T2582 Shōbōgenzō The True Dharma-Eye Treasury, Volume I

Chapter 6: Soku-shin-ze-butsu - Mind Here and Now Is Buddha

Shōbōgenzō Volume I

13 14 15 Junrei stands forjundō-raihai,or "to go round the hall and do prostrations. " The

method is explained in Chapter Twenty-one, Kankin. In large temples in China the zazen hall was called the sōdō,or "monks' hall, " because

the monks would live in the hall, not only sitting but also eating and sleeping there. Pātrais the Sanskrit word for the Buddhist food bowl. See Chapter Seventy-eight (Vol. IV), Hatsu-u.

16 "Penalized" is batsu-yu,lit., "penalty of oil.

" In the temples of China oil for lamps was scarce, so it is likely that monks were penalized by paying oil from their ration. 17 1239.

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[Chapter Six]

Soku-shin-ze-butsu Mind Here and Now Is Buddha Translator's Note: Sokumeans "here and now.

" Shinmeans

"

mind.

" Ze

means

"is.

" Butsumeans

"buddha.

" The principle of soku-shin-ze-butsu,or "

mind here and now is buddha " is very famous in Buddhism, but many people have interpreted the principle to support the beliefs of naturalism. They say if our mind here and now is just buddha, our conduct must always be right, and, in that case, we need not make any effort to understand or to realize Buddhism. However, this interpretation is a serious mistake. The principle soku-shin-ze-butsu, "

mind here and now is buddha, "

must be understood not from the standpoint of the intellect but from the standpoint of practice. In other words, the principle does not mean belief in something spiritual called "

mind" but it affirms the time "

"

now

and the place

"here

"

as reality itself. This time and place must always be absolute and right, and so we can call them the truth or "buddha.

" In this chapter, Master Dōgen explained this meaning of soku-shin-ze-butsu, "

mind here and now is buddha. "

[125] What every buddha and every patriarch has maintained and relied upon, without exception, is just "mind here and now is buddha. " Many students,

however, misunderstand that "mind here and now is buddha" did not exist in India but was first heard in China. As a result, they do not recognize their mistake as a mistake. Because they do not recognize the mistake as a mistake, many fall down into non-Buddhism. When stupid people hear talk of "mind here and now is buddha, " they interpret that ordinary beings' intellect and sense perception, which have never established the bodhi-mind, are just buddha. This derives from never having met a true teacher. The reason I say that they become non-Buddhists is that there was a non-Buddhist in India, called Senika, whose viewpoint is expressed as follows: The great truth exists in our own body now, so we can easily recognize its situation. In other words, [a spiritual intelligence] distinguishes 65

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between pain and pleasure, naturally senses cold and warmth, and recognizes discomfort and irritation. [The spiritual intelligence] is neither restricted by myriad things nor connected with circumstances: things come and go and circumstances arise and pass, but the spiritual intelligence always remains, unchanging. This spiritual intelligence is all around, pervading all souls—common and sacred—without distinction. In its midst, illusory flowers in space exist for the time being, but when momentary insight has appeared, and things have vanished and circumstances have disappeared, then the spiritual intelligence, the original essence, alone is clearly recognizable, peaceful, and eternal. Though the physical form may be broken, the spiritual intelligence departs unbroken; just as, when a house burns down in a fire, the master of the house leaves. This perfectly clear and truly spiritual presence is called "the essence of perception and intelligence.

" It is also described as

"buddha,

" and called "enlightenment.

" It includes both the subject and

the object, and it permeates both delusion and enlightenment. [So] let the myriad dharmas and all circumstances be as they are. The spiritual intelligence does not coexist with circumstances and it is not the same as things. It abides constantly through passing kalpas. We might also call the circumstances that exist in the present "real, " insofar as they

derive from the existence of the spiritual intelligence: because they are conditions arising from the original essence, they are real things. Even so, they are not eternal as the spiritual intelligence is, for they exist and then vanish. [The spiritual intelligence] is unrelated to brightness and darkness, because it knows spiritually. We call this "the spiritual intelligence,

" we also call it "the true self,

" we call it "the basis of

awakening,

" we call it "original essence,

" and we call it "original substance.

" Someone who realizes this original essence is said to have returned to eternity and is called a great man who has come back to the truth. After this, he no longer wanders through the cycle of life and death; he experiences and enters the essential ocean1 where there is neither appearance nor disappearance. There is no reality other than this, but as long as this essence has not emerged, the three worlds2 and the six states3 are said to arise in competition.

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This then is the view of the non-Buddhist Senika. [129] Master Echū, National Master Daishō, 4 of the great kingdom of

Tang, asks a monk,

"From which direction have you come?"

The monk says,

"I have come from the south.

"

The master says,

"What [good] counselors are there in the south?" The monk says,

"[Good] counselors are very numerous.

"

The master says,

"How do they teach people?"

The monk says,

"The [good] counselors of that quarter teach students directly that mind here and now is buddha. Buddha means consciousness itself. You now are fully endowed with the essence of seeing, hearing, awareness, and recognition. This essence is able to raise the eyebrows and to wink, to come and go, and to move and act. It pervades the body, so that when [something] touches the head, the head knows it, and when something touches the foot, the foot knows it. Therefore it is called 'the true all-pervading intelligence. ' Apart from this there is no buddha at all. This body must appear and disappear, but the mental essence has never appeared or disappeared since the limitless past. The appearance and disappearance of the body is like a dragon changing its bones, a snake shedding its skin, or a person moving out of an old house. This body is inconstant; the essence is constant. What they teach in the south is, for the most part, like this. "

The master says,

"If it is so, they are no different from the non-Buddhist Senika. He said,

'In our body there is a single spiritual essence. This essence can recognize pain and irritation. When the body decays the spirit departs; just as when a house is burning the master of the house departs. The house is inconstant; the master of the house is constant. ' When I examine people

like this, they do not know the false from the true. How can they decide what is right? When I was on my travels, I often saw this kind. Recently they are very popular. They gather assemblies of three or five hundred people and, eyes gazing toward the heavens, they say 'This is the fundamental teaching of the south.

'5 They take the Platform Sutra6 and change it, mixing in folk stories, and erasing its sacred meaning. They delude and disturb recent students. How could [theirs] be called the oral teaching?7 How painful it is, that our religion is being lost. If seeing, hearing, awareness, and recognition could be equated with the buddha-nature, Vimalakīrti8 would not have said, 'The

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Dharma is transcendent over seeing, hearing, awareness, and recognition. When we use seeing, hearing, awareness, and recognition, it is only seeing, hearing, awareness, and recognition; it is not pursuit of the Dharma. '"

[131] National Master Daishō is an excellent disciple of the eternal buddha of Sōkei.

9 He is a great good counselor in heaven above and in the human world. We should clarify the fundamental teaching set forth by the National Master, and regard it as a criterion10 for learning in practice. Do not follow what you know to be the viewpoint of the non-Buddhist Senika. Among those of recent generations who subsist as masters of mountains in the great kingdom of Song, there may be no one like the National Master. From the ancient past, no counselors to equal the National Master have ever manifested themselves in the world. Nevertheless, people of the world mistakenly think that even Rinzai11 and Tokusan12 might equal the National Master. Only people [who think] like this are great in number. It is a pity that there are no teachers with clear eyes. This "mind here and now is buddha" that the Buddhist patriarchs maintain and rely upon is not seen by non-Buddhists and [people of] the two vehicles, even in their dreams. Buddhist patriarchs alone, together with Buddhist patriarchs, 13 possess hearing, action, and

experience that have enacted and that have perfectly realized "mind here and now is buddha.

" Buddhas14 have continued to pick up and to throw away hundreds of weeds, but they have never represented themselves as a sixteenfoot golden body. 15 "The immediate"16 universe17 exists; it is not awaiting realization,

18and it is not avoiding destruction.

"This concrete"19triple world20

exists; it is neither receding nor appearing, and it is not just mind. 21 "Mind"22

exists as fences and walls; it never gets muddy or wet, and it is never artificially constructed. We realize in practice that "mind here and now is buddha, "23

we realize in practice that "the mind which is buddha is this, "24 we realize

in practice that "buddha actually is just the mind, "25 we realize in practice

that "mind-and-buddha here and now is right,

"26 and we realize in practice

that "this buddha-mind is here and now.

"27

[134] Realization in practice like this is just "mind here and now is buddha" picking itself up and authentically transmitting itself to "mind here and now is buddha.

" Authentically transmitted like this, it has arrived at the present day.

"The mind that has been authentically transmitted" means one mind as all dharmas, and all dharmas as one mind. For this reason, a man 68

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of old28 said,

"When a person becomes conscious of the mind, there is not an inch of soil on the earth.

" Remember, when we become conscious of the mind, the whole of heaven falls down and the whole ground is torn apart. Or in other words, when we become conscious of the mind, the earth grows three inches thicker. An ancient patriarch said, 29 "What is fine, pure, and

bright mind? It is mountains, rivers, and the earth, the sun, the moon, and the stars.

" Clearly,

"mind" is mountains, rivers, and the earth, the sun, the moon, and the stars. But what these words say is, when we are moving forward, not enough, and when we are drawing back, too much. Mind as mountains, rivers, and the earth is nothing other than mountains, rivers, and the earth. There are no additional waves or surf, no wind or smoke. Mind as the sun, the moon, and the stars is nothing other than the sun, the moon, and the stars. There is no additional fog or mist. Mind as living-and-dying, comingand-going, is nothing other than living-and-dying, coming-and-going. There is no additional delusion or realization. Mind as fences, walls, tiles, and pebbles is nothing other than fences, walls, tiles, and pebbles. There is no additional mud or water. Mind as the four elements and five aggregates is nothing other than the four elements and five aggregates. There is no additional horse or monkey.

30 Mind as a chair or a whisk31 is nothing other than a chair or a whisk. There is no additional bamboo or wood. Because the state is like this,

"mind here and now is buddha" is untainted "mind here and now is buddha.

" All buddhas are untainted buddhas. This being so, "mind here and

now is buddha" is the buddhas [themselves] who establish the will, undergo training, [realize] bodhi,and [experience] nirvana. If we have never established the will, undergone training, [realized] bodhi,and [experienced] nirvana, then [the state] is not "mind here and now is buddha. " If we establish the

mind and do practice-and-experience even in a single kṣaṇa, 32 this is "mind

here and now is buddha.

