“Since the 1800s, San Francisco was the most important gateway for people coming from the Pacific Rim,” said Charlie Chin, artist in residence at the Chinese Historical Society of America in San Francisco, who also leads tours and gives lectures. “They weren’t proselytizing Buddhism, but they brought it here with their other cultural beliefs and practices.”
Today, a spiritual tourist, whether Buddhist or not, can find inspiration if not enlightenment following in the footsteps of American Buddhism on a pilgrimage throughout the Greater Bay Area.
I’d imagine America is rocking following the election results. Some rocking with gladness and others with….all sorts of emotions. I’m keeping a thought for all of the people in this bowl of stew. Now is the time to be still in the midst of conditions and continue the pilgrimage.
One of those walks
when the sun shines.
The ground pops up
to meet the booted foot.
Hercules, the neighbours bull,
is in his stable.
And all is well with the world.
Then, in the process of looking for the link for the above rescue I found this interesting story. NZ dolphin rescues beached whales.
Mr Smith said that just when his team was flagging, the dolphin showed up and made straight for them.
“I don’t speak whale and I don’t speak dolphin,” Mr Smith told the BBC, “but there was obviously something that went on because the two whales changed their attitude from being quite distressed to following the dolphin quite willingly and directly along the beach and straight out to sea.”
“I shouldn’t do this I know, we are meant to remain scientific,” Mr Smith said, “but I actually went into the water with the dolphin and gave it a pat afterwards because she really did save the day.”
This came in an email in response to the posting, Postcards from Norfolk. It is published here in gratitude and with permission.
blue sky
wet sand
briny smell
lone monk
kinhin
grain of sand
miraculous knowing.
I was, am and will be enlightened instantaneously with the universe.
in gratitude,
We all have the words, it’s a matter of letting them flow out. Existence enters us and it is the way of things that existence flows out. Like waves, like the tides.
Practice Within The Order of Buddhist Contemplatives
