Microphone, is it on? Yeah, it's on. It's not up very much. I'm afraid, the format of this class is basically going to be more discussion than lecture. So I put the microphone on since I was going to get started. But then maybe we could try to put the microphone... It won't work? So, we may not get a very satisfactory recording of this hour and a half, but that's okay. But as I say, it's going to be discussion. What, as I understand it, The aspects of practice is, among other things, to talk about how our practice from the Zendo out into the rest of the community, past the gate. And so I was thinking, well, let's see, we could talk about the Eightfold Path, the precepts, Metta Sutta, And I suggested that to Sojin and Alan, and they said, oh, you should cut back. That's way too big.

[01:03]

So I like the meta-suit. I think it's a lot of fun. So that's what I'd like to talk about. And I was thinking we could read it. And we've all read it before many times, probably. If not, if you've read it for the first time, this will be quite insightful. The next two pages are some exercises, which I got out of a book that Alan loaned me. called Loving Kindness and actually I like this book so much I'm going to buy a couple, three copies and we're going to use them in the Wednesday night group that we have which you're all invited to come to if you want to. We'll probably start in a couple of weeks. What we do is we come at 7.20 and we meditate until 8, have a short service and then we have tea and we read part of the book And we have a discussion until about nine o'clock. And then we adjourn. So, if you want to continue the study of this, you can come to the Wednesday night group.

[02:06]

Okay, so, you know, it'll be interesting. Maybe we'll just sort of go around, or maybe we should just all read it, chant it like we normally do when we chant it. So, I will enunciate it. Metta Sutta. This is what should be accomplished by the one who is wise, who seeks the good and has obtained peace. Let one be strenuous, upright and sincere, without pride, easily contented and joyous. Let one not be submerged by the world. Let one not take upon oneself the burden of riches. Let one's senses be controlled. Let one be wise, but not puffed up. And let one not desire great possessions, even for one's family. Let one do nothing that is mean, or that the wise would reprove. May all beings be happy.

[03:09]

May they be joyous and live in safety. All living beings, whether weak or strong, in high or middle or low realms of existence, small or great, visible or invisible, near or far, born or to be born, may all beings be happy. Let no one deceive another, nor despise any being in any state. Let none by anger or hatred wish harm to another. Even as a mother at the risk of her life watches over and protects her only child, so with a boundless mind should one cherish all living things, suffusing love over the entire world, above, below, and all around, without limit. So let one cultivate an infinite goodwill toward the whole world. Standing or walking, sitting or lying down, during all one's waking hours, let one practice the way with gratitude.

[04:12]

Not holding to fixed views, abandoning vague discussions, endowed with insight, freed from sense appetites, one who achieves the way will be freed from the duality of birth and death." Great. So this sutta appears to be broken up into several different sections, and the first one is sort of an introduction, it looks like. This is what should be accomplished by the one who is wise, who seeks the good, and has obtained peace. Any comments about that, or would you like to say something more about that? I always felt like, well, that's not me. I mean, it seems like it starts at the end. This is what should be accomplished by the one who seeks the good and has attained peace.

[05:17]

What does that mean, has attained peace? Charlie says that they are rather severe. Well, you've got to be wise before you do anything else. like you have some experience and you say, oh, you know, and then from there and that place is where you come to practice. Yeah. Does anybody think that it means more than that? Does anybody think that it does not pertain to them? I always read it more loosely as if it That's the way I was fed.

[06:30]

That's how I felt. I wonder if it's a directive that, you know, you can actually have an experience of insight and not live according to So it's a kind of, the sutra kind of lays out, sort of like the Eightfold Path in a way, it lays out criteria by which words are, you know, whether it's a pain piece, it's not so sure.

