MOON ON THE WATER Volume 4, Issue 5 Newsletter of the Great Lake Zen Center, Milwaukee, WI October, 2002

How Long Does a Butterfly Live? Peter Neuwald, Co-Director

Last weekend, my wife, Gretchen, and I had a young overnight guest named Lydia. Lydia is eight years old and is the daughter of Gretchen�s friend and hairdresser. It has been some time since we�ve watched over someone so young; as many of you know, my daughters are both grown up and living out of town. On Saturday we went to the Milwaukee Public Museum. They have a room containing a wonderful exhibit of live butterflies that fly all around you. While talking about the migration of Monarch butterflies, Gretchen wondered about the life span of those migratory butterflies. Lydia, who seems to notice everything going on around her, promptly answered, �As long as they live!� Of course, we adults were thinking of a much more complex answer. (I have to admit that I did research this a little � I�m not going to fill you in though; you�ll have to look it up for yourselves!) Lydia�s answer was better; it was completely the truth, very simple. Much of the time we confuse beliefs with truth � children can often show us how to cut through that. Zen Master Seung Sahn was once asked, �What is belief?� In his response, he said, �You want to believe; this is already a mistake. So, put it all down and true belief will appear by itself. Very simple! The mind that wants something cannot believe in anything. Throw away this wanting mind. Try!� The student replied, �Try what? Can you try to believe?� To this, Zen Master Seung Sahn answered, �No! No! I didn�t say try to believe. Only try. Only try means only going straight don�t know; don�t know means that your ideas about this world disappear. When your ideas disappear, then you and this world become one. So in true belief there is no believing in something or not believing in something because it has already become one.� This is very interesting and should be looked at closely. We are constantly bombarded by beliefs passed off as truth. We, in turn, bombard others with our beliefs that we too often pass off as truth. There are far too many belief bombs going off in our world. We make things much more complex than they are, constantly thinking, thinking, thinking. Of course, there�s nothing wrong with thinking � the problem arises when we attach to it. How, then, do we cut off these strings of attachment? This month we will be having a weekend Yong Maeng Jong Jin retreat. Come experience the truth of that. Find the true way. If you don�t know the true way, take I-43 to the Locust Street exit and head east to our center at 828 East Locust Street. Very simple!

YMJJ Retreat and Precepts Ceremony Scheduled with Zen Master Dae Kwang

October 26-27 6:00AM-9:30 PM

A YMJJ retreat has been scheduled for October 26-27, 2002, with GLZC Guiding Teacher Zen Master Dae Kwang. The retreat will be held at GLZC. Zen Master Dae Kwang will be leading this retreat and conducting interviews. The price of the full retreat is $60, or $35 for one day. The price includes vegetarian meals. Sleeping space is available at no extra charge at GLZC. Those planning on staying at GLZC should bring a sleeping bag,pillow, and wash cloth/towel. The retreat will begin with a free public talk with Zen Master Dae Kwang at 7:30 PM on Friday. Please plan on joining us for some very strong practice. You may register for this YMJJ by signing up at GLZC or by contacting Peter or Laura. On Sunday, following the YMJJ, there will be a precepts ceremony at GLZC. The ceremony will begin at 3:00 PM. There is no charge, and everyone is welcome. Please plan on attending.

Free Public Talk Zen Master Dae Kwang Friday, October 25, 2002

There will be a free public Dharma talk followed by a question/answer session with Zen Master Dae Kwang on Friday, October 25 at GLZC. The talk will begin at 7:30 PM. Zen Master Dae Kwang is abbot of the Kwan Um School of Zen and GLZC�s guiding teacher. Please join us for this rare opportunity to learn from a very clear, compassionate teacher.

Zen Master Dae Kwang

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Earth Soup Zen Master Dae Kwang

Each morning we say the Four Great Vows at the beginning of practice:

Sentient beings are numberless; we vow to save them all. Delusions are endless; we vow to cut through them all. The teachings are infinite; we vow to learn them all. The Buddha Way is inconceivable; we vow to attain it.

