The Shape of Faith

This life is mysterious.

I often marvel at how there is so much more that we don’t know then that we do.

Walk into a forest or a city.

Even if I knew every being in the forest by name.

Will I ever be able to comprehend the relationships between them?

The relationships between the cells in my own body?

Even the mystery of what a tree is, this tree—the sycamore standing

right here, at the entrance to the park.

I can stand in her regal presence.

I can feel together for a moment

the majesty of being rooted—

And then my mind tumbles back into the mystery of being.

Two bodies, appearing in the vastness of space.

What is this wonder?

I have been contemplating faith. More accurately I have been noticing faith. There is a certain unnamed faith we enact as we go on living on a planet spinning and hurling through space. In a sea of inter-relations that we can barely comprehend—cosmic, spiritual, geo-politcal, interspecies, elemental. What is happening here is much more mysterious then what our language allows us to express. What we are can not be named with conventional speech.

What is faith?

What do you have faith in?

I find dharma practice to be an awakening of faith. Radical faith that allows us to peer into our assumptions about who and what we are. That allows us to open to the mystery of being. That allows us to rest in our true nature, the openness that we are.

Who are we if we are not our thoughts about the world?

If we aren’t our memories or feelings about the future?

If we aren’t our theories or deeply held beliefs?

What is experiencing this?

Who are you really?

This weeks dharma talk is an exploration of Case 15 from the Hidden Lamp: The Woman Let’s it Be. During the talk we explore faith, breakthrough koans and the simple and profound practice of “let it be.” On Monday you can join us live for meditation and a dharma talk. We will be exploring Hidden Lamp Case 19: Flowers of the Buddha Hall.

Hope to see you there. Or sometime soon!

I’m Amy Kisei. I am a Zen Buddhist Teacher, Spiritual Counselor, Astrologer and Artist. I offer 1:1 Spiritual Counseling sessions using IFS and Hakomi (somatic mindfulness). I also offer astrology readings. Check out my website to learn more. I currently live in Columbus, OH and am a supporting teacher for the Mud Lotus Sangha.

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