Good afternoon, everyone. As I said this morning, during this Genzoe, we are going to study Dogen Zenji's Shobo Genzo Gyoubutsu Igi. As an introduction, I'd like to talk about this title first. Before that, this is my translation of Gyo-Butsuigi. Last year, I had Genzo-e at Austin, Texas, and we studied Shobo Genzo-inmo. And after that, I started to work on Gyoubu Tsuiki, so I didn't have much time. So this translation is still in the stage of working draft.

[01:03]

And I made the first, very first draft translation, and Mori volunteered to make some editing. to make a correction of grammatical mistakes or punctuation or those things. So this is not yet a complete translation. So if we have some suggestion about this translation to make it better English. You are welcome. Of course, during the class, if we start to talk about translation, then we cannot finish this, so your comments are welcome, but please give me, not during the class, but privately. This first scroll of Shobo Genzo is entitled Gyou Butsu Igi.

[02:17]

Gyo is to do or to go or to move and to, in this case, to practice. So this Gyo is movement or action. And Buddha is, of course, Buddha. And Buddha means awakening or awakened one. And E, as I said this morning, E is dignity. Other possible translation is my ignorance. as a noun, dignity, or majesty, or as an adjective, dignified, or awesome, or sovereign.

[04:06]

And Ji, this part of this Chinese character means human or human beings. And this part means light or meaning. So This gi means something good or something meaningful within or among human activities. And a possible translation of this gi is like the quorum. some activity or actions in accordance with some rules or courtesy or manner.

[05:16]

So possible translation is dekolam or denina or manner or conduct. One of the translations used by Kazutanahashi and Taigen, Taneito in the Presence. They translate Igi as an awesome presence. And Mien, M-I-E-N, or pattern or a model. So this is some actions or way of doing things that can be a model of something.

[06:18]

And as I said this morning, this phrase is usually read as a practice or practicing Buddha's dignified conduct. But Dogen Renji clearly, obviously read this as one word and as another word. and he made this Gyōbuta as the name of a Buddha. So this is not someone practicing Buddha's dignified conduct, but this is Gyōbuta's conduct. That means I practice something that belongs to Buddha. But there's no such I. Only this practice.

[07:27]

So, Jyo and Buddha is one thing. And the person who practice this practice, in this case, you know, shohaku, practice something. This shohaku and this practice and this something are one thing. That is what means. Maybe I said before, this is the same idea as Dogen Zenji wrote in In the very beginning of Dogen Zenji quotes the very first sentence of the Heart Sutra. The sentence is, knows Avalokiteshvara, Fenn, deeply practicing Prajnaparamita, clearly see the five skandhas are empty.

[08:28]

you know this is very clear sentence there's someone whose name was avarokiteshvara is there and this person is practicing this practice named a profound or deep prajnaparamita and at that time with the help or aid of this wisdom called prajnaparamita the person, this person, Avalokiteshvara sees, there are nothing other than five scandals. Everything being there is five scandals. And not only that, but those five scandals are empty. That is what this sentence means. It's very clear. But if we understand this first sentence of the Platinum Paramita Sutra in that way, we completely miss the point of the person or people who made the Heart Sutra.

[09:39]

but as a sentence it clearly says so nothing other than you know this interpretation but if we read this and understand in that way we miss the point that means uh you know if we think there is a person whose name is avalokiteshvara beside five scandals and that person is an observer and the five scandals are there as an object of observation. And here is some kind of an aid or help or device to see the truth of this object named wisdom or prajnaparamita. with this help of this device, this person could see these five scandals are empty. If we think we understand this sentence in that way, you know, this is completely against the idea of emptiness, because there's no such person beside five scandals.

[10:48]

And so the Avalokiteshvara is five skandhas. So five skandhas is seeing the emptiness of five skandhas. And if the five skandhas are empty, we don't need to say five skandhas are empty. It's already empty. So, and that this prajna or wisdom is also the wisdom which sees the emptiness. So this prajna or wisdom is also empty. So only thing there is five skandhas. That is empty. And there's no such subject-object relationship. That is fact that people, person or people who made the Heart Sutra want to show us. So there is only five scandals. So when we think, you know, there are five scandals as outside of ourselves, and we can see the true reality of five scandals, if we get this, you know, device named polygenic parameter, then we can get that thing, that truth, then we miss that reality of emptiness.

[12:11]

So as the Heart Sutra says, this prajna is something we need to practice. And this practice is, in our case, zazen, sitting. The version of the Heart Sutra we usually chant is called the shorter version. And within the shorter version it's not clear, but there is another little bit longer version of the Heart Sutra. Within that longer version, there's some explanation before this Avalokiteshvara. That is, Shakyamuni, you know, within the version we chant, Shakyamuni Buddha doesn't appear. This is a conversation between Avalokiteshvara and Shaliputra.