" If we establish the will and do practice-and-experience in a single molecule, this is "mind here and now is buddha. " If we

establish the will and do practice-and-experience in countless kalpas, this is "mind here and now is buddha.

" If we establish the will and do practice-andexperience in one instant of consciousness, this is "mind here and now is buddha.

" If we establish the will and do practice-and-experience inside half a fist, this is mind here and now is buddha. To say, on the contrary, that undergoing training to become buddha for long kalpas is not "mind here and now 69

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is buddha" is never to have seen, never to have known, and never to have learned "mind here and now is buddha. " It is never to have met a true teacher who proclaims "mind here and now is buddha. " The term "buddhas" means Śākyamuni Buddha. Śākyamuni Buddha is just "mind here and now is buddha.

" When all the buddhas of the past, present, and future become buddha, they inevitably become Śākyamuni Buddha, that is, "mind here and

now is buddha.

"

Shōbōgenzō Soku-shin-ze-butsu Preached to the assembly at Kannondōri kōshōhōrinji in the Uji district of Yōshū, 33 on the

twenty-fifth day of the fifth lunar month in the first year of Enō.

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Notes

1 Shōkai.See Chapter One, Bendōwa.

2 Sangai,

"three worlds" or "triple world,

" are the worlds of volition, matter, and the immaterial. See Chapter Forty-seven (Vol. III), Sangai-yuishin. 3 Rokudō, the six [miserable] states, are the state of beings in hell, the state of hungry ghosts, the state of animals, the state of angry demons, the state of human beings, and the state of gods.

4 Master Nan'yō Echū (675?-775), successor of Master Daikan Enō. "National Master

Daishō" was his title as a teacher of the emperor. Master Dōgen often refers to Master Nan'yō Echū simply as the National Master. 5 Master Nan'yō Echū lived in the north of China which was the center of Chinese civilization at the time of the Tang dynasty (619-858), so Buddhist philosophy was strong in the north. However, the Buddhism of southern China was thought to be very practical. The government moved south in the Song dynasty (960-1279) in response to invasion from the north. 6 The Rokusodaishihōbōdangyō(Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch' s Dharma Treasure) is a collection of the teachings of Master Daikan Enō, the Sixth Patriarch in China and the master of Master Nan'yō Echū. 7 Gonkyō,

"oral teaching,

" suggests the original teaching of the Buddha, which was not recorded in writing until the first century B.C.E., when the Pāli canon was written on palm leaves in the monasteries of Sri Lanka. 8 Jōmyō, lit.,

"Pure Name,

" is a Chinese rendering of Vimalakīrti, a layman of the Buddha's time who was excellent in Buddhist philosophy. Many questions and answers between Vimalakīrti and the Buddha are recorded in the Vimalakīrti Sutra(Skt. Vimalakīrtinirdeśa-sūtra).

9 Master Daikan Enō.

10 "Criterion" is kikan,lit.,

"turtle mirror.

" In ancient China, fortune-tellers would sometimes heat a turtle shell and divine an appropriate course of action by looking at the crack. Thus, a turtle shell was used like a mirror, as a criterion for making decisions. 11 Master Rinzai Gigen (d. 867), founder of the Rinzai sect, successor of Master Ōbaku Kiun. See Chapter Forty-nine (Vol. III), Butsudō. 71

Shōbōgenzō Volume I 12 Master Tokusan Senkan (780-865), successor of Master Ryūtan Sōshin. See Chapter Eighteen, Shin-fukatoku. 13 Yui-busso-yo-bussois a variation of yui-butsu-yo-butsu, "buddhas alone, together with buddhas.

" The Lotus Sutrasays, "Buddhas alone, together with buddhas, can perfectly realize that all dharmas are real form. " See LS 1.68.

14 Butsumeans "buddha. " The following four sentences begin with butsu, soku,

"here and now"; ze, "is"; and shin,

"mind,

" respectively.

"buddha";

15 The sixteen-foot golden body is the idealized image of the Buddha. 16 Sokucan function as an adjective ("here and now, " "immediate,

" "actual"); it can function as a copula, i.e., a linking verb, to express the oneness of two factors (A soku B = "A, that is, B"); it can function as an adverb ("here and now, " "just,

" "immediately,

"

"directly,

" "actually"); and it can also function as a conjunction expressing temporal contingency (A sokuB = "A, immediately followed by B"). 17 Soku-kōan,

used as an adjective. "the immediate universe" or "the here-and-now universe. " Here sokuis

18 Genjō. Genjō andkōanare often associated, as in the title of Chapter Three, Genjōkōan. 19 Zecan function as an adjective ("this, " "concrete,

" "this concrete"; or "right, " "correct"); it can function as a copula in the same way as soku("is, " "are,

" "is just the

same as"); it can function as an adverb ("here and now, " "actually"); and it can function as a pronoun ("this"). 20 Zesangai,

adjective.

"this triple world" or "this concrete triple world. " Here zeis used as an 21 Yuishin. Sangai yuishin, "the triple world is just mind, " is the title of Chapter Fortyseven (Vol. III), Sangai-yuishin. 22 Shinmeans mind. 23 Soku-shin ze butsu,as in the title of this chapter. In this case, soku(here and now) is an adjective and ze(is) is a copula. The four expressions following this expression represent further combinations of the four characters soku-shin-ze-butsu.See following notes.

24 Shin-soku-butsu ze.In this case, soku(which is) is a copula and ze(this) is a pronoun. 25 Butsu soku ze shin.In this case, soku(actually) is an adverb and ze(is just) is a copula. 26 Soku-shin-butsu ze.In this case, soku(here and now) and ze(right) are both adjectives. 27 Ze-butsu-shin soku.In this case also, ze(this) and soku(here and now) are both adjectives. 72

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28 29 30 31 Master Chōrei Shutaku. His words mean that to know the mind is just to know reality, in which an inch of soil cannot be separated from the whole earth. Master Isan Reiyū asked the question to his disciple Master Kyōzan Ejaku. See Shinjishōbōgenzō,pt. 2, no. 68. Horse and monkey allude to the phrase i-ba shen-en,or "horse-will, monkey-mind. "

The horse represents the restless will and the monkey represents the mischievous intellect.

Hossuis a ceremonial fly whisk—a wooden stick with a long plume of animal hair— held by a master during a Buddhist lecture. 32 Setsunarepresents the Sanskrit kṣāṇa, in the clicking of the fingers. "moment.

" Sixty-five kṣāṇas are said to pass 33 Corresponds to present-day Kyoto prefecture. 34 1239.

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Chapter 7: Senjō - Washing

[Chapter Seven]

Senjō

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Washing

Translator's Note:Senmeans

"to wash,

"

and jōmeans

"to purify.

" So senjō

"

means

washing.

" Buddhism is neither idealism nor materialism but belief in reality, which has both a spiritual side and a material side. So Buddhism insists that to clean our physical body is to purify our mind. Therefore, in Buddhism, cutting our fingernails, shaving our head, and washing our body are all very important religious practices. In this chapter Master Dōgen expounds the religious meaning of such daily behavior, and preaches the importance in Buddhism of cleansing our physical body. [139] There is practice-and-experience that Buddhist patriarchs have guarded and maintained; it is called "not being tainted. "

[140] The Sixth Patriarch1 asks Zen Master Daie2 of Kannon-in Temple on Nangakuzan,

"Do you rely on practice and experience or not?" Daie says,

"It is not that there is no practice and experience, but the state can never be tainted.

"

The Sixth Patriarch says,

"Just this untainted state is that which buddhas guard and desire. You are also like this. I am also like this. And the ancestral masters of India3 were also like this. . . . "4

[140] The Sutra of Three Thousand Dignified Forms for Or dained Monks5 says,

"Purifying the body means washing the anus and the urethra, 6 and

cutting the nails of the ten fingers. " So even though the body and mind is not tainted, there are Dharma practices of purifying the body and there are Dharma practices of purifying the mind. Not only do we clean body and mind; we also clean the nation and clean beneath trees. 7 To clean the nation, even

though it has never become dirty, is "that which buddhas guard and desire"; and even when they have arrived at the Buddhist fruit, they still do not draw back or cease. It is hard to fathom this point. To enact the Dharma is the point. To attain the state of truth is to enact the Dharma. 75

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[141] The "Pure Conduct" chapter of the Garland Sutra8 says, "When

we relieve ourselves, we should pray that living beings will get rid of impurity and will be free of greed, anger, and delusion. Then, having arrived at the water, we should pray that living beings will progress toward the supreme state of truth and attain the Dharma that transcends the secular world. While we are washing away impurity with the water, we should pray that living beings will have pure endurance, and will ultimately be free of dirt. "

[142] Water is not always originally pure or originally impure. The body is not always originally pure or originally impure. All dharmas are also like this. Water is never sentient or nonsentient, the body is never sentient or nonsentient, and all dharmas are also like this. The preaching of the Buddha, the World-honored One, is like this. At the same time, [to wash] is not to use water to clean the body; [rather,] when we are maintaining and relying upon the Buddha-Dharma in accordance with the Buddha-Dharma, we have this form of behavior, and we call it "washing.

" It is to receive the authentic transmission of a body and mind of the Buddhist Patriarch immediately; it is to see and to hear a phrase of the Buddhist Patriarch intimately; and it is to abide in and to retain a state of brightness of the Buddhist Patriarch clearly. In sum, it is to realize countless and limitless virtues. At just the moment when we dignify body and mind with training, eternal original practice is completely and roundly realized. Thus the body and mind of training manifests itself in the original state.

[144] We should cut the nails of [all] ten fingers. Of ["all] ten fingers" means the fingernails of both left and right hands. We should also cut the toenails. A sutra says,

"If the nails grow to the length of a grain of wheat,

we acquire demerit.

