Good morning, everyone. This morning, I'd like to start paragraph 23. From this paragraph, Dogen discusses about mind in realization, turning dharma flower. Let me read the first paragraph, paragraph 23. Mind in realization turns the Dharma flower, means that the mind turns the Dharma flower. That is, when the power of the Dharma flowers turning us, is fully penetrated. Please make a change here.

[01:07]

Here it is said, the flower in turn manifests the energy of suchness that turns itself. Please change this part as follows. The Dharma flower, this Dharma flower is in the bracket. The Dharma flower, Kama, in turn manifests the energy of suchness that enables us to turn the Dharma flower. OK, shall I write down? Yes. The braket, the dharma, flower, braket, kama, in turn, kama, manifests

[02:51]

energy of suchness that enables us to turn bracket Dharma flower, period. These Dharma flowers are in bracket. In term means in different direction. When our mind is in delusion, dharma flower turns us, or we are turned by the dharma flower.

[03:58]

But in other opposite direction, this manifest is genjo. So this dharma flower manifests, this energy of suchness is nyo ze riki. Riki is energy or power or strength. This is one of the ten suchness. So the Dharma flower in turn, Genjo or manifest this Nyoze Riki or energy of suchness. And that energy enables us to turn the Dharma flower. The problem is there is no subject and object, so we have to guess fat is a subject and fat turns fish, fat turns fat.

[05:08]

I continue. This manifestation is an instance of turning the Dharma flower. Although the Dharma flower's previous turning of please change things to us. Not Dharma flower turning of things, but turning of us. Us, U.S., U.S. Although Dharma flower's previous turning of us has not yet ceased, Even now, this movement naturally causes us to turn the Dharma flower. Although the donkey matter has not yet come to an end, the horse matter is surely arriving.

[06:27]

Thoroughly depending on the causes and conditions of the single great matter, the Buddha has appeared here. The bodhisattvas of the thousand worlds that spring out of the earth have long been great venerable sages of the Dharma flower, and so they spring out of the earth being turned by themselves, and they spring out of the earth being turned by others. We should turn, we should turn not only the Dharma flower of spring out of the earth, we should also turn the Dharma flower of spring out of empty space. And not only out of the earth or out of space, with the Buddha's insight, we should know, we should know as well that bodhisattvas spring out of the Dharma flower itself.

[07:42]

I don't think I understand what he's saying here. So what I'm talking is a kind of a guess. So don't believe what I'm saying. You need to study by yourself and try to understand what this means. And so what I'm talking now is a kind of offering as a kind of reference for your own study. And I'm still struggling. how to combine what is said in Genjo Koan and this expression, when mind is in delusion, we are turned by the Dharma flower, and when mind is realization, we turn the Dharma flower. It seems or sounds opposite.

[08:48]

So what I have been doing is how can we combine these two seemingly opposite expressions into one. That is what I talked about yesterday. In Genjoko and Dogenzensei, delusion and realization, or mayoi and satori, are within the relation between self and myriad dharmas. When we try to convey ourselves toward myriad dharmas and try to carry out practice enlightenment, or shisho, Dogenreji said, this is delusion, or mayoi.

[09:56]

And when myriad things come to the self, and enable the self to carry out practice, shusho, is satori, or realization, or enlightenment. And I said, shinmei, in this fascicle, is when we work with this attitude to convey ourselves towards the myriad of things, including Buddha's teachings. and try to understand and try to practice and also not only practice and study for ourselves, but we try to express or explain or offer when we need to. When we do work with Dharma, in this attitude, we are still in

[11:08]

mind in delusion. And when we work with that attitude, we are turned, being turned by Dharma flower. That is what I want to say, if it's possible to say so. That means when we want to actively doing things, When we study and practice with this attitude, our mind is in delusion. And in such a situation or condition, we are turned by the Dharma flower. And when Miriya Darumas comes, so the subject of this activity is not this person, Shohaku, but Miriya Darumas allows me to practice, to carry out practice realization, then that is

[12:19]

when mind is in realization. And in that situation or condition often we study or practice with this attitude. That is when we turn, turning the Dharma flower. This is the fact I try to say and I'm not sure if this is possible to interpret this way or not. I have no, how can I say, evidence from other people. This is fact my trying. There are not so many commentaries on this fascicle of Shobo Genzo, because it's not included in the 75 or 12 fascicle version of Shobo Genzo.

