Rinzai ji Puns

This can probably be thought of as a general, how to choose between different Zen centers question, but I mentioned the lineages here just so if anyone happens to have any experiences with/opinions about either, I'm happy to hear those as well. tl;dr: I'm including a bit of detail on my background and how I've felt about each place so far below, but, feel free to skip most of that if you have some general advice on having options, and figuring out what feels best when you're at the beginning of the path and differences are not so clear.

A bit of background: I've been fairly seriously interested in the Buddhadharma for the last year and a half or so, maybe a bit longer. I've done a lot of reading on my own and across a lot of different traditions. I had just started to explore different options I had for finding a sangha at the start of last year, and of course when the pandemic hit, everything closed down. There were some online options, but it wasn't quite the same. I should also mention I live in a major metro area, so there are a lot of options around here, both across traditions, but even under the Zen umbrella, there are a lot of sanghas who meet.

I've gone to some places and immediately felt like there wasn't a connection. I know first impressions aren't always everything, but since there are some places I have felt a more immediate connection to, I'm focusing in on those. And those that I have felt a connection to are a Zen Center in the Kapleau/Rochester lineage and a Rinzai temple. I got turned onto Rinzai by Meido Moore's book, and was sort of delighted to find that a temple in his lineage was nearby.

What I have trouble with is that the practice for beginners at each of these places looks very similar. There's an emphasis on posture, like I think there is at most places, and initial practice is breath counting. One thing worth mentioning is that the Kapleau center has been meeting in person, whereas the Rinzai temple is still online. So I've been able to actually go to dokusan in person, but not receive any personal instruction/sanzen, outside of an initial introduction to practice, at the other temple.

Given that things look fairly similar, I'm not sure what I should be considering in thinking about where I want to start committing more of my time. I like the yogic nature of Rinzai Zen. There's definitely a focus on posture at both places, but I appreciate the extent to which Zen truly feels like a full body experience in that traditio

It is a Rinzai centre that was founded in 1979. Their main teacher was the Venerable Myokyo-ni, who trained for 12 years at Daitoku-ji under Sesso Roshi and Sojun Kannon Roshi.

https://rinzaizencentre.org.uk/about-us/

I don't want to step on anybody's toes here, but the amount of non-dad jokes here in this subreddit really annoys me. First of all, dad jokes CAN be NSFW, it clearly says so in the sub rules. Secondly, it doesn't automatically make it a dad joke if it's from a conversation between you and your child. Most importantly, the jokes that your CHILDREN tell YOU are not dad jokes. The point of a dad joke is that it's so cheesy only a dad who's trying to be funny would make such a joke. That's it. They are stupid plays on words, lame puns and so on. There has to be a clever pun or wordplay for it to be considered a dad joke.

Again, to all the fellow dads, I apologise if I'm sounding too harsh. But I just needed to get it off my chest.

Do your worst!

>In essence, Protestant Buddhism is a form of Buddhist revival which denies that only through the Sangha can one seek or find salvation. (source)

Orthodox Buddhism, especially Theravadan, holds that only within the Sangha (that of the ordained monks) can Buddhism be taught. The orthodoxy does recognize the existence pratyekabuddha yet denies that such Buddha is Sangha or is able to teach.

Japanese Zen, an Orthodox Buddhist sect much in the shape of the old Catholic church, views that only the 'Zen Priest' is Sangha, and only their priest can attain enlightenment and teach. Those apostates that teach Buddhism and Zen outside of the church are viewed as 'disloyal' to be not only disassociated from, the Laymen are encouraged to shun the disloyal.

Buddhism never had a Protestant reformation, there is no equivalent to Martin Luther though some may point to the Chinese monk LinJi (Rinzai) and his "Man of no position" rebellion as a type of Protestantism. Whatever LinJi intentions were at the time are now moot, whereas his lineage marched right back into the orthodoxy that LinJi rebelled against.

To the Asian Buddhist Churches, Protestantism is a foreign view and most unwelcomed. Tibetans hold to a Religious royalty in where leadership and succession an oligarchy that simply declares a child to be a 'Reincarnated teacher or emanation of a diety' and brings those children inside their church to be indoctrinated into their ways and customs.

Therevada is instant that only the bhikkhu (A ordained male) can be a Sangha member, and all others are Laymen who serve the bhikkhu. In Theravada, only the bhikkhu can teach Buddhism and speak Dharma, for laymen to do such would be seen as heretical and blasphemous.

In the Zen sects, the adoption of the 'Holy Lineages' in where oaths of obedience and loyalty to the sect are held sacred that are made by the Preist who demonstrate loyalty to the sect, and it is viewed that only those priests are Sangha, and only they can teach Zen/Buddhism and speak Dharma, and view laymen in the same way as Theravada.

Buddhism coming to the west was not prepared for the Protestant mindset of the modern westerner. The publication of sutras and zen text in English, which once were only found in the sect temples and accessible only at the pleasure of the priest, has accelerated a Protestant view of zen mu

I'm surprised it hasn't decade.

For context I'm a Refuse Driver (Garbage man) & today I was on food waste. After I'd tipped I was checking the wagon for any defects when I spotted a lone pea balanced on the lifts.

I said "hey look, an escaPEA"

No one near me but it didn't half make me laugh for a good hour or so!

Edit: I can't believe how much this has blown up. Thank you everyone I've had a blast reading through the replies 😂

It really does, I swear!

Buenosdillas

They’re on standbi

Pilot on me!!

Dad jokes are supposed to be jokes you can tell a kid and they will understand it and find it funny.

This sub is mostly just NSFW puns now.

If it needs a NSFW tag it's not a dad joke. There should just be a NSFW puns subreddit for that.

Edit* I'm not replying any longer and turning off notifications but to all those that say "no one cares", there sure are a lot of you arguing about it. Maybe I'm wrong but you people don't need to be rude about it. If you really don't care, don't comment.

When I got home, they were still there.

What did 0 say to 8 ?

" Nice Belt "

So What did 3 say to 8 ?

" Hey, you two stop making out "

I won't be doing that today!

[Removed]

You take away their little brooms

This morning, my 4 year old daughter.

Daughter: I'm hungry

Me: nerves building, smile widening

Me: Hi hungry, I'm dad.

She had no idea what was going on but I finally did it.

Thank you all for listening.

There hasn't been a post all year!

Why

It’s pronounced “Noel.”

After all his first name is No-vac

What, then, is Chinese rap?

Edit:

Notable mentions from the comments:

• Spanish/Swedish/Swiss/Serbian hits

• French/Finnish art

• Country/Canadian rap

• Chinese/Country/Canadian rock

• Turkish/Tunisian/Taiwanese rap

There hasn't been a single post this year!

(Happy 2022 from New Zealand)

Nothing, it just waved

Him: I can explain everything!

(It's his best joke yet I think)

It is a Rinzai centre that was founded in 1979. Their main teacher was the Venerable Myokyo-ni, who trained for 12 years at Daitoku-ji under Sesso Roshi and Sojun Kannon Roshi.

https://rinzaizencentre.org.uk/about-us/