It may be that we study the Buddha way, study the teachings and the practice of the Buddha way like something that's already been given to us, something we already have, something that we should preserve, like putting food in the refrigerator, and then we can take it out of the refrigerator and use it whenever we want to. But it might be closer to the

[01:04]

heart of the Buddha way, to be interested in how to produce the Buddha way from an empty field, from bare ground, from scratch. Or to be interested in how it is produced, how it does arise from the ground of our life together. In the spirit of starting from scratch, starting over, we now start a five-day session. Again,

[02:42]

sesshin is made of two characters, one is setsu, or show, which means to gather or collect or nurture, and many other meanings. And the next meaning, the next word is mind or heart. Sesshin is a word which means to gather, nurture, care for the heart or the mind. And now we start a sesshin, and maybe it would be good for us to be interested in how it is produced. I'd like it to be produced by

[03:54]

each of us, and all of us, to be devoted to every action of body, speech, and thought, being kind, being warm, and respectful. As a basic and ongoing devotion for this week and beyond.

[05:02]

To train at paying attention to the opportunity of kindness in each moment. How is the way that we are with each other manifesting kindness? In some ways, the kitchen of the temple is naturally suited to consider how is the practice

[06:19]

produced? How does the meal arise? Those of us sitting in the hall most of the time, maybe it's natural for us to see that it's a kindness for people to produce food for us, and for the earth to produce food for us, and for the kitchen to prepare the food that the earth and the farm and garden people have produced. And the servers, maybe it's easy for them to have a feeling of kindness to those that they're serving, or maybe not

[07:25]

easy, but anyway, they often do feel that way, that they enjoy serving because they can feel kindness towards the people they serve and the people they're working with on the serving crew. And those of us sitting formally to receive the food and eat the food, do we receive it with a feeling of we are receiving kindness and we kindly, warmly receive the kindness? Do we feel, thank you very much, I have no complaint whatsoever. Whenever we're served food or water, when our water is taken away, when our meal board is cleaned,

[08:35]

from scratch, moment by moment, I hope we can weave the thread of kindness through the text of this session, moment by moment, bring the warm thread of kindness into the moment again and again. I hesitate to call that practice easy, but perhaps during Sashi, it's a little easier than usual, because sometimes when we get moving fast in daily life, and when we're talking a lot, it's hard maybe to do complicated things

[09:47]

and also remember to bring kindness into the flow. We spend much of our time in the sitting position, and again, can I see a way to sit kindly, to feel that sitting upright is a kindness to this body and mind and to the bodies and minds of all of you. Do I wish my sitting to be a kindness to you? Can I wish, do I want to wish my sitting to be a kindness to you?

[10:59]

And do I want my sitting to be a kindness to me? Sometimes I really do want my sitting to be a kindness to you, a kindness for you. And sometimes people say to me that they really appreciate me sitting in the hall with them. And I really appreciate people sitting in the hall with me. I actually sometimes sit in this hall all by myself, once in a while, and

[12:12]

I usually don't sit and think how kind it is to sit here in the hall, but I could think that easily. It's very kind of me to sometimes sit myself down in a seat in this room, even if no one else is in the room. And I could also think, I want this sitting I'm doing all by myself in this big room to be a kindness to all beings. And yet I cannot remember that. I cannot think of that. I can think, that's already so, it's already in the refrigerator, and if anybody wants some kindness, they can just open the refrigerator and have it. But this morning I'm saying, how about seeing that wish for your sitting to be a kindness, to be Buddha's compassion,

[13:25]

how about watching it rise up each moment, a fresh wish for it to be kindness, not a repeat. Once again, I can come into the room without thinking about how I would like my entry into this room and my sitting down together with you to be a kindness to you and me. I don't have to think of that, and it's possible that all of you would think, oh, that was kind, but I'm asking more of myself and more of you.

[14:31]

Because I think, again, that if you follow this schedule, if you enter this room and sit down with everyone, and if you go to the kitchen and prepare the meals, people will feel that you're being kind. Some people will feel you're being kind. And I think, really, they're right, a lot of the time. But could we add to that, that I'm wanting this sitting and working in the kitchen to be a kindness. And also, not just the sitting, but also the listening to the sound of the building moving. And the background of, perhaps, some motor vehicles, and the lights, and the smells, and the feelings of the body, all these senses, too.

[15:45]

I wish my sensing, my hearing, and seeing, and touching, and smelling, and tasting, I wish them to be acts of kindness for me and you. Clearing my throat, I hope it's an act of kindness. Rubbing my chin, I hope it's an act of kindness. Sitting up straight, scratching my nose, I hope it's an act of kindness. I want it to be. I want it to be. For me, a kindness for me, and a kindness for you. And I want to remember to notice that I want that. I want to learn how to remember that.

