Flowers of Mourning With so many deaths in the Middle East and now in Europe too, and more being planned as the clamour for military action grows, this is a time for mourning and for flowers, not just in Paris, but also in Beirut, in Baghdad, in Kabul and everywhere where this carnage spreads. Around us, here in Europe, we can sense the fear. The fear is not…

We Need Restraint Not More Bombs

We are all dismayed by the events in Paris. Yet, have we been equally dismayed by the daily events in the Middle East where our own governments are dropping bombs? I am deeply sympathetic to the French people affected by the recent violence. I am deeply sympathetic to the people in Syria, in Iraq, in Afghanistan and in the whole Middle East Region. I understand why there is hatred. I understand why people want to kill. However, killing…

David and I were talking in the car during our 12 hours traveling to Spain. As David has written (see Eleusis Daily) we talked about lots of things.

I told David how I am looking forward to meeting the people of the Amida Sangha. I still feel a deep connection with my own sangha in Den Bosch, in Holland, but I do want to be involved in the Amida Sanga and the Amida order.…

In the corner of the ‘sun-trap-field you will find the entire universe…

Look at that!

Dragonfly and Blackthorn,

blue sky and butterfly,

greenhills and yellow flowers,

what a treasures in november...

White clouds and forest lining the horizon, endless view covered with a blue cupola…

What a grace in november……

My last blog post was back at the beginning of this year. A lot has happened, and yet, in a way, nothing has happened. Life here has a timeless quality. One can feel as if in suspended animation. Every day there is something to do - many things. Yet nothing is pressing. It is a wonderful life in that respect. A change of occupation is always possible. I have somewhat settled…

One week at Eleusis

A week at Eleusis… it was quite an experience! I came by train and arrived rather late at the station in St. Amand Montrond Orval. David picked me up at the station and drove me to the house. We drank a cup of tea and then I went to to bed. So, basically, my time at Eleusis started with the morning meditation.

The morning meditation was impressive for me. The meditation I am used to is zen, so I was not familiar with chants and a lot of recitation. I…

The last couple of years I have done a lot of travelling. A few things still got done at La Ville au Roi, most notably the laying of a paving base and putting upon it of a wooden building to use as a store and workshop. This year I shall travel rather less and be here a bit more and it should be possible to get more done as a result. It is a rather wonderful prospect. I love to be here whether in solitude or with companions. the place is magical if somewhat primitive, or is so perhaps, in…

First blossoms of the year and the bees are busy already.…

Here at Eleusis there is a long term project for the improvement of some of the old buildings. In order to renovate the big barn there needs to be somewhere to store all the things that have been kept there up to now. After some research a flat pack building was obtained from Leroy Merlin, a big DIY supplier here in France. It arrived on a huge palette all wrapped up in plastic.…

It is good to be back in the profound silence of Eleusis. Somehow the silence here is deep, thick, primeval, connecting one with the chthonic bedrock of being. One can experience how it was that the ancients were in awe not just of the sky and the earth, but of an underworld more powerful that what is seen above. The ancient Greeks made offerings to gods above and below. We hear plenty about the sky gods in myth, and to them sacrifice was made on a high altar with fire, but the gods below…

Back in Spain, I am realising of the powerful energy of Eleusis, its rythm, its sangha, its spaces, its people... I really think that it is a good place to be for a while. In a short period of time it has triggered many interesting processes in me. Not only this; it has also given a frame of respect and support; it has let those personal processes evolve with their own pace.

I am very thanked to the kindness and generosity to each and everyone that I have met here. Specially the…

I am in the Basque country in north central Spain. We have just completed a four day retreat. This has been a success in that the ethos and atmosphere of our spiritual community became apparent and alive in this group who were all new to it. What matters is not so much that people understand a set of theories as that the ethos comes alive for them and this happened here. This weekend I shall be leading a Buddhist psychology workshop and in the next days will travel to Galicia.

Thank you all Dharma companions for these lovely and insightful days. I am sad because of your departure. But I also feel that each space created by each of you will last for long time. May we all remember our morning service "Strive diligently! Attain Nirvana!". Namo Amida Bu. Homage to him, the Blessed One, the Worthy One, the Fully-Enlightened One.

Here at Eleusis we have a wonderful community feeling at present. With fourteen people we are about at our capacity. In this case we are four women and ten men. We have had a workshop on Zen Therapy and now one on being a spiritual teacher. We have got quite a lot of physical work done and the place is looking good. The weather was kind to us with pretty continuous hot sunshine until a couple of days ago. Now it is maild and damp. No doubt the sun will be back soon. 

Sentarse en zazen y que un minuto después comience a sonar una melodía inesperada de shakuhachi real... ¿qué más puede uno pedir?
Sorpresas de Eleusis/ITZI

To sit in zazen and just one minute after a real shakuhachi melody starts... what else can one expect?
Unexpected surprises in Eleusis/ITZI

Hola amig@s:

Hace nueve días llegué a Eleusis. Tras un par de días de trabajo para preparar el templo para los talleres venideros, hemos pasado cuatro días realizando un taller de Terapia Zen. Para mí este tiempo, aunque ha sido corto, hasta ahora ha sido muy intenso. De hecho estoy un poco 'puzzled' porque se han despertado rápidamente en mi procesos que en otras ocasiones han tardado mucho más tiempo.

A nivel humano, el ambiente es incomparable. La calidez y proximidad de…