I have something I'd like to talk to you about today which welcome Brenda I'd like to talk to you about faith and again I don't I feel like I can't really define faith, and yet I can say something about it. Like I can say some possibilities. Some images. Faith could be said to be your ultimate concern of your life. the most important thing in your life for you.

[01:05]

When all is said and done, what's most important to you? For some people the answer to that might be awakening is the most important thing. And not just awakening but the realization of awakening. And what kind of awakening? An awakening that's perfect understanding of reality and great compassion and infinite skillful means to help people those are you could say characteristics of awakening many many abilities to help people many many ways of knowing people knowing living beings and knowing how to help them

[02:36]

knowing what they need, and complete willingness to offer them whatever is appropriate for their welfare and liberation and for their realization of awakening. That could be somebody's most important thing, which could be, again, could be called Buddha. The word Buddha is a past participle of the verb which means to awake so Buddha is sometimes translated into English as awakened or awakened one but for me awakening is not a person but embraces all persons it's what is realized together with all persons, for the sake of all persons, awakening.

[03:44]

And then we have another expression which somebody might have faith in, which is called Buddha Dharma, the teaching of awakening, or the teaching of awakened ones, Buddha Dharma. So please take a moment and think about quickly and quickly again and again, what is the most important thing in life for you? Is it to realize and live great compassion and wisdom and skillful means? And if so, is that... what you might understand as Buddha. Even though Buddha has no particular form, because Buddha is formless, Buddha is ungraspable, still it can manifest forms in response to the needs of beings.

[05:01]

So, I guess for me, that kind of Buddha is most important thing in life for me. And recently I've been struck by a view of some scholars and the view is in a sense that some people in the history of this tradition and some people today see faith as the door they see faith in awakening as the door to awakening they see faith in the teaching of awakening as the door to the practice and realization of what they see as most important once again some people have faith

[06:11]

And that's their door to the Buddha Dharma. But other people, other Buddhist practitioners and scholars, see faith as the core, as the heart, as the center. They see that all of Buddhism is centered, all of Buddha Dharma is centered on faith. And then for me today, I feel that Buddha, and particularly certain manifestations of Buddha, are the door to Buddha Dharma. I see that. But for me also, I want... All of my Dharma study, and I understand that all of Dharma study, is centered on faith in the possibility and reality of perfect awakening.

[07:21]

So for me, again, faith is both the door and the center of what's most important to me. Faith in what's most important to me is the door to what's most important to me and the center of all the things I do to realize what's most important. So for me, faith is more pivotal. It's not just the door. It's not just the center. It's a center that constantly can be entered. And I think of statements made by certain ancestors, like one is let go of body and mind and throw body and mind into the house of Buddha.

[08:39]

now letting go body and mind and throwing it into the house of Buddha. Another one would be another thing is trust everything to inhalation and exhalation and leap into the treasury of light. Once we have leaped into the treasury of light, all kinds of practices can be, can arise in that treasury of light.

[09:55]

Once we have leaped into the house of Buddha, there are unlimited practices which are appropriate to this awakening. And if they're in alignment with this awakening, they are appropriate. But if the practices are not in alignment, then they're not appropriate. And so the faith is like, again, the center. And we test all of our activity in relationship to that center. We can. And this center is something that's in our hearts each of our hearts and can be discovered and it can be um it can be forgotten as you as many of you know for a couple of years now we've been focusing

[11:12]

on the teaching, the Buddha Dharma of the Flower Adornment Scripture. And since August, we've been looking at the teachings about the abode of bodhisattvas, and in particular, ten abodes of bodhisattvas. And the first of the ten abodes is the initial or the initial arousing of the wish to realize Buddhahood, to realize this Buddhahood. So I would think actually that a human being could actually have faith that Buddhahood is possible, that Buddhahood is the most important thing in their life, That could be their faith.

[12:14]

That's what they care about most. And then there's another step, which is the arousing or the arising and arousing of the wish to realize Buddha. So something could be, I guess, most important to us. But another step is that I wish to realize this thing that's most important. And that's the first abode of bodhisattvas. They not only have faith in the Buddha or in Buddha and the Buddha's teaching, they wholeheartedly intend, wish, resolve to realize it. And that wish, that resolve when it first arises, is very tender, like a new sprout, or very fragile, like the flame of a candle.

