Rev. Danny Fisher

Just a Buddhist Minister Trying to Benefit Beings

Month: November, 2009

November 27, 2009

A Gift of Dharma for 11.27.09

Today’s quote comes to us from the great Pure Land scholar and teacher Rev. Taitetsu Unno.

An ordained Shin Buddhist minister and founder of the Northampton Shin Buddhist Sangha, Rev. Unno is also the Jill Ker Conway Professor Emeritus of Religion at Smith College, where he taught Buddhism and Japanese aesthetics from 1971 until his retirement in 1998.

Born in Japan, he came to the United States with his family at the age of six.  For almost four years of the Second World War, he was interned at a camp for the Japanese in Arkansas.  He was later educated as a scholar of Buddhism at UC-Berkeley and Tokyo University.

His books include River of Fire, River of Water and Shin Buddhism: Bits of Rubble Turn into Gold.

Here’s the quote, part of an interviewee Rev. Unno and his son Mark (a professor of Buddhist Studies at the University of Oregon) did with our friend and past interviewee Jeff Wilson for the Spring 2009 issue of Tricycle: The Buddhist Review.  In it, Rev. Unno explains the nembutsu (the chanting of “Namu Amida Butsu”):

Chanting “Namu Amida Butsu,” which translates as “I entrust myself to the Buddha of Infinite Light and Life,” is not a form of petitionary prayer or mantra. It is a means of communication between a relative being or consciousness and the Buddha deep within. When I chant, there is the expression of Namu Amida Butsu not only from this side, but also from the side of the Buddha.

[...]

There is a popular poem in Shin regarding the nembutsu. A very famous teacher passed away and left this poem: “If you miss me, say ‘Namu Amida Butsu,’ for I too live in the nembutsu.” In other words, if you have any questions about death or dying or where I am, say “Namu Amida Butsu,” and that’s where I am. And you will also realize that’s where you are too.

Petitionary prayer is basically self-centered. Namu Amida Butsu is to release that kind of self-centeredness, and that’s where I like to think the idea of entrusting ourselves to the higher reality comes in. And the higher reality is not out there; it’s in Namu Amida Butsu.

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November 27, 2009

Buddhist Photographer Don Farber to Lecture and Present Photos This Tuesday, Dec. 1st, at University of the West

PRESS RELEASE

Contact:
Jason Kosareff
University of the West
(626) 571-8811, Ext. 311
jasonk@uwest.edu
http://www.uwest.edu

Buddhist Photographer Don Farber to Lecture and Present Photos at University of the West

ROSMEAD, CA, November 25, 2009 – The Buddhist Chaplaincy Program at University of the West is extremely honored to welcome Don Farber, the celebrated Buddhist photographer, to campus for a lecture/photo presentation this coming Tuesday, December 1st, at 7:00 p.m. in the WASC Room on the campus of University of the West (click here for directions).

Mr. Farber and his work are described well on the back flap of one of his recent books:

Inspired by Buddhism early in his career as a professional freelance photographer, Don Farber became a disciple of the late Vietnamese Zen master and scholar Thich Thien-An and in 1977 embarked on a ten-year photographic study of life in a Vietnamese Buddhist temple in Los Angeles.  Following the publication of Taking Refuge in L.A. (1987, with text by Rick Fields and an introduction by Thich Nhat Hanh), Farber set out to photograph Buddhist life internationally and, to date, has carried out his work in eight Asian countries and the United States.  His travels resulted in his critically acclaimed book Visions of Buddhist Life (California, 2002; foreword by Huston Smith) and Tibetan Buddhist Life (2003).  This Fulbright scholar’s photographs have been exhibited at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and the Asia Society in New York, have appeared in magazines such as Life and Time, and are often published in the Buddhist magazines Tricycle and Shambhala Sun.  His photographs have been featured on the covers of many books, including the international best-seller The Art of Happiness (1998) by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Howard C. Cutler.

