Chiji Shingi and Metta Sutta: Transformative States of Consciousness
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Class 7 of 10
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I would like Kozan to give us a ZORI report. So, we took him in at 9 o'clock today and the vet observed him. And then they put him out and took x-rays and ZORI. And so on his right shoulder he has a tumor. And he said it's most likely something called osteogenic sarcoma. And it's already spread to the lymph nodes. He said he'd probably only live for another six months. And he just recommends that Jory just continue his life. And not that we do anything like amputate the leg or anything. So we have some painkillers, I guess, that we're giving to him. So just so people know where to check. So his limp was not his foot, right?
[01:01]
It was up in his shoulder. I guess the pain just keeps getting worse. Compensating his foot. Yeah. Compensating for his shoulder. Yeah. So he checked in the line and he couldn't see anything, but he says that the tumor, the thing spread so fast that it didn't work. So, um, it was worse than expected. Any other questions? Yeah. Um, well, just to To amplify that, my understanding is that same form of cancer is often found in humans, and it's very fast developing and almost always fatal. Excuse me, also before you start, I'd like to look at the series of Zoris. There was a Zori before Zori. and then he kind of wandered off and then uh well he was old you know and he went to the place where all old dogs go when they wander off what he went up towards the heart green
[02:15]
So tonight, this is the last class. And when I come back, I'm leaving. I might leave tomorrow because I was planning on leaving the day after tomorrow, but this rain is supposed to continue till Sunday. And already, you know, California is flooding out again. And the road is not going to get any better in the next couple of days and there are already large trees falling down on the road and slippery and so forth. And according to the reports, you know, water's running down the roads, you know, the road. So I think it may be better. I'll give a talk tomorrow morning and then sometime later I think I'll leave so that we'll get out. It'd be nice to not get out, but... Which vehicle were you taking me in?
[03:31]
I was thinking of walking. We don't have a vehicle. The deer cart. So, when I came back for Sashim, I'll lecture on something else. What's left here in the Qiji Xingyi is the rules and regulations, most of which is just from the, you know, it's not necessarily Dogen's. He comments, but it's not so much Dogen, actually. And that's kind of interesting for us, but I don't think they make good Cixin lectures. So rules, you know, regulations don't make sufficient lectures. So I'd rather lecture on something more encouraging. So what I've chosen for tonight is section 12 in our book on page 9.
[04:49]
No, I'm sorry. That is not right. Page 7, number 9. Down at the bottom of the page. So I'll read the case. This is an example of clarifying the great matter while serving as Tenzo. Da Gui, who is Isan, was in Pai Chong's community when he became the Tenzo. One day, there's a lot of variations on this story, but this is the variation that we're reading. One day he went to the abbot's quarters to attend to the abbot. I don't know why he was attending to the abbot when he was the tenzo.
[05:55]
But that's what it says. Another story says he was sitting, zazen. Another story says he was sitting in the abbot's quarters. So anyway, maybe they were working on menus? Yes. Pai Chang said, who is it? And Da Gui said, Ling Yu, that was his name. Da Gui, Ling Yu. So Pai Chong said, Ling Yu, will you poke around in the fireplace and see if there's still anything burning? After looking, Da Gui said, there's no fire. I can't, it looks like the fire's out. Paichang stood up and went to the fireplace with the poker. After searching around, he found a small ember, way back in the stove, a little burning ember.
[07:00]
He showed it to Dagui and he said, isn't this fire? Dagui understood, and after thanking the master, expressed his understanding. Usually, this kind of incident, they say, and he had great enlightenment. It was pretty good. And he expressed his understanding. After thanking the master, he expressed his understanding. Then Pai Chan said, you've only come to the crossroads. He had a kind of satori. Kind of a mind opened up, you know, this is, he connected with his ember as his own inner fire. And Pai Chang said, you've only come to the crossroads. Don't get excited about it. The sutra says, if you want to see Buddha nature, you should contemplate according to time, causes, and conditions.
[08:12]
When the time comes, or when the time comes, delusion immediately turns into enlightenment, and forgetting turns into remembering. If we contemplate Buddha nature, Buddha nature is ours. It doesn't come from somewhere else. An ancestor named Durtaka said, when you're enlightened, it's not different from when you're not enlightened. With no mind, you attain no dharma. These words are not false. Both the ordinary people and sages equally make the original mind their mind. Dorma is complete by itself. You are already as you are, so maintain as well." When you're enlightened, it's not different from not being enlightened. I remember Suzuki Roshi used to say,
[09:18]
people think when you're enlightened you will no longer have any desire and you will no longer have any problems and you'll no longer be subject to suffering. He said, but actually after you're enlightened if you like ice cream when you walk by an ice cream store your mouth will salivate and you'll go out and get an ice cream cone. So this is the first part of the story. And there's some interesting things about this story. The main thing about this story, of course, this kind of wonderful setup, you know, wonderful moment.
