T2582 Shōbōgenzō The True Dharma-Eye Treasury, Volume II

Chapter 23: Gyōbutsu-yuigi - The Dignified Behavior of Acting Buddha

[Chapter Twenty-three]

Gyōbutsu-yuigi

The Dignified Behavior

of Acting Buddha

Translator's Note: Gyō means to practice or to act, butsu means buddha, yui means dignity or dignified, and gi means ceremony, formal attitude, or behavior. Therefore gyōbutsu-yuigi means the dignified behavior of acting buddha. Buddhism can be called a religion of action. Buddhism esteems action very highly, because action is our existence itself, and without acting we have no existence. Gautama Buddha

'

s historical mission was to find the

truth of action, by which he could synthesize idealistic Brahmanism and the materialistic theories of the six non-Buddhist teachers. In this chapter Master Dōgen explained the dignity that usually accompanies buddhas in action. [97] The buddhas always practice to the full dignified behavior: this is acting buddha. Acting buddha is neither "resultant buddha" nor "transformed buddha" and is neither "buddha as the body of subjective nature" nor "buddha as the body of objective nature"; it is beyond "initiated enlightenment" and "original enlightenment" and is beyond "inherent enlightenment" and "non existent enlightenment.

" "Buddhas" like these can never stand shoulder-to-shoulder with acting buddha. Remember, buddhas, being in the Buddha's state of truth, do not expect enlightenment. Mastery of action in the Buddha's ascendant state of truth belongs to acting buddha alone. It is never realized by "buddha as subjective nature" and the like, even in a dream. [99] Because this acting buddha realizes dignity at each moment, the dignity is realized before the body. Before verbal expression, the leaking out of the gist of the teaching covers time, covers [all] directions, covers buddha, and covers action. If we are not acting buddha, being not yet released from the fetter of "Buddha" and the fetter of "Dharma,

" we are grouped among

"Buddha"

-demons and "Dharma"

-demons.

1 The meaning of "the fetter of

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Buddha" is as follows: when we view and understand bodhias "bodhi, " we

have directly been fettered by that view itself and by that understanding itself. Passing instantaneously through the moment of consciousness, never expecting that it might be the period of liberation, we misunderstand [bodhi] in vain. To view and understand bodhias just bodhimay be the very view that accords with bodhi;who could call this the false view? I remember it as just binding myself without rope! It is fetters at every moment, continuing endlessly; it is not a tree falling and wisteria withering. 2 It is no more than fruitless struggling in caves on the Buddhist periphery. It neither recognizes the sickness of the Dharma body nor recognizes the privation of the reward body. 3 Even theorists,

teachers of sutras, teachers of commentaries, and the like, who have heard the Buddha's truth from afar, say: "Then to establish toward the Dharmanature a view on the Dharma-nature is just ignorance. "4 This theorist failed

to say that when, in the Dharma-nature, a view of the Dharma-nature arises, "the Dharma-nature" is a fetter. Further, he added the fetter of "ignorance. "

It is a shame that he did not know that "the Dharma-nature" contains a fetter, but if he recognized that he added the fetter of "ignorance, " that may have

become a seed for the establishment of the bodhi-mind. [101] The present acting buddha has never been fettered by such fetters. For this reason [the Buddha says],

"The lifetime that I have realized by my original practice of the bodhisattva way is not exhausted even now, but will still be twice the previous number [of kalpas]. "5 Remember, it is not that his

lifetime as a bodhisattva is ranged continuously to the present, nor that his lifetime as Buddha has permeated the past. 6 The "previous number" described

now is the totality that "he has realized. " The "even now" that he has just

expressed is his total "lifetime.

" "My original practice,

" even if one track of

iron for ten thousand miles, is also to abandon [all things] for a hundred years, letting them be vertical or horizontal. 7 This being so, practice-and-experience is beyond nonexistence, practice-and-experience is beyond existence, and practice-and-experience is beyond being tainted. 8 Though there are a hundred

thousand myriad places where there are no buddhas and no human beings, [those places] do not taint acting buddha, and so acting buddha is not tainted by practice and experience. This does not mean that practice and experience are [always] untainted.

9 [At the same time] "this untaintedness" is "not nonexistent. "10 Sōkei says,

"Just this untaintedness is that which the buddhas 44

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guard and desire. You are also like this. I am also like this. And all the patriarchs of India were also like this. " Thus, because [the buddhas as] "you" are "also like this,

" they are the buddhas, and because [the buddhas as] "I" are "also like this,

" they are the buddhas. In this untainted state that is truly beyond "I" and beyond "you,

" "real I, this concrete I,

"11 "that which the

buddhas guard and desire,

" is the dignified behavior of acting buddha. "Real

you, this concrete you,

" "that which the buddhas guard and desire, " is the

dignified behavior of acting buddha. Because he is "I also, "12 the master is

excellent. Because he is "you also, " the disciple is strong. The master's excellence and the disciple's strength are the "perfection in knowledge and action"13 of acting buddha. Remember,

"that which the buddhas guard and desire" is "mine also" and "yours also.

" Although the expression of the truth by the eternal buddha of Sōkei is beyond "I, " how could it not be about you? That which acting buddha "guards and desires, " and that which acting buddha

masters, is like this. Therefore we have seen that practice-and-experience is beyond [concepts] such as essence and form or substance and detail. Acting buddha's departing and arriving instantaneously cause buddha to act, at which time buddha is just causing action. Here there is "giving up the body for the Dharma,

" and there is giving up the Dharma for the body— "not begrudging

body and life,

"14 and solely begrudging body and life. It is not only that we give up "Dharma" for the Dharma; there is dignified behavior in which we give up Dharma for the sake of the mind. 15 We should not forget that giving up is unfathomable. We should not utilize consideration in the state of buddha to fathom or to suppose the great truth: consideration by buddha is [only] one corner; for example, like "opening flowers. "16 We should not utilize consideration by the mind to grope for or to analogize dignified behavior: consideration by the mind is [only] one face; for example, like "the world. "17

Consideration by a stalk of grass evidently is consideration by the mind of the Buddhist patriarchs. It is a fragment in which acting buddha has already recognized its own footprint. Even when we see to the end that consideration by the undivided mind already includes boundless buddha-consideration, if we aim to consider the demeanor and stillness, the movement and quietness, of acting buddha, they have features that are originally beyond consideration. Because they are action that is beyond consideration, they are indefinable, unusable, and unfathomable.

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[107] Now, in regard to the dignified behavior of acting buddha, there are individual researches. The dignified behavior that is "I also" and "you also,

" when it has "come like this"18 as buddha here and now and as the self here and now, is connected with the "ability" of an "I alone, " but at the same

time it is just the liberation that is "the state like that of buddhas in the ten directions,

"19 and it is never simply an identification. For this reason, an eternal buddha says,

"After grasping in physical experience matters in distant places, we come back to this concrete place and act. "20 When we are already

maintaining and relying upon the state like this, all dharmas, all bodies, all acts, and all buddhas are familiar and direct. These buddhas whose bodies practice the Dharma each solely have the state of restriction in direct experience. 21 Because they have restriction in direct experience, they solely have liberation in direct experience. Do not be disturbed that [when] the "clear, clear hundreds of things" are restricted by eyes, "not a single dharmais seen

and not a single object is seen. "22 At this dharma23 [reality] has "already arrived.

