Auckland Zen Centre

AZC E-News No. 7, 2 December 2008

2008-12-02T14:05:00.001+13:00

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Auckland Zen Centre E-Newsletter No. 7, Vol. 5 2 December, 2008

Giving Thanks on Boxing Day
Gratitude
Two Events this Sunday
Buddha's Enlightenment
Sittings in December and January
Christmas Dana
New Year's Eve Sitting and Ceremonies
January Sesshin
Dates for Sesshins and All-day Sittings in 2009
Talk Recordings
Christmas Presents?
Notice Board

Giving Thanks on Boxing Day

Dear Friends,

Wherever Buddhism has travelled it has adapted to the local culture and been changed in the process. This is slow and subtle, and it probably takes a couple of hundred years of mutual influence before a thorough embedding has occurred. Along the way there are inevitably experiments that fail, but these are essential to finding out what forms and practices will be helpful to people and therefore stand the test of time. One aspect of this process is developing and refining the Centre's calendar of ceremonies; when (and how) to hold Jukai and other rites that are a part of the devotional life of Zen practitioners. One of the ceremonies that I found very meaningful while in training at the Rochester Zen Center was the annual Ceremony of Gratitude, held in conjunction with the American holiday of Thanksgiving. We have in past years held our ceremony on or near Waitangi Day, but the fit is not perfect.

Several people have expressed the desire for there to be a community gathering of some kind at the Centre around Christmas time, so we are going to try this year having our Ceremony of Gratitude on Boxing Day, followed by a Sangha picnic at Cornwall Park. Christmas giving at its best is a way of expressing gratitude, though this can sometimes be lost in the frenzy and pressure of the season, so the ceremony may help us to get in touch with that impetus. Family members are welcome; the ceremony is not long and the sitting that precedes it will be informal, so you can come just for the ceremony and picnic or come earlier and sit first.

There are three main elements to a Ceremony of Gratitude; making offerings, chanting (including the Full Ancestral Line), and verbal expressions of gratitude. Offerings will made at the altar on behalf of all participants, and people may also bring food donations that will be passed on to the Auckland City Mission. I checked with them, and they would prefer dry goods or tinned food, i.e stuff that will keep. Pasta, rice, cereals, breakfast spreads, black tea, longlife milk, tins of baked beans or soup are examples. A lot of the folk who receive food parcels are single, so small packets are useful. Food can be dropped off at the Centre any time between now and New Year's Eve and will be delivered to the City Mission after that. Verbal expressions of gratitude will be in three forms: a general talk by me, reading out anonymous written statements made prior to the ceremony, and people speaking about what they feel grateful for (if they wish to).

The ceremony will be at 11:00, with the zendo open for informal zazen from 10:00. Bring your Christmas leftovers for the picnic afterwards. An email reminder will be sent out closer to Christmas along with a more precise picnic location.

Sensei

Gratitude

Thanks to all of you who have offered dana over the past year in the form of funds, time or goods – your generosity is what the Centre runs on.

Thanks for a number of recent donations in kind: Yoonbok Choi and family for a heater and a printer-scanner; Martin and Diane White for a modem and phone; Penny Kennett and Dave Ashman for a clothes rack on wheels; Michael Tan and Laiping Ho for a brand new microwave (and for passing on the scanner). And thanks to Sue Burns of Act Now for more MYOB instruction and ongoing phone support.

Thanks also to all our regular volunteers, Mari Moir, Peter McQuarrie, Helen Fuller, LouAnne Jaeger, Jen Russell, Kathryn Argetsinger, Ken McLeod, all workshop volunteers and all sesshin pack-up and takedown participants (you know who you are), and to the Trustees, Teresa Behrens, Peter Carafice, Ann Duncan, Grant George, and Richard von Sturmer.

Two Events this Sunday

The morning talk this Sunday will be offered by Richard, as Sensei will be at the 6^th Global Conference on Buddhism most of the weekend.

In the evening at 7 p.m. the Centre will host a talk by an eminent Vajrayana teacher from Australia, Lama Choedak Yuthok Rinpoche. Don't miss this opportunity to hear an insightful and accessible Dharma teacher. The talk will be open to the public, and not preceded by sitting. Entry will be by dana, which will all go towards Lama Choedak's travel expenses.

Buddha's Enlightenment Ceremony

Celebrated on or near December 8, this ceremony commemorates "the reopening of the Way" by Shakyamuni, the Buddha of our world cycle. The story of the Buddha's Great Enlightenment is told, and passages from the sutras are read aloud as everyone chants a mantra in homage to Shakyamuni. Following the ceremony a special dessert of sweetened rice-milk (kheer) is served; the first nourishment that the Buddha took to gain strength after his period of extreme ascetic practice and before accomplishing anuttara samyak sambodhi.

The ceremony will be held next Tuesday, 9 December, following zazen. No group instruction will be offered that evening.

Sittings in December and January

The last sitting before the Christmas break will be on Tuesday 23 December, and the Centre will remain closed until Tuesday 20 January, with the exception of Boxing Day and New Year's Eve (see above and below). It may also be possible to attend the sesshin teishos at the Friary, Tuesday 6 to Monday 12 January, if there is room. Call to check before sesshin starts.

Christmas Dana

If you are sick of too much stuff at Christmas, check out Oxfam Unwrapped www.oxfamunwrapped.org.nz and ask your friends and family to buy you something there instead of the usual present. It's a win-win-win deal – someone who really needs help gets a useful gift and you and the giver share in the merit and joy of generosity.

New Year's Eve Sitting and Ceremonies

On Wednesday 31 December, from 8 p.m. to about 12:30 a.m., we will bring in the New Year together. The evening begins with zazen, includes chanting, ceremonies and more zazen, and concludes with festive food and drink after midnight.

The last acts of the old year are a Repentance Ceremony (to lay to rest any defiling deeds from the past year that weigh heavily, and make a fresh start for the upcoming year) and a circumambulation of the Centre to chase out negative energies.

The first act of the New Year, held at the stroke of midnight, is a Jukai (Taking the Precepts) Ceremony, followed by a special invocation for the well-being of the world. The precepts are a description of how a fully enlightened person behaves, and are taken with the understanding that although we will break them, the sincere aspiration to lead a life that not only does no harm but actually benefits others is actualizing Awakening in ourselves and in the world.

People are welcome to come for all or part of the evening. Please bring some light festive food to share.

Summer 7-Day Sesshin at Friary

Our summer 7-day sesshin is at the Franciscan Friary. The deadline for applications is 24 December. Be sure to get your application and payment in the mail before then or drop them off at the Centre. Applications may also be emailed.

Help will be needed from 3 p.m. on the Monday the 5^th to pack up the zendo and move it to the Friary. Please e-mail Sensei if you will be able to help (aucklandzen@yahoo.com.au).

2009 Sesshin and All-Day Sitting Dates

Other sesshins offered by Sensei in 2009 are as follows: 6-8 March (2-day), 30 May-6 June (7-day), 20-27 June (7-day at Chapin Mill, NY), 8-12 July (4-day at Madison Zen Center, WI), 20-23 August (3-day), 21-26 October (5-Day), 27-29 November (3-Day), 9-16 January 2010 (7-day; location TBA). All are at Bella Rakha unless otherwise indicated.
All-Day sittings will be held 15 February, 19 April, 12 July, and 27 September.

Talk Recordings

Peter McQuarrie has taken over our sound archive, and has been producing CDs for the Centre's library. If you want to order recorded talks (either for playing on a CD player or as Mp3 files), you can do so by emailing Peter. Or, if you borrow an older CD from the library and find the sound quality is poor, please let him know so he can work on producing an improved version. Peter's email is petermcq@xtra.co.nz.

Christmas Presents?

