Dogen can be very difficult to read or understand. That’s why we often need a commentary or teacher to introduce his way of writing and the underlying teaching. I often say he’s a thirteenth century cubist. Just like Picasso or in the writing world, Gertrude Stein, he tries to show all sides of the story … Continue reading Dogen and Nagarjuna’s Tetralemma #6 of 21
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52 stages to Buddhahood #5 of 21
In the classical Buddhist teaching, there are 52 stages in the development of a Buddha or a Bodhisattva. That’s a lot of stages! Dogen in his subtle analysis however isn’t that interested in stages! He does not believe in what he sometimes calls “stepladder Zen”. This is because of his understanding of time and his … Continue reading 52 stages to Buddhahood #5 of 21
Dropping off Body and Mind #4 of 21
Dogen has a famous phrase: shinjin datsuraku, which is translated “dropping off body and mind.” This famous phrase needs to be understood in order to appreciate Dogen’s writing. There is a sentence in this fascicle, which refers to this phrase. It is a non-buddha simply because it goes beyond Buddha. We call it a ‘non-buddha’ … Continue reading Dropping off Body and Mind #4 of 21
The Three Simultaneous Buddhas #3 of 21
This fascicle Going beyond Buddha explores and refines our idea of what a Buddha is. It explains that in order to understand a Buddha, we have to understand what going beyond a Buddha means. We need to go beyond our concepts, our language and the name of “Buddha”. In order to go beyond our “idea” … Continue reading The Three Simultaneous Buddhas #3 of 21
Buddhas and non-buddhas #2 of 21
Is there such a thing as a “buddha” or a “self”? Our teaching says, and the physicists concur, that there is nothing solid, neither a person, nor a thing. We are all made up of molecules, moving parts and space. When the physicists look into an atom with their most subtle microscopes, they don’t find … Continue reading Buddhas and non-buddhas #2 of 21
When you meet the Buddha on the road, kill him #1 of 21
The next series of blogs will be on the fascicle of Dogen’s Shobogenzo called “Going Beyond Buddha.” I have listened to Shohaku Okumura’s lectures on this fascicle and have given lectures on it at this last sesshin, our Zen meditation retreat, and now I am going to try to gather my thoughts in writing for … Continue reading When you meet the Buddha on the road, kill him #1 of 21
How can We Fail to Love the Jewel? #15 of 15
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 fascicles, Dogen calls the part of ourselves that is caught by karma and makes mistakes – being a half a person; half a person of … Continue reading How can We Fail to Love the Jewel? #15 of 15
Falling or Not Falling into Cause and Effect #14 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 whether or not an enlightened person is exempt from cause and effect or the rules of society. Here is the sentence in One Bright Jewel … Continue reading Falling or Not Falling into Cause and Effect #14 of 15
The Jewel in the King’s Topknot #13 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 that anything goes. It does not mean that in understanding emptiness, we are given license to break down into anarchy the standards of civic society. … Continue reading The Jewel in the King’s Topknot #13 of 15
Rolling freely round and round #12 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 intersection of time and space. Here is an entire paragraph deconstructing our consciousness’ misunderstand of “a body”. Our untrained mind thinks of our bodies as … Continue reading Rolling freely round and round #12 of 15
Sun Faced Buddha, Moon Faced Buddha, BCR #3, #11 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 curriculum. Dogen did not encourage what he called “ladder of development” Zen. For Dogen, there is no future time that is better then or more … Continue reading Sun Faced Buddha, Moon Faced Buddha, BCR #3, #11 of 15
Riding the Bandit’s Horse, Chasing After the Bandit #10 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 is there. While teaching this fascicle during this last intensive, I felt with some alarm, precipitated by the feeling of no-self, that these lectures WERE … Continue reading Riding the Bandit’s Horse, Chasing After the Bandit #10 of 15
A Burning House or a Boundless Stupa #9 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 we can do is completely penetrate each moment that arises through our sense gates. Our life depends on our attitude towards each of these moments. … Continue reading A Burning House or a Boundless Stupa #9 of 15
Following after things, BCR 46, Sound of Raindrops #8 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 the self, and chasing after the self and making it into things.” This is the constant activity of being a human being and trying to … Continue reading Following after things, BCR 46, Sound of Raindrops #8 of 15
Bits and Pieces and Ceaseless Activity #7 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: neither vast nor tiny neither square nor round neither centered nor straight neither vigorous like a fish jumping, not neutral, and not obvious because it … Continue reading Bits and Pieces and Ceaseless Activity #7 of 15
Making a Living in the Demons Cave in the Black Mountain #6 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 is one bright jewel. What is the use of understanding it?’ I love this. If we can’t understand the essence and miracle of life through … Continue reading Making a Living in the Demons Cave in the Black Mountain #6 of 15
The entire 10-direction world is One Bright Jewel #5 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 the misunderstanding of duality. We compartmentalize life into opposites and these opposites only exist in our thoughts and language. In actuality, the opposites of life … Continue reading The entire 10-direction world is One Bright Jewel #5 of 15
Gensha stubbed his toe #4 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 and thoroughly study the Way. On his way, he stubbed his toe on a stone. As it bled with terrible pain, he suddenly had a … Continue reading Gensha stubbed his toe #4 of 15
One Bright Jewel in Dogen’s history #3 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 timing of his early writing. The first thing Dogen wrote when he came back from China in 1227 was the Fukanzazengi, which we know pretty … Continue reading One Bright Jewel in Dogen’s history #3 of 15
The Golden Fish jumps into the Boat #2 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 mingling with other fishermen on the Nantai River. He might not have been waiting even for the Golden–scaled fish that comes up by itself without … Continue reading The Golden Fish jumps into the Boat #2 of 15