[13:27]

There are a few by Menzan and Tenkei in Edo period, and also a commentary or a teisho by Kishizawa Ian Roshi, is available. So I read all of them, but none of them discuss about this connection or relation between these two. So I have to think by myself if it's possible to interpret this way. When we are active, we are in delusion. So we are turned by the Dharma flowers. But when we open our hand and let go of our active, how can I say, how can I say, to practice in this way, then we are, our mind is in delusion.

[14:32]

So in this case, this delusion is not necessarily a negative thing, but our attitude toward the Dharma. That is how can we combine these two. And another thing we need to combine is this and this is not two different things. mind in delusion and mind in realization are not two different things. They are two sides of one activity. Yes. That is what I try to, how can I say, this is how I want to interpret Tenhokke and Genjoko together. And that is what I'm trying now. If you agree with this, I really appreciate it.

[15:39]

Please. So is this Jodo's description of how things are? Or is there a practice instruction for us? I think description of our practice, both sides. We carry ourselves toward a myriad of things, including Buddha's teaching. In this case, the teaching in the Lotus Sutra and also Dogen's writing. Now I'm taking myself toward those texts and try to figure out, this is really delusion. according to this definition. So my work is a very delusive activity. But when the text starts to speak to you, would that be... Yeah, that is my expectation.

[16:42]

When I reach toward the text, maybe the text gives me something back. or the text illuminates me. So this side is both kind of turning this way and turning that way. This is complete turning. So this is one side of our practice, and that is another side of our practice. That is what I'd like to say. But I'm not sure it is successful or not. Please. I'm not sure. What do you think?

[17:44]

Yeah, when we are, how can I say, unless we search the Dharma and try to find it out and study and understand and accept it and try to practice it, you know, what Dogen is saying doesn't make any, how can I say, have any meaning. for the people who have no interest at all. And yet, from the viewpoint of Dharma, even those people are, I think, live with this attitude without Dharma. to kind of a self-centered way and do things actively.

[18:54]

But still, such an attitude to live is included in Dogen's teaching, I think. So I'm not sure. That is why I hesitate to say yes or no. If we say yes, that may cause a problem. If we say no, that may cause another problem. Please. My gut wants me to say this. When my practice allows me to get out of the way so that myriad things can allow me to realize, they realize me. this energy of suchness that was talked about earlier, seems to evoke in me a skillful, appropriate response. Myriad things are not just the dharma, but the sufferings of the world.

[20:01]

And that appropriate response that comes out of this is not under my control. I'm not trying to control that. Which means, in every present moment, if I am practicing presence to a myriad of things, how I behave in speech and action is a skillful, appropriate response, which then is a return to this first circle. It will be in terms of delusion. So it's a great encouragement. to maintain practice wherever I am, to be fully present wherever I am. It's not just for the temple. So that's how I am excited by this. Is that a fair way of looking at this? I think so. I think so.

[21:04]

So what I'm saying is these are not two separate examples, but this circle should be one. Yes. Please. But I think that is Dogen's way to express You know, worldly dharma and beyond worldly dharma are one and working together. It's not simply one, but these are working together. And working this way and that way. That is what this turning means. Turn this way and turn that way. And they function as one. And that is, I think, the meaning of Dogen's expression, zenki, means total function.

[22:11]

It's not simply I carry myself toward all beings, or millions of things come toward me, but this happening at the same time, both us working at the same time. You know, that is what Dogen meant when he said, Daruma flower turns the Daruma flower. It's not a matter of I turn the Daruma flower or Daruma flower turns I. But finally, at the end of this first school, Dogen said, finally, Daruma flower turns Daruma flower. That is how, so far, for now, I understand how to combine Dogen's teaching in Genjo-Koan and Hokete-Hokke together. So because these descriptions of illusion and realization are written as separate descriptions, it makes them seem very separate.

[23:16]

Yeah, not two separate things. And these are not two separate things. And something that we have to go this side and escape from that side. This one side is negative, and another side is positive. And we have to make choice. That is not the case of Dogen's teaching. Like this? That sounds OK. Well, that is what I'm, please. It makes me think of a Nietzschean book. So I'm saying about Gendron Cohen, what is greatly hidden is greatly apparent. And then he said, what is greatly apparent is greatly hidden.