Between now and Christmas, our cool t-shirts with an enso on the front and Bodhidharma on the back are on sale for the special price of $30. There's still a good range of sizes in black and chocolate brown.

We are also selling two kinds of high-quality Korean tea in very attractive containers ($8 each) and women's T-shirts with a meditation theme in black and grey ($35). All proceeds will go to Pannarama Buddhist Centre, Kerikeri (see www.pannarama.net.nz).

NOTICE BOARD

My apartment will be uninhabitable for at least five-and-a-half months from mid-Jan to mid-June 2009. The recladding project in The Grange (leaky home complex) will start its final phase and I am required to leave it vacant. I am looking for a room which I could house myself temporarily during the recladding, so if you have any friends who would consider renting a room (unfurnished) to me, please let me know. My budget is less than $100 a week due to double financial burden (both mortgage and rent for temporary shelter). As I work in the city, I prefer a location not far from city and accessible to public transport.
Cheng (chenginau@gmail.com)

For information on workshops, sittings and other activities, see www.aucklandzen.org.nz

Food for the party season - Easy recipes for Christmas entertaining on Yahoo!Xtra Lifestyle

Revised Calendar

2008-03-06T14:08:00.001+13:00

2008 REVISED CALENDAR

17 February                 All-Day Sitting

18 March                     Term Intensive Opening Ceremony

21-24 March                Easter 3-Day Sesshin at Friary

12 April                       Workshop

20-26 April                  "Working Sesshin" at Pah Road

26 April                       Term Intensive Closing Ceremony

16-18 May                   May 2-Day Sesshin (dates and venue to be confirmed)

25 May                        Vesak

30 May - 2 June           Queen's Birthday Weekend Centre Closed

7 June                          Workshop

8 June                          Matariki Jukai

28 June - 5 July            Winter 7-Day Sesshin at Aio Wira

14 July                         Sensei to USA Training at Chapin Mill

13-17 August               4-Day Sesshin in Madison, Wisconsin

20-24 August               4-Day Sesshin at Chapin Mill, New York

6 September                Workshop

19-21 September         Sept. 3-Day Sesshin at Knocknagree

7 October                    Bodhidharma Day

19 October                  All-Day Sitting

24-27 October             Labour Day Weekend Centre Closed

28 October                  Term Intensive Opening Ceremony

1 November                Workshop

13-16 November         Nov. 3-Day Sesshin at Knocknagree

25 November              Term Intensive Closing Ceremony

9 December                 Buddha's Enlightenment Ceremony

20 December               Workshop

24 December               Christmas Break Centre Closed

31 December               New Year's Eve Ceremonies

5-12 January, 2009      Summer 7-Day Sesshin (dates and venue to be confirmed)

15 January                   Centre Reopens

Get the name you always wanted with the new y7mail email address.

2008-02-14T11:12:00.003+13:00

Dear Friends,

There is an all-day sitting this Sunday, 17 February.

All-day sittings are a great way to reinvigorate your practice and to get in training for sesshin.

If you plan to attend, please sign up at the zendo on Thursday or e-mail aucklandzen@yahoo.com.au to reserve a place.

It is OK to come for part of the day or just the usual Sunday slot from 8:30 to 10:30 (no need to e-mail if you are only attending teisho).

BYO breakfast and lunch (microwave and toaster oven available). Tea is provided.

6:00 a.m. zazen/kinhin/dokusan

8:00 breakfast

8:30 zazen/kinhin/teisho (usual Sunday morning format)

10:30 samu (work practice)

11:15 zazen/kinhin

12:15 lunch

1:00 zazen/kinhin/dokusan

3:00 exercises

3:20 zazen, chanting

4:00 cleanup

Koha is requested, $30 suggested for a full day.

***

Below is an updated calendar for 2008. Please note that the dates for the Autumn Term Intensive have changed, and the November sesshin is a week earlier than previously advertised.

2008 REVISED CALENDAR

17 February All-Day Sitting

18 March Term Intensive Opening Ceremony

21-24 March Easter 3-Day Sesshin at Friary

12 April Workshop

20-26 April "Working Sesshin" at Pah Road

26 April Term Intensive Closing Ceremony

16-18 May May 2-Day Sesshin (dates and venue to be confirmed)

25 May Vesak

30 May - 2 June Queen's Birthday Weekend Centre Closed

7 June Workshop

8 June Matariki Jukai

28 June - 5 July Winter 7-Day Sesshin at Aio Wira

14 July Sensei to

USA

Training at Chapin Mill

13-17 August 4-Day Sesshin in Madison, Wisconsin

20-24 August 4-Day Sesshin at Chapin Mill, New York

6 September Workshop

19-21 September Sept. 3-Day Sesshin at Knocknagree

7 October Bodhidharma Day

19 October All-Day Sitting

24-27 October Labour Day Weekend Centre Closed

28 October Term Intensive Opening Ceremony

1 November Workshop

13-16 November Nov. 3-Day Sesshin at Knocknagree

25 November Term Intensive Closing Ceremony

9 December Buddha's Enlightenment Ceremony

20 December Workshop

24 December Christmas Break Centre Closed

31 December New Year's Eve Ceremonies

5-12 January, 2009 Summer 7-Day Sesshin (dates and venue to be confirmed)

15 January Centre Reopens

Ven. Amala Wrightson, Sensei
Auckland Zen Center
100 Pah Road
Royal Oak

P.O. Box 109 729
Newmarket, Auckland, 1149

aucklandzen@yahoo.com.au
09 520 0531
027 314 9440

For information on workshops, sittings and other activities, see www.aucklandzen.org.nz

Get the name you always wanted with the new y7mail email address.

AZC News No. 7, Vol. 4

2007-12-08T15:58:00.000+13:00

Washed by the Rain, Polished by the Wind

One of the characteristics of existence is impermanence, annica. Everything dies. What is gained is lost. That is how it is. Most religions teach that there is something everlasting to be had beyond death. Zen doesn’t deny that, but it also celebrates loss and regards it as something to embrace with open arms.

There is a Zen capping phrase, “Washed by the rain, polished by the wind.” A true person of no rank, to use Master Rinzai’s words, is someone who has been and is washed by the rain and polished by the wind. Great freedom comes from being willing to let that happen – to be sculpted by all that life throws at us.

Sensei

Buddha’s Enlightenment Ceremony

Celebrated on or near December 8, this ceremony commemorates “the reopening of the Way” by Shakyamuni, the Buddha of our world cycle. The story of the Buddha's Great Enlightenment is told, and passages from the sutras are read aloud as everyone chants a mantra in homage to Shakyamuni. Following the ceremony a special dessert of sweetened rice-milk (kheer) is served; the first nourishment that the Buddha took to gain strength after his period of extreme ascetic practice and before accomplishing anuttara samyak sambodhi.

The ceremony will be held next Tuesday, 11 December, following zazen. No dokusan will be offered that evening.

Sittings in December and January

The last sitting before the Christmas break will be on Tuesday 18 December, and the Centre will remain closed through 20 January, with the exception of New Year’s Eve (see below). It may also be possible to attend the sesshin teishos at the Friary, 6-12 January, if there is room. Call to check before sesshin starts.

The last dokusan for the year will be on Thursday 13 December, as Sensei and Richard will be away 17-23 December.

Dreaming of a Green Christmas

When Christmas approaches, the developed world is gripped by a frenzy of consumption and people’s resolve to be environmentally friendly can fall by the wayside. A fifth more waste is thrown out at Christmas than during the rest of the year. Some tips on enjoying a greener Christmas this year:

Each year millions of trees are pulped to produce the paper used to gift-wrap presents. Look for recycled gift wrap, or be creative in decorating presents with ribbon, a flower, leaves, or coloured string. If you use wrap, use string rather than tape to fasten, so the wrap can be reused.