" So we should not let the nails grow long. Long nails

are naturally a precursor of non-Buddhism. We should make a point of cutting the nails. Nevertheless, among the priests of the great kingdom of Song today, many who are not equipped with eyes of learning in practice grow their nails long. Some have [nails] one or two inches long, and even three or four inches long. This goes against the Dharma. It is not the body and mind of the Buddha-Dharma. People are like this because they are without reverence for the old traditions9 of Buddhists; venerable patriarchs who possess the state of truth are never like this. There are others who grow their hair long. This also goes 76

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against the Dharma. Do not mistakenly suppose that because these are the habits of priests in a great nation, they might be right Dharma. [145] My late master, the eternal buddha, spoke stern words of warning to priests throughout the country who had long hair or long nails. He said, "Those who do not understand [the importance of] shaving the head10 are not secular people and are not monks; they are just animals. Since ancient times, was there any Buddhist patriarch who did not shave the head? Those today who do not understand [the importance of] shaving the head are truly animals.

" When he preached to the assembly like this, many people who had not shaved their heads for years shaved their heads. In formal preaching in the Dharma hall or in his informal preaching, [the master] would click his fingers loudly as he scolded them.

11 "Not knowing what the truth is, they

randomly grow long hair and long nails; it is pitiful that they devote a body and mind in the south [continent] of Jambudvīpa12 to wrong ways. For the last two or three hundred years, because the truth of the Founding Patriarch has died out, there have been many people like these. People like these become the leaders of temples and, signing their names with the title of 'master, ' they create the appearance of acting for the sake of the many, [but] they are without benefit to human beings and gods. Nowadays, on all the mountains throughout the country, there is no one at all who has the will to the truth. The ones who attained the truth are long extinct. Only groups of the corrupt and the degenerate [remain].

" When he spoke like this in his informal preaching, people from many districts who had arbitrarily assumed the title of "veteran master" bore no grudge against him and had nothing to say for themselves. Remember, growing the hair long is something that Buddhist patriarchs remonstrate against, and growing the nails long is something that non-Buddhists do. As the children and grandchildren of Buddhist patriarchs, we should not be fond of such violations of the Dharma. We should clean the body and mind, and we should cut the nails and shave the head.

[147] "Wash the anus and the urethra": Do not neglect this. There was an episode in which, through this practice, Śāriputra13 caused a non-Buddhist to submit himself. This was neither the original expectation of the non-Buddhist nor the premeditated hope of Śāriputra, but when the dignified behavior of the Buddhist patriarchs is realized, false teaching naturally 77

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succumbs. When [monks] practice beneath a tree or on open ground, 14 they

have no constructed toilets; they rely on conveniently located river valleys, streams, and so on, and they clean themselves with pieces of soil. This is [when] there is no ash. They just use two lots of seven balls of soil. The method of using the two lots of seven balls of soil is as follows: First they take off the Dharma robe and fold it, then they pick up some soil—not black but yellowish soil—and divide it into balls, each about the size of a large soy bean. They arrange these into rows of seven balls, on a stone or some other convenient place, making two rows of seven balls each. After that they prepare a stone to be used as a rubstone. And after that they defecate. After defecating they use a stick, or sometimes they use paper. Then they go to the waterside to clean themselves, first carrying three balls of soil to clean with. They take each individual ball of soil in the palm of the hand and add just a little water so that, when mixed with the water, [the soil] dissolves to a consistency thinner than mud—about the consistency of thin rice gruel. They wash the urethra first. Next, they use one ball of soil, in the same way as before, to wash the anus. And next, they use one ball of soil, in the same way as before, briefly to wash the impure hand.

15

[149] Ever since [monks] started living in temples, they have built toilet buildings. These are called tōsu(east office), or sometimes sei(toilet), and sometimes shi(side building).

16 They are buildings that should be present

wherever monks are living. The rule in going to the toilet is always to take the long towel.

17 The method is to fold the towel in two, and then place it over the left elbow so that it hangs down from above the sleeve of your jacket. Having arrived at the toilet, hang the towel over the clothes pole. 18The way

to hang it is as it has been hanging from your arm. If you have come wearing a kaṣāyaof nine stripes, seven stripes, and so on, hang [the kaṣāya] alongside the towel. Arrange [the kaṣāya] evenly so that it will not fall down. Do not throw it over [the pole] hastily. Be careful to remember the mark [on the pole].

"Remembering the mark" refers to the characters written along the clothes pole; these are written inside moon-shaped circles on sheets of white paper, which are then attached in a line along the pole. So remembering the mark means not forgetting by which character you have put your own gown, 19

and not getting [the places] mixed up. When many monks are present do not 78

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confuse your own place on the pole with that of others. During this time, when [other] monks have arrived and are standing in lines, bow to them with the hands folded.

20 In bowing, it is not necessary to face each other directly and bend the body; it is just a token bow of salutation with the folded hands placed in front of the chest. At the toilet, even if you are not wearing a gown, still bow to and salute [other] monks. If neither hand has become impure, and neither hand is holding anything, fold both hands and bow. If one hand is already soiled, or when one hand is holding something, make the bow with the other hand. To make the bow with one hand, turn the hand palm upward, curl the fingertips slightly as if preparing to scoop up water, and bow as if just lowering the head slightly. If someone else [bows] like this, you should do likewise. And if you [bow] like this, others should do likewise. When you take off the jacket21 and the gown, hang them next to the towel. The way to hang them is as follows: Remove the gown and bring the sleeves together at the back, then bring together the armpits and lift them up so that the sleeves are one over the other. Then, take the inside of the back of the collar of the gown with the left hand, pull up the shoulders with the right hand, and fold the sleeves and the left and right lapels over each other. Having folded the sleeves and lapels over each other, make another fold, down the middle from top to bottom, and then throw the collar of the gown over the top of the pole. The hem of the gown and the ends of the sleeves will be hanging on the near side of the pole. For example, the gown will be hanging from the pole by the join at the waist. Next, cross over the ends of the towel which are hanging down on the near and far sides of the pole, and pull them across to the other side of the gown. [There,] on the side of the gown where the towel is not hanging, cross over [the ends] again and make a knot. Go round two or three times, crossing over [the ends] and making a knot, to ensure that the gown does not fall from the pole to the ground. Facing the gown, join the palms of your hands.

22 Next, take the cord and use it to tuck in the sleeves. 23 Next,

go to the washstand and fill a bucket with water and then, holding [the bucket] in the right hand, walk up to the toilet. The way to put water into the bucket is not to fill it completely, but to make ninety percent the standard. In front of the toilet entrance, change slippers. Changing slippers means taking off your own slippers in front of the toilet entrance and putting on the straw [toilet] slippers.

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[153] The Zenenshingi25 says,

"When we want to go to the toilet, we

should go there ahead of time. Do not get into a state of anxiety and haste by arriving just in time. At this time, fold the kaṣāya, and place it on the desk in your quarters, or over the clothes pole.

"

[154] Having entered the toilet, close the door with the left hand. Next, pour just a little water from the bucket into the bowl of the toilet. Then put the bucket in its place directly in front of the hole. Then, while standing facing the toilet bowl, click the fingers three times. When clicking the fingers, make a fist with the left hand and hold it against the left hip. Then put the hem of your skirt and the edges of your clothes in order, face the entrance, position the feet either side of the rim of the toilet bowl, squat down, and defecate. Do not get either side of the bowl dirty, and do not soil the front or back of the bowl. During this time, keep quiet. Do not chat or joke with the person on the other side of the wall, and do not sing songs or recite verses in a loud voice. Do not make a mess by weeping and dribbling, and do not be angry or hasty. Do not write characters on the walls, and do not draw lines in the earth with the shit-stick. The stick is to be used after you have relieved yourself. Another way is to use paper; old paper should not be used, and paper with characters written on it should not be used. Distinguish between clean sticks and dirty sticks. The sticks are eight sun26 long, of triangular section, and the thickness of a thumb. Some are lacquered and some are not lacquered. Dirty [sticks] are thrown into the stick box. Clean [sticks] originally belong in the stick rack. The stick rack is placed near the board [that screens] the front of the toilet bowl. After using the stick or using paper, the method of washing is as follows: Holding the bucket in the right hand, dip the left hand well [into the water] and then, making the left hand into a dipper, scoop up the water; first rinsing the urethra three times and then washing the anus. Make yourself pure and clean by washing according to the method. During this time, do not tip the bucket so suddenly that water spills out of the hand or splashes down, causing the water to be used up quickly. After you have finished washing put the bucket in its place, and then, taking [another] stick, wipe yourself dry. Or you can use paper. Both places, the urethra and the anus, should be thoroughly wiped dry. Next, with the right hand, rearrange the hem of your skirt and the corners of your clothes, and holding the bucket in the right hand, leave the toilet, taking off the straw [toilet] slippers and 80

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putting on your own slippers as you pass through the entrance. Next, returning to the washstand, put the bucket back in its originalplace. Then wash the hands. Taking the spoon for ash in the right hand, first scoop [some ash] onto a tile or a stone, sprinkle a few drops of water onto it with the right hand, and cleanse the soiled hand. Scrub the [fingers] on the tile or the stone, as if sharpening a rusty sword on a whetstone. Wash like this, using ash, three times. Then wash another three times, putting soil [on the stone] and sprinkling it with water. Next, take a honey locust27 in the right hand, dip it in a small tub of water, and scrub it between the hands. Wash [the hands] thoroughly, going up to the forearms as well. Wash with care and effort, dwelling in the mind of sincerity. Three lots of ash, three lots of soil, and one honey locust, makes seven rounds altogether; that is the standard. Next, wash [the hands] in the large tub. This time skin cleansers,

28 soil, ash, and so on, are not used.

Just wash with water, either cold or hot. After washing once, pour the [used] water into a small bucket, then pour some fresh water [into the tub], and wash the hands again.

[157] The Garland Sutrasays,

"When we wash the hands with water,

we should pray that living beings will get excellent and fine hands, with which to receive and to retain the Buddha-Dharma.

