Suddenly today I realized the difference between walking for an hour simply to exercise and walking for an hour meditating on Namu Myo Ho Ren Ge Kyo. They are not the same.
Namu
The left foot steps.
Myo
The right foot.
Ho
The left foot.
Ren
The right foot.
Ge
The left foot.
Kyo
The right foot.
Homage to the Dharma Flower
The left foot.
Wonderful Lotus Sutra
The right foot.
Homage to the Wonderful Dharma Lotus Flower Sutra, again and again and again.
And all the while the mind is quiet, allowing the senses to heighten.
The sounds.
Each step rhythmic, here a crunch of gravel, there the scrap of a leaf, step, step, step. Birds chirp and sing on the left, now the right, nearby, faraway. Cars pass close, the sound rushing closer and then racing away. Distant sounds fade in and out. Aircraft fly overhead.
The smells.
Suburban lawns freshly watered. Rose bushes and honeysuckle. The unscented cool morning air.
The sights.
Dawn’s light peaking over homes and between tree branches. In a yard up ahead, a flower is bathed in a single ray of sunlight while all around is still in shade. The flowers glow as if radiating the light themselves. As I approach I consider pulling out my phone and taking a photo. I don’t. I realize a snapshot of this moment would not be real. The causes and conditions that placed this plant here and the sun there with the trees so arranged just as I walked up mindful of Namu Myo Ho Ren Ge Kyo – what would a photo show?
That moment was perfect and then it was another moment.