Well over half of all toys are made in Southeast Asia, sometimes by children and often with little regard for workers’ health and wellbeing. Cheap plastic toys and gadgets soon break and add to the waste mountain. Pay attention to the gifts you buy – look for fair-trade toys and items that are made from materials that create little waste.

Send e-cards (create your own with digital photos) rather than paper ones.

Give gifts that are relatively waste-free, such as your time and energy, or food you have made yourself.

Ask your friends and family to give you Oxfam Unwrapped gifts – no wrapping paper, no waste, no stuff you don’t want – instead someone gets a gift who really needs it. See www.oxfamunwrapped.org.nz

New Year’s Eve Sitting and Ceremonies

On Monday 31 December, from 8 p.m. to about 12:30 a.m., we will bring in the New Year together. The evening begins with zazen, includes chanting, ceremonies and more zazen, and concludes with festive food and drink after midnight.

The first act of the New Year, held at the stroke of midnight, is an abbreviated Jukai (Taking the Precepts) Ceremony, followed by a special invocation for the well-being of the world. The precepts are a description of how a fully enlightened person behaves, and are taken with the understanding that although we will break them, the sincere aspiration to lead a life that not only does no harm but actually benefits others is essential to the process of actualizing Awakening in ourselves and in the world.

People are welcome to come for all or part of the evening. Please bring some festive food to share.

A word about New Year’s resolutions: keep them reasonably modest and then make an effort to stick to them. There will be two ways to make resolutions, verbally, as part of the Repentance Ceremony, or in written form, offered at the altar.

January Sesshin

This year’s summer 7-day sesshin is at the Franciscan Friary 5-12 January. The deadline for applications is 22 December – be sure to get your application and payment in the mail before then or drop them off at the Centre. Applications may also be emailed.

Help will be needed from 3 p.m. on the 5^th to pack up the zendo and move it to the Friary. Please e-mail Sensei if you will be able to help (aucklandzen@yahoo.com.au).

Next year the Friary is raising the daily fee it charges us by $5 a person. As our margins are very slim, we have had to pass on this increase by raising the sesshin fee from $55 to $60 a day for members (the non-member price has also risen by $5 a day).

Changes to Centre’s Schedule in 2008

Attendance at the “after work” early sitting on Thursday has been thin lately, so starting when the Centre reopens in January, the Thursday sitting will move to 7:00 pm, and will consist of three 35-minute rounds with dokusan. Sensei will no longer offer dokusan on Tuesday evenings; instead she will give group instruction in the middle round. Group instruction will be aimed at beginners but available to anyone who wishes to participate, and will cover such topics as posture, stretching exercises helpful for sitting, and zendo protocol, as well as answering people’s practice questions. Sensei will also start offering dokusan at the early morning sitting on Mondays.

Change to Membership Year

On the advice of our auditor, the trustees are moving the Auckland Zen Centre membership year to coincide with our financial year – 1 April to 31 March. This means that we won’t be sending out renewal notices until April, so everyone will automatically get an extra four months on their current subscription. Also, the trustees decided that after the first year the yearly subscription fee will be waived for members who continue making their regular donation.

Library Thing

Thanks to the efforts of Kathryn Argetsinger and Ann Duncan we now have a catalogue for the Centre’s library online. It will eventually contain all the books available for borrowing (about half have been entered at this stage) and all the talk recordings in our digital archive. Go to the AZC website and click on Library to view. Members may borrow books and talk recordings, and CDs of talks may also be ordered as either audio files or as Mp3s. See the website for details.

Digital Archive

Is there someone willing to take over the digital archive? This entails loading new talks, making copies for the library, and filling CD orders. E-mail Sensei at aucklandzen@yahoo.com.au if you can help.

Message from Oxfam: Be a Climate Bodhisattva

By tackling climate change in our daily lives, we can set a powerful example for our government and the rest of the world to follow.

Oxfam has joined forces with Greenpeace and Forest & Bird to launch Be the Change, a campaign to reduce New Zealand’s climate change impact. By joining the campaign online and pledging to take action in our own lives, we can be the change we want to see in the world. Check out the link: > Be The Change. Join the campaign.

Thank Yous

Many people have contributed to the running of the Zen Centre over the past year. Thank you to everyone who has donated money and supplies (tea, biscuits, toilet paper). The Centre runs on dana and your contributions are what sustain the zendo and the teaching, as well as enabling the trustees to plan for the future. Thank you as well to everyone who has donated time and energy: John Allen for much help with the accounts; Kathryn Argetsinger for all her work on Library Thing, the digital archives, t-shirt sales in the USA, and the many other things she accomplished during her winter stay; Mark Argetsinger for assistance in the purchase of an external hard drive (twice!); Laura Bradburn for taking on the role of treasurer and learning MYOB; Sue Burns (ACT Now Consulting) for giving Laura excellent free MYOB tuition; Brian Fitzgerald for property advice; Helen Fuller for regularly helping with workshops and planning and shopping for sesshin; Sam Hardwick for helping with the database and archive; Lou Anne Jaeger for continuing to be our webmaster; Peter Johnston for constructing a drum stand; Peter McQuarrie and Marie Christien Klientjes for always helping with sesshin setup and takedown; Jen Russell for administering the e-newsletter; Murray Russell for database assistance. Many thanks also to all the trustees, who have helped in many different ways and taken on the responsibility for the Centre’s secular affairs: Teresa Behrens, Peter Carafice, Bruce Christian, Ann Duncan, and Richard von Sturmer.

SANGHA BULLETIN BOARD

Looking for a Place to Live

Conny Krebs is looking for 1+ bedroom, preferably house/sleep-out, with whiteware, wooden floors, $250/wk, in a 'nice' (green space/water, safe), quiet(working shifts) area. All areas of Auckland considered. Contact Conny at 021 0592203 or conny.krebs@gmail.com.

In Vietnam Your Donation Goes a Long Way

When Celia Caughey was the New Zealand Trade Commissioner in Vietnam, she helped to found a small orphanage in Ho Chi Minh City, called the Ba Chieu Home.

Here’s what Celia has to say about the home:

The girls come from a variety of backgrounds: some are orphans, but most have one parent dead or gone and the other too poor or sick to look after them, or they have been abandoned or maltreated by stepmothers. Many were found sleeping in the Ba Chieu market and selling lottery tickets for a living. Some were begging at railway stations or pagodas. Others were living on rubbish dumps, scavenging and recycling rubbish. Once they come to live in the Ba Chieu Home they have a roof over their heads and no longer need to worry about making their own living. They have three meals a day, a bed to sleep in, a safe environment with someone to look after them, and they can go to school. There are usually just over twenty girls in the home aged between 7 and 19. I tell the girls to dream their dream and we will try to make it happen. So they all have aspirations about what they want to do in life. They are encouraged to go on to tertiary training. Many of those who have been through the home have found good jobs and continue to study for a better future. It costs approximately US $500 a year to cover all costs for each girl (food, school fees, stationery, clothing, staff salaries, household expenses, medical and other expenses). If you would like to contribute to the home, sponsor a child, or find out more about it, please contact me: celia@primenz.com.

