| Session 4 | Part 1 - The Dalai Lama - Essential Writings - editor Thomas A. Forsthoefel |  |
| Chapter 2 - Morality | ||
| "Love and kindness are the very basis of society. If we lose these feelings, society will face remendous difficulties; the survival of humanity will be endangered. Together with material development, we need spiritual development, so that inner peace and social harmony can be experienced. Without inner peace, without inner calm, it is difficult to have lasting peace. In this field of inner development, religion can make important contributions." ... p156 | ||
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| Index | Reflection | PowerPoint | Videos | References | ||||||||||||
| Reflection - Deb Charnusky An Immersion into the World of Thomas Merton and His Connections with Buddhism |
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| As many of you know, I recently attended a retreat at the Abbey of Gethesmani,
located in Trappist Kentucky and home for over 150 years to the Catholic
Trappist Monks. Some of you may also know that Gethesmani was home to
Thomas Merton, whom we studied previously, affectionately known as “Father
Louie” at the abbey. Merton is widely acknowledged as a spiritual master,
a brilliant writer, and a man who embodied the quest for God and for human
solidarity. His influence still permeates the very atmosphere of Gethesmani
and I visited both his hermitage and his grave while there. The Abbey
of Gethesmani is aesthetically pleasing and a profoundly, peaceful place
for mediation and reflection. Two days later, I attended the Dalai Lama’s talk while in Calgary. I was a bit concerned that my experience at Gethesmani would eclipse or somehow diminish this event, however, the exact opposite occurred. After hearing the Dalai Lama speak I discovered that the two experiences complimented one another rather than conflicting with each other. Further investigation and reflection uncovered an understanding of why. You see Thomas Merton himself said that he wanted “to become as good a Buddhist as I can” (Steindl-Rast, 1969). In the 1950s Merton’s earlier fascination with mysticism and other religions resurfaced as he began a long-term study of Buddhism, focusing upon Zen. He came into contact with the Japanese scholar on Zen, Daisetz T. Suzuki (1870–1966), who was greatly responsible for introducing Zen Buddhism to the West. They would correspond and some of their writings would become the essay collection "Zen and the Birds of Appetite," a discussion of the similarities and differences between Zen Buddhism and Christianity. Gandhi was also influential upon Merton in saying that one can find the deeper roots of one’s own religious tradition by becoming immersed in other religions--and then returning “home” to see one’s own heritage in a transformed way, with a transformed consciousness. As his study of Buddhism continued, Merton had no intention to abandon his Christian faith and tradition. Just as the early Church had to face the influence of Hellenistic thought and the later Church the rise of modern science, so too the contemporary Church had to take seriously the other religions of the world and the reality of religiously pluralistic cultures. The world was suddenly changing at an unforeseen pace and Merton felt it was imperative that understanding be achieved amongst the various religious groups. Indeed, in his book "Mystics and Zen Masters", Merton states that such dialogues were not a luxury, but a necessity. For Merton, if the West were to continue to ignore “the spiritual heritage of the East,” it would “hasten the tragedy that threatens man and his civilizations”. In 1968 Merton was granted permission for a trip to Asia which he extended into India. The very heart of his stay in India was his meeting with the exiled leader of Tibetan Buddhism, the Dalai Lama, at Dharamsala in the Himalayas. They would meet for dialogue three times and they seemed to connect with each other on a profound level. After the initial meeting, Merton wrote in his journal: "The Dalai Lama is most impressive as a person. He is strong and alert… A very solid, energetic, generous, and warm person, very capably trying to handle enormous problems…The whole conversation was about religion and philosophy and especially ways of meditation… (Asian Journal, p.101). In turn, the Dalai Lama would later say about Merton that: “more striking than his outward appearance which was memorable in itself, was the inner life which he manifested. I could see that he was a truly humble and deeply spiritual man. This was the first time I had been struck by such a feeling of spirituality by anyone who professed Christianity." (cf. Canon Allchin’s Address). The Franciscan priest and author Murray Bodo relates that “the Dalai Lama credits Merton with opening his eyes to the truth that Tibetan Buddhism does not hold the world’s only truth. ‘As