One Day Sitting

One Day Sitting
Originally uploaded by Peg Syverson.

Sunday Ordinary Mind offered a one-day sitting. Following the Sunday morning program, we shared tea, work practice, zazen, lunch, and a talk about the Buddha's family. The talk was based on an essay by John S. Strong, "A Family Quest: The Buddha, Yasodhara, and Rahula in the Mulasarvastivada Vinaya." This essay, published in the book Sacred Biography in the Buddhist Traditions of South and Southeast Asia, provides a very different account of the Buddha's home-leaving, based on the ancient Sanskrit texts, rather than the stories that grew up around the Pali canon. If you are interested in reading the essay, I have posted it on the wiki in the "Readings" folder here: http://ordinarymind.pbwiki.com. One-day sitting participants did a great job during work practice pulling weeds, dusting, brushing cushions, and mopping the floor in the Zendo. We appreciate all of their efforts!