2008 CALENDAR

5-12 January Summer 7-Day Sesshin at Friary

22 January Centre Reopens

5 February Ceremony of Gratitude (in conjunction with Waitangi Day)

9 February Workshop

17 February All-Day Sitting

26 Feb. - 25 March Term Intensive

21-24 March Easter 3-Day Sesshin at Friary

12 April Workshop

20-25 April “Working Sesshin” at Pah Road

16-18 May May 2-Day Sesshin (dates and venue to be confirmed)

25 May Vesak

30 May - 2 June Queen’s Birthday Weekend – Centre Closed

7 June Workshop

8 June Matariki Jukai

28 June- 5 July Winter 7-Day Sesshin at Aio Wira

14 July Sensei to USA – Training at Chapin Mill

13-17 August 4-Day Sesshin in Madison, Wisconsin

20-24 August 4-Day Sesshin at Chapin Mill, New York

6 September Workshop

19-21 September Sept. 3-Day Sesshin (dates and venue to be confirmed)

7 October Bodhidharma Day

19 October All-Day Sitting

24-27 October Labour Day Weekend – Centre Closed

28 Oct. - 25 Nov. Term Intensive

1 November Workshop

20-23 November Nov. 3-Day Sesshin (dates and venue to be confirmed)

9 December Buddha’s Enlightenment Ceremony

20 December Workshop

24 December Christmas Break – Centre Closed

31 December New Year’s Eve Ceremonies

10-17 January, 2009 Summer 7-Day Sesshin (dates and venue to be confirmed)

20 January, 2009 Centre Reopens

AZC News #6, Vol. 4

2007-08-30T08:26:00.000+12:00

Contents:

Our Everyday Selfishness
Upcoming Dates to Note
All-Day Sitting
Zen Potluck Dinner
Sensei Overseas
Early Morning Sittings

Our Everyday Selfishness

Recently I was talking to someone who was acutely feeling the gap between the bodhisattva vow to work for the liberation of all sentient beings and her “everyday selfishness.” When we pay attention we will start to see our self-partiality more clearly, and it can be quite discouraging. But to get really down about how selfish we are is a trap that has a lot of self in it. We are selfish because we have misused our minds for a long time. We also have the good karma to have found the Buddhadharma, an excellent toolbox for deconstructing the illusion of self. Much patience is called for. We can’t just will away our selfishness because it isn’t an entity at all, but we can “open the hand of thought” as one contemporary teacher puts it, moment by moment, whether in our sitting or in the thousands of micro-decisions we make in a day. Each time we do that we are practicing the way of the bodhisattva.

Sensei

Upcoming Dates to Note

All-Day Sitting Sunday 2 September, 6 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Introductory Workshop Saturday 8 September, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Continuing Education Course “Introduction to Zen” starting 10 September. A look at the origins and history of Zen, offered by Sensei and Richard and aimed at a general audience. Five Monday evening sessions plus a “field trip” to the zendo. Registration through www.cce.auckland.ac.nz/cce/about/.
Zen Dinner Sunday 16 September, 6 p.m., 3 Moana Ave, Belmont
Bodhidharma Day Tuesday 25 September, ceremony to mark the Death Day of Bodhidharma, the founder of Zen, instead of usual chanting service (dokusan will not be offered).
2-Day Sesshin 23-25 November at the Friary; deadline for applications is 16 November.

All-Day Sitting This Sunday

There will be an all-day sitting on Sunday 2 September. The schedule is as follows:

6:00 a.m. zazen/kinhin/dokusan

8:00 breakfast

8:30 zazen/kinhin/teisho (usual Sunday morning format)

10:30 samu (work practice) or walking meditation

11:15 zazen/kinhin

12:30 lunch

1:00 zazen/kinhin/dokusan

3:00 exercises

3:20 zazen, chanting

4:00 cleanup

As always people may come for just the teisho block or part of the day. BYO breakfast and lunch (microwave available). Tea is provided. Koha is requested – $20-30 suggested for whole day.

Potluck Dinner

Helen Fuller has kindly offered to host a dinner at her house at 6 p.m. on Sunday 16 September for members of our group and for our friends in the Auckland Zen Society. She asks that everyone bring a plate of food (vegetarian) for the main course. Helen will provide dessert.

RSVP to hfuller2001@yahoo.com by Friday 14 September.

Sensei Away

Sensei will be in the U.S.A from 27 September to 17 November. During this period sittings will continue as usual and Richard will offer daisan on Tuesdays. Sensei will lead a work retreat at Chapin Mill, the RZC’s country retreat centre, and a 2-day sesshin in Cleveland, Ohio, as well as participating in two 7-day sesshins with Roshi Kjolhede.

Early Morning Sittings

Are continuing on Mondays, 6 to 7:15 a.m.

AZC News #5, Vol. 4

2007-08-23T03:07:00.000+12:00

Contents:

Radical Acceptance
Upcoming Dates to Note
Early Morning Sittings
All-Day Sitting
AUT Course
T-Shirts for Sale
Hospice Training

Radical Acceptance

There’s a koan in which a student asks a master, “When cold and heat come, how can we avoid them?”
The master responds, “Why don’t you go where there is no cold or heat?”
The student then asks, “Where is there no cold or heat?”
The master replies, “In winter let the cold kill you. In summer let the heat kill you.”

The secret of life is right here, right now, and yet we resist it so strenuously. Instead of simply accepting the conditions of our life wholeheartedly we try to hold them at arm’s length. So much tension and stress arise out of this resistance to things as they are. A contemporary Zen teacher says, “When you understand that this present moment is all there is, you have no choice but to come to a radical acceptance, which is none other than true peace and composure.”

Radical acceptance means letting the cold kill you, letting the traffic jam kill you, letting the whingeing child kill you. Radical acceptance does not mean being a doormat, it means taking full responsibility for ourselves and our lives.

Sensei

Upcoming AZC Activities to Note

Introductory Workshop Saturday 28 July, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

All-Day Sitting and Sunday Dokusan Sunday 29 July 6 a.m.-3 p.m. (Note: this is not the date that was on the calendar) – see below.

August 4-Day Sesshin 8-12 August (deadline for applications 1 August) at the Franciscan Friary – no sittings Thursday evening (the 9th) to Monday morning (13th) at Pah Road, but teishos open to visitors as usual (be at Friary door by 9:20 a.m.)

Zen Centre Hosts Auckland Interfaith Council Event Sunday 17 August, 6 p.m., “Lifecycles” seminar on adult rites of passage – Dharmacarini Akasamati of the Western Buddhist Order will be one of the speakers, as well as a Rationalist, a Sikh, a member of the LDS Church, and an evangelist Christian.

Continuing Education Course “Introduction to Zen” starts 10 September – a look at the origins and history of Zen, offered by Sensei and Richard and aimed at a general audience. Five Monday evening sessions plus a “field trip” to the zendo.

Bodhidharma Day 25 September, ceremony to mark the Death Day of Bodhidharma, the founder of Zen, after usual Tuesday evening sitting.

Morning Sittings

Are continuing on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, 6 to 7:15 a.m., until the end of the Term Intensive. After that they will continue on Mondays only (except for Monday 13 August, the day after the 4-day sesshin ends).

All-day Sitting and Sunday Dokusan

There will be an all-day sitting on Sunday 29 July – not this Sunday as previously advertised. The sitting will start at 6:00 a.m., there’ll be a break for breakfast from 8:00 to 8:30, and then in the usual 8:30 to 10:30 slot there’ll be two rounds, kinhin, chanting, and a short informal talk/Q&A by Sensei, followed by a tea break, with talking, as there may be guests from the previous day’s workshop present. As always people may come for just this part of the day. The rest of the day after the tea break will be conducted in silence. Sensei will offer dokusan in the rounds immediately after tea. This will be the only dokusan offered. Lunch will be from 12:00 to 1:00, and there will be three rounds in the afternoon, finishing with the Four Vows at 3:00.

AUT Course

The lunch-hour meditation course that Sensei offers at AUT has started up again. It is open to everyone and consists of a short talk and/or Q&A followed by a sitting. It is held in AUT’s multi-faith space, WJ 302 (Lorne St), noon to 1 o’clock on Mondays, through 3 September.

