Comments on Ms. Dantes' Approach
by Philip Gill
When Ms. Dantes was studying with Zen Master Kobun Chino Roshi, he once told her privately “Monastery for you has not been built yet.” He recognized early that Ms. Dantes was not a typical student who would continue in the Zen tradition. He continued to teach her in great depth, granting her many private dialogues in the year she spent at his sangha. Her dedication to inquiry and the discovery of truth was extraordinary. Her transcendence of ego was greatly accelerated by her work with this great master. It has been suggested that her previous years of intense personal work and training in psychology and psychoanalysis had already significantly freed her from the grip of her conditioning. From that viewpoint she was uniquely prepared for such a rapid realization. After she left the Zen Center, she began to find her own way of teaching in the world.
Ms. Dantes lives the true essence of Zen, leaving behind rituals and dogma. It is perhaps easier to understand the nature of her work if it is viewed as living the essence of Zen without identifying it or teaching the dogma. She has also been compared to Krishnamurti, the Dalai Lama and Thich Nhat Hanh. Similar to comments about Thich Nhat Hanh, one person described her as being both "soft as a petal and like heavy machinery."
Selfless Service
All of us seek the same thing–the real joy of life. For thousands of years seekers have found it in selfless service. Ms. Dantes observes that even though selfless service is a natural part of spiritual unfolding, it is inhibited by a pervasive conditioning rooted in self-interest. Her life’s work has been to stimulate in others a sustained inquiry into this human functioning and self-centered conditioning. She proposes that it is clear awareness that holds the power for its transcendence. Thus, inquiry, awareness and “true” service from the heart are the cornerstones of her work.
Ms. Dantes urges people to inquiry directly for themselves into the nature of true (selfless) service. Using Socratic dialogue, reflection, and the personal example of her own life, she helps people uncover the subtle self-interest embedded in behavior that may otherwise be quite socially acceptable. She helps people see that this often invisible self-centeredness is not “bad”; nevertheless it prevents the beautiful transforming power of selfless service and the experience of authentic love. Her emphasis is always on awareness, not on getting better. Even still, most people say their lives do get better naturally and their relationships become more harmonious and peaceful. Ms. Dantes herself has worked for years as a volunteer at the Center.
Ahead of Her Time?
Ms. Dantes’ work has been called “graduate level” practice in mindfulness and selfless service. She emphasizes that her work is “educational”. People come to educate themselves, and she offers no religious or philosophical framework. Her approach bears similarities to Zen for some, Taoism for others, and Christ consciousness for others but her approach is Socratic and she has never followed any religious or philosophical belief system.
The freedom of this approach is perhaps ahead of its time. At first, people find it liberating. Yet, as they reach deeper layers of conditioning, this freedom becomes strangely unsettling–even for very independent thinkers. Hunger for structure and beliefs, or at least rituals, seems to be very much a part of human conditioning. However, since her work focuses on stimulating clear awareness in people, it doesn’t seem to matter whether or not a person has a belief system or religious practice.
Above all, her approach is based, not on theories or beliefs, but rather on her clear observation of how people actually function as human beings. The way she lives her life is a clear example for others of true service and compassion. She never tries to change people and offers neither promises nor special recognition to “entice” others to join with her. Thus her work maintains a high level of integrity. Anyone’s daily life, whatever it may be, is a perfect context for his or her peacefulness and selfless service.
Philip Gill has been a student of and assistant to Ms. Dantes for many years.