[07:44]

I have a, you know, in this book there's another translation. I could read those at first. This is what should be done by those who are skilled in goodness and who know the path of peace. This is what should be done by those who are skilled in goodness and who know the path of peace. It still seems kind of restrictive or severe in its red, if I take it literally. I think I like what Alan is saying. It's sort of... One of the things that Mel told me once was he really... One of the things he really liked about the Zen Center was that the people who come here are all trying to be good people. And that's really a wonderful thing. There was this encouragement to me when I was telling him I wasn't doing so well. He says, yeah, but you're trying to be good.

[08:47]

Well, I think that's what it's about. It's about intentionality. To have that intention. I feel like we can't get too hung up on the words because of the problems with translation. But I think that's what paths are about. They're about making commitments and having the intention and having the willingness when you fall off to try again. That's how I read it. So I ask the question again, does anyone here think that that does not pertain to them? That this first pair of sentence doesn't pertain to them? I'd like to think that it does pertain to all of us. Okay. Because I like what Paul said.

[09:53]

And that's why I've always read it. When I first encounter it, I says, well, it may say all that strict stuff, but I'm okay. I'm still there. Okay, so the next section here. Let one be strenuous, upright, and sincere, without pride, easily contented, and joyous. Let one be strenuous, upright, and sincere, without pride, easily contented, and joyous. So it's a mix, for me it's a mix of the Armitage and the 10.

[10:55]

and also says what to do as a positive direction. So we have in the first sentence it says, this is what should be accomplished by the one who is wise. Basically to my mind it's saying this is what, if we want to be good, This is what we should be doing. We should be strenuous, upright, and sincere, without pride, easily contented, and joyous. That's an awful lot. Sue? Well, it does seem similar to the Eightfold Path in that if you make an effort and you desire enlightenment and wisdom and compassion, or in this case, peace, There are practices which further that. You know, if you're going to make peanut butter cookies, you better start off with some peanut butter in there.

[12:26]

Or you're not going to get peanut butter cookies. When it talks about being strenuous, upright, and sincere, what does that mean, strenuous, upright, and sincere? I think of upright, I think of sitting up straight. Does it just mean that when we're sitting Zazen? Well, I think it's a continual effort, you know, that we're in a process to keep peace in mind and that in order to work with that, it takes, it's like putting your attention back on your breath. You keep putting your, we bring our attention back to intentionality, I guess, as Ravi said.

[13:27]

It's not that we get there, but that we focus on those Do you call them goals? Intentions? And I really like that even though it's genuine and sincere, it seems very serious. And without pride, which is not similar to the vows. You can't do that. At least I can't. But it is softened for me. Because I know people who grimly make an effort, and it's very grim, you know, to be around them. But to be easily contented and joyous seems to be a wonderful balance. That's what those words mean.

[15:09]

When I read it, I see the first two lines, and they're saying someone is wise, is seeking the good, and has obtained peace. So those are pretty high things. And to me, it seems like all the other sentences just pop out of there, instead of like, you're working to do all of these things. gotten to this point and those things just come naturally out of it. That's how it feels to me. Well it seems like also if you want to Be wise, good, and obtain peace. One of the things that you've got to do also is to be strenuous, upright, and sincere. Is that right? Yeah, a circle going around and around. So it's almost like you could take the back end of the sutra then pop up to the top. Without pride, easily contented, and joyous.

[16:15]

Yeah. Yeah, what is joyous? Okay, who's got an answer? What do you think? Yeah. I like the idea of being easily contented, which is kind of being contented and drawn to the smaller things in life. The little things like a flower, or the air, or the smell of incense, or the, you know, just the things that are, those smaller things that are, doesn't have to be really huge to be contented. Because if you keep your eyes open, when you meet teachers, sooner or later, you're going to see these people who are really joyous.

[17:33]

And it's contagious. For instance, some of us have gotten to spend time with Uitsu Suzuki. And there's this mysterious thing. When you're around Uitsu, you feel good. you know, you may not, you know, if you wasn't in the room, you may not feel so good. It's contagious and you can get it. You don't have to be born that way. And if you see, over time you get to experience different features, you'll see this quality of lightness that really affects you.

