29.3.09

PAIN AND ZAZEN 98662

This morning I sat with ZMH and a sinus headache. Sitting with the sinus headache is better than not sitting with the sinus headache. Sounds odd doesn't it. But when I allow the pain to just be pain it just doesn't feel that bad or it does but I can handle it. However when I try to do anything else(like type this post out, this pain is overwhelming. Ouch.

4 comments:

Lauren said...

Thanks for your practice and this news of possibility.

SlowZen said...

Thanks Lauren. I got out to buy a neti pot. It seems to work wonders!

Lauren said...

BTW I was reading "The Roaring Stream - A New Zen Reader" on the plane today. Its a series of histories of "the patriarchs." Related to Haung-Po (d. 850) was this which reminded me of the "cheeky question" I posed a while back.

A novice notices Huang-po enter the hall of worship and make triple prostrations to the Buddha, whereupon he asked: "If we are to seek nothing from the Buddha,Dharma, or Sangha what does Your Reverence seek by such prostrations?"
"Though I seek nothing from the Buddha," replied Huang-po, "or from the Dharma, or from the Sangha, it is my custom to show respect this way."
"But what purpose does it serve?" insisted the novice, whereupon he suddenly received a slap [from Huang-po]
"Oh" [the novice] exclaimed, "How uncouth you are!"
"What is this?" cried the Master: "Imagine making a distinction between refined and uncouth!" So saying, he administered another slap...

I guess the universe has been trying to understand why we do prostrations, or question them, for 100's of years!

SlowZen said...

Oh, Slap!

Thanks for looking!