[16:49]

Which again means, I want to watch the garden where that arises, moment by moment. Not assume that it's installed in me or you. Sitting upright is an act of kindness to this body. Sitting upright in a position that does not stress the incision in my hara, that allows it to continue to heal.

[18:00]

Shortly after the operation, I didn't know if I could sit, so I didn't. And I didn't give it a try to see if it would be all right. But little by little, I extended the variety of movements. And if I didn't get the feedback of pain, I thought, okay. So now I'm sitting cross-legged, but not in half-lotus or full-lotus yet. But I will probably, hopefully in a kind way, explore whether those postures feel kind to this body in its healing mode. Does it stress the incision? Does it stress the soreness around the incision? Or is it allowed?

[19:14]

Is it kind to me and you? Is it kind to sit still? Is it kind to move? Is it kind to rise up from our seats when the bell rings for service or walking meditation? Do you want your sitting down, do I want my sitting down and rising up to be kind? Do I want this feeling of the breath in my nose to be kindness? Extend this awareness as far as you want.

[20:19]

But I actually, hopefully, kindly ask you to consider extending this wish to be kind everywhere. Into all actions and in all directions. Do you want to feel warm towards every person in this room? If you can't feel warm towards every person in the room, do you want to learn to feel warm and kind towards every person in this room? Do you want to appreciate every person in this session? And if you can't, do you want to learn to?

[21:23]

If you experience pain, I would like you to be kind to the person who is experiencing the pain or even be kind to the experience of the pain. Be kind to the feeling of pain itself. Be warm and appreciative of the feeling of pain. Appreciative of pain, warm towards pain. I'd like you to, I'd like myself to be warm and appreciative to pain. Again, healing from this operation, I have tried to be warm and appreciative towards the pain which guides me,

[23:01]

tells me what I probably can and cannot do. Without my little friend, I might have tried some things that don't seem that amazing or athletic, but might have hurt, might have done some damage, like just sitting up. If I was lying down to sit up, it might have hurt me. But my friend pain said, think again boy. And I said, okay, how about this way? No, I don't think so. How about this way? Same message. How about this way? No comment? Maybe it's all right. So I'm requesting you, respectfully, to be kind to the message of pain.

[24:22]

Listen to it, see what it might mean. And I experience some pains, for example, I might experience a pain in my sitting area, which I have lots of experience with, and I sometimes say, hello, and kindly relate to that pain, and that's all I have to do. Don't necessarily have to move. But there's certain special varieties of pain in that area. I say, hopefully, hello, thanks for the tip, it's time to move. I can tell the difference between skin heat and sciatic cries. I've learned by trial and error which pains a kind response is just to listen and be still, and which pains is to listen and adjust the posture.

[25:28]

But in either case, whether I do anything other than continue to sit or not, hopefully there's respect for the call, for the message. What is the kind response to this pain? And I would like to be kind to this pain. I don't want to be disrespectful of the pain. Always listen to it. I want to always listen to it. And then there's a wide variety of possible kindnesses and a wide variety of possible cruelties. I don't want to be cruel in response to pain, towards my own pain or other people's pain. Therefore, part of kindness is practicing patience.

[26:38]

And patience doesn't just mean that you listen to the pain, or maybe I would say patience does mean you listen to the pain, but not just that. It means you listen very deeply, and you try again to hear the pain always freshly. You try to, in the present moment of the pain, practice kindness with it. What's the new, fresh pain right now that I can practice patience with? It's actually not so much to practice patience with old pains. They don't need any attention, really. Or rather, the kind of attention the old pains benefit from is attention to the new pain.

[27:47]

This is a principle of kindness. Old pains will be helped by being kind to the fresh pain. That's the way to help the past pain. Not by directly looking at it. That's a distraction from your baby pain, your fresh pain that needs your attention. And caring for the fresh pain cares for the past pain, but caring for past pain overlooks present pain. This is part of my understanding of the kindness in the form of patience. And there's also kindness in the form of diligence.

[28:51]

To diligently practice kindness, to find a way to be joyful about practicing kindness. Without being joyful about practicing kindness, it might be hard to practice kindness. And diligence is... fuel kindness and is kindness. Patience is kindness. Being kind to the other people in the Sashin includes being patient with the way you feel with them.

[29:59]

Maybe if they don't come to a period of meditation for some reason, you feel uncomfortable. Maybe if they move, you feel uncomfortable. About them. Maybe their moving is somewhat displeasing. Maybe they sit still and their stillness is displeasing. Some people might feel pressured by sitting between two people who don't move at all and feel uncomfortable because they're in pain and they think maybe it would be kind to move a little bit, but they aren't moving, so it's hard for me to move, and they're making it hard for me to move, and I find them irritating because they make it harder for me to see what kindness would be with this pain.

