Comments on Raising Thought - The Baltimore Zen Center: It's All in Your Head, Part One

with brush, ink, paper / we drew lines and circles...

2010-01-21T00:51:07.729-05:00

with brush, ink, paper / we drew lines and circles / each seeking perfection / and each so perfect / in its perfection seeking

I want a funny hat.

2010-01-14T15:04:06.301-05:00

I want a funny hat.

I agree with Shaun that enlightenment should be at...

2010-01-14T12:51:29.918-05:00

I agree with Shaun that enlightenment should be attainable without the ritual. Anyone who says, "this is the way you have to do it, and if you don't, you're wrong/it won't work," only limits their own experiences. Ritual is an experience that helps to teach the history and beliefs of a religion; it provides a starting point for those who need it. Additionally, many (most) individuals do not begin their practice with the perseverance they require to move forward. Practicing rituals allows them to explore and grow at whatever pace they need, adding depth to their experience as they are ready.

Maybe it's not what they need, though. Maybe it's just what they want to make themselves more comfortable.

Ritual or no ritual. There are many roads but only...

2010-01-14T12:37:55.221-05:00

Ritual or no ritual. There are many roads but only one Way.

Well, I would think that the enlightenment is just...

2010-01-14T11:14:25.708-05:00

Well, I would think that the enlightenment is just as easily attainable without the ritual. However, it is ritual and community that, I believe, allows one to feel harmonic with the company of their fellow people.

Allowing a monotone chant (or music) to enter your mind and propel the soul is the most spiritual event (or non-event) that I experience in life. Now, that may stand to reason that if I am not playing my drums, is that an absence of the musician OR the absence of the music itself?

Sometimes the best way to look at the situation is upside down.

- Shaun