(Pre-"Soto") Soto Style Koan Introspection in Dogen's Zen

(Pre-"Soto") Soto Style Koan Introspection in Dogen's Zen

The final exceptional passage in the Goyuigon concerns the content of Zen enlightenment and its relationship to koan training. Gikai prefaces this conversation with Ejo by stating: “During the prior meditation period, I was aided by our former teacher’s great enlightenment situation, the shinjin datsuraku words.” …in this passage… the words “shinjin datsuraku” represent a stock phrase or device (i.e., an “old example,” kosoku or koan) for contemplation during meditation. This use of shinjin datsuraku as a formal meditation device is confirmed by the fact that Ejo then tested Gikai’s understanding by asking him to present an “appended phrase” (jakugo, i.e. a passage… summing up the meaning of a koan.) Their dialogue is as follows:

 

Gikai: I have attained an insight based on our former teacher’s saying, “shinjin datsuraku.”

 

Ejo: Good. Good. What do you understand?

 

Gikai: I understand “datsuraku shinjin.”

 

Ejo: What is the meaning?

 

Gikai: I had thought only (my) barbarian beard was red, but here is another red-bearded barbarian.”

 

Ejo: Among the many permitted [answers to] shinjin [datsuraku], there is this kind of shinjin.

 

This conversation has been quoted in full because it reveals three practices usually thought to be incongruous with the method of Zen practiced in early Soto. It implies that Gikai had been occupied with Dogen’s words during his meditation; that Ejo used koan instruction as part of the dharma succession process; and that formal quotations of stereo-typed expressions were used to test the understanding of the koan. Modern Soto scholars cannot accept the Goyuigon account at face value, because to do so would force them either to revise their usual interpretation of Dogen’s Zen as a religion of unmediated meditation or to attempt to argue that both Ejo and Gikai had failed to understand Dogen’s teachings.
William M. Bodiford, Soto Zen in Medieval Japan, pp.55-56

Genjokoan: Skeleton Key to Dogen’s Shobogenzo Part 4

Genjokoan: A Skeleton Key to Dogen’s Shobogenzo

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A Study of Genjokoan and the Commentary in The Flatbed Sutra of LouieWing by Ted Biringer

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PART 4

[Click Here for Part 1] [Click Here for Part 2] [Click Here for Part 3]

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Throughout his works, Dogen consistently affirms the vital position of verbal expression in the buddha-dharma (the authentic teaching of Buddhism), and at the same time, clearly defines its limitations. The next line of Genjokoan is one of the finest examples of this.

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

This line may be the most direct expression in the whole Shobogenzo. It may also be the most misunderstood. It is often interpreted as a simile, which completely misses, and even subverts the point Dogen is making. In fact, Dogen points out that the previous three points are similes with the words, “And though it is like this.” In this line, he points out that reality is not like anything: it is simply reality; that is, “flowers fall…weeds flourish.”

This teaching corresponds with the true meaning of the often-quoted Zen dictum “a separate transmission outside the scriptures, not dependent on words and letters.” This does not mean that Zen disregards scriptures and texts, but that the reality the scriptures indicate is separate from the scriptures themselves, and not dependent on the words and letters that are used to indicate it.

Zen teachings require you to see into and through the words, while avoiding becoming attached to the words. You cannot “learn” Zen through reading and study, but you cannot disregard reading and study either. To use an analogy: reading a recipe for chocolate cake will not result in producing a chocolate cake–you must possess the ingredients and follow the instructions. At the same time, simply possessing the ingredients without the knowledge provided by the recipe will not do either.

In the first three statements, Dogen illustrates what reality is like; in this line, he presents it more directly, “and though it is like this, it is only that flowers, while loved, fall; and weeds while hated, flourish.” This kind of expression, common in Zen literature, is meant to convey the truth that reality or enlightenment is not produced by words, knowledge or even spiritual practice; reality is reality, as it is here and now.

~The Flatbed Sutra of Louie Wing: The Second Ancestor of Zen in the West by Ted Biringer

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To be continued...

[Click Here for Part 1] [Click Here for Part 2] [Click Here for Part 3]

Peace,

Ted

Three Enlightenment Stories: Dogen, Rujing, Ejo - Denkoroku

Three Enlightenment Stories from the Denkoroku: Dogen, Rujing, Ejo

Rujing (Dogen’s Chinese teacher) studied with Zen master Zhijian. Zhijian asked him, “How can you purify what has never been defiled?” After more than a year Rujing was suddenly awakened and said, “I’ve hit upon that which is undefiled.”

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One day Rujing was suddenly enlightened. He went to the abbot’s quarters and said, “I can say it.” Zhijian said, “This time say it.” Rujing said, “I’ve hit upon that which is undefiled.”

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Although he was given a purple vestment of honor and a master’s title by the emperor of China, he formally declined them. Furthermore, he kept his succession a secret, not revealing it all his life; only at the end did he formally acknowledge the teacher from whom he had inherited the teaching. This was not only to put off worldly craving for fame, but also out of deference for the good name of Zen. Truly his virtue was unequaled in his time, his discipline peerless in ancient and modern times.

He used to declare of himself, “The Way of the Zen founders has died out this last century or two. Thus there has not appeared a teacher like me for the last hundred or two hundred years…” He used to say, “Since I made up my mind to go travelling at the age of nineteen, I have found no one imbued with the Way. Many of the monastery abbots just deal with visiting officials and pay no mind to the monks’ hall. They always say, “Each of you should understand on your own,” and so saying they do not develop the people. Even the abbots of great monasteries now are like this. They think having nothing on the mind is the Way, and don’t demand intensive Zen concentration in association with a teacher. Where is there any Buddhism in that? If it is as they say, why would there be old-timers persistently seeking the Way? What a laugh—they haven’t so much as dreamed of the Way of the Zen founders.”

Keizan (4^th generation successor of Dogen), Transmission of Light, Thomas Cleary, p.214-216

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Once, during meditation sitting late at night Rujing said to the assembly, “Zen study is the shedding of mind and body.” Hearing this, suddenly Dogen was greatly enlightened.

Keizan (4^th generation successor of Dogen), Transmission of Light, Thomas Cleary, p.219

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Ejo studied with Zen master Dogen. One day in the course of inquiries he heard the saying, “One hair goes through myriad holes,” and all of a sudden realized enlightenment.