[10:29]
Very quiet. There's nothing particularly happening or nothing particularly going on in either one of their minds. And Pai Chang sees the stillness of this moment as an opportunity. And he doesn't know what he's going to do. But he's just very open. And Isan, he sees that Isan is also in this kind of state. So he says, go over and stir up the fire. See if there's anything there. And Isan goes up and he rakes around in the coals. There's nothing there. which gives his teacher a wonderful opportunity. And he goes over and pokes around. He's got this little piece. Isn't this fire?
[11:31]
What is this? What is it that you're overlooking? Even when you think you're dead, there's still this fire. So naturally, he got enlightened. Who wouldn't? But his teacher says, you've just come to the crossroads, don't get a big head. You have a long way to go. The sutra says, if you want to see Buddha nature, you should contemplate. I don't know if contemplate is a good word, but maybe David, that's right. It seemed to be right at the time. You should contemplate time, causes, and conditions when the time comes. So when the time comes, delusion immediately turns into enlightenment, and forgetting turns into remembering.
[12:42]
So how does delusion turn into enlightenment? That's a very interesting point. We talk about enlightenment and delusion as two sides. And Mark asked me this question in lecture last time. He said, what do you mean seeing that from this side and this from that side? Remember that? To see delusion from the point of view of enlightenment and enlightenment from the point of view of delusion. So delusion and enlightenment are two sides of this coin. And delusion immediately turns into enlightenment at the right moment, according to causes and conditions. So what is this delusion that turns?
[13:45]
How do you pinpoint this delusion? So if you remember what you were studying last practice period, you will know that it was manas that turns into enlightenment when at the right moment. Manas being the seventh level of consciousness. Remember the alaya vijnana is the eighth level of consciousness. Manas is the seventh level. Mano-vijnana is the sixth. And then you have the five sense consciousnesses. And the five sense consciousnesses we call conscious, or all of the consciousnesses we call conscious. Consciousness. Consciousness means discrimination, actually.
[14:53]
When one has consciousness, one has discrimination and divides this into that. It's like the fall from the Garden of Eden. In the Garden of Eden, man and woman have no sense of discrimination. And it's only when they bite into the apple, you know, that discriminating mind comes into play. So, turning delusion into enlightenment is turning back into the garden of non-discriminating mind, which is called prajna. Consciousness becomes, vijnana becomes prajna.
[15:59]
They're just two sides of the coin, of course. One doesn't become the other, it's just that the other side, prajna encompasses both enlightenment and delusion. So, as you know, There are the four Wisdoms. The Great Round Mirror Wisdom and the Non-Discriminating Wisdom, the Great Equality Wisdom. And then there's the Subtle Observation Wisdom and the Wisdom of Appropriate Action. So, when the four vijnanas turn, called paravrtti, right?
[17:06]
When the four vijnanas turn, they become the four wisdoms. So, consciousness turns into non-discriminating wisdom, which is its nature, actually. So, manas, which is the seventh consciousness, which is called ego consciousness or self consciousness, becomes the consciousness of equality, becomes the wisdom, excuse me, the wisdom, the prajna of equality. So, the consciousness which is always seeing things from the point of view of ego, suddenly sees everything as equal. Everything is myself. So, myself is still there. Ego is the self-centered self, idea of self, whereas the wisdom of equality is the non-self-centered self, or the big self.
[18:22]
So Manas is small self and the wisdom of equality is big self, big mind. And discriminating consciousness, which is Mano Vijnana, the sixth consciousness, becomes the consciousness of subtle, becomes the wisdom of subtle observation. Subtle observation means to see each minute thing as what it is. To see the individuality of each thing. So sometimes people say, well when you see everything as one, that's enlightenment. But that's only one side of enlightenment. The other side of enlightenment is to seek to see all the individual things as discrete entities.
[19:29]
To see all the dharmas as dharmas. So, manas becomes the great equality wisdom and manu-vijnana becomes the wisdom of subtle observation. So you see everything, in the wisdom of equality, everything has equal value. It's all one, as they say. And everything has equal value. And in that, when you see things with the wisdom of subtle observation, everything that's vertical, and it's hierarchical, and everything is in a different place, and has a different comparative value to everything else.
