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    September 04

    Suchness

    From the verses on bodhisattvas' visit to the Pure Land
    Such people, having heard the Buddha's Name,
    Will attain peace of heart and gain great benefit;
    We ourselves will share in this virtue,
    And take up the seats of blessedness in this land
    .
    The Infinitely Enlightened One gives us the prediction of our Enlightenment:
    "I made the Primal Vow in a former life,
    Promising that all who hear my preaching of the Dharma
    Would unfailingly come to be born in my land.

    All the vows that I made will be fulfilled;
    Those who wish to come here from various lands
    Will all reach my land and
    Attain the Stage of Non-retrogression after one lifetime.
    "
    Quickly transcend this world and
    Reach the Land of Peace and Bliss.
    After reaching the Land of Infinite Light,
    One can make offerings to innumerable Buddhas
    .
    Those who lack the merit
    Are unable to hear even the name of this sutra;
    Only those who have strictly observed the precepts
    Can now hear the teaching of this Dharma
    .
    Evil, arrogant, corrupt and indolent people
    Cannot readily accept this teaching.
    But those who have met Buddhas in their past lives
    Rejoice to hear the teaching of the World-Honored One.

    To obtain human life is extremely difficult;
    Even if a Buddha dwells in the world, it is difficult to meet him;
    It is hard to attain wisdom of faith;
    Once you have heard the Dharma, strive to reach its heart
    .
    If you have heard the Dharma and do not forget it
    But adore and revere it with great joy,
    You are my good friend. For this reason,
    You should awaken aspiration for Enlightenment.
    Even if the whole world is on fire,
    Be sure to pass through it to hear the Dharma;
    Then you will surely become a World-Honored One
    And everywhere deliver beings from birth, old age and death
    .

    Truth in advertising?

    SACREDNESS IN ART

    A good work of art always reflects a notion of sacredness within
    it....A work of art is created because there is basic sacredness,
    independent of the artist's particular religious faith or trust. That
    sacredness is the aspect of heaven, which creates an umbrella, so to
    speak, that becomes very powerful and very real. At that point, human
    dignity is more important than the particular religion or discipline
    a person came from. That sounds great, don't you think? Sacredness
    from that point of view is the discovery of goodness, which is
    independent of personal, social, or physical restrictions.

    From "Heaven, Earth and Man" in DHARMA ART, page 142 in Volume Seven
    of THE COLLECTED WORKS OF CHOGYAM TRUNGPA.

    OF INTEREST TO READERS: A new edition of DHARMA ART, containing
    additional material and a new introduction and preface, will be
    published by Shambhala Publications in November 2008. The book will
    appear under a new title: TRUE PERCEPTION: THE PATH OF DHARMA ART. To
    preorder your copy at a 20% discount, go to:
    http://www.shambhala.com/html/catalog/items/isbn/978-1-59030-588-1.cfm

    All material by Chogyam Trungpa is copyright Diana J. Mukpo and used
    by permission.
    September 02

    Seasons change!

    THE POWER OF AN AUTUMN LEAF

    In working with the setting sun or confused world, the attitude of
    the warrior is like an autumn leaf floating down a river. It doesn't
    change its color, and it doesn't struggle with the river. It goes
    along with it. This has a natural effect, because the brook or the
    river has never carried such an autumn leaf before. The setting sun
    world will be uncertain what to do with this leaf. So by simply being
    there, you make people think twice, automatically.
    It puts people on the spot when you don't react to them. You
    don't fight back when they attack you, but you just remain as an
    autumn leaf, whatever they do. This is the gentle way of working. If
    there are hundreds of thousands of autumn leaves coming down a small
    brook, then the appearance of the brook will be changed by them
    altogether. The joke is on the setting sun people, and they have to
    think twice. They might smile and pretend to laugh, but really they
    will be crying, weeping. So you see, an autumn leaf has a great deal
    of power over the world of the setting sun. Such little leaves could
    stop the flow of water altogether. If there are enough powerful
    autumn leaves, that is possible. It has been done in the past.

    From CONQUERING FEAR: THE HEART OF WARRIORSHIP, forthcoming from
    Shambhala Publications in 2009.

    All material by Chogyam Trungpa is copyright Diana J. Mukpo and used
    by permission.