Keizan (4^th generation successor of Dogen), Transmission of Light, Thomas Cleary, p.227

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Peace,

Ted

Dogen: The Insentient Preaching Dharma, Shobogenzo, Mujo-seppo

Dogen’s Shobogenzo, Mujo-seppo, Part 1


Preaching the Dharma in preaching the Dharma is the realized universe that Buddhist patriarchs transmit to Buddhist patriarchs. This preaching the Dharma is the Dharma preaching. It is neither sentient nor insentient. It is neither intentional doing nor nondoing. It is not causally connected with doing and nondoing, and it is not something that arises from circumstances. At the same time, it does not follow the way of the birds; it is given to a Buddhist assembly. When the great state of truth is completely realized, preaching the Dharma is completely realized. When the Dharma treasury is transmitted, preaching the Dharma is transmitted. At the time of picking up a flower, preaching the Dharma is picked up, and at the time of transmitting the robe, preaching the Dharma is transmitted. For this reason, the buddhas and the patriarchs have, in like fashion, paid homage to preaching the Dharma since prior to the King of Majestic Voice, and have practiced preaching the Dharma as their original practice since prior to the buddhas themselves. Do not learn only that preaching the Dharma has been orchestrated by Buddhist patriarchs; Buddhist patriarchs have been orchestrated by preaching the Dharma. This preaching the Dharma is not merely the expounding of the eighty-four thousand gates of Dharma; it includes countless and boundless gates of Dharma preaching. Do not learn that later buddhas preach as Dharma the Dharma preaching of former buddhas. Just as former buddhas do not come back as later buddhas, so it is also in preaching the Dharma: former preaching of the Dharma is not used as later preaching of the Dharma. For this reason, Sakyamuni Buddha says, “In the same manner that the buddhas of the three times preach the Dharma, so now do I also preach the Dharma that is without distinction.” Thus, in the same way that buddhas utilize preaching the Dharma, buddhas utilize preaching the Dharma. And in the same way that buddhas authentically transmit preaching the Dharma, buddhas authentically transmit preaching the Dharma. Therefore, having been authentically transmitted from buddhas of the eternal past to the Seven Buddhas, and having been authentically transmitted from the Seven Buddhas to today, there exists “the non-emotional preaching the Dharma.” In this non-emotional preaching the Dharma the buddhas are present, and the patriarchs are present. Do not learn that “I now preach the Dharma” expresses an innovation that differs from the authentic tradition. And do not experience the time honored authentic tradition as if it were an old nest in a demon’s cave.
Shobogenzo, Mujo-seppo, Gudo Nishijima & Mike Cross

As observed in recent posts, Shobogenzo distinguishes between the vision of prajna (enlightened wisdom) and common abstract, biased vision. Prajna is the integral unity or the center of gravity of the combined causes and conditions that not only make humans human, but makes each human a unique character. In short, prajna facilitates and informs the meaning and significance of an individual being’s characteristic attitude toward the experience of life.

Seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, touching, and thinking are the six streams of experience that constitute human existence. These never-ceasing, ever-advancing streams are the common reality of Buddha nature/mu-Buddha nature shared by all beings.

The prajna of each human being (either actively or passively) arranges these six streams into the existence experienced by them. Active actualization is consciously directed prajna; passive actualization is unconscious and haphazard. This is what informs Dogen’s view that true wisdom is most clearly revealed in and as “expression of truth,” here called “preaching Dharma.” To clarify these points, Dogen follows his opening passage with this Zen koan:

National Master Daisho of Kotakuji in the Western Capital in the great kingdom of Tang, the story goes, is asked by a monk, “Can the insentient really preach the Dharma, or not?”
The National Master says, “They are always preaching ardently; they preach without interval.”
The monk says, “Why do I not hear it?”
The National Master says, “Whether or not you hear it yourself, you should not disturb others who do hear it.”
The monk says, “I wonder what kind of person is able to hear it.”
The National Master says, “Saints are able to hear it.”
The monk says, “Does the Master hear it or not?”
The National Master says, “I do not hear it.”
The monk says, “If the Master himself does not hear it, how does he know that the insentient preach the Dharma?”
The National Master says, “It is convenient that I do not hear it. If I heard it I would be on the level of the saints, and then you would not be able to hear me preaching the Dharma.”
The monk says, “So living beings are without the means [to hear].”
The National Master says, “I preach for living beings. I do not preach for saints.”
The monk says, “What are living beings like after they hear?”
The National Master says, “At that time they are beyond living beings.”
Shobogenzo, Mujo-seppo, Gudo Nishijima & Mike Cross

Expressions of truth (preaching Dharma) are actualized by the whole body-mind. Dogen taught and demonstrated that the immediacy, energy, and authority of the Zen masters do not come from some super-human capacity or a super-enhanced capacity of the human body-mind. The expressions are wholly alive because the masters are wholly alive. Bodhidharma, Matsu, Linchi, Dogen, and Hakuin do not simply speak to our mind or our body, much less to some particular aspect of the body-mind; they speak to the wholeness of our being; for, like the expressions of Mozart, Bach, Michelangelo, and Picasso, they are expressions of wholeness.

This is the reason that, from the perspective of Shobogenzo, direct experience is truer and more alive than maxims, formulas, ideas, memories, concepts, etc. Direct experience is not “pure consciousness” or mere “open awareness.” In Dogen’s Zen, authentic practice-realization is never construed as passive perception, observation, or simply experiencing things “as they are.” Zen practice-realization is the actualization of the universe (genjokoan). To personally verify that “clear seeing is prajna itself” is to clearly see that the fashioner of the universe is nothing other than our own true self. To be unaware that “clear seeing is prajna itself” is to be unaware of our inherent liberation. According to Zen, our very existence is facilitated by our experiential capacities; when the Dharma-Eye is not activated, existence is fashioned by (haphazard) experience; when it is activated experience (intentionally) fashions existence.

Thus, the authenticity of Zen practice-realization is dependent on the “ordinariness” or “normality” of the mind of the practitioner. This means the ordinary or normal mind of an awakened being of course, not the “average” or “common” mind of the unawakened being. The expressions of Buddha ancestors reveal the wisdom of the true nature of human beings because Buddha ancestors are wholly awakened (ordinary, or normal) human beings. Strictly speaking, in Zen, there are no such things as “Buddhists,” there are common, deluded beings and there are Buddhas. For, to “clearly see” the wisdom of Buddhism (prajna) is, by definition, to actualize prajna itself – that is, to be a Buddha.

The Buddha-Dharma cannot be known by people. For this reason, since ancient times, no common person has realized the Buddha-Dharma and no one in the two vehicles has mastered the Buddha-Dharma. Because it is realized only by buddhas, we say that “buddhas alone, together with buddhas, are directly able perfectly to realize it.”
Shobogenzo, Yui-butsu-yo-butsu, Gudo Nishijima & Mike Cross

In Shobogenzo “clear seeing is prajna itself” (experience is existence itself), and that the reality of dharmas are unique to individuals, as well as truer and more extensive for those that have more fully developed their “eyes of practice,” a task with an infinite potential for expansion. For those unfamiliar with this way of looking at things, this can be difficult to reconcile. For those attached to dualistic or representational views of knowledge, it can seem nonsensical.