[13:21]

And this wonderful commitment, this wonderful wish to realize our faith, to realize the faith of Buddha it can be blown out it can be forgotten so the faith needs the faith and the wish to realize what's most important need to be constantly cared for a moment of not caring for it it can be lost however when it's lost We might notice it and be sorry about it and go looking for it again. So today I suggested you could look for it. I've been looking for it today and I looked for it before I met you.

[14:26]

I'm looking for it. What is it? The faith. And I'm looking for the aspiration to realize it. And I'm suggesting to myself and you that this is something I also aspire. Aspiring to awakening is also aspiring to awakening. It's also aspiring to remember the aspiration. Constantly, awakening remembers the aspiration. Moment by moment. And also, awakening is open to anybody who resists trusting Buddha Buddha is open to all those who are resisting Buddha Buddha loves all beings who are resisting the love of Buddha that's what I think that's what I believe

[15:37]

That's the Buddha that I think is most important. The most important Buddha to me is a Buddha who understands that some beings have lost or have not yet found the wholehearted wish to realize Buddhahood in this world of suffering. Moment by moment, constantly changing situations, Some people resist Buddha and Buddha is open to the resistant beings who are suffering. Remembering your faith is what I'm talking about today. Finding your faith is what I'm talking about. Committing to your faith is what I'm talking about.

[16:42]

Looking for your faith is what I'm talking about. And also, being honest is what I'm talking about. Honest that maybe you're not clear about what your faith is. Being honest that you don't know what it is or you forgot it. is a part of finding it again. And once you find it, then I would bring up, are you ready to commit to it, to aspire to it? Faith, faith, faith, faith. Caring for it. Faith in Buddha Dharma. Entering Buddha Dharma by faith. Having entered, care for the faith.

[17:44]

And caring for Buddha. If your faith is Buddha, Caring for Buddha is your faith too. And caring for Buddha means caring for birth and death. It means caring for all beings who are going through birth and death. Because all beings who are in birth and death are the life of Buddha. Birth and death is the life of Buddha. Caring for birth and death is caring for Buddha. We don't try to get rid of suffering beings, because if we do, we get rid of the life of Buddha. We don't get rid of Buddha, we get rid of the life of Buddha. The one who has realized nirvana takes care of samsara.

[19:11]

Well, I wanted to introduce some of these ideas to you. For me, again, faith is not just the center it is also the door and I would say in a sense the door is at the center and so I often have quoted to you the poem by the Sufi poet which is the breeze at dawn has seekers to tell you Rumi says. Don't go back to sleep. The breeze at dawn has secrets to tell you. Don't go back to sleep. You have to say what you really want.

[20:25]

You have to say what's most important to you. After you find it, you have to say it. So Rumi says. The door is round and open. Oh, excuse me. Everybody's walking back and forth at the threshold where the two worlds meet. Everybody's walking back and forth on the threshold where the two worlds meet. The door is round and open. Don't go back to sleep. Playing with this image, I'm sitting at the threshold with all of you.

[21:26]

I'm going back and forth in birth and death with all of you at the threshold where the two worlds meet. What are the two worlds? Buddha and sentient beings. We're at the threshold where the world of Buddha and the world of sentient beings meet. That's where we are together right now, the poet says. To my right, is what's most important, true awakening. To my left is what is cared for by what's most important.

[22:28]

To my left is all suffering beings. To my right, perfect awakening, great compassion, to my left, all suffering beings. I'm at the threshold where they meet. And the door where they meet is round and open. But I don't go over to Buddha, and I don't want to go over to Buddha, and I don't want to go over, personally, I don't want to go through the door over to Buddha. I don't want to go through the door over to sentient beings. I want to sit at the door where they meet. And also, for me, that door where they meet, that threshold, is the center of Buddha's life, which is birth and death.

[23:37]

of sentient beings. So this is my report on my meditation between is faith a door or is it the center? For me, I'm at the center of faith and I'm also at the place where the faith is a door. A door where all beings meet perfect awakening. not favoring one over the other. But most people do believe that there are beings. They trust that there's beings. The question is, do they trust equally that Buddha is what it means to take care of beings? That's the part that I'm bringing up today. So now sitting at the threshold with all of you we can converse.

