Bowing before the Buddha

..this morning before my daily otsutome i had all kinds of thoughts running through my mind, like a monkey swinging from branch to branch (admittedly, most likely brought about by a high caffiene intake!)... but when i bowed before the Buddha it was as if suddenly all these thoughts, worries, concerns were held in the compassionate embrace of the Tathagata. i felt an openness in which to recite the sutras and chant the Name with a clear and focussed awareness of this embrace. an awareness that came quite spontaneously and unexpectedly. reflecting on this experience i am reminded of words read recently from Three Wheels site -

"It is not that one bows to the Buddha having come to understand his teaching but that one comes to understand his teaching through actually bowing to the Buddha."

- Three Wheels

namu amida butsu