[13:14]

But in the longer version of the Heart Sutra it said, Buddha expounds certain Dharma discourse. And after he finished talking, he shut his mouth and sit in the Zen, was Samadhi. And so this conversation between Avalokiteshvara and Shariputra is happening within Buddha's zazen, Buddha's samadhi. And the Sutra, the longer version of the Heart Sutra says, Shariputra asked the question, how we, what people who aspire to study Buddha Dharma can practice with the might of the Buddha. This means this conversation is really conversation happening within Buddha's Zazen.

[14:21]

And this is about Zazen practice. So there's no such separation between object and subject. So actually, Avalokiteshvara and Shariputra are same person, or both are within Buddha's zazen. So in our zazen, we do nothing but sitting. So there's no object. But in our zazen, what we do we do really nothing. That means we are just five skandhas. And this sitting, simply sitting, is itself a prajnaparamita. And we are just five skandhas. And these five skandhas are empty. That's all. So there's no such person who see the five skandhas as an observer.

[15:25]

And there's no such things called five skandhas as an object of observation. And there's no such things called emptiness as reality or special truth beside five skandhas. That is In Shōbō Genzō Makahani Haramitsu, Dōgen Zenji made a comment on this sentence. He said, the five aggregates are forms. Forms, sensations, perceptions, predilections or formations, and consciousness. This is the fivefold prajna. Those five skandhas are fivefold prajna. And clear seeing is itself prajna.

[16:28]

This seeing is also prajna. And to unfold and manifest this essential truth, The Heart Sutra states that form is emptiness and emptiness is form, this very famous expression in Mahayana Buddhism. Form is emptiness, and emptiness is form. Shiki soku zei ku, and ku soku zei shiki. But Dogen Zenji said, for Dogen Zenji, this is not complete, perfect expression. So he said, he says, form is nothing but form. That is shiki zei shiki. And emptiness is nothing but emptiness.

[17:29]

This means if we say or form is emptiness, there are two things, form and emptiness. by putting this word is, we try to put these two things into one, to connect these two things, and we try to say these two are one and the same thing. When we say in that way, there are two things, still two things, one reality separated into two and it cannot recover oneness. That means when we are saying form is emptiness, emptiness is form, we are still thinking, and thinking about two concepts, about form and emptiness, and try to make these two into one. that is happening in our mind.

[18:32]

But when we let go of our thought, only five skandhas is there. And those five skandhas themselves are completely emptiness. And these are prajnaparamita. And this is avalokiteshvara. So there's no statement is possible, only this one reality. That is what Dogen Zenji wants to show us. And finally he said, foam is nothing but foam, emptiness is nothing but emptiness. One hundred braids of grass, ten thousand things, so not only our five skandhas, but all each and everything in this world is the same. So those each and every things are themselves emptiness and also prajna.

[19:41]

I think this is important when we try to understand what Dogen is saying in Gyobutsugi as practice and Buddha and the person who practiced. is one thing. There's no such separation. That means our practice is Buddha, but we are not Buddha. If we think we are Buddha, we miss it. This is what Dogen then said in... I'm sorry, I'm breaking. In Jiju-Yuzanmai, part of Vendôa, Dogen Zenji called his practice of Zen as Jijuyuzanmai. And he said, when one displays the Buddha mudra throughout body and mind, this entire universe becomes enlightenment.

[20:53]

So the important point is we need to display Buddha mudra within or throughout this body and mind. Buddha mudra means, you know mudra? In our Dazen we make this mudra. This is called mudra. But mudra also means a stamp or a seal. And stamp or seal is the same as a signature in American culture. That means if we find this seal or stamp, then we see this painting or calligraphy is done by certain person. So when we find Buddha mudra, this belongs to Buddha. not belongs to Shohaku. So when we display Buddha mudra with our body and mind, this body and mind, these five skandhas, are not Shohaku's personal possession, but this practice belongs to Buddha.

[22:12]

So shōhaku is not a subject of this practice anymore. You know, shōhaku is still here, not described as shōhaku actually, but this practice is Buddha's practice. That is the idea of gyo-butsu. Gyo, or practice, is Buddha. This is my understanding of . And this ,, or chapter of ,, as it is said in the last page, is written 1241. As you know, Dogen Zenji was born in the year 1200.

[23:25]

So when he wrote, he was 41 years old. If you are familiar with Dogen Zenji's biography, he became a Buddhist monk when he was 13 years old. And after 13, every 10 years, he had a big change. When he was 23, he went to China. And when he was 33 years old, he founded his own monastery in Kyoto named Koshouji. And he, we don't know exactly why, what was the reason, but he left this monastery Koshoji in the year of 43, 1243.

