I stepped outside into the cool darkness of predawn to listen to the mystical call of a great horned owl. I've not heard him in a while. I saw a fox sauntering down the sidewalk without a care. Quails sing out bob white, bob white, and make regular appearances under the bird feeders. Other birds sing out Shakespeare, Shakespeare. Eggs have hatched on the front porch perch and the parents feed their naked little ones a feast of insects all day long. On the drive home today from the Orthopedist, a red tailed hawk flew right over my car at the moment that these lyrics from Memory (Cats) were being sung:
And soon it will be morning,
Daylight, I must wait for the sunrise,
I must think of a new life
And I mustn't give in
When the dawn comes
Tonight will be a memory too
And a new day will begin
A new day is dawning, and I mustn't cling to the old, the bad, the past is but a book of memories, both good and bad. I think of J, and his healing abilities that are now being explored, his unfolding processes. His energy work leaves me feeling absolutely fantastic. Dare I say I love the guy? Yes, I do say it.
I had my initial visit with an Orthopedist today. Xrays show significant deterioration of one of the discs in the lower part of the cervical spine.
This could be the root cause of the pain now shooting down into the shoulders
and into my arms to the elbows (all rather tolerable, mostly). The deep cortisone injections into both shoulder joints will either ease the pain significantly in about a week, or do nothing at all, which will determine the next course of action, an MRI or not. Pressure from bony structures, herniated discs or misaligned bones can cause nerves to do strange things to the body. Yoga helps a lot. It's an ancient injury.
I taught my second class yesterday as a volunteer sub. Teaching as a novice is difficult and time consuming. I hope others benefit. I have very mixed feelings about all this, and wait for clarity to come (or not).
Yesterday I received the following letter. Following that is a letter she received from a representative of the Dalai Lama. Following that is my letter to her.
"To fellow dharma friends,
Hello. I have been a dharma practitioner for many years. Recently, His Holiness the Dalai Lama, on a Canadian television interview, stated that he completely
rejects the notion of homosexual love
( http://www.cbc.ca/sunday/2007/11/110407_1.html ).
In response to my question about this cultural prejudice, one of His Holiness's representatives (Tsultrim Dorjee) sent me this response below ”essentially comparing the acceptance of homosexuals to the toleration of thieves, liars, and adulterers.. It is a rather sad day when Buddhist leaders and the Tibetan Government in Exile cling to cultural norms and prejudices.
This is a serious concern for all dharma practitioners. What should I do? Am I living in sin because I am a lesbian?
I ask my dharma friends to call on His Holiness to embrace homosexuals as full members of the dharma community. I think it is time for true compassion, not prejudice.
I would like some serious thoughts as to my question though. Thank you.
Tenzin Palmo
--- On Thu, 4/30/09, Tsultrim Dorjee
From: Tsultrim Dorjee
Subject: Acknowledgement
To: jjnyinluv@yahoo.com
Date: Thursday, April 30, 2009, 6:09 AM
Dear Tenzin,
This is to acknowledge receipt of your letter of April 28 regarding homosexuality.
For your information, what His Holiness is actually trying to say is that once you accept a religion or a belief you are naturally obliged to follow certain precepts, norms and rules of that religion or belief. For example in the case of Buddhism, the definition of being a Buddhist is:
1) All produced things are impermanent
2) All contaminated things are suffering
3) All phenomenon are empty and selfless
4) Nirvana is peace
If a person professes to be a Buddhist but does not believe in these things, then technically he is not a Buddhist. Similarly, more relevant to the issue of homosexuality, there is the code of conduct for Buddhists. As a Buddhist one should refrain from engaging in the ten non-virtuous actions. In the practice of the ten non-virtuous actions homosexuality is considered a sexual misconduct. Naturally therefore, if you are a Buddhist it is not considered proper to indulge in homosexuality. On the other hand, if you were not a Buddhist this would not be applicable. For example, if someone is not a Buddhist and does not believe in Karma (law of causality) it would be ridiculous to condemn such a person or to say that his attitude is inappropriate. But if one is a Buddhist the situation will not be the same. In any case, it is important to look at this, as in the case of all other things, from an overall view. There are many such actions that are considered inappropriate for a Buddhist, such as lying, stealing and committing adultery and so on. Many Buddhists commit these acts. They are not condoned or considered appropriate but there is an acceptance that there are people who commit such acts.
I hope it clears you now.
With best wishes,
Yours sincerely,
Tsultrim Dorjee
Assistant
*********
My response to Tensin Palmo's letter:
Dear Tenzin Palmo,
As a gay man and a person who embraces the teachings of Buddhism (and other spiritual precepts) I am initially shocked into disbelief at what Tsultrim Dorjee has to say about homosexuality in the email below and also at what the Dalai Lama himself says about homosexual love in his interview ( http://www.cbc.ca/sunday/2007/11/110407_1.html fast foward to 10 minutes into the interview). But then again, they are both only human and apparently ignorant in regards to this matter. I love the story Jack Kornfield tells of a deeply depressed gay man who found a spiritual teacher who taught him meditation and completely turned his life around. When he learned that his guru viewed homosexuality as "wrong", he fell back into a depression and was deeply conflicted. However, his guru had taught him so many wonderful things, and was such a wonderful person/teacher, that when he was able to look past his teacher's ignorance on this particular matter, and forgive him for this ignorance, and focus on all his good qualities, he was able to come to terms with the matter and resume his relationship with his spiritual teacher. If we believe people are innately good, and that goodness lies at their core, then as humans we must assume they are still journeying towards that goodness, and we must love them as best we can, including all their blemishes and imperfections.
Like Alice Walker, I do not call myself a Buddhist because it is yet another label that attaches oneself to an institutionalized set of rules and a belief system whose evolution often bears little resemblance to the original moment of spiritual enlightment that occurred centuries ago. On the other hand, I believe I have the right to call myself a Buddhist if I believe I am following the teachings of the Buddha.
In my opinion, it is simple nonsense to think you are living in sin and not walking the dharmic path. What does your heart tell you? There you are. Be at peace with this. It is unlikely you or I will be able to change the Dalai Lama's position on this matter any more than aspiring gay priests or nuns will be able to change the Pope's condemnation of homosexual love or certain Cardinals who believe the Holocaust never occurred, despite the truth that is standing right there in front of them.
Ron Hicks
rhicks2@austin.rr.com