"29

[158] To pick up the water ladle, always use your right hand. While doing this, do not noisily clatter the ladle and bucket. Do not splash water about, scatter honey locusts around, get the washstand area wet, or be generally hasty and messy. Next, wipe the hands on the common towel, or wipe them on your own towel. After wiping the hands, go under the clothes pole, in front of your gown, and take off the cord and hang it on the pole. Next, after joining hands, untie the towel, take down the gown, and put it on. Then, with the towel hanging over the left arm, apply fragrance. In the common area there is a fragrance applicator. It is fragrant wood fashioned into the shape of a treasure pot,

30as thick as a thumb and as long as the width of four fingers. It is hung from the clothes pole with a piece of string a foot or more long, which is threaded through a hole bored in each end of the fragrant [wood]. When this is rubbed between the palms, it naturally spreads its scent to the hands. When you hang your cord on the pole, do not hang it on top of another so that cord and cord become confused and entangled. Actions like these all "purify the Buddha's land, and adorn the Buddha's kingdom, " so do them

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carefully, and do not be hasty. Do not be in a hurry to finish, thinking that you would like to get back. Privately, you might like to consider the principle that "we do not explain the Buddha-Dharma while in the toilet. "31 Do not

keep looking into the faces of other monks who have come there. Cold water is considered better for washing when in the toilet itself; it is said that hot water gives rise to intestinal diseases. [But] there is no restriction against using warm water to wash the hands. The reason that a cauldron is provided is so that we can boil water for washing the hands. The Shingisays, "Late

in the evening, boil water and supply oil.

32 Always ensure [a] continuous

[supply of] hot and cold water, so that the minds of the monks are not disturbed. " So we see that we [can] use both hot and cold water. If the inside of the toilet has become dirty, close the door, and hang up the "dirty" sign. If a bucket has been dropped [into the toilet bowl] by mistake, close the door, and hang up the "fallen bucket" sign. Do not enter33 a closet on which one of these signs is hung. If, when you are already in the toilet, [you hear] someone outside clicking the fingers, you should leave presently. The Shingisays, "Without washing, we must neither sit on the monks' platform, nor bow to the Three Treasures. Neither must we receive people's prostrations. " The

Sutra of Three Thousand Dignified Formssays,

"If we fail to wash the anus

and the urethra, we commit a duṣkṛta,

34 and we must not sit on a monk's

pure sitting cloth35 or bow to the Three Treasures. Even if we do bow, there is no happiness or virtue.

"

[162] Thus, at a place of the truth where we strive in pursuit of the truth, 36

we should consider this behavior to be foremost. How could we not bow to the Three Treasures? How could we not receive people's prostrations? And how could we not bow to others? In the place of truth of a Buddhist patriarch, this dignified behavior is always done, and people in the place of truth of a Buddhist patriarch are always equipped with this dignified behavior. It is not our own intentional effort; it is the natural expression of dignified behavior itself. It is the usual behavior of the buddhas and the everyday life of the patriarchs. It is [buddha-behavior] not only of buddhas in this world: it is buddha-behavior throughout the ten directions; it is buddha-behavior in the Pure Land and in impure lands. People of scant knowledge do not think that buddhas have dignified behavior in the toilet, and they do not think that the dignified behavior of buddhas in the sahā world37 is like that of buddhas in 82

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the Pure Land. This is not learning of the Buddha's truth. Remember, purity and impurity is [exemplified by] blood dripping from a human being. At one time it is warm, at another time it is disgusting. The buddhas have toilets, and this we should remember.

[163] Fascicle Fourteen of the Precepts in Ten Parts38 says, "Śrāmaṇera

Rāhula39 spent the night in the Buddha's toilet. When the Buddha woke up, the Buddha patted Rāhula on the head with his right hand, and preached the following verse:

You were never stricken by poverty,

Nor have you lost wealth and nobility.

40

Only in order to pursue the truth, you have left home. You will be able to endure the hardship.

"

[164] Thus, there are toilet buildings in the Buddha's places of practicing the truth. And the dignified behavior done in the Buddha's toilet building is washing. That the Buddha's behavior, having been transmitted from patriarch to patriarch, still survives is a delight to those who venerate the ancients. We have been able to meet what is difficult to meet. Furthermore, the Tathāgata graciously preached the Dharma for Rāhula inside the toilet building. The toilet building was one [place of] assembly for the Buddha's turning of the Dharma wheel. The advancing and stillness41 of that place of truth has been authentically transmitted by the Buddhist patriarchs.

[165] Fascicle Thirty-four of the Mahāsaṃghika Precepts42 says, "The

toilet building should not be located to the east or to the north. It should be located to the south or to the west. The same applies to the urinal. "

[166] We should follow this [designation of] the favorable directions. This was the layout of all the monasteries43 in India in the Western Heavens, and the [method of] construction in the Tathāgata's lifetime. Remember, this is not only the buddha-form followed by one buddha; it describes the places of truth, the monasteries, of the Seven Buddhas. It was never initiated; it is the dignified form of the buddhas. Before we have clarified these [dignified forms], if we hope to establish a temple and to practice the Buddha-Dharma, we will make many mistakes, we will not be equipped with the Buddha's dignified forms, and the Buddha's state of bodhiwill not yet manifest itself before us. If we hope to build a place of practicing the truth, or to establish a temple, 83

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we should follow the Dharma-form that the Buddhist patriarchs have authentically transmitted. We should just follow the Dharma-form that has been authentically transmitted as the right tradition. Because it is the traditional authentic transmission, its virtue has accumulated again and again. Those who are not legitimate successors to the authentic transmission of the Buddhist patriarchs do not know the body and mind of the Buddha-Dharma. Without knowing the body and mind of the Buddha-Dharma, they never clarify the buddha-actions of the Buddha's lineage. That the Buddha-Dharma of Great Master Śākyamuni Buddha has now spread widely through the ten directions is the realization of the Buddha's body and mind. The realization of the Buddha's body and mind, just in the moment, is like this. Shōbōgenzō Senjō

Preached to the assembly at Kannondōrikōshōhōrinji in the Uji district of Yōshū, 44 on the

twenty-third day of the tenth lunar month in the

winter of the first year of Enō.

45

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Notes

1 Master Daikan Enō (638-713), successor of Master Daiman Kōnin. 2 Master Nangaku Ejō (677-744), successor of Master Daikan Enō. Zen Master Daie was his posthumous title.

3 Saiten,

"Western Heavens,

" means India.

4 Shinji-shōbōgenzō,pt. 2, no. 1. See also Chapter Twenty-nine (Vol. II), Inmo,and Chapter Sixty-two (Vol. III), Hensan. 5 The Daibikusanzenyuigikyō.

6 Daishōben.In modern Japanese daishōbenmeans "feces and urine, " but in this chapter

the words suggest the parts of the body where feces and urine emerge: the anus and the urethra. Although it is not common practice nowadays to wash around the urethra after urinating, it seems that Master Dōgen recommended us to do so. 7 It is a Buddhist tradition to sit under a tree. The Buddha is said to have realized the truth while sitting under a bodhitree. 8 The Garland Sutrais the Kegonkyōin Japanese, and the Avataṃsaka-sūtrain Sanskrit. The sutra compares the whole universe to the realization of Vairocana Buddha. Its basic teaching is that myriad things and phenomena are the oneness of the universe, and the whole universe is myriad things and phenomena. 9 "Reverence for the old traditions" is keiko,lit., "consideration of the past,

" or "emulation of the ancients. " In modern Japanese keikois the term generally used for training by sumo wrestlers, martial artists, etc. 10 In Master Tendō Nyojō's quotation, "shaving the head" is jōhatsu, lit., hair.

" In Master Dōgen's commentary, the expressions used areteitō,lit., the head,

" and teihatsu,lit.,

"shaving the hair.

"

"purifying the

"shaving

11 The first quotation in this paragraph is clearly defined in the original text. But it is not totally clear where Master Dōgen's own words end and the second quotation begins. 12 13 Jambudvīpa is the continent south of Mount Sumeru on which, according to ancient Indian cosmology, human beings live. Śāriputra was one of the Buddha's ten great disciples. There is a story in chapter 35 of the Makasōgiritsu(Mahāsaṃghika Precepts) that a non-Buddhist was converted to Buddhism on witnessing Śāri putra's method of defecating. 85

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14 Juge-roji,

"beneath trees and on open ground, " suggests the practice of the Buddha and the monks of his time. However, the tense of the Japanese is the present. 15 It is not clear what was done with the remaining eleven balls of soil. 16 A standard temple in China and Japan faces south. As you approach the temple from the south, the Buddha hall is directly in front of you, and the zazen hall is to the left (west). A toilet building located to the east would be on the far right (furthest east). In certain ages, however, the main toilet building was located to the west. See Appendix Five, Temple Layout.

17 Shukin.The shukinis a piece of cloth, measuring one joplus two shaku(total: 3.64 meters) in length, which is used as a towel, and also as a sash to keep up the sleeves. It is one of the eighteen articles a monk is supposed to have. The method of using the shukinis explained in detail in Chapter Fifty-six (Vol. III), Senmen. 18 Jōkan,lit.,

height.

"pure pole,

" is a bamboo or wooden pole set up horizontally at about head 19 Jikitotsu,lit.,

"directly sewn.

" Traditionally a monk in China wore a kind of long black cotton jacket, or hensan,and a black skirt, or kunzu. By Master Dōgen's time, it was customary for the jacket and skirt to be sewn together, hence the name jikitotsu, or "directly sewn.

" The jiki totsuis the long black gown with wide sleeves commonly worn by priests in Japan today. A monk of Master Dōgen's time would usually have worn the following clothes: a white loincloth, white underclothes, a black jacket (hensan) and black skirt (kunzu), and/or a black gown (jikitotsu), and finally the kaṣāya. The standard form of the kaṣāya,or Buddhist robe, is universal (see Chapter Twelve, Kesa-kudoku;and Chapter Thirteen, Den-e), but the other clothes worn by monks have changed according to the climates and customs of different countries and different ages.

20 Shashu.The left hand is curled into a fist, the fingers covering the thumb, and placed in front of the chest with the palm of the hand facing downward. The open right hand rests, palm down, on the top of the left hand. 21 Hensan.See note 19.

22 Gasshō.In gasshōthe palms are brought together in front of the chest, with the tips of the fingers in line with the nostrils. 23 Literally,

"take the banzuand wear it on both arms. " Banzu,lit.,

"binding thing,

" is a

long cord tied round the shoulders and armpits (of the undergarment) so that the sleeves can be tucked in, leaving the arms bare. 24 Ho-ai,lit.,

"cattail slippers.

" Ho,

used for weaving.

"cattail,

" is a marsh plant with long flat leaves, often 25 The Pure Criteria for Zen Monasteries.The editing of the Zenenshingi was completed by Master Chōro Sōsaku in 1103. It was based on Master Hyakujō's Koshingi(Old Pure Criteria).