[24:29]

And next big change happened in 1253, he died. So this writing, Gyōbutsui, was written in 1241, two years before he moved Koshoji, from Koshoji to Eiheiji. And it said this work is written in the middle of the tenth month, middle of the tenth month. This has, I think, something to do with the koan story he quotes in this chapter about, you know, Seppo's sayings about all Buddhas in the three times expounding the dharma in the fire.

[25:40]

this uh separate thing uh was given on the occasion of you know in the beginning of the winter uh they in the monks hall they put up uh what they call fireplace or furnace or like in japanese we call it a hibachi that is uh usually uh a square box with ash, and we put charcoal to heat the monk's hole. That is on the first day of 10th month. So when he wrote this writing, middle of this month, so last, how can I say, it's not so distant from they start to make a fire.

[26:54]

So it has something to do with what he's discussing. And also another interesting thing with this date or this time is Shôbôgenzo Busshô or Buddha Nature was written around the same time. In the chapter of Busshô or Buddha Nature, it said Buddha Nature was written in the 14th day of 10th month of this year, 1241. In this chapter, it said only in the middle of, and 14th is almost the middle of the month. In the lunar calendar, every month, 15th day is a full moon day. Anyway, so, shobo genzo busho, or Buddha nature, and this gyobutsuigi,

[27:59]

was written, were written around the same time. I think this is important point. So we need to read Bussho and Gyōbuti-gi together. That means in the Shōbōgenzo Bussho, Tōgenzen discussed, of course, about what is Buddha nature. And this Gyōbuti-gi is is in a sense how Buddha-nature practice, how Buddha-nature works, functions in our daily lives. As you probably know, in the very beginning of Shôbôgenzô Bushô or Buddha-nature, Dôgenzenji quotes a very important statement from the Parinibbana Sutra, Mahayana Parinibbana Sutra, that is, All living beings, without exception, have Buddha nature.

[29:09]

In Chinese, it is . Issa is all, shijo all. Shijo is living beings. And shitsu is all of them, without exception. And u is have. And busho is Buddha nature. So all living beings, This is adverb, without exception, have Buddha nature. This is very clear statement.

[30:13]

But Dogen Zenji read this short statement in completely different way. He read this as all living beings, and he read this shitsugu as one word, as a noun. And this u also means to be. So he don't leave this as shitsu-u. That means entire being is Buddha nature. All living beings and entire being is Buddha nature. So it's not a matter of we have Buddha nature as some kind of a position. But we are Buddha nature. All beings are Buddha nature. These all beings are Buddha nature and this gyobutsu is the same idea. All beings are working, moving because it's impermanent. It's changing.

[31:16]

The way all beings are moving and changing, getting together and separate, this is how Buddha nature is working. And that is the 意義 of 行仏. So 仏 is moving. Buddha is a practice. Without this moving, there's nothing. I think that is basic kind of insight of Dogen Zenji as a reality of our life. We are part of that universal movement. We are getting together as five skandhas and practice and live for a while, for 50, 60, 70, 80, at most 100 years, and disperse.

[32:19]

This is just a very tiny part of this universal movement of all living beings and entire beings. And the way things moving is to the nature. And the way things moving, this movement is practice. Jobutsu is practice, or practice of practice Buddha. So there's no such thing called shohaku or any human beings who want to practice. Actually, it's there. I always have desire to do something in order to get something. That is how this person is. And that is not Buddha. That is my personal desire to make this person better. to where I want to see the truth.

[33:25]

I want to become enlightened. This I, I, I is somehow happening in my mind. But this I is a kind of fiction. Things actually there is just movement of five skandhas getting together and separating. It's like a bubble. Bubble is one of the analogies very often used to explain the reality of emptiness. Bubble is a condition of air packed in the water. Somehow air is packed in the water. and stay for a while in the water, and then the bubble goes up to the surface, it disappears.

[34:27]

So there's no such fixed entity called a bubble. It's a movement or a relation between air and water. There's no such fixed independent entity beside air and water called bubble. And, you know, so Bamuru is a name of a condition or a movement or happening only for a short time. And clouds are the same thing. In the case of clouds, clouds is water floating in the air. So the relationship is opposite, but only the relationship between air and water, nothing else. So there's no such thing called cloud. Of course, you know, this shohaku is much more complicated than, you know, the bubble or a cloud, but basically the same thing.

