Bye. Sojin Roshi and to the Berkeley Sangha.

[01:21]

So we have some ceremonies today in addition to our usual ceremony of zazen. Yes, zazen is a ceremony. We did the full moon ceremony just before this and we'll do the pari nirvana ceremony this afternoon at the end of the day. and that is a commemoration of the passing of the Buddha into Nirvana, as he passed away from this life. And the longest sutra in the Pali Canon is the Mahaparinirvana Sutra, which goes into great detail about all the events that led up to his passing, and then for a bit after that, And in the course of it, the Buddha talks about what is most important of the teachings that he offered over a lifetime of his 45 years of teaching. And what is most important for the Sangha to remember, you know, he announced that he would be entering his final nirvana three months ahead of time.

[02:43]

He knew. He had this feeling. So he had a chance to really reflect on that and to share what he wanted to with the Sangha. And I think ceremonies like this which we commemorate every year along with the Buddha's birthday and Buddha's awakening are to continually remind us that just like us Shakyamuni Buddha was a human being, born Siddhartha Gautama. He lived, he awakened, and he passed away. And he's an example to all of us that this is possible because an actual human being did this. He did it quite a bit by himself. He had help from other teachers that he had to find his own way. And we're so The word that came was graced.

[03:45]

We are so graced to be able to encounter the teachings in this lifetime and to have the guidance of the Buddha, all the ancestors, the teachers, and each other. So today I want to talk about a fascicle from a chapter, so to speak, from Ehe Dogen or Dogen Zenji. who lived in the first half of the 13th century in Japan, who is the founder of the Sotozen school that we are in a lineage with. And the section that I want to talk about, the translation that I'm used to using, is from Kaz Tanahashi in Moon and a Dewdrop, and it's called The Bodhisattva's Four Methods of Guidance. In Japanese it's bodhisatta, which is bodhisattva.

[04:46]

Shishobo, shi means for, and shobo is translated variously, which is really interesting to get a sense of the other translations. So as I said, Kaz Tanahashi calls it the bodhisattva's four methods of guidance. Nishijima and cross, call it the four elements of a bodhisattva's social relations. Shohako Ogimura calls it the bodhisattva's four embracing actions. And Domio Burke calls it the four ways bodhisattvas embrace living beings. And some of you may know that this section, this fascicle, was one of Hozan's favorites. really meant a lot to him. And the title of his book from about 15 years ago, I think, is called The Bodhisattvas Embrace. And it's about the work that he did in social justice, engaged justice, engaged Buddhism.

[05:55]

Really engaged Buddhism around the world. And here. Here as well. So, these four elements of Our social relations or methods of guidance or ways that bodhisattvas embrace living beings are giving or dhana or generosity. Kind speech or loving words. Beneficial action, also translated as helpful conduct, and identity action. or sharing the same aim or purpose. Literally translated, identity task, I think. Like having the same tasks, which we do a lot when we're practicing together. But I like that, sharing the same aim or purpose. So this basic list of four practices or actions appears in the polycanon.

[07:05]

and in various Mahayana Sutras, including the Lotus Sutra and the Avatamsaka Sutra. But it's usually not very... It's usually just as a list. It's not really unpacked or talked about. So it may have been something that was a teaching that was not so much given from the Dharma seat, but was a framework for people to practice with, and they might have talked about it less formally, or in a meeting with the teacher. So the Pali Canon calls it the four grounds for the bonds of fellowship. I like that. Or the four social teachings. And these are different from the four Brahmaviharas that we talked about before, which are the divine abidings of goodwill, compassion, sympathetic joy, and equanimity. So the Brahmaviharas are cultivating

[08:10]

particular states of our heart and mind and with respect to living beings, you know, like cultivating respect. And so it's a more internal practice that we do. But the four embracing actions are things that we do. They're actions in relation to living beings. So they complement each other really well. So I had the wonderful opportunity, when preparing for this talk, to also consult Sojin Roshi's copy, which is heavily annotated to my delight. So I copied some of his notes into my own book, which was very sweet.

[09:14]

This is a short fascicle. It's like four pages. For Dogen, extremely straightforward. So he begins, the Bodhisattva's four methods of guidance are giving, kind speech, beneficial action, and identity action. Giving means non-greed. Non-greed means not to covet, not to want what you don't have. Not to covet means not to curry favor, not to try to get something from other people. Yeah, that's exactly what I always felt great when I had the same idea of assertion. He used to say, I studied to verify my practice. So this is nice. Because his note says, not try to get something.

