Being a "Buddhlic" Kinda Person

   
     I have been enjoying my activities at the Chinese Buddhist temple I attend.  The Dharma works for me, but I think that some rather delightful parallels with my Roman Catholic upbringing also have made my relationship with this particular sangha even easier.
     1.  Quan Yin is a relative of the Virgin Mary.  Both ladies are dressed in voluminous, flowing robes.  They tend to float on clouds.  Sometimes they are accompanied by small children.  They are the Feminine embodiment of compassion. Statuesque, often in tall proportions  --  check that off, too.
     2.  The main male figure is pretty secondary to someone else.  Chan Buddhism is not about the historical Buddha, really.  Nor is Catholicism really about Jesus. Chan is about Amitabha, the Buddha of Infinite Light, whose kingdom is in the West.  You chant his name enough times and, boom, off you go to that nice kingdom after you die.   Sort of the same in Catholicism with Mary.  Say that Rosary enough times, and, boom, off you go to that nice kingdom after you die.  I never heard of the exact direction of the R.C. kingdom, however.
      3. Monks and nuns running about.  As at my childhood church the Chan clergy is omnipresent.  Need some answers for knotty questions?  Both Catholic and Chan clergy have 'em, but the Chan folks are nowhere near as doctrinaire as Father Zauner (God rest his soul!) would have been.
      4. Lots of pretty pictures, statues (see #1 above), flowers and colors to look at when your mind is wandering.
      5. Lots of good food and fun!  Chinese New Year is like an Asian version of Christmas. I had a lot of nice celebratory meals in the basement of St. Titus years ago, and Chan Buddhists also have a lot of nice celebratory meals.  And even non-celebratory times at the temple involve eating. 
      6. Lots of different ethnic groups all under the same roof.  The temple is Chinese Chan, but regular Americans, Thais, Vietnamese and Japanese people attend, too.  I even met a gal from Mongolia a few weeks back.  And more ethnic groups mean more good food (see #5).   My childhood church was as diverse as the temple, in its own way, and diversity has always been a great pleasure for me.
      So, my main mantra for my Chan temple is:  LIKE IT!  LOVE IT!

      
    

         

Getting Comfortable with the Dharma

    A few days ago I did a little ritual, with my boyfriend Tom as witness.  For some years I have worn a wooden cross on my necklace, a trinket which was given to me by a friend.  I took the cross off the necklace and laid it aside. 
   And I've laid Christianity aside, too - the church-going, credo-reciting kind.  And I don't think I'll ever take up that cross again, so to speak.
   In the months since I started attending our little sangha I have discovered that I feel very comfortable with the Buddhist tradition.  The meditation, study and discussions I have been having with our group are bearing fruit.  I have seen a clear and notable change in myself.  My concentration and discipline have improved, and I feel more confident.  My inner world is no longer spins in an irregular orbit, but moves a bit closer to the measured music of the spheres.
   How I wish I had attempted to undertake a serious study of Buddhism earlier in my life!  I wrung every last drop of meaning from my Christian tradition, did Native American medicine and chanted Hindu mantras but ultimately I found each of them empty.  Now I have found something that fits my soul work. 
    Since I practice Reiki I will always have the blessing of the healing spirit of Christ.  It's part and parcel of every Reiki treatment I do.   But I don't want to be involved with Christianity, a path that I stayed on too long and to no real purpose.  Maybe it was nostalgia, wanting to be part of a community and hoping that some spiritual growth would come of my being part of the church.  But no spiritual growth happened for me there, and even while I was in the church I knew, in my heart of hearts, that it wasn't going to happen. 
    The Buddha said that we should try his method and see if it works.  So far, I find it's working for me very well.  I have no doubt that I should continue with it.
   
   
  
  

Oil Pastels and the Sangha

      I ended up not going to the Tibetan Buddhist temple.  I decided that I didn't want to have to start over -- meeting new people, getting used to a new type of spiritual practice and maybe getting involved too deeply with an organization.
      So, I decided to let things be.
      Instead, I signed up for an oil pastel class.  I had really liked oil pastels when I had used them, years ago, in high school.  It was drawing and painting at the same time, and I had made a portrait of a classmate that I remember vividly.  (Why didn't I save it? Did I give it to him?)  My boyfriend was supportive, too, so I thought I should go ahead with it.

Tom with my portait of him.

       I really enjoyed the class and the teacher.  I'm now geared up to produce some more artwork.  (The picture above was made with oil pastels and color pencils -- my first large work in many years.)
       Along with the class, something interesting happened.  My teacher, Carol, mentioned that she had attended a "sangha" (Buddhist group) in Long Beach, Washington.  "Really?" I said.  "Did you have many attendees?  I just can't imagine a Buddhist group in Long Beach, of all places!" I chuckled. "Yes, it was established by my husband and it's still going. We're starting a little sangha here."  I was all ears by then, believe me!   "A sangha here? "  "Would you like to come?," she asked.  Would I! 
        So I went to the little sangha and found that it was perfect, just what I wanted.  It's a small group, no bricks and mortar, no tithes, no massive organization.  We practice meditation and then discuss various Buddhist ideas.  I presented a talk on "right livelihood" myself a couple of weeks ago.   It's deep, Buddhism, and I have seen positive changes in myself, and a much more sustained meditation practice at home, since I have attended the group.  And since this is a Theraveda sangha, there is no frippery or pie-in-the-sky nonsense you have to plow through.  It's all about you polishing your soul.
         I can only thank all-seeing Providence for this! 
       

My Esthetic Profession

    I guess I have to confess something:  I went into esthetics because I really wanted to practice Reiki more fully!  Through my esthetic work I have introduced many people (mostly women) to Reiki. 
    But there have also been some unexpected and positive things that have happened to me while I have been in the "beauty business."  One is the number of good friends I have made while being an esthetician.  My teachers and co-workers (except for a few shallow, greedy and thoughtless types) have been great people.  I have become a mentor, in a way, to clients, not only in showing them how to take care of their skin but also in sharing whatever wisdom I've been able to garner over the course of my life.  (I must add that I try to do the latter with their approval!).  And I've benefited from the knowledge and experience of my clients  as well.
     The "beauty business" is like any other, but it's special because of its feminine character.  I like the casualness, the ability to make your own hours and to shape the business the way you want.  I design my own business cards and brochures and I'm the webmaster for our little salon's website.   That way I get to use my artistic skills and get positive reinforcement for it from my co-workers and clients.  And speaking of positive reinforcement: the atmosphere at our salon is very supportive and warm, which makes work a pleasure.
      I am grateful for my "second career" (to tell the truth, though, I never really had a "first career" at all!).  I had no idea that my life would be so enriched by choosing to be an esthetician.