That the realities of things (dharmas) are more or less real based on how they are perceived is hard to concede, how much more the notion that “expressions” are more or less true for the same reason. Also, some might ask, if existence is actualized only as immediate experience, expressions, being “post-experiential” products, are as disconnected from reality as abstract concepts aren’t they?

No. Why?

First, for Dogen, expressions of truth are no more fixed than is actual experience; second, expressions need not be “post-experiential”; in fact, if they are post-experiential they are not expressions of truth. Expressions that merely repeat, represent (re-present), or correspond to previous real experiences or expressions of truth, even experiences or expressions of Buddhas, are only imitations of reality, replicas of truth.

Beginners and later students who wish to learn in practice the non-emotional preaching the Dharma should get straight into diligent research of this story of the National Master. “They are always preaching ardently; they preach without interval.” “Always” is a concrete time of many instants. “They preach without interval”: given that “preaching” is already manifest in reality, it is inevitably “without interval.” We should not learn that the manner in which “the insentient preach the Dharma” must necessarily be as in the case of the sentient. [To suppose that the manner in which “the insentient preach the Dharma]” might accord with the voices of the sentient, and with the manner in which the sentient preach the Dharma, and thus to wrest voices from the sentient world and to liken them to the voices of the insentient world, is not Buddhism. “The insentient preaching the Dharma” may not always be sound as matter—just as the sentient preaching the Dharma is not sound as matter. Now, asking ourselves and asking others, we must endeavor to learn in practice what is the sentient state and what is the insentient state. That being so, we should painstakingly apply our mind to learning in practice how the non-emotional might preach the Dharma. Stupid people think that the rustling of trees in the forest, and the opening and falling of leaves and flowers, are the non-emotional preaching the Dharma, but they are not practitioners of the Buddha-Dharma. If it were so, who could fail to know the non-emotional preaching the Dharma, and who could fail to hear the non-emotional preaching the Dharma? Let us reflect for a while: in the non-emotional world are there any “grass,” “trees,” and “forests” or not? Is the non-emotional world infiltrated by “the emotional world” or not? [No.] To recognize, on the contrary, that grass, trees, tiles, and pebbles are the non-emotional is to be incomplete in learning. And to recognize the non-emotional as grass, trees, tiles, and pebbles, is not to have experienced satisfaction. Though we shall now consider the grass, trees, and so on that are seen by human beings, and discuss them as the non-emotional, those very grass, trees, and so on are beyond the common intellect. For there are great differences between the forests of the heavens above and those of the human world; the produce of a civilized nation is not the same as that of a remote land; and grass and trees in the ocean are totally unlike those in the mountains. Still more, there are trees that grow in space and there are trees that grow in clouds. Among the hundred weeds and myriad trees that sprout and grow amid wind, fire, and so on, there are generally those that can be understood as sentient, those that are not recognized as insentient, and those weeds and trees which seem to be humans and animals: sentient and insentient have never been clearly distinguished. Still more, when we see a hermit’s trees, stones, flowers, fruits, hot springs, and cool waters, they are utterly beyond doubt—but how could they not be difficult to explain? Barely having seen the weeds and trees of China, or having become familiar with the weeds and trees of Japan, do not think that similar situations may be present through the whole universe in myriad directions.

The National Master says, “The saints are able to hear it.” That is, in orders where the non-emotional preaches the Dharma, the saints stand on the ground to listen. The saints, and the non-emotional, both realize hearing and realize preaching. The non-emotional does indeed preach the Dharma to saints, but is it sacred or is it common? [It is neither.] In other words, after we have clarified the manner in which the non-emotional preaches the Dharma, we are able to realize in physical experience that what the saints hear is as it is. Having attained realization in physical experience, we are able to fathom the state of the saints. Thereafter we should learn in practice, further, action on the road through the night which transcends the common and transcends the sacred. The National Master says, “I do not hear it.” Do not suppose that even these words are easy to understand. Does he not hear because he transcends the common and transcends the sacred, or does he not hear because he rips apart the nests of the common and the sacred? With effort like this, we should realize the [master’s] expression. The National Master says, “It is convenient that I do not hear it. If I heard it I would be on the level of the saints.” This elucidation is never one truth or two truths. The “convenient I” is beyond the common and the sacred; might the “convenient I” be a Buddhist patriarch? Because Buddhist patriarchs transcend the common and transcend the sacred, [what they hear] may not be exactly the same as what the saints hear. Researching the truth of the National Master’s words “Then you would not be able to hear me preaching the Dharma,” we should consider the bodhi of the buddhas and the saints. The point is this: when the non-emotional preach the Dharma the saints are able to hear, but when the National Master preaches the Dharma that concrete monk is able to hear. Day upon day and month after month we should endeavor to learn this truth. Now I would like to ask the National Master: I do not ask what living beings are like after they hear, but what are living beings like just in the moment of hearing you preach the Dharma?
Shobogenzo, Mujo-seppo, Gudo Nishijima & Mike Cross

To be continued in Dogen’s Shobogenzo, Mujo-seppo, Part 2

Peace,
Ted

The Ultimate Reality of Expedient Means - Dogen

The Ultimate Reality of Expedients Means

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Sakyamuni Buddha says, “Buddhas alone, together with buddhas, are directly able to perfectly realize that all dharmas are real form…

all dharmas are the real nature...
all dharmas are real body...
all dharmas are real energy...
all dharmas are real action...
all dharmas are real causes...
all dharmas are real conditions...
all dharmas are real effects...
all dharmas are real results...
all dharmas are the real ultimate state of equality of substance and detail...

Sakyamuni Buddha says, “The anuttarasamyaksambodhi of all bodhisattvas totally belongs to this sutra. This sutra opens the gate of expedient methods and reveals true real form…”

The gate of expedient methods is not a temporary artifice; it is the learning in practice of the whole universe in ten directions, and it is learning in practice that exploits the real form of all dharmas.
Shobogenzo, Shoho-jisso, Gudo Nishijima & Mike Cross

(Alternative translation of the last line: "The Gate of Skillful Means does not refer to some momentary skill. Trainees take up the Real Form of all thoughts and things, and explore It thoroughly through their training with a Master." ~Hubert Nearman)

Here we see the reason for Dogen’s repeated assertions on the “real existence of all dharmas,” and “nothing is concealed in the whole universe.” According to Dogen: “…expedient methods is not a temporary artifice…” !!!

This is quite an astonishing statement. If it was anyone other than Dogen, the assertion that “expedient means” are ultimately real might be immediately denied by a number of Zen students and teachers I know. But since Dogen had to go and write it down, some concession will have to be made—usually a “creative interpretation” explaining what Dogen really “meant,” perhaps, “just sitting is itself full enlightenment,“ or something similar. I will stick with his words for now.