[24:23]

So it seems it's a transitive verb. But when you say it one way, it has one feeling. When you say it the other way, it has a different feeling. And in the process of study and practice, sometimes we put emphasis on one side or another side. And that is OK. But when we see our process of study and practice, and also our life, when we see this as one Buddha vehicle, I think both are there, and they are working together. Well, that is what I'm trying to say. And I'm not sure if this is successful or not. But anyway, let me start to read what Logan has to say.

[25:25]

Mind in realization turns the dharma flower. This is if we learn the expression. Means that mind turns the dharma flower. This is a kind of repetition. But this repetition is a matter of, how can I say, language. That means, in this bracket, it said, mind in realization, tongue, dharma flower. Dogen took this from Huinan's text. So this is Chinese. So he quotes the Chinese sentence and translates it into Japanese. So when we read in English translation, this is simply a repetition. Dogen sometimes do like this. For example, in Shobogen or Bussho, he said, when he discussed about Joshu's Mu or Buddha nature, he said, dog is a dog.

[26:43]

And one translation, I will take out this sentence because it doesn't make sense. But what he said is this first dog is a Chinese expression, kusu or kushin. And that is not familiar. word for Japanese. So he kind of show to Japanese readers this kusu or kushi in Chinese means inu or dog in Japanese. And he did the same thing about the monkey. I forget in which fascicle, but sometimes, so we need to understand he's working on two different languages. So sometimes, or often, he used Chinese expression without translation. That makes his writing very difficult for even first Japanese. But sometimes he's very kind.

[27:48]

He said, dog is a dog. So that is happening in this first sentence. So that is when the power of the Dharma flowers turning us. So previous section he discussed about when our mind is delusion then we are turned by the Dharma, I mean Dharma flowers. But he said when this power, this movement of turning is penetrated This penetrated is translation of gujin. This expression, gujin, appeared in the Lotus Sutra. It says, yuibutsu, yobutsu, naino gujin shoho jisso, that is, only Buddha, together with Buddha,

[28:59]

can fathom or penetrate through reality of all beings. So here, what Dogen is saying, when we penetrate this to this expression, that means when we really understand this expression, means Dharma flower turns us. We are turned by Dharma flower. When we really deeply understand this expression, we see that in turn, the Dharma flower manifest the power or energy of suchness, that is one of the ten suchness, that allow us, allow ourselves turn the Dharma flower. So, when we are, our mind is deluded, we are turned by Dharma flower.

[30:04]

But when we thoroughly, deeply see this movement, we find that we can turn the Dharma flower. Please. The consequence of fear, is that our thoughts, or is it our action, or imagery, or imagination? So, when we turn, what happens? Well, I think it includes everything happening between this person and the media dharmas, including thinking, or making evaluation or judgment, or actually doing something toward that thing. So it includes everything, I think. So the movement of turning the Dharma flower turns ourselves.

[31:14]

When we deeply, clearly understand this movement, we see that this same Dharma flower allows us to manifest this energy, this power, to turn the Dharma flower. So this and this are actually the same movement or same power of Dharma flower. This manifestation of this energy of suchness is uninstance of turning the Dharma flower. I'm not sure if this uninstance in the bracket is necessary or not. Maybe not. This manifestation is turning the Dharma flower. I think it's enough. Then, although the Dharma flower's previous turning, so that means when we are turned by the Dharma flower,

[32:23]

turning of us, has not yet ceased. So this is not yet ceased, but this has appeared. That means this and this are at the same time. And this expression, and Dogen used this expression, donkey matter and horse matter. This is a well-known expression in Zen literature. This came from the conversation between a monk and a Zen master whose name was Reiun Shigon. Reiun Shigon is famous for his experience of awakening. When he was walking in the mountains, and take a break, sit down, and that was in the spring, and he saw the cherry, peach blossoms in the village.

[33:36]

At the moment he saw the peach blossom, he had awakening. That is the story. And Dogen Zenji introduced this story, one of the examples of non-sentient beings expanding Dharma. in Keisei Sanshoku, or The Sound of Valley Stream and Colors of Mountain. When someone asked this person, Reiwan Shigon, what is the essential meaning of Buddhadharma? This the master said, before donkey has left, horse arrived. Donkey and horse are basically the same thing. But usually, we think horse is better than donkey.