[10:18]

It is to give away unneeded belongings to someone you don't know, to offer flowers blooming on a distant mountain to the Tathataka, or again, to offer treasures you had in your former life to sentient beings. Whether it is of teaching or of material, each gift has its value and is worth giving. Even if the gift is not your own, there is no reason to keep from giving. The question is not whether the gift is valuable, but whether there is merit. So there's giving in literal ways. You can offer the Dharma, you can offer material possessions or funds. But Dogen is really pointing to not just the action, but something closer to the Brahma Baharas, which is the internal state of the giver.

[11:30]

And he comes back to this again and again. It's not about the thing. It's about giving. And I think the flip side of giving is letting go. Just as you don't think the in-breath is better than the out-breath, or vice versa. They go together. They balance each other. And, you know, we talk about no giver, no receiver, no gift. There's no giver if there's no receiver and nothing to give. And you can take any one of those. They arise together and they're not separate. But to give, you have to let go. It's not like So, again, giving as a practice, as a continual practice, is another facet of letting go.

[12:31]

Once someone gave a Dharma talk at City Center about generosity and giving, and they asked everyone to bring something that was you know, not too precious to them, but important to them. And then in the course of the talk, ask them to give it to somebody, like actually give it. Give it away. And I was not there, so I can't, but I, several people talked about that and how wild that was and how powerful and shocking and, really? There was space to not do it, like if you'd really chosen something that wasn't okay to do, but several of the people that I talked to were like, wow, that was powerful. Actually, to not expect that, to not prepare myself for it, but just to let it go, to experiment. What is that like to do that?

[13:34]

The question is not whether the gift is valuable, but whether there is merit. If any of you have ever been given a gift by a small child, you know it's not about a thing. They're just like, here. And then they might take it back. Because they're just playing, giving and receiving. But it's so, it's so open-hearted that just points to our, you know, how humanly natural that is to give and to receive. We receive from the day, we receive when we're inside of our mothers, but in more visible ways, we receive from the moment we're born. And if we stop receiving food and water and air, we will cease to be. But some of the other forms of giving can be, or letting go can be more complicated, something to practice with, for sure.

[14:45]

So Dogen says, when you leave the way to the way, you attain the way. When you leave the way, the Buddha way, the path of practice to the way, when you just do the practice, You attain the way. You're not trying to grasp anything or have some idea. This is another way of saying, don't strive to become a Buddha. Just keep following your breath. Keep doing the practice. Keep serving oreo-yogi breakfast. Keep cooking black bean chili, whatever it is. With trust. with trust in the way and just keep coming back to that. At the time of attaining the way, the way is always left to the way. When treasure is left just as treasure, treasure becomes giving.

[15:52]

Sojin's note was open hand. Just open hand. You give yourself to yourself. and others to others. You let yourself be completely and you let others be themselves too. You give yourself yourself. You give others themselves. It's like when Suzuki Roshi says, when you are you, Zen is Zen. The power of causal relations Causal relations is another way of saying like causes and conditions, whatever brought you into this moment. The power of causes and conditions of giving reaches to devas or gods, human beings and even enlightened sages. When giving becomes actual, when it becomes real in this world, such causal relations are immediately formed.

[17:00]

And I understand that as you're creating karma in that moment that is positive karma, that is going forward, that is creating more benefit in the next moment, like pay it forward. The Buddha said, when a person who practices giving goes to an assembly, people take notice. You should know that the mind of such a person communicates subtly with others. And one of the things that the Buddha didn't talk about specifically but that I think is particularly meaningful in this time is the gift of our full presence and attention. To not be distracted, to not be thinking about something else, but just to practice being fully present with another person. It feels really different And I remember the first time I tried that with someone I didn't know so well.

[18:07]

It felt so intimate. It was like I felt kind of in there with them, like being with what they were, with their body, what they were saying and feeling. And I'd been trying to practice it, so it took a while to get to that point. It wasn't like intention overnight for me, but I think many people practice this. for a lifetime. So you may have a different experience of that. But yeah, the gift of presence and the gift of attention. I still remember momentary interactions with people from my twenties that were like they were just nakedly there. And it was, wow, it was a lot. You know, is I going up for this? It called forth something in me, I felt. But it deeply inspired me and I felt the possibility of a way of being that I did not usually experience.

