Zen Center

When I was in high school I had a one trimester World Religions course. It was rather similar to this one but not as in depth and unfortunately a lot of the information I learned was not retained. However, one thing I do remember, and think about often, is something a practicing Buddhist said while visiting my class. She was a women who had converted from Catholicism to Buddhism and was going through the steps to be a leader in the faith. When asked about her conversion, and the fact that her family is still Catholic (I think she even said her brother was a priest.) She said that she has found many similarities between the two religions. These similarities and the fact that she had such a strong base in simply believing in a religion are part of the reason she found it so easy to accept Buddhism. I always found this very interesting, especially during periods when I've considered if Catholicism is the right religion for me. I really feel like that observation by her captures a lot about 'different' religions. Now to tie that in with our field trips...
When we went to the Hindu temple we got to participate in a blessing with no concerns about what we believed. We went to the Buddhist Zen Center for the purpose of experiencing meditation which is one of the core things in Buddhism. Both places were more than willing to share with and welcome us. I personally found it very easy to participate at both places and I am a practicing Catholic. There are obviously differences between Catholicism, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, and Buddhism and yet I feel as if they can all be tied together in one way or another. The women who spoke to my class about her conversion gave a very good example of how closely tied aspects of these religions can be.
Now, more on my experience at the Zen center...
Like all of our field trips I was really looking forward to this one. I have always thought meditation would be interesting to get into but have not previously had an opportunity to try it. I am very interested in the connection of meditation with the Buddhist faith. It was also nice that the community in Madison was so welcoming and eager for us to be there with them.
The actual meditation was not exactly what I thought it'd be like but I definitely learned a lot. It was also nice having read The Empty Mirror, it gave me something to compare my experience to. Although we only meditated for ten minutes I realized within the first minute how hard it is and how much 'practice' it would take to experience it more fully.
I really hope that I have the opportunity to learn more about meditation and other things connected with Buddhism. I really enjoyed this field trip!