T-Shirts for Sale

There are currently two t-shirts available for sale at the zendo. There are still plenty of our own AZC shirts in black or chocolate brown with an enso (circle) by Bankei on the front and Bodhidharma carrying one sandal on the back. Sizes range from Men’s XL to Women’s S. We also have a few very attractive fern-leaf design “diversity” shirts in black or green, men’s sizes M and L, for only $30.

Amitabha Hospice Volunteer Training

Amitabha Hospice is offering their excellent caregiver training courses again, starting 7 August. Choose either eight Tuesday evenings in Pakuranga or eight Friday evenings in Avondale (both sets of classes 7-9 p.m.). Amitabha desperately needs more volunteers to help take care of people with life-limiting illnesses. For more information call Ecie or Szuszanna 828-3321, or visit www.amitabha hospice.org.

AZC News #4, Vol. 4

2007-06-07T08:04:00.001+12:00

Upcoming Dates to Note:

Visit by members of St Peter’s Church this Thursday at 7:30 p.m.
Vesak Sunday 10 June at 10:30 a.m.
Matariki Jukai Saturday 16 June at 5:30 p.m.
Sesshin Planning Meeting after sitting, Sunday 17 June
Winter Sesshin 22-29 June (deadline for applications 8 June) – sittings resume at Pah Road on 3 July (with Term Intensive Opening Ceremony)
Term Intensive 3 July to 7 August

Visit from St Peters

Members of St Peters Anglican Church in Onehunga will be visiting the Centre this Thursday evening. Sensei will give them a tour of the Centre, explaining some Zen iconography and ritual, and then we’ll have tea and dessert. Anyone who’d like to join in hosting the visit is welcome to attend. Email aucklandzen@yahoo.com.au if you plan to come, and please bring a plate. Last year a small group of us were invited to St Peters and made a warm connection there.

Vesak

This Sunday at 10:30 (after sitting and teisho) we’ll celebrate the Buddha’s Birthday with a story, a short ceremony (bathing the baby Buddha) and birthday cake. Children and spouses welcome.

Matariki Jukai and Rakusu Ceremony

Jukai, the Mahayana Taking-the-Precepts ceremony, will be offered on Saturday 16 June at 5:30 p.m. The zendo will be open for an hour beforehand for informal zazen.

The precepts are available to read on the AZC website, and Sensei has given a series of teishos on them, so if you want to learn more, borrow any of the recordings that are available at the zendo. (A reminder that if you are not a member a donation is appreciated when you borrow recorded talks, to help cover the costs of producing them.)

The Ceremony is again being held in conjunction with Matariki, the Maori New Year. Matariki is the name for the Pleiades, or Seven Sisters, star cluster. The exact time when the New Year is celebrated differs from tribe to tribe, but in all it is related to the first pre-dawn appearance of Matariki in the eastern sky. Some tribes celebrate at this time, others at the next full moon, others at the next new moon. This year the Matariki new moon appears on 15 June. For all New Zealanders, Maori or Pakeha, the time around the winter solstice (the shortest day) is our natural New Year – the moment when our part of the globe starts to spend more and more of its daily cycle in the light, and less and less in the dark. Everywhere in the world, back when people paid more attention to such things, this turning-point was intuitively felt to be the moment when the year was reborn. In traditional Maori societies it was a time for coming together to feast and rejoice, and also a time of seed planting. Taking Jukai is very much about planting positive karmic seeds; about establishing or renewing in our hearts an orientation towards awakening.

There is an opportunity to offer dana to Sensei at the beginning of the Jukai ceremony. Unlike the usual dana given at a sitting, which goes to administration of the AZC, this offering is to Sensei personally, a token of gratitude for receiving teachings. Envelopes will be available outside the zendo; put your (anonymous) donation in one and keep it with you.

Sunday Sitting and Sesshin Planning Meeting

On Sunday 17 June there’ll be a meeting after the sitting (about 10:45) to plan sesshin setup for the following Friday. On that same Sunday, instead of teisho Sensei will give a short informal talk/Q&A and offer dokusan for people who have trouble making it during the week (usually this is done the last Sunday of the month but it didn’t happen in May and won’t at the end of June either).

No Sittings at Pah Road During Sesshin

The Winter 7-day sesshin will be held at the Aio Wira Retreat Centre in Swanson from 22 to 29 June. The last sitting at Pah Road before the sesshin will be on Thursday 21 June, and formal sittings will resume on Sunday 1 July. As usual, people not in sesshin may join the sesshin for the teisho block at 9:30 a.m. Go to www.aiowira.org for directions.

Term Intensive

A Term Intensive is a practice period designed especially for people living busy lives. We had our first TI last winter and many people found it extremely helpful. Our second TI runs from 3 July to 7 August, followed soon after by the August 4-day sesshin. There will be extra opportunities to sit formally at the zendo as well as regular group discussions of practice issues.

Essentially, participation in a TI involves making a pledge to intensify one’s practice for a limited period in specific ways – it could be a commitment to sit or chant a certain amount each day, work on a particular unskilful habit, cut something out, or do some Sutra study – or some combination of these. Because it is undertaken for a limited period, and with the support of others, it is a chance to stretch in ways that we might not otherwise dare to attempt, and an opportunity to discover what we are really capable of. Details of how it works, plus a pledge form, will be sent separately next week.

Extra sittings offered during the TI will be Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings 6-7:15 a.m., plus Saturday afternoon yoga, if there are enough takers.

AZC News # 3, Vol. 4

2007-05-18T04:13:00.000+12:00

Contents:
Letter from Sensei
Upcoming Dates to Note
Winter Sesshin Deadline 8 June
Deadlines, Cancellations, Sesshin Preparation
It’s Your Zen Centre – Volunteer Opportunities
Compassion in Action
Wishlist
New Baby Buddha
Trailwalker
For Sale: T-Shirts and T-rees
Trade Me Fundraising
Dalai Lama Public Talk Tickets
Thanks
Tax Rebate Letters
Mindful Consumption – Energy-Saving Tips

Letter from Sensei

Dear Sangha,

To give up because it looks as though you will never succeed in achieving the goal is folly, because it is impossible for you to know how close you are until you have actually completed the work. It might be the very next instant when all the work you have put in will suddenly come into focus and the goal will be won! Or, with a new point of view gained in your understanding of the work, you will suddenly find all toil much easier.

Once I climbed a mountain whose side was terraced by nature in gigantic plateaus. Upon reaching a plateau after each gruelling climb, it appeared that the next one would be the top. This continued on and on. I could have given up at any stage, not knowing how close I was to the peak. Persevering, I finally reached the summit and was rewarded by a grand view of lakes and plains. The reward was well worth the persistence in rejecting all temptations to give up. —Fred Eager

This is a reminder that we often need when faced with a difficult task. Essential to persevering in the face of difficulty is staying with the process rather than getting too caught up in our expectations about fulfillment. This is especially the case in regard to Awakening. However, we should not imagine that having a goal is in itself wrong. A goal is useful in setting our orientation. Our goal shapes our relationship to this present moment, which is actually all there is. Master Dogen said: “Great Enlightenment is not just the function of ourselves or others. It fills everywhere, it is the centre of existence in both the form of enlightenment and illusion. Illusion can only seek Great Enlightenment, and we can never find Great Enlightenment outside of illusion.” Let us seek diligently until all notions of both illusion and enlightenment are entirely extinguished.

The trustees and I plus some of my formal students met recently for a day of reflection about the direction of the Zen Centre. We reaffirmed our desire to establish a zendo in Auckland where Richard and I and one or two other residents or overseas students could live and train, and are exploring multiple fund-raising options so that we can have the means to purchase a property in a reasonably central location. This can only happen with a concerted effort from the whole community – so watch this space for more on how we’ll go about achieving this.

A number of factors are making our Vesak celebration that was scheduled for this weekend difficult, so we are moving it into June, a week before our Matariki Jukai – see the list of upcoming events below. There’ll be more about Vesak and Jukai in the next newsletter.