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26 One sunis approximately equal to 1.2 inches. 27 Honey locusts are produced by a tall leguminous tree of the same name (Gleditsia japonica). They are long twisted pods containing a sweet edible pulp and seeds that resemble beans.

28 Menyaku,lit.,

"face medicines.

"

29 This quotation is from the old translation of the Garland Sutradone by Buddha bhadra in sixty fascicles between 418 and 420. A second translation was done by Śikṣānanda in eighty fascicles between 695 and 699. This is known as the new translation, but there was also a third partial translation done by Prajña in forty fascicles from 759 to 762.

30 This kind of pot has an oval body, a long neck, and a lid, often with jewels. (So the piece of fragrant wood would have been oval with tapered ends.) In certain Buddhist ceremonies, such pots were used to hold water for sprinkling on practitioners' heads. 31 The characters are in the style of a quotation from a Chinese text, though the source has not been traced.

32 Oil for lamps.

33 "Enter" is originally "ascend.

" The toilets were raised a little above the ground. 34 Violations of some of the two hundred and fifty precepts for monks were classed, according to their relative importance, as duṣkṛta.Wrongdoings in this category include, for example, failure to observe the seven methods of stopping a quarrel. 35 Zagurepresents the Sanskrit niṣīdana.The zaguis a cloth or a mat used to do prostrations on, or to sit on. 36 "A place of the truth where we strive in pursuit of the truth" is bendō kufu no dōjō. Master Dōgen often used the expression bendō kufu, "effort in pursuit of the truth,

"

to express zazen itself.

"A place of the truth" is dōjō,lit., "truth-place,

" which represents

the Sanskrit bodhimaṇḍa,

"seat of truth.

" See Glossary of Sanskrit Terms.

37 The sahāworld means the human world. See Glossary of Sanskrit Terms. 38 The Jūjuritsu,a sixty-one-fascicle translation of the Vinaya of the Sarvāstivāda school. It enumerates the two hundred and fifty precepts of a monk in Hinayana Buddhism, and was translated into Chinese by Puṇyatara (Hannyatara) and Kumārajīva. 39 The Sanskrit word śrāmaṇera,which means "novice, " is a variation of śramaṇa,

which means "monk.

" Rāhula was the Buddha's son from his marriage with Yaśo dharā. It is said that he became a fully ordained monk when he was twenty, and that he was foremost among the ten great disciples of the Buddha in meticulous observation of the precepts.

40 Before becoming a monk, the Buddha was the heir to his father's throne, so his son Rāhula was born into the nobility.

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41 Shinshi,

"progressing and stopping, " suggests active and passive behavior, that is, real behavior in daily life. 42 43 44 The Makasōgiritsu,a forty-fascicle version of the Vinaya of the Mahā saṃghika school of Hinayana Buddhism. It was translated into Chinese by Buddhabhadra during the Eastern Jin dynasty (317-420). Shōjais the translation into Chinese characters of the Sanskrit vihāra. Corresponds to present-day Kyoto prefecture. 45 1239.

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[Chapter Eight]

Raihai-tokuzui

33c

Prostrating to the Marrow of Attainment Translator's Note:Raihaimeans "to prostrate oneself to, " tokumeans

"to

"

get,

or

"to attain,

"

and zuimeans

"

marrow.

" So raihai-tokuzuimeans prostrating oneself to attainment of the marrow, in other words, revering what has got the truth. In this chapter Master Dōgen preached to us that the value of a being must be decided according to whether or not it has got the truth. So, he said, even if it is a child, a woman, a devil, or an animal like a wild fox, if it has got the truth, we must revere it wholeheartedly. In this attitude, we can find Master Dōgen '

s sincere reverence of the truth, and his view of men, women, and animals. [169] In practicing the state of anuttara samyaksaṃbodhithe most difficult thing is to find a guiding teacher. Though beyond appearances such as those of a man or a woman, the guiding teacher should be a big stout fellow, 1 and

should be someone ineffable. 2 He is not a person of the past and present, but may be a good counselor with the spirit of a wild fox. 3These are the features of [someone who] has got the marrow;4 he may be a guide and a benefactor; he is never unclear about cause and effect; he may be you, me, him, or her. 5

[170] Having met with a guiding teacher, we should throw away myriad involvements and, without wasting a moment of time, 6 we should strive in pursuit of the truth. We should train with consciousness, we should train without consciousness, and we should train with semiconsciousness. Thus, we should learn walking on tiptoes7 to put out a fire on our head. 8When we

behave like this, we are unharmed by abusive demons. The patriarch who cuts off an arm and gets the marrow9 is never another, and the master who gets free of body and mind10 is ourself already. Getting the marrow, and receiving the Dharma, invariably come from sincerity and from belief. There is no example of sincerity coming from outside, and there is no way for sincerity to emerge from within. [Sincerity] just means attaching weight to the 89

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Dharma and thinking light of [one's own] body. It is to get free from the secular world and to make one's home the state of truth. If we attach even slightly more weight to self-regard for the body than to the Dharma, the Dharma is not transmitted to us, and we do not attain the truth. Those resolute spirits who attach [greater] weight to the Dharma are not unique, and they do not depend upon the exhortation of others, but let us take up, for the present, one or two instances. It is said that those who attach weight to the Dharma will make the body into a seat on the floor,

11 and will serve for countless kalpas

[whatever] is maintaining and relying upon the great Dharma, [whatever] has "got my marrow,

"12 whether it is an outdoor pillar, whether it is a stone lantern, whether it is the buddhas, whether it is a wild dog, a demon or a god, a man or a woman. Bodies and minds are easily received: they are [as common] in the world as rice, flax, bamboo, and reeds. The Dharma is rarely met. Śākyamuni Buddha says,

"When you meet teachers who expound the

supreme state of bodhi,have no regard for their race or caste, 13 do not notice

their looks, do not dislike their faults, and do not examine their deeds. Only because you revere their prajñā,let them eat hundreds and thousands of pounds of gold every day, serve them by presenting heavenly food, serve them by scattering heavenly flowers, do prostrations and venerate them three times every day, and never let anxiety or annoyance arise in your mind. When we behave like this, there is always a way to the state of bodhi.Since I established the mind, I have been practicing like this, and so today I have been able to attain anuttara samyaksaṃbodhi.

" This being so, we should hope

that even trees and stones might preach to us, 14 and we should request that

even fields and villages might preach to us. 15 We should question outdoor

pillars, and we should investigate even fences and walls. There is the ancient [example of the] god Indra16 prostrating himself to a wild dog as his master, and asking it about the Dharma; his fame as a great bodhisattva has been transmitted. [Fitness to be asked] does not rest upon the relative nobility of one's station. Nevertheless, stupid people who do not listen to the Buddha's Dharma think,

"I am a senior bhikṣu.I cannot prostrate myself to a junior who has got the Dharma.

" "I have endured long training. I cannot prostrate myself to a recent student who has got the Dharma. " "I sign my name with

the title of master. I cannot prostrate myself to someone who does not have the title of master.

" "I am an Administrator of Dharma Affairs. 17 I cannot

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prostrate myself to lesser monks who have got the Dharma. " "I am the Chief

Administrator of Monks.

18 I cannot prostrate myself to laymen and laywomen who have got the Dharma.

" "I am [a bodhisattva] of the three clever stages and ten sacred stages. I cannot prostrate myself to bhikṣuṇīs and other [women], even if they have got the Dharma. " "I am of royal pedigree. I

cannot prostrate myself to the family of a retainer or to the lineage of a minister, even if they have got the Dharma. " Stupid people like these have heedlessly fled their father's kingdom and are wandering on the roads of foreign lands;19 therefore, they neither see nor hear the Buddha's truth. [176] Long ago, in the Tang dynasty, Great Master Shinsai of Jōshū20 established the mind and set off as a wayfarer. 21 In the story he says,

"I shall

question anyone who is superior to me, even a child of seven. And I shall teach anyone who is inferior to me, even a man of a hundred. " The old man22

is willing to prostrate himself on asking a seven-year-old about the Dharma— this is a rare example of a resolute spirit, and the working of the mind of an eternal buddha. When a bhikṣuṇīwho has got the truth and got the Dharma manifests herself in the world, 23 bhikṣus24 who seek the Dharma and learn in practice will devote themselves to her order, prostrating themselves and asking about the Dharma—this is an excellent example of learning in practice. For instance, it is like the thirsty finding drink. [178] The Chinese Zen Master Shikan25is a venerable patriarch in Rinzai's lineage. Once upon a time, Rinzai sees the master coming [to visit] and holds onto him. The master says,

"It is understood.

"26 Rinzai lets go and says,

"I

will allow you to stop for a while. "27From this point on, he has already become Rinzai's disciple. He leaves Rinzai and goes to Massan, 28at which time Massan

asks him,

"Where have you come from?" The master says, "The entrance of

the road.

" Massan says,

"Why have you come here without anything on?"29 The master has no words. He just prostrates himself, bowing as disciple to teacher. The master asks a question back to Massan: "Just what is Massan?" Massan says,

"[Massan] never shows a peak. "30 The master says,

"Just who

is the person within the mountain?" Massan says, "It is beyond appearances

such as those of a man or a woman. " The master says,

"Then why do you not

change [your form]?" Massan says, "I am not the ghost of a wild fox. What might I change?" The master prostrates himself. Eventually he decides to work as the head of the vegetable garden and works there altogether for three years. 34c

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Later, when he has manifested himself in the world, 31he preaches to the assembly,

"I got half a dipper at Old Papa Rinzai's place, and I got half a dipper at Old Mama Massan's place.

32 Making a dipper with both [halves], I have finished drinking, and, having arrived directly at the present, I am completely satisfied.

" Hearing these words now, I look back on the traces of those days with veneration for the past. Massan is an excellent disciple33of Kōan Daigu. She has power in her lifeblood, and so she has become Shikan's "Ma. " Rinzai

is an authentic successor of Ōbaku [Ki]un. 34 He has power in his efforts, and so he has become Shikan's "Pa.

" "Pa" means father, and "Ma" means mother. 35

Zen Master Shikan's prostration to and pursuit of the Dharma under the nun Massan Ryōnen are an excellent example of a resolute spirit, and integrity that students of later ages should emulate. We can say that he broke all barriers, large and small.

