Dogen and the Wild Fox Koan...

Shobogenzo Dai-Shugyo

Jordan said to have some fun so I decided to take a look Shobogenzo, Dai-Shugyo; One of Dogen’s evolutionary, unique, and inspirational treatments of the classic koan Hyakujo and the Wild Fox. (Based on the translation of Nishijima & Cross)

Dogen begins in the traditional manner of quoting the koan in full:

When Zen Master Daichi of Hyakujo-zan mountain in Koshu gives informal instruction, an old man is generally present. He always listens to the Dharma along with the monks, and when the assembly retires, the old man also retires. Then unexpectedly one day he does not leave. The Master eventually asks him, "What person is this, standing before me?"

The old man answers, "I am not a person. In the past age of Kasyapa Buddha, used to live [as master] on this mountain. Once a practitioner asked me, ‘Do even people in the state of great practice fall into cause and effect, or not?’ I answered, ‘They do not fall into cause and effect." Since then I have fallen into the body of a wild fox for five hundred lives. Now I beg you, Master, to say for me a word of transformation. I long to be rid of the body of a wild fox." Then he asks, "Do even people in the state of great practice fall into cause and effect, or not?"

The Master says, "Do not be unclear about cause and effect." At these words the old man immediately realizes the great realization. He does prostrations and says, "I am already rid of the body of a wild fox, and would like to remain on the mountain behind this temple. Dare I ask the Master to perform for me a monk’s funeral ceremony."

The Master orders the supervising monk to strike the block and to tell the assembly, "After the meal, we will see off a deceased monk."

All the monks discuss this among themselves, saying, "The whole community is at ease and there is no sick person in the Nirvana Hall. What is the reason for this?" After the meal, the Master is seen leading the monks to the foot of a rock on the mountain behind the temple, and picking out a dead fox with a stick. They cremate it according to the formal method. In the evening the Master gives formal preaching in the Dharma Hall and discusses the preceding episode.

Obaku then asks, "The man in the past gave a mistaken answer as a word of transformation, and fell into the body of a wild fox for five hundred lives. If he had not made any mistake at any moment, what would he have become?"

The Master says, "Step up here. I will tell you."

Obaku finally steps up and gives the Master a slap. The Master claps his hands and laughs, and says, ‘"You have just expressed that a foreigner’s beard is red, but it is also a fact that a red-beard is a foreigner."

The central question of this koan asks if enlightenment liberates one from the realm of causation. It is the same question that forms the dichotomy between determinism and freewill. Are we free to choose, or is our course determined by causes and conditions beyond our control? Do enlightened beings act freely, or are they bound by the iron law of karma?

Buddhist doctrine declares that with enlightenment we transcend cause and effect (karma). At the same time, the law of cause and effect is held as absolutely unbending; all actions—good or bad—result in exacting effects. Zen has dealt with this question in a number of ways, most decisively with one of the highest achievement of koan literature: this story of Hyakujo and the wild fox. Dogen refers to this koan perhaps more than any other throughout his works.

Dogen begins his commentary on it in this chapter with: "The koan realized just now is great practice itself."

Dogen is realizing (making real) the wild fox koan right now. This, he says, is great practice itself!

Dogen continues: As the old man says, Hyakujo mountain in Koshu exists in the past age of Kasyapa Buddha, and Hyakujo mountain in Koshu exists in the present age of Sakyamuni Buddha.

"Hyakujo mountain" is the name of the mountain where Hyakujo (the teacher) teaches. The Zen ancestors usually took the name of the place where they taught; hence, there would often be a succession teachers with the same name. "Kasyapa Buddha" is one of the seven ancient Buddhas of the past age, that is the mythological age before the present age of the historical "Sakyamuni Buddha." Kasyapa Buddha is known as the disciple that received the transmission of the Buddha-Dharma, and he is also known as the teacher that transmitted the Buddha-Dharma to Shakyamuni Buddha. Hmmmm... Interesting... Could there be any resemblance to the "Hyakujo" of the past, and the "Hyakujo" of the present in this koan?

Dogen goes on to say: "This is a real word of transformation."

A "word of transformation" (usually referred to as a "turning word") is a word or action by a Zen teacher, which provokes insight in a student. Dogen is saying that the phrase used by "the old man" in the previous line, i.e. "Hyakujo mountain in Koshu exists in the past age of Kasyapa Buddha, and Hyakujo mountain in Koshu exists in the present age of Sakyamuni Buddha" is a "real word of transformation." Is Dogen is affirming there is wisdom expressed by the words of the old man? Is he inviting his listeners to recognize that wisdom too?

Dogen goes on to say: "Even so, the Hyakujo mountain of the past age of Kasyapa Buddha and the Hyakujo mountain of the present age of Sakyamuni Buddha are not one."

Dogen seems to be pointing out that yesterday’s Hyakujo mountain, is not today’s Hyakujo mountain, reminding us that each abides in its own unique "dharma-position" like the "ash" and "firewood" in Genjokoan.

Dogen says: "Neither are they different."

Dogen seems to be saying that the Hyakujo mountain of the "past" age has a "past" and a "future." Does he mean that in "its future" is the "present" Hyakujo mountain. If we go along with Dogen's teaching of "being-time" (uji), we know that the Hyakujo mountain of the present age has a past and a future; in its past is the Hyakujo mountain of the past. Each contains and is contained by the other. In the words of the Genjokoan, "When one side (one mountain) is illumined, the other side (the other mountain) is darkened."

Now Dogen says: "They are not three and three before, and not three and three after."

Here Dogen employs his commin method using one koan to clarify a point in another koan (this is one reason that koan study is so important for understanding Dogen's writings). The koan he uses here is familiar to us as Case 35 of The Blue Cliff Record, which reads:

Manjusri asked Wu Cho, "Where have you just come from?"
Wu Cho said, "The South."
Manjusri said, "How is the Buddhist Teaching being carried on in the South?"
Wu Cho said, "Monks of the Last Age have little regard for the rules of discipline."
Manjusri said, "How numerous are the congregations?"
Wu Cho said, "Some three hundred, some five hundred."
Wu Cho asked Manusri, "How is it being carried on hereabouts?"
Manjusri said, "Ordinary people and sages dwell together; dragons and snakes intermingle."
Wu Cho said, "How numerous are the congregations?"
Manjusri said, "In front, three three; in back, three three."

Though there are layers of subtle wisdom here, the main point that Dogen seems to emphasize in his abbreviated usage is the futility of utilizing any number (concept) to enumerate or define the ineffable nature of ultimate reality. In other words, he seems to be point out that the Hyakujo mountain of the past and present ages are not two, not one. In fact they do not correspond to any conceptual formulation or non-formulation, hence, "In front, three three; in back, three three."

As Dogen says next: "The Hyakujo mountain of the past has not become the Hyakujo mountain of the present. The present Hyakujo mountain was not formerly the Hyakujo mountain of Kasyapa Buddha’s time."

Let's see what happens if we can re-phrase this in the terms of the "ash" and "firewood" of Genjokoan: "The Hyakujo mountain of the past becomes the Hyakujo mountain of the present; it can never go back to being the Hyakujo mountain of the past. Nevertheless, we should not take the view that the present Hyakujo mountain is its future and the past Hyakujo mountain is its past. Remember, the Hyakujo mountain of the past abides in the place of the past Hyakujo mountain in the Dharma. It has a past and it has a future. Although it has a past and a future, the past and the future are cut off. The Hyakujo mountain of the present exists in the place of the present Hyakujo mountain in the Dharma. It has a past and it has a future. The Hyakujo mountain of the past, after becoming the Hyakujo mountain of the present, does not again become the Hyakujo mountain of the past. This is why we speak of no appearance. This is why we speak of no disappearance. The Hyakujo mountain of the past is an instantaneous situation, and the present Hyakujo mountain is also an instantaneous situation. It is the same, for example, with winter and spring. We do not think that winter becomes spring, and we do not say that spring becomes summer."

How does that work? Sounds interesting, no?

Okay.... I will stop and see if there is any reason to continue...

Comments are most welcome!

Thanks for your time!