[18:43]

I remember when I was in Tassajara, Koban, Chino Roshi was there. Well, it's Dharma joy. It just kind of naturally arises. And we can cultivate it. That's the thing. That peace is not something unattainable. And if you look at yourself over a long time of practice, you know, we feel ourselves kind of enlightened. That's something to, you know, tune into. Where is that? How is that?

[19:44]

lightness, which is joy, you know, rising in you. Um, forgive me for saying so, but I think there's a number of people at Prince Berkeley Center who are teachers, who are, who have that epitome of overseer. Good. I think, in other words, please forgive me for saying so, but I don't think you have to be a teacher to have that quality. No, you don't. No, I don't think you, you don't. You just have to be a practitioner. you know, some seemingly accomplished feature. I mean, we actually can give this to each other. So it strikes me at the end of a seven-day Sashin, just about every participant, those of you who have been there. So Jake, does that come close to answering your question?

[20:46]

Yes. I have a question. I don't know why we have to be a practitioner. I don't know about children. Some people, I mean, this is our natural condition. but sometimes it ain't so easy to do. Dick? Of our pride, easily contented and joyous. Does anybody else have something they want to add to that? Let one not be submerged by the things of the world.

[21:52]

Let one not take upon oneself the burden of riches. Oh. This is a hard one for me, whenever I read this sentence. These two sentences. Very hard. I want to, I have a habit of, and I was raised with it, of wanting to be financially successful. And so I read these and I sort of say, am I doing the right thing? And that the, I mean, it's the attachment to it that's the problem.

[22:54]

I mean, it's like, you know, they could easily say, don't take upon oneself the burden of poverty because if you're, you know, if you're, if you're, you have no money and you're very poor and you're living in poverty and you're lamenting that, how much of a victim that you are, I mean, that's as much of a, burden as, you know, having hordes of money and, you know, continuing to rake it towards your own self, I would think When you say to be submerged in the things of the world, does that mean you're not involved in the things of the world, or does it mean that the things of the world are drowning you?

[24:00]

I think the trick is to be engaged with the world in some fashion where it, whatever that constitutes, Sometimes you submerge and lose for myself. It's a very tenuous balance that you have to strike. How do you perceive it? Are you greedy? And all those sorts of things. I don't perceive these as prohibitions against being involved with the world or wealth or anything.

[25:08]

I think it's talking about attachment. Like if you think this is actually going to save you or something. Which of course it's not, but that can be a problem. Well, for me, part of it is I'm of an age now, I'm 60, and I'm in the process of retiring. And I think, how much money do I need to retire on? If I quit working, I lose my skills, and I can't get another job, then what I have to live on is what I have saved. I don't have a pension. So that question for me is, how much is enough? It's a very difficult question and alive for me right now. How much is enough? Well, I mean, there's another way of looking at this, you know. The suit says riches. It doesn't say money. You know? It doesn't say... I mean, riches is certainly over and above retirement.

[26:16]

you know, ordinary existence in the world. Riches are riches. They're not, you know, sufficiency. Riches are excess. That's, I think, by definition. Excess, you said? Yes. in this society. Did you want to say something, Anne? But do you need two or three, you know? Do you need the latest model, and do you need the latest update? I mean, I think that's... Well, that's not what I said. Yeah, but I mean, I think there is a real question about... I mean, I think you're asking a real question, like, how much is enough, you know? I think that's a lie.

[27:24]

Well, everybody has to answer that for themselves, obviously. I think as a society we are definitely erring on the side of excess these days. The less you think you need, or the less you need, the freer you are, the lighter your burden is. The less you think you need. Yeah, exactly. So someone who's living in poverty, because your statement about being by poverty, Because I was thinking, some people take a vow of poverty. But that's different, I think. I've got three TVs. I don't know why I have three TVs. I just do. I'm not sure where they came from. Someone here said, I don't have a TV. Could I have one? Well, yeah. I mean, I'm not attached to having three TVs. It's the same thing with heaters. I have a lot of those wall heaters.

