Mountain Practice

In the past I have wondered if there might be some special way I could offer the Dharma to others.  Now the time for wondering has passed and I am taking the first steps along this new section of the path.

Twelve hundred years ago Tendai’s founder observed:

Even with the best of intentions it is difficult to master the Way under unfavorable conditions; living in a quiet place in the bosom of nature is the most conducive for practice. It is better to rely, at first, on the place rather than the mind.

Reliance on place has been at the heart of my practice from the very beginning, and so place will distinguish the way I have chosen to offer the Dharma.  I am most fortunate to have land on a beautiful Adirondack lake.  Since my ordination I have been slowly preparing it as a place of practice.  I had hoped I could make it ready before the end of our short summer, but as is usual (and even customary), I didn’t anticipate some complications.

The photograph above shows what someone will see as they stand in this “…quiet place in the bosom of nature.”  I hope to be able to bring others to this place so we can experience together the advantages of practice performed in such a setting.  I plan to begin this offering in small stages letting the place show me how it should be used.

I hope it will become something meaningful in the lives of others.  If it does or doesn’t matters little.  Offering it with an open heart is enough.

I’ll keep you posted as this project goes forward.