Music

Given there's a number of new people listening tonight that are here just to say that tonight's talk is a little different than what we normally do because it's

going to be directly focused on how we speak with each other in the world and I find that spiritual practice is often compartmentalized.

And we think of spiritual practices when we're on our meditation cushions or at a class or on the top of a mountain in reverie or whatever but these special circumstances.

And yet huge sloths of our day are in what we might call very ordinary mode of at work talking with colleagues with our children or partner talking and negotiating life circumstances or doing errands or whatever.

And unless we can find a way to bring a wakeful quality of heart and mind and infuse it into what we think of as the ordinary moments.

Most of our life is that big in between zone that ends up being vacant and there's not a integration or maturity to our waking up.

So we'll explore those moments when we're speaking with each other tonight and I could spend a year on this and we could just keep on exploring it and I'll say to start that if you did nothing else for a long time but bring a real dedicated attention to how you speak with other people, you'd find it profoundly liberating.

Really free.

There's a story of a big tough samurai who goes to see a monk and he says in a voice accustomed to obedience, instant obedience.

He said, monk, teach me about heaven and hell.

And the monk looked at this mighty warrior and replied with utter disdain, teach you about heaven and hell.

He says, I couldn't teach you about anything. You're dirty and you smell and your blade is rusty.

You're disgraced in an embarrassment of the samurai class. Get out of my sight. I can't stand you.

So the samurai is furious and he's shaking and getting all red in the face and speechless with rage.

So he pulls out his sword and raises it above and preparing to slay the monk.

That's hell, the monk says softly.

The samurai is overwhelmed with the compassionate surrender of this little man who's offered his life to give him this teaching.

He's almost given himself for that.

And he's so overwhelmed that he puts his sword down, he's filled with gratitude, he's suddenly peaceful.

And that's heaven, the monk said softly.

How we relate to each other can either bring an experience of heaven, of freedom, of this loving

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