[20:35]
So usually we see things, people tend to see things mostly on the vertical plane, not so much on the horizontal plane, but we have to be able to see both, and the intersection where the vertical and the horizontal meet is where your life is. And that's where the absolute and relative aspects of our life meet. And that's where our koan is on each moment. How do we see the absolute value of each relative thing? So, Soto Zen practice, you know, is set up to be very simple. Zen practice, very simple, simple-minded. We don't do a lot of complicated things so that we can actually pay attention to each thing that we do and enter into that space in our activity.
[21:49]
So we go in and out of it. And the five sense consciousnesses, seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, touching, those vijnanas, those pre-sense or sense consciousnesses, become, when they turn, becomes the wisdom of appropriate action. Means that because the other two are wisdoms, they're the basis for our appropriate action through the senses. So that everything you do, when one is enlightened, everything you do is right. or has some appropriate, should have some appropriate action when it's really based on the other two wisdoms.
[23:07]
And when alaya-vijnana is turned, it becomes the wisdom the great round mirror of wisdom, where everything is reflected off of everything else. So, one contains everything and everything contains one. And our activity proceeds from that understanding. So the little problem here, the biggest problem here is the manas, because the manas, seventh consciousness, appropriates reality to itself and distorts reality because it becomes partial to itself.
[24:18]
That's the perverted view, actually, of manas. this consciousness, which actually, people say, well, manas doesn't really exist. And then when you read the Cheng-Wei Sher-Lun, or read the 32 verses, it says manas disappears when consciousness turns on its bases. But another way of thinking about it is that this seventh consciousness actually has a function, and its function is the conveyor between the alaya vijnana and thought consciousness, which is mano vijnana. But it becomes perverted. It's just a messenger, messenger boy, delivering messages from back and forth. But it sets itself up as
[25:22]
Because it gets all this information, it feels independent. It gives us the feeling of independence, too much independence. Sometimes I like to describe it as the office boy who, when the boss is out, opens the door and pulls out his cigar and lights up and sits in the boss's seat with his feet on the desk, ordering everybody around. But actually, it's not his function. He needs a good whack on the behind, you know, to get back to work. So his work is... There's actually a function for Maranath, which is a delivery, you know, but not to interfere, not to intercede and become somebody. Sometimes, someone who is in a communication center, It is the communication center. Someone who is at a communication center gets so much information from all different parts of the world and parts of the business that they have more information than anybody else.
[26:38]
And then they become very powerful. And then they set themselves up independently. That's not uncommon. So, the more knowledge, sometimes, our manasense, the more it thinks of itself, the more independent it thinks of itself. So this is why if we have too much knowledge and not enough faith, then it's easy to become very cunning and egotistical. And it's pretty hard to get to reality when that happens. So, yes? I lost that moment when you said, lost transit to a round... Mirror of wisdom?
[27:46]
Aaliyah. Aaliyah consciousness becomes the round mirror of wisdom. Yes. Yes. Constantly concealed. Concealed. I don't know. I'm not familiar with that translation. I had this idea if I could see how it was constantly concealed. The eye itself is what's concealed. How can I see what's constantly concealed? Well, I don't know about that, but it does have four characteristics.
[28:48]
Do you remember what they are? Self-esteem, I think, I don't like that translation. I don't like the translation. Self-esteem is not so bad. It should be something else, I think. Self-promotion or something like that. I can't remember exactly what the other translations are, but I think self-esteem is not so bad. But I think it means self-aggrandizement. So I feel this is what he's talking about when he says, delusion immediately turns into enlightenment. If you want to see Buddha nature, you should contemplate according to time, causes, and conditions.
[29:53]
When the time comes, the time comes means the time when that happens. When everything comes together for you, causes and conditions in the right time, that happens and then you have this awakening, opening. And delusion immediately turns into enlightenment. And forgetting turns into remembering. You remember something. You remember who you are. If we contemplate Buddha nature, Buddha nature is ours. It doesn't come from somewhere else. An ancestor, I think Durtaka, said, when you're enlightened, it's not different from not enlightened. With no mind, you attain no dharma. These words are not false. Both the ordinary people and sages equally make the original mind their mind. Dharma is complete by itself. You are already as you are, so maintain as well.
[30:54]
their little incident. So Da Gui, or Yi San, studied with Pai Chang for 40 years, 20 years. Something like 20 years. And because at this time, Da Gui was in his 20s, And Pai Chang was in his late 70s. And I think he stayed with Pai Chang until Pai Chang was in his 90s, 95. And his son was 40, in his 40s. So, remember, it suddenly changes the scene here in the book, right? It doesn't tell you about that. But, an ascetic named Sima.