Note also a couple of times listed below when I won’t be giving dokusan. Two things will be taking me out of Auckland at the end of May. First I’ll go to Wellington to support Richard in a retrospective of his films at the National Film Archive, where we will also revive an old Humanimals piece for the occasion. Then I’ll head to Waitangi for the Third Regional Interfaith Dialogue Meeting, where I’ve been invited to participate as the Buddhist representative in the New Zealand Delegation. The meeting is sponsored by government as a way of promoting understanding and respect among faiths and community groups in our region. Fifteen countries from South East Asia and the South Pacific will participate, and there will be 26 other Buddhist delegates from Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, Myanmar, PNG, Australia, Brunei, and Vietnam.

If the Centre is to flourish, it is essential that more people step forward who are willing to take responsibility for its smooth functioning. I find that I am more and more stretched as the administrative work of the Centre grows, so please check out the volunteer opportunities below to see how you can help out.

This month’s Mindful Consumption section takes a look at some ways to conserve energy as the cooler months approach. The Buddha encouraged his followers to be frugal, not just as a way of wisely and gratefully using the Sangha’s resources (though that was certainly part of it), but also as an act of devotion to THIS – to all that is our precious life.

Sensei

Upcoming Dates to Note

No Sitting AUT Monday 28 May
No dokusan Thursday 24 May and Tuesday 29 May (sittings otherwise as usual)
Vesak Sunday 10 June at 10:30 a.m. (i.e. after teisho). Not this weekend as
advertised earlier. Bring family members (especially children). There will be cake, stories and “bathing the baby Buddha” – no prior experience required! More details later.
Matariki Jukai 16 June at 6 p.m. Mid-Winter Precepts Ceremony
Winter Sesshin 22-29 June (deadline 8 June)

Winter Sesshin Deadline 8 June

The Winter 7-day sesshin will be held at the Aio Wira Retreat Centre in Swanson, from 22 to 29 June. Note that the deadline for this sesshin is 8 June, two weeks prior to the start of the sesshin (see below under Deadlines, Cancellations, Sesshin Preparation.) Please send the sesshin fee in full with the application (or make an online transfer) unless you have made other arrangements.

For details and a downloadable application form, see the sesshin page of the AZC website, www.aucklandzen.org.nz, and if you have questions take them up with Sensei in dokusan or via e-mail (aucklandzen@yahoo.com.au NOTE: if you hit the “reply” key now you will get the newsletter administrator).

Deadlines, Cancellations, Sesshin Preparation

At the Easter sesshin a dearth of experienced people and several last-minute cancellations put an extra burden on Sensei and Richard. In order to try to avoid this in the future, the application process will be tightened up as follows:

Seven-day sesshins will now have a two-week deadline, others will have a one week deadline. This will help with the planning of zendo and kitchen duties, allowing time for training of people if necessary.
There will be a meeting soon after the deadline to work out help with sesshin setup and to assign zendo and other key duties.
In future, if you cancel less than three days prior to the start of the sesshin for any other reason than incapacitating illness or family emergency, only half the sesshin fee will be refunded.

It’s Your Zen Centre – Volunteer Opportunities

We are again in need of a treasurer, so please get in touch if you’d be willing to take on this important role. Some bookkeeping knowledge and attendance at trustee meetings every couple of months are the main requirements for the job.

How to set up for sesshins and workshops is a skill that needs to be spread among more people. The best way to learn is by doing, so if you are available on the Friday before the next workshop (15 June) or before the next sesshin (22 June), please come along as an apprentice.

Compassion in Action

Amitabha Hospice is also desperate for volunteers. Visit their website, www.amitabhahospice.org, for information about their excellent volunteer training courses.

Wishlist

We are looking for the following items:

Sideboard, credenza or cabinets for ZC office.
Bookshelves for the growing members’ library
External hard drive for archiving recorded talks

Please get in touch with Ann Duncan annduncan@xtra.co.nz if you can help.

New Baby Buddha

On Sunday Laura Bradburn gave birth at home to a daughter, Micah Helena Bradburn-Hay, 3.4 Kg (7 lbs 8 oz). Mother, father and baby are all doing well, and resting at home. Congratulations to Laura and Bryce, and welcome to Micah!

Trailwalker

Zenwalk and Zenwalk 2, the AZC’s two Trailwalker teams, both completed the 100k course. It was a challenge, but also a great experience – all participants returned with a greater appreciation for each other as well as a sense of achievement (and most of us with sore feet!)

Thanks to everyone who supported the teams financially and especially to our two support crews – John Schmidt, Richard von Sturmer, Zoe Carafice and Brandon Stephens – you were wonderful!!!

Note: Oxfam has been experiencing problems with the Trailwalker website so totals there do not reflect our actual fundraising – the two teams have reached their combined target of $4500 thanks to the generosity of many people.

For Sale: T-Shirts and T-rees

A cool Auckland Zen Centre T-Shirt was printed up for use by the Trailwalker teams and is now available for sale. It has an enso by Japanese Zen Master Bankei on the front and a Chinese image of Bodhidharma on the back. Click here to see the shirts! The T-shirt comes in black, with a few in beige as well, at $40 for members and $45 for non-members. There is a range of sizes for men and women, but especially the women’s shirts are quite small, so best to try on at the zendo before you buy. Inquiries to Teresa Behrens chalice@infogen.net.nz.

Beautiful pukas can also be had, much more cheaply than at a garden centre ($6-$12 depending on size) – but for a limited time only – in spring they’ll need repotting and the price will go up. Pukas make lovely indoor plants or will grow into substantial trees if planted outside. Contact Peter McQuarrie petermq@clear.net.nz to order. Proceeds to the Building Fund.

One shapely totara (about 1m high) is also available. E-mail Sam Hardwick smhrdwck@ihug.co.nz if you are interested.

Trade Me Fundraising

We are in the process of setting up a Zen Centre Trade Me account for the purposes of fundraising. If you have an item to donate please contact Ann Duncan annduncan@xtra.co.nz.

Dalai Lama Public Talk Tickets

The tickets have arrived and will be available at the zendo from this Thursday.

Thanks

Thanks to Murray Russell for helping Ann Duncan and Sam Hardwick with setting up a database for the Centre’s library. We hope to get all the data entered in this winter.

Thanks also to Lou Anne Jaeger for her continuing work as our www.aucklandzen.org webmaster.

Tax Rebate Letters

Thanks also to everyone who has contributed dana to the centre in the past year. Everyone should have now received a letter summarizing their recorded contributions since we became a trust. If you need a letter and have not received one, please let us know. All donations of $5 and over are eligible for a rebate up to the limit set by the IRD. Membership subscriptions and sesshin fees do not qualify as donations.

