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The Zen of Visionary Poet and Artist William Blake, and Our Human Potential

Saturday, November 14 · 11am – 1pm ET · For other events, go to this page

There is a deep connection between William Blake's worldview and the worldview of Zen Buddhism. Our human experience of Truth does not belong to only one cultural heritage, geography, or time; it belongs to all human beings and it is our potential to discover for ourselves.

Zen is concerned with finding the original, clear self and expressing our wholeness and energy in everyday life. There are many writings about how to find and live that original, clear self.

In his work, Blake portrayed the human being as ultimately what he called Albion, which represent the original human before our timeless fall from a fully healthy and integrated state of being.

Both Zen and the works of William Blake are pointing to the inner freedom and harmony that we each have in a fundamental way, but that we need to discover for ourselves.

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William Blake portrayed in striking and unique ways his understanding and experience of what our human nature is, and what our potential is. But why should we care about that?

What stands out is the deep connection between William Blake's worldview, and the worldview of Zen Buddhism. What this connection points out is that the truth does not belong to only one cultural heritage; it belongs to all human beings and is our potential to discover for ourselves.

Buddhism looks directly at that true self in all its expressions, and in many places Buddhism points out that its teaching is about understanding and living fully our human nature, and is not about a dogma.

Blake's work and the teachings of Zen Buddhism both focus on knowing ourselves fully, rather than seeking an external source for wisdom or spirituality. Fully understanding one's nature can be a long path, and is full of surprises as one's preconceptions drop away.

This interactive webinar will examine key quotes and art from William Blake and quotes from Zen tradition, and how Zen and William Blake relate to our own human potential. We will also discuss what these things mean to you personally.

Born in England in November 1757, William Blake was never financially successful but always, barely, kept a roof over his head and that of his beloved wife Catherine. He dedicated himself fully to sharing his insights, which were intensely felt and unique in expression.

In this session we will examine and discuss several key quotes and artworks from William Blake, and explore their universal meaning. We will also explore how they relate to Zen teachings as pointers to an inspired understanding and experience of life.

From Huineng, the sixth Zen patriarch in China, in seemingly simple words:
"Just be true, and there are no barriers."

From Blake's "The Marriage of Heaven and Hell":
"If the doors of perception were cleansed every thing would appear to man as it is, infinite."

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The teacher and facilitator, David B. Alexander, is a licensed psychotherapist. He studied William Blake's poetry and art while in high school in the 1960s. Since then he has re-read and studied many of those poems and artworks, as well as biographies and analyses of Blake and his works. This has led to understanding the natural connection between Blake's expression and the intuitive understanding that is fundamental to Zen.

David has practiced Zen since 1970, with teachers at the New York Zen Center in the 1970s and 1980s, and most recently has been active at the Zen Mountain Monastery in Mt. Tremper, NY. He has been encouraged to offer public Zen talks by both Enkyo-Roshi (Pat O'Hara) of Village Zendo and Zen Master Wu Kwang (Richard Shrobe) of Chogye Zen Center.

In psychotherapy work, he uses gestalt therapy, psychoanalysis, existential therapy, and nonviolent communication to support individuals, couples, and leaders.


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