We still need to do the work

I just came back from a week at the beautiful Zen meditation centre, Bodhi Zendo, in the hills of Tamil Nadu. While I was there, I read 'The Shamanic Bones of Zen' by Zenju Earthly Manuel, a fabulous book on the roots and interconnectedness of spiritual traditions. Her book helped me to orient my zazen practice in a way that is meaningful to me.

Sometimes when people discover the direct revelation of shamanic practices and learn to visit vibrant and majestic landscapes and meet wise teachers with a mere drumbeat, they forget that there are no shortcuts. No instant gratification on the path of remembering ourselves. We still have to do the work. We still have to quiet our minds and cultivate awareness, kindness, and openness. We still have to follow through on the advice we receive in a meditative journey. Shamanic practices are not a quick fix; they are a doorway.

I had recently been struggling to quiet my mind, something essential for receiving true clarity within a shamanic journey. My personal meditation practice wasn't as focused as I would have liked; I was too distracted. There is something powerful about being away from our usual lives and meditating in a space that has been cultivated just for that purpose. The serenity of the mountains, the zendo, the dedication of the other participants—everything formed a container of support that allowed me to sigh into a relaxed and focused mind.

A space that has held continuous meditation practice for decades has a different quality to it that can actually change you just by being there. The opposite is also true, of course. We can feel 'off' or unwell after being in a place filled with stress or negative emotions. I needed a reminder (in these turbulent times) that humans can also create a collective sense of peace and that peace can be transmitted if we are open to receiving it.

In preparation for my retreat, I attended an online zazen session with the Zen Mountain Monastery in New York, where a dear old friend of mine is a monastic. I was amazed at how the strong stillness of the zendo was transmitted online and how just sitting with my laptop connected to the monastery could shift my being. While at Bodhi Zendo, I knew my monastic friend was doing the same practice halfwayaround the world. Yes, we still need to do the work, but we don't have to do it alone. Even if separated by time and space, we can connect to others also cultivating peace.