"24 At that dharma[reality] has "already arrived. " When we act, in

fetching and taking away and in leaving and entering through a common gate, because the "whole world has never been hidden, "25 the World-honored

One's secret talk,

26 secret experience, secret action, secret transmission, and so on are present.

If I leave through the gate, just grass. If I enter through the gate, just grass. For ten thousand miles, not an inch of grass!27 The word "enter"

And the word "leave"

Are useless at this place

And useless at that place.

28

The present grasping does not depend upon action, which is a letting go; rather, it is a dream, an illusion, a flower in space. Who can put this mistake in its place, as a dream, an illusion, a flower in space? A forward step is a mistake, a backward step is a mistake, one step is a mistake, and two steps are a mistake; therefore [action] is mistakes at every moment. Because "the separation is as great as that between heaven and earth, "29 "to

arrive at the truth is without difficulty. "30 We should utterly realize dignified 46

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behavior, and behavioral dignity, as "the body, in the great truth, being relaxed.

"31 Remember,

"when born into life we are born at one with the truth, "

and "when entering death we enter at one with the truth. " In the head-to-tail

rightness of that state, as a jewel turning or a pearl spinning, dignified behavior is manifest before us. That which imparts and possesses single fragments of the dignified behavior of buddha is the whole of the cosmos32 and the earth, and the whole of living-and-dying and going-and-coming. It is lands of dust33 and it is the Lotus Flower.

34 This land of dust and this Lotus Flower, each is one corner. In the thoughts of many students, it is supposed that "the whole cosmos" might mean this southern continent of Jambudvīpa, or that it might mean this unity of four continents.

35 Again, [some] appear simply to conceive

of the single nation of China or think of the single nation of Japan. [Some] appear to think that "the whole earth,

" also, means only a three-thousandgreat-thousandfold world. [Some] appear merely to imagine one province or one district. If you want to learn through experience the words "the whole earth and the whole cosmos,

" mull them over three times and five times. Do

not conclude that they are just discussing width. This attaining of truth is the state of transcending the buddhas and transcending the patriarchs which is "the extremely large equaling the small, and the extremely small equaling the large.

"36 That the large does not exist and the small does not exist seems doubtful, but it is the acting buddha of dignified behavior. 37 In both cases

expressed by the buddhas and the patriarchs, dignified behavior as the whole cosmos and dignified behavior as the whole earth, we should learn in practice, as "the whole world,

" the state of "never having been hidden.

" What "has

never been hidden" is not only "the whole world,

" [but also] that which perfectly hits the target of acting buddha: dignified behavior. [113] In expounding the Buddha's truth, [people usually say that] beings born from the womb and born from metamorphosis are the action of the Buddha's truth, but they never mention beings born from moisture and born from eggs. Still less have they ever realized, even in a dream, that even beyond this "birth from the womb, eggs, moisture, and metamorphosis" there is birth. How much less could they see, hear, or sense that beyond "birth from the womb, eggs, moisture, and metamorphosis" there is birth from the womb, eggs, moisture, and metamorphosis? In the present great truth of the buddhas and patriarchs, the fact that beyond "birth from the womb, eggs, 47

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moisture, and metamorphosis" there is birth from the womb, eggs, moisture, and metamorphosis, has been authentically transmitted in the state of "never having been hidden" and has been authentically transmitted in the state of immediacy. As what kind of group should we see those who will not hear, will not learn, will not recognize, and will not clarify this expression of the truth? We have heard already about the four kinds of birth. For death, how many kinds are there? Might there be, for the four kinds of birth, four kinds of death? Or might there be three kinds of death or two kinds of death? Again, might there be five deaths, six deaths, thousands of deaths, or myriad deaths? Even merely to doubt this principle is a kind of learning in practice. Let us consider for a while, among the miscellaneous beings [born from] these four kinds of birth, could there be any that have birth but no death? And are there any that receive a single-line transmission of only death, without receiving a single-line transmission of birth? We must unfailingly study in practice the existence or nonexistence of kinds which solely are born or which solely die. There are those who merely hear the phrase "non-birth"38 without clarifying it, seeming to set aside effort with body and mind. It is the utmost stupidity. They must be called a kind of animal that cannot arrive at even discussion of "devotional and Dharma [practice]" or of "instantaneous and gradual [realization].

" The reason is that even if they hear [the words] "being without birth,

" they need [to ask] "What is the intention of this expression of the truth?" They utterly fail to consider whether it might mean "buddha as being without,

" "the truth as being without,

" "the mind as being without,

"

or "cessation as being without,

" or whether it might mean "non-birth as being without,

" or whether it might mean "the world of Dharma as being without" or "the Dharma-nature as being without,

" or whether it might mean "death

as being without.

" This is because they are as idly absent-minded as water weeds. Remember, living-and-dying39 is the action of the Buddha's truth and living-and-dying is a tool in the Buddha's house. "In using it, we should use

it carefully. In clarifying it we are able to be clear. " Therefore buddhas are

"utterly clear" in this penetration and nonpenetration and are "utterly able" in this "careful use.

" If you are unclear in regard to this living-and-dying, who can say that you are yourself? Who can call you a character who has comprehended life and mastered death? You cannot hear that you are immersed in living-and-dying, you cannot know that you exist in living-and-dying, you 48

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cannot believe and accept that living-and-dying is living-and-dying, and you can neither be beyond understanding nor beyond knowing. Some express the notion that buddhas appear in the world only in the human state, never manifesting themselves in other directions or in other states. If it is as they say, must every place where buddhas are present be a human state? That is a human buddha's expression of the truth that "I alone am the Honored One. "40

There may also be god-buddhas, and there may be buddha-buddhas. Those who say that buddhas manifest themselves only in the human domain do not enter deep beyond the threshold of the Buddhist patriarchs. [117] An ancestral patriarch41 says,

"Śākyamuni Buddha, having received

the transmission of the right Dharma from Kāśyapa Buddha, went to Tuṣita Heaven to teach the gods of Tuṣita, and he is still there now. "

