Leoma Hague, Rev. Master

When we have been training for some time and we find that we are still contending with a condition like depression, we may feel a sense of failure or inadequacy and doubts may arise, either about the practice or our ability to do it.

This takes time, but with patience and persistence, we can know that this here now is enough, however unsatisfactory or inadequate our “self” seems to be. Whatever we are experiencing right now is our gateway; there is no other. We can only dwell where we are, be where we are. As we continue the exploration of zazen, the questioning of “what is this?” becomes second nature. We may still experience feelings of depression or anxiety, but we can live with them. By sitting with these feelings, in the heart of zazen, there is an immediacy that helps us to go beyond the churning of the mind. This, as it is, is enough.

Issue: only available as part of Journal, Summer 2018 pdf to download

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