[25:11]

Sitting at the threshold with everybody we have a chance to communicate at the threshold. Sitting at the center with all of you the center of Buddha Dharma we have the opportunity to communicate. Brian. Hello, good evening. Good evening. Good morning. You're in Germany? Yes, yes. Good evening. Good evening.

[26:12]

Good morning. I don't know how many times I heard that poem. And today I'd like to ask you, what is the threshold? And what are the two worlds? Well, the two worlds could be, as I said, could be Buddha, perfect awakening, and the world of suffering beings who have not yet fully realized awakening. Those are the two worlds. Another two worlds are birth and death. Could be that too. Another two worlds is nirvana and samsara. Another two worlds is you and me. We're sitting at the place where you and me meet. We can use you and me meeting as a ritual to realize Buddha meeting with all suffering beings.

[27:27]

I aspire to that. So the two worlds sound like a perspective from a suffering being? Yeah, right. Two worlds is duality. So from Goddard's perspective there wouldn't be two worlds on threshold. There aren't really two worlds. But if there are, we can sit where they meet and realize that they're not separate and we don't have a preference for one over the other because there's not one over the other. Thank you very much. You're welcome. Thank you for your question and comment.

[28:37]

I can't see you, Reb. Can you see me? Yes, I can see you, Stephen. Okay, I can see you now. I had a dream yesterday morning, and it was a bunch of cows were sitting in a very mucky, standing in a very mucky pasture. And it was dismally raining. Nobody looked like they were having much fun. And every once in a while, a cow would... reach over and take a munch off of a spit of meat. So it was like, that was my impression that, well, this is a cow munching, you know, an hors d'oeuvre of a human, a human being.

[29:51]

It's like, you know, munch some cow, munch some, munch some human. And actually I was, I actually kind of proud of that dream because I thought it, it, you know, in the sense, it was kind of a fairly, you know, it was a step on the way. You know, I'm not a vegetarian. I'm aspiring vegetarian. And, you know, I thought, yeah, that's actually a pretty good realization. And... But it's also funny, you know, it was blackly comic. And... it was, uh, you know, it was Swiftian and, you know, Swift at one point, you know, he, he was the mind of Ireland. And, uh, but now I think he would be, he would be edited, you know, I mean, there, he couldn't emerge. He'd be, um, rotting in the, in a jail cell somewhere because he couldn't, uh, he couldn't speak.

[30:54]

And, uh, uh, So it's interesting because I have this... In my mind, this is a challenge that American Zen Buddhism faces because they can't... They elide and edit and filter so much darkness. And it seems to me that the... The goal of the bodhisattva is to get to the heart of darkness. So I think it's maybe Wilfred. You know, he gets to where Kurtz is. And he says, well, what do you think of my methods? And I think it's Wilfred says, as far as I can see, you have no methods. And that's the heart of darkness.

[31:56]

That's a realization of the heart of darkness. And it's actually the real brilliance of Apocalypse Now is that it's kind of a film about nirvana and enlightenment and in the way. And so it does seem to me that that American Zen Buddhism could start to realize apocalypse now. And it's always here. You know, you can't get away from it. So thank you for your... And so the center is the door. I'm agreeing with you. Obviously, I'm agreeing with you. I think... I like to think the center is the door. And I do... I read a bunch of Zen literature, but I think it's time to... open up the canon again.

[32:58]

Because I think we've turned our back on so many valuable Buddhist works, Avant La Lettre, i.e. Jonathan Swift, etc., etc., etc. Thank you. Yeah, we have been opening up the canon. called Flower Endowment Scripture for a couple of years now, to get encouragement to live at the center of all the darkness with the Buddhas, the enlightened ones who are sitting at the center of darkness. We need some encouragement. Absolutely. Thank you. Hello, great teacher Tenjin Roshi.

[34:06]

Hello, great assembly. I aspire to be a haven, if you will, or a place for suffering beings to rest. I have a confession. I'm sitting with a father who's ill and seemingly very angry and showing me that. And as I sit with him in silence, I feel that within myself, anger arise. frustration, fear.

[35:08]

And yeah, I guess I'm confessing that I lose sight of that aspiration and find a haven in sitting here. with community and conversation and feel deep gratitude for this assembly, which reaches out, right, to all beings in the universe. We're here to sit with you and support you to remember that you wish to be a refuge to all suffering fathers and mothers, and also be a refuge for the one who forgets.

