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Zen Page
WELCOME




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A Little About Zen and This Site

Penguin. As you can see from some of these webpages, I love critters. Animals and children get you HIGH. It is their utterly unpretentious nature. Pure "Sincerity" . . . undiluted, unmolested, uncontaminated, unmanipulated SINCERITY. Pure Being. Their utter sincerity ... those are the terms of their endearment. Tabula Rosa, the 'blank slate', before the ego & intellect have begun to occlude the ultimate Subject Matter. Loading Ball Bullet Let's hear it for the chubby Little Rascal on the left and for all the children and critters of the planet who remind us how to simply BE sincere.

ball.ABOUT THIS ZEN SITE: There are many misconceptions about Zen . . . Probably because conceptions tend to be preconceived and their tenacity despite reality, tends to eclipse the 'True' image, once it presents itself. I have often said that Zen is the salt in the ocean of Christianity. All major religions, at their most mystical - spiritual level, evoke the mystery and spirit of Zen. In my view, Christ was a Zen Master, advocating direct, immediate, personal experience and understanding of one's intangible, spiritual Self, while urging abandonment of dogmatism and reliance on 'black letter' doctrines, which stand as nutrient-poor surrogates.

. .ZasScroll. . . . The teachings of Christ and Zen espouse a principle shared by most major religions, namely, that the immediacy of insight, intuition, revelation and feelings provides a more direct and comprehensive vision of reality and one's inner Self, than does Intellect and rationality. Both espouse the view that, reason (intellect), unbridled and uninformed by compassion, is meaningless, aimless and potentially dangerous. The typical western view inverts this premise, holding that compassion, insight, intuition and feelings must be bridled by reason and the intellect. Plato is sometimes credited with the articulation of the inverted western view, although in fact, he actually espoused the Zen view, as illustrated in his "Cave Shadow" allegory ("Plato's Republic"). In trying to ferret out the truth of the matter, one might ask, "In all of human history, What great harm and holocaust has ever been wrought against the masses by COMPASSION when it has been 'let loose' and is off the leash?" Then ask that same question of 'rationality' and intellect. What Frankensteins of harm has unbridled rationality created in human history? The Holocaust? Hitler's Ultimate Solution with his Grand Scientific Scheme for genetic perfection? The Crusades? The Stalin Holocaust? The Lenin Holocaust? The Mao Regime Genocides? The Pol Pot Regime Genocides? Few would try to argue that these horrific social engineering debacles were the product of 'unbridled' COMPASSION. Indeed rationality, unbridled by Compassion, has proven to be a very dangerous thing.

. .ball. . . . Yet the continued prevalence of the inverted western view persists and has led to the atrophy of the spiritual dimension of humanity. This is a global phenomenon. The intellect's obsession and preoccupation with the material side of existence, has left it spiritually destitute.

. .ball. . . . Ironically, many people, especially young people, erroneously believe Zen is about intricate intellectualizations about reality. They seize upon the poignant Zen paradoxes and parables (Koans) and pithy Zen 'one-liner' puzzles, and mistakenly believe that Zen is the practice of cerebral gamesmanship and astute intellectualizations about the elusive intricacies of reality (For example, "What is the sound of one hand clapping?"). Actually, the Zen paradoxes and koans and 'one-liners' are designed to frustrate the intellect, to cause the intellect to 'lock-up' when it reaches the limits of its capacity. They are calculated to force the listener to transcend the intellect, as inadequate to the occasion, upon discovering the futility and inappropriateness of its continued application in areas which lie, inevitably, beyond its grasp and beyond its ken. This common misconception proves to be quite fruitful, in the end, because Zen does tend to attract those rationalists who most need to transcend the rabble of their own intellects and egos.


. .ball. . . . But this introduction is not intended to be a treatise on "What Zen is". No one with a sincere mind would even think of making such an attempt or claim . . . Just as poets, philosophers and song writers, from time immemorial, have spoken 'about' LOVE, without ever attempting to or claiming to define it or bottle it. Although, no one can tell you what it is, you'll know it when you see it. This site was designed to give the visitor an opportunity to experience for themselves the Spirit of Zen. Setting aside all preconceived notions and intellectual baggage, this is the place and now is the time to experience it for yourself.



Calligraphy Circle


. . . ball. . . . The many Zen-Tao Site references listed here, were carefully selected and will be revised and updated on a regular basis. The focus of the effort will be to develop and maintain a rich diversity of expression of the Zen-Buddhist-Taoist spirit . . . from Ikabana to Aikido, from Calligraphy to the Zen Garden, from the Tea Ceremony to Zazen. Zen expresses itself in myriad ways.