As Zen practitioners we start each day by together stating this clear intention. One interesting aspect of these vows is that in our school we use the pronoun "we": "we vow. . . " The cornerstone of our practice is together action. When we act in complete harmony with others and become one with them, at that moment there is no "I, my, me." This is great love, great compassion, the great Bodhisattva way. A student once wrote to Zen Master Seung Sahn in a state of near frenzy because Rajneesh, an Indian Guru, had just predicted that a large earthquake would soon cause California to sink into the ocean. She wanted to know where to move to best avoid this catastrophe. He wrote back advising that she stay in California, help the people there and die with them if necessary. In Zen we many times speak of the three poisons: desire, anger and ignorance. Usually the focus is on the first two but ignorance is also a root problem for human beings. Each of us is utterly enmeshed with everything else in this universe. From the bacteria in our bowels, to our next door neighbor, to the ozone layer, we are all in this earth soup together. It is only our thinking which allows us to "think" that we are separate in some way. Thinking creates the ego's idea that this is a "one man (or woman) show." This illusion of separateness is ignorance. Buddhism uses the metaphor of Indra's Net to express our essential connectedness with everything else. Here, every thing and event in the universe is portrayed as a brilliant jewel which lies at the intersection of the lines in the net. In addition, each jewel is many-faceted, reflecting each of the others. This is a wonderful poetic image which I'm sure we can all relate to and understand, but how can we attain it? Zen means when you are doing something just do it. "Do it mind" has no subject and no object, no inside or outside. Inside and outside become one. Already, you and the whole universe have become one. Zen Master Ko Bong's third gate is very interesting in this regard: "The whole universe is on fire. Through what kind of samadhi can you escape being burned?" If you hesitate for even an instant, you are lost. Zen Master Dae Kwang is guiding teacher of the Great Lake Zen Center. He will be giving a public talk and leading a Yong Maeng Jong Jin retreat at GLZC October 25-27. Details about these events are given elsewhere in this newsletter.

Calendar of Upcoming Events Monday, Oct. 21: Discussion class with Mike Yonkers: Zen and Christian Mysticism, 7:00-8:00 PM, sitting practice at 8:00 PM, GLZC Friday, Oct. 25: Public talk with Zen Master Dae Kwang, 7:30 PM, GLZC Saturday/Sunday, Oct. 26-27: YMJJ, beginning with bows at 6:00 AM, GLZC. Register at GLZC or contact Peter or Laura. Sunday, Oct. 27: Precepts ceremony beginning at 3:00 PM, GLZC. Friday, November 15: Extended practice, 7:00 PM until midnight Monday, November 18: Discussion class with Peter Neuwald: Prison Dharma: Nurturing the Lotus Flower, 7:00-8:00 PM, sitting practice at 8:00 PM, GLZC Monday, December 9: Buddha�s Enlightenment Day celebration, 7:30 PM, GLZC Monday, December 16: Discussion class with Andy Yencha: Zen and Environmental Activism, 7:00-8:00 PM, sitting practice at 8:00 PM, GLZC

What�s Been Going On?

August and September have been busy months at the Great Lake Zen Center. On August 19, Dharma Teacher Jeff Ligman kicked off our Discussion Class series with a talk on the Common Roots of Zen, Taoism, and the Martial Arts. On September 16, Susi Childress, Dharma Teacher, gave a talk on the Wabi Sabi Classroom: Zen Goes to School. These talks were well attended by both GLZC sangha members and non-members. Don�t miss our upcoming talks: Zen and Christian Mysticism, with Mike Yonkers, on October 21, and Prison Dharma: Nurturing the Lotus Flower, with co-director Peter Neuwald on November 18. On September 23 Chong Hae Sunim, abbot of the Providence Zen Center was at GLZC for a public talk. He answered questions following a dharma talk by co-director Laura Otto-Salaj. We are very grateful for Chong Hae Sunim�s clear teaching. An extended practice was held on September 13, from 7:00 PM until midnight. Another extended practice has been scheduled for November 15. Hope to see you there!

Answers to Lingo Crossword Puzzle Across: 2 chugpi, 4 YMJJ, 6 kasa, 9 sutra, 10 sunim, 12 Dae Kwang, 16 hapchang, 17 Zen, 18 Mahayana, 19 mantra, 20 bodhisattva, 22 kalpa, 24 four, 26 heart, 27 enlightenment Down: 1 Buddha, 3 patriarch, 5 moktak, 7 Seung Sahn, 8 inka, 10 sangha, 11 transmission, 13 GLZC, 14 karma, 15 mala, 21 dharma, 22 kido, 23 precepts, 25 Chogye

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Great Lake Zen Center 828 E. Locust St. Milwaukee, WI 53212

ADDRESS CORRECTION REQUESTED

MOON ON THE WATER

is published by the Great Lake Zen Center 828 East Locust Street Milwaukee, WI 53212 414-771-2490 (Peter) or 414-380-9215 (Laura)

e-mail: info@glzc.org Web-Site: www.glzc.org Kwan Um Web-Site: www.kwanumzen.org The Great Lake Zen Center is affiliated with the Kwan Um School of Zen. Founder: Zen Master Seung Sahn Guiding Teacher: Zen Master Dae Kwang Co-Director: Laura Otto-Salaj, DT Co-Director: Peter Neuwald, DT Treasurer: Jeff Ligman, DT Secretary/Publicity: Andy Yencha, DTT Editor/ Member At-Large: Susi Childress, DT

Regular Practice Schedule of theGreat Lake Zen Center

Monday and Wednesday at 7:30PM;

Saturday at 8:00AM Other special events as described elsewhere in the newsletter. Unless otherwise noted, all events are

held at the Great Lake Zen Center.

Beginners Always Welcome! Unless noted otherwise, Introductions to Zen are

offered on the first Monday of each month. Dharma Talks are offered on the fourth Wednesday of each

month. Both are at 7:30PM.