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we give, we get

Posted on Aug. 12, 2009 by Neil McKinlay, meditation instructor and 2010 Queenswood retreat leader.

Spiritual teachings are never free. Though I sometimes hear suggestions to the contrary, in truth such teachings are never simply given away; some sort of exchange always takes place.

When monasteries were central to the practice and propagation of spiritual wisdom, donations and benefactors played an important role in allowing these institutions to fulfill their purpose. Retreatants, too, received required necessities through the generosity of others. Students were often involved in similar transactions, presenting goods and services in appreciation for the instruction being given. In our time, this tradition continues - sometimes as described above, sometimes through the more familiar form of registration fees.

All this, of course, only acknowledges material offerings extended the teachings. Throughout the millenia, those moved to seek instruction in deeper living have been required to give in at least three other ways. First, many have had to endure tremendous hardship in order to even be near the teachings. Marpa, an important figure in the lineage of Chogyam Trungpa, journeyed from Tibet to India three times in search of his teacher - and all this before the invention of airplanes and automobiles!

Milarepa, another lineage figure, shows us the enormous amounts of determination and perseverance that must sometimes be evidenced before teachings are given. The previously mentioned Marpa required Milarepa build and dismantle a series of towers before instruction began in earnest. Only when the latter reached a point of despair over this were the desired teachings at last presented.

Finally, even receiving instruction does not liberate us from the need to give. I have heard Shirley Daventry-French, a Victoria-area yoga teacher, express this situation in the following way: “Once we have received the teachings, it is our duty to make them our own and, then, pass them on.” In other words, once instruction is given, a student is expected to practice. This raises a form of giving modern people often struggle with: the giving of time.

Time is precisely what a dozen individuals recently offered over two days in July. Gathered at Queenswood, they took a  weekend out of inevitably busy schedules in order to engage the teachings we have been exploring over the last years. The hours were sometimes long. The room sometimes prickly. Many reported feeling their conventional lives pull at them during those days - pull in the form of lists needing completion, problems needing solved, calls that had to be made. Confronted with this, many observed how difficult it was to keep going - yet, this is what they did.

At the end of our time together, a few blinked at what had been completed. “I can’t believe we meditated all weekend,” one gasped. In the days since, a number have contacted me through phone, email, and direct interaction. All have confirmed something I myself have sensed about the price we must pay in order to access spiritual knowing.

Though the teachings are never free, once we give in whatever way we can, in whatever way is asked of us, life gives back far more than we could ever imagine. “I've been wanting to write you a note about how much I benefited from the retreat,” one person said. “However, I haven't yet been able to find the right words to describe these benefits.”

This is how it goes: we give and we get. And, curiously, what is received affects not only ourselves, but those around us as well. We are rarely - if ever - the only ones who benefit from the kind of exchanges described here. A sense of inspiration and possibility also touches the others in our lives. Consider the email I received days after the Queenswod retreat ended: “I hear you have another planned for October,” a non-participant wrote. “I’d like to sign up right now!”

Neil McKinlay offers meditation instruction at Queenswood and throughout the Greater Victoria area. The above article was taken from his Fall 2009 newsletter. A full version of this can be found at www.NeilMcKinlay.com.

book review: the unfolding now

Posted on Aug. 10, 2009 by Lyle Rumpel, Queenswood library volunteer

The Unfolding Now by A.H. Almaas
Shambhala:  Boston & London, 2008
ISBN 9781590305591
244 pages
Available in the Queenswood library
Review by Lyle Rumpel

The Unfolding Now is the latest of over one dozen books of spirituality and self-discovery by A. Hameed Ali, writing under the pen name A.H. Almaas, the founder of the Diamond Approach, a  teaching of experiential spirituality that is informed by modern psychology and therapy.  Perhaps because it is composed of transcribed presentations from a retreat for experienced students, this is one of the shorter and more user-friendly of Ali’s recent books.

The central theme is that becoming familiar with the truth of one’s own immediate experience is fundamental to living in fuller human potential, and that this familiarity can be learned through the practice of the Diamond Approach’s method of inquiry.  Or in other words, as encapsulated in the book’s subtitle, the theme is “Realizing Your True Nature through the Practice of Presence”.

The text presents a guided self-exploration of different aspects of “true nature”.  Neutrally observing each moment’s experience, as the Now continues to unfold, is intended to help develop an expanding awareness of one’s true nature.  Our real nature, or Being, is considered to be observable in each moment – as expressed in the particular and shifting flow of one’s personal experiences, including physical sensations, emotional states, and mental reflections. Intimate contact with that expression provides the deepest of connection with ourselves and with what is more than our individual selves – the divine within us.

Although the  primary practice is focused on individual self-reflection, Ali points out the need to understand the relationship of one’s true nature to its other manifestations. The Diamond Approach uses sitting meditative practice for developing presence and awareness, as well as reflective inquiry with the aim of bringing presence and awareness into daily life. The teaching and practice makes use of psychological tools (e.g. ego, superego, reification, projection) in attempting to do this.

By way of its individual self-reflection practice, Diamond Approach inquiry may be compared to purely meditative or contemplative practices. Beyond that, Ali distinguishes it from these by suggesting that in meditation one doesn’t involve the relation of one’s true nature to everything else, yet “We don’t just sit, we live”.  Also, we live as individuals in the larger context of the world, and the Diamond Approach teaching and method recognizes that we develop from different individual places.

Some readers may be looking for more about the interrelating of true nature’s manifestations.  This could be in terms of interpersonal relationships and transpersonal experience of true nature.  It could be about true nature, and the methodology of exploring it, from the perspective of inter-group, intra-group, or cultural manifestations. The Unfolding Now indicates the need to address the interactivity of true nature, yet focuses on individual perception of that interaction. Can, and must, a greater awareness of true nature include an exploration of the larger context of which individuals are part, and which may influence individual perceptions?  For an extended discussion of this issue see Ken Wilber’s "Integral Spirituality," Shambhala, 2006.

