Author: Genko Rainwater
Twice a year, the sangha has an opportunity to hear from our governing bodies and to ask questions and give feedback. This fall forum is primarily sponsored by the Board of Directors, giving updates on where we are with finances, succession, special workshops geared for a broad audience and proposed changes to membership definitions. The… Read more »
Wednesday was our last day of blue sky and sunshine for a while. Fujaku, Joel, Kakumyo, and Gary took advantage of it to work on the barn in anticipation of the Oregon Tradeswomen coming to work on more framing Thursday. We’ve been seeing more praying mantises around the property, as well as owls and other… Read more »
Anthony Fujaku Stevens is completing postulancy and moving into training as a novice monk. On Friday, October 21, he will be ordained as a Soto Zen priest in a Shukke Tokudo ceremony. This is a public ceremony, and all are invited to share and witness this important step for our sangha.
“I joined Dharma Rain because I want to support the organization from which I derive life-sustaining benefit. I’d like it to continue to thrive, selfishly for my sake, but in truth for the sake of everyone. Being a member honors the dharma. When the monthly e-mail arrives confirming my donation, I think of the interplay… Read more »
Perhaps one of the hardest barriers to our Zen practice is the barrier of “self.” Attaching to self as an entity separate from others generates patterns of suffering and confusion. The illusion of self also thwarts our ability to experience our deeper reality and its expression in our daily lives. Our great ancestor, Manzan Dohaku,… Read more »
Wednesday under October skies, the work party accomplished several tasks. Here, Joel dumps a load of dirt on the Japanese Garden, which Gemmon is sculpting. Shin’yu checks it out as she walks to the Sodo. Last Friday the new sign (sculpted by Hakugyo) went up. Fujaku, Ikuo, and Joel worked hard, and the final result… Read more »
Gyoshi reports on the Mountains and Waters Sesshin in September: “Warm, clear days and cold, frosty nights. Tons of ripe blueberries and huckleberries. Elks bugling, snorting, whistling all around us during evening zazen. Separate meadows in full fall coloring for tents, zendo, and sanzen. A mostly successful experiment with mixing traditional sesshin forms with the… Read more »
People are sometimes surprised to learn that Buddhism has a long, rich history of confession and repentance. The flavor of this in Buddhism is quite different from what we may have experienced in other religious practices, but we still experience shame, self-hatred and regret as we face up to past mistakes. Dharma Rain will be… Read more »
Last Thursday’s release of a rehabilitated hawk by the Audubon Society onto our property was inspiring for all who witnessed it. The Audubon Society has sent us some of the photos they took of the event. They show the sequence from release from the box they carried him in, to flight, to sitting in the… Read more »
Many of us spend the majority of our day in our workplace. How can we deepen our practice in the midst of distraction, busy days and competing demands for our time? How do we integrate the effort that we make in our meditation practice with the effort we make at work? Shintai will offer some… Read more »
Gemmon continues to work on the Japanese-style formal garden. Wednesday’s sun lights up the Katsura tree. Fujaku painted the sign for the entrance to the property, which Hakugyu carved. Notice that Fujaku has nutritional reinforcement as part of his work. Wednesday’s work party also included adding bamboo to the planters that will eventually be in… Read more »
“Dharma Rain has been my spiritual home for 14 years. Discovering the dharma in this place, and having the rich and varied opportunities for study and practice, have meant the world to me. I love this temple and this sangha. I want it to be strong, healthy, vibrant and accessible for other way-seekers, like it… Read more »
Zazen is widely recognized as our core practice, but a small percentage of available teaching minutes are allocated to how-to instruction. Why is that, how do we answer the questions we have about meditation, and what questions do we need to have about meditation? Come Sunday to find out. This talk was given Sunday, September… Read more »
About 60 people turned out to view the Not-Necessarily-Talented-Show on Saturday, September 10. The show didn’t live up to its name, as almost all of the acts displayed plenty of talent. The first half was various acts by several people. Karen Howard performed two dances that were mesmerizing. The second half was the surprise production… Read more »
Fujaku and Joel work on moving forward with the Barn (workshop). There are various administrative and planning tasks to do, but the plan is to have the building done this fall. Much of the volunteer work is moving ward the Barn. The Oregon Tradeswomen plan to come back later to continue work as well. Hakugyu… Read more »
Why membership is important to me: I joined Dharma Rain as a member fairly soon after discovering it. Once I got my feet wet, I recognized that this was a practice, and a community, that would lead to good in my life. Becoming a member allowed me to express my commitment to the prosperity of… Read more »