Take care,
Ted


Copyright Ted Biringer 2008

Shobogenzo Genjokoan a translation by Ted Biringer

Genjokoan
Translation by Ted Biringer

When all things are seen as the Buddha-Dharma, then there is delusion and enlightenment, there is practice, there is life and there is death, there are Buddhas and there are ordinary beings.

When all things are seen as empty of self, there is no delusion and no enlightenment, no Buddhas and no ordinary beings, no life and no death.

The Buddha’s truth includes and transcends the many and the one, and so there is life and death, delusion and enlightenment, ordinary beings and Buddhas.

And though it is like this, it is simply that flowers, while loved, fall; and weeds, while hated, flourish.

That people drive the self to actualize awareness of the many things is delusion. That the many things actualize awareness of the self is enlightenment.

Those who are enlightened about delusion are Buddhas. Those who are deluded about enlightenment are ordinary beings.

There are people who continue to realize enlightenment based on enlightenment. There are people in the midst of delusion adding to delusion.

When Buddhas are Buddhas, they do not know they are Buddhas. Nevertheless, Buddhas are Buddhas and continuously actualize Buddhahood. Mustering the whole body-and-mind to look at forms, and mustering the whole body-and-mind to listen to sounds, they perceive them directly, but it is not like an image reflected in a mirror, and not like the reflection of the moon on water. As one side is revealed, the other side is concealed.

To realize the Buddha-Dharma is to realize your self. To realize your self is to forget your self. To forget your self is to be actualized by the many things. To be actualized by the many things is to allow the body-and-mind of your self and the body-and-mind of other than your self to fall away. All traces of enlightenment fall away, and the falling away of all traces of enlightenment is continuous.

The first moment you seek the Dharma you are far removed from the environs of Dharma. The first moment of true Dharma transmission your originally true nature is realized.

A person sailing along in a boat looking at the shore might have the illusion that the shore is moving. However, if they look closely at the boat they realize the boat is moving. Similarly, when they try to understand the many things based on deluded notions about body-and-mind they might have the illusion that their minds or nature are stationary. However, if they step back into fundamental awareness they realize nothing has a fixed self.

Firewood becomes ash; it can never go back to being firewood. Nevertheless, you should not take the view that ash is its future and firewood is its past. Remember that firewood abides in the Dharma position of firewood. It has a past and it has a future. Although it has a past and a future, the past and the future are cut off. Ash exists in the Dharma position of ash. It has a past and it has a future. The firewood, after becoming ash, does not again become firewood."

Similarly, human beings, after death, do not become alive again. This being so, it is the established tradition in the Buddha-Dharma to deny that life turns into death. This is why Buddhists speak of no appearance. In addition, it is the established teaching of the Buddha that death does not become life. This is why Buddhists speak of no disappearance. Life is an instantaneous situation, and death is an instantaneous situation. It is like winter and spring. You do not think that winter becomes spring, and you do not say that spring becomes summer.

A person experiencing enlightenment is like the moon being reflected in water: the moon does not get wet, and the water is not broken. Though its light is wide and great, the moon is reflected in a puddle of water an inch wide. The whole moon and the whole sky are reflected in a dewdrop on a blade of grass and are reflected in a single drop of water.

Enlightenment does not break a person, just as the moon does not pierce the water. A person does not constrict enlightenment, just as a dewdrop does not constrict the sky and moon. The depth of the drop is the height of the moon. Whether large or small, and whatever the length or shortness of its duration the whole sky and the whole moon are discerned in each body of water.

When the Dharma has not yet filled the whole body-and-mind people feel already replete with Dharma. When the Dharma fills the body-and-mind people feel something is lacking.

For example, when a person sails out beyond the mountains into the ocean, and looks around in the four directions, the ocean appears only to be round; it does not appear to have any other characteristics at all. Nevertheless, this great ocean is not round, and it is not square. There are an infinite number or qualities to the ocean: to fish it is like a palace; to gods it is like a string of pearls. Nevertheless, as far as someone’s eyes can see, it just appears to be round.

As it is for the ocean, so it is for the many things. There are a multitude of qualities in the world of form and the world of the void, but you see and understand only as far as your eyes of practice and realization are able to reach.

If someone wants to know how the many things really are, they should remember that besides appearing square or round, the qualities of the oceans and qualities of the mountains are infinitely numerous; there are worlds in the four directions. Not only the periphery is like this: remember, the immediate present, and a single drop of water are also like this.

When fish swim in the ocean, no matter how far they swim, there is no end to the water. When birds fly through the sky, no matter how far they fly, there is no end to the sky. While this is so, fish and birds have never left the water or the sky. Simply, when their ability is great, their usage is great, and when their ability is small, their usage is small. Thus, each realizes its full potential and each experiences its full realm. If a bird leaves the sky, it will die at once; and if a fish leaves the water, it will die at once. Therefore, you know that water is life and you know that sky is life. Birds are life, and fish are life. Hence, life is birds and life is fish. Beyond this, there may still be further progress. The existence of their practice and enlightenment, and the existence of their life, are like this.

This being so, a bird or fish that tried to move through the water or the sky only after getting to the bottom of the water or the sky, could never find its way or find its place in the water or the sky. When people find this place, this action is itself, the actualization of the fundamental point (genjokoan). When people find this way, this action is itself the actualization of the fundamental point (genjokoan). This way and this place are not great or small; not subjective or objective; they have not existed since the past nor do they arise in the present; they are simply as they are.

When a person is experiencing the practice and enlightenment of the Buddha-Dharma, each practice is complete practice, and meeting each thing is mastering it. Here, the place exists and the way unfolds, and therefore the area of enlightenment is not conspicuous. For this enlightenment and the Buddha-Dharma manifest simultaneously and are experienced simultaneously.

Do not assume that what is realized will be grasped by consciousness, or will be recognized by the intellect. Although the experience of the ultimate state is realized immediately, its mysterious existence is not a manifest realization. Realization of the inconceivable is the inconceivable itself.

Zen Master Baoche of Mount Mayu is using a fan.

A monk comes up and says, "The nature of air is ever-present, and there is no place it does not reach. Why then does the Master use a fan?"

The Master says, "You understand that the nature of air is ever-present, but you do not understand the truth that there is no place it does not reach."

The monk says, "What is the truth of there being no place it does not reach?"

At this, the Master just continues to use the fan.

The monk does prostrations.

The actualization of the Buddha-Dharma, the living way of authentic transmission, is like this.

A person who says that because the nature of air is ever-present they don’t need to use a fan, or that without using a fan they can know the ever-present nature of air, does not know ever-presence or the nature of air.

Because the nature of air is ever-present, the air of Buddhism manifests the gold of the Earth and ripens the Long River into fragrant cream.

Written and presented to my (Dogen’s) lay disciple, Koshu Yo, of Kyushu Island, in the mid-autumn of 1233. Revised in 1252

Feedback greatly appreciated!

Thank you,

Ted

Copyright Ted Biringer 2008

Which Quote is by Dogen, a,b,c?

I thought it might be fun to play a little game (and hopefully avoid getting my table kicked over)...

Three quotes--- Which one is by Master Dogen? A? B? C?

A. Seeking the Way
Amid the deepest mountain paths;
The retreat I find
None other than
My primordial home: satori!

B. Once you attain this state of suchness and attain the harmonious unity of activity and understanding possessed by the Buddha-patriarchs, you examine exhaustively all the thoughts and views of this attainment.

C. When Students of the Way are looking at sayings, you must exert your power to the utmost and examine them very very closely.

Thank you all!
Gassho,
Ted

Dogen demanded more than Just Sitting? Say it ain't so!

Hello all!

In a recent comment at another blog, someone mentioned that there are no "shoulds" or "musts."

While he was speaking about the realm of the absolute, he was of course absolutely right (pun intended).

It did get me to thinking about the other realm though (the realm of practice and enlightenment, of delusion, of Buddhas and sentient beings, of life and death, and mowing the lawn and getting the mail).

I thought it would be kind of fun to pick out some random "shoulds" and "musts" from the translation of Eihei Dogen's Shobogenzo by Rev. Hubert Nearman

This experience proved to be quite interesting---and even, if you will pardon my foul language, enlightening. It seems as if, at least in the ones I was able to quickly dig out, Dogen notions of "shoulds" and "musts" include some hints about other recent blog topics as of late.