[31:09]

And... practice with patience with my pain, practice with my patience with my pain about other people. Or even other people may look like they're having pain with me, and then that's uncomfortable for me and them, and now I can practice patience with their pain with me and my pain with them being pained by me. Lots of pain available, lots of opportunities for patience. I'm so happy. I can really work on patience this week. Wow, this is great. And practicing patience is kind to me and others.

[32:10]

People quite often thank me for my patience. Sometimes even when they thank me for my patience, I feel kind of good about that, but I wish they would thank me for something else, like, thanks for your wisdom. Thanks for your enlightenment. Just patience, is that all? But sometimes when people say that, thanks for your patience, I think, yeah, right, yes, I have been practicing it with you. It has been difficult. But it's good, isn't it? Really, it's great. It may, excuse me for, this may sound like bragging, but some people call me Tali. Do you know what that's short for? Tolerant.

[33:19]

And sometimes they call me Tali right when they're doing something which they're enjoying and I'm being tolerant of. And I actually like it. Since they like it and it's painful for me, but not harmful, I kind of, yeah, it's great to be tolerant. It's easy to lash out, but being tolerant, yeah, it's cool. And it's kind. And it's necessary. For what? Well, for kindness. But what else? What is that kindness in the form of patience necessary for? Anybody? Yes? What? Nonviolence? Yes, what else?

[34:23]

Realization of the way? Living with human beings? Fearlessness? Happiness? Teaching? Yeah, one of the main characteristics of a teacher is, or a good teacher, a Bodhisattva teacher, is patience with the slowness of the student's learning. But another one which may be surprising, which is surprising to me, is patience is necessary for wisdom. It's one of the names for, in a sense, the eighth stage of the Bodhisattva I told you about the other day, where the alaya is flipped around and no longer a problem. In the eighth stage the Bodhisattva achieves this very, very deep wisdom, which is the wisdom, excuse me, very, very deep wisdom,

[35:29]

but the wisdom is based on a very, very profound patience, which is the patience, the patient endurance of nothing happening, of nothing arising. This is very difficult to tolerate. Among all the painful things that happen, none of them are as difficult to tolerate as nothing painful or un-painful even arising. That's really hard. And you work up to that by tolerating pain and pleasure and neutral sensation. In a way I feel like it would be kind for me to stop talking now. So, maybe I should go with that feeling that that would be kind, because I've said quite a bit already. I think I've got enough today.

[36:47]

May I reiterate what I want? I want us to be kind in each moment. Let each moment be a moment of kindness, a moment of generosity, a moment in which we practice giving in our sitting, our walking, in our cooking, in our bowing. in our chanting, in our eating, in our tooth brushing, in our face washing. In every action, moment by moment, practice giving. Have the activity be an act of generosity to yourself and to others. In each moment, whatever activity of body and mind that's arising,

[38:04]

may it be practicing the precepts. May it be an activity in which we are returning to Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha. In each moment, may whatever activity is arising be patience. Be suffused with patience. In each moment, whatever is arising, whatever experience is arising, whatever activity is arising, may it be diligence. May it be diligence, may it be expressing diligence. And, in each moment,

[39:08]

may it express, whatever activity it is, may it express tranquility. May our sitting, may we sit upright wholeheartedly. Letting go of everything. Free of expectation of anything. May we sit this way in a tranquil, relaxed way. May we stand and walk in a tranquil, relaxed way. As an expression of kindness. May we work in a kitchen. May all of our activities express kindness in the form of

[40:11]

training in tranquility. You may notice that I haven't mentioned wisdom, because I feel that this ground of kindness and compassion in these five dimensions of giving, precepts, patience, diligence, and tranquility, that these are the ground upon which wisdom will also arise, but it's a little bit different type of practice. So I don't bring it up, even though I don't mean to separate it. Of course, I also wish

[41:13]

and want all activities to be wisdom. May we warmly, kindly, be upright, wholeheartedly, present, free of any expectation of gain or loss. May this be really kind to us, to ourselves and to others. And may we wish others

[42:22]

to join the practice of kindness whenever they're able and wishing to. I actually want this teaching, I want to receive this teaching that has come out of my mouth, or actually not the teaching that has come out of my mouth, but what these words are referring to. I want to receive this teaching and receive this practice and care for it and receive it again and care for it and receive it again and care for it. I don't so much want to have it in the refrigerator and take out when I need it,

[43:23]

I more want to receive it in each moment and care for it. And I would like you to receive the practice of kindness in each moment and care for it. If you have received this teaching, if you have received this practice, if you have received the desire to practice kindness in all these ways, if you have received the desire to practice kindness in all ways through all your actions, then I would just add, please continue. Okay. May our intention be to thank

[44:25]

every being and place in the way that you may love the others in ways and beings are kinder to us. May I vow to take them to be kinder to us. May I vow to take them to be kinder to us. May I vow to take them to be kinder to us. May I vow to take

[45:13]

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