a result of meeting with him, my attitude toward Christianity was much changed… Thomas Merton is someone we can look up to. He had the qualities of being learned, disciplined and having a good heart’” At that same gathering where Merton met the Dalai Lama, Bodo also says that “the Dalai Lama (encouraged) each of us to remain faithful to our own tradition. He says, ‘We need to experience more deeply the meanings and spiritual values of our own religious tradition--we need to know these teachings not only on an intellectual level but also through our own deeper experience. We must practice our own religion sincerely; it must become part of our lives.’” On December 10, 1968, Merton was in Thailand for a monastic conference. At the conclusion of a talk at the conference, Merton said he was going to disappear for a while before the afternoon session. Later, he was found in his room, dead, evidently electrocuted by a faulty fan. In the decades since Merton’s death, the Buddhist--Christian dialogue has proceeded and continues. Thomas Merton himself was a seed for that dialogue. He overcame youthful religious fervor and exclusivism to become a more maturely spiritual man who was not afraid to seek truth wherever it may be found, no matter how difficult or long the search. One of the continuing gatherings for this dialogue took place in 1996 at the Abbey of Gethsemani where Merton is buried under a simple white cross like generations of other monks who have lived and died at the Abbey during the last 150 years. To this East-West gathering of the Monastic Interreligious Dialogue, arriving by helicopter under heavy security because of threats upon his life, comes the Dalai Lama. He kneels at the grave of his old friend, Merton, along with Abbot Timothy Kelly, and prays. When he rises from the ground, he says: “Now our spirits are one; I am at peace.”
Fast forward to present day and the recent visit of the Dalai Lama to Calgary. At his Wednesday talk at the Saddledome I noted those in attendance were of every ethnic origin and from every persuasion of life. A continuation of peaceful dialogue indeed and I think Merton would have approved. At the Dalia Lama’s talk each attendee had a Kata, the Buddhist white scarf that symbolizes purity, placed on their seat, to wear during his talk and to take home with them both as a memento and as a reminder. Wayne was at the Dalai Lama’s talk, however, I understand that Jock was not. So I wish to offer to Jock a Kata that came from the event. Students of Buddhism often offer Kata’s to their most respected teachers as a sign of gratitude for the gift of their teaching. I do so now with a heartful of gratitude to both Jock and Wayne for all their time and efforts spent as spiritual teachers and guides. They both have contributed more greatly to my personal spiritual journey than they probably realize and have provided me with a variety of times that were both challenging and “not so comfortable” to those “ah-ha” moments where the light bulb that ended up popping into my mind was so bright that I was positively blinded. I close with the words of Marcia Wieder, an American motivational speaker: “Fill your life with as many moments and experiences of joy and passion as you humanly can. Start with one experience and build on it. Our inner strengths, experiences, and truths cannot be lost, destroyed, or taken away. Every person has an inborn worth and can contribute to the human community. We all can treat one another with dignity and respect, provide opportunities to grow toward our fullest lives and help one another discover and develop our unique gifts. We each deserve this and we all can extend it to others.” Certainly experiencing both the retreat at Gethesmani and hearing His Holiness the Dalai Lama speak as well as being the beneficiary of Wayne and Jock’s spiritual teachings, qualify as spiritually enriching experiences. It is now my responsibility - and my responsibility alone - to build upon them.
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| PowerPoint Presentation - click whatever works below - the complexity is because computers are like that! | ||||||||||||||||
| A paraphrased selection of the chapter's quotations of the Dalai Lama are presented in the powerpoint, which also contains the video selection. | ||||||||||||||||
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| Video Presentations | ||||||||||||||||
| Video excerpt from “Ethics For Our Time” by the Dalai Lama. University of California, Santa Barbara, April 2009. 22 of 112 minutes is included in the Powerpoint. Link to the full episode is given below. | ||||||||||||||||
| References Related to Chapter Two | ||||||||||||||||
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editorial courtesies. St. David's United Church.Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Jan 2008 |
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