[35:42]

The connection or gathering of all different things and exists for a while as a shohaku, as these five skandhas. And yet there's no such things called shohaku. It's just a relationship or connection or a collection of all different elements, not only material but also mental. Whatever we think, I think, is thought in using Japanese or English. mainly basically Japanese. But this Japanese language is not my invention, my creation, but I learned Japanese language because I was born in Japan. So this language, which is used to think, to create, produce shohaku thought,

[36:49]

is a gift from the society or culture which has been created by millions of people living in those islands named Japan. So nothing is Shōhaku's original. And now I am talking about Dogen Zenji's writings, but whatever I am talking, is something I studied in the past from my teacher, or from some text, or some sutras, or from my experience. But there's nothing personal. So there's no such things called shohaku. And yet, from another side, this is shohaku. So I need to take care of these five skandhas as a shohaku. I made a choice to be a Buddhist priest in the lineage of Dogen Zenji.

[37:58]

I tried to be a good priest. I don't like the word priest, but good practitioner. So I tried to do my best, and I studied and I practiced. So from that side, you know, I have a making choice and live as a shohaku and take care of these five skandhas as a shohaku and try to make effort to be a good practitioner and try to share the Dharma or teachings with other people because that is my function or job or responsibility as a priest. So there are two sides. From one side, there's no such thing called shohaku.

[39:00]

But from another side, this is nothing other than shohaku. This is my life. These two sides are really important to understand what Dogen is discussing about jyobutsu and its practice. Well, I think That's enough about as an introduction of my understanding of this meaning of this title, Gyoubutsu Iigi. But there's one more thing that might be helpful to understand the impact of Dogen's Hap Dogen's saying in this writing at that time of his life in Japanese Buddhist community that is the idea of so-called final age, age of final Dharma, or Mapo.

[40:11]

This is one of the ways to see the history in Buddhism. In Buddhism, it's kind of opposite of the way we think about history. We modern people think things are getting better, improving or progress improving. So we are in the best time of the history. But in Buddhism, there's the opposite way of viewing the history. That is, the time of Buddha was the best time. Since then, the age is getting worse. And it is said, after Buddha's death, for 500 or 1,000 years, people, there's Buddhist teaching, and people practice study and practice the teaching, and people attain so-called enlightenment.

[41:36]

But second 500 or 1000, the first age period was called Shobo. Shobo means true dharma, the age of true dharma. first period and second period was called zoho zo means uh forms forms English translation is, that is, does someone know the translation of Zōho? It's something like a semblance, semblance dharma. That means people, Buddha's teaching is still there, and people practice, but no one attains enlightenment.

[42:42]

So it's getting worse. And the third period was called Mapo. Sorry. Mapo means final. And it said it lasts 10,000 years. In this period, only Buddha's teaching remains. No one practices and no one attains enlightenment. This is one of the ideas, Buddhist view, the history. And it seems this system of three periods was created in China, not in India. This is a book by Jeanne Nathier, titled Once Upon a Future Time, Extinction of Dharma.

[44:02]

She studied the source of this idea, the idea that age is getting worse existed in India. But this system of three ages was established in China around the 5th century. And that is around the same time, you know, Bodhidharma came to China. Anyway, in Japan, Japanese people thought the age of final Dharma started the year 1052. So Dogen Zenji was born in 1200, so around 150 years before Dogen was born. This means people thought there's no meaning to practice because it doesn't work.

[45:05]

no matter how much we practice, we cannot attain enlightenment. The world, the age was so degenerated. That is a very basic idea of almost all Japanese Buddhists. That was the reason Pure Land Buddhism became popular. QRM teaching was that our practice using our personal effort, personal power, our own power doesn't work because we are living in a very degenerate world. The only hope we can have is to have faith in the vow of Amitabha Buddha.

[46:06]

In Pure Land Buddhism it is said, before Amitabha Buddha became Buddha, of course he was Bodhisattva, and he took 48 vows. And one of his 48 vows is, when I became Buddha, when I attained Buddhahood, I created the Buddha land named Gokuraku, or Pure Land. allow everyone who has faith in my vow reborn in my Pure Land. That was this Bodhisattva's vow. And according to the sutra, this Bodhisattva completed Bodhisattva practice and became Amitabha Buddha.

[47:18]

That means his vows have already completed. That means if we have a faith in Amitabha Buddha's vow and take refuge in Amitabha Buddha, we can be born in his pure land. We cannot hope to practice and attain enlightenment in this degenerate world. But if we have a faith in Amitabha, then we can be born in the Pure Land, and there we can practice. That is a very basic teaching of the Pure Land Buddhism. So in Japanese Pure Land Buddhism, any practice is not appreciated for any practice using our personal or individual effort, but only the faith in Amitabha is important.

[48:31]

And even the faith is a gift from Amitabha. That is called other power Buddhism, and they Pure Land Buddhists think Zen is a self-power practice and it doesn't work in this final, the age of final Dharma. And so many people became Pure Land Buddhists. And not only Pure Land Buddhism but also, you know, there's another Buddhist leader at the time whose name was Nichiren. His teaching is also based on the same idea. We are in the age of final Dharma, so our practice doesn't work. But Dogen Zenji was kind of an exception. In Vendôa, Dogen Zenji made 18 questions, and he gave answer to those questions.