Truly we should remember, although at that time the Śākyamuni of the human world spread the teaching that was the manifestation of his extinction, 42 the Śākyamuni of the heavens above "is still there now, " teaching

the gods. Students should know that the existence of the speech, the action, and the preaching of the Śākyamuni of the human world, [though] of thousandfold changes and myriad transformations, are [only] one corner—in the human domain—of his radiance of brightness and his manifestation of good omens. We should not stupidly fail to recognize that the teaching of the Śākyamuni of the heavens above might also be of thousandfold kinds and myriad aspects. The fundamental point, which transcends "severance" of the great truth authentically transmitted from buddha to buddha, and which has gotten free of being "without beginning and without end, "43 has

been authentically transmitted only in Buddhism: it is a virtue that other sorts neither know nor hear. At places where acting buddha establishes the teaching there exist living beings beyond "the four kinds of birth, " and there

may exist places beyond "the heavens above,

" "the human domain,

" "the

world of Dharma,

" and the like. When you want to glimpse the dignified behavior of acting buddha, do not use eyes of the heavens above or the human world and do not employ the sentimental thinking of the heavens above or the human world. Do not aim to fathom [dignified behavior] by such means. Even [bodhisattvas in] the ten sacred and three clever stages neither know it nor clarify it: how much less could the calculating intellect of the human world and the heavens above reach it? As human consideration 49

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is short and small, so too is knowledge-based wisdom short and small. As a lifetime is short and pressed, so too is the intellect short and pressed—how could it fathom the dignified behavior of acting buddha? Thus, with regard to the lineage that simply takes the human world to be the Buddha-Dharma and [the lineage] that narrowly takes human methods to be the Buddha-Dharma, never permit that either the former or the latter are the Buddha's disciples. They are only ordinary beings as the results of karma. They have never experienced the hearing of Dharma through body-and-mind, and they have never possessed a body-and-mind that has practiced the truth. They do not live in conformity with Dharma. They do not die in conformity with Dharma. They do not see in conformity with Dharma. They do not hear in conformity with Dharma. They do not walk, stand, sit, and lie in conformity with Dharma. Groups like this have never experienced the moistening benefit of Dharma. The assertion that acting buddha is neither in love with "original enlightenment" nor in love with "initiated enlightenment, " and is beyond

"not having enlightenment" and beyond "having enlightenment, " describes

just this principle. Such [concepts] as "mindfulness" and "being without mindfulness,

"44 or "having enlightenment" and "being without enlightenment, "

or "initiated enlightenment" and "original enlightenment, " which are excitedly

considered by the common people of today, are solely the excited consideration of the common person; they are not what has been transmitted and received from buddha to buddha. The "mindfulness" of the common person and the mindfulness of the buddhas are far apart: never liken them. The common person's excited consideration of original enlightenment and the buddhas' real experience of original enlightenment are as far apart as heaven and earth: they are beyond comparison. Not even the vigorous consideration of [bodhisattvas in] the ten sacred and three clever stages can arrive at the buddhas' state of truth: how could the common people who vainly count grains of sand fathom it? Yet there are many who, while merely giving excited consideration to the essentialist and trivialist45 false views of common people and non-Buddhists, conceive [these views] to be the state of the buddhas. The buddhas have said,

"The roots of wrongdoing of these fellows are deep and heavy, "46

and "They are beings to be pitied.

" Their deep and heavy roots of wrongdoing

are limitless; at the same time, the deep and heavy burden is borne by "these fellows" themselves. For a while they should let go of this deep and heavy 50

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burden, and put on eyes and look! They may take hold [of their burden again] and restrict themselves with it, but that is not the beginning of anything. [122] The present unrestricted state of the dignified behavior of acting buddha is restricted by the state of buddha, in which state, because the vigorous path of "dragging through mud and staying in water"47 has been mastered, there is no restriction. In the heavens above, [the state of acting buddha] teaches gods; in the human world, it teaches human beings. It has the virtue of "flowers opening,

"48 and it has the virtue of "the occurrence of the world, "49

without any gap between them at all. For this reason, it is "far transcendent"50 over self and others and it has "independent excellence"51 in going and coming. Just here and now, it goes to Tuṣita Heaven. Just here and now, it comes from Tuṣita Heaven. Just here and now, it is just Tuṣita Heaven52 here and now. Just here and now, it goes to Peace and Happiness. 53 Just here and

now, it comes from Peace and Happiness. Just here and now, it is just Peace and Happiness here and now. Just here and now, it is far transcendent over Tuṣita. Just here and now, it is far transcendent over Peace and Happiness. Just here and now, it "smashes" Peace and Happiness and Tuṣita "into hundreds of bits and pieces. "54 Just here and now, it holds onto and lets go of

Peace and Happiness and Tuṣita. It swallows them whole in one gulp. Remember, "Peace and Happiness" and "Tuṣita" are akin to the Pure Land and to Paradise, in that each turns in the circuit of mundane existence. 55 When [Peace

and Happiness and Tuṣita] are action, the Pure Land and Paradise, similarly, are action. When [the former] are great realization, [the latter] similarly are great realization. When [the former] are great delusion, [the latter] similarly are great delusion. This state is, for the present, toes wiggling inside the sandals of acting buddha. Sometimes it is the sound of a fart and the whiff of a shit. Those who have nostrils are able to smell it. With organs of hearing, organs of body, and organs of action, they hear it. There are also times when it "gets my skin, flesh, bones, and marrow.

"56 Being attained through action,

it is never got from others. When the great truth of understanding life and mastering death has already been mastered openly, there is an old expression for it: [namely, that] great saints leave life-and-death at the mercy of the mind, leave life-and-death at the mercy of the body, leave life-and-death at the mercy of the truth, and leave life-and-death at the mercy of life-and-death. 57 Although

the revelation of this principle is beyond the past and present, the dignified 51

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behavior of acting buddha is instantaneously practiced to the full. 58 The truth

being a cycle, [the state of acting buddha can] momentarily intuit and affirm the import of life-and-death and body-and-mind. Practicing to the full and clarifying to the full are not enforced actions: they greatly resemble "a head being deluded and making out shadows,

" and they are totally akin to "the

turning of light and reflection.

"59 This brightness, which is brightness over

brightness, permeates the meridians of acting buddha, and is utterly entrusted to the "acting.

" [To research] this truth of moment-by-moment utter entrustment, we must research the mind. In the mountain-still state of such research, we discern and understand that ten thousand efforts60 are [each] the mind being evident, and the triple world is just that which is greatly removed from the mind. This discernment and understanding, while also of the myriad real dharmas, activate the homeland of the self. They make immediate and concrete the vigorous state of the human being in question. Then, in shaking the sieve two times and three times, grasping criteria within phrases and seeking expedients outside words, there is taking hold in excess of "taking hold" and there is letting go in excess of "letting go.

" Consideration therein is as follows:

What is life and what is death? What are body and mind? What are giving and taking away? What are leaving be and going against? Is [this consideration] a leaving and entering through a common gate without any meeting taking place? Is it a stone having been placed already, 61 in which state [even

if] the body is concealed the horns are showing through? Is it immense consideration followed by understanding? Is it maturation of thought followed by knowing? Is it the one bright pearl? Is it the whole treasury of the teachings? Is it a staff? Is it a face and eyes? Does it follow after thirty years? Is it ten thousand years in one moment of consciousness? Investigating in concrete detail, we should make investigation [itself] concrete and detailed. When investigation is done in concrete detail,

"a whole eye hears sounds,

" and "a

whole ear sees forms.