[36:12]

That's your aspiration. And we're sitting here with you to support you, we support that aspiration. And in hearing that, I feel deep gratitude and how do I say, as you speak those words, I feel that support for all beings. It's almost inexplainable or at least I can't articulate It's inconceivable. Yes. It cannot be grasped. Yes. And we can be devoted to it. Yes. Thank you, Great Assembly. Good evening, David.

[37:51]

Thank you for your talk. What kept coming up for me, what came to mind... Yes. Carry on. Thank you for speaking up. Am I still with you? No. You're still with me? You never went away from me. Thank you. What came to mind during your talk is you, when you have previously, I've heard you say, Reb being Reb. and the possibility of David being David. And that question, David being David, what is that, has kind of stuck with me.

[39:04]

It comes to mind often, as it did this evening here. And can you say a few things? or anything of how David being David relates to, let us say, the threshold. Faith comes up for me. Or faith. So one could believe, one could trust and have faith that David being David is something David can work on. And David being David is David sitting at the threshold. And when David is David and David is sitting at the threshold of being David, the two worlds are meeting,

[40:12]

and liberating each other from being stuck in two worlds. The two worlds are meeting and realizing that the two worlds are not separate. But somebody has to do David as David at the threshold. If David's trying to go over to one side or the other, he's not being just David. David being David is being David now, not later, not yesterday, right now, this way. Taking his seat right here. That's where the two women are meeting and mutually living together without separation. Meeting without separation.

[41:16]

But if you're moving a little bit at the threshold, you miss the non-separation and you miss the meeting. But it's hard to sit at David, for you, it's hard to sit at David is David. Because part of what David is, is somebody who could think David has to do something besides being right where he is. David can have such thoughts. Thank you for noticing that. Some other people might say, hey, David, you can't just be David. You've got to be Kurt. And you think, oh, I'm sorry. But you can be that person who's sorry. That's David is David. and that is the worlds completely interpenetrating each other and liberating each other.

[42:22]

That's sentient beings liberating Buddha and Buddha liberating sentient beings. Through the meeting that has no separation, it's through the meeting with no separation that all beings are liberated. You have to do the David as David part to realize that. Thank you. You're welcome. Thank you, Great Assembly. Good morning, Rob. You sort of took care of this in the way that you opened, talking about faith, and it's kind of similar to the last question.

[43:33]

My question is similar to the last question. The word faith, as I use it, excuse me a second, I need a drink. As I use the word faith, it kind of implies faith in something outside of me, faith in Buddha, faith in the Dharma. And when you said faith in awakening, that kind of shakes that up a little bit. But I still have that structure in my mind, the idea that it's faith in something outside. separate. It's faith in something separate. I just wonder if you could help me with that. I also said faith of Buddha.

[44:35]

I said that too. But that's kind of strange. Buddha does have faith, but the Buddha doesn't have faith in something. The Buddha has faith of something. So Buddha has the faith of Buddha. So you can have the faith of Karen. Not faith in Karen, you can have the faith that you have. And whatever faith you have, you can have that faith. You don't have to believe in your faith. And you being the person who has that faith and sitting there with that, that's where Buddha meets sentient beings. So Buddhas are not separate from sentient beings, but sentient beings often think Buddha is separate from them. They also think other sentient beings are separate from them. That's a normal situation.

[45:40]

And the thought of separation is meeting thoughts. Could you say that again? I just lost the sound for a second. The minds of separation, the minds that are dealing with and believing in separation, they are always meeting the mind which does not believe in the existence of separation. Those two minds are constantly meeting, and we live where they meet. And we can sit upright at that place where they meet, and still there's many minds that believe in separation. They're sort of on our left cheek. Our right cheek is the mind that has no belief, that sees through all separations.

[46:46]

They meet, and they meet in us being right here. being non-dualistically here. Yeah, I often have the idea that I should be a different person or I should be somebody else. And you're saying not to do that, but I... I'm not saying not to do that. No, I'm not saying that. Thank you. I'm saying the one who thinks that way, which you told us you do, that person is constantly meeting The Buddha who does not believe in that thought. But the Buddha is not telling you to stop thinking that way. The Buddha is meeting you. And the Buddha has no sense of separation from someone who believes in separation. The Buddha does not believe in separation. But the Buddha loves all beings who believe in separation. And is never apart from them.