[34:39]

Horse can run faster than donkey. So from human evaluation, horse is more valuable than donkey. The same thing, basically. So before the donkey leave, horse has arrived. That means donkey and horse are together, or even the same thing. And donkey and horse means our karmic consciousness. And horse could mean our Buddha nature. And these are the same thing. Before karmic consciousness leaves, Buddha nature arrives. That means this person's mind, five skandhas, have some karmic tendency.

[35:45]

And it's very difficult to be free from. But somehow I want to change. In order to change I think I have to take this out. Then buddha nature can come. But this saying and also Dogen says in general is, you know, this donkey and horse or karmic consciousness and buddha nature are one thing. But there must be some transformation. That transformation, I think, is, you know, five skandhas, or upadana five skandhas, to simply five skandhas. Upadana means clinging. When we cling, not we, but when five skandhas cling to themselves, five skandhas cling to five skandhas, then five skandhas are Mara, as Buddha said.

[36:54]

But when we are free from this Upadana, then simply five skandhas are five skandhas, without clinging or grasping. Then, as it is said in the Heart Sutra, this is when we see the emptiness of five skandhas. Then we are released from the suffering. About this point, Shakyamuni's teaching and the teaching in the Heart Sutra has no contradiction. So this transformation from donkey to horse is whether we, you know, this clinging to five skandas is released. And the five skandas simply being five skandas.

[37:58]

So there is a transformation, but the five skandas are exactly the same five skandas. Nothing is added, or nothing is taken out. Five scandals is transformed and changed how to function, how to work. That's all. That is, in my understanding, that is for this expression, before donkey has left, horse arrived. but between donkey and horse there's a transformation. Yeah. In generalistic expression, that is opening the hand of thought. Thought came from our karmic consciousness. When we open it, karmic consciousness is still functioning, as I said about Zazen.

[39:03]

but we don't take action based on those thought from karmic consciousness. This is how we are released from clinging to our own five skandhas. And next sentence. Thoroughly depending on the causes and conditions of a single great matter, the Buddha has appeared here. When this transformation happens, Buddha appears here. This Buddha appearing here is an expression from the Lotus Sutra, Buddha appear in this world in order to open and display this Buddha darshan and enable living beings to realize and enter this Buddha darshan. And here, I think, here Dogen is saying, this transformation is

[40:07]

happening, that means donkey and horse are both there, Buddha appeared right there. That is how Buddha appeared to allow living beings, that means me, to realize and enter the Buddha's direction, or Buddha's insight. So the bodhisattvas of the thousand worlds that spring out of the earth have long been great benevolent sages of the Dharma flower. This refers to the numberless bodhisattvas springing out from the ground, from the earth. And here Dogen said those bodhisattvas are not other people.

[41:12]

But this is something happening within our practice. Those things are coming up from the earth. In Uchiyama Roshi's expression, our life force came from much deeper than our thinking. That's come up. are released from this clinging to our own five skandhas, then our life, a deeper life force. And this life force is not simply personal. It's this life force working within this five skandhas as individual being. But this life force and life force of which animate all human beings, and also animate the trees, and grasses, and birds, everything.

[42:19]

So this is the same life force which allows all beings to be, not only living beings, but even insentient beings. According to Gemmell, that is a life force. And this five skandhas is one particular way of appearing or appearance or manifestation of this universal life force as this particular person, in my case, Shohaku. So my thinking and my view or my opinion is my own. But the life force which allowed me to think and view things in that way came from much deeper and broader life force. We should see that kind of a structure of our life.

[43:22]

We don't need to negate or kill our personal thinking. But we need to understand this personal way of thinking or opinion or even self-centered idea is formed by this universal life force. So we should see, what we need to see is this structure. And when we sit in the Zen, we let go of this personal part, personal view. That is when this life force, much broader than this personal view, appears or manifests itself through this person. I think that is the fact, you know, this, you know, means. In Dogen's, in Genjo Koan, familiar Daru must come to the earth and allow this person to carry out practice enlightenment or practice realization.