In the context of Dogen's writings, one implication of this is that the form (or, appearance) of a thing (dharma) and the content (or, meaning) of the thing are nondual. In short, a thing is and means precisely as it appears. Thus, every particular thing is an expression of Buddha nature, and each expression means what it says. This is why Dogen stresses, “nothing is concealed in the whole universe.”

This also explains Dogen’s scorn for “scholars that count words and letters,” and abstract notions inferred, or deduced from generalized systems of classification. If the significance (meaning, reason, content) of real things is not apart from the form of their appearance, then accurate understanding depends on clear perception. In order to “classify” things according to their “inherent qualities” (e.g. “right” speech, “expedient” means, “pure” sitting, etc.), those things must first be attributed with qualities—in other words, “qualities” would have to be considered independently of the things they were supposed to qualify (Buddhism 101 informs us that “independent” entities are untenable).

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It is impossible even to imagine qualities, like “right,” “provisional,” “false,” etc., as existing apart from real things. Qualities apart from things are as illusory as “general perceptions.” To accept Dogen’s position of the nonduality of “things” and “our experience of them” is to accept the unity the self and the world; to classify things according to separate qualities divides the self and the world. This is “counting words and letters,” this is being attached to theoretical conceptualization—inferences and deductions about things, are substituted for things as they are.

Now, as all things are real to Dogen, this includes concepts, theories, abstraction, etc. And it is for this very reason that Dogen warns of real danger in misusing them. There is no problem with concepts, abstract ideas, etc. in themselves; according to Dogen, they are both real and necessary (expedient means) to authentic practice-enlightenment. It is careless or unskillful use that Dogen disparages.

For Dogen, there are mountains, mountains, and mountains—"experienced mountains” directly perceived, "word mountains” used to intelligently communicate, and "concept “mountains” used to think intelligently. These three types of real mountains, experiential, verbal, and conceptual respectively are certainly interconnected, but they are not equivalent or interchangeable. Nor are they qualitatively superior or inferior—each is a real dharma and a real expression of Buddha nature. Zen practitioners are not to dispense with words and concepts, but to use them skillfully (expediently). Expedient usage begins with study to achieve an accurate understanding of the distinctions between experience, word, and concept. Once understood, practitioners use them expediently by keeping in mind, or “remembering” these distinctions. As Dogen says:

Remember, mountains are not “mountains,” mountains are mountains.

In sum, Dogen’s view about the unity of a thing and its content, or reason, implies that the more precisely we discern a thing, the more accurately we understand it.

Dogen never tires of disparaging views that divide reality into “mind” (envisioned as a kind of eternal “divine essence”) and “matter” (envisioned as the dead, passive material “stuff” of the world). Such views commonly posits a division between “things” and our “experience” of them.

The division of subject and object also occurs in doctrines that take an opposite approach. Rather than dividing reality up, some doctrines simply merge the myriad things into a kind of pernicious oneness.

Unlike the Buddhist doctrine of nonduality, wherein the creative dynamic tension of differences are maintained, the effect of either dividing or merging is equalization and neutralization, logically concluding by reducing all dharmas to identical and interchangeable nothings.

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Can you hear Dogen spitting venom? Me too!

Peace,

Ted

The Supreme State of Enlightenment--and Beyond

Dogen on the Supreme State of Enlightenment--and Beyond...

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While some contemporary Buddhist teachers tend to downplay the significance of enlightenment and even minimize or ridicule the use of the various terms for enlightenment (bodhi, satori, sho, awakening, etc.), the Buddhist scriptures and classic records of the master speak of little else, and insist that enlightenment is the foremost task of all Buddhists. Dogen's works are no exception. But what is enlightenment? Following are some expamles in which Dogen offers clues about "the supreme state of bodhi."
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In the supreme state of bodhi, Buddhist patriarchs who transmitted the truth and received the behavior have been many, and examples of past ancestors who reduced their bones to powder cannot be denied. Learn from the ancestral Patriarch who cut off his arm, and do not differ by a hair’s breadth [from the bodhisattva who] covered the mud. When we each get rid of our husk, we are not restricted by former views and understanding, and things which have for vast kalpas been unclear suddenly appear before us. In the here and now of such a moment, the self does not recognize it, no-one else is conscious of it, you do not expect it, and even the eyes of Buddha do not glimpse it. How could the human intellect fathom it?
Shobogenzo, Keisei-Sanshiki, Nishijima & Cross
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The term ‘the Ultimate’ refers to the Wisdom that is the result of Buddhahood. Were we to compare the state of supreme, fully perfected enlightenment with the state of giving rise to the enlightened Mind for the first time, it is like comparing the universal, all-consuming conflagration of the final age with the light of a firefly. Even so, when you give rise to the heart that helps others reach the Other Shore, even though you yourself have not yet reached that Place, there is no difference between the two.
Shobogenzo, Hotsu Bodai Shin, Hubert Nearman
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He who knows but a single mote of dust knows the whole world: he who fully comprehends one thing comprehends all the myriad things that comprise the universe. He who fails to comprehend all the myriad things will not comprehend even one of them. When someone has fully trained himself in this principle of comprehending and has reached full comprehension, he will not only see the myriad things that comprise the universe but will also see each one of them. This is why the person who studies one mote of dust will undoubtedly be studying the whole universe. To think that a three-year-old child cannot give voice to the Buddha Dharma or to think that a three-year-old is ‘cute’ is the height of foolishness. This is because clarifying what birth is and clarifying what death is constitutes the most important matter for a Buddhist monk.
Shobogenzo, Shoaku Makusa, Hubert Nearman
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But, according to Dogen, awakening is only the beginning. What about after this mind has already been manifested?
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There are those who say that after bodhisattvas become Buddhas, they discontinue practice because there is nothing left for them to do. Such people are mundane persons who have no direct knowledge of the Way of the Buddhas and Ancestors.
Shobogenzo, Shoho Jisso, Hubert Nearman
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Unsurpassed bodhi is not for the sake of self, not for the sake of others, not for the sake of fame, and not for the sake of profit. And yet, single-mindedly seeking unsurpassed bodhi, diligently proceeding without retreat, is called arousing the bodhi mind. After this mind has already been manifested, not seeking after bodhi, even for the sake of bodhi, is the genuine bodhi mind. If you do not have this mind, how could it be the study of the way? Brothers at this temple, single-mindedly seek bodhi mind, and never quit out of laziness.
Eihei Koroku, Dogen’s Extensive Record, Leighton & Okumura, 5:377
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The arising of the intention means giving rise, right off, to the intention to help others reach the Other Shore, even though you yourself have not yet reached that Place. We call this giving rise to the enlightened Mind for the first time. Once you have given rise to this Mind, you will then encounter Buddhas to whom you should make alms offerings, and you should hearken to Their Teaching.
Shobogenzo, Hotsu Bodai Shin, Hubert Nearman
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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.
Shobogenzo, Sammai-O-Zammai, Waddell & Abe, p.101
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The Dharma was Transmitted for the sake of each and every Buddha, and the Dharma was inherited for the sake of each and every Buddha. This is why birth-and-death and coming-and-going exist. It is why the intention to train, training and practice, the attaining of Wisdom, and nirvana exist. By making use of the intention to train, training and practice, the attaining of Wisdom, and nirvana, we thoroughly explore that the human body really is birth-and-death and coming-and-going, and, in protecting what we have received, we now hold firm and we now let go.
Shobogenzo, Shoho Jisso (Hubert Nearman)
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Therefore, once having understood, you should read the Sage's Teachings many times. And having heard the words of the teacher, still you should listen to them again. The mind should grow deeper and deeper. As for things which would be hindrances to the study of the Way, do not go near them anymore. Even if it is painful and lonely, associate with worthy companions to practice the Way.
Shobogenzo-Zuimonki, 5:15 (Record of Things Heard, Thomas Cleary)