" Further, when "a śramaṇa's one eye"62 is open and clear,

"this state is not [only] the real dharmas before the eyes, " and "this

state is not [only] the facts before the eyes.

" There is a face of gentle countenance breaking [into a smile], and there is the winking of an eye: they are the fleetingness of the dignified behavior of acting buddha. [Acting buddha] is not "to be pulled by objects"; it is "to be beyond the pull of objects. " It

is beyond "being without birth and without becoming in [the process of] 52

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dependent origination.

" It is beyond "the original nature" and "the Dharmanature. " It is beyond "abiding in one's place in the Dharma. " It is beyond

the state of original existence.

" And it is not only the concrete affirmation of "reality as it is.

" It is nothing other than the acting buddha of dignified behavior.

63 This being so, the real state of "working for Dharma and working for the body" can be left at the mercy of the mind; and the dignified behavior that gets rid of "life" and gets rid of "death" is utterly entrusted, for the present, to buddha. Therefore we have the expressions "The myriad dharmas are only the mind" and "The triple world is only the mind. "64 When we

express the truth in a further ascendant state, there is an expression of the truth by "only the mind" [itself]: namely, "fences, walls, tiles, and pebbles.

"65

It is because [mind] is not "only the mind" that [fences, walls, tiles, and pebbles] are not fences, walls, tiles, and pebbles. Such are the truths of "entrustment to the mind and entrustment to the Dharma" and of "working for the Dharma and working for the body,

" which are the dignified behavior of acting buddha. It is beyond the orbit of "initiated enlightenment, " "original enlightenment,

" and so on; how much less could it be in the orbit of non-Buddhists, the two vehicles, and [bodhisattvas in] the three clever and ten sacred stages? This dignified behavior is simply the "not understanding" of every individual and is "not understanding" in every instance. 66 Even "the state of vigorous

activity"67 is also a situation as it is moment by moment. Is it "the single track of iron,

"68 or is it "two parts moving"?69 The single track of iron is beyond long and short, and the two parts moving are beyond self and others. When we realize the effort that is the energy of this [real state of] "making things progress and throwing ourselves into the moment, "70 then "dignity

covers the myriad dharmas,

" and "the eye is as high as the whole of civilization. " There is brightness that does not interfere with reining in and letting go:71 it is "the monks' hall, the Buddha hall, the kitchen, and the three gates. "72

There is brightness that is utterly beyond letting go and reining in: it is the monks' hall, the Buddha hall, the kitchen, and the three gates. Further, there are eyes that permeate the ten directions, and there are eyes that totally take in the earth; there is the moment before the mind and there is the moment after the mind. Because such brightness and virtue, in eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, and mind is burning, there are "the buddhas of the three times, " who

have maintained and relied upon the state of "being not known"; and there 53

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are "cats and white oxen,

" which have thrown themselves into the moment of "being known to exist.

"73 [When] this ring in the nose is present and this eye is present, the Dharma preaches acting buddha, and the Dharma sanctions acting buddha.

[131] Great Master Shinkaku of Seppōzan74 preaches to the assembly: "The buddhas of the three times are inside the flame of the fire, 75 turning the

great wheel of Dharma.

"

Great Master Shūitsu of Gensha-in Temple76 says: "The flame is preaching Dharma for the buddhas of the three times, and the buddhas of the three times are standing on the ground to listen. "

Zen Master Engo77 says:

[Seppō] deserves to be called the White Baron, 78

[But] also present is the Black Baroness. 79

Reciprocally they throw themselves into the moment: Gods appear and demons vanish. 80

Blazing flame covers the cosmos:81 Buddha preaches Dharma. The cosmos is in blazing flame: Dharma preaches Buddha. Ahead of the wind, nests of arrowroot and wisteria82 have been cut away.

With one word, Vimalakīrti83 has been tested and defeated. 84

The present "buddhas of the three times" means all the buddhas. Acting buddha is just "the buddhas of the three times"85 themselves. Among the buddhas of the ten directions, there is none who is not "of the three times. "

When the Buddha's truth preaches "the three times, " it preaches them wholly,

like this. Now, when we research acting buddha, it is just "the buddhas of the three times" themselves. Whether its "existence is known" or whether its "existence is not known,

"86 it is always acting buddha as "the buddhas of the three times.

" Even so, the three olden buddhas, 87 while expressing the truth

of "the buddhas of the three times"88 in like fashion, have the [individual] expressions described above. For instance, Seppō says, "The buddhas of the

three times are inside the flame, turning the great wheel of Dharma, " and we

should learn this truth. Every place of practicing truth89 in which the buddhas of the three times turn the wheel of Dharma might be "the inside of flame. "90

And every "inside of flame" might be a buddha's place of practicing truth. 54

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Teachers of sutras and teachers of commentaries cannot hear [this], and non-Buddhists and the two vehicles cannot know it. Remember, the flame of buddhas can never be the flame of other sorts. Indeed, we should reflect upon whether or not other sorts have flame at all. We should learn the teaching conventions [employed by] the buddhas of the three times while they are "inside flame.

" When they are located "inside flame, " are "flame" and "the

buddhas" cemented together? Are they drifting apart? Are object and subject oneness? Do object and subject exist? Are object and subject the same situation? Are object and subject equally far removed? "Turning the great wheel of Dharma" may include "turning the self and turning the moment. "91 It is

"making things progress and throwing oneself into the moment. "92 It may

include "turning the Dharma" and "the Dharma turning. "93 The "turning the

wheel of Dharma" that [Seppō] has already expressed—even if the whole earth is totally in flame—may include "turning the wheel of Dharma" which is "the wheel of fire,

"94 may include "turning the wheel of Dharma" which is "the buddhas,

" may include "turning the wheel of Dharma" which is "the wheel of Dharma,

" and may include "turning the wheel of Dharma" which is "the three times.

" In sum,

"flame" is the great place of practice in which "the buddhas turn the great wheel of Dharma. " To fathom this state by spatial

thinking, temporal thinking, human thinking, the thinking of the common and the sacred, and so on does not hit the target. Because [this state] is not fathomed by such thinking, it is just "the buddhas of the three times being inside flame and turning the great wheel of Dharma. " "The buddhas of the

three times" that [Seppō] has already expressed have gone beyond thinking. Because "the buddhas of the three times" are places of practice for "the turning of the Dharma wheel,

" "flame" exists. Because "flame" exists, "the

buddhas'" places of practice exist.

[135] Gensha says,

"The flame is preaching Dharma for the buddhas of the three times, and the buddhas of the three times are standing on the ground to listen to the Dharma.

