                       BHAVANA SOCIETY NEWSLETTER 
                               (excerpts)
                                          
                             Vol. 9, No. 2
                            April-June, 1993
                                          
                                          
                     Copyright 1993 Bhavana Society
                                          
                            Bhavana Society
                            Rt. 1 Box 218-3
                          High View, WV 26808
                          Tel: (304) 856-3241
                          Fax: (304) 856-2111
                                          
                                          
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         via DharmaNet by arrangement with the Bhavana Society.
                                          
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                                CONTENTS
  
  
                   "The Middle Path" by Bhante Rahula
                                          
    "Revisiting the land of the Buddha" - Bhante Rahula Talks of His 
                   Pilgrimage to Several Asian Lands
                                          
                             Notes and News
                                          
                                          
                            * * * * * * * *
                                          
                                          
                                          
                                          
                                          
                            THE MIDDLE PATH
                                          
                            by Bhante Rahula
  
  
       The teachings have been described as a raft to carry us across 
  the river of life to the other shore of liberation. We use the 
  teachings and doctrines to help us see the path and make it across. 
  Once we get to the other side we don't have to carry it around with 
  us. We can let it be. We can walk around freely on the firm ground.
       
       These teachings have different elements. They are framed in the 
  Four Noble Truths:  Suffering exists, the cause of suffering is desire 
  and ignorance, there can be an end to suffering, and the path to end 
  suffering. Other aspects of the teachings exist, such as the Law of 
  Karma--if we do negative actions, we will feel painful results. If we 
  cultivate positive qualities, then suffering will diminish and we will 
  realize more lightness, clarity and happiness. And there are the 
  teachings about Impermanence and No-self. The world is impermanent. 
  Attaching to it will bring suffering. There is nobody that can control 
  it. It is empty of substantiality.
       
       All these different ideas, whether you believe them or not, are 
  part of a clever scheme to help us let go of what it is that causes us 
  suffering. So we use it like medicine. It doesn't really matter if 
  it's true or false. In the West everything has to be proven true or it 
  has to be proven false or people won't believe it. Scientists are out 
  to prove everything. So people say prove if karma is real, prove if 
  there's rebirth, prove if there's no self, prove if there's God. 
  People want proof before they believe it.
       
       There's a little story about the poison arrow. A man is shot with 
  a poison arrow and his friends come rushing over to pull out the 
  arrow. But he stops them and says, "Don't pull out that arrow. I want 
  to know the name of the person who shot the arrow and what family he 
  is from and why he shot it and what the arrow is made of". And on and 
  on. That man will probably die before he finds out the answers to 
  these questions.
       
       The same is true with us. We have suffering. Everybody 
  experiences suffering. And there is medicine to relieve this suffering 
  but people won't take it until one proves that everything in the 
  medicine is true.
       
       We use the Dhamma teachings as a medicine to cure our disease. Of 
  course, we believe the teachings are true but that's not the important 
  point-- whether all of it is absolutely true. But by looking at the 
  teachings they all point to one thing--getting us to let go of what 
  we're clinging to, getting us to wake up to what we're doing, helping  
  us to let go of our negative actions that bring us pain.
       
       Consider the Law of Karma--if you do negative actions, you will 
  experience suffering. It scares us into not wanting to do unwholesome 
  things. Or the idea of rebirth--if you live your life in greed, hatred 
  and delusion you will be reborn so many times in many different planes 
  of suffering. It's a scare tactic. But if it makes us stop doing the 
  unwholesome actions, that's good because we will experience the 
  coolness that comes from it. So it doesn't really matter if it's true 
  or not. If it makes us change our life to the better, then it's worth 
  it.
       
       The teachings of the Buddha have also been called the Middle 
  Path, meaning the middle path between the two extremes of whether the 
  world is real or not real. People believe the world is really 
  concrete, that their self is real, existing forever. Or they believe 
  the world is unreal, that it is all an illusion. 
       
       But the Buddha wasn't interested in that. He was interested in 
  how things appeared to be real. To the average person things appear to 
  be real. How and why they seem real was what the Buddha was interested 
  in. Not that things are or aren't real, but how do they appear to be 
  real. When you see how things arise, then you don't believe that 
  they're not real. But when you see that they also pass away and cease, 
  you don't believe that they are real either.
       
       So the Buddhist doctrine is the doctrine down the middle, the 
  conditioned arising. On one hand things do have conventional existence 
  and are real in the relative sense. In the absolute sense, however, 
  things are not real because when one gets insight and experiences 
  emptiness, the world is not the way it seems to be. But again, when we 
  are caught in delusion and really suffering, then the world is real in 
  the relative sense.
       