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Well, back to the cushions and the sutras! Enjoy!

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Peace,

Ted

10 Distorted Notions about Zen and Dogen

The study of Dogen’s writings are often hindered by a number of widespread erroneous views, misunderstandings, and simplistic notions about Zen generally and Dogen’s teachings specifically. Moreover, such distortions have marginalized Zen to the level of irrelevancy for many; thus barring potential practitioners from the liberation of Zen enlightenment. Ten of the top such distortions include:

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That Zen advocates a distrust of written or verbal teachings.
That Zen denigrates intellectual or conceptual endeavors.
That Zen advocates detachment.
That zazen only and always should be understood by its literal meaning (“sitting meditation”).
That Dogen advocated sitting meditation to the exclusion of other practices.
That Dogen did not teach (or was opposed to) koan introspection.
That Zen is something ineffable, mysterious, esoteric, complicated, or difficult to understand.
That koans are puzzles, paradoxes, riddles, or devices used to frustrate the intellect.
That koans are irrational, or are anything other than legitimate literary idioms.
That Zen meditation is trance-like, or otherwise isolates one from their surroundings.

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The widespread acceptance of such simplistic and/or aberrant views has not only hindered effective study and practice, it has contributed to many of the high profile scandals of western “Zen” communities, and thus caused many thinking people to dismiss modern Zen as nothing more than another whacked out cult.

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Peace,

Ted

Dogen's Straight Talk: The Universe, The Self

Dogen's Straight Talk: The Universe, The Self

The whole universe in all ten directions is one’s true Self, and one’s true Self is the whole universe in all ten directions—there is no place to escape to. Were there some way to escape this, it could only be by getting outside of our own physical body. Our present-day seven feet of skull and bones is precisely the form and image of the whole universe in all ten directions. Indeed, the whole universe in all ten directions which trains and enlightens us in the Buddha’s Way is our skull and bones, our physical body with its skin, flesh, bones, and marrow.
Shobogenzo, Komyo, Hubert Nearman

Dogen on Philosophizing

“…Dogen provided us with profound insight into the nature of philosophizing activity. To him what mattered most was not the relative significance of theoretical formulations, but how and what we did with the ideas and values inherited from our past—in other words, the authenticity of our philosophic activity. The issue was not so much whether or not to philosophize as it was how to philosophize—in total freedom with body-mind cast off. The philosophic enterprise was as much the practice of the bodhisattva way as was zazen. And significantly enough, this view implied that philosophic activity itself was a koan realized in life.”
–Hee-Jin Kim, Dogen Kigen: Mystical Realist (1975) (Republished in 2004 as, Eihei Dogen: Mystical Realist)
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Some westerners, introduced to Zen Buddhism through the writings of DT Suzuki, Shunryu Suzuki, Phillip Kapleau, and a handful of others, were stunned by their first encounter with the works of Eihei Dogen. The writings of the 13th century master, who most knew only as “the founder of Soto Zen in Japan,” seemed to directly contradict some of the most central tenets of Zen as portrayed to the West. They showed little evidence of the iconoclasm or disdain for verbal and written teachings as had often been suggested as characteristic of Zen. Absent too was the “one method” exponent of “pure Zen”, an unflinching advocate of “just sitting” (shikantaza) who had little use for koans, as the Soto founder was usually portrayed by both Rinzai and Soto representatives.

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In fact, Dogen’s voluminous writings testify to just the opposite. Nearly all of them make extensive use of the classic koan literature, citing it far more than any other source and demonstrating a particularly profound mastery of it. Like many classic Zen masters, Dogen also frequently cites the Buddhist sutras (scriptures) to both clarify and verify his own points. Unlike most masters, however, Dogen also asserts the need for practitioners to engage in extensive, and intensive, study—of sutras as well as the sayings (koans) and records of the ancestral Zen masters. Going further, Dogen’s writings meticulously examine and expose fallacious views that Zen can be realized apart from intellectual effort. Dogen’s work lucidly reveals the fact that asserting, saying, or proclaiming that the truth of Zen cannot be transmitted through verbal and written teachings not only deny the evidence; it is absurd. Anyone ascribing to such a position cannot dispute this. According to Dogen, to truly adhere to such a view compels one to embrace the ultimate futility of language; assertions of dispute would be as meaningless as assertions of admission.

Peace,

Ted

Zen Doctrine and Methodology - Progression not Completion

Zen Doctrine and Methodology - Progression not Completion

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The main objective of the criticism inherent to Shobogenzo (as with many literary works) is not concerned with revealing the relative merits of preceding works, teachings, or teachers; it is to establish and clarify its own presuppositions in regard to the nature and characteristics of the actual universe (i.e. the real world).

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Dogen, being a master of language, was well aware of the fact that all propositions are made in reference to or about a universe which presupposes specific characteristics particular to it. In the absence of such presuppositions, the various actual dharmas (things, beings, events) which inform propositions, as well as the assertions themselves, will lack the definitive characteristics necessary for meaningful communication.

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One Zen master was asked by a monk pointing at a lamp, “What is that?” The master retorted, “If three of us say it is a tortoise, it is a tortoise.” Every proposition, if it asserts anything meaningful, must take account of, and harmonize with the actual nature and dynamics of the universe in which it is applied. It is through the mutual awareness and agreement of the speaker (or writer) and the hearer (or reader) on the presuppositions involved that distinguish meaningful assertions from a mere series of sounds (or string of words). A monk that was aware of certain presuppositions could accurately respond to a master’s assertion that, “The tortoise is nearly out of fuel” by refilling the lamp with oil.
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In sum, an assertion can only be regarded as “true” in the specific conditions of its usage, including the background of its presupposed universe.
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Now, contemporary notions of Zen as being, in one way or another, “beyond words,” are not completely unwarranted. The teachings of Zen themselves are permeated with exhortations to be diligent about recognizing the inescapable limitations of expression as well as the dangers of unwise or careless use of language. However, as is evident in the fact that the literature of Zen is by far the most voluminous of any of the Mahayana schools of Buddhism, the classic masters of Zen were fully aware that language was the only vehicle with which Zen could be communicated.