Mindful Consumption – Winter Energy-Saving Tips

During the last century global demand for energy has risen by a factor of 13. High consumption means more power stations and their inevitable disruption to ecosystems. Even New Zealand’s relatively green hydro stations and wind turbines have negative effects on the habitats of fish, birds, humans and other sentient and insentient beings. Whatever we can do to reduce consumption will moderate the demand for more generation. Here are a few ways to do this:

choose your heating carefully – Consumer magazine runs articles regularly on the pros and cons of different systems – and keep temperatures as low as you can while meeting your family’s health needs
place a reflective panel (such as a sheet of aluminum foil) behind wall-mounted heaters to greatly increase their effectiveness
insulate your house well
draw the curtains at night (most blinds do not have the same insulating properties as curtains)
when you replace a large appliance, choose one with a good energy efficiency rating
boil only the amount of water you need for tea or coffee, or put surplus hot water into a thermos to use when you want a refill (a study in Britain estimated that if everyone did this for one day it would save enough energy to power all the streetlamps in the country the following night)
don’t use the microwave to defrost – take food out of the freezer the night before it is needed and defrost in the fridge
turn appliances off at the wall when you’re not using them (your television uses as much power in 20 hours on standby as it does in 4 hours of use; a single computer left on all night, even in sleep mode, uses as much energy as it takes to print 800 sheets of A4 paper)
whenever possible hang washing up rather than using a dryer
run dish and clothes washers only when full
wash clothes in cold water
shower rather than taking a bath; if you do take a bath, share the water if you can
invest in solar panels – if every roof in New Zealand had them, huge savings could be made and excess energy could be fed back into the grid (this is already set up in some other countries)
use long-life light bulbs (and recycle carefully when they do die – they have mercury in them)
turn lights off when you leave a room

Sitting Schedule Changes

2007-04-04T08:28:00.000+12:00

EASTER SESSHIN

As there is a 4-day sesshin over Easter weekend, there will be no sittings at 100 Pah Road this Thursday or Sunday. However, people may join the sesshin for any of the teishos (Friday through Monday). Be at the main door at 9:20 a.m. The Friary is at 50 Hillsborough Road.

OXFAM TRAILWALKER

The following weekend, because Sensei, Richard and a number of other Centre members will be participating in Oxfam Trailwalker, there will be no Sunday teisho on 15 April.

PUKA TREES FOR OXFAM

Peter McQuarrie has kindly donated some pukas (see photo) to the fund raising effort of the Trailwalker teams, who have committed to jointly raising $8500 for Oxfam’s programmes to reduce poverty and injustice. The larger trees would normally retail for about $20, but can be purchased for just $12, the smaller ones are similarly discounted to $6. Order your trees from Peter (petermcq@clear.net.nz), and pick them up at the zendo.

NO-TREES FOR OXFAM

If you don’t need a tree but would like to pledge $10, $20 or $40 to support Oxfam and sponsor the ZC walkers, text 027 314 9440 with your pledge or e-mail aucklandzen@yahoo.com.au.

ACZ E-News #9

2006-12-21T05:00:00.000+13:00

Dear Friends and Members,

Below are some reminders about stuff happening over the Christmas Holidays. In the New Year I'll be working on a new format for the newsletter that goes to Friends and Members and would be interested to hear your suggestions about what you'd like to see in it.

On New Year’s Eve from 8 p.m. to about 12:30 a.m., we will bring in the New Year together. The evening begins with zazen, includes chanting, ceremonies and more zazen, and concludes with festive food and drink after midnight.

People are welcome to come for all or part of the evening. Please bring some festive food to share.

The Centre will reopen on Tuesday 16 January with zazen and dokusan at 7:00 p.m. Sesshin teishos, 6-12 January, will as usual be open to all. Be at the front door of the Friary, 50 Hillsborough Road, by 9:20 a.m.

Would you like to participate in the Oxfam Trailwalker event without having to walk 100k? The two AZC teams are looking for sponsors, and also for help with raising sponsorship. Please contact Ralph Behrens raewulf@yahoo.com if you’d like be involved as a fundraiser or sponsor. More information to follow in the New Year.

May all beings be peaceful.

May all beings be happy.

May all beings be safe.

May all beings awaken to the light of their True Nature.

May all beings be free.

Sensei

E-Newsletter No. 7, Vol.3

2006-12-02T10:09:00.000+13:00

Service

“Do not worry in the least about yourself, leave all worry to God,” this appears to be the commandment in all religions. This need not frighten any one. He who devotes himself to service with a clear conscience will day by day grasp the necessity for it in greater measure, and will continually grow richer in faith. (…) Consciously or unconsciously, every one of us does render some service or other. If we cultivate this service deliberately, our desire for service will steadily grow stronger, and will make not only for our own happiness but that of the world at large. —Mahatma Gandhi

“Do not worry in the least about yourself, put all your trust in Buddha Nature” (in the breath, in Mu, in What?) – the core teachings in all the great religions are pointing us toward this – to relinquish self-concern and to practice true and unconditional love. Love, and its active form, selfless service, are the substance of the universe. We are each and every one of us supported by and a supporter of everything we think of as Other, whether we know it or not. To begin to cultivate love and service deliberately, even in very modest ways, is to change our relationship to the world. Slowly our circle of love will expand. As long as we try our very best, there can be no question of failure, even as we fall down over and over again. May this Christmas period be a time to appreciate each other and affirm our interconnectedness, beyond all the commercial hype, and in the New Year may we rededicate ourselves to serving all sentient beings.

In the Dharma,

Sensei

Buddha’s Enlightenment Ceremony

Celebrated on or near December 8, this ceremony commemorates “the reopening of the Way” by Shakyamuni, the Buddha of our world cycle. The story of the Buddha's Great Enlightenment is told, and passages from the sutras are read aloud as everyone chants a mantra in homage to Shakyamuni. Following the ceremony a special dessert of sweetened rice-milk is served; the first nourishment that the Buddha took to gain strength after his period of extreme ascetic practice and before accomplishing anuttara samyak sambodhi.

The ceremony will be held next Tuesday, 5 December (which also happens to be full moon), following zazen. No dokusan will be offered that evening.

Oxfam Trailwalker - Lake Taupo, April 14-15 2007

Next Sunday, 10 December, after teisho there will be a meeting at the zendo for anyone interested in participating in Oxfam Trailwalker NZ, a 100k walk around Lake Taupo in mid April next year.

We already have 2 teams of four ready to represent the Auckland Zen Centre - one men's team and one women's – but could use a backup or two if anyone has to withdraw before the event. Also, we need to confirm the support crew, and would like to hear from anybody who can offer advice or help of any kind with fundraising. This is going to take a team effort, so the more the merrier.

If you’d like to learn more go to www.oxfamtrailwalker.org.nz, or contact the coordinator, Ralph Behrens, at work 09 361 1088 or 027 292 7450, or e-mail him at raewulf@yahoo.com.

Sittings in December and January

The regular sitting schedule continues through Tuesday 19 December.
NO sittings at Pah Road 20 December to 15 January, except on New Year’s Eve (see below).
Although sittings at Pah Road will be suspended, the sesshin teisho block, starting at 9:30 a.m. from Saturday 6 to Friday 12 January, is open to visitors. (Be at main door of the Friary by 9:20 – the Friary is at 50 Hillsborough Road, Mt. Roskill).
The regular sitting schedule resumes Tuesday 16 January with the usual zazen and dokusan, beginning at 7:00 p.m.

Giving that Counts this Christmas

“Oxfam Unwrapped” offers a great way to give a meaningful gift to yourself or to someone else that also helps out those in most need. Gifts range in price from $10 (nutritional meals for 50 kids or a box of condoms to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS) to $1440 (one year’s education for a whole class). See www.oxfamunwrapped.org.nz or call 0 800 400 666 to order.

New Year’s Eve

If you’d enjoy a mindful and refreshing entry into 2007 then join the Sangha for traditional New Year’s Eve celebrations at the Zen Centre from 8:00 p.m. to approx 12:30 a.m. on Sunday 31 December.

The evening begins at 8 p.m. with two rounds of zazen, followed by a Repentance Ceremony (to lay to rest any defiling deeds from the past year that weigh heavily on the mind). After a break, there is more zazen, starting at about 10 p.m. (you can join in at this point if you wish), and just before midnight a circumambulation of the Zen Centre’s rooms with chanting and noise-making to chase out any lingering negative energies. The first act of the New Year, held at the stroke of midnight, is Jukai (Taking the Precepts*), followed by a candle-lighting ceremony and special New Year wishes for the well-being of the world. We conclude the night with refreshments – please bring some festive vegetarian food to share – and a firework or two (weather permitting).