" Hearing these words, [some might] say that Gensha's words are a fitter expression of the truth than Seppō's words; it is not necessarily so. Remember, the words of Seppō and the words of Gensha are separate: that is to say, Seppō is speaking of the concrete place where the buddhas of the three times are "turning the great wheel of Dharma, " and Gensha is

speaking of the buddhas of the three times "listening to the Dharma. " Whereas

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Seppō's words express the very "turning of the Dharma"95 itself, the existence at a concrete place of "turning of the Dharma" does not necessarily call into discussion "listening to the Dharma" or not "listening to the Dharma. " Thus,

we cannot hear [Seppō say] that in "turning of the Dharma" there must always be "listening to the Dharma.

" Further, there may be import in [Seppō] not

saying that the buddhas of the three times are preaching Dharma forthe flame, not saying that the buddhas of the three times are turning the great wheel of Dharma forthe buddhas of the three times, and not saying that the flame is turning the great wheel of Dharma forthe flame. 96 Is there any difference between saying "turning the Dharma wheel"97 and saying "turning the great wheel of Dharma"? "Turning the wheel of Dharma" is beyond "preaching Dharma.

" Must "preaching Dharma" necessarily be done for others?98 Thus, Seppō's words are not words that fail to express fully the words that he meant to express. We must learn in practice, and always in complete detail, Seppō's [words] "existing inside the flame, turning the great wheel of Dharma.

" Do not confuse them with Gensha's words. To penetrate Seppō's words is to dignify and to behave with the dignified behavior of buddha. "The flame's" accommodation of "the buddhas of the three times" is beyond only the permeation of one limitless Dharma world or two limitless Dharma worlds, and it is beyond only the penetration of one atom or two atoms. For a measure of "the turning of the great wheel of Dharma, " do not look to

measures of the large, small, wide, and narrow. "The turning of the great

wheel of Dharma" is not for self or for others, and is not for preaching or for listening. Gensha's expression is: "The flame is preaching Dharma for the buddhas of the three times, and the buddhas of the three times are standing on the ground to listen.

" This, although [it says that the flame] is "preaching Dharma for the buddhas of the three times,

" never says that [the flame] is

"turning the wheel of Dharma.

" Neither does it say that the buddhas of the

three times are "turning the wheel of Dharma.

" The buddhas of the three

times are standing on the ground to listen, but how could [Gensha's] flame turn the buddhas of the three times' "wheel of Dharma"?99 Does the flame that is "preaching Dharma for the buddhas of the three times" also "turn the great wheel of Dharma,

" or does it not? Gensha never says,

"Turning of the

wheel of Dharma is this moment!" Neither does he deny the exis tence of turning of the wheel of Dharma, but I wonder whether Gensha has stupidly 56

Chapter Twenty-three

understood "turning the wheel of Dharma" to mean preaching about the wheel of Dharma. If so, he is blind to Seppō's words. He has recognized that when the flame is "preaching Dharma" for the buddhas of the three times, "the buddhas of the three times" are standing on the ground and listen ing to the Dharma, but he does not know that where "the flame" is "turning the wheel of Dharma,

" there "the flame" is standing on the ground and listening to the Dharma. He fails to say that where "the flame" is turning the wheel of Dharma,

"the flame" simultaneously is turning the wheel of Dharma. The buddhas of the three times' "listening to the Dharma" is the Dharma-state of the buddhas: it is not influenced by others. Do not see "the flame" as "Dharma,

" do not see "the flame" as "Buddha,

" and do not see "the flame"

as "flame.

" Truly, we should not disregard the words of master or disciple. How could it be [sufficient] only "to have expressed that a red-beard is a foreigner"? It is also the fact that "a foreigner's beard is red. "100 Although Gensha's words are like this,

101 present in them is something which we should esteem as the power of learning in practice. That is to say, we should learn in practice the essence and forms that have been authentically transmitted by the buddhas and the patriarchs, and which are not connected with essence and forms in the limited Mahayana and Hinayana thinking of sutra teachers and commentary teachers. What [Gensha] describes is the buddhas of the three times' listening to the Dharma, which is beyond the essence and forms of Mahayana and Hinayana [Buddhists]. They know only that buddhas have— when it is accommodated by opportunities and circumstances— "the preaching

of Dharma"; they do not know that the buddhas are "listening to the Dharma. "

They do not assert that the buddhas are training, and they do not assert that the buddhas are realizing the state of Buddha. Now in Gensha's expression, he has already asserted that "the buddhas of the three times are standing on the ground and listening to the Dharma,

" and this contains the essence and

the form of the buddhas' "listening to the Dharma. " Do not see being able

to preach as necessarily superior, and do not say that "those who are able to listen to this Dharma"102 are inferior. If those who preach are venerable, those who listen also are venerable. Śākyamuni Buddha said: If they preach this sutra,

At once they will see me103

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[But] to preach it to [even] a single person: That indeed will be hard.

104

So to be able to preach the Dharma is to meet Śākyamuni Buddha—for the "me" who "at once they will meet" is Śākyamuni Buddha. He also said: After my extinction,

To listen to and to accept this sutra,

And to inquire into its meaning:

That indeed will be hard.

105

Remember,

"listening and acceptance" also, equally,

"are hard": there

is no superiority or inferiority. Even though [those who are] "standing on the ground to listen" are "the buddhas,

" the supremely venerable, they should

be "standing on the ground to listen to the Dharma. " [Those who are] "standing

on the ground to listen to the Dharma" are "the buddhas of the three times, "

and so those buddhas are in the realized state; we do not talk of listening to the Dharma as a causal process. They are already the buddhas of the three times, and so we should remember that the buddhas of the three times, standing on the ground to listen to the flame preach Dharma, are buddhas. [Although] we cannot trace the whole truth of the teaching and the conventions, when we endeavor to trace them, the state is "arrow tips having collided. "106 Flame

invariably preaches the Dharma for the buddhas of the three times and, in the state of red mind moment by moment, flowers bloom on iron trees and the world is fragrant. In brief, while flame remains standing on the ground to listen to the preaching of Dharma, ultimately what is realized? The answer may be wisdom surpassing the master or wisdom equaling the master. Further, by researching deep beyond the threshold of master and disciple, 107 [flame]108

becomes the buddhas of the three times.

[142] Engo says that [Seppō's] deserving to be called the White Baron does not prevent the Black Baroness from also [being present], and that their "reciprocal throwing themselves into the moment" is "gods appearing and demons vanishing.