Anyway, here are the results:

First is the list of "Shoulds" (Scroll down for the list of "Musts")

Therefore, we should just make haste and fully comprehend the principle of the innate nature of the mind being ever-abiding and persisting without change.

You should understand that, in Buddhism, we have always spoken not only of body and mind as being inseparable, but also of the nature of something and the form it takes as not being two different things.

Because of this, should you seek examples from the past up to the present, authenticated instances of it are many indeed.

With him in mind, we should reflect upon ourselves and see how our present condition looks in the mirror of his former times.

This should let you know that worldly duties do not, in and of themselves, impede the Buddha Dharma.

Your exploration of the Wisdom Beyond Discriminatory Thought should be done as though you were making spiritual offerings and respectfully bowing to the Buddha as the Awakened and Revered One.

Nevertheless, you should not hold onto the opinion that the ashes are the future of that which the stick was the past.

Accordingly, as we penetrate deeper and deeper into the Way, our spiritual surroundings, which we should have known, we clearly do not know, but because we are living together with our everdeepening investigation of Buddha Dharma and training with It, we have what we need.

You should not lend support to the misconduct of others, nor should you look upon the human errors of others with a hateful heart.

You should grieve that the proper ways have not yet fully permeated your training.

You should regret that time, in unseen ways, is depriving you of your life of training in the Way.

Beyond question, you should adhere to the Precepts as set down by the Buddhas and Ancestors.

Grasping the spiritual import of what the National Teacher has pointed out, you should take it as the model for your training and study.

Now you bodhisattvas training in the Way, too, should open wide the gate to your training and enter by means of the verse, "That which flows is the Mountain: That which does not flow is the Water."

Even though we speak of the Self as being ‘the great earth with its mountains and rivers’, this is not something that should delude us as to what is returned to.

Flesh-and-blood human beings like these are Masters of bygone days whose determination to seek the Dharma was profound indeed. We humans today should, by all means, consider following in Their footsteps.

And, likewise, we of today should give rise to a similar determination by pursuing genuine training, which is in no wise connected with personal fame or gain.

Accordingly, even though you have spent your past days and nights in vain pursuits, you should make the following vow while you are still in this present life: I pray that I and all sentient beings, from this life through all future lives, will ever be able to hear the True Teachings. Once I have heard the True Dharma, I will not harbor doubts about It or fail to trust in It. Right at the time when I encounter the True Dharma, I will let go of the whole world and embrace the Buddha’s Teachings. Then, together with all sentient beings on the great earth, may we fulfill the Way.

Even more importantly, you should not lose sight of the intention that arose when you first took delight in seeking the Way of the Buddhas.

That which penetrates to the deepest halls of this region is not the shallow cognitive functions of a beginner’s mind. Simply, you should walk the Path that former saints have trod.

Once they have completely awakened, people today will be as those Buddhas of the past. You should take time to study and investigate this principle, for this is what all Buddhas have guaranteed us will take place.

This refers not only to the Seven Buddhas, for these Precepts are what all Buddhas teach. You should examine Them with the mind of meditation and thoroughly investigate the principles They voice.

Since it is a manifestation of our spiritual question, we should meditate on this from the perspectives of both the host and the guest.

You should do your training and practice, even though you may still be attached to discriminatory thinking; you should do your training and practice, even if you have gone beyond discriminatory thinking; you should do your training and practice, even though you may be half-hearted in the attempt.

Meditation Master Shikan’s respectful bowing to the female monk Massan Ryōnen and his seeking the Dharma from her is a model of intent that we should follow.

Since the Ancestors and Masters associated with the Treasure House of the Dharma, as well as the bodhisattvas who lived during the Buddha’s lifetime, did not take this vow, as part of your training and study you should look to see whether there is any place in the Buddha’s Teachings where this could possibly have been taught.

Because of this very principle of the way things are, the earth in its entirety has myriad forms and hundreds of things sprouting up, each sprout and each form being a whole earth—a point which you should incorporate into your study of the Way, for the recognition of the coming and going of things in this manner is a first step in training and practice.

Furthermore, ‘intending’ refers to the time when the spiritual question manifests before our very eyes; ‘expressing’ refers to the time when one looks up and unbolts the barrier gate; ‘arriving’ refers to the time when body and mind are dropped off; and ‘having not arrived’ refers to the time when this ‘dropping off ’ is left behind [as you go always onward, always ‘becoming Buddha’]. This is the way that you should diligently apply yourself, the way that you should treat whatever arises as ‘just for a while’.

We should show our gratitude to the Ancestral Masters for their great kindness in Transmitting the Dharma to us.

Just because they said that such stories are not subject to rational understanding, you should not fail to learn through your training what the intellectually comprehendible pathways of the Ancestors of the Buddha are.

Thus, you should investigate the phrase ‘mountains flow’ with the Ancestors of the Buddha, and do not abandon the matter when you find yourself surprised or in doubt.

A former Buddha once said, "If you would avoid incurring unrelenting, hellish karma, do not malign the Tathagata’s Wheel of the True Teaching." You should engrave these words on your skin, flesh, bones, and marrow; you should engrave them on the outer circumstances and inner conditions of your body and mind; you should engrave them on what is immaterial; you should engrave them on what is material.

This does not mean that the child is not a child, nor does it mean that the parent is not a parent: you should simply explore this as "The child is the one who is old and the parent is the one who is young."

So, novices who are learning through their training should, beyond doubt, be diligent in their explorations.

This statement contains the very lifeblood that we should strive hard to comprehend.

We should by all means have as our investigation through training and practice an exploration that broadly spans the sayings of all the Buddhas and Ancestors.

You should make a diligent effort to consider what this is saying.

You should ask whether the time when Buddha Nature realizes Buddhahood is a time of ‘not having Buddha Nature’, and whether the time when Buddha Nature gives rise to the intention to realize Buddhahood is also a time of ‘not having Buddha Nature’.

Being presented with this statement, you should work hard on understanding the meaning of this expression. You should reflect on the phrase ‘north or south’ with an open mind, for there is a deeper meaning in the expression that the Sixth Ancestor has given us.

If, at that time, the Sixth Ancestor was indeed ‘such a person’, then we should work diligently on the words, ‘not possessing Buddha Nature’. Putting aside the ‘not having’ implied by ‘possessing versus nonpossessing’, we should ask, "What is Buddha Nature?" That is, we should inquire into what sort of thing Buddha Nature is.

It should be like a water buffalo coming out from the water and bellowing "Mu." To put it like this is to affirm It. You should try and see if you can say, in your own words.

We should spend life after life exploring the intent of this statement through our training. We should keep our minds diligently investigating what he meant by ‘whatever the cost of the broth, don’t worry about it for the moment’. Why was he so concerned about the cost of straw sandals?

Okay, here are some of Dogen's "Musts"

To grasp this principle of ‘one’s continually leaving it up to’, you must thoroughly explore what your mind is.

If teaching is in any way different from this, you must recognize that it is not the Buddha Dharma.

We trainees of today must not disregard his remark, "Those of old were just like this."

When That Which Is expresses Itself in this way, even though the whole of Its ‘hands and eyes’ are never hidden from us, we must not look for a time when It expresses Itself as ‘the whole of Its hands and eyes’.

We must not become more and more casual and neglect it, for it is due to just such neglectfulness that teachers in the past who gained an understanding of what spiritual Brightness is were rare indeed.

By all means, those of us learning in these later times must not hold to the same opinions as those non-Buddhists who deny causality.

In all earnestness, you must not compare this saying with other expressions.

The ‘age’ and ‘youth’ of a child, as well as the ‘age’ and ‘youth’ of a parent, must be fully explored, in detail, and without haste.

You must explore this fundamental principle through your training! Because this principle exists, a Master of long ago said, "To read Scriptures, you will need to be equipped with an Eye for reading Scriptures."

We must not forget to explore through our training the principle that when there are a hundred thousand World honored Ones, there will be a hundred thousand Makakashō’s.

You who are studying what Buddha is must never think that those who possess the five or six spiritual abilities—be they non-Buddhists or those of the two Lesser Courses—are in any way superior to an ordinary, everyday person.

In that things are already like this, you certainly must have the ability to use your own mind right at this very moment to see into your own mind.