[28:24]

I've always given one away. I don't know why I have so many. But it's not like I have to have them. And I think that's the same thing like being in poverty is. I go, what, how attached, like I can't believe I don't have enough money and I can't do this and you can do that and I can't do this and you can do that. I think that that's, it's sort of like when it says the burden of riches, it could be the burden of gluttony. It could be, you know, the burden of anything that maybe is in excess where we're sort of committed to that. excess. And I think someone can be really wealthy and it depends on how they view their wealth and what they do with it. And I guess, I don't know, when I said that about poverty, I sort of thought the same thing. I mean, it's learning from that experience and not being a victim of it. So not only things, but...

[29:45]

part. You know, it's a struggle for me to not get submerged by the, maybe by the fatigue. or some type of kind of feeling being submerged, a weight, you know, like a weight.

[31:33]

But the other side of that weight is that it's also enlightenment, you know. When we do work practice during Sashin, but we also, like, work practice is our life in a way. So that's my thing. Yes? There's a theory of economics that there are two ways to get rich. One of them is to work very hard and acquire a lot, and the other is to simply need less. So if you're rich because you need less, can you still get submerged in that? If there are two ways to be rich, one is to make a lot, the other is to simply need very little.

[32:48]

So you're wealthy because you have everything that you need. Can you also become submerged in this richness if you think of this richness? It's a little flippant as a question. Yeah, right. So if you are poor, you have enough. Where's the burden? Yeah, if you're trying to achieve richness for the sake of acquiring and more acquiring, then it really doesn't have to do with having enough. It has to do with acquiring. The acquisition. The grasping. Someone was talking about grasping. Yeah. Well, I think you can be submerged, though, without grasping. I mean, I feel sometimes like I don't want a lot, but you go. I mean, there's just so much stuff. in the world. And there's more all the time. You just go into a store and there's new brands of cereal and things.

[33:49]

And if you want one thing, you don't need very much. But that can feel overwhelming. So to me, that can feel like I'm being submerged. And it's not that I want it, but it's just all there. And it gets in the way of stuff and feeling. I don't know. So I think that's a way of being submerged right now. taking on the burden of it, but feeling it just because it's there, it's the way our society is. How do we handle, well advertising, how do we handle the, all this stuff coming at us to be a consumer? Is that part of what you're saying? No, all the distractions. All the distractions. All the wonderful toys. Well, it seems to me that this decision is really, it's about practicing towards balance and with skillful means. And so it's enumerating the ways that you can, it's possible to fall off.

[34:53]

But, and it's also giving guidance at the same time, it seems to me, like, let one not be submerged by the things of the world. Yeah, yeah, that happens, you know. I mean, you know, for myself, I think newspapers before six o'clock in the morning. And so I'm wondering, well, how did this predator grow? What were they doing in Yemen? There I go. But I think what's really, to me, are some really amazing things in the sutra. over the years that I've chanted it, it's really, you know, there have been certain times when it's been really moving to me. And I like that line, without pride, easily contented and joyous. Because I think it's reminding us like to, you know, to be skillful in our effort and not to be like sort of, what,

[35:57]

to be puritanical or not to force it, but let it happen. Be committed, but don't be harsh with yourself. Let's see. Well, much farther on, there's another line that I really like. But I think right here, it's telling us there's so many ways that you can get stuck. So don't do it. Here's what you can do. Here's the recipe. Come back to this. Don't take upon yourself these burdens. Does anybody else have something you want to say about those two lines, or shall we move on? Let's see. Let one's senses be controlled, let one be wise but not puffed up, and let one not desire great possessions even for one's family.

