Tag: Shobogenzo

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