Truly, you need to keep in mind that when it comes to the Buddha’s Dharma, you must be clear about Its fundamental principles.

You who are now learning the Way must keep close to morally good friends and be on intimate terms with them.

We must clearly perceive, unequivocally resolve, fully comprehend, and infer in detail the principle of a Buddha’s Body being something that is neither tall nor short.

After we have given rise to the enlightened Mind, we must not regress or wander off from It, but must steadfastly protect and defend It.

Should you consider going against your vow to help others to awaken before you do, you must realize that this is the preaching of demons, the preaching of non-Buddhists, the preaching of wicked companions.

You must not doubt that you will inevitably realize Buddhahood, for it is a foregone conclusion. It is precisely what the Buddha gave voice to.

Those who are truly serious in their training must clarify what the effects of karma in the three temporal periods are.

Students of the Way must, by all means, learn first off just what a Buddha is.

(Here is one with a "should" and a "must")

We should not let up even upon arriving at the Wisdom that is the fruition of Buddhahood. This is the Path that all Buddhas and Bodhisattvas pursue. We call this ‘the profound awakening to the Law’ and ‘the Buddha’s Truth inherent in every being’. Further, you must pray that you do not dilute this with opinions held by others.

In the realm where one’s own awakening awakens others, from the very moment that you are provided with personal certainty, there is no hanging onto it, and, once your personal certainty begins to function, you must see to it that it never ceases.

Be aware that the Buddhas and Ancestors repeatedly taught that we must not be slack in our training and practice, so that we do not stain or tarnish our innate enlightenment, which is inseparable from our practice.

Understand that you must do your training and practice amidst the realizing of the Way.
Not only that, you must fully understand that ‘birth and death’ is nirvana: there has never been any talk of a nirvana outside of birth and death.

You must realize that It is what is beneath your very feet and within every drop of water.

To be sure, having once realized the Place, you must not analyze It in order to understand It through discriminatory thought and, thereby, reduce It to fit your own opinions.

You must understand that when you fully realize what your mind is, the whole canopy of the heavens is knocked down and the spinning earth is completely torn asunder.

You must understand that to hear "Refrain from all evil whatsoever" is to hear what the genuine Dharma of Buddha is.

Even so, we must consider carefully the principle of ‘becoming a Buddha’ as we walk, stand, sit, or recline throughout the twenty-four hours of a day.

We must carefully study the principle enunciated here. Although it seems that there are people who fail to examine what ‘all Buddhas’ means and thereby create suffering for themselves—and to no good purpose—nevertheless, this is simply suffering from being a sentient being; it has nothing to do with practicing the Way to Buddhahood.

The heart of what he said exists in what a child of three can say, and this we must thoroughly investigate. Also, there is the practice which eighty-year-olds may not be doing, but which we must diligently engage in.

Since we human beings are continually arranging the bits and pieces of what we experience in order to fashion ‘a whole universe’, we must take care to look upon this welter of living beings and physical objects as ‘sometime’ things.

Truly, even though we have been born in a remote region at the time of the final stages of the Teaching, if any of us have the opportunity to choose whether to be Transmitted or not, we must accept in faith—as well as guard and maintain—the true inheritance that is being passed on to us.

So, you must not harbor doubts about the moving on of the verdant mountains at the present moment. People do not know that they must scrutinize and clarify what ‘verdant mountains’ means if they are to measure all the existent worlds about them.

You must devote yourself to exploring through your training not only that ‘the Child becoming the Parent’ is the full manifestation of ‘giving birth to the Child’, but also that ‘the time when the Parent becomes the Child’ is the full manifestation of ‘giving birth to the Child’.

You must thoroughly penetrate what is being said here.

You must have faith that Buddha after Buddha has inherited It in this manner, reaching down to us now, for this is how we explore the Way of the Buddhas through our training.

That place where ‘sentient beings take their delight and play’ has continually existed as the Buddha’s Pure Land, which can never be destroyed. We must meticulously make this our fundamental practice.

You must comprehend this and explore it through your training, for when is it that someone does not have Buddha Nature?

Wow! And that is just the tip of the ice-berg. There must be at least a couple thousand "musts" and "shoulds" in the Shobogenzo alone, or should we call it the True Dharma-Eye Treasury? If memory serves, the Eihei Koroku, and the Zuimonki are even worse!

Be careful not to show this list (or the Shobogenzo for that matter) to "practitioners" who think that Dogen promoted some kind of magic "Zen" that could turn students into Buddhas by "just sitting" on a regular basis. It might really be a "disillusioning" experience!

For everyone else that would like to know what Dogen's masterpiece, the Shobogenzo, actually teaches about what is really involved in the authentic Zen path of practice and enlightenment, follow the link to:
Complete Translation of Eihei Dogen's Shobogenzo by Rev. Hubert Nearman, O.B.C.,translator Shasta Abbey Press

http://www.shastaabbey.org./shobogenzo1.htm

and read the thing for yourself. Then read the translations by Nishijima & Cross, Kazuaki Tanahashi, Thomas Cleary, Wadell & Abe, Reiho Masunaga, Taigen Dan Leighton, Hee-Jin Kim, Francis D Cook, Steven Heine, Carl Bielefeldt, Shohaku Okumura, Kosen Nishiyama, Then study Japanese and check out the "modern Japanese" versions, then study Chinese and Medieval Japanese and you can enjoy the "original" version. Next, put it all into practice on the cushion and in your daily activities for twenty years or so.

Or.... Just find a "certified" teacher and learn to sit and disengage your mind from Dogen's joyous rants about playing in samadhi, and his zeal for deep investigation, and his voracious curiosity about "self" "Buddha-Nature" and "Life and Death" -- Just sit and let go of all your aspiration and joy regarding wisdom and compassion -- free yourself from goals, not to mention from all those nasty thoughts and feelings that give the flavor to life -- just sit in that pure and clear space with a mind like a rock or a stump, letting things be "as they are." Who needs all the hassle of coming back to the market place and dealing with other human beings that don't "really" exist anyway, sure that child thinks it is hungry, but that is just delusion--Why should we be bothered to offer them bread?

Dogen, The Shobogenzo, Nonduality of delusion and enlightenment

No matter how one "interprets" Dogen's writings, I doubt there are many serious students of Dogen that have not lain awake some nights with one of his phrases turning over in their mind like a multifaceted jewel illumining undreamed of dimensions within what Dogen calls "the homeland of the self." Anyone that has will probably find it easy to agree with Hee-Jin Kim’s observation that "the single most original and seminal aspect of Dogen’s Zen is his treatment of the role of language in Zen soteriology." (Hee-Jin Kim, Dogen on Meditation and Thinking: His View On Zen, p.59) Saying Dogen believed that language played a vital role in an authentic approach to the practice and realization of Zen would be a gross understatement.

This does not mean, in my opinion, that Dogen was unaware, or unconcerned with the limitations, dangers, and difficulties inherent to the misuse or misunderstanding of verbal teachings, formulas, and doctrines of all kinds. In fact, it seems to me that just the opposite was true; Dogen’s appreciation for the power of language seems to have engendered him with an almost hypersensitivity to anything that he percieved as a misuse of words and phrases. Other than Shakyamuni Buddha, and Dogen’s own revered teacher, Tendo Nyojo, nobody was excused from a fierce scolding when Dogen discovered them using an awkward or ambiguous term, especially if it smacked of dualism. Joshu, who Dogen sometimes refers to as "the ancient Buddha," the great Master Baso, and even the revered Sixth Ancestor of Zen are all the subjects Dogen’s lash for what he perceived as a misuse of language.

However, it was only the misuse of language that Dogen disparaged, it seems to me, not the use of language in itself. The misuse of language, as far as Dogen is concerned, includes more than simply using an improper term or dualistic phrase. His records are filled with just as many instances in which he upbraids the "ancient worthies" for what they failed to say as it is for what they said badly. In one tirade, Rinzai, who Dogen frequently acknowledges as a "rightful heir of the Dharma," is dismissed as an ignoramus for not expressing something when he should have. Poor old Deshan is pummeled, kicked around, and chopped to pieces for several pages in Dogen’s treatment of his failure to express anything in his classic conversation with the tea-selling woman.