" Now, although [Seppō can] manifest himself in the same situation as Gensha, there may be in Gensha a way in which he does not enter the same situation [as Seppō]. At the same time, is "flame" the buddhas? Are buddhas "flame"?109 The mind of reciprocation between black and white 58

Chapter Twenty-three

appears and vanishes in the gods and demons of Gensha, but the sounds and forms of Seppō never remain in the area of black and white. 110 And, while

this is so, we should recognize that in Gensha there is fitness of verbal expression and there is unfitness of verbal expression, whereas in Seppō there is taking up with verbal expression and there is leaving be with verbal expression. Now Engo, in addition, has an expression that is not the same as Gensha and not the same as Seppō: namely, that "blazing flame covering the cosmos" is Buddha preaching Dharma, and that "the cosmos in blazing flame" is Dharma preaching Buddha. This expression really is brightness to students of later ages. Even if we are blind to "blazing flame, " because we are covered by "the

cosmos,

" I have that condition and the other has this condition. Places covered by "the cosmos" are already "blazing flame. " What is the use of hating this

and relying on that?111 We should be glad that this skinbag—although its place of birth is "distantly removed from the sacred quarter" and the present in which it is living is "distantly removed from the sacred time"112 —has still

been able to hear the guiding teaching of "the cosmos. " That "Buddha preaches

Dharma" we had heard, but with regard to the fact that Dharma preaches Buddha, how deeply enmeshed were we in ignorance? In summary, the buddhas of the three times are preached in the three times by the Dharma, and the Dharma of the three times is preached in the three times by Buddha. There solely exists "the cosmos,

" which, ahead of the wind, cuts away nests of arrowroot and wisteria. A single word has conspicuously tested and defeated Vimalakīrti and others besides Vimalakīrti too. In sum, Dharma preaches Buddha, Dharma practices Buddha, and Dharma experiences Buddha; Buddha preaches Dharma, Buddha practices Buddha, and Buddha becomes Buddha. States like this are all the dignified behavior of acting buddha. Over the cosmos and over the earth, over the past and over the present, "those who have attained

it do not trivialize it, and those who have clarified it do not debase it. "

ShōbōgenzōGyōbutsu-yuigi

Written at Kannondōrikōshōhōrinji in the last ten days of the tenth lunar month in the second year of Ninji.

113

ŚramaṇaDōgen

59

106c

Notes

1 Butsuma, hōmameans idealists who are disturbed by the concept of "Buddha" and "Dharma.

"

2 Jutō-tōko,

of that which binds. "a tree falling and wisteria withering, " represents the natural falling away 3 Hōsshin,

"Dharma body,

" represents the Sanskrit dharmakāya. Hōjin, "reward body,

"

represents the Sanskrit saṃbhogakāya. Saṃbhoga,which means enjoyment or sensuality, suggests the physical aspect of the body. See Vol. I, Glossary of Sanskrit Terms. This sentence suggests that being bound by concepts hinders both spiritual fulfillment and physical well-being. 4 Quoted from the Makashikan,a text of the Tendai sect based on the lectures of Master Tendai Chigi.

5 The Buddha's words in Lotus Sutra, Nyorai-juryō("The Tathāgata's Lifetime"). See LS 3.18-20.

6 The Buddha's words are about life here and now. 7 Jū-ō,

"vertical or horizontal, " means free in all directions. 8 Master Daikan Enō asked Master Nangaku Ejō, "Do you rely on practice and experience or not?" Master Nangaku said, "It is not that there is no practice and experience, but the state can never be tainted. " Master Daikan Enō said, "Just this untaintedness is that which the buddhas guard and desire. You are also like this. I am also like this. And the ancestral masters of India were also like this. " The story is recorded in Shinjishōbōgenzō, pt. 2, no. 1, and also quoted in Chapter Seven (Vol. I), Senjō, and chapter Sixty-two (Vol. III), Hensan. 9 In other words, motivation in the state of acting buddha is always pure, but motivation in zazen and other Buddhist practices is not always pure. Zenna, "taintedness,

"

describes, for example, sitting in zazen with expectation of reward other than the experience of zazen itself. 10 Kono fu-zenna,

"this untaintedness, " and fu-mu,

"not nonexistent,

" both allude to the famous conversation between Master Daikan Enō and Master Nangaku Ejō about practice and experience. 11 Nyo-go-ze-go.In Master Daikan Enō's words go-yaku-nyoze, "I am also like this, "

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the compound nyozemeans "like this. " Here Master Dōgen separates the compound into the two adjectives nyo, "real,

" and ze,

"this, concrete.

"

12 Go-mata.In this usage, mata, self.

"also" or "again,

" is emphatic—the master is just him-13 Myōgōsoku,from the Sanskrit vidyā-caraṇa-sampanna,is one of the ten epithets of the Buddha. The expression praises the Buddha as not only perfect in knowledge but also perfect in conduct, and as not only perfect in conduct but also perfect in knowledge. 14 Fu-shaku-shinmyōalludes to the Lotus Sutra, Nyorai-juryō("The Tathāgata's Lifetime"). See LS 3.30. 15 Master Dōgen imagined a concrete situation in which, for example, a Buddhist monk breaks the precept of not eating after lunch in order to maintain a balanced and satisfied state of mind.

16 Kekaimeans the appearance of phenomena. 17 Sekairepresents concrete existence. The twenty-seventh patriarch, Master Prajñātara, said kekai-sekai-ki,

"flowers opening are the occurrence of the world"; in other words, phenomena and concrete existence are one. See Chapter Forty-three (Vol. III), Kūge. 18 Inmo-raialludes to the former of the two famous conversations between Master Daikan Enō and Master Nangaku Ejō. Master Daikan said to Master Nangaku, "What

is it that comes like this?" In this context, "it has come like this" means "it is actually present.

" See, for example, Chapter Twenty-nine, Inmo. 19 Nō,

"able,

" yui-ga,

"I alone,

" and juppō-butsu-nen,

"buddhas in the ten directions are like that,

" allude to the Buddha's words in the Lotus Sutra, Hōben ("Expedient Means") chapter. See LS 1.70, 1.74. 20 Nahen [no] ji,

"matters in distant places, " means matters that are thought about, abstract concerns. These words are quoted from the Wanshizenjigoroku (Broad Record of Master Wanshi Shōgaku), vol. 5. 21 Jōtō,literally,

"receiving a hit.

" Master Dōgen's independent work Gakudōyōjinshū explains the term as follows: "With this body-and-mind, we directly experience the state of buddha: this is to receive a hit. "

22 Mei-mei [taru] hyaku-sō-tō,or "clear, clear are the hundreds of weeds, " are traditional

words in Chinese Buddhism, attributed to the so-called Happy Buddha, Hōtei (see Chapter Twenty-two, Busshō). That they are restricted by eyes means that they are seen as they are. That no separate dharmaor object is seen means that the view is whole.

23 Shahō,

"this dharma,

" suggests the Dharma as a concrete fact here and now. Nahō, "that dharma,

" suggests the Dharma as theory. See also note 20. 62

Chapter Twenty-three

24 Nyaku-shi,literally,

"if it arrives.

" See Chapter Twenty-two, Busshō,paragraph 14. 25 Henkai-fusōzō.The words of Master Sekisō Keisho, quoted in Shinji-shōbōgenzō, pt. 1, no. 58.

