Good evening. Well, this evening we just had a very nice ceremony, founder's ceremony for Suzuki Roshi. We paid homage to our old teacher, Suzuki Roshi often used to say, our practice, Zazen and Zen practice is nothing special. This is a kind of key phrase for him. Over and over he would say, our Zazen is nothing special and our practice is nothing special. So we shouldn't think of it as something special. He said, when we were in the monastery in Japan, our practice to us was just very usual because everyone was just doing it.

[01:19]

But when guests would come, they would say, oh, what an unusual practice, what an unusual activity these people are doing. And then they would say, The monks would say, maybe so, yeah. But to us, it's not unusual. It's quite usual. So, usual and unusual. Special and nothing special. These are two sides. Everything seems to have two sides. On the one hand, you can say, His practices of Zazen and Zen practice look special or unusual, but actually it's nothing special at all. It's quite ordinary. So, how do you express something

[02:29]

How do you express both things? How can you say one word that expresses both things, both sides? Always, you know, when you read the koans of Zen, the teachers often say, give me one word. So in order to express a duality, language is always dualistic. It has to be dualistic because when you say something, when you describe something, you cut it in two. Or you delineate it. You mark it off and make it into something. Every time you describe something, you make it into something.

[03:37]

So you're separating. When we describe, we separate. This is called discrimination. Discrimination means to separate one thing from another. So in order to express something, in a non-discriminating way, we have to use one of the discriminating terms to have both meanings. So Zen language, the language that you find in Zen literature, is confusing because Teachers always use one side to describe both sides, or to express both sides. So a teacher, a student, asked Joshu, Master Joshu, does a dog have the Buddha nature?

[04:54]

Well, we know that everything has Buddha nature. everything is buddha nature does the dog have buddha nature joshu said no but he said moo moo is one of the great koans of zen but moo means no chinese woo actually so the monk was quite puzzled how could joshu say such a thing another monk Asked Joshu, does the dog have Buddha nature? Joshu said, yes. Doesn't matter how Joshu, whether Joshu says no or yes. Because whatever he says includes everything. So it's,

[05:58]

And in order to describe reality, not describe but express a reality which is seamless and is beyond discriminating description, we have to find a way to express it. Dr. Kanze said one time to express prajna wisdom, he said, you could say, yes. But we don't usually speak in that way. It's too indirect. It's still dualistic. So, I want to present this well-known koan from the Mu'man Khan collection of koans.

[07:18]

And this koan is called Nansen, Master Nansen's ordinary mind is the way. Joshu and Nansen were a disciple and teacher. Nansen was Joshu's teacher. And when this incident took place, Nansen, the teacher, was maybe over 50. And Joshu, who eventually lived to be 120, according to the record, was about 20. And this was Joshu's big eye-opening experience for Joshu, this dialogue that they had.

[08:34]

These are two of the most famous well-known Zen masters in the Tang Dynasty in China. Joshu, a student, asked Master Nansen, he said, Nansen, what is the way? And, ordinary mind is the way, Nansen replied. Shall I try to seek after it? Joshu asked, if you try for it, you will become separated from it. Responded Nansen, how can I know the way unless I try for it? Persisted Joshu. Nansen said, the way is not a matter of knowing or not knowing. Knowing is a delusion and not knowing He says, confusion, but that can be various terms.

[09:43]

When you have really reached the true way beyond doubt, you will find it as vast and boundless as outer space. How can it be talked about on the level of right and wrong? With these words, Joshu came to a sudden realization. And then Master Mumon has a comment and he says, Nonsense dissolved and melted away before Joshu's questions and could not offer a plausible explanation. Even though Joshu comes to a realization, he must delve into it for another 30 years before he can fully understand it. And then Master Mumon, who is the compiler of this record, says, has a verse, and he says in his verse, the spring flowers, the autumn moon, summer breezes, winter snow, If useless or vain things do not clutter your mind, you have the best days of your life. So, in the main case, Joshu asked Nansen, what is the Wei?

[10:57]

Wei, of course, we all know, it means the Tao, Chinese word Tao. When Buddhism came to China, the Chinese had a hard time understanding the Sanskrit Buddhist terms. And so they used Chinese terms to describe Buddhism, much as we sometimes use English terms just to interpret the Japanese and Sanskrit in America. And they gave that up after a few hundred years and found a Dharma language. But the word Tao has always persisted and has become a very common word even in America. It means the way. But there are very different kinds of ways.