[47:47]

There is also this thought that if I really believed, you know, I'm enough the way that I am, that that would just be complacent, that I'd stop making an effort. Yeah, so that's kind of another separation. Yeah. Being who you are is one thing, and then being sincere is separate from that. So if you're being who you are, you're over on the side of complacency, rather than sitting at the center of wholeheartedly being who you are. It's a lot of work to be who you are. If you try it, you realize it's not complacent. And also, it is assailed by criticism of being complacent. When you're sitting where you are, you're not trying to have people not question you. And the people could be your own mind saying, criticizing your practice.

[48:59]

So then you're sitting at this threshold and there's criticisms arising in your mind about the practice. But that's who you are at that moment. And your job is to be the person who has that problem, who has difficulty being criticized. It sounds in a way like sincerity is a key ingredient in this. Karen being Karen is another way to say sincerity. Yeah. Okay. Thank you. You're welcome. Hello, Rib. Thank you for the teaching. When you were talking about faith, and I was trying to reflect on my faith, the thing that came up for me was that I have faith that I don't need faith.

[50:16]

Say again? That I have, like, my faith is that I don't need faith. That I don't need anything other than... what's here right now or what I have right now, that even the aspiring is sort of something like I'm doing or I'm wanting, but it's not so much about what I want, it's what is, and just being with what is. And so that was a little confusing for me. was the idea of jumping into the house of the buddha because i felt like well i'm already in the house of the buddha so if i was jumping i wouldn't really be going anywhere i don't know you know and so i was just wondering you know you're i think if you're already in the house of buddha you don't have to jump anymore oh okay yeah at least you don't have to jump right now yeah but if you leave the house maybe you have to jump back in yeah

[51:25]

Not that you can get away from the house of Buddha, but if you think you got away, jump back in. And then, yeah, all right, I think. Thank you. You're welcome. Thank you. Hello, Brett. Yes. It's Brendan. I don't know how to put up my hand. Well, I'm talking to you. Okay. Okay, great. Great. Thank you for the teaching. I wanted to get your input on this. My experience of faith, of course I was raised Catholic, so faith was always something outside, right? But as I have read a lot, you know, not a lot, a lot, but a bit of Zen Buddhist literature, it definitely talks about faith being very important, really important.

[52:39]

And my experience of faith is that it's almost like a little light goes on where I feel that I'm not separate. And it feels like the edge of my being is no longer my skin. It's just a little bit bigger. And I feel it in my heart. I feel it in my heart, yes, when I'm in that space of faith. And so that's my experience. Are we talking about the same thing? Well, it sounds like you have this experience that you just told us about, and it sounds like that experience is very important for you.

[53:42]

Mm-hmm. Okay. And so in some sense, the fact that that's important to you It seems like that experience is something that you trust. Something you think is really important in your life to have that experience. And you want to take care of... You want to take care of it. And wanting to take care of it in some sense, that's your faith. So it... So wanting to take care of it is... my faith and also appreciating it is your faith you think it seems like you think it's really good so this thing arose in the space where it's appreciated where it seems to be really important to you but the experience itself is not is not uh the experience of importance it's in some sense seems like the experience of non-separation yes

[54:53]

So it seems like you have faith in experiencing non-separation. It's very important. You want that in your life. But you could want something else, too. The faith is sort of like you're oriented towards this important event. this important experience. And, you know, so I'm not trying to make a hard line between the experience and the faith, but I felt like you were receptive to it, you appreciate it, you want to be that way, that seems to be more your faith. Because the experience itself might not have any kind of direction to it. It's just wonderful non-quality.

[55:57]

But faith has a little bit of directional quality. Like, remember how important that was, Brendan? Oh, yeah, right. Did you remember that? Oh, no, I forgot. Well, please remember. The faith is more like somewhat guiding. It's like the door. You look through it. So it's inseparable, in your case, from this experience, because... when this experience happens you appreciate it and you want to live in accord with it you think it's really important that valuing it that wanting to live in accord with it that's more like the faith in that experience somebody else could have another experience that they have faith in or another aspect of Buddha so what you're talking about is kind of like wisdom But there could also be an experience of compassion. And you might think that's really important. It's the thinking, it's the wish, it's the interest in compassion and wisdom of the Buddha that's the faith.

