What’s in a name?
Bamboo in the Wind is a Zen Practice Sangha led by Rev. Val Szymanski. On Sept.11, 2001 a formal sitting schedule started at the Congregational Community Church. In the face of terrorism on US soil (World Trade Center and Pentagon attacks) we meditated that reason and peace would prevail. For almost eleven years the Sangha practiced weekly at the church in Sunnyvale, CA and for sesshins, at Jikoji Zen Retreat Center in the Santa Cruz mountains. On July 3, 2012, our current zendo opened on Fremont Avenue with a dedication ceremony.
Our Sangha name was directly influenced by Sengai Gibon's (1750-1837) scroll, “Bamboos in the Wind” which contains the poem:
Tigers roar
Hanshan Mountain
The scroll was viewed at the exhibit, 'Zen: Painting and Calligraphy 17th-20th Centuries' at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco, CA some years back. See Dogen's Poem on this website for a background image of the scroll.
The Sangha name incorporates one of the three treasured Chinese symbols, "bamboo", bringing good luck and good fortune. Equally important are other images of strength and flexibility, emptiness inside, a rounded stalk outside, a Zen equivalent to the unseen experience of non-dualism, "emptiness".
Bamboo is a fast growing, renewable resource, a great inspiration for Students of the Way. Symbolically, when the element of wind is added the need for all its characteristics come into play and serves as a metaphor of our lives - responding to the momentary changes that interact in our lives. Just as the leaves and branches let go to wind and are tossed about, so the wind supports bamboo refreshing its leaves and stalks with carbon dioxide to grow.
There are many varieties of bamboo, much like the many kinds of students, each having their own environmental requirements to grow to maturity. Likewise, a Bodhisattva's use of skillful means helps to nourish students to realize ultimate Truth, Suchness, and incorporate practice instructions into daily life. Under positive conditions a bamboo grove will develop and flourish. With practice and a teacher, students can become enlightened in this very lifetime, or the next, or after many kalpas. The important point is practice, being on the path.
In calligraphy, bamboo is considered to contain all the foundational strokes of this Zen art form. It is often included in sumi-e scrolls and Chinese screens communicating a poem.
Bamboo in the Wind embodies these values, welcomes new members, and integrates them into the Sangha. Come and experience the warmth and the compassion of Bodhisattavas on the path.