[44:32]

But still, you know, we have to use our personal energy We cannot kill five skandas. And to keep five skandas as one unit, we need me, or something called I. But this I is not real existence. It's a kind of a concept to keep identity of these five skandas. And then this energy which keep identity of five skandas function in a kind of a negative way, we call it a delusion or egocentricity or ego. But when it works in harmony with this broader and deeper life, this function as a part of life. How can we use our personal karmic way of doing things

[45:39]

within the context of deeper and larger life, including all beings, I think is bodhisattva practice. So that is what this bodhisattva's spring out from the earth means. So they are very old, I mean ancient. That is what he said. The Bodhisattvas of the thousand worlds that spring out of the earth have long been great, venerable sages. That is our life force of the Dharma flower. And so they spring out of the earth, being turned by themselves. So it's always working. Life is always working. It never stays in one place.

[46:46]

And they spring out of the earth being turned by others. In this case, in my case, turned by me, turned by the self, when we open our hands. That means when we give up individuality, this voice of us come up. I think that is the fact, you know, this means, this, you know, a myriad of things come to the self. So in this, so these voice at birth are also, in a sense, caused by works of it, of or by itself, and also our practice allows this life force to manifest. So our practice, again, is the key point, or pivotal point, in this manifestation, and also this transformation.

[47:48]

Do you have something? Please. So you're saying when we open the hand of God, we release all the supernatural in this way. And I think the question arose earlier when you were saying, in turn, can it sound Again, I think. Yes and no, both sides. That means, of course, even when we don't practice and we don't know nothing about this kind of teaching, still the life force is working, functioning. But unless we study and understand and accept and practice,

[48:49]

How can I say, is this the same or a difference? That is what I, difficult for me to say yes or no. That means even if we practice and even if we don't practice, same thing is happening. But are these really the same thing? If really the same thing, why we need to practice? Why we have to study? But if these are two different things, and we have to study, and that is bad, then that is another problem. So this is a really difficult question, at least to me. So please be patient, or ask that question to another teacher. Yeah. Why do we have to practice if we are already right within the Dharma?

[49:55]

Why do we have to practice? Somehow, something inside and outside me, not ask, but encourage. Encourage. What is the word? Somehow this turning of dharma, somehow request. Well, when I started to practice, I felt like this is not what I want to do. But I felt like I'm sucked into that. Sucked into that. Sucked. Sucked into. So it's not my decision or my desire or my determination. But somehow, I cannot resist. So that is how these bodhisattvas spring from the earth.

[51:10]

But Dogen says, we should turn not only the dharma flower of spring out of the earth, we should also turn the dharma flower of spring out of empty space. In the Rota Sutra, those bodhisattvas came from the earth. But he said, not only earth, but they also come from the sky, or emptiness. And next sentence he said, not only sky or emptiness, or ground, earth or sky, but it comes out of lotus flower. So he always says all possible way to make sure. Let me read a few more sentences here, and I'd like to go to the end of this fascicle.

[52:16]

This first few sentences of the next paragraph is about this voice that was coming springing out from the earth. In general, at the time of the Dharma flower, without fail, the father is young and the son is old. It is not that son is not the son or that the father is not the father. We should just learn that truly the son is old and the father is young. This expression came from the chapter 11, entitled Spring Out from the Earth. So those voices are very, very old. But Shakyamuni was about 70 years old, and he had been teaching only 40 years or so.

[53:25]

But Shakyamuni said, these are all my students. I have been teaching all of them. So a bodhisattva had a question, you know, Shakyamuni was so young and those bodhisattvas are so old. How, you know, young Shakyamuni could teach all those old, venerable bodhisattvas? And the answer No, this is not chapter 11, but chapter 15, before the chapter of lifespan of Tathagata. And Shakyamuni said in chapter 16 was the answer to this question. And the answer is Shakyamuni's life is eternal, eternity. But what Dogen is saying here is this young father and old son is the relation between our practice and what our practice invites or manifests.

[54:43]

By letting go of egocentrism, or clinging to the five skandhas. That is what basically we do in our zazen. I said much deeper and broader life force manifest itself. This life force is those bodhisattvas. So our practice is young, even one moment young. moment by moment. So our practice is only this moment. But our practice in this moment manifests or allows this eternal life force to come up. That is, you know, father is young and son is old. Son is eternal life.