[37:10]

That sentence really ought to be up there where the riches are, to my mind. Let one's senses be controlled, let one be wise but not puffed up, let one not desire great possessions even for one's family. It strikes me that that's the second time in but a few words that he's mentioned the dangers of pride. Be wise but not puffed up. Yes? But it seems like from the first two lines, and then again the second two lines, and now on the third two lines, that it's almost repeating the first two lines in a sense of identifying ways in which, say, like Alan was saying, you know, beware, be without pride,

[38:13]

and then easily contented and joyous would be much like let one not take upon oneself the burdens of the riches and again let one be wise and not puffed up so it's kind of like continually restating and bringing it forth again in another way each as we live down the Sutta and restating different ways of saying kind of the same thing. It's almost like a rhythm of hearing it again. If you didn't get it this way, get it this way. Getting it deeper. I don't understand what controlling the senses means. Because if you see, you see. If you hear, you hear. Is that something about the reaction not being grounded by reaction to the sense world, perhaps?

[39:26]

Yeah, controlling. That's a good question. What does that mean? Does anybody have some ideas? to the second to the last line, free from sense appetites, desires. Desires. Yeah. That's kind of my take on it too. When senses be controlled, I was thinking about... Well, sexual desires, for example, going out and trolling the streets for satisfaction. Not a very pleasant way to do things, but that's maybe the extreme. Overeating. When I read that, or when you read that, the first thing I thought of was instead of let one's senses be controlled, I noticed that we're controlled, was I realized that

[40:51]

For me, it translated very quickly into contained. There's been several talks lately about containing things. David talked about that Saturday, and then maintaining composure, where the ocean's going like this, but maintaining composure. What I thought about, I hadn't even thought about senses like sight and smell when I read it until someone said something, but I was thinking more about like mind and reactions and let them be contained and kept in proper, I don't know, ratio to the world. Maybe suffering from a bad translation or a translation isn't quite as complete. Yeah. This whole issue of subjectivity, what you bring to things, and of course the translation is out and it says it's all goofy from that, but then we're overlaying our own words or meaning.

[41:58]

I can't remember, because when I read the word control, even though the word control doesn't mean anything, the way I've always interpreted that, the way I read it, is pay attention to your senses. Be awake. You're aware of your sense of feeling. Not so much control, but pay attention to it. So that's like be awake. Yeah, and being awake means you're It's easy to be contented because there's so much there at any given time. You don't have to want anything else because there's lots available. And I was also thinking that, too, it would relate to what we were talking about, feeling submerged at times, too, by sensory overload.

[43:10]

We use that term. And if there's a way of controlling senses and filtering or being aware, but maybe not taking in everything, because there was a lot of distractions there too that might be useful. Well, yeah, like for example, with teenagers and their music. It's hard for me to say because I'm sure my parents did that about us. The control is, leave the room, there can't be too much noise. Walking in the mall, it's a total overload. Being aware of that, I get submerged into it. intentionality that react out through our senses like speaking or maybe speaking is less like

[44:22]

There's a little different way of... different views of that translation, which is interesting. Anybody else have anything else? I guess we're ready for a break, huh? Okay. So it'll take, what, five minutes? Well, if you thought it was a great possession, then fill in the blanks, and it is. Don't desire what you think. Yeah, don't, don't, you know, don't desire, like if you decide you want to get a castle for your niece or something, it would be a great possession to go with that.

[45:50]

Don't put yourself out there. It seems like it sort of fits in with the burden of riches. Right. If it's a burden, it's... If it's great, it's a burden. If it's a burden, it's great. I have a relative, an in-law, who grew up in the Depression, and she... She grew up in a very dysfunctional family, and her mother and father died when she was about 12 years old, when she was raised by her older sisters and brothers. And their house was flooded and wiped out. And so there were periods of time when the only thing they had in the house was maybe some rice for dinner. And that burned a memory in her that, you know, just about everything is great for her. She has plenty today.

[46:53]

And she has, you know, more than enough that she needs. But she doesn't think she does. Sue. I keep thinking of the song, I Can't Get No Satisfaction. That's Mick Jagger though. And I think that it's addressing that, maybe addressing this chronic condition that we live in. And what I find I want things, possessions, and, you know, especially if I'm reading Martha Stewart's magazine in the grocery store.