[180] Nun Myōshin is a disciple of Kyōzan. 36 Kyōzan, on one occasion,

is choosing the Chief of the Business Office. 37 He asks around the retired

officers and others on Kyōzan,

"Who is the right person?" They discuss it back and forth, and eventually Kyōzan says, "Disciple [Myō]shin from the

Wai River, though a woman, has the spirit of a big stout fellow. 38 She is certainly qualified to be Chief of the Business Office. " All the monks agree.

[So] at length Myōshin is assigned as Chief of the Business Office. The dragons and elephants in Kyōzan's order do not resent this. Though the position is in fact not so grand, the one selected for it might need to love herself. While she is posted at the business office, seventeen monks from the Shoku district39 form a group to visit teachers and seek the truth, and, intending to climb Kyōzan, they lodge at dusk at the business office. In a nighttime talk, while resting, they discuss the story of the Founding Patriarch Sōkei, 40 and

the wind and the flag.

41 The words of each of the seventeen men are totally inadequate. Meanwhile, listening from the other side of the wall, the Chief of the Business Office says,

"Those seventeen blind donkeys! How many straw sandals have they worn out in vain? They have never seen the Buddha-Dharma even in a dream. " A temple servant present at the time overhears the Chief of the Business Office criticizing the monks and informs the seventeen monks themselves, but none of the seventeen monks resents the criticism of the Chief of the Business Office. Ashamed of their own inability to express the truth, they at once prepare themselves in the dignified form, 42

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burn incense, do prostrations, and request [her teaching]. The Chief of the Business Office (Myōshin) says,

"Come up here!" The seventeen monks

approach her, and while they are still walking, the Chief of the Business Office says,

"This is not wind moving, this is not a flag moving, and this is not mind moving.

" When she teaches them like this, the seventeen monks all experience reflection. They bow to thank her and have the ceremony to become her disciples. Then they go straight back home to western Shoku. In the end, they do not climb Kyōzan. Truly the state [demonstrated] here is beyond [bodhisattvas at] the three clever and ten sacred stages;43 it is action in the truth as transmitted by Buddhist patriarchs from authentic successor to authentic successor. Therefore, even today, when a post as master or assistant master44 is vacated, a bhikṣuṇīwho has got the Dharma may be requested [to fill it]. Even if a bhikṣuis senior in years and experience, if he has not got the Dharma, what importance does he have? A leader of monks must always rely upon clear eyes. Yet many [leaders] are drowning in the body and mind of a village bumpkin; they are so dense that they are prone to be derided even in the secular world. How much less do they deserve to be mentioned in the Buddha-Dharma? Moreover, there may be [men] who would refuse to prostrate themselves to women monks who are teachers that have received the Dharma, and who are [the men's] elder sisters, aunts, and so on.

45 Because they do not know and

will not learn, they are close to animals, and far from the Buddhist patriarchs. When the sole devotion of body and mind to the Buddha-Dharma is retained deep in [a person's] consciousness, the Buddha-Dharma always has compassion for the person. Even human beings and gods, in their stupidity, have the sympathy to respond to sincerity, so how could the buddhas, in their rightness, lack the compassion to reciprocate sincerity? The sublime spirit that responds to sincerity exists even in soil, stones, sand, and pebbles. In the temples of the great kingdom of Song today, if a resident bhikṣuṇīis reputed to have got the Dharma, the government issues an imperial edict for her to be appointed master of a nuns' temple, and she gives formal preaching in the Dharma hall of her present temple. All the monks, from the master down, attend [the formal preaching]. They listen to the Dharma, standing on the ground, and questions are also [put by] the bhikṣus, the male monks. This is a traditional standard. A person who has got the Dharma is one individual true eternal buddha here and now, and as such should not be met as someone 93

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from the past. When that person looks at us, we meet each other in a new and singular state. When we look at that person, the mutual relation may be "today having to enter today.

" For example, when arhats, pratyekabuddhas,

and [bodhisattvas at]46the three clever and ten sacred stages come to a bhikṣuṇī who is retaining the transmission of the right Dharma-eye treasury, to prostrate themselves and to ask her about Dharma, she must receive these prostrations. Why should men be higher? Space is space, the four elements are the four elements,

47 the five aggregates are the five aggregates,

48 and women are also

like this. As regards attainment of the truth, both [men and women] attain the truth, and we should just profoundly revere every single person who has attained the Dharma. Do not discuss man and woman. This is one of Buddhism's finest Dharma standards.

[187] In Song dynasty [China], the term "householder"49refers to gentle men who have not left their families. 50 Some of them live in houses with

their wives, while others are single and pure, but anyway we can say that they are immensely busy in a dense forest of dusty toil. 51 Nevertheless, if

one of them has clarified something, patch-robed monks52 gather to do prostrations and to ask for the benefit [of his teaching], as to a master who had left home. We also should be like that, even toward a woman, even toward an animal. When [a person] has never seen the truths of the Buddha-Dharma even in a dream, even if he is an old bhikṣuof a hundred years, he cannot arrive at the level of a man or woman who has got the Dharma, so we should not venerate [such a person] but need only bow to him as junior to senior. When [a person] practices the Buddha-Dharma and speaks the Buddha-Dharma, even if a girl of seven, she is just the guiding teacher of the four groups53 and the benevolent father of all living beings. We should serve and venerate her as we do the buddha-tathāgatas, and as it was, for example, when the dragon's daughter became a buddha.

54This is just the time-honored

form in Buddhism. Those who do not know about it, and who have not received its one-to-one transmission, are pitiful.

[188] Another case: Since the ancient past in Japan and China, there have been women emperors. The whole country is the possession of such an empress, and all the people become her subjects. This is not out of reverence for her person but out of reverence for her position. Likewise, a bhikṣuṇīhas never been revered for her person but is revered solely for her attainment of 94

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the Dharma. Furthermore, the virtues that accompany the four effects all belong to a bhikṣuṇīwho has become an arhat.

55 Even [these] virtues accompany her; what human being or god could hope to surpass these virtues of the fourth effect? Gods of the triple world are all inferior to her. While being forsaken [by human beings] she is venerated by all the gods. How much less should anyone fail to venerate those who have received the transmission of the Tathāgata's right Dharma, and who have established the great will of a bodhisattva?56 If we fail to venerate such a person it is our own wrongness. And if we fail to revere our own supreme state of bodhi, we are stupid people who insult the Dharma. Again, there are in our country daughters of emperors, or ministers' daughters who become queens' consorts,

57 or queens who are

titled with the names of temples.

58 Some of them have shaved their head,

and some of them do not shave their head. In any case, priests who [only] look like bhikṣus, and who crave fame and love gain, never fail to run to the house of such [a woman] and strike their head at her clogs. They are far inferior to serfs following a lord. Moreover, many of them actually become her servants for a period of years. How pitiful they are. Having been born in a minor nation in a remote land, they do not even know a bad custom like this for what it is. There was never [such ignorance] in India and China but only in our country. It is lamentable. Forcedly to shave the head and then to violate the Tathāgata's right Dharma must be called deep and heavy sin. Solely because they forget that worldly ways are dreams and illusions, flowers in space, they are bonded in slavery to women. It is lamentable. Even for the sake of a trifling secular livelihood, they act like this. Why, for the sake of the supreme bodhi,do they fail to venerate the venerable ones who have got the Dharma? It is because their awe for the Dharma is shallow and their will to pursue the Dharma is not pervasive. When [people] are already coveting a treasure they do not think about refusing it just because it is the treasure of a woman. When we want to get the Dharma, we must surpass such resolve. If it is so, even grass, trees, fences, and walls will bestow the right Dharma, and the heavens and the earth, myriad things and phenomena, will also impart the right Dharma. This is a truth that we must always remember. Before we seek the Dharma with this determination, even if we meet true good counselors, we will not be soaked by the benevolent water of Dharma. We should pay careful attention [to this].

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[192] Furthermore, nowadays extremely stupid people look at women without having corrected the prejudice that women are objects of sexual greed. Disciples of the Buddha must not be like this. If whatever may become the object of sexual greed is to be hated, do not all men deserve to be hated too? As regards the causes and conditions of becoming tainted, a man can be the object, a woman can be the object, what is neither man nor woman can be the object, and dreams and fantasies, flowers in space, can also be the object. There have been impure acts done with a reflection on water as an object, and there have been impure acts done with the sun in the sky as an object.

59A god can be the object, and a demon can be the object. It is impossible to count all the possible objects; they say that there are eighty-four thousand objects. Should we discard all of them? Should we not look at them? The precepts60 say,

"[Abuse of] the two male organs,

61 or the three

female organs,

62 are both pārājika,and [the offender] may not remain in the community.

"63 This being so, if we hate whatever might become the object of sexual greed, all men and women will hate each other, and we will never have any chance to attain salvation. We should examine this truth in detail. There are non-Buddhists who have no wife: even though they have no wife, they have not entered the Buddha-Dharma, and so they are [only] non-Buddhists with wrong views. There are disciples of the Buddha who, as the two classes of laypeople,

64 have a husband or a wife: even though they have a husband or a wife, they are disciples of the Buddha, and so there are no other beings equal to them in the human world or in heaven above. [194] Even in China, there was a stupid monk who made the following vow: "Through every life, in every age, I shall never look at a woman. " Upon

what morality is this vow based? Is it based on secular morality? Is it based on the Buddha-Dharma? Is it based on the morality of non-Buddhists? Or is it based on the morality of heavenly demons?65 What wrong is there in a woman? What virtue is there in a man? Among bad people there are men who are bad people. Among good people there are women who are good people. Wanting to hear the Dharma, and wanting to get liberation, never depend upon whether we are a man or a woman. When they have yet to cut delusion, men and women alike have yet to cut delusion. When they cut delusion and experience the principle, there is nothing at all to choose between a man and a woman. Moreover, if [a man] has vowed never to look at a 96

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woman, must he discard women even when vowing to save limitlessly many living beings?66 If he discards them, he is not a bodhisattva. How much less [does he have] the Buddha's compassion. This [vow] is just a drunken utterance caused by deep intoxication on the wine of the śrāvaka.Neither human beings nor gods should believe this [vow] to be true. Furthermore, if we hate [others] for the wrongs they have committed in the past, we must even hate all bodhisattvas. If we hate like this, we will discard everyone, so how will we be able to realize the Buddha-Dharma? Words like those [of the monk's vow] are the deranged speech of a stupid man who does not know the Buddha-Dharma. We should feel sorry for him. If that monk's67vow is true, did Śākyamuni and the bodhisattvas of his time all commit wrongs?68 And was their bodhi-mind less profound than the will of that monk? We should reflect [on this] quietly. We should learn in practice whether the ancestral masters who transmitted the treasury of Dharma, and the bodhisattvas of the Buddha's lifetime, had things to learn in the Buddha-Dharma without this vow. If the vow of that monk were true, not only would we fail to save women but also, when a woman who had got the Dharma manifested herself in the world and preached the Dharma for human beings and gods, we would be forbidden to come and listen to her, would we not? Anyone who did not come and listen would be not a bodhisattva, but just a non-Buddhist. When we look now at the great kingdom of Song, there are monks who seem to have been in training for a long time, [but] who have only been vainly counting the sands of the ocean69 and rolling like surf over the ocean of life and death. 70There are also

those who, although women, have visited [good] counselors, made effort in pursuit of the truth, and thus become the guiding teachers of human beings and gods. There are [women] such as the old woman who wouldn't sell her rice cakes [to Tokusan] and threw her rice cakes away.