[55:47]

And the father is moment-by-moment practice. You know, this is the same idea that I often say of what the Buddha taught in the sutra of his last teaching. Often we practice following Shakyamuni's teaching, then in destructive, dharmakaya of Tathagata always present within our practice. This is also a relation between moment-by-moment practice and eternal dharmakaya. Eternal dharmakaya appears within this moment-by-moment practice. So we cannot stop practicing even though dharmakaya is eternal. Even though dharmakaya is eternal, unless we practice, it is not manifested.

[56:56]

That is, I think, Dogen's answer to the question why we need to practice if we are already living within the Buddha's eternal life. Why we have to practice? And Dogen's answer is, Buddha's eternal life is manifested within our practice. That's why we need to practice. If this is a good answer or not. That is what Dogen is trying to say in almost all his writings. That is another meaning of Our practice is good for nothing. We don't gain anything. But we just, in a sense, we participate in this eternal life of Buddha by letting go of our egocentrism.

[57:58]

So, instead of gaining or attaining something, we lose ourselves. You know, that is another, the meaning of another Dogen's expression, losing our life. He sometimes used the expression, soshin, soshin shitsumyo, shitsu. Ushinau. I forget. I forget Chinese character. Shitsu. Ah, shitsu. Myo. Shin is body and myo is life. And both sou and shitsu means to lose. In our practice, in our zazen, we lose our body and life.

[59:06]

That means our individual life as five skandhas. Then Buddha's life appears. So this is a relation between our practice and Buddha's eternal life. So he said, it is not that the son is not the son, or that the father is not the father. We should just learn that truly the son is old and the father is young. Our practice is young, but this young practice manifests the eternal life. That is old son. Well, now I'd like to go to his conclusion.

[60:12]

In my version, page 21, Paragraph 30. After he discussed about the mind in realization turning the Dharma flower, as a conclusion he wrote a few more paragraphs. Do you find the place? Thirty. since the time when this sutra was transmitted okay okay since the time when this sutra was transmitted to China and the Dharma flower was turned, several centuries have passed, and there have been quite a few people here and there who have made commentaries and interpretations on it.

[61:32]

You know, he just described how Rota Sutra was translated and studied in China. There have been as well some eminent monks who have attained the Dharma Dharma, however, no one has grasped the essential meaning of being turned by the Dharma flower and used the essential meaning of turning the Dharma flower. In the way that our founding ancestor the ancient Buddha Kaoshi that referred to Huinan, the sixth ancestor. So he praised the Huinan saying about this expression of Dharma flower turns us, or mind in realization, the mind turns the Dharma flower.

[62:36]

And he continued, Now that we have heard this teaching and encountered this Dharma flower, we encounter the ancient Buddha who met the ancient Buddha. So when we meet this teaching by Huinan, we meet the ancient Buddha. who met the ancient Buddha. This ancient Buddha, of course, means the ancestors in our lineage who awakened this reality of turning Dharma and being turned by Dharma flower. Why would this place not be the ancient Buddha land? So he said, Feng, we studied this teaching by Hui Nan. This place is the Buddha land, ancient Buddha land.

[63:45]

We should be delighted about this. From kalpa to kalpa, there is the dharma flower. And from day to night, there is the dharma flower. Kalpa to kalpa refers to the much larger scale of time. And day to night is our day-to-day ordinary lives in a larger, almost eternal scale. you know, there are dharma flowers. But also, in our day-to-day, nothing special, ordinary life, in each day, still also, you know, dharma flower is standing. So we don't see, you know, dharma flower is not here. It's always here with us. It's not only a matter of, you know, lofty philosophy of Buddhism, but that is our day-to-day thing.

[65:01]

Because the Dharma flower is from kalpa to kalpa, it is likewise from day to night. Even though our own body and mind grows strong and then weakens, This is nothing other than the Dharma flower. Now I really feel this is reality. Until I became 60, I don't think my body weakened. But after I became 60, suddenly that is true reality in front of me. Not in front of me, I am right there. So before that, I didn't feel I'm weak so often. But after I became 60, I can see each year I found something I cannot do.

