The Koan of Aging: Withered Trees and Spring Breezes
Everyone experiences natural phenomena of aging in life - physical aging, changes in seasons and other natural phenomena, relationships that run their course. How do we relate with the reality of change, of decline and decay? Often we feel loss, including loss of identity or sense of self when physical capacities diminish. The sorrows of life run deep. And yet our Zen practice shows us that everything is empty. Can we let go of preconceived notions while living with change, and trust life as it is, including aging, sickness, and death? What happens to our experience of life if we view each moment as complete in itself, free from any comparisons to other states?
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