71 It was pitiful that

although [Tokusan] was a male monk, a bhikṣu, he had been vainly counting the sands of the ocean of philosophy, and had never seen the Buddha-Dharma, even in a dream. In general, we should learn to understand clearly whatever circumstances we meet. If we learn only to fear and to flee [from circumstances], that is the theory and practice of a śrāvakaof the Small Vehicle. When we abandon the east and try to hide away in the west, the west is also not without its circumstances. Even if we think that we have escaped circumstances, unless we understand them clearly, though they may be distant they 97

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are still circumstances, we are still not in the state of liberation, and the distant circumstances will [disturb us] more and more deeply.

[198] Again in Japan, there is one particularly laughable institution. This is either called a "sanctuary,

"72 or called a "place for practicing the truth of

the Great Vehicle,

" where bhikṣuṇīs and other women are not allowed to

enter. The wrong custom has long been handed down, and so people cannot recognize it for what it is. People who emulate the ancients do not rectify it, and men of wide knowledge give no thought to it. Calling it the enactment of people of authority, or terming it the legacy of men of tradition, they never discuss it at all. If one laughed, a person's guts might split. Just who are the so-called people of authority? Are they sages or are they saints? Are they gods or are they devils? Are they [bodhisattvas at] the ten sacred stages or are they [bodhisattvas at] the three clever stages? Are they [bodhisattvas in] the balanced state of truth or are they [bodhisattvas in] the fine state of truth? Moreover, if old [ways] should never be reformed, should we refrain from abandoning incessant wandering through life and death? Still more, Great Master Śākyamuni is just the supreme right and balanced state of truth itself, 73

and he clarified everything that needs to be clarified, he practiced everything that needs to be practiced, and he liberated74 all that needs to be liberated. Who today could even approach his level? Yet the Buddha's order when he was in the world included all four groups: bhikṣus, bhikṣuṇīs, upāsakas, and upāsikās, it included the eight kinds of beings,

75 the thirty-seven kinds of

beings, and the eighty-four thousand kinds of beings. The formation of the Buddhist order is clearly the Buddhist order itself. So what kind of order has no bhikṣuṇīs, has no women, and has no eight kinds of beings? We should never hope to have so-called sanctuaries which surpass in their purity the Buddhist order of the Tathāgata's lifetime, because they are the sphere of heavenly demons.

76 There are no differences in the Dharma-form of the

Buddhist order, not in this world or in other directions, and not among a thousand buddhas of the three times. 77 We should know that [an order] with a different code is not a Buddhist order. "The fourth effect"78 is the ultimate rank.

Whether in the Mahayana or the Hinayana, the virtues of the ultimate rank are not differentiated. Yet many bhikṣuṇīs have experienced the fourth effect. [So] to what kind of place—whether it is within the triple world or in the buddha lands of the ten directions—can [a bhikṣuṇī] not go? Who could 98

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stand in her path? At the same time, the fine state of truth79is also the supreme rank. When a woman has [thus] already become buddha, is there anything in all directions that she cannot perfectly realize? Who could aim to bar her from passing? She already has virtue that "widely illuminates the ten directions"; what meaning can a boundary have? Moreover, would goddesses be barred from passing? Would nymphs be barred from passing? Even goddesses and nymphs are beings that have not yet cut delusion; they are just aimlessly wandering ordinary beings. When they have wrong, they have; when they are without [wrong], they are without. Human women and bestial women, also, when they have wrong, they have; when they are without wrong, they are without. [But] who would stand in the way of gods or in the way of deities? [Bhikṣuṇīs] have attended the Buddha's order of the three times; they have learned in practice at the place of the Buddha. If [places] differ from the Buddha's place and from the Buddha's order, who can believe in them as the Buddha's Dharma? [Those who exclude women] are just very stupid fools who deceive and delude secular people. They are more stupid than a wild dog worrying that its burrow might be stolen by a human being. The Buddha's disciples, whether bodhisattvas or śrāvakas, have the following ranks: first, bhikṣu; second, bhikṣuṇī; third, upāsaka;and fourth, upāsikā. These ranks are recognized both in the heavens above and in the human world, and they have long been heard. This being so, those who rank second among the Buddha's disciples are superior to sacred wheel-turning kings, 80

and superior to Śakra-devānām-indra.

81There should never be a place where

they cannot go. Still less should [bhikṣuṇīs] be ranked alongside kings and ministers of a minor nation in a remote land. [But] when we look at present "places of the truth" that a bhikṣuṇīmay not enter, any rustic, boor, farmer, or old lumberjack can enter at random. Still less would any king, lord, officer, or minister be refused entry. Comparing country bumpkins and bhikṣuṇīs, in terms of learning of the truth or in terms of attainment of rank, who is superior and who is inferior, in conclusion? Whether discussing this according to secular rules or according to the Buddha-Dharma, [one would think that] rustics and boors should not be allowed to go where a bhikṣuṇīmight go. [The situation in Japan] is utterly deranged; [our] inferior nation is the first to leave this stain [on its history]. How pitiful it is. When the eldest daughters of the compassionate father of the triple world came to a small country, they 38a

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found places where they were barred from going. On the other hand, fellows who live in those places called "sanctuaries" have no fear of [committing] the ten wrongs,

82 and they violate the ten important precepts83 one after another. Is it simply that, in their world of wrongdoing, they hate people who do not do wrong? Still more, a deadly sin84 is a serious matter indeed; those who live in sanctuaries may have committed even the deadly sins. We should just do away with such worlds of demons. We should learn the Buddha's moral teaching and should enter the Buddha's world. This naturally may be [the way] to repay the Buddha's benevolence. Have these traditionalists understood the meaning of a sanctuary, or have they85 not? From whom have they received their transmission? Who has covered them with the seal of approval? Whatever comes into "this great world sanctified by the buddhas" —whether it is the buddhas, living beings, the earth, or space—will get free of fetters and attachments, and will return to the original state which is the wonderful Dharma of the buddhas. This being so, when living beings step once [inside] this world, they are completely covered by the Buddha's virtue. They have the virtue of refraining from immorality, and they have the virtue of becoming pure and clean. When one direction is sanctified, the whole world of Dharma is sanctified at once, and when one level is sanctified, the whole world of Dharma is sanctified. Sometimes places are sanctified using water, sometimes places are sanctified using mind, and sometimes places are sanctified using space. For every case there are traditions which have been transmitted and received, and which we should know. 86 Furthermore, when we are sanctifying an area, after sprinkling nectar87 and finishing devotional prostrations88

—in other words, after making the place pure—

we recite the following verse:

This world and the whole world of Dharma,

Naturally are sanctified, pure and clean.

Have the traditionalists and veterans who nowadays usually proclaim sanctuaries understood this meaning, or have they not? I guess they cannot know that the whole world of Dharma is sanctified within [the act of] sanctification itself. Clearly, drunk on the wine of the śrāvaka,they consider a small area to be a great world. Let us hope that they will snap out of their habitual drunken delusion, and that they will not violate the wholeness of 100

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the great world of the buddhas. We should prostrate ourselves in veneration of the virtue by which [the buddhas], through acts of salvation and acceptance, cover all living beings with their influence. Who could deny that this [prostration] is the attainment of the marrow of the truth? Shōbōgenzō Raihai-tokuzui

Written at Kannondōrikōshōhōrinji on the day of purity and brightness89 in [the second year of] Enō.

90

101

Notes

1 Daijōbu,or "great stout fellow, " was originally a concept in Confucianism, suggesting a man of Confucian virtue. The word was used later in Chinese Buddhism, meaning someone who has trained perfectly. In modern Japanese, daijōbuis commonly used as an adjective meaning "all right. "

2 Inmonin.Master Ungo Dōyō, quoted in Chapter Twenty-nine (Vol. II), Inmo,says, "If you want to attain the matter of the ineffable, you must have become someone ineffable.

"

3 Yako-zei,or "ghost of a wild fox, " often suggests criticism that a person's state is too mystical, not practical enough. But in this case, it suggests the presence of something natural and mystical.

4 "Got the marrow" is tokuzui. Master Taiso Eka made three prostrations to Master Bodhidharma, and returned to his seat. Master Bodhidharma said, "You have got my

marrow.

" The story is recorded in Chapter Forty-six (Vol. III), Kattō. 5 "Him or her" is kare,which usually means "he" or "him, " but which in this context is clearly neutral.

6 Sun-in,lit.,

"an inch of shadow.

"

7 Gyōsoku,lit.,

"holding up the feet.