[49:56]

And question 15 is about this idea of a final age, final dharma. The question is, even in this corrupt, declining age of the world, is it possible to attain enlightenment through this practice? Through this practice means through this zazen practice. So this must be a very common question. from many numbers of Buddhist community in Japan at Dogen Zenji's time. Then Dogen Zenji's reply is as follows. In the teaching schools, they focus on various classification systems.

[51:05]

Yet in the true teaching of Mahayana, there is no distinction of true semblance and the final Dharma. So according to Dogen, those distinctions of three ages are not actually true teachings of Mahayana. And it is said that all who practice will attain the way. All who practice will attain the way. So Togen Zenji rejects this idea of the age of final Dharma. His idea is whether we practice or not. if we practice, because practice is itself enlightenment. If we practice, enlightenment is there. That is the very basic teaching of Dogen Zenji.

[52:16]

That means, you know, the idea is uh idea of the second age is there are buddha's teaching it remains and people who there are people who practice uh buddha's teaching and yet no one at any enlightenment but fat dog and wanted to say is practice itself is enlightenment there's no separation between cause and result. In our common idea, practice is cause and enlightenment is result. So we practice in order to attain enlightenment. But Dogen Zenji negated this separation between cause and result. And he said, if practice is there, enlightenment is there.

[53:18]

Practice and enlightenment are one. Means, you know, these two, these practice and enlightenment is not two separate things. But when we practice, enlightenment is there. And that is this idea of gyo-butsu, practice is Buddha. practice enlightenment and Buddha are really one thing. So if we practice displaying Buddha's mudra, that means not for this person's sake. In Dogen Zenji's expression, practice for the sake of practice. We practice for the sake of practice. We practice dharma for the sake of dharma. not for the sake of this person, then that is, how can I say, manifestation of koan, or genjo koan.

[54:30]

And the koan is this universal truth or reality. And that universal reality is Buddha. So within our practice, Buddha is there. That is a basic message of Dogen Zenji to the people at the time, to the people in the Japanese society at the time of Dogen. If we practice, enlightenment is there. I think so for the people, for the Buddhist who lived in the 13th century, the time of Dogen, what he's saying is a very strong message, I think, or a surprising message.

[55:45]

you know, those idea of three times and we are living in the worst age and there's no hope to attain enlightenment or Buddhahood. But he said, if we practice, enlightenment is there and Buddha is there. That is basic message of Dogen Zenji in this writing of Gyōbutsu Iiji. OK, I think that's enough as an introduction, so I start to read the text. It's 4 o'clock. I try to make this translation as literal as possible, even though it doesn't make sense as English. because any English word to me is just an equivalent of what I understand in Japanese.

[56:55]

So I try to explain my understanding of each sentence or each word. And if you think there's a better English expression, please let me know. Let me read the first paragraph. All Buddhas, without exception, free practice dignified conduct. This practice is practice Buddha. Practice Buddha is neither a reward body Buddha nor a transformation body Buddha. Neither a self-nature body Buddha nor an other nature body Buddha. This Buddha is neither gradual awakening nor original awakening.

[58:03]

Neither by nature awakening nor no awakening. These Buddhas cannot stand shoulder to shoulder with practice Buddha. we should know that all Buddhas of the Buddha Way do not wait for awakening. Only practiced Buddha alone can completely penetrate the practiced activities within the way of going beyond Buddha. The self-nature body, Buddha, and so forth, cannot see this even within a dream. So here he talks about this Buddha named Gyobutsu. I think you are familiar with the expression of three kayas, or three bodies of Buddha.

[59:24]

First is Hoshin, or Dharmakaya. Second is Hojin, or Sambhogakaya. And the third is . You know, we chant . This idea of three bodies of Buddha or three kayas was developed in the history of Buddhism in India.

[60:30]

When Shakyamuni died, you know, for Buddha's disciples, it's a great loss, of course. Shakyamuni was very special existence or person or being. They couldn't select second Buddha. Buddha was only one. No one could take the position of the Buddha. So Buddha was only one. That means when Shakyamuni died, the Buddhists lost one of the three treasures. Buddha was gone. So only Buddha's teaching and Sangha remains. And yet for them Buddha is really a special being.

[61:37]

So they tried to find what was Buddha. And they found the thing that made this person Shakyamuni as Buddha is Dharma. So this O Keshin or Nirmanakaya means Shakyamuni, the person who was born in India about 2,500 years ago, the Buddha in the history. But then, because of impermanence, Buddha passed away. Buddha was gone. And so they started to think Buddha as a dharma. Dharma, what Buddha taught, first they thought, what Buddha taught, Buddha's teaching, is Buddha.

