Death’s Tiny Tea House – An Open Discussion

Date: February 21, 2024

Time: Wednesday, February 21, 2024, 7 pm - 9 pm

Location: Heart of Wisdom Zen Temple

Address: 6401 Northeast 10th Avenue, Portland, OR, USA

Email us about program

Death’s Tiny Tea House – An Open Discussion

February 21, 2024

Wednesday, February 21, 2024, 7 pm - 9 pm

“I am of the nature to die,
       there is no way to escape death.

“All that is dear to me and everyone I love
are of the nature of change;
      there is no way to escape
             being separated from them.”

–The Five Remembrances

The Buddha’s teachings on impermanence and death are fundamental: “I am of the nature to die . . .” And, at the same time, we live and practice in a culture that generally discourages discussion of dying, death, and grief.

Frank Ostaseski, cofounder of the Zen Hospice Project, writes:

“We cannot be truly alive without maintaining an awareness of death. Death
is not waiting for us at the end of a long road. Death is always with us, in the
marrow of each passing moment. She is the secret teacher hiding in plain
sight. She helps us to discover what matters most. And the good news is we
don’t have to wait until the end of our lives to realize the wisdom that death
has to offer.”

Death’s Tiny Tea House will provide the community an opportunity for an open conversation about death and related topics with no agenda, objectives, or themes. The conversation will be gently facilitated by ZCO member David Seikan Snyder. We hope that the discussion will embrace our personal questions, confusions, and fears. And, as a Zen Buddhist community, we anticipate that the discussion could also touch on our practice and the Buddha’s teachings.

Each Tea House will open with a short period of Zazen. We will introduce ourselves and explain what brought us to the Tiny Tea House. After that, we will just allow the discussion to flow. At the end of the Tea House everyone will have an opportunity to express how they are feeling or anything that is on their mind and heart.

Tea and cake will be served. Questions? Email thayandi@live.com.

Price: Free/by donationSpecify any amount; $20 suggested donation

 

 

Photo Credit: “Laughing in the Face of Ignorance,” drawing by Tashi Mannox