[19:16]

Give your valuables, even a penny or a blade of grass. It will be a wholesome root for this and other lifetimes. The truth can turn into valuables. Valuables can turn into the truth. This is all because the giver is willing. The Buddha said, if you are to practice giving to yourself, how much more so to your parents, wife and children? Incidentally, this was written for lay people more than for monks, as far as I understand. So, of course, sadly, Doug was talking to men only, but, therefore, how much more so to your parents, wife, and children. Therefore, you should know that to give to yourself, to give to yourself is a part of giving.

[20:31]

To give to your family is also giving. Even when you give a particle of dust, you should rejoice in your own act. So, to appreciate your practice. No, not to hold onto it, but to appreciate it. Mind is beyond measure. Things given are beyond measure. Moreover, as giving, Mind transforms the gift, and the gift transforms the mind. So the second is kind speech. Kind speech means that when you see sentient beings, you arouse the mind of compassion and offer words of loving care. It is contrary to cruel or violent speech. That really hit me and Sojin underlined that too from many years ago but today it just feels so relevant.

[21:43]

Kind speech and words of loving care are contrary to cruel or violent speech. So the action of putting this out into the world has a positive and beneficial effect. Dogen says, in the secular world, there is the custom of asking after someone's health. In Buddhism, there is the phrase, please treasure yourself. And the respectful address to seniors, may I ask how you are? It is kind speech to speak to sentient beings as you would to a baby. I had to think about that one. Probably not. This was written in 1246. I think that was not what Dogen was thinking of, but I think probably something more like being gentle.

[22:55]

not trying to frighten or intimidate others. But to take care, as you would, around a baby. To take care with your words, with your speech, with your tone of voice. It's gonna be okay. And, you know, it's striking that of the four, I'm sorry, of the ten grave precepts which we vowed this morning, four of them have to do with speech. So the power of words, the power of speech. So they are not lying, no fault-finding, these are Sochin's translations, no bragging or putting down, and not bad-mouthing the Three Treasures. If kind speech is offered, little by little virtue will grow.

[24:03]

Thus even kind speech, which is not ordinarily known or seen, comes into being. In other words, the practice of kind speech allows kind speech in general to grow to levels that haven't been seen before. Out of the ground of greater kindness comes new blooms of kindness. You should be willing to practice it for this entire life. Do not give up world after world, life after life. Kind speech is the basis for reconciling rulers and subduing enemies. Would it be so in this world? The opposite hasn't worked much, so would it be so? Those who hear kind speech from you have a delighted expression and a joyful mind. Those who hear of your kind speech will be deeply touched. They will never forget it.

[25:03]

This is speaking well of someone when they're not present. They hear the words that you've said when you weren't even there. If that's ever happened to you, you know how meaningful that is. It's like, wow, they weren't just trying to butter me up or anything. He said that. You should know that kind speech arises from kind mind and kind mind from the seed of compassionate mind. You should ponder the fact that kind speech is not just praising the merit of others, it has the power to turn the destiny of the nation. The 13th century in Japan was a time of a lot of war and famine and a lot of difficulty and Dogen had grown up on the kind of outer edges of the court so he was very aware of the power of the government and the impact that it had on everyone's life and I don't know if there was direct experience there must be if he didn't have direct experience of this I have

[26:19]

vague sense of many old stories where the words of a Buddhist teacher had a profound influence on a ruler and changed the course of things. So he's really allowing for that, asking for that, holding that up and not giving up. So the third is beneficial action. Beneficial action is skillfully to benefit all classes of sentient beings, that is to care about their distant and near future and to help them by using skillful means. Then he references some ancient stories. In ancient times someone helped a caged tortoise, another took care of an injured sparrow. They did not expect a reward. They were moved to do so only for the sake of beneficial action. Again, no attachment to results.

[27:22]

Foolish people think that if they help others first, their own benefit will be lost. But this is not so. Beneficial action is an act of oneness, benefiting self and others together. So I wanted to read something from Shohako Obamura about this. He says, wholehearted bodhisattva activity can be seen as a direct path to awakening. Wholehearted bodhisattva activity can be seen as a direct path to awakening. Since there is no real separation between self and others, We can manifest or actualize that reality by enacting, giving kind speech beneficial and sharing the same aim as all living beings. These four ways are the ways a bodhisattva helps living beings to enter the way of Buddha and abide in the truth.