*Jukai is offered two or three times a year as a way of renewing one’s commitment to the Buddha Way. The 16 precepts which are taken in Jukai can be read on the website, and there are a number of teisho recordings on them available from the zendo library. Roshi Robert Aitken has also written an excellent book about the precepts from a Zen perspective called Mind of Clover.

7-Day Sesshin in January

The Centre’s summer 7-day sesshin will be held 5-12 January at the Franciscan Friary. Please put in your application as soon as possible, and no later than 20 December. If you have not been to sesshin before you may apply to attend the first two or four days.

See the website for general information about sesshin, and if you have any questions, bring them up with Sensei in dokusan.

The cost for sesshin is $55 a day for members and $60 a day for non-members, plus dana for Sensei.

Thank You

Thank you to Ken McLeod for regularly vacuuming the Centre and attending to altar cleaning and to Andrew Kincaid for agreeing to be the Centre’s Treasurer.

Library

Thanks to the work of the Centre’s volunteer librarian, Ann Duncan, the library is now up and running and books may be signed out by members.

Donations Box

Since the Centre became a charitable trust, envelopes have been available next to the donations box for anyone who would like us to keep track of their donations of $5 or more for tax purposes. If you do not need us to keep track of your dana, there is no need to use an envelope.

Lost and Found

Lost: If you borrowed the DVD Doing Time, Doing Vipassana please return it.

Found: Dark navy men’s winter jacket, Now brand, size L.

Dates for 2007

5-12 January	Summer 7-Day Sesshin at Friary (deadline for applications 20 December)
16 January	Regular sitting Schedule resumes
6 February	Ceremony of Gratitude (in conjunction with Waitangi Day)
10 February	Workshop
2-4 March	2-Day Sesshin at 100 Pah Road (participants sleep at home)
31 March	Workshop
5-9 April	Easter 4-Day Sesshin at Friary
6 May	All-Day Sitting
12 May	Workshop
20 May	Vesak
22-29 June	Winter 7-Day Sesshin at Aio Wira
16 June	Workshop&Matariki Jukai
3 July	Winter Term Intensive Opening Ceremony
22 July	All-Day Sitting
28 July	Workshop
8-12 August	Winter 4-Day Sesshin at Friary
14 August	Winter Term Intensive Closing Ceremony
1 September	All-Day Sitting
8 September	Workshop
25 September	Bodhidharma Day
October–mid November	Ango & short sesshin at Chapin Mill, USA, (to be confirmed)
23-25 November	Spring 2-Day Sesshin at Friary
1 December	Workshop
4 December	Buddha’s Enlightenment Ceremony
31 December	New Year’s Eve Ceremonies
4-11 January, 2008	Summer 7-Day Sesshin at Friary

June 2006 Newsletter No. 5, Vol. 3 20

2006-07-06T12:36:00.000+12:00

Contents:
Light in Darkness
Matariki Jukai
Auckland Zen Centre Now a Trust
Sunday Dokusan
Monday University Sitting
All-Day Sitting on Sunday 2nd July
Ordering Mats and Cushions
Security at the Zendo
Coming up in July and August: Term Intensive
Women in Buddhism Course
Seven-Day Sesshin

Light in Darkness

Dear Sangha,

This time of year can be difficult for many people, even in our relatively mild climate. The lack of light can negatively affect our mood, as can the cold, the rain, and the wind. Deep down we may doubt that things will get better, even as our rational mind knows that winter does pass. Why is it that we find it so hard to see this truth and live by it? Perhaps it has to do with what comes along with it – the knowledge that spring also passes, and so does summer, and so do we. Practice helps us to open our eyes to this iron-clad Law that makes everything possible.

Sensei

Matariki Jukai

Jukai, the Mahayana Taking-the-Precepts Ceremony, will be offered this Saturday, 24 June, at 6 p.m. The zendo will be open from 5 o’clock for informal zazen, and participants are also welcome to come to a dinner afterwards at the International Food Court, on the corner of Pollen Street and Ponsonby Road (upstairs) – this is a very reasonably-priced eatery with good food and lots of choice.

There is an opportunity to offer dana to Sensei at the beginning of the Jukai. Unlike the usual dana given at a sitting, which goes to administration of the AZC, this offering is to Sensei personally, as an expression of gratitude for receiving the teachings. Envelopes will be available outside the zendo; put your donation in one and keep it with you. Copies of Sensei’s teisho from Sunday, which describes and explains the Jukai ceremony, will be available at the zendo tonight and on Thursday. The precepts themselves are also on the Centre’s website, www.aucklandzen.org.nz.

Auckland Zen Centre Now a Charitable Trust

At Vesak the Auckland Zen Centre finally became a legal entity. The initial Trustees, serving 4-year terms, are Richard von Sturmer, Teresa Behrens, Peter Carafice and Bruce Christian. The Board meets this week for the first time.

Sunday Dokusan

As this Sunday is the last of the month, Sensei will offer dokusan for those who have trouble coming during the week.

Monday University Sitting

Sittings at AUT (WJ302) are suspended for the holidays and will resume on Monday 17 July at the start of Semester Two. There are three 25-minute rounds with kinhin. The rounds begin at 4:30, 5:00 and 5:30.

July All-Day Sitting

There will be an all-day sitting on Sunday 2 July, 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. All-day sittings are a good way to deepen your practice and prepare for sesshin. If you plan to attend, please sign up at the zendo or e-mail aucklandzen@yahoo.com.au to reserve a place. It is OK to come for part of the day or to just the usual Sunday slot from 8:30 to 10:30 (though if we fill up, preference is given to people doing the whole day). BYO breakfast and lunch (microwave available). Tea is provided. Koha is requested, $30 suggested for a full day.

Ordering Mats and Cushions from “Dharmagear”

Teresa Behrens has taken over from Sensei the making of mats and cushions for zazen. Order forms are available at the zendo, or you can e-mail her at chalice@infogen.net.nz.

Security at the Zendo

We are now locking the front door during sittings because of some concerns about security at 100 Pah Road (the caretaker at the Wananga had his keys, and car, stolen, and a prowler came in during the recent extended sitting). On Tuesdays the door is locked after the han is played (7 o’clock sharp); on Thursdays, in recognition of the difficulty people sometimes have with rush-hour traffic, it’s locked half way through the first round (about 6 o’clock); on Sundays after the han (8:30 a.m.) If you are late, try knocking loudly.

Coming up in July and August: Term Intensive

A Term Intensive is a practice period designed especially for people living busy lay lives. Our first TI will run from 4 July to 1 August, and will provide extra opportunities to sit and to discuss practice issues. Essentially, participation in a TI involves making a pledge to intensify one’s practice for a limited period (in this case just over a month) in specific ways – it could be a commitment to sit or chant a certain amount each day, to work on a particular unskilful habit, to do some Sutra study – or some combination of these. Because it is undertaken for a limited period, and with the support of others, it is a chance to stretch in ways that we might not otherwise dare to attempt, and an opportunity to discover what we are really capable of. Details of how it works, plus a pledge form, will be sent out shortly, and posted on the website.

Women in Buddhism Course

Sensei will again offer “Women in Buddhism,” through Auckland University’s Centre for Continuing Education, in six 2-hour Wednesday evening sessions, starting on 26 July. The course will cover both teachings and history, and there’ll be discussions and a practice element at each session. For more information go to www.cce.auckland.ac.nz and look under Course Programme for 2006, Philosophy and Religion.

Seven-Day Sesshin

Until the Sangha gets bigger there are only two chances each year to do a 7-day sesshin in Auckland, and one of those is approaching fast. August sesshin will be at Aiowira, a beautiful and quiet spot in the Waitakeres, surrounded by bush. The dates are 4-11 August, and sesshin applications should be in by 28 July at the latest. If you have not been to sesshin before it is possible to apply for just the first two or four days.