Dr. Lewis Lancaster, President Emeritus of University of the West and Emeritus Professor in the Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures at UC-Berkeley, has said of his work: 

Farber provides us with pictures which give dignity to aspects of religion and culture that appear as a result of his careful focus and sensitivity to the energy and spirit of each event taking place before him…In his hands, the camera gives us the nuances that escape all but the most talented of artists. It is a pleasure to see the Buddhist tradition depicted in such a masterful fashion.

Mr. Farber’s other books include Portraits of Tibetan Buddhist Masters and the recently published His Holiness the Dalai Lama—a collection of his photographs of the Nobel Peace laureate taken over the span of the last thirty years.  His lecture will revolve largely around the work that went into this new book.

This event is free and open to the public.

Founded in 1991 and accredited by WASC in 2006, University of the West is one of four accredited Buddhist universities in the United States. Its current enrollment is approximately 260 students. UWest is located at 1409 N. Walnut Grove Ave., Rosemead, CA 91770.

November 27, 2009

Today is Native American Heritage Day

Today is Native American Heritage Day.  Rep. Joe Baca (D-CA), who sponsored the bill which established this day, had this to say at The Huffington Post this week (I’m posting his comments in full because of their importance):

This Friday, November 27, we celebrate the second ever national Native American Heritage Day, to honor the original native residents of this great land of ours.

American families gather together on the fourth Thursday of every November to celebrate Thanksgiving in remembrance of a feast hosted by the Wampanoag Native Americans for the Pilgrims at Plymouth in 1621. While we always remember the feast of Thanksgiving, we seldom pay homage to the Wampanoag hosts or recount what happened to them afterward.

By the time the Jamestown colony was founded in Virginia in 1607, the most accurate estimates are there were substantially more than 30 million Native Americans thriving in numerous tribes and cultures from the North American shores of Alaska to the tip of Cape Horn in South America. Unfortunately, the treatment of Native Americans over the next 300 years is one of the darkest chapters in American history.

It wasn’t until the 20th century that America began to right many of the wrongs committed against our land’s original inhabitants, and the first proposals were made for a day to honor Native Americans. Red Fox James, a member of the Blackfoot tribe, rode horseback from state to state in 1914 to gain support for a day of tribute. In 1915 Dr. Arthur C. Parker, a member of the Seneca tribe, persuaded the Boy Scouts of America to designate a day of recognition for Native Americans.

New York became the first state to observe an American Indian Day in 1916 and many other states have followed along through the years and designated a day to honor Native Americans. Congress granted U.S. citizenship to all Native Americans in 1924.

As a California State Assemblyman in 1998, I introduced legislation which established the fourth Friday of September as Native American Day in California. Last year, Congress passed legislation I introduced to establish a national Native American Heritage Day for 2008. This year, I again introduced legislation, H. J. Res. 40, to establish a Native American Heritage Day in 2009. I am proud to say that this bill passed both chambers of Congress and was signed into law by President Obama this summer.

The bill encourages all Americans to observe, through appropriate ceremonies and activities, the day after Thanksgiving as Native American Heritage Day. It also encourages public elementary and secondary schools to enhance student understanding of Native Americans by providing classroom instruction focusing on their history and achievements. In conjunction with Native American Heritage Day, President Obama issued a Presidential proclamation marking November 2009 as National Native American Heritage Month, and calling for all Americans to recognize Friday, November 27 as Native American Heritage Day. The President also hosted the first ever Tribal Leaders Summit at the White House earlier this month.

Throughout history Native Americans have made significant contributions to our nation, our society, and our culture. The Constitutional separation of powers of our government was based on the structure of the Iroquois Nation. As an ambassador of peace, Sacajawea guided Lewis and Clark on their exploration across the west to the Pacific coast.

Hopi, Choctaw, Comanche, Kiowa, Winnebago, Seminole, Navajo and Cherokee used their languages as secret codes to protect American forces in several wars. Navajo “codetalkers” created and memorized a code based on the Navajo language which helped the Marines win the Pacific campaign in World War II.

Native Americans continue to live according to their own traditions and cultures and are making greater contributions than ever before. More than 30 tribal colleges across the country are educating future accountants, doctors, lawyers, health care workers, educators, policymakers, and political leaders.

