Saturday, October 25, 2008

Sameness and Difference

Sameness and Difference

Soto Master Keizan: If you are not greatly enlightened once, you will vainly become mere intellectuals and never arrive at the ground of mind. Because of this you are not yet rid of views of Buddha and Dharma, so when will you ever get out of the bondage of self and others?Thus even if you can remember all the sermons spoken by the Buddha over his forty-nine years of teaching, and do not misunderstand a single doctrine of the three and five vehicles of liberation, if you do not greatly awaken once, you cannot be acknowledged as a true Zen adept.
Transmission of Light, Thomas Cleary

Rinzai Zen Master Hakuin: Anyone who would call himself a member of the Zen family must first of all achieve kensho—realization of the Buddha’s Way. If a person who has not achieved kensho says he is a follower of Zen, he is an outrageous fraud. A swindler pure and simple. A more shameless scoundrel than Kumasaka Chohan. (A thief who posed as a priest.)
Wild Ivy, Norman Waddell

Soto Master Dogen: Clearly remember: in the Buddhist patriarchs’ learning of the truth, to awaken the bodhi-mind is inevitably seen as foremost. This is the eternal rule of the Buddhist patriarchs.
Shobogenzo, Hotsu-Bodaishin, Gudo Nishijima & Mike Cross

Rinzai Zen Master Yuanwu: The wondrous path of the enlightened ones is straight and direct. They just pointed directly to the human mind so we would work to see its true nature and achieve enlightenment.Zen Letters, Thomas ClearySoto Master Keizan:So the Zen school does not set up words, but only transmits direct pointing, proceeding by means of seeing the essence of mind and realizing enlightenment.
Transmission of Light, Thomas Cleary

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7 Comments:

At October 25, 2008, Blogger Mumon K said...

'Zactly.

 
At October 26, 2008, Blogger Sean said...

It's good to see that such straightforward discourse as that referenced, here, to Hakuin -- I guess he may be famous for his straightforwardness -- that it is still welcomed.

"Still" welcomed, I guess that it is an operative word in the statement; it's convenient, rhetorical. I don't mean anything about time-frames with it. I don't honestly know if it was welcomed, ever, but I'm honestly glad to see it. To withhold a true statement, if out of sentimental concern for a person's feelings -- would it not represent an attachment to something?

Granted, to set out to lay into a person wouldn't necessarily, in all cases, be all fair, I guess -- pardon my being circuitous, here, but I find it difficult to say that otherwise. That (pretentious) sentimentality -- if there's anything that doesn't go well with some employments, I wonder if that could well be in with it.

Not being attached to being "anti-compassionate", not being attached to being "sentimental" -- and not being attached to not being attached. Ok. Easy to say ;^)


Coming at this text with right mind, there is no interference from mind.


I wish, myself, that I could frame that better. There's something I haven't said, there, and I'm not sure what it is. ("but I'm not really like one of those kensho guys -- if they're special I'm not"?)

It doesn't "fit" to just say that statement about mind, outright, and how does it fit otherwise? It has a sound, and is not surrounded by substance with like that sound.

Alright, I guess I just need to learn to meditate. Next time I'm somewhere where I can learn it, without concern ...


Yay for Hakuin, and yay for kensho.

 
At October 26, 2008, Blogger Sean said...

oops. At "this text", I meant, the texts cited by Mr. Biringer.

It came out sounding ambiguous, as I later noticed and here noted. Right.

 
At October 27, 2008, Blogger Ted Biringer said...

Hello Mumon,

Thank you for your comment.

Gassho,

Ted Biringer

 
At October 27, 2008, Blogger Ted Biringer said...

Hello s.c,

Thank you for your thoughtful observations. Keep coming back!

Gassho,

Ted Biringer

 
At October 27, 2008, Blogger Barry said...

Ted,

It reminds me of the traditional dragon paintings - where the dragon swirls through the air in hot pursuit of the pearl (yo-i-ju in Korean).

The dragon doesn't pause for tea, for a nap, or for anything else. Only the pearl matters.

Cheers,
Barry

 
At October 30, 2008, Blogger Ted Biringer said...

Hello Barry,

Yes...

As Dogen says (see next post on Flapping Mouths):

"...First is only that the aspiration of joyful longing be earnest. For example, suppose a person has a conscious desire to steal a precious jewel, a desire to defeat an enemy, or a desire to embrace a distinguished beauty; while travelling, abiding, sitting and reclining, in the midst of affairs as the pass, though various different events come up, he goes along seeking an opening, his mind occupied [with his quest]. With his mind so forcefully earnest, there can be no failure of attainment..."

Peace,
Ted Biringer

 

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