[48:01]

But, I think a more serious problem is, and maybe the rest of this suit addresses it, is, especially in Berkeley, the dissatisfaction I'm not sure if I can explain this, but the sense of continual judgment that these possessions are destroying the earth, for one thing, but the problem is the mental attitudes, the habits of mind that go along with the judging. And it's occurring to me just now that it may be possible to separate that out. There's all the concern and worry about managing it.

[50:01]

Yeah. What's the burden? Big burden. Yeah. Even, I mean, this country now, we have so much money, and we're trying to protect it. Big burden. We're killing people because we want to protect our... Right, right. Jake? And let one not desire great possessions. Possessions, in this case, being land, power. Or even for one's corporation. One's corporation. Well, this is really tricky stuff, you know. If you go to the Berkeley Bowl, you will see that at certain times of the year there are seven different types of chai.

[51:06]

Yeah. And they're just, they're just there. You may possess them if you wish. Or you can let go of it. So, you know, it's not, I don't think there's a, there's a whole lot of difference between Martha's and the letting go of desire. But there's a point where one's desires can disrupt the peace of others in the world, in the environment. Having a bicycle, I think, is a lot different than having an SUV, in terms of the environment in the world. but just one that has given up desire to eat.

[52:38]

In some ways it's a richness to be able to celebrate the hearts. It's an interesting question because, you know, in the early days, and even today, monks were beggars in India and they took their bow out and they were given stuff and they ate what they were given. And they didn't choose whether it was this chai or that chai, they just took what was given to them. I don't know how do we do that today in the way we live, but that's kind of what... One of the richnesses of life is celebrating what comes in when it's time to come in. In many ways, we're very blessed to have that here in Berkeley, where you can go and do something just because it's given itself to you at that moment.

[53:41]

And that's a richness. time and in a place where there was probably a sufficiency but not a superabundance. And whether or not Recognizing that we actually can't just step outside that society.

[55:06]

You know, you can't even to discern completely this wealth is a privilege. You know, poor people don't do that. we can think about it but we have to be careful because when you do that then it's very easy to be One issue with consumption is that people who consume are providing jobs for people who are making the things that are being consumed.

[56:25]

It's the other side of the coin. Oh, let's not go there. I will immediately go into this whole political thing. Do nothing that is mean, or that the wise would reprove. Now we're getting into the heart of the matter here. Do nothing that is mean, or that the wise would reprove. It's kind of like restating one of the precepts, right? Do no evil. I vow to do no evil. Do nothing that is mean. Let's do the movie chair here.

[57:35]

What is it in that translation? I'm just curious. Let me sort of start a little bit ahead of that. Contented and easily satisfied, unburdened with duties and frugal in their ways, peaceful and calm and wise and skillful, not proud and demanding in nature, let them not do the slightest thing that the wise would later reprove. Let them not do the slightest thing that the wise would later reprove. So that begs the question now, because otherwise...

[58:39]

Well, on Monday mornings, when we chant this thing... On Monday mornings, when we chant this thing, when I come to that line, I always feel a little bit of apprehension and guilt. Like, am I doing something wrong? Always something there. So it's a wake-up call for me. As a matter of fact, this whole medicine is kind of a wake-up call. We read it Monday morning. But that one's a wake-up call. Come on, Richard. Remember, don't do stupid things. Mark. I think they have this idea of complete good of it, or possibly getting rid of all the

[60:21]

But don't you think there are times when you do achieve it? And it's sort of what goes back to what you said about the middle way. I say the middle way is sometimes, you know, sometimes you're extreme on one end, sometimes extreme on the other. That's finding balance. That's part of finding what's right for you. So sometimes It seems like we really are shining in our practice and then sometimes not quite the extreme. But I guess it's all practice. Well, for me, when I hear that or when I read Do Nothing is Meaning of the Wise and Reproof, it's basically sort of a reaffirmation or a recommitment to practice. Not Sazen, but paying attention to how, what my relationship is with other people.

