Note: Generally, this talk is more lighthearted than most that Lola gives. It’s nice to see that side of her personality. Lola begins with a comical tale about a man and a priest he asks for advice. Zen Roshi, Lola McDowell Lee, discusses Lao Tzu concept of how the hole in the wheel’s knave makes its utility. How the emptiness of a vessel creates its utility. Lola asks, “Who would you rather be: a victim or a perpetrator?” It is in the world of the Relative that we can discover the Absolute. How freedom relates to relativity. Some people don’t want freedom. They’d rather follow directions. The world is like a schoolroom where the teacher is absent. It is chaotic. Where is God? She tells the story of Swami Vivekananda, who, during his first visit to the United States in 1893, was shunned for his skin color. Eventually his speech at the Parliament of the World's Religions in Chicago brought him recognition in the US. Lola explains how many spiritual seekers seek after miracles. But the world is full of miracles. A seed dies and falls into the ground and a tree grows from it. Grass grows. Look at man? He’s a miracle. The world is a manifestation of God. Feb 28, 1987