26 Mitsugo.See Chapter Fifty-one (Vol. III), Mitsugo. 27 Banri-mu-sunsō,

"for ten thousand miles, not an inch of grass, " appears in the Shinjishōbōgenzō,pt. 1, no. 82. In general, grass (or weeds) symbolizes concrete objective things (see note 22). At the same time, as that which is attractive to oxen, grass sometimes symbolizes that which distracts Buddhist practitioners from practice. 28 Reality in the present is neither entered nor left. 29 Tenchi-kenkaku,from the third sentence of Master Kanchi Sōsan's verse Shinjinmei: "If there is a hundredth or thousandth of a gap, the separation is as great as that between heaven and earth.

" Master Dōgen quotes the same words in the Fukanzazengi to describe the gulf between intellectual thinking and action. See Vol. I, Appendix Two.

30 Shidō-munan,from the opening sentence of the Shinjinmei:"To arrive at the truth is without difficulty; just hate picking and choosing. "

31 Daidō-taikan,from a sentence in the middle of the Shinjinmei:"In the great truth the body is relaxed, and there is neither difficulty nor ease. "

32 "Cosmos" is kenkon.The four directions (north, south, east, and west) are represented by four of the twelve Chinese horary signs. The eight intermediate forty-five degree segments of the compass (north to northeast, northeast to east, etc.) are represented by the remaining twelve horary signs. Ken,or inu-i, "the dog and the boar" means

the direction between the dog's segment (west to northwest) and the boar's segment (northwest to north); that is, the northwest. Kon,or hitsuji-saru, "the sheep and the

monkey,

" means the southwest. Kenkon,

"northwest and southwest,

" represents all

points of the compass, that is, the universe or the cosmos. 33 Jinsetsusuggests the dry material world. 34 Renge,as in Myōhōrengekyō,the full title of the Lotus Sutra,suggests the world as an aesthetic whole. See Chapter Seventeen (Vol. I), Hokke-ten-hokke. 35 Shishū,

"four continents,

" from the Sanskrit catur-dvīpā, are Jambudvīpa (south), Pūrvavideha (east), Aparagodānīya (west), and Uttarakuru (north). See Vol. I, Glossary of Sanskrit Terms.

36 Gokudai-dō-shō or gokudai [wa] shō [ni] ona[jiku], and gokushō-dō-dai or gokushō [wa] dai[ni] ona[jiku] allude to two sentences at the end of the Shinjinmei:"The extremely large is the same as the small, and no outer surface is seen, " and "The

extremely small is the same as the large; boundaries are completely forgotten. "

37 Yuigi-gyōbutsumeans the state of acting buddha that is realized in dignified behavior. 63

Shōbōgenzō Volume II

38 Mushō,

nirvana.

"non-birth" or "being without birth, " is sometimes used as a synonym for 39 Shōjiis the title of Chapter Ninety-two (Vol. IV). Shōmeans both birth and life. 40 Yui-ga-doku-son.In the Long Āgama Sutra,the legendary Buddha says these words. Here the expression suggests human arrogance. 41 The quote is attributed to Master Tendō Nyojō, but the specific source has not been traced. Related preaching by Master Tendō appears at the end of Chapter Sixteen (Vol. I), Shisho.

42 Alludes to the teaching of the Lotus Sutra,Nyorai-juryō("The Tathāgata's Lifetime"). See LS 3.30: "In order to save living beings,/As an expedient method I manifest nirvana,/Yet really I have not passed away. . . . "

43 Danzetsu,

"severance,

" and mushi-mushū,

"without beginning, without end, " represent

two views of time: as separate moments of existence and as eternity. The truth of action transcends both views. 44 Unenmeans "mindfulness,

" or "having thought,

" or "having intention.

" Munenmeans

"being without mindfulness, " or "being without thought, " or "being without intention. "

The two concepts appear in Master Daikan Enō's poem quoted in Chapter Seventeen (Vol. I), Hokke-ten-hokke;and Chapter Twenty-one (Vol. I), Kankin. 45 Honmatsumeans beginning and end, substance and detail, origin and future, essence and trivialities, and therefore—in conclusion—idealism and materialism. In Chapter Eighty-seven (Vol. IV), Kuyō-shōbutsu,the viewpoint of idealism is represented as hongō-honkeor "the essentialist view of past kalpas, " as opposed to materialism represented by matsuko-makkenor "the trivialist view of future kalpas. "

46 Lotus Sutra, Hōben.See LS 1.86. 47 Dadei-taisui,symbolizing daily struggles. 48 Kekaimeans the appearance of phenomena. 49 Sekaikimeans the existence of facts. See notes 16 and 17. 50 Keidatsu.

51 Dokubatsuor "unique outstandingness. " Master Ungo Dōyō said,

"When a single

word is far transcendent, and unique and outstanding, then many words are not necessary. And many are not useful. " See also Chapter Nine (Vol. I), Keisei-sanshiki. 52 Tuṣita Heaven is the place where Bodhisattva Maitreya is practicing the truth. It is said to be the fourth of the six heavens in the world of desire, but here Master Dōgen describes it in the time and place of action. 53 Anrakurepresents the Sanskrit Sukhāvatī, which is the name of a heaven supposedly established by Amitābha Buddha. At the same time, Master Dōgen described zazen as anraku [no] hōmon,

"The Dharma gate of peace and happiness. "

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54 Hyaku-zassai.The words of Master Gensha Shibi (see Chapter Twenty [Vol. I], Kokyō). The real state of acting buddha shatters the idealism of Tuṣita Heaven and the realm of Peace and Happiness.

55 Rine represents the Sanskrit saṃsāra. See Vol. I, Glossary of Sanskrit Terms. 56 Toku-go-hi-niku-kotsu-zuialludes to the transmission between Master Bodhidharma and four disciples. See Chapter Forty-six (Vol. III), Kattō. 57 Great saints do not worry about life-and-death. 58 The philosophy of acting buddha is eternal, but its whole realization is just now. 59 Ekō-henshōdescribes the state in zazen: "clarification" means not intellectual recognition but illumination by the state of brightness in zazen. The words ekō-henshō originate in a verse by Master Sekitō Kisen recorded in the Sekitōsōan-no-uta (Songs from Sekitō'

s Thatched Hut). See also Vol. I, Appendix Two, Fukanzazengi. 60 Bankai,lit.,

"ten thousand circuits" or "ten thousand times, " may be interpreted as

ten thousand zazen sittings, or ten thousand efforts in zazen. 61 Ichijaku-rakuzai,lit.,

"one move lying in place,

" describes the placement of a stone

in a game of go, which is often used in the Shōbōgenzōas a symbol of a concrete action.

62 Shamon-isseki-gen,the words of Master Chōsha Keishin. See Chapter Sixty (Vol. III), Juppō.

63 Yuigi-gyōbutsu.See note 37.

64 Sangai-yuishinis the title of Chapter Forty-seven (Vol. III). 65 Shō-heki-ga-ryaku,an expression of the truth by Master Nan'yo Echū. See Chapter Forty-four (Vol. III), Kobusshin.