" Legend says the Buddha naturally walked on tiptoes. To learn walking on tiptoes means to learn how to behave like the Buddha. 8 A symbol of sincere behavior. 9 Master Taiso Eka cut off part of his arm to show his sincerity to Master Bodhidharma (see Chapter Thirty [Vol. II], Gyōji), and several years later Master Bodhidharma affirmed Master Taiso Eka's state with the words "You have got my marrow. "

10 Shinjin-datsuraku,

"getting free of body and mind, " was an expression commonly used by Master Tendō Nyojō, Master Dōgen's master. 11 A figurative expression suggesting a humble attitude. 12 Gozui o nyotoku seru araba,lit., Master Bodhidharma's marrow. "If it has 'you-got' 'my-marrow. '" Gozuimeans

13 In the Buddha's time, Indian society had four castes: brāhmaṇa(priests), kṣatriya (the ruling nobility), vaiśya(workers), and śūdra(servants). At the lowest end of the social scale were people without any caste. 103

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14 Nyaku-ju nyaku-seki alludes to a story in the Mahāparinirvāṇa-sūtra.A demon told a child bodhisattva the first two lines of a four-line poem: "All actions are in the state without constancy/Concrete existence is the arising and passing of dharmas. " The

demon said it was too hungry to tell the child the last two lines, so the child offered his own body as a meal for the demon if it would recite the last two lines. So the demon recited the last two lines: "After arising and passing have ceased,/The peace and quiet is pleasure itself.

" The child preserved the verse for posterity by writing it on some nearby trees and rocks in his own blood, before being eaten by the demon. 15 Nyaku-den nyaku-ri.These words originate in the Lotus Sutra.See LS 3.72-74. 16 Tentai-shaku.See Chapter Two, Maka-hannya-haramitsu,note 28. 17 Hōmushi.The title is no longer in use, and the exact nature of the position is unclear. Shimeans "government official.

" A monk holding this position would also have been an official in the government.

18 Sōjōshi.This title has also gone out of use. 19 Alludes to a parable in the Shinge("Belief and Understanding") chapter of the Lotus Sutra.See LS 1.236.

20 Master Jōshū Jūshin. A successor of Master Nansen Fugan. He also studied under Masters Ōbaku, Hōju, Enkan, and Kassan. Died in 897, at the age of one hundred and twenty. Great Master Shinsai is his posthumous title. See Chapter Thirty-five (Vol. II),Hakujushi.

21 Angya,lit.,

"to go on foot,

" means to travel from place to place, visiting Buddhist masters, or on a pilgrimage to sacred places. 22 It is said that Master Jōshū Jūshin was already sixty before he became a Buddhist monk. 23 Shusse,lit.,

a big temple.

"manifest oneself in the world,

" usually means to become the master of 24 Biku-sō. Bikurepresents the Sanskrit word bhikṣu, which means a male monk. Sō, usually translated as "monk,

" is originally neutral in gender. It sometimes represents the Sanskrit word "sangha,

" as in the case of the Three Treasures, buppōsō:Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha.

25 Master Kankei Shikan (d. 895), successor of Master Rinzai. Throughout this paragraph he is referred to as "the master.

"

26 Master Rinzai wanted Master Kankei to stay in his order. Master Kankei understood Master Rinzai's intention, and agreed. 27 Shinji-shōbōgenzō,pt. 3, no. 17: Master Kankei Shikan is coming to visit Master Rinzai. When Master Rinzai sees him, he holds onto him. Master Kankei says, "Understood.

" Master Rinzai lets go of him and says, "I will allow you to stop for a

while.

" When Master Kankei becomes the master of his own temple, he preaches to 104

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the assembly,

"When I met Master Rinzai, there was no discussion. Arriving directly at the moment of the present, I am completely satisfied. "

28 Nun-Master Massan Ryōnen, successor of Master Kōan Daigu. 29 Literally,

"Why haven't you come here covering yourself?" This suggests that it is sometimes better to be polite than to give a terse "Zen" answer. 30 The proper name Massan is literally "Last Mountain" or "End Mountain. "

31 Shusse,i.e., when he became the master of a big temple. See note 23. 32 "Papa" is ya-ya.

"Mama" is jō-jō.

33 Jinsoku, lit.,

"mystical foot,

" is a traditional term for an excellent member of an order. The Chinese commentary Daichidoron(based on the Mahāprajñā pāra mitopadeśa) explains the term jinsokuas follows: "Their fine abilities are difficult to fathom, so we call them mystical; they support many living beings, so we call them feet. "

34 Master Ōbaku Kiun (exact dates unknown, d. between 855 and 859), successor of Master Hyakujō Ekai.

35 Master Dōgen explained the meaning of the Chinese characters yaand jousing the Japanese phonetic alphabet. 36 Master Kyōzan Ejaku (807-883), successor of Master Isan Reiyū. 37 Kai-in.This office was for dealing with laypeople such as government officials, merchants, and donors. The building was usually located lower down the mountain than the main temple buildings. 38 Daijōbu.See note 1. Suggests that she was healthy and vigorous, and had self-control. 39 In present-day Sichuan province. 40 Master Daikan Enō (638-713), successor of Master Daiman Kōnin. 41 Two monks are having a discussion. One monk says, "The flag is moving.

" The other

monk says,

"The wind is moving.

" Master Daikan Enō says, "The wind is not moving and the flag is not moving. You are moving mind. " (Keitokudentōroku,chapter 5. See also Chapter Twenty-nine [Vol. II], Inmo.) 42 Igi o gu su,lit.,

"to prepare the dignified form, " means to wear the kaṣāyaand to take the zagu(prostration cloth). 43 A bodhisattva is said to pass through fifty-two stages on the road to buddhahood. The first group of ten stages is the ten stages of belief. The next three groups of ten stages are the three clever stages. The fifth group of ten stages is the ten sacred stages. The fifty-first stage is tōkaku, "equal enlightenment,

" and the fifty-second stage is myōkaku, "marvelous enlightenment. "

44 Hanza, lit.,

"half-seat"

—a reference to the story that the Buddha shared his seat with Master Mahākāśyapa.

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45 Elder sister means a senior female member of one's master's order. Aunt means a senior female member of one's master's order. 46 In the Lotus Sutrathe Buddha explains four classes of Buddhists: śrāvaka(lit., "auditor"), pratyekabuddha(lit.,

"individually enlightened one"), bodhisattva (lit., "enlightenment being"), and buddha. These classes were further subdivided. An arhat is at the fourth and final state of a śrāvaka.For further explanation, see Chapter Twentyfour (Vol. II), Bukkyō. 47 The four elements are earth, water, fire, and wind; representing the material world. 48 The five aggregates are form, feeling, perception, volition, and consciousness; representing the phenomenal world. 49 Koji,

"householder,

" represents the Sanskrit word gṛhapati,which means "the master of a household.

" At the same time, the concept of kojialso comes from Confucianism: a man who did not work for the imperial government, but studied Confucianism as a civilian, was called koji.

50 Shukke. Shutsumeans "to get out of" or "to transcend. " Kemeans a house, a home,

or a family; at the same time it suggests the web of social and economic relationships inevitably connected with family life. As a verb, shukkemeans to become a Buddhist monk; as a noun, it means a monk.

51 Jinrō,

"dusty toil,

" in this context means secular work.

52 Un-nō-ka-bei,lit.,

"clouds-patches-mist-sleeves.

" Clouds and mist suggest the free and

natural life of a Buddhist monk. Patches and sleeves suggest the Buddhist robe, and the gowns with wide sleeves usually worn by monks in China and Japan. 53 Shishu, the four groups of Buddhist followers: bhikṣus (monks), bhikṣuṇīs (nuns), upāsakas (laymen), and upāsikās (laywomen). 54 See LS 2.224.

55 The four stages of a śrāvakaare as follows: srotāpanna(stream-enterer), sakṛ dā gāmin(once-returner), anāgāmin(non-returner), and arhat (the ultimate state, which is the fourth effect). An arhat is a śrāvakawho has overcome all hindrances and who needs to learn nothing more. In Chapter Thirty-four (Vol. II), Arakan,Master Dōgen identifies arhat and buddha.

56 The will to save others before we ourselves are saved. See Chapter Sixty-nine (Vol. III), Hotsu-mujōshin;Chapter Seventy (Vol. III), Hotsu-bodaishin;and Chapter Ninety-three (Vol. IV), Doshin.

57 The emperor would have several wives, or queens consort. Ministers would be eager to have a daughter made a queen consort. 58 In those days Buddhism was revered highly in Japanese society. So aristocratic women liked to have a titular position in a Buddhist temple. 106

Chapter Eight

59 References to old Chinese and Japanese stories. The Kojiki(Record of Ancient Matters), a book of ancient Japanese legends, tells the story of a woman who was sexually stimulated by the rays of the sun. 60 Fascicle 1 of the Shibunritsu(Vinaya in Four Divisions). 61 The male organ and anus.

62 The urethra, female organ, and anus. 63 The Sanskrit word pārājikaexpresses one of the most serious violations of the precepts, which may warrant expulsion from the monastic order. 64 Upāsaka(layman) and upāsikā(laywoman). 65 Tenmaare demons in heaven who govern the world of volition and hinder Buddhism. They symbolize idealistic people. The various classes of demons are discussed in Chapter Seventy (Vol. III), Hotsu-bodaishin. 66 The original words are shujo-muhen-seigan-do,or "living beings are limitless; I vow to save them.

" This is the first of shi-gu-seigan,the Four Universal Vows: "Living beings are countless; I vow to save them./Delusions are endless; I vow to end them./The teachings of Dharma are boundless; I vow to learn them./The Buddha's truth is supreme; I vow to realize it. "

67 "That monk" is nanji, or "you. " Master Dōgen often uses nanjifor the third person, when criticizing someone's wrongness. 68 That is, by looking at women. 69 In Master Yōka Gengaku's poem Shōdōka("Song of Experiencing the Truth") there is the line "Entering the ocean and counting sands, they hinder themselves in vain. "

Counting the sands of the ocean symbolizes the difficulty of realizing the Dharma only by reading books.

70 Symbolizes the life of people who do not have any meaningful goal. 71 See Chapters Eighteen and Nineteen, Shin-fukatoku. 72 Kekkai,lit.,

"bounded area,

" represents the Sanskrit sīmā-bandha, rules of morality.

"

"a depository of

73 Mujō-shōtō-gaku.These characters represent the meaning of the Sanskrit anuttara samyaksaṃbodhi. The Sanskrit word bodhiis represented by kaku,lit., "awakening,

"

or "awareness"; it suggests the state experienced throughout the body and mind in zazen. Bodhiis usually represented by the character dō,lit., "Way,

" and it is also

sometimes represented phonetically as bodai. 74 Gedatsu su. Gemeans "to solve, " and datsumeans "to get rid of. " Here gedatsu su

is used as a verb.

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