       There was an English philosopher, Berkely, who would always 
  expound the philosophy that nothing is real, the world is an illusion. 
  He would go on and on about this to everyone that he met. One day he 
  was walking with a friend by the river. Berkely was saying, "Nothing 
  is real. Nothing is real. Everything is an illusion." The friend was 
  getting tired of hearing this. He picked up a big stone and threw it 
  on Berkely's foot. When Berkely started screaming and grabbed his foot 
  the friend said, "Berkely, what are you  doing? The stone isn't real. 
  The pain isn't real." Berkely realized he had been a fool.
       
       So the world is real for one who doesn't have wisdom. How do we 
  use our wisdom to help us get through the world, to live in the world 
  without getting stuck in either of the two extremes?
       
       The Middle Path is a state of mind. It is the mind that is 
  balanced in the middle. It's mindfulness. The mind that's not pushing 
  away pain and not grasping after pleasure, not getting thrown off 
  balance by anything, remaining in the middle, in the present moment. 
  It's not going to the past and not running to the future. It sees the 
  relative side of existence and knows how to  skillfully walk in the 
  conditioned world, the world of impermanence. At the same time it 
  knows when to rest and abide in the unconditioned. So it gets the best 
  of both worlds.
       
       It all hinges on letting go, letting go of concepts. All this 
  dhamma, the precepts, sitting on the cushion, all these retreats - 
  wouldn't be necessary if only we could let go, let go from the 
  grossest to the very subtlest.
       
       In theory it's really very simple but in reality we find it very 
  difficult. One of the practices to help one let go, that is an 
  integral part of the dhamma practice, is the practice of dana or 
  giving. You could say that giving is the whole practice. It means 
  giving up whatever we're clinging to. It starts, maybe, by giving up 
  some of the material things you're attached to. Someone is in need and 
  you give. It helps to loosen up a lot of things too. It's relatively 
  easy to give material things but then there's giving one's time. That 
  goes a little deeper. Then there's the ultimate giving--giving up the 
  self.
       
       Meditation is total giving. You're giving up what you're attached 
  to. You're giving up the sound that's coming to your ears. You're 
  giving up the little itching sensation on your cheek. You're giving up 
  the bubble of anger arising in your mind. You're giving up the "I want 
  this" and "I want that" that continues to arise. Just letting them 
  arise and pass through without wanting to hold on to them. And then it 
  comes down to giving up of the self, even that sense that I am 
  meditating. When that starts to get weak and fade away, let it go, 
  experience Freedom.
       
       There are ways that we can practice this in our daily life. It's 
  not practiced only in meditation. We can practice whenever the 
  opportunity arises. If you do not have time to meditate, you can still 
  practice Dhamma in other ways, in activity. There are the practices of 
  giving, loving kindness, compassion, patience and sila. One can find 
  many ways to develop the mindfulness and wisdom that keeps us balanced 
  in the Middle Path and use that raft to ferry us over the ocean of 
  suffering and confusion.
  
  
  
                            * * * * * * * *
                                          
                                          
  
                   REVISITING THE LAND OF THE BUDDHA
                                          
      Bhante Rahula Talks of His Pilgrimage to Several Asian Lands 
                                          
  
       I'd like to thank all those Dhamma friends who kindly and 
  generously helped in various ways to make the six months journey back 
  to Nepal, India and Sri Lanka possible.  It was seven years ago that I 
  had previously left the Indian subcontinent.  Keeping in step with 
  Anicca there were many changes, some blatantly obvious with others 
  more subtle.  The natural law of growth, change, decay and death wait 
  for no thing that has come to be.
       
       Some of you may remember meeting Saul here at the Bhavana Society 
  a couple of years back.  This trip had initially germinated and taken 
  shape out of his desire to travel to India.  He was already staying in 
  Bangkok for a few months when I arrived there on November 6th; 
  however, he was not at the airport to meet me as planned. A Thai lady 
  had arranged to have me picked up and I stayed at her large house in 
  Bangkok for two days.  As I was waiting in the departure lounge prior 
  to boarding the Royal Nepal Airlines flight to Kathmandu who shows up 
  but Saul.  He tells me that during his sojourn in Thailand, the 
  friendly country, he developed a friendship with one of the fair 
  gender and would not be able to accompany me on our trekking in Nepal 
  and pilgrimage down through India.  As he was relating this the 
  boarding announcement began.  And before it sank in that he was not 
  coming along, this body and mind was gravitating towards the boarding 
  gate.  The mind just let go of thinking about it as the aircraft 
  glided over the spine of the majestic Himalayas into the Kathmandu 
  valley.
       