[66:10]

Things I did without any problems. So this is the teaching of impermanence. But he said that is also part of the turning of Dharma flower. So we cannot reject or ignore. We have to respect that change. So the suchness of all beings is a rare treasure. Suchness of all beings is really true reality of all beings is suchness. So that means all beings are really rare treasure. That means each and everything we encounter in our day-to-day lives, those are all rare treasures. So, you know, in Uchiyama Roshi's expression, he says, everything, everything we encounter is my life. In this case, my life is, you know, this life force deeper than

[67:14]

person that is a collection of five scandals. So our life includes everything we encounter each day. So we should treasure everything. So the suchness of all beings is a rare treasure, radiant light. the place of awakening. So how we encounter with each and everything is the place of awakening. Place of awakening is dojo. As I think I said before, dojo refers to the place where Shakyamuni attained awakening under the Bodhi tree. But today dojo is used as a place for practice, like martial arts or other things.

[68:26]

But the original meaning of dojo in Buddhism is the place of awakening. So what Dogen says here is, this is where we are now, is a place of awakening, where Shakyamuni attained awakening. Shakyamuni became Buddha. So how we can become Buddha? Within this encountering with each and every people and beings within each moment. As Sao Kiro said, because we have Buddha nature and also a thief nature, unless we are attentive and careful, somehow we manifest our thief nature and try to get something. But Buddha nature is offering or sharing.

[69:31]

That is the difference of direction, what we can get from others, or what we can offer to others, or how we can share this Dharma with all people. That is the moment-by-moment practice. And if we are not mindful and attentive each moment, Instead of Buddha nature, we manifest our thief nature. So in Dogen's teaching, we cannot accumulate our practice. And after a certain amount of practice, we become enlightened person. And after that, we have no problem. That is how we kind of image what Buddhist practice means.

[70:33]

After we practice a certain amount of time, then we become an enlightened person. Then we can always manifest Buddha nature. But that is not true. At least according to Dogen. And also Sao Hiroshi. This is a moment-by-moment thing. If we, even one moment, we are not mindful or attentive, we carelessly, even that is not my intention, we carelessly manifest our thief nature. Please. Yes. We are getting to the end. But we cheated. The suchness of all beings is broad, great, deep, and eternal.

[71:39]

It is deep, great, long, and eternal. He used two very almost similar expressions from the Lotus Sutra. And it is mind in delusion is being turned by the Dharma flower. And mind in realization is turning the Dharma flower. Truly, this is the Dharma flower turning the Dharma flower. So in each case, only as an expression of one Buddha vehicle, we have to say, Dharma flower turns the Dharma flower. And finally, Following Huinan, Dogen composed a verse using this expression. His verse is, the mind is in delusion and so it is being turned by the Dharma flower.

[72:42]

The mind is in realization and so is turning the Dharma flower. When we are able to fathom it like this, the Dharma flower is turning the Dharma flower, so there is nothing other than the Dharma flower. When we serve offering to it, to it means to Dharma flower, and venerate, respect, and praise it in this way, that means Dharma flower, that means each and everything we encounter, as suchness. The Dharma flower is the Dharma flower. This is the end of this fascicle, but he wrote another paragraph as the afterword. And he said this writing was written by one particular person, whose name was Eitatsu.

[73:45]

So let me read this afterword. On a day in the summer practice period, in the second year of the ninji era, that is 1241, I wrote this and gave it to the Zen practitioner, E-tatsu. So this person's name is E-tatsu. And E-tatsu means, E is prajna, wisdom, and tatsu is penetration. And we know nothing about this person. Dogen says, I am deeply delighted that he is leaving home, that means become a monk, and practicing the way. Just shaving the head on the occasion of the ceremony for home leaving, that is Tokudo ceremony.

[74:54]

or ordination ceremony, is a wonderful thing. So to become a monk is a wonderful thing. Shaving the head again and again, this is the way of the true home reaver. That means only, not only one time, but we have to, you know, our hair keep growing, so traditionally we shave every first and fifth day in the monastery. That means every five days. So we need to keep shaving. That means our practice and enlightenment, our realization, is not one time thing, but we keep, you know, this Upadana skanda, or clinging to five skandhas is come back almost each moment.

[75:59]

So we need to let go each moment. And that is what keeps shaving our head again and again. And this is another meaning of we have to allow the bodhicitta. I think Dogen said, billions of times. More than millions of times. That means almost moment by moment. Otherwise, Upadana, you know, come again. And our five skandhas become Mara. So our practice has no end. Living home today is the effect and recompense of suchness, of the energy of suchness that has been turning the Dharma flower from the past.