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The fact that the ‘experience itself’ of Zen is ‘beyond words’ is true, but so is the ‘experience itself’ of a sunset, or the scent of freshly mown grass. “Experience itself,” of any kind, is confined to the realm of experience which cannot be ‘captured’ and held onto, much less passed on like a treasured heirloom.

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Thus, the Zen masters, in efforts to undermine deluded notions that equated the “knowledge” of Buddhism with Buddhist “enlightenment,” stressed the incommunicability of experience. Ironically, the very teachings emphasizing the requirement to avoid idolizing knowledge came to be concretized into idols themselves.

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The efforts of formulation and articulation carried out by the Zen masters are characterized by both authority and humility. The clear tone of authority that rings out from the records of Zen has its source in direct personal experience, rather than abstract speculation. That is to say, the speakers/writers of the Zen records, in their refusal to assert anything that they have not personally verified, demonstrate the singular trait essential to authority; authenticity. The sincere humility singing harmoniously with this authority springs from the clear perception of the true nature of the self and the world. Clearly perceiving the infinite, ineffable, limitless potential of the ever advancing universe inspires profound gratitude and even more profound humility.

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Awakened to the infinite potential of the universe, the Zen master seeks to deepen and refine, to expand and clarify—never to finalize or conclude. Their efforts to formulate and articulate seek progression, not completion.

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Peace,

Ted

Dogen, Learning in Practice, Secret Talk, and Zazen

Shobogenzo, Mitsugo
Read the full fascicle here: Online Shobogenzo (Gudo Nishijima & Mike Cross)

[3] When the great truth, “that which buddhas guard and desire,” is realized as the real universe, the state [expressed] “You are like this, I am like this,” and “each must guard it well,” is experienced exactly in the present.

[4] Great Master Kokaku of Ungozan, the story goes, is served offerings by a government official, who asks, “The World-honored One has secret talk; for Mahakasyapa nothing is concealed. What is the World-honored One’s secret talk?”

The great master calls out, “Minister!”

The man responds.

The great master says, “Do you understand or not?”

The official says, “I do not understand.”

The great master says, “If you do not understand, it is the World-honored One’s secret talk. If you understand, it is Mahakasyapa’s state of nothing being concealed.”

The great master, manifesting himself as the legitimate descendant, after five generations, of Seigen, is a master of gods and human beings and a great good counselor through the whole universe in the ten directions. He transforms the sentient and transforms the insentient. As the forty-sixth buddha in the legitimate succession of buddhas, he preaches the Dharma for Buddhist patriarchs. At his hermitage on Sanpo Mountain, he was sent offerings from the kitchens of gods. But after receiving the transmission of the Dharma and attaining the truth, he transcended the state which is sent [heavenly] offerings. The expression quoted now that “The World-honored One has secret talk; for Mahakasyapa nothing is concealed,” is the legacy of forty-six buddhas. At the same time, as the original features of the forty-six buddhas, “it is not got from others,” “it does not come from outside,” “it is not inherent,” and “it has never been something new.” With regard to the realization of this matter of secret talk, not only the World-honored Sakyamuni has secret talk: all the Buddhist patriarchs have secret talk. A World-honored One always has secret talk. And one who has secret talk inevitably has Mahakasyapa’s state of nothing being concealed. We should learn in practice and should not forget the truth that if there are a hundred thousand World-honored Ones there are a hundred thousand Mahakasyapas. “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. It may be that now, having already become the World-honored One, [the master of] Ungozan is equipped with secret talk and possesses the state of Mahakasyapa in which nothing is concealed. Do not learn that calling “Minister!” and the official’s response, are secret talk itself.
(Shobogenzo, Mitsugo, Gudo Nishijima & Mike Cross)

[COMMENT]

Following Jordan’s suggestion, I will break this down into a series of smaller posts. This is the first part (about 1/5th) of the Shobogenzo fascicle, “Mitsugo” (Secret Talk).

Dogen, as usual, jumps right in:

When the great truth, “that which buddhas guard and desire,” is realized as the real universe, the state [expressed] “You are like this, I am like this,” and “each must guard it well,” is experienced exactly in the present.

Notice how the various phrases combine to define each other. For example:

“The great truth” is: “the real universe”, “desired by buddhas”, “a state that can be experienced”, etc.

And, “The real universe” is: “something that can be realized”, “can be experienced exactly in the present”, “the same state that is expressed as ‘each must guard it well’”, etc.

And, “You are like this, I am like this” is: “an expression of the great truth”, “the same as, ‘each must guard it well’”, “that which buddhas realize”, etc.

Next, Dogen cites a koan:

Great Master Kokaku of Ungozan, the story goes, is served offerings by a government official, who asks, “The World-honored One has secret talk; for Mahakasyapa nothing is concealed. What is the World-honored One’s secret talk?”

The great master calls out, “Minister!”

The man responds.

The great master says, “Do you understand or not?”

The official says, “I do not understand.”

The great master says, “If you do not understand, it is the World-honored One’s secret talk. If you understand, it is Mahakasyapa’s state of nothing being concealed.”

Before looking at Dogen’s comment I will just point out the similarity of the structure of this case and case 22 in the Mumonkan:

Ananda asked Mahakasyapa, “When the World Honored One transmitted the robe to you, did he transmit anything else?

Mahakasyapa calls out, “Ananda!”

Ananda responded, “Yes!”

Mahakasyapa said, “Knock down the flagpole!”

Okay, back to the Dogen:

The great master, manifesting himself as the legitimate descendant, after five generations, of Seigen, is a master of gods and human beings and a great good counselor through the whole universe in the ten directions. He transforms the sentient and transforms the insentient. As the forty-sixth buddha in the legitimate succession of buddhas, he preaches the Dharma for Buddhist patriarchs. At his hermitage on Sanpo Mountain, he was sent offerings from the kitchens of gods. But after receiving the transmission of the Dharma and attaining the truth, he transcended the state which is sent [heavenly] offerings.