. . . BALL. ZEN PAGE TWO SITE: . . . The Zen Two Page - Contains more Zen-related referral sites . . . including IMPORTANT links related to the 'crisis' in Tibet and Myanmar (formerly Burma), where sociopathic government officials fear Buddhism and are determined to turn Buddhist practice into ideological government brainwashing training camps. Myanmar (formerly Burma) is ruled by a ruthless sociopathic military junta. The leader of the opposition National League for Democracy, which won the national elections in a landslide, has been placed under house arrest. This sociopathic regime refuses to allow world relief organizations to help the cyclone victims -- even though the death toll there is much higher than the horrific earthquake death toll in the Sichuan province of China. In Tibet, China insists that the government, NOT the Dalai Lama, shall have total control over Tibetan Buddhist practice and over determining the lineage and the Dalai Lama's successor. Not ALL Buddhist practitioners enjoy the freedom which is essential to Buddhist Practice. Click HERE to go directly to "The Myanmar - Tibet Crises" section.






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The "Begging Buddha" Slide Show:

Shakyamuni Buddha



"THE BEGGING BUDDHA"

      On a trip not long ago, to Chinatown in New York City, I visited a shop with some of the most exceptional Buddhist art pieces I have ever seen. The shop was called "Hua Yang USA Co Ltd" at 81 Mulberry St. in Chinatown (Manhattan). I took about a hundred pictures of these Buddhist art objects, and have culled from them a few of the most moving pictures. I have assembled the "Best of the Best" pictures in this slide show.

      The original pictures were extremely high-quality, having been taken with a very high resolution camera. Although I had to reduce some of the resolution to make them useable on the Internet, this did not noticeably compromise the quality of these pictures. The high resolution is important in trying to capture the magnitude of the central figure, a humongous statue of "The Begging Buddha." This statue was immense, standing nearly seven (7) feet tall. One of the store clerks stood next to this statue so I could provide a sense of scale for one of the pictures. The enormity of this statue, heavy bronze, is truly captured in these pictures. The Begging Buddha had a "presence" and everyone who came into the shop was immediately confronted by it and was profoundly moved by its "presence."

      Several weeks later I returned to the shop to take even more pictures, but "The Begging Buddha" was gone ... it had been sold. The shop just didn't seem the same after that. It was like a gaping hole was left behind, for anyone who had seen that spectacle. It was this profoundly moving experience that I am trying to share and convey in these pictures.


      Left-click on the animated "NEW" icon below, then click the 'PLAY' arrow to start the slide show (PLAY arrow is the largest right-facing arrow within the largest round button in the middle of the Control Panel). Remember you can pause the automatic flow of pictures at any time by clicking on the pause button. Click pause again to resume. Photo descriptions are at bottom beneath the controls. If you should have any problems getting this Slide Show to play, try disabling any "pop-up blockers" you may have running, or hold down the CTRL key when you left-click on the "NEW" icon below. But this should not be necessary. You should have no problems operating the SlideShow.

Enjoy . . .



Sharing
in the
Sanga






New Animated Graphic
The Begging Buddha Slide Show






Center for Traditional Taoist Studies



BALL. ZEN PAGE TWO SITE: . . . The Zen Two Page - Contains more Zen-related referral sites . . . including IMPORTANT links related to the 'crisis' in Tibet and Myanmar (formerly Burma), where sociopathic government officials fear Buddhism and are determined to turn Buddhist practice into ideological government brainwashing training camps. Myanmar (formerly Burma) is ruled by a ruthless sociopathic military junta. The leader of the opposition National League for Democracy, which won the national elections in a landslide, has been placed under house arrest. This sociopathic regime refuses to allow world relief organizations to help the cyclone victims -- even though the death toll there is much higher than the horrific earthquake death toll in the Sichuan province of China. In Tibet, China insists that the government, NOT the Dalai Lama, shall have total control over Tibetan Buddhist practice and over determining the lineage and the Dalai Lama's successor. Not ALL Buddhist practitioners enjoy the freedom which is essential to Buddhist Practice. Click HERE to go directly to "The Myanmar - Tibet Crises" section.










Toukaido.