       At the airport I met up with two of our original four member 
  party:  Raju, an Indian doctor living in North Carolina, and Toni 
  Childs, a friend of Saul's.  The three of us then proceeded to Pokhara 
  to begin the trek up to the Annapurna Sanctuary.  We traversed the 
  "Himalayan highway" through villages perched on steep hillsides and 
  terraced paddy fields plowed by water buffaloes, and across deep river 
  gorges on rickety suspension bridges over churning white water.  At 
  night we stayed in rustic stone/wood lodges conveniently spaced two or 
  three kilometers apart along the way, right up to the end at the 
  Annapurna base camp.  The trail leads right by the base of the picture 
  post card "Fish Tail" and into a basin encircled by about fifteen 
  peaks over 18,000 feet including the peaks of Annapurna at 25,000 
  feet.  The highest elevation reached (physically) at the base camp was 
  13,000 feet.  Needless to say, it was "cold", but this monk made it 
  fine with little more than birkenstocks, wool socks, long underwear 
  under the robes, a good sleeping bag and a lot of awareness on the 
  "fire element".  We took ten days for the round trip.  There are many 
  inspiring places to sit to meditate but if exercising mindfulness, the 
  whole journey can become a reflection of the Dhamma.
       
       From Pokhara, Raju and I headed south on part 2 of our 
  travel-pilgrimage to Bodhgaya.  The way took us to Lumbini, the site 
  of Prince Siddhartha's birth and to Kushinagar, the place where the 
  Blessed One relinquished his mortal bones for the last time.  We 
  stayed in each place two days meditating and reflecting on the meaning 
  of those two important events.  We traveled by local buses and trains.  
  Raju was on a limited time schedule and his pack weighed about fifty 
  pounds, so the preferred mode of spiritual pilgrimage by foot would be 
  put off when I would be on my own "dhutanga".
       
       In the nine years since I was last in Bodhgaya, the site of 
  Siddhartha's complete Awakening, many new temples and structures have 
  been erected in the environs.  Most prominent is the giant replica of 
  the Japanese Kamakura Buddha built of huge sandstone blocks.  Most 
  Asian countries with sizable Buddhist populations have a temple there 
  now.  At the time of our visit a gold-plated railing and canopy were 
  being constructed around the sacred Bodhi Tree, donated by the 
  recently assassinated President of Sri Lanka. There were a couple of 
  armed policemen inside the sacred complex protecting the cache of 
  building supplies, ten feet from the Bo-Tree!  So it was not as 
  congenial a place to sit to allow the mind to expand or be filled with 
  inspiration as I had remembered in previous visits.  It was an 
  opportunity, however, to let go of judgments, comparisons and 
  cultivate patience and compassion and be with "what is."
       
       After five days in Bodhgaya, Raju's vacation time was nearing its 
  end and he had to fly back to North Carolina.  I was now more or less 
  on my own.  A man from Singapore staying at the Maha Bodhi Resthouse 
  invited me to accompany him in a first-class train compartment to 
  Banares and on to Sarnath.  Sarnath or Isipatana is where the Buddha 
  turned the wheel of Dhamma, which is continuing to roll and evidently 
  picking up momentum.
       
       This completed the pilgrimage to the four major holy sites 
  connected with the life and teachings of the Supremely Awakened One.
       
       The day I left Sarnath was the day after the Mosque at Ayodya was 
  demolished and Banares city streets were on curfew.  But some movement 
  was allowed so I managed to make it to the railway station and train 
  that would take this body and mind South--next destination Ajanta 
  Caves.
       
       I never get tired of visiting Ajanta Caves. It is inspiring to 
  reflect and imagine the dedication of the monastics who carved the 26 
  caves into the horseshoe shaped cliff.  I spent two nights during the 
  full moon period sleeping out at the viewpoint atop a promontory and 
  was offered alms by the park service personnel most of whom are 
  Buddhists.  I was pleasantly surprised this trip by how many more 
  Indian Buddhists there are especially in Maharashtra.  There are quite 
  a number of new Theravada oriented temples/shrines/ viharas in the 
  state, some in very out of the way, least expected places.
       
       The route then meandered over to the west coast, with me walking 
  along the coastline and sleeping on the beaches in rock coves.  
  Crossing over towards Madras through Karnataka, I sojourned a few days 
  at Hampi.  Hampi covers a huge area of rock/boulder hills scattered 
  through which are numerous ancient Hindu rock temples--great for 
  passing a night in.  Being a tourist pilgrimage destination, the dirt 
  main street of the small village lined with restaurants and shops made 
  pindapata (alms round) a less time- and mind-consuming routine.  I 
  flew from Madras to Colombo on January 1st.
  