Amid the Thanksgiving dinners, football, and shopping this week, lets take some time to recognize Native American Heritage Day. We must never take for granted the very first inhabitants of this continent — Native Americans, and their many contributions that have greatly enriched the United States.

President Obama commented on the occasion this week as well.  You can read what he said here.

November 26, 2009

A Gift of Dharma for 11.26.09

Today’s Thanksgiving-themed quote comes from Lama Thubten Zopa Rinpoche.

Born in the Khumbu region of Nepal, Lama Zopa was recognized at a young age as the reincarnation of the Lawudo Lama.

He travelled to Tibet in 1957 to ordain as a monk and study at Dungkar Monastery.  He was forced to flee Tibet in 1959, however, immediately following the Chinese occupation of the country.

His teacher Geshe Rabten Rinpoche referred him to Lama Thubten Yeshe.  With the charismatic Lama Yeshe, Lama Zopa co-founded both the Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition and Kopan Monastery.  Following Lama Yeshe’s death in 1984, Lama Zopa assumed the primary responsibility of serving as spiritual director of the FPMT.

Lama Zopa’s many books include How to Be Happy, Ultimate Healing: The Power of Compassion, Transforming Problems into Happiness, The Door to Satisfaction:  Heart Advice of a Tibetan Buddhist Master, and Dear Lama Zopa: Radical Solutions for Transforming Problems into Happiness.

Here’s the quote–tipped to us by our buddy Waylon Lewis at elephant journal:

Animals have feelings. They have the same mind as we have, and also want happiness, like we do. For example, if you suddenly touch them, they are immediately frightened. They get frightened if somebody beats or hits them with a stick. We also get frightened. If somebody throws cold water on our body, suddenly we feel a shock. It is the same for animals. They have the same mind, and it is very important what happens to them.

Even if they can’t speak, can’t express themselves, animals can show their fear through their body. For example, they try to run away. Human beings can talk and complain. They can bring court cases. Human beings can report things to the police. Human beings can do so much, but animals can’t. They can do nothing. They can’t express their suffering. Human beings can talk about their fears. Whether other people accept your suffering or not, at least you can explain it and the other person can hear. Animals can’t, but you can see how they feel from their movements. If someone tries to attacks them, they run away. They are afraid, which means they want happiness and not suffering. This is a very important point, that they have the same mind as us.

November 26, 2009

Today is the National Day of Mourning

Today is the National Day of Mourning.  The Pilgrim Hall Museum explains:

On Thanksgiving Day, many Native Americans and their supporters gather at the top of Coles Hill, overlooking Plymouth Rock, for the “National Day of Mourning.”

The first National Day of Mourning was held in 1970. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts invited Wampanoag leader Frank James to deliver a speech. When the text of Mr. James’ speech, a powerful statement of anger at the history of oppression of the Native people of America, became known before the event, the Commonwealth “disinvited” him. That silencing of a strong and honest Native voice led to the convening of the National Day of Mourning.

The historical event we know today as the “First Thanksgiving” was a harvest festival held in 1621 by the Pilgrims and their Native American neighbors and allies. It has acquired significance beyond the bare historical facts. Thanksgiving has become a much broader symbol of the entirety of the American experience. Many find this a cause for rejoicing. The dissenting view of Native Americans, who have suffered the theft of their lands and the destruction of their traditional way of life at the hands of the American nation, is equally valid.

To some, the “First Thanksgiving” presents a distorted picture of the history of relations between the European colonists and their descendants and the Native People. The total emphasis is placed on the respect that existed between the Wampanoags led by the sachem Massasoit and the first generation of Pilgrims in Plymouth, while the long history of subsequent violence and discrimination suffered by Native People across America is nowhere represented.

To others, the event shines forth as an example of the respect that was possible once, if only for the brief span of a single generation in a single place, between two different cultures and as a vision of what may again be possible someday among people of goodwill.

History is not a set of “truths” to be memorized, history is an ongoing process of interpretation and learning. The true richness and depth of history come from multiplicity and complexity, from debate and disagreement and dialogue. There is room for more than one history; there is room for many voices.

For more, visit http://www.uaine.org.

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