Zen Referral Sites


Site Submissions Welcome

  1. Urasenke Chanoyu Chada "New York City" Manhattan (Tea Ceremony)
  2. Urasenke Chanoyu Chada "New York City" Manhattan (The Way of Tea) EVENTS
  3. StarChefs.com Article About: Urasenke Chanoyu Center Manhattan
  4. Urasenke Chanoyu Chada Europe
  5. Ramana Maharshi (Sri Bhagavan) Site
  6. Tibetan Buddhism
  7. Insight Meditation of Mid-America
  8. Insight Meditation Society (IMS) - Barre, Mass.
  9. Barre Center for Buddhist Studies - IMS
  10. New York City - Insight Meditation Center (IMS)
  11. Dharma Zen Center - LA
  12. Zen Hospice Center
  13. Zen Mountain Center, Southern California - Soto Zen
  14. Mountains & Rivers Order - Zen Center - Abbot John Daido Loori
  15. San Francisco Zen Center
  16. Tassajara Zen Center
  17. Still Mind Zendo - New York City
  18. New York Zendo Shobo-Ji - Abbot Shimano Eido
  19. Dai Bosatsu Zendo Kongo-Ji- Abbot Shimano Eido
  20. Taoist Sanctuary of San Diego
  21. Center for Traditional Taoist Studies
  22. Zen Teachings - Soto Zen Lineage
  23. List of SOTO ZEN Temples Worldwide
  24. All a Mistake: Poems of Soto Zen Masters
  25. San Francisco Bay Area Soto Zendos Listing
  26. San Francisco Zen Center's online library of Dharma Talks - Streaming Audio
  27. Dharma Net - Zen Buddhist InfoWeb ... Rinzai Zen Temple [Dinkelscherben, Germany] - directed by Dorin Genpo Osho and belongs to the Myoshinji in Kyoto, Japan, one of the main lineages of Rinzai Zen.
  28. Buddhism Links
  29. Rinzai Zen (Lin-chi) Lineage of Joshu Sasaki Roshi
  30. Buddhism in Malasia
  31. Krishnamurti HomePage
  32. Taoist Meditation
  33. Chuang Tzu: a Taoist - Disciple of Lao Tsu
  34. Audio Dharma - Dharma Talks - Streaming Audio
  35. Audio Dharma talks by Buddhist teachers of various traditions (BuddhaNet.com) - Streaming Audio
  36. Mountains & Rivers Order - Zen Center Streaming Radio (Dharma Talks - Live365 WZEN Streaming Radio)
  37. Mountains & Rivers Order - Zen Monastery Streaming Dharma Talks - John Daido Loori, Roshi - and Others - Streaming Radio WZEN
  38. Dharma Communications - Mountains and Rivers Order - Monastery Store - Dharma Talks by Abbott John Daido Loori Roshi
  39. Dharma Communications - Mountains and Rivers Order - Monastery Store - Shobogenzo Dharma Talks by Abbott John Daido Loori Roshi
  40. Dalai Lama's Public Talks - Streaming Video
  41. Dalai Lama - The Four Noble Truths Part 1-4 - Dharma Talks - Streaming Video
  42. Dalai Lama - Official Website
  43. Large Collection of Alan Watts Talks - Streaming Audio & Video
  44. Alan Watts: MP3s and Real Audio files - Streaming Audio
  45. The Lazy Man's Guide To Enlightenment - Thaddeus Golas
  46. Tibet & Myanmar Crisis: Where Freedom of Practice is Denied




Musical Notes . . Buddha JukeBox . . . . . Musical Notes
To Play A Different Beautiful Oriental Melody
Click HERE To Stop Current Music

Then Click Blue "Play" Button HERE
Music Will Re-play   (Loop)




Cyber Zen - Cyber Bones . . . Vast Zen Resource Site

Cyber Zen Resource Site
Cyber Zen - Cyber Bones . . . Vast Zen Resource Site
(Click on Photo)






The Ten Oxherding Pictures

. . . ball. . . . Below are two different versions of the 10 Oxherding Pictures, where Zen tradition attempts to describe, by oxherding metaphors, the stages of "Enlightenment" or the stages of 'awakening' or the stages of 'realizing' the True Self (the ox). In the first version, the Paintings are by YOKOO Tatsuhiko, the Verses by Master K'uo-an, (Kuroya 1801-10, Chichibu-shi, 368-0001 Japan) . The second version is by Kakuan, Transcribed by Nyogen Senzaki and Paul Reps, and Illustrated by Tomikichiro Tokuriki. It appears at the Shambhala Website, and includes additional commentaries by Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche. Be sure to Bookmark this page so you can return to this site when you are done.


