SURRENDER AND A LOTUS

ABSTRACT

In "Surrender and a Lotus" I pay homage to my Buddhist teacher , Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh. Before leaving for India in 1996 to study and teach meditation, at the last moment I picked up his book of meditations, The Blooming of a Lotus, and placed it in my backpack. In December of that year I became terribly ill in India. My companion for this passage with death was Master Hanh’s book of meditations. To this day I am still astonished by the calmness and lack of fear. I include a number of diary entries, written in a small ashram in Mumbai, and hope that I can find a similar equanimity for death’s next visit. This was also a time for concepts and perceptions to shatter, and I felt a depth not previously known. This is something I remember and call upon, when perceptions and judgements crowd into my consciousness.