Practice and Sangha

Six months ago our zendo moved from downtown into our new space here on the Upper West Side. Since then we have had the opportunity to increase our schedule of zazen and as a result of that and our new more populated environment, more students have been coming to our zendo. Of course some just come once and that's fine, but many have become new students and attend our sittings consistently. As a result we have quite a group here compared to what we once were and I feel we have the beginnings of a real Sangha.
The sangha is our community united in our practice of Buddhism. The sangha is one of our Three Treasures along with the Buddha and the Dharma. All Buddhists take refuge in these. What's the nature of our community in our lives? Are we just a bunch of people that see each other occasionally or every week? Today I want to talk about our sangha and what it means in a personal and a larger context.
Our practice is a very personal experience. Everyone has unique reasons for being here, reasons large and small, some clearly defined, some painful and some for reasons they can't easily explain other than they enjoy the practice and the discipline. We are people from all walks of life, different ethnic and educational backgrounds, different economic backgrounds and of all ages. So it's easy for us to look around and see each other as all different and "not like me." That's when I think we practice "alone, together."
It's an interesting thought, how to reconcile the personal experience of zazen and the physical experience of coming here to sit next to one another motionless and in silence. Here on our cushions we try to label our thoughts or watch our breathing and of course, we sit and think. Thinking on our cushions is inevitable, this is what humans do, but the reason that we practice returning to labeling our thoughts is to bring us back to the present, the here and now. The content is not that important. Being alone Ð at least for me Ð is being alone with my thoughts and lost in their content. Practicing together is sitting fully conscious of the facts of our bodies, the sounds in the room, the temperature of the room and the presence of each other next to us. One experience separates us the other connects us. It is the later I think that makes for the beginnings of a sangha.
I don't mean that everyone has to be practicing with the same ferocity or with the same intention. But what we do here can be an incredibly intimate, shared experience and this is what draws us closer. This is where the true beginnings of compassion are born and the true beginnings of a strong community are formed.
We don't have to like each other. I'm sure we all have our favorites and the ones we can't stand and the ones we wonder about. This is the experience of people in groups. Some people talk too much, some people are self-centered, and some never pay their dues on time. And then we realize that we also, are someone else's irritant, making life miserable for them for a little while. As Barry would say "we have met the enemy and he is us!" All of these expectations of right behavior are points for our practice. It's easy to get caught up in the behaviors we think "should be" and "ought to be." But these thoughts separate us and have more to do with our own lives than those of whom we judge. I'm not saying that we all have to love each other or anything like that. But noticing the patterns of our irritation can be insightful. What's important is always an honest response with the acknowledgement of our own behavior. This is the beginning of compassion, starting with the self.
So our sangha for me is something wonderful. I have never thought of myself as a "group" person. Basically I don't like groups. But I love our sangha. I learn from everyone. And each person I know helps me in my practice. And practice is my life. On some level I believe that we are all here in this world to help take care of one another. We are given the chance to exercise that, beginning with each other here in our own community. Then the world.

Catherine Newman
14 June 2003

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