NB: most of these pics are probably cut off on the right side because I didn't reduce the file size. To view them as they're meant to be seen, right-click and select "View Picture" (or "View Image").
Red Cedar Zen Community building, downstairs. This is where I slept. I had been told I could sleep in an upstairs classroom because the upstairs was warmer, but the downstairs turned out to be perfectly comfortable.
My note pad on the long table downstairs:
A closer look at the library:
A glimpse of the downstairs kitchen:
Peering into the kitchen a little less shyly:
And again, leftward:
The message on the fridge warns against slovenliness: keep the place clean, otherwise pests come in, and then you're faced with the dilemma of getting rid of them.
The bathroom, where Nature's beauty so generously pours forth:
The bathroom is also the laundry room. I was sitting on the toilet and staring at these laundry machines, marvelling at how precisely they had been fitted into that niche. The more I thought about the danger of pinched fingers and the difficulty of hooking up the wires and tubes behind the machines, the more I appreciated this Zen community's dedication. This might sound silly to some, but you're looking at an example of mindfulness.
One of the downstairs bulletin boards shows you how active this sangha is:
And another:
We're going to head upstairs to the dharma hall now:
At the top of the stairs and looking toward the front exit/entrance:
Behold!
This passage through the curtains leads off to a classroom or two, and some restrooms:
This was cute: the official bee-catching cup (practice ahimsa!):
A closer look at the altar:
Nomon Tim Burnett provided me with this fold-out bed, which I set up downstairs on the floor by the library books. My coiled-up foam pad served as a perfect pillow.
The aforementioned foam pad:
A brief glimpse of the Bellingham Public Library (back entrance), where I spent several hours today:
Sadly, I took no pictures of all the people I met. After sitting zazen three times in a row in the space of 24 hours, I met a lot of people! My apologies for not immortalizing you guys, but feel free to send pics of yourselves and I'll gladly blog them!
_
Marathon
12 years ago
2 comments:
Looks like in the Red Cedar zendo they have the zafu and zabuton arranged so that you sit facing the center of the room. That's interesting, because they're in the Soto tradition of Suzuki-roshi and the San Francisco Zen Center, and usually in Soto practice you sit facing the wall. I know they do it that way at the SFZC and at the Austin Zen Center, which is an affiliate thereof.
Two of the three zazen sessions I attended at Red Cedar were done while seated facing outward. The final one, a 6:30AM sit, was done facing inward. I'm not sure why.
At Hwagye-sa in Seoul, we sat in ranks, all facing front. At Hanguk-sa in Germantown, we sat facing the wall.
Kevin
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