Based on a talk given by Rev. angel Kyodo Williams on February 9, 2006, at the Center for Urban Peace/New Dharma Meditation Center in Oakland, California.

Tao Te Ching, Chapter 35

She who is centered in the Way can go where she wishes, without danger. She perceives the universal harmony, even amid great pain, because she has found peace in her heart. Music and the smell of good cooking may make people stop and enjoy. But words that point to the Way seem monotonous and without flavor. When you look for it, there is nothing to see. When you listen to it, there is nothing to hear. When you use it, it is inexhaustible. –translated by Stephen Mitchell

Last week we began to talk about catvari aryasatyani, the Four Noble Truths. That’s the Sanskrit word for them. And so…this is like watching a television show that’s a series: Last week at New Dharma we talked about the fact that the Four Noble Truths were the first teaching that the historic Buddha, Gautama, expounded.

Read the full essay here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1uVyLOL5AkBpHKsv5RkBpbFZxILmSm2txOqbhq6AD3Ek/edit?ts=59f69943