Author Archives: Alasdair Gordon-Finlayson

Alasdair Taisen Gordon-Finlayson – Shariputra and the Thicket of Views

(Statue of Shariputra from Mahamevnawa Amawatura Monastery in Kandy, Sri Lanka) Just some reflections on a Saturday morning… I was watching a video about Shariputra – a fascinating video that explores what we know about the man himself, who he studied with before meeting the Buddha, his role in the Buddhist sangha, his enlightenment… and […]

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Keizan Sensei on Youtube…

During his recent trip to Brighton for a Big Mind workshop with Diane Hamilton, Mark Walsh of integrationtraining.co.uk got Sensei to stand still long enough to ask him three questions on video: “What does a British spirituality look like?” “What is Zen?” and even “You’re asked what Buddhism is at a drunken party, how do you respond?” Click through for the answers!

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Earthquake Memorial – Help sought from around the world

The sangha has been contacted by a group in Japan who are creating the “Tohoku Earthquake Memorial Sutra Mound” in memory of the 15,000 confirmed dead and 9,000 missing from the recent earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster.  Keizan Sensei has asked me to make the details available to everyone so that those who wish to participate can do so.  In brief, those who take part will trace out a copy of the Heart Sutra in Japanese kanji script, part of a practice called “shakyo”/copying of sutras.  We will contribute these to the committee, who will then hold a ceremony in which they are recited, and buried on a mountain in Japan.  A memorial will then be erected on this burial mound.  Read of for more details of the project and how to get involved…

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