[62:12]

I think that's what the, that's what the wake-up call is for me. That kind of gets in another area, which is, um, how does the Metta Sutta work for me or work for us when we go out into the world? And we'll talk about that in a minute. Matter of fact, we can talk about it right now. Because the next little part here, to my mind, is wonderful. May all beings be happy. May they be joyous and live in safety. All living beings, whether weak or strong, in the high or middle or low realms of existence, small or great, visible or invisible, near or far, born or to be born, may all beings be happy. I first encountered that, actually, first heard it from Bob Paulson, who some of you probably know was a priest here, practiced here. Gave a talk one Saturday morning and he talked about this. It really blew me away. So I went out and wrote it down and memorized it and spent a lot of time.

[63:16]

I'd have a three by five card, I'd pull it and I'd read it and say it. So for me, I guess part of my practice is reciting that little business right there. May all beings be happy, may they be joyous. Because it's kind of a prayer. Mel was saying it's sort of a prayer inside the metta sutta. Or maybe he didn't use the word prayer, but it's something... Something that's... It's not telling us... You know, here it's telling us what we should be doing or whatever. Don't be mean. Don't be puffed up. All that kind of stuff. But now it's just saying, let all beings be happy. You know, sort of like... It's a wish. I'm sorry? A wish. And as a matter of fact, this other translation uses that term, whoosh. Let's see if I can find that. Whooshing, in gladness and in safety, may all beings be at ease, whatever living beings there may be, whether they are weak or strong, omitting none, the great or the mighty, medium, short, or small, the seen and the unseen, those living near and far away, those born and to be born, may all beings be at ease."

[64:30]

So that's a little different. Starts out with a whooshing. Well, to tell you the truth, that's the whole reason I want to talk about the Minnesota, because I love that. I think that's great too, because when I do them, I don't do them all the time, you know, chanting, but when I have it in great pain, when you wish your enemy, yeah, there's this practice in the, I used to wish your enemies that, you know, may, you know, that particular person will be happy, may them safety, and that reconnects me with that person, that I want the same thing, and a lot of the debasi kind of melts.

[65:33]

Let's go on to the next page here. Not that I want to, I don't think we have time to cover this whole thing. In this book, which is where I copied it, there's a whole lot of different exercises that a person can do to help support this love and kindness business. And I copied the whole thing because I said, well, we're not going to be able to cover it all today, but maybe you want to see it and take it home and look at it when you're at home. But I think it kind of fits in with what Miriam is saying. The woman who wrote the book has these four chants, which you can see on the left-hand side. May I be free from danger. May I have mental happiness. May I have physical happiness. May I have ease of well-being. So she suggests here, and I think other people sort of the whole Theropod tradition of handling this thing suggests basically settling down, quieting the mind and then chanting this or mentally going through it either orally, out loud or silently.

[66:52]

So I started doing that. I was driving down the road and started chanting this. And it was really actually quite nice. I really liked it a lot. But to my mind it's almost the same as what we were chanting or what I chanted just a minute ago in the Metta Sutta. So if you go to the next page, Then over on the right hand side, he's sort of talking about loving kindness for all beings. So now she's talking about substituting, may I be free from all danger to may all beings be free from danger, or may my enemy be free from danger, right? This is what Miriam is saying. So this is similar, right, Miriam, to what you're saying? Yeah. So this is part of the practice, I think, from a Theravadan viewpoint. Maybe Alan could say a little bit more about the Theravadan approach to practice versus what we're doing here.

[67:57]

It's a little bit different, I think. Because we're in the Zendo here, right? We're doing Zazen. And when we're doing Zazen, we're not basically chanting or reciting things to ourselves. very much like what we do. I mean, it's often doing phanocybe, mindfulness of breathing, and then, which we do, and then, you know, the possible insight is Their mind is every bit as generous and as all-encompassing as my inner mind.