One of the corollaries of Dogen’s views concerning the inseparability of ones understanding, and their expressions is the ability to accurately evaluate someone’s understanding simply by examining their expressions. Before Dogen went to China he realized that the authentic teachings of written texts were much more valuable than any inauthentic teachings of certified "Dharma heirs." In the Zuimonki Dogen explains how he came to realize this fact when he compared the teachings of his own "distinguished" title holding teachers to those of the "eminent Buddhists" of the past:

"…I came to realize that they differed from what my teachers taught. What is more, I realized that thoughts such as mine, according to their treatises and biographies, were loathed by these people. Having contemplated the nature of the matter at last, I thought to myself I should have felt rather humbled by ancient sages and future good men and women instead of elated by the praise of despicable contemporaries… In view of such a realization, the holders of the title of Great Teacher (daishi) in this country seemed to me worthless, like earthen tiles, and my whole life was changed completely."
Zuimonki, V:8 (Quoted from Mystical Realist, p.25)

Dogen’s insistence to "study this" "get inside these words" "penetrate this saying" "take up these words again and again" and similar exhortations is so constant throughout his works it is easy to become desensitized to their presence. Dogen’s direct instruction to take up and study specific phrases, words, koans, sutras, and so on probably outnumber his instructions to dedicate ourselves to Zazen by at least 20 to 1. I hasten to add that contrary to some "officials," when Dogen urges us to "investigate these words," he means we should take them up in sitting meditation, as well as our other activities (at least that is what Dogen's records say).

Just to get a feel for his constant demand on "investigating these words" here are a few random examples of Dogen’s constant demands concerning words:

"At the same time we should investigate whether the Great Master’s words ‘I call this thing bamboo and wood,’ and Shin-o’s words ‘I also call it bamboo and wood,’ are the same or not the same, and whether they are adequate or not adequate. The Great Master says, ‘If we search the whole Earth for a person who understands the Buddha-Dharma, it is impossible to find one.’ We should also closely scrutinize and decide about this expression."
Shobogenzo, Sangai-Yuishin, Nishijima & Cross

"Good gentelman, when you meet a teacher, first ask for one case of [koan] story, and just keep it in mind and study it diligently. If you climb to the top of the mountain and dry up the oceans, you will not fail to complete [this study].
Dogen's Extensive Record, The Eihei Koroku, Vol.8:14, Leighton & Okumura

"Even a work produced latterly, if its words are true, should be approved."
Shobogenzo, Butsudo, Nishijima & Cross

"The truth expressed now in the founding Patriarch’s words ‘What people are able to hear the non-emotional preaching the Dharma’ should be painstakingly researched through the effort of one life and many lives."
Shobogenzo, Mujo-Seppo, Nishijima & Cross

"We should quietly investigate the principle of, and learn in practice the realization of words like this."
Shobogenzo, Ganzei, Nishijima & Cross

"Thus the words ‘being without the Buddha-nature’ can be heard coming form the distant room of the fourth patriarch. They are seen and heard in Obai, they are spread throughout Joshu district, and they are exalted on Dai-i [mountain]. We must unfailingly apply ourselves to the words ‘being without the Buddha-nature.’ Do not be hesitant."
Shobogenzo, Bussho, Nishijima & Cross

"Learning these words in practice, we should meet with the ancestral patriarchs of Buddhism and we should see and hear the teachings of Buddhism."
Shobogenzo, Bukkyo, Nishijima & Cross

"We must investigate these words quietly; we should replace our heart with them and replace our brain with them."
Shobogenzo, Daigo, Nishijima & Cross

It seems that the only time Dogen’s rhetoric becomes more passionate than when insisting that we take words, koans, and sutras seriously is in his attacks on those that dismiss or minimize the role of verbal and rational activity in the practice of Zen. The coarsest language in Dogen’s records has been reserved for those that fail to take up and discern the koans, which he treats as the basic texts of Zen Buddhism. For example, in Shobogenzo, Sansuigyo, Dogen says:

"They say that present talk of the East Mountain moving on water, and stories (koans) such as Nansen’s sickle, are stories (koans) beyond rational understanding… It is pitiful that the great truth of the Buddhist Patriarch is going to ruin. The understanding of these [shavelings] is inferior even to that of sravakas of the small vehicle; they are more stupid than non-Buddhists. They are not lay people, they are not monks, they are not human beings, and they are not gods; they are more stupid than animals learning the Buddha’s truth. What these shavelings call ‘stories (koans) beyond rational understanding’ are beyond rational understanding only to them; the Buddhist patriarchs are not like that. Even though [rational ways] are not understood by those [shavelings], we should not fail to learn in practice the Buddhist patriarchs’ ways of rational understanding… [The shavelings] do not know that images and thoughts are words and phrases, and they do not know words and phrases transcend images and thoughts. When I was in China I laughed at them, but they had nothing to say for themselves and were just wordless (sic)... They have the non-Buddhist view of naturalism."
Shobogenzo, Sansuigyo, Nishijima & Cross

His charge at the end of this passage concerning "the non-Buddhist view of naturalism" is also a topic that earns Dogen’s unrelenting scorn. His definition of what he means by such a "view" is remarkably similar to a style of "Zen" which is sometime advocated in modern times. Briefly, this view promotes a notion that "just sitting" calmly in "pure awareness" and allowing things to "be as they are" is the authentic practice of Zen. Some even use the common terms of naturalism like, "natural state," "natural man," etc. In modern variations, this "non-Buddhist view" is sometimes combined with the fostering of cultic belief in the supernatural influence of specific practices or rituals, usually a subversion of "Zazen." In such cases, the term "Zazen" is usually reduced to its most literal meaning of "sitting meditation," then equated with Buddhahood. Thus, the whole of the Buddha-Dharma is degraded to a mere superstition: "to sit like Buddha" is "to be Buddha." But I digress.

Turning back to Dogen’s constant refrain concerning words and language, we should examine one of his favorite phrases; "learning in practice." Dogen uses this term so often that it is important to understand exactly what he means. One of his own explanations about what "learning in practice" means is found in, Shobogenzo, Mitsugo:

"’Learning in practice’ means not intending to understand at once but striving painstakingly hundreds of times, or thousands of times, as if working to cut a hard object. We should not think that when a person has something to relate we will be able to understand at once."
Shobogenzo, Mitsugo, Nishijima & Cross

Reading this, and the multitude of similar exhortations on the rigorous nature of Zen practice, we can understand why some might prefer a "Zen" of "just sitting" or of simply "labeling" our thoughts and feelings. I don't think Dogen would have a problem with that as long as it was not asserted as his teaching on Zen Buddhism.

Dogen’s repetitious insistence on "striving painstakingly hundreds of times, or thousands of times, as if working to cut a hard object" certainly may not sound as attractive as "just sitting" and "letting go" and "having no goal." But if we are going to use Dogen's records as any authority on his teachings, we need to consider what those records actually say.

He does not always focus on the neccesity of "striving painstakingly" of course, Dogen also highlights those rare and wondrous, blissful moments of Zen where mind and body drop away and "Buddha is not aware of being Buddha." This is the inexpressible, inconceivable "state of Buddha" that can only be realized through direct experience.

And, even while acknowledging the impossibility of expressing this experience in words, Dogen goes to great lengths to express what can be expressed about it. In some of his more poetic moments he describes the indescribable in incredibly elegant (and eloquent) terms. The Shobogenzo, Bendowa, for instance, presents one his most memorable descriptions of the "experience" of the "state of Buddha."

"At this time, everything in the Universe in ten directions - soil, earth, grass, and trees; fences, walls, tiles, and pebbles - performs the Buddha’s work. The people that receive the benefit thus produced by wind and water are all mystically helped by the fine and unthinkable influence of the Buddha, and they exhibit the immediate state of realization. All beings who receive and utilize this water and fire spread the influence of the Buddha in the original state of experience, so that those who live and talk with them also, are all reciprocally endowed with the limitless Buddha-virtue. Expanding and promoting their activity far and wide, they permeate the inside and the outside of the entire Universe with the limitless, unceasing, unthinkable, and incalculable Buddha-Dharma. [The state] is not dimmed by the views of these individuals themselves, however, because the state in the quietness, without intentional activity, is direct experience."
Shobogenzo, Bendowa, Nishijima & Cross

Dogen’s exuberance here nearly makes the inexpressible palpable--as when the sound of a child’s laughter causes us to laugh, so Dogen’s exuberance resonates and arouses a sympathetic response in our own body-and-mind. This sense of great joy and zeal for the Buddha-Dharma has a powerful encouraging effect on those that seriously engage in actively reading and implementing his work. In the (relatively few) passages when Dogen sings out on the marvelous wonders of enlightenment, they bring a refreshing moment of release similar to the sound of the dinner bell after a day of hard labor. Of course, in the overall context of Dogen’s Zen teaching, such exhilarating praises on the blissful wonders of Buddhahood are rare. Nevertheless, like the sound of the dinner bell at the end of the day, they are most welcome.

