New Chan Forum 37

Rethinking

The state of Britain certainly needs rethinking. The feral teenagers armed with guns and knives, some freely murdering those who object, the vulgarity of binge drinking, the vomit in our streets, the riotous prisons, the lack of respect for race, sex or age on trains and buses – these things are not common elsewhere – although other continental countries have their own problems. We need to rethink and force a rethink among the unthinking. But how? Depressive pontificating, moaning or gnashing of teeth gets us nowhere. It is sit down cogitation that is needed with both mind and heart. We can only begin in our known places. This edition of NCF includes some rethinks and some further thinks. As we continue to develop with an expanding network of small groups we will necessarily gain a larger footprint. We need to consider what print that is to be. In their own way each of our contributors has a message to offer whether as lecture, talk, pilgrimage, meditation, poetry or humour.

Chuan-Deng Jing-di

Contents

• Rethinking Self, John Crook.
• Silent Illumination, Simon Child.
• A Holy Laugh, Sasha.
• A Pilgrim’s Report, Eddy Street.
• Two Crows, Jane Spray.
• Chan Practice in Precious Wood, Eric Johns.
• Mametz Wood, John Crook.
• Let Me Be, Ken Jones.
• Using the Buddhadharma to Help Ease Addictions, Anon.
• The Pales, Marian Partington.
• Retreat Reports.
• Notices.