Sun and shadow

Life certainly is, isn't it?  Tashi, now, is alert for the sunshine, and enjoys it fully.  I've had to work at being that smart in my animal body.

I do credit what happiness I have to many buddhas and bodhissatvas along the way - the helping hand you sometimes get in unlikely places.  But most of all, I have to credit my practice - and the teachers who have nudged me along the Zen path.  It is said that "A Zen student must go straight on a narrow mountain road that has 99 curves."  And curve balls, too.

The course description below nods to major things I've learned as I stumbled on.  As it implies, the practice goes far beyond meditation to pervade our daily life.
If you live in the Columbus area, you can still register for this fall session through Friday at 7 pm.
(As for the way this messed up the formatting on the flier - I give. I'm a writer, not a graphic artist.)
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The Zen Way to a Balanced Life
A four-week course in establishing a daily life practice.

11:00 - 12:30 Saturdays
November 2, 9, 16, 23.
Columbus, Ohio

Meditation is widely prescribed now for stess relief. However, it was not developed in as a sort
of mental backrub, but as an element of a wholehearted life.

Everyone is invited, regardless of experience in meditation. This course will ground you in both
walking and sitting meditation (zazen) as they have been practiced in the Japanese Zen tradition
since the 12th century. It will also touch on the principles for living deeply that are sometimes
called The Boundless Qualities of our minds, with emphasis on equanimity. Zazen and these
principles are compatible with every religion and belief system.

Each session will also include chi gong techniques for awareness and relaxation, suggestions for
nourishing our own basic goodness, a brief creative exercise, and opportunities for sharing. We
will touch down on —

Setting up a daily meditation practice

Managing your life and time

Relieving stress and depression with gratitude

Finding meaning in creative giving

The course will meet in my home in Clintonville. The cost is $60, payable in advance by check or
Paypal, $50 for students and seniors. To learn more or to register, e-mail Jeanne at
jdesy@zencat.com or call 263-9275.

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Contemporary Zen strays by struggling to get away from the heart's
innermost request - to realize the same heart as Buddha. Our problem is not
that we aspire too much, but that we aspire too little, and aim for selfcentered
wisdom and compassion rather than the full-blown real deal.
~ Dosho Port
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Jeanne Desy began practicing meditation for healing when she had breast cancer in 1997, and
has led meditation groups and workshops since. She earned a PhD in literary theory at Ohio
State in 1995, and has taught literature and writing at several Ohio colleges. Her fiction and
poetry have won Ohio Arts Council awards. Her story, “The Princess Who Stood on Her Own
Two Feet,” is taught around the world as a feminist fairy tale.