Wisdom Sword Goldsboro Buddhist Sangha

02/27/2026

Dhammapada 1:21

"Heedfulness is the path to the Deathless. Heedlessness is the path to death. The heedful die not. The heedless are as if dead already. "

21. Heedfulness is the path to the Deathless. Heedlessness is the path to death. The heedful die not. The heedless are as if dead already. [3]

02/25/2026

Dhammapada 1:20

"Little though he recites the sacred texts, but puts the Teaching into practice, forsaking lust, hatred, and delusion, with true wisdom and emancipated mind, clinging to nothing of this or any other world — he indeed partakes of the blessings of a holy life."

1. Mind precedes all mental states. Mind is their chief; they are all mind-wrought. If with an impure mind a person speaks or acts suffering follows him like the wheel that follows the foot of the ox.

02/22/2026

Dhammapada 1:19

Much though he recites the sacred texts, but acts not accordingly, that heedless man is like a cowherd who only counts the cows of others — he does not partake of the blessings of the holy life.

1. Mind precedes all mental states. Mind is their chief; they are all mind-wrought. If with an impure mind a person speaks or acts suffering follows him like the wheel that follows the foot of the ox.

02/20/2026

Dhammapada 1:18

The doer of good delights here and hereafter; he delights in both the worlds. The thought, "Good have I done," delights him, and he delights even more when gone to realms of bliss.

Yamakavagga: Pairs

1. Mind precedes all mental states. Mind is their chief; they are all mind-wrought. If with an impure mind a person speaks or acts suffering follows him like the wheel that follows the foot of the ox.

02/19/2026

Happy Year of the Fire Horse!

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01/26/2026

Are you having trouble with the difficulties of life and not sure what to do?  Or are you simply interested in learning more about Buddhism?  Do you live in the Raleigh-Durham, NC area?

01/16/2026

The monks doing the Walk for Peace have entered North Carolina and are currently near Concord. They will be passing through Raleigh somewhere around the 24th. The NC Zen Center and the Daybreak Oneness Sangha are both looking at planning some events when we become more sure of the time and we may go join in depending on the schedule.

This Live Map is for seeing the exact route and stop locations for today.This map is updated in every 15-60 minutes. It only shows the approximate location of the journey. The best spots to visit us are at the stop locations (at lunch and night rest).

01/03/2026

“In this world we walk on the roof of hell, gazing at flowers.”
— Ikkyū Sōjun

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12/08/2025

Happy Bodhi Day!

HAPPY BODHI DAY!!!!

Bodhi Day Poem
Chris Kakuyo Sensei of the
The Salt Lake Buddhist Fellowship

After many teachers
and six years
in deep reflection
and ascetic practice

that brought you
to the point of death
sitting under the Bodhi
tree you realized

you knew nothing

which opened the door
to your awakening.
Beneath that same tree,
you turned the arrows

of suffering, doubt,
fear and expectation
into flowers, that rained
at your feet. Thank you

Awakened One.

At the very heart
of the Buddha Way
is the promise of

awakening.
The boundless vow,
the bright flame
of Buddha Nature

and the luminous
dharma. In response
to your awakening,

we pass your light
from one to another,
the past reaching
far into the future,

encouraging all
to take part
in the improbable
tender awakening

of our world.

We now light
our candles as
a symbol of passing
the light and promise

of awakening
from the Buddha
to each of us.
”A thousand candles

can be lit from the flame
of one candle, and the life
of the candle will not be shortened.
Let us now come out

of the darkness of our
unknowing and the dusk
of our dreaming, come out
from far places and go forth

into the Bright Dawn of our awakening.

Let us all now come
together. Offering
heart, mind,
and body.

Seeking the clear light
of understanding. Seeking

the way of the Buddha.
May the light of our joining
flames kindle our resolve,
brighten our spirits, reflect

our love,
and unshadow our days.
Come we now, together entering
into the brightening dawn.

