If you do, you can.

If you don’t, you can’t.

When you say you can’t do what can be done,

It means you haven’t set out to do it.

—Junkyo Oishi (1888-1968)

Pulling from Zen Seeds, Shundo Aoyama Rōshi’s timeless book on life and practice, Koshin Sensei shares the story of Junkyo Oishi, otherwise known as the “handless geisha” or the “mother of the disabled”. As Koshin explains and the poem above exemplifies, she did not allow the tragedy that befell her (losing her hands and her livelihood at the age of 19) to define her. Tune in to hear the incredible life of this resilient poet. 

ZENTALK NOTES

Sensei Koshin Paley Ellison, MFA, LMSW, DMIN, is an author, Zen teacher, Jungian psychotherapist, and Certified Chaplaincy Educator. Koshin co-founded the New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.

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Heart Sutra by Kanho Yakushiji –  Buddhist priest and musician of the Rinzai sect and Imaji temple in Imabari, Japan. In 2003, he formed “KISSAQUO”, a songwriting duo based in Kyoto.

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The post Do Not Let Your Heart Be Crippled | Koshin Paley Ellison appeared first on New York Zen Center for Contemplative Care.