Practice Meetings

Tuesday Jul 23, 8:30am

Friday Jul 26, 7:00pm

This Week’s Reading

Thich Nhat Hanh, Old Path White Clouds, Chapter 53, “Dwelling in the Present Moment”.

This Week’s Koan

Blue Cliff Record #70

Guishan’s “I Would Ask You to Say It”

Guishan, Wufeng, and Yunyan stood together as attendants for Baizhang.  Baizhang asked Guishan, “If side by side you withdraw throat and lips, how do you speak to make it alive?”

Guishan said, “I withdraw and beg the Venerable to speak.”

Baizhang said, “I don’t decline to turn to you and speak, but I fear then that afterwards I would lose my children and grandchildren for descendants.”

Therefore Xuedou’s ode says:

I withdraw and beg the Venerable to speak.

The tiger’s head gives birth to horns coming out from the wild grasses.

In the ten island-continents, spring is ended and flowers are withered.

In the forest of coral trees, the sun is brilliantly bright.