Love of Life
I just read a charming little book (36 pages) by Eido Michael Luetchford called Introduction to Buddhism and the practice of Zazen, published in 2022. The book conveys the teaching of the author’s Zen master, Gudo Nishijima Roshi.
The book put me in mind of my own introduction to zazen, which occurred when I read Suzuki Roshi’s Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind in 1972. In that year, following Roshi’s simple and clear instructions in Part 1 of the book, I began zazen practice. Allowing for an hiatus of 15 years in which I followed Sufi spiritual practices exclusively, to date (2026) I have practiced zazen for about 40 years. That’s not all that long for a person my age, 86, but I began late in life. I continue to practice.
As a result of practice, a very stirring condition has arisen in me, which is well expressed in the aforementioned book by Luetchford. He says that the Buddha experienced that “the whole universe is splendid just as it is” (p. 6).
This is to say that Buddha nature pervades the whole of existence, which includes our own lives. I am profoundly grateful that this condition has come into my own experience. Whether at any time I feel happy or sad, a basic affirmation and love of life never leave me.