Much more often, Dogen’s expressions sound more like those of an exacting taskmaster. Sometimes, the compassion of an old grandmother manifests as a thump on the head. For every expression about the "blissful" state transcending enlightenment and delusion, there must be fifty expressions urging us to "grind our bones to powder" in our efforts to "get inside these words."

I don't think Dogen is trying to make things difficult for us anymore than the kindly old grandmother administers her thumps simply to cause pain. Dogen has realized something marvelous and he wants to share it with us—no, he has to share it with us. For as we observed earlier, understanding, activity, and expression always occur together. Dogen’s expressions are the activity of his continuous and ongoing understanding.

Dogen on what practice is "most urgent"

People who arouse a true and genuine aspiration and engross themselves in study to the full extent of their capacity, do not fail to attain. As for the description of the essential point to be mindful of, what thing must be concentrated upon, what practice is to be considered most urgent, that is as follows.

First is only that the aspiration of joyful longing be earnest. …while travelling, abiding, sitting and reclining, in the midst of affairs as the pass, though various different events come up, he goes along seeking an opening, his mind occupied [with his quest]. With his mind so forcefully earnest, there can be no failure of attainment.

In this way, when the aspiration to seek the Way has become sincere, either during the period of sole concentration on sitting, or when dealing with illustrative example of the people of olden times, or when meeting the teacher, when one acts with true aspiration…

Unless you arouse a mind comparable to this, how will you accomplish the great task of the Buddha-Way, which cuts of the turning round of birth and death in a single instant of thought?

If someone has such a mind … he will definitely attain enlightenment.
~Eihei Dogen, Record of Things Heard (zuimonki), II:15, Thomas Cleary

Ryokan - Reading the Record of Eihei Dogen

READING THE RECORD OF EIHEI DOGEN
By Ryokan

On a somber spring evening around midnight,
rain mixed with snow sprinkled on the bamboos in the garden.
I wanted to ease my lonliness but it was quite impossible.
My hand reached behind me for the Record of Eihei Dogen.
Beneath the open window at my desk,
I offered incense, lit a lamp, and quietly read.
Body and mind dropping away is simply the upright truth.
In one thousand postures, ten thousand appearances, a dragon toys with the jewel.
His understanding beyond conditioned patterns cleans up the current corruptions;
the ancient great master's style reflects the image of India.

I remember the old days when I lived at Entsu Monastery
and my late teacher lectured on the True Dharma-eye.
At that time there was an occasion to turn myself around,
so I requested to read it and studied it intimately.
I keenly felt that until then I had depended merely on my own ability.
After that I left my teacher and wandered all over.
Between Dogen and myself what relationship is there?
Everywhere I went I devotedly practiced the true dharma-eye.
Arriving at the depths and arriving at the vehicle--how many times?

Inside this teaching, there's never any shortcoming.
Thus I thoroughly studied the master of all things.
Now when I take the Record of Eihei Dogen and examine it,
the tone does not harmonize well with usual beliefs.
Nobody has asked whether it is a jewel or a pebble.
For five hundred years its been covered with dust
just because no one has had an eye for recognizing dharma.
For whom was all his eloquence expounded?
Longing for ancient times and grieving for the present, my heart is exhausted.

One evening sitting by the lamp my tears wouldn't stop,
and soaked into the records of the ancient buddha Eihei.
In the morning the old man next door came to my thatched hut.
He asked me why the book was damp.
I wanted to speak but didn't as I was deeply embarrassed;
my mind distressed, it was impossible to give an explanation.
I dropped my head for a while, then found some words.
"Last night's rain leaked in and drenched my bookcase."

~Ryokan (Translated by Nelson Foster, The Roaring Stream, p.348-349)

Yes! Yes! How wonderful! How terrible! No! No! What more can be said?
There was silence......... Some thought the sutra ended there....
But that was only the end of Chapter Three.... So Manjushri continued....
And continues still..... Can you hear him?
What is "he" saying?
What are "you" saying?

Dogen on Words and Letters, Nonduality of Delusion and Enlightenment

Before continuing along the lines of my last post I though I would offer another translation of the last thing I quoted in the last post. This is "main" part of that quotation as Hee-Jin Kim translates it in his "Dogen On Meditation and Thinking":

The "emptiness" in question is not the "emptiness" of "form and emptiness." [The true meaning of] "form is emptiness" is not that you forcibly make "form" into "emptiness" or that you split "emptiness" so as to fabricate "form"; it is the "emptiness" of "emptiness is emptiness." This "emptiness" of "emptiness is emptiness" is a single piece of rock in emptiness.
Hee-Jin Kim, DOMT p.71

This elucidation on how the realization of emptiness illumines the true significance of all particular things (dharmas), also serves as an illustration of Dogen’s guidance to us students/practitioners on how to apply ourselves in study and practice in order to achieve what he often refers to as "right understanding." The Shobogenzo is packed with examples of this kind of systematic breakdown on methodology. (It makes me wonder if it was the method he himself used to come to his own understanding.) Anyone that has applied him or herself to koan-introspection will quickly notice the similarity of Dogen’s language with the kind of stream of consciousness "nonthinking" that often occurs during intense koan-introspection.

One point I think is clear is that Dogen wrote his record with one eye to posterity. For Dogen, the Shobogenzo was much more than some kind of personal journal or simple textbook on Zen. I think the Shobogenzo was intended to be a complete, self-contained soteriological device.

Before continuing, allow me to briefly digress. This last paragraph would no doubt be denounced as, in the least, an outrageous distortion by most "authorities" within the Soto orthodoxy. They have good reasons to denounce it; if such were the case, it could threaten their very livelihood as the "spiritual authorities" of powerful institutions. If students/practitioners could realize liberation through their own independent practice and study, what need would there be for professional priests?

Of course, the difficulties of the relations between institutional power and spiritual authority have existed in all times, and in all the great religions. For instance, in the chaotic early Kamakura period of Dogen’s own time (when armed monastics were common), a position in the right "spiritual" institution was often the fastest way to personal and familial advancement.
As for interference by "authorities" of institutions regarding the case of Dogen’s Shobogenzo, scholarship has shown that the Shobogenzo itself was largely neglected, and nearly forgotten for centuries by the Soto orthodoxy. As it began to resurface and fall under the public eye, it was discovered that much of its teaching seemed to directly contradict institutional Soto dogma. The first reaction by the Soto institution was to try to keep it away from the public. When it was clear that would fail, they tried to claim that many of its teachings were "fraudulently" attributed to Dogen. When more copies were discovered, some in Dogen’s own hand, some followed the only option left to discredit the Shobogenzo; interpretation, by which of course I mean, "misinterpretation." (For details of these incidents see the works of James W. Heisig, Steven Heine, Dale Wright, John McRae, and others)

The saddest part is that it did not need to turn out that way. When it became clear that the Shobogenzo was under the public eye, and that its Zen teaching was different than what the Soto School had been claiming for centuries, they faced a choice, and unfortunately took the easy way out. They could either have chosen to raise themselves up to Dogen’s true teaching, or reduced Dogen’s true teaching to their own view. Sadly, they opted for the latter.