[57:06]

But it's not separate from the wisdom. It's just a little bit directional. It's an orientation. It's what's most important. But non-duality doesn't say anything about most important. Because non-duality is the non-duality of what's most important and what's not important. That's what you really appreciate. The ordinary, below-average Brendan and above-average Brendan are not two. That's what you're really telling me about. The faith is like to keep orienting you towards that non-duality, towards that noda. Because the non-duality doesn't necessarily reproduce itself. But the faith doesn't reproduce itself.

[58:11]

It could just be a great moment of non-duality, but what makes a life that's devoted to that, the faith? That was great. I want to do that again. I want to do that again and again. I want to always do that. That's the faith. But the thing itself that you want to do is not the faith. That's actually the awakening. But the awakening is not separate from the faith. It's centered on us. But it has a little bit of, the faith has a little bit of, I want that. I want that. That's what I want to do in love with this life. The non-duality is kind of like, whether you do it or not, you're not separate from it. Because there's no conditions in non-duality.

[59:20]

Yeah. Thank you. Hello, Reb. Hello, Breck. Hello, Great Assembly. I have this notion of sort of overlapping well, Venn diagram in mathematical terms of faith and belief and values. And, you know, as an example, the precepts for me are, you know, they're very valuable to me as guidance. But as I've recited them over the years and years, they've just become...

[60:26]

part of me and not to say i'm perfect to keeping the precepts by any means but they're no longer something over there that i'm reading or something over there that i'm conceptualizing of and i don't understand if there are distinctions or relations of values and beliefs and faith And I guess you could throw in knowledge and wisdom with that too. Well, if I... I would say that if the precepts, which are none other than me, or I could say the life I have, which is none other than the precepts, that's how I... I feel really good about a life which is the precepts.

[61:27]

I feel so good about that. I feel so good about that that I would say I value that more than anything right now. A life that is the precepts. I value that. And then valuing it is kind of faith. This is most important, is faith. So faith... I would say faith is not just... I wouldn't use faith for all valuable things. I would use faith for the most important thing. So you might value a car that works. Or legs that work. You might value them. but they might not be the most important thing. Having legs that work may not be as important as the precepts being realized.

[62:37]

Because legs may work or they may not work, but the precepts apply to working and non-working legs. And even if your car isn't working, That's not the most important thing to you. You can get another car. But you can't get another reality of the precepts. And you do value the precepts, but perhaps you value the precepts more than almost anything. And you say, yeah. And you might say, no, I think great compassion, I even value more. But then great compassion is the precepts. Right. Another name for them. But a Toyota is not exactly another name for the precepts. So, yeah, value and faith go together in the sense that faith is what's most valuable in your life.

[63:49]

Okay. I was with you right to that point. Say again? I was with you right until that last point. What was the last point? Faith and... Faith is not a transitive verb. It's not an action. It's... Is wanting a verb? Yes. So I would say faith is what you're wanting, or faith is what you want. So if you say faith is what you want, I guess faith is a noun. Yeah, that's true. But faith could also be wanting the precepts to be realized. My strongest wanting

[65:01]

is my faith then my faith is a verb my strongest wanting is my faith or is faith for me but also what I want most is a noun so then now faith is a noun so it can be a noun or a verb and also part of my faith is that faith cannot be grasped and the precepts cannot be grasped and I'm devoted to precepts which I can't grasp and I'm devoted to people who I can't grasp and I'm devoted to wisdom which nothing can grasp and great compassion which is I'm devoted to ungraspable things so again Things may change, but today it seems like maybe your faith is the precepts.

[66:10]

They are what's most important in life to you. That's your faith. And among your wishes, your greatest wish is that they be realized for you and other beings. That's your greatest wish. That's your faith, I would say. and contrasting that with the notion of belief or believing? Let's see. I believe that the precepts being realized, I believe that that would be wonderful for this world. I believe that not killing being realized in my life together with other beings, I believe that would be good. I think that would be good. I believe that would be good. I value that. I value that so much that I believe in it. So I believe in people because I value them, but I don't know what they're going to be in the next moment.

[67:16]

Right. Okay. But I still value people who I don't know what they are, but I still value them. So it seems like belief and valuing contribute. faith or support faith. I don't know if they support them or if they're associated with it. I guess they live together. What you're bringing up is not surprising. Okay. Okay. This is part of studying the ungraspable. Thank you. Hi, Reb. Hi, Justin.

