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Dogen in many fascicles honors are humanness. In the next paragraph in the One Bright Jewel, he talks about doubt, which is one of the five hindrances. In various other … Continue reading How can We Fail to Love the Jewel? #15 of 15

Another of the koans embedded in this text is the famous Fox Koan – Book of Serenity #8 or the Mumonkan #2. This koan continues to explore the question of … Continue reading Falling or Not Falling into Cause and Effect #14 of 15

Unconstructed reality doesn’t negate the rules of our consensus reality. We have to abide by the code of behavior that has been established in our society. Nowness does not mean … Continue reading The Jewel in the King’s Topknot #13 of 15

As I have previous said, Dogen deconstructs time and space in all his writing. He wants us to enter life in this very moment which Katagiri Roshi described as the … Continue reading Rolling freely round and round #12 of 15

Many people have a misunderstanding that Dogen was not into koans because he has criticized some of the Rinzai teachers who use a systematic approach to studying koans as their … Continue reading Sun Faced Buddha, Moon Faced Buddha, BCR #3, #11 of 15

The next paragraph in One Bright Jewel is about transmission. The moment one speaks is the entire 10 direction world and the moment one speaks, the knowing of the ancestors … Continue reading Riding the Bandit’s Horse, Chasing After the Bandit #10 of 15

This is my version of one of the sentences in the One Bright Jewel fascicle: Who can hold unconstructed reality and not participate in bits and pieces?  The only thing … Continue reading A Burning House or a Boundless Stupa #9 of 15

We are investigating this phrase, following or chasing after things from the One Bright Jewel fascicle: “The entire ten-direction means the ceaseless activities of chasing after things and making them into … Continue reading Following after things, BCR 46, Sound of Raindrops #8 of 15

The utterance “The entire ten-direction world is one bright jewel” was articulated by Gensha for the first time.  The essential meaning of this saying is that the ten-direction world is: … Continue reading Bits and Pieces and Ceaseless Activity #7 of 15

Once a monk asked Gensha, “I have heard that you said that the entire ten-direction world is one bright jewel.  How can I understand it?’ Gensha replied, “The ten-direction world … Continue reading Making a Living in the Demons Cave in the Black Mountain #6 of 15

Seppo asks Gensha:  Who are you, this acsetic practitioner? Gensha replies, “I never deceive others?” What is the deception that we, as practitioners, are trying to uncover?  This deception is … Continue reading The entire 10-direction world is One Bright Jewel #5 of 15

The next section of the primary story in One Bright Jewel is: Once Gensha was leaving the mountain carrying his traveling bag to visit masters widely in the various regions … Continue reading Gensha stubbed his toe #4 of 15

One Bright Jewel is a short but important fascicle in Dogen’s writing history.   In order to understand the importance of its position, I would like to bring forth the … Continue reading One Bright Jewel in Dogen’s history #3 of 15

Let’s work with the first part of the first story in the fascicle “One Bright Jewel”. Gensha was a lay person and he loved fishing. He fished on his boat … Continue reading The Golden Fish jumps into the Boat #2 of 15