       Sri Lanka was relatively peaceful while I was there.  Mr. Mapa, 
  the Public Trustee, arranged much of my stay in Colombo, including a 
  well attended public lecture and three short talks which were 
  televised on Poya days.  I stayed a couple of weeks at my old haunt, 
  Unawatuna.  Seaside kuti no more exists, compliments of Anicca, but 
  instead a white stupa crowns the hilltop overlooking Unawatuna Bay 
  where I had lived for five years.  As had been prearranged, I led a 
  ten-day retreat at the Nilambe meditation center high in the mountains 
  one hour from Kandy.  It was heartening to see that the interest in 
  serious meditation has increased amongst educated Sri Lankans.
       
       A visit to Forest Hermitage in Kandy brought meetings with Ven. 
  Nyanaponika Mahathera and Bhikkhu Bodhi of the Buddhist Publications 
  Society.  Ven. Nyanaponika is now ninety-two years old and showing it 
  physically, but his mind/memory is still quite clear and he is able to 
  converse albeit haltingly.
       
       The wheel of life moves on and before I knew it three months in 
  Sri Lanka were over.  The mind just let it all go.  Three weeks were 
  spent in Germany leading a retreat, and I landed back in D.C. on April 
  27th.  Bhante G. was there to meet me along with Bhante Uparatana and 
  Upasaka Patrick Hamilton.  Bhante G. departed the next day for his 
  three month teaching tour in Europe.
       
       Ah, the whippoorwills and woodpeckers in the humble woods of West 
  Virginia,
       
       So it is...
  
                                                    Bhante Rahula
  
  
  
                            * * * * * * * *
  
  
                             NOTES AND NEWS
  
  
  Work Retreat
  September 3-6 (Labor Day Weekend)
  
       Calling all Karma Yogis. It's that time of the year again when we 
  need some extra hands to prepare for the fall/winter season. Last year 
  we got a lot of forest cleared up and wood stacked. This year again 
  there is wood to collect, split, and stack in our wood lot. We now 
  have several hungry wood stoves to feed over the winter. There are 
  also other jobs to choose from - gardening, painting, etc. You can 
  bring your family along. Sometimes parents hesitate to come with their 
  children. But they are welcome to this weekend. Our dog and cats love 
  children. During our two daily meditation periods and work periods a 
  parent can take turns child/baby sitting if necessary. There will be 
  morning and evening yoga sessions. You are welcome to arrive and leave 
  any day during the period and to cut short or skip a work period to 
  meditate more or just relax. It's casual. Please call or write if you 
  can join us.
  
  SCHEDULE
    5:30-6:30 meditation
    6:30-7:00 yoga (optional)
    7:00 breakfast
    8:30-11:00 work period
    11:15 lunch
    2:00-5:00 work period
    5:00 tea, fruit, etc.
    5:30-6:30 yoga (optional)
    7:00-8:00 meditation
    8:00-closing Dhamma discussion
  
  Young People's Retreat
       It may be weeks away, but nearly 30 young people and five adult 
  helpers have already signed up for the August 6-8 retreat. We are only 
  taking names for the waiting list.
  
  Our Retreats well attended
       The weekend retreat on May 28-30 was attended by 20 
  retreatants--"a full house". A similar number is expected for the June 
  retreat, so please try to reserve your space at least two weeks in 
  advance. That will also give us enough time to mail you some new 
  information we have been sending to all our retreatants.
  
       If you cannot make it after reserving a space, please let us 
  know; we can allow someone on our waiting list to come. A postcard or 
  phone call is all it takes.
  
  
  Tapes from Bhavana are available once again
  
       We thank Ruth Sperber for the many hours she spent checking 
  dozens of tapes. Due to her efforts we are again able to offer you 
  Bhante Gunaratana and Rahula's dhamma tapes.
  
  
  Guided meditation tape
  
       Have you been putting off starting to meditate. Or did you give 
  up after several attempts because your mind wanders away. The answer 
  may just be Bhante Rahula's new Guided meditation tape  Side A is a 
  (guided) breath and posture awareness meditation --it will help you 
  relax. Side B is a (guided) body awareness meditation. It will help 
  you observe the sensations in the body; it is called contemplation of 
  the body and is the first of the four parts that make up insight 
  meditation. Once you have mastered this first part you can easily 
  progress to "full" insight meditation--contemplation of body, 
  feelings, consciousness, and the mind and mental objects. Bhante 
  Rahula starts both meditations by getting you seated in the correct 
  posture and then taking you through a short breathing exercise. Each 
  side is long enough to get your mind to settle down, so when the tape 
  stops, you can continue to sit if you wish. For details on how to get 
  this very helpful audio tape, check the Bhavana Society Tape 
  Collection elsewhere in this issue.
