part of a larger time of year called Obon in the summer, in which people honor their ancestors. And they go out to the cemeteries and they clean up the grave sites and they put out flowers and remember those who have come before them. And Sajiki is that part of the ceremony, part of the season where we feed the hungry ghosts, which could include astronauts and skeletons and 80s rockers and each of us could be a hungry ghost. Now, a hungry ghost is comes from the ancient Buddhist traditions.

[01:04]

It probably predates Buddha. And actually, we can pass these out. Here's a picture of hungry ghosts, one on one side, one on the other. So hungry ghosts are Creatures who are caught in the realm of desire, which is not true of any view, I'm sure. They have, they're called hungry ghosts because they have big swollen bellies, right? And they have long sort of pencil thick necks. And so they're always, always, always hungry. And they are never, ever, ever satisfied because they can't get enough food through their tiny neck to fill that belly.

[02:16]

So the belly is always crying out for more and the mouth just can't take enough food in. So we celebrate Tzatziki at this time of year because it's really close to Halloween, right? Are any of you going out for Halloween? Yes. Who else? Any of you big kids? Okay. And in Halloween, you know, it's trick or treat. And we get these, you know, if we go around in some neighborhoods, you get these big piles of candy, right? Yeah. You like that, huh? And do you eat it all? Oh, good.

[03:22]

So you ration it. You take it just a little at a time. Yeah, that's very thoughtful. I don't think I was as thoughtful when I was a kid. It's like it was gone the next day. So when we go around from door to door, it's like we're feeding the hungry ghosts. We're the hungry ghosts and the people that we knock on their door, we feed them. They feed us. So there's a similarity at this time of year. In Halloween, it's this time of year that's between the light and the dark. I think, is it next week that Daylight Savings Time ends? Yes. This is a traditional, this is a traditional ancient ceremony, changing the clocks from Daylight Savings Time to Standard Time.

[04:37]

No, that's not true, because they didn't have clocks and they didn't have time zones. But it's very important. If they didn't have that, you couldn't be an astronaut. It'd be very difficult to navigate without time zones. Anyway, I digress. So this is a time of year when we're moving from light, from more light into more dark. And so it's appropriate to have tzatziki at this time of year. Now, according to the legend, The Buddha had a disciple, a student. And this student had powers to see beyond what he could see. He could see into other worlds. And when he saw into another world, into the world of those who had died, he saw his mother.

[05:46]

who had previously died. And in this world that he saw, she was suffering. And she was suffering because she had been greedy and done harmful things to people. And so she was hanging upside down. in this other world. And she was hungry and thirsty. And his heart was broken that he, when he saw his mother in that position. And so he asked the Buddha, what should I do? And the Buddha said, well, I think you should go down there and feeder. And Mogayana, that was his name, went down to this realm of those who had died before.

[06:58]

And the gates were very carefully locked to that realm. So he had to figure out how to get through. And finally, he took a hammer and he smashed the locks and he opened the gate. And, oops, he let all of the hungry ghosts out. They were all at the gate wanting to get out. And he smashed the lock and they all escaped into the world. And meanwhile, he went down and he found his mother and he cut her free and he fed her. He gave her soothing drinks and fruit and easy to digest food. And he set her at ease. But meanwhile,

[08:02]

What are you going to do about all these hungry ghosts that are wandering around among us? This is a problem for us in this world. And so the Buddha said, well, we should figure out a way to feed them all. And so that's what the ceremony is about symbolically. And I think that this ceremony is also a way of reminding us, and it says so in the ceremony itself, that all of us can be hungry ghosts. All of us can have great suffering, insatiable appetites, and sit in the middle of this world and feel that way and so we recognize one of the things that's wonderful about this ceremony is we recognize that that is part of who we are that when when certain circumstances arise all of us

[09:34]

can be reborn as hungry ghosts right now. And, you know, it's not necessarily because of something we've done. It's the circumstance of the world. You know, you think about refugees who are coming thousands of miles, fleeing violence, fleeing poverty, and coming wanting a better life. And they are like the hungry ghosts in this story. They're knocking at the gates. In this case, they're knocking at the gates of our country or they're knocking at the gates of other countries wishing to get in. It's not that they deserve being hungry ghosts. But they can be, their circumstances can be transformed by us feeding them, by us seeing them, by us helping them, by us recognizing that they are not different than us.

[10:54]

Each of us could be in that circumstance. And the people who are in those circumstances are just like us and particularly the kids, you know, that I've gone to a lot. I've gone to refugee camps and when I see the children in those camps, they're just like you guys. They're just like my kids. There's no difference. They're as smart and they want to have fun and they like to play. And so, you can think of them as your children, as your brothers and sisters. And we can feed them. So I'd like to have you help me sing a song. And we're going to call out to the hungry ghosts.

[11:56]

So let's see, we can, yeah, actually have the words for you. And while you're doing this, so I'll finish my talk with this song and then we'll do a short walking meditation and come back in here and Sojourn Roshi will lead the ceremony. And we'll feed the hungry ghost to see the wonderful altar that we have set up behind the screen. Uh, and we'll turn our attention there and we will feed the hungry ghosts. And we'll also remember everyone who has died, people who have been close to us, people in our families, friends, and feed them as well. Calling out to hungry hearts

[13:20]

Everywhere to endless time, You who wander, you who thirst, I offer you this bode mine, Calling out to hungry hearts, Everywhere through endless time, You who wander, you who thirst, I offer you this bode mine. Calling out to hungry spirits, Everywhere through endless time, Calling out to hungry hearts, all the lost and left behind. Gather round and share this meal, your joy and your sorrows, I make it mine.

[14:55]

Calling now to hungry hearts We're no different in our way We all wander, we all thirst We understand there's no place to stay Calling now to hungry spirits Everywhere through endless time Calling out you hungry hearts All the lost and left behind Gather round and share this meal Your joy and your sorrow I make it mine Calling out, you hungry spirits, everywhere through endless time.

[16:03]

Calling out, you hungry hearts, all the lost and left behind. Gather round and share this meal. Your joy and your sorrow, I make it mine. Your joy and your sorrow, I make it mine.

[16:29]

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