Один раз в день я ел листья дикого картофеля, который посадил сам. Я жил в хижине, при которой был двор. Сзади были стены, но фасад выходил на утёс. Хотя я все время был во дворе, у меня никогда не было ощущения закрытости.

Шен Янь. Автобиография Мастера Шен Яня

Zen Today 001. The First Practice of Bodhidharma

2018.06.25

 

Feedback from the participants:

  1. I liked it.
  2. I liked it very much. (…For example, as you reminded about the Six Paramitas, about simultaneous calmness and seeing, etc…) By the way, thank you for your web site (https://zen-do.ru/), where I read all Sheng Yen's texts during several years.
  3. I like that you explain how exactly to meditate (not like: «Just sit»), and your explanations are very practical.
  4. For me, it's hard to understand lectures, in general. On my level, I don't get many things clearly; so usually there is some mess in my head. I like your lecture better though than in the three other Dharma Centers I visited before. Also I liked the exercises. In the discussion, I would speak too, but I had not much [clear points] to hold to. You might explain terms one by one, for example: «Compassion in the first sense is… In the second sense… and so on». Also I liked that sometimes I felt in my body that you know what you explain from personal experience.
  5. It was interesting.
  6. I think you didn't answer a part of Ivan's question… (Ivan: «But I think that I got the answer»). [After additional discussion, the answer was expanded and accepted].
  7. Not so bad. Maybe you should give more of basic instructions on how to do this and that.

From the guide:

To conclude: the meeting went pretty engaging. Practitioners made good efforts in exercises and were attentive during the talk. I hope that many points could be absorbed and used in daily life.

Next time, according to the feedback, we will:

  • pay more attention to explanations of details of meditation,
  • clearly explain basic notions,
  • concentrate on how to apply Buddhist ideas in practice.