66 Fuemeans "not understanding" or "transcendence of [intellectual] understanding. "

Master Daikan Enō said,

"I do not understand the Buddha-Dharma.

" See Shinjishōbōgenzō, pt. 1, no. 59. See also Chapter Seventeen (Vol. I), Hokke-ten-hokke. 67 Katsu-hatsu-hatsu-chi.This expression appears in several chapters of the Shōbōgenzō. See, for example, the opening paragraph of Chapter Seventy-two (Vol. III), Zanmaiō-zanmai. 68 Ichi-jōtetsustands for banri-ichijō-tetsu, "a ten-thousand-mile iron track,

" a symbol

of unification. The expression appears earlier in this chapter, in paragraph 101, and, for example, in Chapter Twenty-nine, Inmo,paragraph 99. 69 Ryō-tō-dōalludes to the story quoted at the end of Chapter Twenty-two, Busshō. 70 Master Tōsan Shusho said: "In words there is no development of things,/In talk we do not throw ourselves into the moment./Those who listen to words miss out,/Those who stick in phrases get lost.

"

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71 Shūhōmeans reining in and letting go, or contracting and relaxing, or tightening and releasing.

"Reining in and letting go" suggests self-control, passive and active. 72 Master Unmon's words, quoted in Shinji-shōbōgenzō, pt. 1, no. 81. See also Chapter Thirty-six, Kōmyō,paragraph 134.

73 Master Nansen Fugan preached,

"As to the existence of the buddhas of the three times, I do not know their existence. As to cats and white oxen, I know they exist. "

See Hekiganroku,no. 61; Shōyōroku,no. 69. 74 Master Seppō Gison (822-907), successor of Master Tokusan Senkan. 75 Master Seppō was likely referring to a charcoal burner present at that time. 76 Master Gensha Shibi (835-907), successor of Master Seppō. 77 Master Engo Kokugon (1063-1135). Master Engo was in the lineage of Master Rinzai. He compiled the Hekiganroku(Blue Cliff Record), based on an earlier collection of poems and commentaries by Master Setchō Jūken. 78 Kōhaku, an excellent thief in Chinese legends. 79 Kōkoku, an even more accomplished thief in Chinese legends. The story goes that she stole the shirt off Kōhaku's back. Master Engo is praising both Master Seppō and Master Gensha.

80 Shinshutsu-kibotsu,

"gods appear, demons vanish,

" describes unexpectedness and

elusiveness. Kenkyusha

'

s New Japanese-English Dictionarygives the sample phrase shinshutsu-kibotsu no kaitō,

"a phantom thief who appears in an unexpected place at an unexpected moment and leaves no trace behind. "

81 Retsu-en goten.In the next line, Master Engo simply reverses the two compounds thus: goten retsu-en. Goten, or ten [o] wata[ru], in the former line means "to extend throughout the sky/heavens/cosmos,

" and in the latter line means "that which extends throughout the sky/heavens/cosmos,

" i.e., the cosmos itself.

82 Kattō,

"arrowroot and wisteria" or "the complicated, " is the title of Chapter Fortysix (Vol. III), Kattō. 83 Vimalakīrti was a layman of the Buddha's time who was very skilled in discussion of Buddhist philosophy.

84 Shinji-shōbōgenzō,pt. 3, no. 88.

85 Sanze-shobutsu. Sanze,the three times (past, present, and future), means eternity. Shoexpresses plurality, and so shobutsumeans buddhas as individuals at concrete times and places, as opposed to simply butsu, hotoke,which means Buddha as the state of wisdom, action, or truth.

86 Alludes to Master Nansen Fugan's words. See note 73. 87 Master Seppō, Master Gensha, and Master Engo. The rest of the present paragraph 66

Chapter Twenty-three

is a commentary on Master Seppō's words. The following two paragraphs are commentaries on the words of Master Gensha and Master Engo respectively. 88 Sanze-shobutsumay be seen as an expression of the truth in itself—as an expression of the oneness of concrete individual buddhas and inclusive eternity. 89 Dōjō,lit.,

"truth place" or "way place, " represents the Sanskrit bodhimaṇḍa,or "seat of bodhi.

" See Vol. I, Glossary of Sanskrit Terms. 90 Ka-en-ri. Ka-en,

crete place.

ity.

"flame,

" represents the vigorous state. Ri, "inside,

" describes a con-"The inside of flame" means a concrete place in the vivid state of real-91 Tenmeans to turn or to change. At the same time, it means to unroll a sutra and, by extension, to participate in the unfolding of the universe. See Chapter Seventeen (Vol. I), Hokke-ten-hokke.The phrase tenki, "changing of the moment, " appears in Vol. I,

Appendix Two, Fukanzazengi. 92 Alludes to the words of Master Tōsan Shusho. See note 70. 93 Tenbō, hoten alludes to the terms ten-hokke, "we turn the Flower of Dharma, " and

hokke-ten,

"the Flower of Dharma turns, " in Master Daikan Enō's famous verse. See Chapter Seventeen (Vol. I), Hokke-ten-hokke;Chapter Twenty-one (Vol. I), Kankin. 94 Karin,

"wheel of fire,

" in ancient Indian cosmology, is one of the five wheels or rings (in Sanskrit panca-maṇḍalaka) of earth, water, fire, wind, and space that make up the material world. The four parts of this sentence follow four phases: the wheel of fire is material, the buddhas are Buddhist, the wheel of Dharma is real, and the three times are existence-time itself. 95 Tenbō,

"turning the Dharma,

" suggests ten-hokke,

"turning the Flower of Dharma" and tenbōrin,

"turning the wheel of Dharma. " These terms mean, respectively, to read the Lotus Sutraand to preach Buddhist preaching; at the same time both terms represent the action of the universe itself. See Chapter Seventeen (Vol. I), Hokke-tenhokke;Chapter Seventy-four (Vol. IV), Tenbōrin. 96 Master Gensha's expression includes the word i, [no] tame [ni], which means "for" or "for the sake of.

" Master Seppō's expression is more direct, without recognition of a purpose.

97 Tenbōrin,

"turning the Dharma wheel, " is the conventional term. See Chapter Seventy-four (Vol. IV), Tenbōrin. 98 For example, preaching Dharma is sometimes done for fame and gain. 99 Master Gensha said that the flame was preaching Dharma, i.e., representing reality. Master Dōgen's objection is that to turn the wheel of Dharma is to realize reality itself. 100 In the story of Master Hyakujō and the wild fox (see Chapter Seventy-six [Vol. IV], Dai-shugyō;Chapter Eighty-nine [Vol. IV], Shinjin-inga;and Shinji-shōbōgenzō, pt. 2, no. 2), Ōbaku steps up and gives Master Hyakujō a slap. The master laughs and 67