Some will denounce my assertion for reasons other than self-protection; many of which will, no doubt, be well intended. Nevertheless, I make my claims, not on my own authority or the authority of any teacher or institution, spiritual or otherwise. I make my claim based on a 21 year dialogue with the writer of the Shobogenzo itself; Eihei Dogen. Of which the following is simply a sample out of hundreds within his own records…

"I decided to compile a record of the customs and standards that I experienced first-hand in the Zen monasteries of the great Kingdom of Sung, together with a record of profound instruction from a [good] counselor which I have received and maintained. I will leave this record to people who learn in practice and are easy in the truth, so that they can know the right Dharma of the Buddha’s lineage."
~Eihei Dogen, Shobogenzo, Bendowa, Nishijima & Cross

This statement by Dogen about his intentions for writing his record is not ambiguous, "I will leave this record … so that they can know the right Dharma of the Buddha’s lineage." He does not say, "I will transmit my Dharma to a disciple or two so they can pass it on to students will be able to know the right Dharma." Of course it needs to be taken in the overall context of his work, but it does not need to be "interpreted" for its meaning to be discerned—unless, that is, we are trying to reduce it to fit into our own preconceived notions as to what Dogen taught.

Regardless of our own personal disdain for intellectual and/or verbal activity, of which everyone has a right to cling, we should not drag Dogen down to our own level. Forcing convoluted interpretations upon Dogen’s masterpiece in order to make it agree with our own view is not only vulgar; it is pointless. Not only does such treatment cut us (and maybe others) off from his message, his record will always come to its own defense. For example, no matter how much one insists that Dogen believed that words and letters were insignificant to the authentic practice and enlightenment of the Buddha-Dharma, his own record will not "sit down and shut up."

For example, we can say, "Dogen did not believe that people could come to understand ichimizen (non discriminatory Zen) based simply on words and letters." But we can’t eradicate it from his record:

The monastics of future generations will be able to understand one-taste Zen (ichimizen) based on words and letters, if they devote their efforts to spiritual practice by seeing the universe through words and letters, and words and letters through the universe.
~Eihei Dogen, Tenzo Kyokun

We could try to say things like, "Dogen meant the words and letters of a true master with a certificate from a Soto institution." And sure, there will always be students who prefer the "authorities" to tell them what to believe, rather than check it out for themselves. Nevertheless, there will always be some free thinker who will have to find his or her own certitude. Dogen himself was unable to merely swallow the teachings of the highest certified teachers in his own time. He undertook a dangerous journey to China to get to the bottom of it himself. If he had not found Tendo Nyojo, I would not have been surprised if went to India!

Of course, many modern institutions would chide him if he tried to pull that off today. The audacity of using his own thinking mind! Yes, his THINKING mind. For it is only that mind, that discriminatory, analyzing, judging, mind that can establish the bodhi-mind (Enlightened Mind). As Dogen points out in that darn record of his:

In general there are three kinds of mind. The first, citta, is here called thinking mind. The second, hridaya, is here called the mind of grass and trees. The third, vriddha, is here called experienced and concentrated mind. Among these, the bodhi-mind is inevitably established relying upon thinking mind. Bodhi is the sound of an Indian word; here it is called "the truth." Citta is the sound of an Indian word; here it is called "thinking mind." Without this thinking mind it is impossible to establish the bodhi-mind. That is not to say that this thinking mind is the bodhi mind itself, but we establish the bodhi-mind with this thinking mind.
~Eihei Dogen, Shobogenzo, Hotsu-Bodaishin, Nishijima & Cross

We may personally choose not to exercise our own "thinking mind" and simply believe, act, or submit to whatever spiritual authorities we like, but we should avoid slandering Dogen’s work by making claims that we have not personally experienced. If, after years of careful study and practice, we happen to gain some insight into his life’s work, and that insight seems to be corroborated by Dogen’s own record, that is one thing. If, however, we presume to expound on what Dogen taught or believed based only on what we have heard second hand, that is something else entirely.

When I stated that I believed the Shobogenzo was intended as a complete, self-contained soteriological device, I meant it literally (pun intended). Besides the predictable denunciation by the Soto orthodoxy discussed above, this claim is bound to raise the eyebrows of even those more liberal, and open minded within the Zen community. Such a statement does seem to contradict some of the most traditional views of language in Mahayana Buddhism, especially Zen.

I would not deny that the bulk of Zen literature concerning language is directed toward emphasizing its limitations and provisional status, and often portrays it as a hindrance to the authentic truth of Zen. For the most part, the Zen records only grudgingly recognize language as a useful function in the practical aspects of everyday life, and generally deny its value in any meaningful way concerning the ultimate truth of Buddhism. According to this view, when it comes to the highest realizations of Zen, language is at best a provisional tool that can be disregarded when one finally realizes the "authentic" truth.

Nevertheless, his own record clearly shows that Dogen did not conform to this view any more than the most prominent Rinzai master of Japanese Zen history did. Hakuin Ekaku wrote in his autobiography that he took a text "as my master" (Wild Ivy, Waddell, p.24) and declared near the end of his life that, "This book has meant more to me than anything else—even my teachers." (Wild Ivy, Waddell, p.132)

In fact, both of these great Zen Masters regarded the notion that the authentic practice of Zen could dispense with verbal teachings and written words as grossly negligent.

Listen as these two Dragons lament with one voice this pernicious misunderstanding about Zen being "a special transmission outside words and letters, and direct-pointing":

"How sad is the aridity of contemporary Zen schools! They laud unintelligent ignorance as transcendental direct-pointing Zen. Considering unsurpassed spiritual treasures like Focusing the Precious Mirror and the Five Ranks to be worn-out utensils of an antiquated house, they pay no attention to them. They are like blind people throwing away their canes, saying they are useless, then getting themselves stuck in the mud of the view of elementary realization, never able to get out all their lives."
~Hakuin, Kensho, Thomas Cleary, p.68-69

"How sad; how sad! Evil demons and spirits, wild beasts, and domesticated animals now call themselves the Zen School… we should know that within Buddha Dharma there are the Lotus and Huayan and other [teachings]; and it is not that within each of the Lotus and Huayan and so on there are various different buddha dharmas. Therefore, the eighty-four thousand Dharma treasures within the Lotus, Huayan, and so on are all without exception what is simply transmitted by buddha ancestors. It is not that outside of the Lotus and Huayan there is the way of ancestral teachers."
~Dogen, Eihei Koroku, Volume 7, Dharma Hall Discourse 491, Leighton & Okumura

While Dogen recognized and preached the necessity of authentic intellectual and verbal (and by extension, literary) activity in the practice of Zen, he also warned of the dangers of inauthentic intellectual and verbal activity. For Dogen, authentic intellectual and verbal activity consists of illumining and discerning the practice and enlightenment of the Buddha-Dharma, which is illumining and discerning the practice and enlightenment of the self. Inauthentic intellectual and verbal activity consists of blind allegiance to authority, imitation, passivity, detachment, and rigid adherence to particular forms of practice and proscribed systems of thought.

Authentic intellectual activity functions as a creative and transformative process which manifests as an intense curiosity, playfully and energetically engaged in discerning and investigating life, the world, and the Buddha-Dharma. It is marked by the continuous polishing and deepening of realization and wisdom, and the refinement of personal conduct within the Buddha-Dharma. People choosing this mode describe Zen with terms like, "challenging, fascinating, rich, and unpredictable." This is the enactment of the life of prajna (wisdom) and karuna (compassion), the life of the Bodhisattva of the Mahayana.

Inauthentic intellectual activity is the willing acquiescence to formal doctrine, an adoption of static, submissive passivity that is manifested as a sterile, resignation to a "things are as they are" type of naturalism. It is marked by the cultivation of detachment and disengagement from the world of thought, ideas, and emotion. People choosing this mode often describe Zen as "boring, nothing special, ordinary, and everyday." This is the life of arya-marga (no-more-learning) and the extinguishment of klesha (passions), the life of the Arhat of the Hinayana.

Okay, good enough for tonight. Please share your own ideas, insights and comments. Thank you!

Ted
www.flatbedsutra.com

Copyright Ted Biringer 2008

How have you approached the Shobogenzo

I have noticed a few coincidences lately between some of the discussions I have had and some of the things I have been reading. Now, I am not actually a very superstitious person, but I have learned to pay attention to coincidences…

The thing that seems to keep coming up is the relation between "study" and "practice" in Zen—especially regarding what Dogen’s Shobogenzo has to teach us about it, and how we can access that teaching.