[12:01]

And, you know, we have these books that say the Tao of running and the Tao of motorcycle maintenance, the Tao of various ways. What is the way of these ways? But when ... Joshu's question means, what is the ultimate way? What is the supreme way that has no particular attributes? that you can define. What is reality? That's what he's saying. And Nansen says, ordinary mind is the way. So I would like us to think about this word ordinary. Ordinary mind. It means many different things.

[13:10]

There's psychological meaning of mind. But in Buddhism, mind means more than just psychology or thinking mind. But instead of saying, using the term of some deity or something like that. In Buddhism we use the term mind, universal mind. So usually we say universal mind, which is a very exalted way of speaking. Big mind. You can say big mind. which is indefinable and indescribable, and yet everything is an expression of this big mind.

[14:14]

But Nansen says, well, just ordinary mind is the way. He didn't say big mind is the way, it's ordinary mind. But this word ordinary is usually used when translating this case. Almost every translation says ordinary mind. But the characters in Japanese actually mean, literally, non-upsetting mind. Mind which cannot be upset or turned over. Not upset mind. And there's another meaning, which means something like eternal mind. So it's interesting that there's so many different meanings for this term.

[15:24]

Cannot be upset mind, eternal mind, and ordinary mind. are all different translations for this term. And before I knew that, I called it sustaining mind. Because if you look up the word ordinary in the dictionary, there are a lot of different meanings. They're close, but they're different. And one meaning of ordinary is usual. usual or what we find every day. Sometimes this is translated as everyday mind also. Just the usual stuff, what we're used to. And another translation, way down the list, means that which is always constant or consistent.

[16:32]

Both of these meanings, they kind of go together. There's something that's constant and consistent and sustaining, but because we're so used to it, it seems usual and we don't even notice it. There's something which is constant and sustaining that we don't pay much attention to, usually. but it's actually quite usual. On one hand, it's quite usual, and on the other hand, if we wake up to it, it's very unusual. Small babies have it. People love babies, you know, because they have it. But as we grow older, it gets covered up because we get used to our life in some way.

[17:44]

But this thing, which is indescribable, is quite ordinary. And at some point in our life, we get so busy that we no longer even recognize it. But then, at some point in our life, we start looking for it. So, Joshu says, well, Nansen, shall I look for it? Shall I seek after it? What should I do?" Nonsense is, if you seek for it, if you look around for it, it just keeps getting further and further away from you. So in Buddhism we say, in order to accomplish our

[19:07]

way, in order to accomplish the way, we have to arouse the way-seeking mind. The most important thing for a Zen student, among other most important things, is to arouse the way-seeking mind. Doshin, way-mind. But Nansen says, but if you seek after it, It goes further away from you. It will elude you. So, here is another little koan within the koan. How do you seek without seeking? And in your seeking, how do you not seek? When we come to practice, we come for various different reasons, actually.

[20:18]

We don't all have the same reason. Maybe ultimately we have the same reason, but we also have different reasons, and we're each in a different place. We're looking for something. And when we actually engage in practice, our seeking mind is turned to where we are. In other words, don't look any further. Okay, but what's here? Look for it right here. This is what's called for in practice.

[21:22]

When you engage in practice, you stop seeking mind. You bring seeking mind to a stop. Not that you stop seeking, but you bring the seeking mind to a stop. halt. Just look right here. Don't go any further. Everything you need to know is right under your feet. Very simple, but very difficult. Because But what we face when we stop is something just very ordinary. Surely, we're seeking enlightenment. If you ask a Zen student, what are you seeking? A Zen student would say, well, enlightenment.

[22:26]

Stop seeking enlightenment and just look under your feet. This doesn't mean to stop the way-seeking mind. It means stop creating a dream. Now you can stop dreaming. Your dream brought you to where you are. Now you can stop dreaming. But when we stop dreaming, life is very mundane, very ordinary. When we come to Tassajara in the summertime, Did lots of work, chopping vegetables, making beds, lugging, schlepping carts around. In the hot sun, having to get up in the morning and sit Zazen, being tired out. Very ordinary. Where's the real practice?

[23:30]

you know, sitting ten hours a day in a zazen. There's a wonderful poem. I think it's a wonderful poem. I don't know if I can remember it. The poem goes something like, No, one, seven, three, five. The truth you seek cannot be grasped. As evening approaches, a bright moon illuminates the entire ocean. The dragon's jewels are found in every wave. When you look for the moon, Here it is in this wave, and in the next wave.