[28:34]

Dogen teaches that these four practices allow the bodhisattvas themselves to be free of the three poisonous states of mind, greed, anger or hatred, and ignorance. These practices benefit both the person practicing and living beings at the same time. Giver, receiver, and gift. Then Dogen goes on to say, to greet petitioners, a lord of old three times stopped in the middle of his bath and arranged his hair and three times left his dinner table. In other words, he was willing to be interrupted in the middle of his bath or at dinner and went and met with people. He did this solely with the intention of benefiting others. And Sojun's note is, you should be willing to be interrupted.

[29:41]

And he definitely was always willing to be interrupted. At least here. You should benefit self and others alike. If you have this mind, even beneficial action for the sake of grasses, trees, wind, and water, is spontaneous and unremitting. This being so, make a wholehearted effort to help the ignorant, those who do not know. So, identity action. Yeah. Cause translation is identity action. Doji is literally identity of task. I said this at the beginning. But also translated as identity of purpose, sharing the same aim, cooperation, or being in the same boat.

[30:47]

We are so all in the same boat. Even if some people have a different seat, it's the same boat called Earth. It is identity action, being in the same boat, means non-difference. It is non-difference from self, non-difference from others. For example, in the human world, the tatataka took the form of a human being. From this we know that he did the same in other realms. When we know identity action, others and self are one. Lute, song, and wine are one with human being, deva, and spirit being. Human being is one with lute, song, and wine. Lute, song, and wine are one with lute, song, and wine. In other words, identity with self, identity with others, every possible way, no separation.

[31:54]

No separation. Action means right form, dignity, correct manner. This means that you cause yourself to be in identity with others after causing others to be in identity with you. I have been feeling that I didn't quite know what that meant. But I wonder if it means when we're just being our natural selves and present, that that in mysterious ways causes others to come in alignment with us. We feel, oh yes, I'll do this. Maybe that's how we all got here. Seeing or hearing some manifestation of a way of being that was like, yes.

[32:55]

So I think that's the subtle cause of causing others to be in identity with us. However, the relationship of self and others varies limitlessly with circumstances. Oh, don't it just? People form a nation and seek a wise lord, but they do not know completely the reason why a wise lord is wise. They only hope to be supported by the wise Lord. Oh, wise Lord, you tell me what to do, you take care of me, and I will elevate you. But Dovin goes on to say, they, people, do not notice that they are the ones who support the wise Lord. Again, giver and receiver and gift. There's no Lord if there's no one supporting.

[34:00]

We make people for good or ill, so for good. This being so, identity action is a vow of Bodhisattvas. He ends saying, with a gentle expression, practice identity action for all people. Each of these four methods of guidance includes all four. Thus there are 16 methods of guiding sentient beings. So lately, what I read online, I've seen lists of suggestions for things to do, actions to take during these times. And I had the thought, in preparing for this, that If you're doing some of those, or you're interested in them, you might consider taking them up as practices, like with the mind of practice, seeing if that might bring practice off the cushion and practice on the cushion together a little more.

[35:14]

Something to experiment with, perhaps. Clarifying your intention and how you'd like to be in your body, mind, and life, and how whatever you're taking up at this time can mutually support all beings. I just wanted to close by sharing that I've been thinking about generosity and kind speech and beneficial action and identity action a lot in recent weeks. And the other night, and I often think about Dharma talks when I'm out on walks by myself. You know, I like to walk up Russell Street. And I'm just mulling over parts of it and just like naming them out loud and seeing what arises. And then yesterday morning, I woke up from a dream.

[36:19]

And it was a dream of generosity and community with members of the Berkeley Sangha. And I just, I woke up so happy. And I thought, oh, this is exactly because I've been thinking about generosity and thinking about the sangha here. And yeah, that makes a difference. And I thought, yeah, that really is the opposite of doom-scrolling. Joy scrolling, connection scrolling. So we have a few minutes for questions, if there are any, or anything to share. Thank you for your talk.

[37:20]

You mentioned four precepts related to speech. And I was wondering about not withholding the dharma treasures, which I kind of lump in with those. But do you think that's limited to speech, or is it more than that? Is that one of the 10 grave precepts? Yeah. Not withholding the dharma? Not being abhoricious. Yes. Yes. OK, that's one of the translations. Don't squander maturing. Yeah, yeah. Truly. Yes. Can be. I haven't thought of it that way. Thank you. Anyone else? Anyone online? Yeah, I kind of like what you were saying about your dream, because a similar thing kind of happened to me this morning, but it was the opposite.

