Good morning!
Did you see the biggest, closest full moon this year? I also saw the big red sun just rising from the horizon. Earlier I went into my yard and enjoyed abundant birds’ singing and fresh dew – I saw mist hovering over the field on the way. The house owner of the beautiful garden was enjoying her garden and we greeted each other.
When we come here and sit with all the windows and doors opened, the fresh morning air penetrates through our world with birds’ singing, the flowing stream sound and green plant world. When we settle solid and breathe deep, joy comes up in total freedom and full function together with the whole world.
We had the record March with high temperature days, so I sowed seeds already in March. I started enjoying some crop already in April. I hope you are also enjoying your fresh harvest. We enjoyed the ambrosia of sweet, soft strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, etc. after our work, and so forth. This is wonderful!
On the other hand we had hale, tornado, etc. here. We have now over 90 degree days. We have now encountered many problems beginning with ABC (atomic, biological, chemical) pollutions and problems. They are especially dangerous and damaging crucial life dynamics – nerve, immune, and reproductive functions.
Yesterday people in Japan rejoiced and celebrated gathering together the nuclear free world – 54 reactors are at rest, as 80% of people there are against nuclear reactor restart. Some 150,000 evacuees are still from Fukushima nuclear irradiated and inhabitable places and the damaged fuel pool is threatening the whole world.
Mr. Hiroaki Koide of Kyoto University talked to evacuees, et al in New York, was sorry for being unable to advise for their concrete actions on leaving or returning home, future actions to abolish nukes. He knew the governments wanted nuclear plants to produce material for their nuclear bombs before recent revelation of it.
Still some government officials and others hold this in their minds. This has been the truth about “atoms for peace.” I saw a cartoon by Ms. Yuka Nishioka on how people near the accident sites live after some centuries later. This is the truth of our world in the long run. But, people are unable to see far, wide, and deep enough.
Buddhists tell the three worlds or realms of form (rûpa-dhâtu), of formless (arûpa=dhâtu), and of craving (kâma-dhâtu). Craving world or realm is that with our cravings inseparably intertwined with our delusions and disasters. Craving is the direct cause of suffering, without which is sufferless – simple truth!
When we sit in zazen, we come back to our original world, the harmonious realm in nature like white herons in the snow field – becoming just one with the whole world with no craving, delusion, anger, doubt, and pride – hubris. Then, we can live on joy free and full, in harmony and happiness, without worries, fears, fictions.
Yesterday, I watched a NHK program titled Science Zero, featuring black hole. When the stars three times or more massive than the sun collapse, they become black holes. Scientists talked about the event horizon. When we enter the hole, there is no more event. The visible world is less than ten percent of the universe.
Ryokan said, “Eventless is the noble.” This is the way with neither delusions nor disasters. When we sit unconditioned and unfabricating, we become event-free, neither event-full nor event-less. As we recite the Heart Sutra and realize it, there are no eyes, ears, nose, tongue, bodies, and minds, neither old age nor death.
People wanting to restart nuclear power are short-sighted either for monetary or military purposes, not seeing centuries, millennia, or million years. Nuclear bombs and power need the most urgent solution to avoid the nuclear winter and fallout happening any time. There is no safety in nuclear nightmares and human hubris.
If we want to live in truth and peace, we must live within and with nature. To do it, we must sit, stop our karmas and see deep, wide, and long enough with all species and generations, rivers and mountains, the sun and stars. When we come back to nature or event-free state, we can really enjoy truth, beauty, goodness, and holiness.
5/6/12
親友大塚先生の写真を拝借しました。Mr. Ohtsuka’s, my bosom friend’s, picture from Japan.