by dogo

It is important to have our own story, not to be enslaved by the story someone else imposes on us — but a time comes when we have to stop believing our own story too.

#zen #buddhism #PersonalBaggage #OwnStory #belief #DogoGraham

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Photo: Chris Leslie

dogo is from Maryhill, Glasgow, and has practiced Zen Buddhism for three decades. He lived in the US for 22 years, and served for six years as the Abbot of The Sitting Frog Zen Centre in Phoenix, Arizona. He moved back to Glasgow in 2017, following the election of Donald Trump, and once again lives in Maryhill.

He is also an author and poet, under the pen name Barry Graham. His books on Zen practice are Kill Your Self: Life After Ego and Nothing Extra: Notes on the Zen Life. His poems are published regularly on Buddhistdoor.

daishin is American by birth and Scottish by choice. She is a Zen Buddhist monk, photographer, video artist, painter, poet and gardener. She is the author of from outside into the cave, and her poetry is published on Buddhistdoor. Born and raised in Phoenix, Arizona, her home is now Maryhill, Glasgow.

daishin and dogo are married to each other.

#DogoGraham #DaishinStephenson #ZenMeditationInGlasgow #ZenMeditationInScotland #ScottishZen #GlasgowZen #OnlineZenSangha #VirtualZendo #zen #buddhism #ZenTeachersInGlasgow #ScottishZenTeachers #ZenGroupInGlasgow

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by dogo

In Zen practice, meditation is usually referred to as “sitting.” Some of us think we are unusual because of our practice, but we are not. Everybody sits, but most people do their sitting in front of a TV. We can either sit to distract ourselves from life, or we can sit with, and in, life.

#zen #buddhism #meditation #zazen #DogoGraham

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by dogo

There is a Japanese saying: “Not knowing is ignorance, and knowing is delusion.” But there is a place outside of these two, that includes both of them, and it is the very heart of Zen practice:

Showing up.

Meeting the moment as a participant, not a commentator. Meeting it rather than judging it. Hearing our own incessant commentary without believing it.

#zen #buddhism #NotKnowingIsMostIntimate #belief #DogoGraham

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by dogo

When we say, “This should not be happening,” we may be right or wrong. When we say (or do not say, but mean), “This should not be happening to me,” we are always wrong, no matter the circumstances we are talking about.

#zen #buddhism #solipsism #narcissism #SelfCentredness #DogoGraham

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by dogo

When we see our own character flaws, we can respond by practicing awareness of those flaws, practicing not letting them dictate our behaviours. If we can do that, they no longer exist, as they are a cause without an effect.

Or we can have a judgmental, self-hating (and therefore self-centred) response — “I’m such an arsehole, I’m such a bad person” — that blames, but is unlikely to do anything more than name-calling. When we see clearly, we know we are neither our flaws nor our virtues.

#zen #buddhism #SelfHatred #SelfLoathing #blaming #DogoGraham

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by dogo

The old teachings tell of monks going to charnel grounds to meditate and face their fears. Good practice, but maybe needlessly theatrical, as our fears are always close by enough for us to smell them. A person would have to be very deep in denial (or perhaps very young) for a journey in search of their fears to be necessary.

We’re always in the charnel ground, but usually pretending we’re not. If we sat long enough in a literal charnel ground, we’d get used to it and become less aware of it, less aware of reality.

#zen #buddhism #FacingOurFears #impermanence #DogoGraham

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Art by Oh Pandah, text by dubh

Dear Sangha,

This year, let’s practice together as though it’s a matter of life and death… because it is.

Nine Bows,

dogo

#zen #buddhism #OhPandah #glasgow #StreetArt #graffiti #4NobleTruths #dubh #DogoGraham

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