Adventures in Church: The 'Fasting' Day

Enormous golden Buddha on the Buddhist island of Sri Lanka

Meditation hall, Los Angeles Buddhist Vihara's Mindfulness Meditation Center (facebook.com)

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Foodie Anthony Bourdain traveled to Sri Lanka

In post-religious America, there's finally freedom from religion. Good riddance. But it doesn't change the fact that we are starved for spirituality, a deeper understanding of this reality, and liberation from the mundane.

Life has to mean something, right? It's not a carousel to get on and off of, suffer, and all for what.

Knowing that there is more, sure that spirituality is real with no easy way to access the real thing, we're searching.

It's a monthly lunar observance

And if church was all a big joke (coming from patriarchal bombast, high doses of hypocrisy, Catholicism, Protestantism, rigidity, and offensive, regressive bull chips), it did nevertheless provide some much-needed things for Americans: community, participation, identity, meaning, culture, friendship, and the like. What will take its place?

Buddhism provides Sangha (a spiritual community), mindfulness, meditation, yoga (an adjunct tradition), calm, relaxation, insight, and the hope of enlightenment and liberation. To get it all, we have a good time bouncing between Buddhist temples and meditation centers, Quaker Friends Meeting House and Universalist Unitarianism. Anyone who thinks Christians are all bad would be surprised how liberal, open minded, welcoming, and unpretentious some Sunday services are.

Buddhist temples remain awfully culture-specific, serving an ethnic community more than the general public. Universalists are nice, so much so that many traditional Christians would be outraged. In Pasadena, for example, we joined the Wiccan choir. Were we pagans, were we freethinkers, were we labelled at all? It was great to sing in unison at Neighborhood Church, a UU school and chapel with more than one Buddhist group meeting there. There were social justice groups and lots of families... We didn't know an organization calling itself a "church" could be like this.

THE QUAKERS

We're actually Mennonite Amish, not Quakers

Friends, as Quakers call one another, are the biggest surprise. They don't sell oats. They probably don't even eat 'em. That was a stinky marketing campaign by the QO Corporation, stealing the likeness of a group everyone at the time knew as honest and trustworthy. Quakers never made a penny from the campaign or big buckle hat. Quakers have been at the forefront of American progressivism for centuries, opposing slavery and injustice, holding Sunday services in silence rather than preaching. One would never guess. The whole movement needs a PR campaign so we all stop being deceived by appearances and assumptions. The worst thing is they themselves are so reluctant to explain or apply labels.

I would try Jesus Flakes

"Where is the 'quaking'? Does it begin by shaking, a tremble, a tic? Is one slain by faith, falling to one's knees holding a snake and speaking in tongue, the spirit of the Pentecost, the Holy Ghost or Pneuma all up on ya like a sloppy pigeon? Nothing could be further from the truth. And, two, why does the only thing known about this religion have nothing to do with this religion? That Quaker Oats box has to go, or someone should start marketing a Cheerios like box Jesus-Os, where the little grain-based lifesavers swimming in the almond milk are halos: Jesus brand Haley'Os, now with Mother of God land of milk and honey flavored. Wouldn't Christians of the future be p-o'd to have to keep explaining that their religion has nothing to do with an iconic cereal box?

What happened?

Marching in front of the temple grounds at the LA consecration (srilankafoundation.org)

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Today we traveled from Los Angeles proper to the outskirts, the deep suburbs, nearly to the border of the county to get to the Mindfulness Meditation Center of Covina for the Buddhist Sabbath, the Uposatha, or lunar observance day.

We dressed all in white, took the Eight Precepts for the day, got fed a rich diet of island delicacies from Sri Lanka (the teardrop shaped nation off the southern tip of India). This ancient Theravada Buddhist practice was implemented by the historical Buddha, following a long tradition of setting aside a weekly spiritual day of practice.

Twenty-five of us suited up in the traditional garb, sat on backrest meditation seats on the ground with a cushion or little chairs if one prefers.

Everything hard and austere about it is softened. It's torture to sit IF one's mind is torturing one; otherwise, it is quite nice. It is incredibly hot outside, in the 100s, but inside we have AC in a hospital, museum setting, very well-appointed hall with cool stone floors.

It's the "fasting day," we'll starve! It's impossible to starve. First, breakfast gets served. Lunch, with seconds, is at 11:30 am. And to top off the day, there is the English lecture ("Mindfulness of Thoughts") in the Dharma classroom (as listed in the Rains Retreat Schedule) after which dinner is served.

"Fasting" means only eating between dawn and noon. This is the way Buddhist monastics live everyday all their lives. It's a very healthy way to be so long as one avoids processed foods and sweets, which many do not. To do it one day a week is not asking much, and if it is, it's only once a month on the full moon. In yoga, complete fasting is sometimes recommended on the full moon for health reasons. But few in the U.S. follow yoga recommendations beyond the poses. Dinner was served?

One takes the Eight Precepts in the morning and then returns to the Five Precepts at the end of the day about 4:30 pm. So one is no longer restricted in eating. Of course, it would be good to go home, continue the fast, and meditate. But one can stay, as a sutra is being discussed in Sinhalese in the "church" part of the center with pews and the English Dharma talk is taking place in the classroom for meditation. After which, dinner is served and anyone who wore white and spent the day is more than welcome to partake.

• The next English Dharma talk is Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, at 5:00 pm on the topic of "The Embodiment of the Triple Gem and Diving Beings (Buddhanussati, Dhammanussati, Sanghanussati, and Devanussati" with Ven. U Sirinanda, a sharp Theravada monk from Nepal
• The next Uposatha Lunar Retreat Day (free or by donation) is in a month. Contact center for details: Mindfulness Meditation Center - Covina - Los Angeles Buddhist Vihara (Facebook)
• Mindfulness Meditation Center, Covina; Dharma Buddhist Meditation, editors, Wisdom Quarterly