News
1. If you are interested in participating in the translation of the Tripitaka from Chinese into English, please check out http://www.bicttn.com/bcttn-english/index2.htm. As this is a collaborative effort, people with different talents are needed.
2. We have added a few new links to other student groups (check out "Other sites" on the top navigation bar of our homepage). We hope to maintain a directory of indexed student sites in the near future. If you know of a student site that is not listed here, please let us know by e-mailing buddhism@ic.sunysb.edu

Meeting
303 Student Activities Center
Thursday, 4/18/02, 7:00pm to 8:30pm
Please be on time!

Words from the Suttas/Sutras
"We are what we think.
All that we are arises with our thoughts.
With our thoughts we make the world.
Speak or act with an impure mind
And trouble will follow you
As the wheel follows the ox that draws the cart.

We are what we think.
All that we are arises with our thoughts.
With our thoughts we make the world.
Speak or act with a pure mind
And happiness will follow you
As your shadow, unshakable."
--Dhammapada, translated by Thomas Byrom
 

Quote of the Week
"The goal of practice is always to keep our beginner's mind. Suppose you recite the Prajna Paramita Sutra only once. It might be a very good recitation. But what would happen to you if you recited it twice, three times, four times, or more? You might easily lose your original attitude towards it. The same thing will happen in your other Zen practices. For a while you will keep your beginner's mind, but if you continue to practice one, two, three years or more, although you may improve some, you are liable to lose the limitless meaning of original mind."--Shunryu Suzuki Roshi
 

Book Review:  Faith in Mind by Master Sheng-yen
by D. K.

(A free copy of Faith in Mind is available at http://www.woodbanksurgery.pair.com/wcf/faithinmind.html)

Do we have complete confidence and faith in our mind at all times?  Do we know what real faith means?  What is mind?  This faith in mind doesn't refer to either an assertion of our opinions and beliefs or a dogmatic attachment to our thoughts.  Faith refers to the trust in the true-nature of our mind -- our Buddha mind -- the mind of clarity and spaciousness, the mind of wisdom and compassion. This mind is without ideas, opinions, and beliefs; it is without marks or signs, without duality. This mind is without distinction between self and other, right and wrong, good and bad, like and dislike. Yet it is not a dull mind, nor a blank mind, nor a dead mind, not a mind forever without thoughts. However, removed from attachment and obsessive thinking, this mind functions spontaneously and freely, responding to the needs of others.

Though we shouldn't rely on my words.  I shouldn't speak so freely of this mind that I don't fully understand.  I am only quoting others. We can instead turn to the great teacher, Master Sheng-yen, who elaborates fully on the practice of realizing our Buddha-mind, a mind free of vexation. In Faith in Mind, full attention is given to the details of meditation practice, based upon the teachings of Chan Buddhism, as presented in a poem attributed to the Third Chan Patriarch, Seng Can.  Transcribed from a series of his lectures given on intensive seven-day retreats, this book presents an intimate explanation of how to realize the mind through Chan practice.

Seven-day retreats can be grueling and demanding.  The practice of constant meditation in sitting, walking, working, and more sitting can produce certain unusual experiences, as our bodies and minds go through the rigors of discipline and self-discovery.  Different mental phenomena may occur, as results of concentration, or lack thereof, and different physical phenomena may occur as well, due to the circumstances of the environment and our mental states.  Depending on our use of the mind, depending on our grasp of the meditation method, and depending on our countless vexations and karmic consequences, we may experience beneficial or harmful results.  We may be confused as to all of these experiences.  The guidance of the master is therefore essential.

Master Sheng-yen, in his lectures, provides wonderful insights, tailored to suit the needs of the assembly of practitioners who were having various experiences and numerous obstacles that result from intensive meditation.  Unique to this book, are the subtle directions that provide the right medicine to cure the illnesses that result from incorrect ideas about the Dharma and incorrect applications of the method of meditation.  On our journey, we may go astray and encounter various obstacles.  We may think that our understanding is right, nevertheless, we may be only further confusing ourselves and adding more trouble to our situation.  The mind has '84,000 illnesses' and subsequently '84,000' doors to enlightenment, innumerable cures. Faith in Mind may contain the right guidance to clear up doubts that we may have, allowing us to steer clear of wandering thoughts and harmful ideas and gain a clearer insight into our mind.  If we practice intensively on retreat, or at home, we can benefit from these discourses.  If we are beginning meditation, we can be joyful to have such clear instruction on how to embark in the discipline of meditation.

The wonderful lessons herein, blossoming from the explanation of the poem of Seng Can, shed light on the subtle details of meditation practice, and directly apply to the use of the mind in daily life. With wisdom and humor, Master Sheng-yen illustrates the meaning behind the old and cryptic writings of the Third Patriarch. He translates the ancient words into a language suitable to modern day people, who earnestly  search for the Dharma within their own mind, striving hard in realizing what the Buddha teaches.

We may think that we know our mind, we may think that we are accomplished meditators with minds like the great empty sky, but unless we are buddhas, we always have vexations to remove and insight to reveal.  And along with our work inwardly, there is always work to do amidst the world, helping others to understand their suffering.

Faith in Mind may humble ourselves and spark a growing trust in the nature of our mind, that brings peace and liberation to all sentient beings.

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