While Dogen’s format here seems pretty typical of Zen masters introducing the ‘persons’ in a case (giving a brief bio/Dharma career overview), he does not waste the opportunity to offer some turning words. Couching some fantastic claims inside an ‘ordinary’ introduction precludes the listener’s distraction (or reader’s skimming) and forces us to look closely in an effort to get at the meaning. Not just a master revered throughout the whole world, “a master of gods and human beings and a great good counselor through the whole universe in the ten directions.” He does not simply transform all beings, “He transforms the sentient and transforms the insentient.” Etc. Furthermore, what is the state which is sent heavenly offerings?

Dogen continues:

The expression quoted now that “The World-honored One has secret talk; for Mahakasyapa nothing is concealed,” is the legacy of forty-six buddhas. At the same time, as the original features of the forty-six buddhas, “it is not got from others,” “it does not come from outside,” “it is not inherent,” and “it has never been something new.”

Here, Dogen reminds us of some of the facts of Being-Time (Uji), essential for getting to the heart of all the Shobogenzo fascicles, as well as resolving koans. This ‘expression’ is the legacy of ancestors (something passed on, or handed down), and, at the same time, it is the ‘original’ features of the ancestors (integral, particular, characteristics they had before they were born). This is beyond existence, beyond non-existence. He names four such features that each of these buddhas ‘originally’ have. The translators note says they could not trace the quotes, but I would be surprised if they did not come from Yuanwu’s commentary on case 22 of the Hekiganroku, where he relates Seppo’s enlightenment experience on Tortoise Mountain.

Dogen goes on:

With regard to the realization of this matter of secret talk, not only the World-honored Sakyamuni has secret talk: all the Buddhist patriarchs have secret talk. A World-honored One always has secret talk. And one who has secret talk inevitably has Mahakasyapa’s state of nothing being concealed. We should learn in practice and should not forget the truth that if there are a hundred thousand World-honored Ones there are a hundred thousand Mahakasyapas.

If all buddhas and ancestors have secret talk, AND, someone who has secret talk ‘inevitably’ has Mahakasyapas state of nothing being concealed, what does that tell us? Even if we follow this, we “should learn it in practice” – really and truly get to the bottom of it, more let it get to the bottom of us. It is possible. Just sit with it, examine it, let it sit, pick it up, get to know it intimately. Is there a gap between Mahakasyapa’s state and our state? Where could it possibly be ‘concealed’? Also, we should ‘not forget’ the truth spoken by secret talk.

Dogen says:

“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. It may be that now, having already become the World-honored One, [the master of] Ungozan is equipped with secret talk and possesses the state of Mahakasyapa in which nothing is concealed. Do not learn that calling “Minister!” and the official’s response, are secret talk itself.

Here, Dogen offers a particularly colorful description of how one is supposed to “learn in practice”, which is one of his standard demands. I have heard a number of ‘Soto Zen’ adherents insist that Dogen was opposed to koan-introspection during zazen.

Try this: imagine you are a monk in Dogen’s assembly. You left your home, your family, and gave up everything in hopes of resolving the great matter of life and death. You perform zazen daily, because you’re at Dogen’s monastery, you perform a LOT of zazen. Your teacher holds the keys to your greatest aspiration.

There he is, on the high-seat exhorting you to get to the bottom of this story about ‘Mahakasyapa’s state’, saying that you must “strive painstakingly hundreds, or thousands of times, as if trying to cut something hard.” Dogen finishes his teisho and the head monk rings the bell – time for three hours of zazen. What do you think is going to happen when you sit on the cushion?

I have never seen anything to indicate that Dogen opposed koan-introspection (just the opposite), but for arguments sake, let’s just say that the head monk, or even Dogen himself gives everyone a reminder as they enter the meditation hall, “Remember! Don’t contemplate that koan!”

If you make it for more than five minutes without wondering what the hell Dogen meant by saying, “Do not learn that calling ‘Minister!’ official’s response, are secret talk itself”, then you are either a fully enlightened Buddha, or a corpse…

Okay, more on this next time...

Remember, read the full fascicle here: Shobogenzo

Peace,
Ted

Dogen's Fundamental Point

For Dogen, the Dharmadhatu (realm of reality) is an infinite source of creative energy (brightness) permeating Being-Time (Uji); continuously and impartially manifesting itself according to causes and conditions. Its permeation precludes entry, or attainment and prohibits evasion; thus, Dogen’s creative mis-reading of the Mahaparinirvana-sutra’s, “All sentient beings have Buddha nature”, as “All beings the Buddha-nature of existence.”

Being impartial, Dharmadhatu neither encourages nor inhibits the manifestation of any particular ‘form.’ That is, while the Dharmadhatu is the essence, or ‘equality’ of each and every dharma (thing), the appearance, or ‘particularity’ of each and every dharma is determined by its causes and conditions. This rationale is asserted in Shobogenzo with phrases like, “Right and wrong are Time, but Time is not right or wrong.”

The point to grasp here is the fact that the Dharmadhatu (where we live) is as equally capable of sustaining bondage as it is of actualizing liberation. This quality of Dharmadhatu is expressed in Shobogenzo as, “there is turning the sutra, there is being turned by the sutra” (and, there is using the twelve hours, or being used by the twelve hours, etc.). To be turned by the sutra is to be controlled, restrained, wholly compelled to follow its dictates. Turning the sutra is to command, guide, and skillfully direct its course. Zen literature often indicates these two aspects with allusions to the puppet and puppeteer, or the positions of guest and Host.Ignorance of Dharmadhatu and its characteristics of permeation, impartiality, and infinitely creative potential inevitably confine us to the ‘position of guest’, to being turned by it. Enlightened to the nature and characteristics of Dharmadhatu activates our capacity to turn the sutra; no longer ‘puppets’ confined to being used by the twelve hours, we freely use the twelve hours to ‘actualize the fundamental point’ (genjokoan).

Peace,
Ted

Dogen's use of Criticism in Shobogenzo

Throughout the history of the Japanese Soto sect, much has been made of the influence of the Chinese Rinzai master, Daie Soko, on the teachings of Dogen. Traditionally, Dogen has been presented as being profoundly critical of Daie’s Zen teachings, especially his teachings regarding koans. Of course, Shobogenzo is not unique in its negative criticism of Zen ancestors. Scathing, colorful, and often humorous critiques are characteristic of a number of the classic records of Zen.
Claims about Dogen’s negative criticism of Daie have some basis in fact, but its significance has been exaggerated, and the reasoning underlying Dogen’s criticisms have often been skewed. In light of Daie’s importance to the Japanese Rinzai sect, specifically, his teachings regarding koans, some of the reasons for exaggerating and distorting Dogen’s criticism of Daie seem clear; to infer the inferiority, or even the illegitimacy of the Rinzai sect and posit the superiority of the Soto sect.