[24:35]

As a Zen student, A Zen student has to be able to find the essence of life in a dung heap. During practice period, the head monk of the practice period either washes the toilet, all the toilets, public toilets, or takes care of the compost This is the job of the head monk. The head monk must find the essence of life in the toilet bowl. It's very nice to sit zazen, even though it hurts your legs.

[25:59]

is quite wonderful. This is the moon of enlightenment, shining in the dark night. But the dragon's jewels are actually found in every way. And if you want to, when you look for the moon, it's right here in this one. And it's also in the next one. So we say daily life is the way. Nothing special. But ordinary life is the way. But this word ordinary

[27:05]

is not what it seems to be. Ordinary is one of those words that also means its opposite, or it means anything you want it to mean. This word has free use. It's not restricted to any particular use. We can use it any way we want. Great freedom. Ordinary, the word ordinary is a word which has great freedom. If our mind has freedom, then the word ordinary has freedom. If our mind is locked, then the word ordinary is locked. If our mind is closed, then garbage is just something that stinks.

[28:16]

So, Master Nonsense says, The way is not a matter of knowing or not knowing. Knowing is delusion and not knowing is confusion or ignorance. Knowing and not knowing is another duality. You could say, what is the highest understanding? Not knowing. Not knowing is the highest understanding. It has to be. Because in not knowing, everything is known. Knowing is limited mind. No matter how much we know, it's just limited mind. Knowing is partiality.

[29:31]

No matter how much we know, the more we know, it's still just limited. So Nansen continues and he says, when you have really reached the true way beyond doubt, the true way beyond doubt means the way of not knowing and the way of intuition, meaning directly not knowing. then you will find it as vast and boundless as outer space. How can it be talked about on the level of right and wrong? Right and wrong is just another duality. If you want to go beyond right and wrong, you can say everything is wrong.

[30:44]

It's all wrong. or it's all right. It doesn't matter. You have that kind of freedom, because your mind is not limited. With these words, Joshua came to a sudden realization. And then Master Muhammad, in his comments, says, Nonsense dissolved and melted away before Joshu's question, and could not offer a plausible explanation. He's putting both of them down. He's praising both of them by putting them down. This is the Tang Dynasty way, or Sung Dynasty way of praising somebody is by putting them down. We do that too. And then he says, even though Joshu comes to a realization, he must delve into it for another 30 years before he can fully understand it.

[31:53]

So he's saying Nansen kind of dissolved and melted away before Joshu's question and couldn't offer a plausible explanation. If he'd offered a plausible explanation, he would have been dead in the water. Of course he couldn't offer a plausible explanation. Even though Joshu comes to a realization, he must delve into it for another thirty years. Thirty years is just another way of saying forever. That just because Joshu had some realization doesn't mean that he should glory in his realization. He should just realize what he realizes and go on, leaving it behind. just start, begin again.

[32:57]

If you have some great realization, you should just begin again as a beginner. We don't build on our realization. If you have some realization, you will realize that the place to be is as a beginner. beginner's mind. That means the mind that doesn't hold on to anything, but is open to everything. This is an ordinary mind, but what does ordinary mean? And then Mumon, in his verse, sums it up and he says, The spring flowers, the autumn moon, summer breezes, winter snow.

[33:59]

If useless or vain things do not clutter your mind, you have the best days of your life. Right now, we're in the season of summer breezes. Don't let foolish or vain things cloud your mind. And wherever you are, you can be all right. But if you long for some other situation, you're sunk. I want to express my gratitude and appreciation to everyone who is working here and practicing here this summer.

[35:28]

Work is what we call it, but practice is what it is. And sometimes we get confused Sometimes we don't know where we are, but ordinary mind, which means thin mind, which means deep mind, is no special state of mind. moment by moment our state of mind is changing, and our situation is changing. And just to be able to go with our situation without discriminating, without calling it good and bad or right and wrong, just to be able to accept our position on each moment and be wholehearted in our effort is our practice, whether we're sitting zazams

[36:48]

chopping vegetables, schlepping carts, making beds. This is the heart of our practice. This is where you have your realization. And we have many ways of expressing our practice. But they're all equal. Sometimes we emphasize work and taking care of people. That's the summer. And sometimes we emphasize sitting lots of Zazen and going inward. That's the fall and winter. So we have our seasons. And it all is one practice with many faces. So don't get discouraged, but practice wholeheartedly.

[38:00]

If you need help, ask for help. If you're confused, say something. Okay.

[38:26]

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