mendel

On the subject of Albert Low and To Know Yourself, a couple of things I wrote down while reading today, both from the chapter in which he explains why he recommends his students, especially those with Christian upbringings, read St John of the Cross's Dark Night of the Soul.

First,

One of the questions frequently asked is, Why does it take so long to come to awakening? The answer is very simple: we want something else more than we want awakening.

And,

In Zen practice a first crucial point is reached when we realize that no experience of any kind is going to give the kind of satisfaction that we crave so deeply.

I wish I hadn't passed up the opportunity to study with Roshi Low when I first encountered Zen.