[62:38]

And then gradually they started to think not that teachings, but the truth about to which Buddha awakened to and teach about that reality, that truth, is Dharma, capital D Dharma. And that is actually Buddha. So there are first, you know, these two, nirvanakaya and dharmakaya was the concept of nirvanakaya and dharmakaya was created. So this is Buddha as a human being who was born in certain place at certain time of the history and died at certain time and at certain place. But this Dharmakaya has no body.

[63:42]

Dharma itself, the way things are, is Buddha. So there's no beginning and no end. That is the idea of Dharmakaya. And the idea or concept of Hojin or Sambhogakaya was established or created in the Mahayana Buddhism, especially in the Yogacara school. Yogacara, the main teachers or masters of Yogacara school is Vasubandhu and Asanga. those people created this idea of ho-jin or sambhogakaya. That means, sambhogakaya means a reward body. Reward body Buddha.

[64:46]

Reward means as a reward of the past practice. As a result of long practice, long period of practice, this person attained Buddhahood and became a Buddha. And those Buddhas are such as Amitabha Buddha, as I said before, as a Buddha in the Pure Land Buddhism, and Medicine Master Buddha, or Yakushi Nyorai, or there are many other Buddhas. In Mahayana Buddhism, they created many Buddhas. They thought, this is not only world. There are numerous worlds in this Dharma cosmos. And in each world, there are each Buddha.

[65:48]

And those Buddha were called Sambhogakaya. So Dogen Zenji is talking about this kind of Buddha, Buddhas, he said. And so each Buddha is created based on the image of Shakyamuni Buddha. Anyway. But what Dogen Reiji wants to say is the essence of these, any Buddha, any kind of Buddha, is practice. He said, all Buddhas, without exception, free practice, dignified conduct. This practice is practice Buddha. So what he is saying here is there is another kind of Buddha named with the name of Gyobutsu, practice Buddha.

[67:00]

Basically, what he is trying to say is or offer is practice Kaya. Instead of Dharma Kaya or Sambhogakaya or Nirmanakaya, practice Kaya. Practice is the body of Buddha. And what he is saying is that there are such Buddha names, practice Buddha, besides those three or there are many more categorizations. But the essence of Buddha is practice. That is Dogen Zenji want to say. So he doesn't negate these dharmakaya or sambhogakaya or nirmanakaya. But all Buddhas, the essence of all Buddhas is practice. So all Buddhas are practice Buddha.

[68:02]

All Buddha means including dharmakaya, sambhogakaya or nirmanakaya, The essence of all these Buddhas, the thing, the element or thing that makes all these Buddhas as into Buddha is practice. That is Bogen Zenji want to say. Practice is actual thing. Excuse me. he said, practice Buddha is neither a reward-body Buddha, reward-body Buddha is Sambhogakaya, nor a transformation-body Buddha. Transformation Buddha is Keshini, Kebutsu. That is Nirmanakaya Buddha. And neither a self-nature-body Buddha,

[69:07]

Noah and other nature-body Buddha. This self-nature-body and other nature-body, there are two interpretations. One is within Sambhogakaya, there are two kinds. One is self-nature or jisho-sin, otherwise tasho-sin. And jisho-sin and tasho-sin refer to Ji is self. Ta is other. And 受 is to receive, and 受 is to use, to receive and use.

[70:14]

And 自受心 means as a result or reward of his past practice, long time of practice, he received and used the Dharma joy. He enjoyed the Dharma. So this idea came from Shakyamuni Buddha's Zazen after he attained so-called Buddhahood or enlightened awakening, before he started to teach. He enjoyed the liberation or dharma joy by himself without sharing with others. That is the original idea of ji-ju-yu-shin. Buddha received and used this dharma joy for himself.

[71:17]

And the next one, ha-ju-yu-shin, means the French Shakyamuni Buddha made his mind to teach others. He stood up from the seat under the Bodhi tree and went to the deer park and started to teach. His activity of teaching is to share the dharma joy with other people. So Jijuyoshi is Buddha sitting for himself, by himself, and enjoy the dharma, and receive and enjoy the dharma joy. And then Buddha started to teach and share the Dharma with other beings. That is called tajuyo-shin. So the tajuyo-shin or self-natured body Buddha and other natured body Buddha are part of this sambhogakaya.

[72:23]

Another interpretation is jisho-shin, self-nature body Buddha is dharmakaya. And tasho-shin is nirmanakaya. There are many theories about Buddha's body, Buddha's kayas, so there are many different interpretations possible. Commonly, because the word Buddha came from a body that is awakening, the essence of Buddha or the thing that makes Shakyamuni as Buddha is awakening. So that is what he is saying next. This Buddha means practice Buddha. is neither gradual awakening nor original awakening.