[77:03]

You know, those effect, recompense and energy are within the ten suchness. So this person became a monk or received ordination because of the connection with Dharma in the past. So we need to appreciate this connection. And the present Dharma flower, at the occasion of his ordination, that is present dharma flower, dharma flower blooms on that occasion, will inevitably bear the fruit of the dharma flower. This fruit is also one of the ten suchness. Of the dharma flower, of the dharma flower. He repeated dharma flower twice.

[78:06]

But anyway, this means this person do now as a Dharma flower, that is, receiving ordination, will bear the fruits in the future. And this Dharma flower is not Shakyamuni's Dharma flower, and it is not the Dharma flower of all Buddhas. It is the Dharma flower of the Dharma flower. That means there is no such relation of owner and possessing. In our day-to-day turning of the Dharma flower, the forms of suchness also exist as not-sensing and not-knowing. This not-sensing and not-knowing appeared before, that is, fukaku fuchi,

[79:09]

And next he says, fu shiki, fu e. Fu means not, and kaku is to aware or sense. And chi is to know, and shiki is also to know or recognize. And e is to understand. So usually we think these are positive things. But she said, you know, this is happening. Dharma flowers, turning the Dharma flowers, happening without relation between self and object. So there's no way we can sense, or know, or recognize, or understand.

[80:38]

Again, this is the same thing with Dogen said in Jijūzanmai, all those things happening in our zazen cannot be perceived, cannot be part of coming to our perception. That means, I said in our practice, Buddha's eternal life or deeper and broader life force come up, but we cannot see it as an object. We cannot check if this is happening or not. When we check it, we are trying to, how can I say, control. that thing that is much larger than us, that is already in delusion. If there is such separation and relation as subject and object, then that is delusion.

[81:43]

So we cannot see, you know, Buddha's eternal life is appeared within our practice. If we see it, that is delusion. That is illusion. So there is no way to evaluate or to make sure this is really happening. But we need to simply trying, simply doing. That is what just sit in the case of Daze means. Just sit or just do it. Hearing with your eyes, are you describing that? Hearing with our eyes, that is part of the saying by Dongshan, or Tozan, when he had this awakening.

[82:48]

There's no subject and object, and all insentient beings expand in dharma. When we hear with ear, then we cannot hear it. But when we hear with our eyes, we can hear it. That means when those insentient beings are not object of this person, we hear the dharma expounded by all these incented beings. So, yeah, that is correct. So this is happening without sensing, knowing, and recognizing, and evaluation. And the past was in breathing, and out-breathing.

[83:49]

And the present is in-breathing and out-breathing. This in-breathing and out-breathing appeared in the story about Bodhidharma's teacher, Hanyatala or Prajñatala. When Prajñatala, invited by a king, probably other monks recited sutras, But somehow this person, Prajñātā, didn't chant the sutra. He didn't want to chant sutras. So the king asked, why don't you chant the sutra? And he said, something in breathing, I'm one with the entire world, and out breathing each moment. We are one with the entire world, and that is the sutra. So I never stop chanting.

[84:53]

Never stop chanting. That means chanting the sutra in true sense means not chanting some written scriptures, but living together with all beings. is how we recite the sutra. So the past was in-breathing and out-breathing, and the present is in-breathing and out-breathing. That means past ancestors and what we are doing now is the same thing. So on this point of turning Dharma and being turned by Dharma, We cannot say because, you know, modern times, we cannot practice like them. As a, you know, forms of formality or practice style, we cannot really, we cannot imitate them.

[85:58]

But at least this point to chanting sutras, in its true meaning, that means to live together with all beings, There's no excuse we cannot do this in this modern time. It could be done only in the ancient masters. There's no excuse we cannot practice with the same attitude. We should maintain and depend on this. as it is the Dharma flower that is wondrous and inconceivable. So this practice, moment by moment, live and practice together with all beings, is the Dharma flower. And we need to bloom the flower, moment by moment, without leaving the muddy water.

[87:05]

That is Dogen's, not an interpretation, Dogen's expression of his insight about what the Lotus Sutra teaching us. So it's pretty different from the way, you know, scholars or academics interpret that sutra. Thank you very much. Thank you very much. Thank you very much. Thank you. I really appreciate your diligent practice and patience with my strange English and dog and strange teaching.

[88:43]

Maybe strange is not the right word, but very unique teaching. OK.

[88:54]

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