"What is Holy and Sacred in our Buddhist Tradition?

 Hello Indigo Sangha friends. I hope you're having a great lazy day today!

Tomorrow night (August 10th) we'll come together from 7 - 8:30 pm to enjoy sitting and walking meditation and explore the question, "What is Holy and Sacred in our Buddhist Tradition?" I love this question (which was put forward by a sangha sister). At Indigo we talk about mindfulness as a "secular practice." We know Buddhism in the Plum Village Tradition is "not a religion" because we consider Buddha a man, not a God. We don't concern ourselves with questions about after-life because our focus is here and now. Plus, our teacher Thich Nhat Hanh encourages us to hold onto the "root religion" of our birth as a source of deep nourishment.

But don't be confused. Mindfulness practice is far from a cerebral, dispassionate exercise. It doesn't drain mystery and beauty from daily life through cold analytics; it wakes us up to the living, miraculous universe. This humanist mindfulness practice can fill us with faith and make the whole sacred. In fact, the path of a holy life is knowing the way to transform and transcend suffering for ourselves and others. Perhaps this is why the first time I saw Thich Nhat Hanh across the room I felt overwhelmed--physically and emotionally--by the sudden presence of a holy man. His life is his message.

Tomorrow night, I'll shine a light on exactly what is holy and sacred about our Buddhist spirituality so we can proceed with greater intention on the path of transformation. You'll find the Zoom link for tomorrow's gathering at the bottom of this message.