[73:27]

This gradual awakening and original awakening is terms used in the Daizyō Kishinron. Daizyō Kishinron in English. awakening the Mahayana face or something like that. It said this original awakening means that where things are itself is original awakening. And we are part of that original awakening. But because of our delusion, we don't see the awakening. So we have to practice and study. Then we gradually reduce the delusions. And finally, this gradual awakening and original awakening become one.

[74:30]

That is the time we attain Buddhahood. That is the idea of the teaching of Tathagatagarbha, our Buddha nature. Even though we have Buddha nature, our Buddha nature was hidden within delusion. So first we have to find this Buddha nature. and take out the delusion that is like dust or dirt, and we need to polish the Buddha nature, then Buddha nature become like a diamond. That is one theory within Mahayana Buddhism. But here Dogen then said, this practice Buddha, or gyobutsu, is neither gradual awakening nor original awakening. Neither by nature awakening. By nature awakening means the reality itself is awakening.

[75:33]

Or no awakening. You know, this is no awakening. No awakening is, in a sense, highest awakening. There's nothing but awakening, so there's no awakening. If there's something which is not awakening, then there is awakening. But when everything is awakening, then there's no awakening. That is how this word mu is used in Chinese. As Dogen often used, U and Mu are... U and Mu.

[76:38]

U is being, and Mu is non-being, no existence. And especially in Shogogenzou Bushishou, he used the expression of woo Buddha nature and moo Buddha nature. When he discussed about dog's Buddha nature, Joshua said, when Joshua was asked, does a dog have Buddha nature, Joshua said, moo. And next time he said to the same question, he said, Wu, Mu and Wu. And usually Mu and Wu is translated as have or not, or not have. But Dogen Zenji, because he said, because in the very beginning of Shobogenzobusho, he said all beings and entire beings are Buddha nature.

[77:45]

Having or not having doesn't make sense. So his interpretation of this koan of dog's Buddha nature is really different from common understanding. Because have or not have doesn't make sense. So Dogen Renji interprets this two different, two opposite answers by Joshu as showing two sides of Buddha nature. One side is woo Buddha nature. Another side is Mu Buddha nature. So both Wu and Mu, being and non-being, are Buddha nature. Or we can say form and emptiness. Both are two sides of reality. And Wu Buddha nature shows the form, points that form. And Mu Buddha nature points the emptiness. So it has nothing to do with have or not have.

[78:50]

So when we read Dogen, we must be really careful. Anyway, so this mukaku doesn't mean lack of awakening, but mukaku, ukaku and mukaku, these two awakenings, mukaku and mukaku, and mukaku is In a sense, I don't like this kind of comparison. But mukaku is higher than ukaku. It's like when we learn something, for example, how to drive a car. First we have to study how the car is manufactured and how it works. And we have to learn traffic rules, and we memorize and try to understand. But when we become really used to driving, we don't think about how the car works, or which part works in this way or that way, or we don't even think about the traffic rules.

[80:10]

Still, we can drive in a safe way. So first we have to study, and we need to understand. But next we need to forget the understanding. That is another expression Dogen Zenji uses, understanding and no understanding, or not understanding, or e and fue. So, commonly, if we are not understanding, it's lack of understanding. But when Dogen Zenji used this word, who we are not understanding, this is after we completely understand this, we forget it and just do it. Just when we're just driving a car, we don't think about how car works, or we don't think about the traffic rules, but somehow we just drive, and that is the best condition of driving a car.

[81:24]

So, not only Dogen Zenji, but in Zen writings, the usage of this negative expression needs to be some attention, what this means. Sometimes Togen Benji used negative expression as usual, as commonly used as negative thing. But more often, when he used this kind of negative expression, this is not higher, but this is, how can I say, completion. Complete understanding is no understanding. Complete awakening is no awakening. That is the point. So here Dogen is saying, this practice of Buddha, we should know that all Buddhas of the Buddha way do not wait for awakening.

[82:43]

That means Buddha and awakening are one thing, and practice and awakening is one thing. So there's no awakening. Only Buddha's practice, only Buddha, only practice, only awakening. So there's nothing else. That is the way especially Dogen Zenji used this negative expression. Before that he said, these Buddhas cannot stand shoulder to shoulder with practiced Buddha. This means these Buddhas, this is not a comparison, but this means all these Buddhas are including the practiced Buddha. So there's no shoulder to shoulder,

[83:46]

nothing to compare, nothing outside of practice Buddha. All Buddhas are practice Buddha. So here we need to change our understanding. In our common sense, practice is a method or means to attain enlightenment or to become Buddha. But here, Dogen Benji is saying, practice and awakening and Buddha is one and the same thing. So without practice, there's no Buddha. Even in Shakyamuni Buddha's life, when he attained Buddhahood, he didn't stop practice. He continued practice until his death. Well, it's already 4.30. So practice is itself Buddha.

