Three Little Buddhas

"I am enlightened, and always have been, simultaneously with the beginning of the universe." - The Buddha, First Words After Realizing the Truth. In the Zen Calendar (December 11, 2002).

When the bright star appeared, the Buddha said: "Together as one, I and the great Earth have at this moment attained the Tao." - Zen Calendar (December 9, 2006).

Day 309. Happy Bodhi Day! Happy Rohatsu! Gassho to Buddha for his wisdom and compassion!

At mid-day, I celebrated Rohatsu with my favorite 4-year-olds: Reece, Clark and Grace. When I mentioned in Pilates class I would be observing Buddha's enlightenment today, their mom Amy asked if I could share a 4-year-old version of some of the rituals with her triplets. I said I would be delighted. They trooped into my home around 11:30. Grace was the only one who had her shoes on at the time. I said, "Perfect! We take our shoes off for zazen anyway. You all came prepared!"

After some wandering around the house, pausing in my son's room to play with a few sturdy remnants from his childhood, we proceeded to the Zen room. It is lovely at noon: lots of bright green plants soak up the ample sunshine flooding through a south facing window. Everyone selected a cushion from the colorful ones I carted home from the office. We looked at, held, and passed around some of the Buddha statues I have collected from around the world. It didn't take Reece long to observe, "He has a really big belly!" I agreed, then paused to gather some thoughts about Buddha in a version suitable for 4-year-olds. I knew I had about three sentences. Four, tops.

I asked the Three about their teachers. They shouted a couple of names, then Clark wisely pointed out, "Anybody can be a teacher." Could I have scripted a better segue? Not one to miss a cue, I launched into my first Dharma talk for children. It went something like this:

"Buddha was a great teacher who lived about two thousand years ago. He taught us about being kind to each other and loving each other. He also taught us how to live in the world with no worries . . . and showed us that everything is all right - just the way it is. And you know what the most important thing he taught us was?" Complete silence. All eyes on me. Rapt attention. "That, from the second we are born, and even BEFORE then, we are perfect. Absolutely perfect. Each and every one of us. Exactly as we are."

So there we have it. A transcript of my first Dharma talk. It was a couple of sentences longer than planned, but they hung right with me like the amazing little Buddhas they are. Next, we practiced experiencing how long 30 seconds is. I figured that was just about the perfect length for zazen when you're four. We started the timer and Grace shouted out a sequence of impeccable counting to 10, which gave me a splendid opportunity to say we were going to sit for three of what she had just counted. Amy asked, "What are we supposed to do with our thoughts while we are sitting?" I answered, "Good question! After over three hundred days, I still don't know the answer!" The triplets appeared to intuitively grasp my explanation of Monkey chatter (we should all begin our Zen study at the age of 4!) and my suggestion that they just watch their thoughts and think about their breathing. At that point, I showed everyone how to make a mudra "shaped like a half moon. . . and hold it by your belly button so your breath can come in and out of it." Bam - three perfect, miniature mudras appeared.

We all stood up and bowed deeply, first facing our respective cushions, then with our backs to them. Those pliable, low to the ground four-year-old bodies were just made for bowing. Everyone then sat back down on our zafus, bowed once more, formed our mudras, and watched me set the timer. Then: A Miracle. For thirty long, consecutive, brilliant, pristine, amazingly memorable seconds, absolute and complete silence in the Zen room. Three sublime little Buddhas on Bodhi Day. Peak Experience. Peak Experience. Peak Experience.

The timer sounded and we all bowed once more. My eyes met Amy's across the room and we burst into laughter. "Holy cow!" she exclaimed, "That was amazing! I don't believe it! I can't believe they all stayed quiet the entire time!" I got a Triplet High Five and almost spontaneously combusted with a remarkable sense of giddy happiness. "They are brilliant! Absolutely brilliant! My 42-year-old brother can't even sit zazen for 30 seconds! That was the best meditation EVER!"

Next, we chanted, and everyone giggled exquisitely when I said, "... shiki shiki soku ze ku ku soku ze." We went over all the new words we used to celebrate Buddha's enlightenment: Zafu, zazen, Bodhi, gassho, mudra. Anticipated that their Dad would be pretty impressed when they spoke to him in Japanese. Sated with satisfaction at our bows and sitting and chanting, we tromped into the kitchen for green tea served in the tiny Japanese tea set I brought back from Yokosuka long ago. We ate warm pumpkin bread with it. Then I gave Grace, Reece and Clark a Buddha statue to remember our day - one each from a three-piece set I had purchased on a teaching trip to Okinawa. We allocated Buddha names to each one: Ho-Tei, Dogen, and Sidd. They were impressively gracious receivers.

Alone, I have been bowing, sitting, chanting and drinking tea every day for over 10 months. Sharing my practice was immensely special. This was the best Bodhia Day EVER. Being part of a Sangha rocks. Especially when it's comprised of Three Little Buddhas. Resplendent in their Buddha nature. Gassho, Clark, Reece, and Grace. Happy Rohatsu!

Gassho,
CycleBuddhaDoc