June 2014, Issue 55

Editorial

Welcome to the Winter edition of Myoju.

In what is our third Practice Period, the theme is particularly relevant – ‘Reorienting oneself to Practice’. What does ‘reorienting’ mean? Let’s take a look at what some of our contributions say: In his Dharma talk, Ekai Osho reminds us that practice is not about attendance, but about being ‘right side up’ through harmonising the body, harmonising the breath, and harmonising the mind consciousness.

In the Shuso talk on Right Attitude, Julie Martindale discusses how the words in our regular chants help us strengthen our intentions and actions.

In the feature article, George Duckett writes about the closure of the Castlemaine Zen Group—a very personal account that she has kindly shared—where she relates how, after years of practice, she ‘pondered the effort expended and wondered to what end?’ In Sangha News, Karen Threlfall reflects that we may hold all things (in our hearts and minds) and take care of—with two hands.

Annie Bolitho finds something to laugh at during a photo shoot and Anthony Wright experiences the joy (and possibly, sleeplessness) of fatherhood.

A big thank you to all contributors and a special thank you to the transcribers, editors and members of the publications group. I would also like to thank Vincent Vuu for sharing his beautiful photographs of Jikishoan community activities. They bring a visual aspect to this Myoju that is really quite special. We hope you enjoy reading our second edition of Myoju for 2014.

Azhar Abidi On behalf of Ekai Korematsu – Editor, and the Jikishoan Publication Committee

Read this Myoju (file on Google Drive)