08/05/2025

Dogen's Instructions on Zazen:

"The study of Zen means the practice of zazen.
‘To practice zazen choose a quiet place that is neither draughty or damp, and use a thick mat.
[Since we are using the same sitting posture as Shakyamuni when he received enlightenment] think of the place where you sit as the “Diamond Seat.”
Some monks practice on large stones while others follow [the seven Buddhas] by practicing zazen on a mat of wild grasses.
The place for zazen should not be too dark but kept moderately bright day and night. It should be kept warm in winter and cool in summer. Keep the body and mind at rest - cut off all mental activity.
Do not think about time or circumstances, nor cling to good or bad thoughts. Zazen is not self-consciousness or self-contemplation.
Never try to become a Buddha.
Detach yourself from notions of lying or sitting. Eat and drink moderately. Do not waste time. Pay attention to your own practice of zazen.
learn from the example of the fifth Patriarch Kōnin of Mt. Ōbai. All of his actions, everyday, were the practice of zazen.
When your practice zazen wear a kesa and use a small round cushion. Do not sit on the middle of the cushion but place the front part under your buttocks.
Cross your legs and put them on the mat. The cushion should be touching the base of your spine. This is the basic posture that has been handed down from Buddha to Buddha, Patriarch to Patriarch.
Use either the full or half lotus posture. In the full lotus, the right foot is placed the left thigh and the left foot on the right thigh. Keep your legs horizontal, and your back perfectly straight. In the half lotus the left foot is placed on the right thigh and the right foot is tucked underneath the left thigh.
Loosen your robe and straighten up. Right hand on left foot, left hand on right foot. The thumbs should be straight and touching lightly. Both hands should be against your abdomen.
The top of your thumbs should be kept even with the navel. Remember to keep your back straight at all times. Do not lean to the right no left, or front or back. Keep your ears even with your shoulder. Likewise the nose and the navel should be in the same plane.
Place the tongue against the roof of your mouth. Breath through your nose and keep your teeth and lips together. The eyes should be kept open in their natural way. When you begin, adjust your body and mind by taking a deep breath.
The form of your zazen should be stable like a mountain. Think “not-thinking.” How? By using “non-thinking.”
This is the splendid way of zazen. Zazen is not the means to enlightenment, zazen itself is the completed action of the Buddha.
Zazen itself is pure, natural enlightenment."
This was delivered to the monks of Kippōji in November of 1243
Shōbōgenzō (The Eye and Treasury of the True Law) by Dōgen Zenji, tr. Kōsen Nishiyama and John Stevens, pub. Nakayama Shobo Japan.
Extract | The Eye and Treasury of the True Law by Dōgen Zenji : Book Extracts — The Zen Gateway

Zen Master Dōgen Zenji on the correct form and practice for sitting Zazen (meditation).

07/20/2025

In 1907, deep within a forgotten cave in China, the oldest known printed book in history was uncovered. Known as the Diamond Sutra, this remarkable scroll was dated to May 11, 868 AD, more than 600 years before Gutenberg’s printing press revolutionised Europe. The book was discovered in the Mogao Caves near Dunhuang, a sacred complex along the Silk Road filled with thousands of Buddhist manuscripts, paintings, and sculptures.

British-Hungarian explorer Aurel Stein opened a sealed chamber known as the Library Cave and found thousands of handwritten scrolls. But one stood out. Unlike the others, it was not copied by hand, it had been printed. Over 16 feet long, the Diamond Sutra had been produced using woodblock printing, complete with intricate carvings, precise text alignment, and an ornate frontispiece showing the Buddha teaching his disciples.

Commissioned by a man named Wang Jie in honour of his parents, this sacred offering was more than a book, it was a spiritual monument. Its teachings focus on impermanence, ego, and the illusion of material reality, making its discovery all the more profound. A text meant to dissolve the self remained perfectly intact for over a thousand years.

The cave had preserved it flawlessly. No moisture, no light, and no disturbance for centuries. While empires fell and languages disappeared, this scroll endured, sealed in silence and time.

Today, the Diamond Sutra is housed in the British Library, where it continues to inspire historians, scholars, and spiritual seekers. Every detail, from the woodblock carving to the fine paper folds, can be viewed online, a bridge between ancient wisdom and the digital age.

Fun Fact
The Diamond Sutra is the earliest known printed book with a specific date, making it a milestone in human history.

Follow PreHistoric World for more fascinating discoveries that show how the ancient past still speaks to us today.

06/11/2025

Happy Saka Dawa!

Saka Dawa, Duchen which occurs this year on June 11, is one of the four great holy days of the Tibetan calendar, each of which celebrates an anniversary of Shakyamuni Buddha’s display of extraordinary powerful deeds