[38:32]

It was like, I had woke up at 4, I usually get up at 4.30 and close my eyes and nodded out, and I was dreaming, I was in Saatchi. Then I woke up at 5.17 and I'm not there, and I haven't went. And then it's weird, once I got on Saatchi, it was like, No, you were already at Sashi. So why are you upset with yourself? It was weird. It was like, no, you were dreaming. You were at Sashi. It's just strange. But what you said about the joy thing, it can go the opposite. But maybe then you discover you're the one keeping the joy, not the joy being kept from you. I identified with your green until I thought I'd say that. Thank you, Sam. Michael has his hand up online. Hi, Michael. Hi.

[39:34]

When you spoke about identity action and the non-difference of self, non-difference of others, it really touched my heart. And you started to talk a little bit more about it. And I wonder if you could expand on that a little bit more. What you were starting to say was really, really powerful. What's alive for me right now in that is to come from the place that we all want the same thing, that we all have the same purpose and aim on a deep level, on a human level, on a spiritual level. and to not see others as other, to not other people. I think that's easier to do when it's abstract.

[40:37]

I love people. but some individuals can be challenging, some groups of people can be challenging. Yeah, but to just starting from that non-differentiation, non-discrimination of action, and there's so many ways that we already do it when we There was a food drive recently to provide snacks for women and children who are unhoused currently. So there's just giving to a group of people we don't even know who they are. But we know that they're struggling and we know that they would really appreciate some snacks.

[41:43]

And we don't have to know more about that, but we can connect with them on whatever way. You know, what we long for... The Dalai Lama once said, many times said, you know, everybody wants to be happy and nobody wants to suffer. And we have some very different ideas about what that would involve for us or the people we love. But fundamentally, everyone wants to be happy, whatever their conception of happiness is, and nobody wants to suffer. So, I think the ways to practice with that are limitless. It's like everything. Thank you for your question. This will be the last one. Thank you for your talk.

[42:50]

First thought is that it was really nice to hear these words from Dogen about kind speech. I don't really think about kind speech when I think about Dogen's writing. I actually often find he's very mean. So that's one thought. I think that connects with this other thought. I often wonder about this kind speech in relation to the precept of not lying, particularly when one has... I often find that I can have really strong opinions or views that are genuinely my opinions and views, but to say them in some contexts might not seem very kind. But then at the same time, to censor myself doesn't feel particularly kind to myself. And so I often just find I can get stuck with these in this set of ideas. Yes. Thank you. Thank you.

[43:51]

So, I think of Dogen in those sections as being ranty Dogen. He's definitely on a rant. He has some opinions and ideas. And my sense is that he's feeling really responsible He worked very hard, he looked everywhere he could in Japan to find what he considered the true Dharma, couldn't find what he was seeking, went to China, found it, received all of this and was determined to bring it back to Japan. So he's in a leadership position and feeling responsible. and he's doing everything he can to try to get what I think at this time, I think he was at the Heiji by this time, somewhere in there.

[44:55]

He definitely had monks in training with him. And many of them were young and not particularly attentive, I imagine, because you look at the guidelines for the Heiji and they're really quite surprising what they think to cover, like not spitting in the food, and things like that, and not blowing your nose when you're serving, and your sleeve. And it's like, oh, you don't make up rules that aren't needed. So, you know, and at first I just hated Rantidoga, and I was like, hates the strong word, but it was like, ah, I couldn't even, it was like, you're so disappointing, you should be kind, and inspiring, and what is this? You know, there's a lot of sides of Dogen. Complicated human being, for sure, and lots of writings. You can read all kinds of things if you go outside the Shobo Genzo too. But I think he was really feeling the responsibility of being kind of like a sergeant at arms, you know, trying to get people, just do it, just do it, you know.

[46:01]

Try it for yourself. Not what I would wish. And, you know, discipline in monasteries, as far as I know, at least in A. Heiji, in the not-too-distant paths, has been strict to the point of severe. But it was Suzuki Roshi's son, Huizu, who actually did away with the beatings in A. Heiji. No more when he was the Godo. It wasn't Abbot, but he was like the next most senior person. All the monks loved him, they adored him. He was very, very kind. Not everyone knows how to do that. But it's such a gift. And in terms of what to say with other people,

[47:04]

You know, I mean, there's the elements of right speech, right to five. Is it true? Is it kind? Is it timely? Well, is it kind to let people continue in their delusion? Is it kind to let people harm other people? And what's, you know, is it the right time or place? Is it, you know, a holiday dinner with family? And, you know, I mean, that is, and how will it be for you bringing it up? Do you have the support? Do you have the capacity that you need?

[47:47]

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