[68:20]

In contemplating faith, and I'm understanding it right now as a response, as a response to suffering, as a response to the variety of ways, whether it's a circumstance or... or anxiety or fear or anger. And it being trusting that, that allowing that to be whatever that suffering is in the moment without trying to change or get rid of it will work in terms of liberating me and, and all beings from the suffering and trusting that the teachers who have, taught this way and taught this practice are there with me, supporting me. Yeah.

[69:24]

Good morning, Tenshin Roshi, Great Assembly. Thank you for this wonderful Dharma teaching. I was reminded of a comment in a private meeting about the importance of faith and elaborating on it today has helped me to understand more of what it means. And I think to me, sometimes it's been this invitation of Buddha, Bodhisattvas, and taking refuge for myself and my suffering, and to facilitate my capacity, however I think it might be limited, for helping other sentient beings to find their awakening. And for example, sometimes as a suffering sentient being, I might chastise myself for stepping outside of Buddha's house in some way, and noticing that it is very important to me to take refuge in Buddha, Dharma, Sangha, and to notice where I have insight into my life as I think of myself from time to time.

[71:35]

and invite all the ancestors to help me with that and to find my way back to Buddha's house. And so I really love this idea, this frame of the faith being at the center where Buddha meets suffering of sentient beings. And Reb, my question revolves around this moment where you mentioned there's a center in your heart, some intuition or feeling. And I wonder if you might elaborate on that as as a key to insight or intuition into faith?

[72:37]

I'm not following what your question is. So if faith is like trying to identify when you're in Buddha's house or out of Buddha's house. Not faith. Uh-huh. That's the mind trying to figure things out. Uh-huh. Faith is the aspiration. Unless by chance, what's most important to you, if what's most important to you is trying to figure out what's going on, if that's what's most important to you, then that's your faith to try to figure things out. But I don't know if that's the most important thing in your life, to figure things out. Perhaps it is. If trying to figure things out is most important, then that's your faith.

[73:47]

If that was the case. Yes. Reb, in... In some teachings about awakening, there's this idea of no attainment. What's the relationship between faith as like an aspiration and no attainment? One could have the aspiration, a very strong aspiration to understand what the teaching of no attainment is one could really want to do that and think that would be very valuable because one might have heard that that's an aspect of awakening is to understand there's nothing to attain so and one could hear about that and say I would like to I really would it's most important for me to understand that hmm

[75:02]

And also, even before I, although I say that, I know that I'm not wishing to attain anything by understanding. I want an understanding of nothing to attain, and I'm not trying to attain that. I just want it. Thank you. I think that helps a lot, because there's some sense of being overwhelmed by the insurmountable task of comprehending all the dharmas if they're like an insurmountable task if you think of it as dualistically it could be overwhelming so i wish to realize non-duality and great assembly or good evening, wherever you are, everybody.

[76:20]

I am just so moved by what you've been teaching, and what each conversation has really touched me. The non-duality of just sitting here feeling those words come in as not just words, the faces of each one of you. What I feel about the faith came to me at one point, what is so important to me is faith is not a noun or a verb, and it's both, and it can be one or the other, but it feels like it's an activity, and that our practice is the activity of being with others

[77:44]

Whatever comes. On the inside, that we say inside or outside. And I remember your teaching, would you say more about what keeps coming up for me often among the many things you have said that help. Relax with whatever comes. There was a season that I was with you when, okay, what does relax mean? How? How do we get in touch with? And that sense of one breath in, one breath out, and being with whatever is there. For me, if it's

[78:46]

hurting body or thoughts coming, how to be with that, how to be with moment by moment with those pains that come up. And what I keep discovering and what keeps drawing me back to sitting, every chance I get, and usually right away in the morning, is there's all this impermanence. When I pay attention to a hurt place, not trying to make it go away or clinging to it as the only thing that's happening, then, oh, it changes.

[79:47]

Paying attention feels like a constant during my days now. Maybe so. It has to be. And the teaching is just hugely with me. Thank you so much. We usually end these meetings at about 11.30. And it's about that time. So thank you all for coming. Thank you, each of you, for coming. I hope you feel encouraged to find your faith and act in accord with it. Do you? Yes. Yes.

[80:48]

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