an old writer and his words

  • ISAN’S GIFT 正法眼蔵 語十六

    If someone has much,give him little,if someone has little,give him much.If you have much,give much, butif you have little,give only little.Little and muchare both the samewhen given and received. A reflection on Case 56 of Dogen’s Shobogenzo (The True Dharma Eye)

    Lou Faber

  • HOME, NIGHT

    Living in a bamboo grove, she said,is very much like living in an old house. Look up at noon, into the canopyand imagine you see rays of lightpiercing the ill-thatched roof. Listen to the growling winds of autumnand hear the ghosts of the old housemaking their way up creaking stairs. And when you truly find…

    Lou Faber

  • HYAKUJO’S SECOND VISIT 正法眼蔵 語十四

    You may come asking questions,and perhaps the teacherwill answer you with a discourse.If you go deaf and hear nothing,if the words flitlike so many mayfliesjust as soon gone,if no word finds purchaseyou will have a graspthe heart of the Dharma. A reflection on Case 54 of Dogen’s Shobogenzo (The True Dharma Eye)

    Lou Faber

  • TIMELESS

    The wonder of clocks in old towns and citiesis that few actually care if the timethey portend is accurate or an approximation. The importance often seems inverselyproportional to the size of the place in whichit is called upon to render a temporal verdict. Best of all are the clocks whose handshave ground to a halt,…

    Lou Faber

  • LESSONS

    The most important lessons he taughtwere in those moments when he wasabsolutely silent, the smile acrosshis face shouting across the backgrounddin of everyday life, his eyes widewith a sort of childish awe that I hadlong since given up as adolescent. The child sees everything for the first timeregardless how many times she hasgazed at what…

    Lou Faber

  • BANZAN’S A BETTER CUT

    At the butcherbe careful what you askfor if it is a better cutthe wise man with the knifemay slice off your handand present it to youwrapped neatly in paper. But will it beyour rightor your left? A reflection onCase 21 of Dogen’s Shobogenzo (The True Dharma Eye)

    Lou Faber

  • TOZAN’S GOING BEYOND BUDDHA

    The greatest speechis given onlywhen the mouthfalls shut.To talk of peaceis to beat war with peace,to speak of waris to be at war.When listening disappearspeace reemerges,when peace emergesthe listener appears. A reflection on Case 12 of Dogen’s Shobogenzo (The True Dharma Eye)

    Lou Faber

  • ON BEING

    They arrive unannouncedoften not seen untilthey have been among usand won’t say howor when they arrived.Some claim to have seentheir arrival as theyhave seen other visitorsvisible only to them,and predict their departurewith a certainty bornof a delusion or a sensebeyond the understanding.Others say that theare merely us in masquerade,it is we who are deludedfor there…

    Lou Faber

  • SEIJO’S SOUL 無門關 三十語

    Open your mouthand let your soul fleeon the dance of your departing breath. Inhale slowly, leta different soulfind purchase in your lungs. Both souls are your soul,neither soul is yours,but is it the moonor an obscuring cloud? A reflection on case 35 of the Mumonkan (Gateless Gate Koans)

    Lou Faber

  • MINDFUL(L)

    The Buddha said that any task you doif done mindfully is a sort of meditation.We assume he said it, we’ve been toldhe did, but no one I know was anywherenear that bodhi tree, so we take it on faith.When it comes to things like choppinglarge quantities of onions, or roastingcoffee beans I totally get it,…

    Lou Faber