My friend Nina wants to do Zazen tomorrow morning (July 4, 2009). So I will be at Hill Street Center at 10 AM if anyone else wants to join. Actually, I don't run the thing anymore. So I should consult with the folks who do before unilaterally deciding. But I have now spoken. So that's that! If it's just me & Nina, that's fine. But if anyone else feels like a bit of Zazen before their 4th of July picnic or whatever, please feel free to stop in.
I was a bit surprised at the response in the comments section to that article I linked to last time in which the Christian minister trashed Zen. I would never even have considered writing to the guy or even worrying very much what he had to say. I just thought the piece was amusing.
There's no proselytizing in Zen because there's no sense in trying to get anyone to convert to it. There's also no sense in trying to change the minds of the ignorant. You can put the correct information out there and hope for the best. But there's no sense in getting up in anyone's face. It just makes them harden their own position against yours. Ignorant here is the significant word because folks like that minister deliberately ignore what doesn't fit their worldview.
There's a mountain of wrong information out there about Zen, a lot of it from supposedly "respected authorities." You can't really change that. Just enjoy.
