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The Art of Overcoming Waves
True practice is not about being busy, but about letting go of busyness in order to live peacefully and at ease. Practice—sitting meditation, walking meditation, chanting, reciting the precepts—is a profound privilege for practitioners, not a heavy burden. Working in the monastery consists of two parts and includes tasks that everyone must do to maintain daily life:
- sweeping
- taking care of the vegetable garden
- cooking
-
carrying water
When we do these things with mindfulness, we are practicing; “It’s wonderful to carry the wood. It’s wonderful to carry the water.”
In the life of the sangha, organizing a retreat is like “crossing the river” so that newcomers (the young buffaloes) can learn from the elders (the big buffaloes). The Great Precepts Transmission Ceremony and retreats for businesspeople, politicians, environmentalists, nurses, Hollywood… are all opportunities to work, to learn, and to transform. The path of practice is not just theory, but living together, practicing as residents, relying on our brothers and sisters, in order to restore the ancient monastic model and bring the Dharma into every corner of daily life.
To maintain balance, each week we should have at least one and a half true lazy days, and after a long retreat, there are usually three days of rest to nourish our energy. These days of rest also require the art of using them, otherwise they will become boring. When we recognize that we are busy or at peace, “we should celebrate and cherish that sign.”