I am breathing out [with nothing to do.] And each of us will still have to find our own way: 'nothing to do and nowhere to go' in the middle of the experience of an unpleasant emotion of physical sensation or a daydream, or deep peace, or an agitated mind or a happy mind.
Dry bones or fresh water?
Attend all or part of the Day: instructions are given and beginners are welcome. Chairs and cushions available. Please do not wear fragrances. We eat lunch together in silence, so bring a vegetarian lunch for yourself. Lunch is around 1:15-2:15pm.]
At the Wellness Center at Riverside Church, 91 Claremont Avenue, Manhattan. [between 120-122nd Streets, one block west of Broadway.]
Schedule [subject to change]
Saturday October 20, 2012
9:45-10am Arrive.
10-10:45: mindul movements, sitting meditation
10:45-11:00-Walking Meditation
11:00-11:30: Sitting Meditation
11:30-12:00: Walking Meditation, Mindful Movements
12:00-12:30-Sitting Meditation
12:30-1pm-Outdoor Walking [weather permitting]
1:15-2:15-Lunch/Rest
2:30-3pm: Total Relaxation
3:10-3:45--Walking and Sitting Meditation
3:45-4:30-Dharma Sharing/Close
The Day will be led by David Flint and Walter Lyons of the Riverside and Morningstar Sanghas.