[84:55]

And next sentence, only practice Buddha alone can completely penetrate the practice activities. within the way of going beyond Buddha. This expression, going beyond Buddha, is one of the very important expressions in Dogen's writings. Going beyond Buddha is butsu-ko-jo, Buddha, ko is toward. Toward. Joe is upward. So Buddhahood is not the final goal.

[85:58]

Buddha never stopped practice, but always going beyond. Buddha is always going beyond. That is the meaning of this expression, butsu kojo, going beyond Buddha. And this is an expression, I'm not sure he was the first person or not, but this is an important expression by Tozan, the founder of Chinese Soto school, the matter of going beyond Buddha. That means in Buddha's practice, there's no goal. We are always going beyond, going beyond, going beyond. We cannot stay one place. That is also a very important part of bodhisattva practice, practice or nirvana of no-abiding.

[87:07]

No-abiding or mujusho. Muju, no-abiding. is a name of nirvana in the case of bodhisattva practice. Bodhisattva does not stay in samsara because of wisdom, and yet bodhisattva doesn't stay in nirvana because of compassion. So bodhisattvas are always coming and going between samsara and nirvana. That is no abiding means. That means at the same time, Bodhisattva is both samsara and nirvana, same as other life. At the same time, we are right within samsara, and that is nothing other than nirvana.

[88:17]

We cannot find nirvana beside where we are. So we are right now, right here, but this right now, right here, can be at the same time samsara and also nirvana. So the self-nature body Buddha and so forth cannot see this even within a dream. So he said, this practice Buddha, or gyobutsu, is actual Buddha. That means the essence of all Buddhas is practice. I think it's time to stop talking. Any question? No question.

[89:32]

Please. The difference between pure mindfulness and zenfulness? The difference between zen and pure? Well, that's a very good question and a very difficult question. What is the difference? Pure land Buddhists negate the validity of self-power practice and only thing they value is faith in Amitabha to the other power, Amitabha's power.

[90:40]

That is how they, Pure Land Buddhists, make distinction between Zen and Pure Land. But when we study Dogen Zenji's teachings, there's no such distinction. So I'm not sure what is really the difference between Pure Land and Zen. I think basically they are both Buddhism, Buddha's teachings. But the approach is different. Pardon? other power or power of Amitabha. Amitabha is the name of Buddha. Please. You spoke of the idea of Mappo in Goethe's time. Pardon me? Mappo. Mappo? What is its use today in modern Japan?

[91:51]

Is it a very important concept? Among Pure Land Buddhists, yes. Pure Land teaching is only valid teaching in this age of final dharma. But for Dogen Renji's student, as he said, through the teaching of Mahayana. It's a kind of a skillful means. So it wouldn't be something you would hear taught? Could you say it again? Would it be something you would hear taught and remembered today? I don't...

[92:51]

think many Sotozen please discuss about the idea of Mapo. But in Pure Land, they do. Okay, please. We're talking about the first line of the hearts of... I couldn't understand the word that you were using. And then I also was wondering if you would go over what the five... The five skandhas or aggregates. Skandha is a Sanskrit word for aggregate. Go-un or go-um. And what are those five aggregates? You can find in the Heart Sutra, eye, ear, nose, tongue, body and mind. Form or rupa or material, and sensation, perception, sensation, perception, formation and consciousness.

[94:09]

I've got five scandals. Please. You made a distinction between self-nature and other natures and the connection to joy, enjoying the Dharma before teaching, enjoying the Dharma in teaching to others. The joy in the tens of kyokun, the joyful mind, is that in any way connected? Yeah, the word is ho etsu. I think the word Dogen Zenji uses in Tendo Kyokuin is ki, kishin. The word is different, but same idea. The delight in Dharma, or joy, ho ki zen etsu, ho ki is delight of Dharma, and joy of Zen, or Zazen, same idea. Okay? Please.

[95:11]

What do you know about how this radical idea of the practice of Buddha was received? It was a radical idea at the time of Dhamma. How was it received by his contemporaries? We don't know because, you know, he wrote and maybe give some explanation to his Sangha members, and yet his monastery was still very small, and there's no record remained about how people, you know, accepted or rejected or criticized But while Dogen Benji was alive, he was not so popular. His sangha was quite small. So not many people really didn't understand what he wrote.

[96:19]

Didn't somebody burn down Koshoji? Pardon? Didn't somebody burn Koshoji? Yeah, it said so. But not because they didn't like Fat Dogen Bot. They had some different motivation, I think. Okay? Okay, thank you very much.

[96:46]

@Transcribed_UNK
@Text_v005
@Score_90.51