One thing that has happened—which I have found to be somewhat surprising—is that several people that offered their views (not their opinions, mind you, but their "knowledge"- as in what they "know") on the teachings of the Shobogenzo, when asked, admitted that they had not even read the whole thing—much less the Eihei roku, or zuimonki.

Two of these people have been "practicing" Zen (Soto) for more than ten years and claim to be living their lives according to the teachings of Dogen—but how could they know that? I was able to inquire a little deeper with one of them. She admitted that she really had not made much of an effort to study Dogen’s work, but took her teacher’s word for what Dogen did or did not teach.

Lately I have been spending a little time each day trying to catch up on books written by contemporary Zen teachers. In the course of my reading I have come across several passages by different teachers that begin with something along the lines of, "Dogen believed that…" and "According to Dogen…" and then finish their sentences by saying something that did not seem to fit anything I had ever read or heard about in Dogen’s work. I looked, but the authors did not reference which record that they found the teaching in, much less the source. It made me wonder if they too, were simply repeating what a teacher had told them.

So, after mulling things over a little I thought that maybe we could share our own experiences, ideas, and insights on the study and practice of Zen. Here are some questions to help get the juices flowing:

How have you approached the Shobogenzo (or other Zen texts)?

How far is too far to go when offering our "knowledge" about Dogen’s (or anyone’s) teaching if we have not actually studied it ourselves?

Should we "qualify" our views with things like, "My teachers says that Dogen…" and "According to my teacher, Dogen taught…" Or do you think it is perfectly acceptable to say, "Dogen taught…" without qualifying our source?

If and when you do offer your experience and/or knowledge on Dogen, or anything to do with Buddhism or Zen, what do you base the validity of your understanding on?

Since I am the one that is trying to drag you into this, I will start…

When I offer my understanding of Dogen’s Shobogenzo I usually try to do so in a way that acknowledges that I could be wrong. Many times I have been forced to let go of some notion or another that did not stand up in the face of fresh knowledge or experience.

So let me qualify what I am about to share now and thereby avoid the cumbersome task of qualifying each point as I make them. Everything I think I "understand" about the Shobogenzo (or anything else really) is subject to change in the light of new knowledge or experience. Having said that, I believe that I can qualify everything I am about to say with at least two examples from Dogen’s own records. Okay, here goes…

My understanding of the Shobogenzo is based on 21 years of practice and study, employing a wide range of approaches and methods in a concerted effort to achieve a comprehensive understanding of the Shobogenzo. I think that this effort has, for the most part, proven successful —I hasten to add that by "comprehensive understanding" I mean extensive, not exhaustive, thoroughgoing, not all-inclusive.

Early on, I came to the conclusion that an accurate grasp of the message of Dogen’s unique, multidimensional work would require much more than an extensive familiarity with the entirety of its text and the tradition from which it evolved. It would also require years of intensive and extensive practical application, exploration, and experimentation. I reasoned that the work of such a uniquely gifted thinker and writer embedded within a specific literary tradition, an accurate understanding of the Shobogenzo demanded a thorough grasp of the philosophical, historical, literary, and religious systems through which it is conveyed. Moreover, as a soteriological expression by a Zen Buddhist master, a true appreciation of it would require the experience that only the actual implementation of its vision could provide. In short, it was clear from the beginning that any hope of discerning the authentic message of Dogen’s masterpiece demanded a combined approach allowing full and equal attention to experience as well as to knowledge, to practice as well as to study. I still believe this.

During the last 21 years I have sat with a wide variety of practitioners from various lineages. In the early years I worked with four different Zen masters (2 Soto, 1 sanbokyodan, and 1 in the lineage of Thich Nhat Hanh). I eventually settled on the teacher that I have now been with for almost 15 years. I spent my first 13 years with this teacher engaged in koan-introspection, shikantaza, and studying the works of Dogen. I also continued my own independent study during this time. I studied Japanese for two years but did not have much talent for it, and am deeply grateful for the many gifted translators that are supplying us with quality texts. I experimented with a variety of meditation techniques outlined in the classic Zen texts—especially the ones that seemed to me to be similar to Dogen’s teachings on "nonthinking."

My initial resistance to undertaking what at first seemed a daunting, if not futile task (coming to terms with the Shobogenzo) was gradually relieved as the validity of my approach was continuously confirmed by the very medium of the subject of my inquiry; the Shobogenzo itself. I eventually discovered, that this method of approaching the Shobogenzo is not simply a requirement for comprehending and expressing Dogen’s teaching, it is an inherent aspect of it. That is to say, I came to the realization of something Hee-Jin Kim had realized and expressed a decade before I had ever even heard of Zen Buddhism. His expression is much better than I could paraphrase hence I quote:

"[N]onduality did not primarily signify the transcendence of duality so much as it signified the realization of duality. When one chose and committed oneself to a special course of action, one did so in such a manner that the action was not an action among others, but the action—there was nothing but that particular action in the universe so that the whole universe was created in and through that action…

"As we incorporate these observations on Dogen’s view of the body-mind understanding into what I have said about activities and expressions, it is evident that activities, expressions, and understanding were one and the same for Dogen. It was not that we acted first and then attempted to understand, nor was it even that action was a special mode of understanding; all modes of understanding were necessarily activities and expressions."
(Hee-Jin Kim, Eihei Dogen: Mystical Realist, pp.105-106)

In discussing the validity of this observation with others over the years, I have often been met with a great deal of skepticism and resistance, especially by those within the Zen community. Nevertheless, I believe that Kim’s is an accurate assessment of a theme that runs through the entire corpus of Dogen’s work and is especially prominent in the Shobogenzo. For Dogen, activity, expression, and understanding—while maintaining their particular differences—always go together. Hence, any authentic understanding of the Shobogenzo inevitably includes "activity" and "expression."

While some inside the Zen community have been willing to (at least temporarily) entertain this notion, most have vehemently denied it all together once the mere outline of its corollary becomes apparent; namely, that the authentic practice of Zen consists largely of verbal, and by extension, literary activity. This sounds astonishing in the ears of those that have been inundated with the rhetoric surrounding Zen’s self-designation as "a separate transmission, outside words and letters, and not dependant on writings." While Dogen’s own writings may present the clearest evidence of how widely misunderstood this "self-designation" of Zen is, a simple appeal to common sense, I think, provides sufficient reason to dispel the most glaring misunderstandings in regard to this notion.

The misunderstanding and misrepresentation of the meaning behind "a separate transmission, outside words and letters, and not dependant on writings" is grounded on a faulty supposition. The faulty supposition in question is that "a separate transmission, outside words etc." is necessarily exclusive of words and letters (or any manner of verbal and literary activity). In other words, asserting the position that Zen is "outside words etc." and asserting that the authentic practice of Zen consists largely of verbal and literary activity need not be read as contradictory statements. The rationality of this point may become clearer if I try illustrating it within a different context. For instance, we would not find any difficulty in the statement that human life "exists outside words and letters, is not dependent on writings, and its occupation consists largely of verbal and literary activity. Indeed, one is hardly able to imagine human life apart from its ability and practice of verbal activity.

I firmly believe (and will present my evidence in the coming weeks, if requested) that the Shobogenzo insists that a failure to endeavor in intellectual and verbal activity will effectively bar one from the authentic practice of Zen.

Please do not misunderstand me. I do not construe this to mean, in any way that Dogen did not acknowledge the ineffable aspect of reality or the limitations of language and intellect. What I am saying is that based on my experience and understanding, Dogen’s teachings did not deny the limitations of the human condition, but evaluated and illumined them within the context of the highest realizations of the Mahayana Buddhist tradition, namely, emptiness and dependent origination. When seen through the experience of emptiness, or what Dogen often calls "nonthinking," each and every particular thing has absolute significance. Not only words and letters, but as Dogen never tires of saying, "walls, tiles, pebbles and mountains, the whole earth and the great sky." In the Shobogenzo Dogen even illumines the absolute significance of such things as dreams, illusions, pictures, doubt, and surprise.

Try to keep an open mind, and apply what I have discussed above to what Dogen points out in Shobogenzo, Bussho:

"We must unfailingly apply ourselves to the words "being without the Buddha-nature." ("being without" is a translation of "mu") Do not be hesitant. Though we should trace an outline of being without (mu) the Buddha-natur