While an objective reading of Dogen’s treatment of Daie is enough to cast doubt on most sectarian claims, recent scholarship has decisively revealed a number of fallacies regarding many of these claims--and provided a great deal of clarity on the real issues. As others have lucidly presented the history and details concerning this issue *1, there is no need to dwell on it here. Suffice it to say that some of the distortions were probably legitimate attempts for sectarian survival, but many (if not most) were grounded in sectarian competition for spiritual superiority (and its corollary, the power associated with spiritual authority).

The negative criticism in Shobogenzo does offer some interesting possibilities. In Shobogenzo, Dogen is critical of Daie, but not only of Daie, nor is his criticism simply leveled at his use of koans. Other Zen ancestors, including Rinzai, Tokusan, and Ummon, are subjected to criticism just as harsh as any directed at Daie. These Zen masters are rebuked for the same reasons Daie is rebuked; inaccurate expressions of buddha-dharma (J. buppo).

In fact, in Shobogenzo Dogen does not hesitate to challenges even the most revered Zen ancestors including Hyakujo, Setcho, Joshu, and others. Furthermore, Dogen explicitly denigrates Vimalakirti, the hero of the sutra widely venerated in the records of Zen, and even denounces the Platform Sutra of the Sixth Ancestor, Eno (second in Zen reverence only to Bodhidharma), as a fraudulent text. Moreover, some of Dogen’s more creative ‘misreadings’ and ‘interpretations’ of the Buddhist sutras could easily be regarded as tacit (if gentle) criticisms of the Buddha himself.

(In fairness, two characteristics of the negative portrayal of Daie in Shobogenzo should be noted. The first is a lack of any corresponding positive treatment; most of the important masters upbraided in Shobogenzo are nevertheless acknowledged in other sections of it. Although Daie is tacitly acknowledged as a legitimate ancestor (by Dogen’s acceptance of some of Daie’s descendents, including Bussho Tokko), explicit acknowledgement is conspicuously lacking. The second characteristic unique to Dogen’s charge against Daie is his direct assertion that Daie’s (recorded) teachings disqualify him as a Zen ancestor.)

Dogen’s criticism of Zen ancestors can be viewed as justified based on the rationale of Shobogenzo, which consistently asserts the nonduality of realization and expression in the buddha-dharma. That is, in Shobogenzo, realization and expression are interdependent aspects of the authentic buddha-dharma; each contains and is contained by the other. Hence, in Dogen’s view one’s realization of buddha-dharma is evident in one’s expressions of buddha-dharma. In fact, according to Shobogenzo, evaluating the authenticity of a Zen master’s realization "invariably" includes examining their expressions:

All the Buddhas and all the Ancestors express what They have realized. This is why the Buddhas and Ancestors, when singling out an Ancestor of the Buddha, invariably ask, "Can that person express their realization or not?"
Shobogenzo, Dotoku, Herbert Nearman

While Dogen rebukes, and even hints at the lack of qualifications of Zen ancestors, he stops short of complete denunciation (except of Daiei), and often lavishes praise on them elsewhere in Shobogenzo. For instance, when Rinzai is denigrated as a ‘weak spirited newcomer’ in Shobogenzo, Bukkyō, Dogen does not dismiss his legitimacy. In fact, throughout Shobogenzo Rinzai is quoted as an authority, and in some fascicles of Shobogenzo, like Gyōji, and Hotsu Mujō Shin, Dogen praises Rinzai’s example, singling him out as an outstanding model for Zen practitioners.

One of the most illuminating examples of Dogen’s technique of challenging Zen ancestors based on their recorded sayings is in Shobogenzo, Shin Fukatoku, where he asserts the inaccuracy of five of the ‘giants’ of Zen tradition. In that fascicle Dogen exposes the ‘blindness’ of Joshu, Kyozan, Gensha, Kaie, and Setcho, taking them all to task for their ‘mistaken’ expressions concerning a koan. Significantly, there is no hint of their disqualification as Zen ancestors. To the contrary, Dogen asserts that although "it may be hard to believe" that people who do not understand one aspect of buddha-dharma are able to understand the rest of it, we should "realize that ancient Ancestors may also make mistakes":

In that the five worthy Masters did not at all understand the everyday practice of the National Teacher, they are, to that extent, similarly inaccurate. For this reason I have now let you hear about ‘the mind not being able to grasp It’ in the Way of the Buddhas. Although it may be hard for you to believe that people who are unable to thoroughly understand this one aspect of the Teaching are apt to understand all the rest of the Teaching, you need to realize that ancient Ancestors may also make mistakes and compound them, as in this case.
Shobogenzo, Shin Fukatoku (Written Version), Herbert Nearman

Dogen’s recognition of the reality of human limitations is indicative of the realism—highlighted in the title of Hee-Jin Kim’s landmark book, Eihei Dogen: Mystical Realist—which permeates his records. Dogen’s realistic acknowledgement that even ancestors "may also make mistakes" seems to be much more than a reluctant admission of human weakness, or fallibility; but more of a realistic assessment of the human condition, hence, of reality itself. In the Shobogenzo, Shizen Biku, fascicle, Dogen assures his listeners/readers that "having mistaken views" is not unique to time or circumstances by asserting it even happened when the Buddha himself was actively teaching:

In truth, even those who had left home life behind and received ordination when the World-honored One was in the world found it difficult to avoid having mistaken views and personal opinions, due to their not giving ear to His Teaching.
Shobogenzo, Shizen Biku, Herbert Nearman

To deny this characteristic of reality is, in Dogen’s teaching, to be ‘in delusion adding to delusion.’ Knowing the reality of buddha-dharma, on the other hand, is contingent on recognizing the reality of delusion. Herein lies the fundamental difference between ‘ordinary beings’ and ‘Buddhas’, as Dogen says in Shobogenzo, Genjokoan: "Ordinary beings are deluded about enlightenment, Buddhas are enlightened about delusion."

If Dogen is to be regarded as an authentic Zen master, then his teachings must be viewed as having the same goal as any authentic Buddhist master; the alleviation of suffering. Thus, all of Shobogenzo’s expressions, including those challenging Zen ancestors, must be understood as legitimate efforts to transmit the buddha-dharma. In light of this reasoning, it should be clear that Dogen’s criticism in Shobogenzo has more to do with instructing students then with admonishing long dead masters.

In summary, what can Dogen’s use of criticism teach us about applying ourselves to the Zen path of authentic practice-realization? Anything? Everything?

*1. For instance, see:

How Zen Became Zen: The Dispute over Enlightenment and the Formation of Chan Buddhism in Song-Dynasty China (Studies in East Asian Buddhism) by Morten Schlütter.

The Linji Lu and the Creation of Chan Orthodoxy: The Development of Chan's Records of Sayings Literature, by Albert Welter

Dogen and The Koan Tradition, and Did Dogen Go to China? What He Wrote and When He Wrote It, both by Steven Heine.

Dogen's Manuals of Zen Meditation, Carl Bielefeldt.

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