10 Oxherding Pictures
The 10 Oxherding Pictures . . . Paintings by YOKOO Tatsuhiko, Verses by Master K'uo-an
(Kuroya 1801-10, Chichibu-shi, 368-0001 Japan)
(Click on Photo)






10 Oxherding Pictures
The 10 Oxherding Pictures . . .
by Kakuan, Transcribed by Nyogen Senzaki and Paul Reps, and
Illustrated by Tomikichiro Tokuriki.
Shambhala Website
Oxherding illustrations, by Tomikichiro Tokuriki,
used with permission of Charles Tuttle & Co., who published them in
Zen Flesh, Zen Bones, by Paul Reps,
with commentaries by Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche
(Click on Photo)





Scroll3.
Second Page of this Website: BALL. The Zen-Tao Page Two





Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi websites


  1. The official Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi website - Home page
  2. Arunachala.org Home
  3. The Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi website - German
  4. Ramana Maharshi Foundation UK
  5. Ramana Maharshi Sentient.org
  6. Ramana Maharshi - A Selection of Stories
  7. Sri Ramana Maharshi - From the biography of H.W.L. Poonja aka Papaji "Nothing Ever Happened" by David Godman
  8. Ramana Maharshi Realization
  9. SAT Ramana
  10. Ramana Maharshi Non-duality
  11. Ramana Maharshi - Sage of Arunachala Hill
  12. Ramana Maharshi Biography
  13. OM NAMO BHAGAVATE SRI RAMANAYA





WEB SITE REFERRALS . . . . . . . .

Buddha Links

More of My Treasured WebSite Favorites


  1. Weatherhill Publications (Zen Mind, Beginners Mind)
  2. Shambhala Press
  3. Vedanta Books
  4. Selected Teachings of Sri Ramana Maharshi . . . by Sri Swami Sivananda
  5. Vedanta Books Sri Ramana Maharshi
  6. PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals)
  7. Dharmacrafts catalog of meditation supplies
  8. Zen Gardens within Zen monasteries
  9. The Crooked Cucumber - an archival site on the life and world of Shunryu Suzuki
  10. San Francisco Zendo (Shunryu Sazuki's Zendo)
  11. Perfection of Wisdom
  12. Sufi Poets Website
  13. Sufism: The Inner or Mystical Dimension of Islam
  14. Sufi Message of Hazrat Inayat Khan
  15. Biography of Sufi Hazrat Inayat Khan
  16. Hazrat Inayat Khan: Wiki Bio
  17. The International Sufi Movement - founded by Hazrat Inayat Khan
  18. Hazrat Inayat Khan Quotes - The Quotations Page
  19. Interesting Eclectic Mystical Resource Listing On a Lawyer's Website
  20. Insight Meditation of Mid-America
  21. Dharma Zen Center - LA
  22. Zen Hospice Center
  23. Zen Center of New York City - Fire Lotus Temple
  24. San Francisco Zen Center
  25. Soto Zen Temples and Centers of the World
  26. Mountains & Rivers Order - Zen Center
  27. Still Mind Zendo - New York City
  28. Cold Mountain Zen Center
  29. Zen Mountain Monastery
  30. Dharma Eye Zen Center
  31. Clear Water Zen Temple Vallejo, CA
  32. Mountain Source Zen Center
  33. LA Zen Center
  34. Great Mountain Zen Center
  35. The Atlanta Soto Zen Center
  36. Japan Zen Temples
  37. Visiting Soto Zen Temples for Foreigner in Japan
  38. Daihonzan Eihei-ji's website
  39. Eiheiji Temple, Japan Photos (Shunryu Sazuki's Roots)
  40. Cyber-Zen Cyber-Bones - Zen Communities Listing
  41. Zen & Dharma Center Listings & Guide
  42. MapQuest (Find Your Way)
  43. The Enchanted Bazaar - Syracuse NY
  44. Anna Maria Island Gulfcoast (Bradenton\Manatee County, Florida U.S.A.)
  45. The Dharmaware Gallery of Sacred Arts - Woodstock NY
  46. Tenant Net (Landlord/Tenant Law)


A Word From the Masters:

Beginner's Mind. ZEN MASTER TO THE YOGI IN SEARCH OF . . . .

"What you are looking for is what is looking."


            . . . Ask the Awakened, by Wie Wu Wie






Ramana Maharshi (Sri Bhagavan) Site







Hazrat Inayat Khan
International Sufi Movement




Avalokitesvara Bodhissattva

Avalokitesvara Bodhissattva

John Daido Loori, Roshi - Dharma Talk
"Your Self Has No Shadow"






Gautama Buddha
Imperturbable Composure


Bodhidh.gif
Dharma Zen Center, LA




Large Scroll2

Eiheiji Temple, Japan Photos
(Shunryu Sazuki's Roots)



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Last Updated on: Tuesday, May 20, 2008 at 12:45 PM EDST