[69:41]

So I don't make that distinction. It's just such a different way of practicing. So we're not necessarily... I guess what I'm thinking is I'm not necessarily suggesting we do this in the Zen Do, this chanting and whatnot. But other places, other ways. And that's the reason I wanted to basically talk about the sutra, is to sort of bring that out. So let's go back here. May all beings be happy. It really doesn't leave, you know, the various ways of talking about it really don't leave anybody out or anything out. All living beings, whether weak or strong, high, middle, or low realms of existence, small or great, visible or invisible, near or far, born or to be born, may all beings be happy.

[70:42]

That's everything. It's everybody. Okay, does anybody have any... Ross? As I recall, this liturgy was brought to us by Mel some years ago when there was a fair amount of strife here at Zen Center between the board and practice committee and other bodies of people. And we had mediated meetings where there was a lot of polarization between the groups and not really feeling that what we're all practicing together It was sort of factionalized, and it didn't feel like we had the other person, or whatever group of people, that's interesting in mind. That was pretty much self-interest, which is the kind of narrow view of the Indian art of practice, that we're just sort of cultivating our own sort of purity and all that.

[71:45]

And so I remember when we introduced that, it really struck a lot of people like it sounded very puritanical and even changed the mind of the individual. has an effect on us, and somehow other things kind of got taken care of. And that strife that we experienced here some years ago seems to have dissipated. And when it arises again, we can remember that our intention is not only for our own well-being, Well, I like it too.

[73:18]

The idea that we chanted on Monday morning, which is, you know, the work week is about to begin. you know we've talked about with what we're doing looking at how we're bringing our practice outside the gate and how they relate and this part to me relates a lot to what I feel like I'm doing with my work with the kids that I work with because sometimes I think they are seen as small and not so strong and maybe even invisible and I feel the whole word inclusion of what I'm working in, that's what this is about, like what you were saying, nobody's left out. And this means a lot to me that I'm able to chant here with my practice and I feel a great connection within what I'm doing when I'm leaving. So it's both very moving for me and it's a nice, a very nice connection. I've really appreciated having this become part of my practice.

[74:22]

So those of you who don't come Monday mornings can come on Monday mornings and chant with us. Okay, so let's move on. Let no one deceive another nor despise any being in any state. Let none by anger or hatred wish harm to another. This is another wake-up call for me because it's easy for me to despise and be angry at people. The classic one, of course, that we all enjoy is when we're driving and some jerk does something mean to us. And I do.

[75:29]

but none by anger or hatred which harm to another. And I think about what we're doing with retaliation against the Al-Qaeda and the Iraq and those countries, and the sniper that just was perpetrating in Virginia and those places, right? It's real easy to fall into anger and hatred and want to push harm to them. That was a very difficult sentence for me. in war or something like that.

[76:43]

But her idea is more eternal life, not having angry thoughts, not having harmful thoughts. So that ties in with those last two lines you read. In terms of being in safety, it means being safe from harmful actions that are created through our own karma, our own intentionality. Okay. So here's another one. Even as a mother at the risk of her life watches over and protects her only child, so with a boundless mind should one cherish all living things, suffusing love over the entire world, above, below, and all around, without limit. So let one cultivate an infinite goodwill toward the whole world. I have not been a mother, Anyway, watching over and protect her only child, so I am not quite sure how that feels.

[77:52]

I guess I could project that in. But is there someone here who's been a mother who could sort of talk about that for a second? Or not? Or not? You need to be a mother. OK. Tell me more. Well, that's anybody with a child. I mean, it seems like that. I think maybe it's saying we all have that within us. You have a child and you see the whole world as your child. I think being a parent, certainly for me, altered my way of relating to the world.

[78:57]

It doesn't now, because you have this little baby there, and it kind of just completely transforms, and since then it's changed the way I certainly relate to other people, and it's been very powerful. And Lori and I have spoken about it a lot. Where is that line? Are we out of time?

[80:03]

Well, you know, traditionally we chant the refuges when we're finished. And I was just thinking, maybe we should end, we should just re-chant the Metta Sutta again. What do you think?

[80:17]

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