One of the first Buddhist books I ever read was Buddhism Is Not What You Think by Steve Hagen.
Someone sent me a quote from it the other day, in which he talks about the poet Han-Shan, or Cold Mountain.
I'm not going to copy and paste it here, because it's rather long. But the gist of it is that when Cold Mountain the poet is talking about going to Cold Mountain the place, he's not talking about his cliff dwelling in the mountains... he's talking about his own zen state of mind, which has nothing to do with where he lives.
Some of you have heard me use the expression 'The Buddha is not in Nepal,' which is another way of saying the same thing: what you find you will find within yourself, not in a temple or stupa or zendo, whether it's in Nepal or Japan or Warr Acres.
And yet...
Something drove Cold Mountain the poet to take refuge in the wilderness, far from any community. Something led him to isolate himself from the world at large.
One of his translators, Red Pine, has suggested Cold Mountain was a fugitive who had to flee the city after participating in an unsuccessful uprising against the government. Maybe so - the fact is we know almost nothing about him.
How does one know when it's time to retreat?
3 comments:
Many of my friends in AA ask me how I can spend so much time in bars hanging out with friends and listening to music. I tell them that if you are sober between your ears, then it doesn't make any difference what is going on outside your head. If you want an excuse to drink, you'll find one whether or not you go into a bar.
I am also of the opinion that stress resides wholly between one's ears. You can freak out because junior spilled the milk or because the ship is sinking or whatever -- or you can see the situation for what it is and do what you must do in response.
So I think it is as to "retreat". I think retreat only makes a difference AFTER you have lost your attachment to things and the benefits of civilization. Only then does one's surroundings begin to matter. If you want the latest Mac toy, you will want it in the middle of the city or atop the mountain. It is NOT the other way around: we do not lose attachment by going to the mountain, that would only heighten the allure of the illusion of reality.
When your heart and head are "pure", then and only then does it make no difference where you sit your ass. Cold Mountain is the same illusion as The Paseo.
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Just returned from "Upaya", a fancey Zen monastary in Santa Fe, New Mexico. A shared room is about $80/night, a single $125.00/night. No thanks. Beautiful place. Nice meditation room but why does one need a "room"?; the outside common area in front of the office would have been better in my opinion. At lunch there was a big philosophical discussion on "Dharma". I listened and listened and then said, "I think that is a TV show, you all." To everyone's credit they laughed even if they did not think it was funny. There was a really sexy guy there......who was 22 years celibate. What a waste! I was very bored but grateful for the experience. Beautiful country, wonderful facility and I would go crazy there. I will stay here and walk The Path of the Purple Ball.
See you and JohnX at 'Sauced' again soon someday?
Yes, you will see me at Sauced! again. I was there briefly this evening, in fact. Hoped to run into JohnX and his significant Austrian, but they were not in the neighborhood.
Swung by the RC for awhile after that.
Upaya Zen Center has a Flickr page where you can see their digs, and they advertise in the Buddhist mags.
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