An appendix provides a summary of where the content of The Unfolding Now fits within the larger body of teachings of the Diamond Approach.  This appendix is more of a contrasting break in the flow of the book than a supplement to the main text.  It is very condensed, and is meant for those already having a substantial familiarity and background in this teaching.  It may seem somewhat obscure to others.

This book conveys the sophistication and simplicity of the inquiry process, as a primary part of the methodology of the Diamond Approach.  Presented in a way that a reader who is new to this teaching can follow, it gives us a graceful intertwining of contemplative practice and active self-reflection.  It gently welcomes, reassures, and inspires us to living in the world by applying the insights gained from these practices:  “We are beings of light….We have the treasures in us, and every moment is a matter of expressing them.”

new zen meditation podcast

Posted on Aug. 10, 2009 by Wayne Codling, Zen meditation teacher and retreat leader.

Click here to download the podcasts.

aging gracefully

Posted on Aug. 4, 2009 by Barb Northwood, Weekend Hospitality Coordinator.

On Thursday, July 30th Dr. Peter Yam spoke to an audience of 60 plus people in the chapel as part of the Passionate Lives Series.  He is an animated, energetic speaker who gave us information about aging gracefully and the process and "attitudes" of diseases.  He spoke of how our bodies work using understandable science to explain concepts told through simple stories. He gave practical advice on how to achieve and maintain "harmony" in our own bodies.  I have never thought of my body as an ecosystem before - like a "rainforest" Dr. Yam said - but it makes sense. He presented aging as a multifaceted event - aging measured in three ways.  First, there is chronological aging - the age our date of birth tells us we are.  There isn't anything we can do to change this number.  The second way is psychological and the third way is biological and we can have impact with those.  We can age more slowly or more hastily depending on how we live our lives; what we think, what we eat, how we move.    It is on these last two ways of aging that Dr. Yam gave his presentation on.

The presentation was like attending a class.  The theme of the evening was about aging gracefully.  Dr. Yam spoke of the necessity of keeping our "internal terrain" in as optimal a state as possible for a longer life.  He quoted an ancient Oriental Emperor as saying his reasoning for wanting to live a longer life was because he wanted to enjoy his harvest."  I have been thinking of how that relates in my own personal life - the seeds I have planted in raising my daughter, in my friendships, in the many kindnesses shared with other people, in my art.  And I realize that I would like to be able to, if possible,  see the growth cycle of all these things and I think I get a sense of what enjoying one's own harvest means.  Dr. Yam said that we all know we will not live forever but there are ways we can work at living gracefully until the last day.

As his lecture continued, Dr. Yam covered different theories of aging.  He used humour which seems to come naturally to him as he explained the pros and cons of different ideas.  And he has an interactive style of communication - he often asked questions of the audience and then waited for an answer, expressing a "well done" attitude to everyone who answered.  His talk narrowed down to information about antioxidants and free radicals, acid/alkaline diets, and food combining.  We were each given ten pages of material which he referenced and explained so that we would better be able to understand the information in order that our learning continues beyond his presentation.

One of the aspects of food combining that I am already working on changing how I think about the food on my plate is to avoid combining simple carbohydrates (sugars, in the end) and protein.  Dr. Yam explained that these two eaten together produces an effect similar to beef jerky which is made tough and chewy by combining sugars and protein.  This effect in the body can be a weave of connective tissues forming a tough barrier for nutrients to penetrate through.  I got the strong impression from Dr. Yam that this is not a good thing! 

Throughout his presentation were references to that which is more than our physical body.  He spoke of a positive attitude being of paramount importance to the health of our body and our ability to age gracefully.  I was surprised when he said that, on average, 90% of most peoples thoughts are negative.  Really?  But I guess reluctantly I can see a truth to that based on listening to the world around me.  There is a train of thought that goes something like, We create the world with our thoughts, so perhaps there is no better time than now to begin the process of thinking positive thoughts.  Dr. Yam emphasized that, "the brain affects all the rest of the body with negative thoughts.  It is mind controlling matter... Our mind and our body are in continuous communication.  They dialogue constantly."  He said that the way to begin to making change from a negative to a positive attitude is simple. And complicated.  It is, "Fake it until you make it." 

"We are surrounded by energy.  There is energy from the earth, the ocean, the trees, the air.  The whole world is energy.  Even wood is energy.  Our energy influences all that is around us.  The energy of all that is around us influences us."  Dr. Yam said this as he spoke to good aging being more than eating and exercising.  It is also about the energy we are and that we are surrounded by.  He gave us the simple exercise of holding the palms of our hands several inches apart and to feel the energy that goes on between the two.  Once this is felt, the idea of energy is not abstract any more.  It is what is.  Learning to work with it is beneficial to our lives and the lives around us.

Treating our bodies as a rainforest.  I like that.  Rainforests are sometimes referred to as the lungs of the planet.  Dr. Yam spoke to our need to breathe deeply - to breathe as though our lives depended on it by expanding our stomachs, in six second breaths.  Three seconds in, old, three seconds out.  Doing that, twelve breaths in a row, so taking less than two minutes, many times during the day is a life sustaining way to enrich our own ecosystems.

Dr. Yam finished with the advice to look at the whole of who we are.  We are physical.  We are emotional.  We are spiritual.  We are energy.  The work is to bring all the aspects of who we are into harmony.  He repeated harmony three times.  Finding ourselves in harmony is the success.  Within the harmony there is grace.