[31:56]
This is a guy who was, you know, in China they have people do necromancy, you know, and various ways of telling you, you know, where water is and where good land is and what an auspicious mountain is. Feng Shui. Yeah, Feng Shui. Feng Shui. So the ascetic Sima was a Feng Shui. And he came from Hunan. And he was apparently a friend of Pai Chang's, or he knew him. And Pai Chang seemed to trust him. And so Pai Chang said to him, well, he didn't say this either, but when the ascetic came, He said, there's this great mountain that would really make a wonderful monastery. That's what he said to Pai Chong.
[33:00]
And so Pai Chong said to him, I want to go to Mount Gui. Is that a good thing, do you think, for me to do? And the ascetic said, Guishan, Gui Mountain, is an extraordinary place. You could assemble 1,500 people there. But it's not a place for you to live. Paichong said, why not? And the ascetic answered, you are a bone person and it is a flesh mountain. Paichong was kind of an ascetic. Apparently he had, you know, kind of retiring and ascetic and maybe not an outgoing person. And, well, at this time he was too old anyway. But it needs a flesh person, someone who is more fleshy, more interested into people, into doing something.
[34:09]
Anyway, your guess is as good as mine, but that's what it seems to me. If you resided there, you would have less than a thousand students. You really wouldn't attract enough people to make the mountain worthwhile. And Pai Chang said, well, is there anyone in this community who can reside there? And the ascetic replied, well, let me look them over. Pai Chang asked the attendant to call in the shuso. And he asked the ascetic, well, what about this one? And the ascetic, now, this is translated in various ways. Here it says, we said, the ascetic cleared his throat and asked the monk, Well, there's no reason to say the ascetic cleared his throat, right? Who cares? Another translation says, the ascetic asked the shuso to cough.
[35:11]
You know, when you're a little boy and you go to grammar school, the doctor used to come around And he would put his fingers under your genitals, and he would, the boys, and he'd say, now cough. He could tell something, but I never knew. They always said, well, he wants to find out if you have a hernia. Probably so. Anyway, so the attendant, coughed, or the attendant said, ask the shusa to cough. But I think he asked the attendant, he asked the shusa to clear his throat. He said, please clear your throat.
[36:16]
And why he would say that is, if, you know, clear your throat. So, if he'd said, grrr, he'd pass. I remember, you know, Dan Welch. You didn't know Dan Welch. He was one of our foremost students many years ago. And a very strong, wiry kind of guy. And in his endo, you would hear him go, grrr, grrr. He always stood up a little bit straight. So I could see him saying, clear your throat. Let's see how you do that. And then he said, take a few steps.
[37:21]
This one will not do. So that's pretty good. You know, he could tell by the way he cleared his throat, where he was breathing from, and how he moved. So then Pai Chong sent for the Tenzo. The aesthetic said, this is indeed, as soon as he saw him, He said, this is indeed is the master of Mount Gui. I don't know what he saw, but he saw him. That evening, Pai Chong invited Dagli to his room and entrusted him with these words. My place of teaching is here. Mount Gui is an excellent spot. Reside there, you reside there and continue my teaching and cross over the many late comers. Then Hua Lin, who is the Shusou, heard about this.
[38:34]
And he said, I have the honor of being the head monk. How come Daogu Li has come to be our abbot? Pajong said, well, I'll tell you what. If you can say a word in front of the assembly that demonstrates your excellence which demonstrates your excellence, or which goes beyond status, is another translation which is very good. I shall make you an abbot." Then he pointed at a water jar, and the water jar was sitting on the floor on the table. And he said, if you don't call it a jar, then what do you call it? And Hualien said, well, you can't call it a wooden stick.
[39:43]
Everybody has a different name for this object of what it isn't. Some people say it's a stick. Some people say it's a stump. Some people say it's a shoe. Stick is pretty good. Pai Chong did not approve it. A little bit obtuse. Then he asked Dagui. And Dagui, he said, kicked over. I like, turned over. Dagui turned over the jar with his foot. Pai Chong laughed and said, this head monk is defeated by this mountain fellow. ordinary fellow, but he knows he's not an ordinary fellow. Then he sent Dagui to Mount Gui. This mountain was steep, and there was no human smoke there. In other words, no one ever lived there. Dagui joined the monkeys, and he ate chestnuts and berry for eight years.
[40:50]
He didn't say that. For eight years, he ate chestnuts and berries, and he was all by himself. And he built a hut out of reeds and stuff. He didn't go there to live as a hermit. Tom. He went there to start a community. That's why he went there, to start a community. He didn't go there to be a hermit. Nobody came for eight years. This is remarkable. When you go to start a community, it doesn't matter if anybody comes or not. You should just sit until you wither away. If somebody comes, fine.
[41:52]
Nobody comes, okay. So after eight years he got... There are different versions of the story, of course. After eight years, he started to walk down the mountain. And some people say, once originally he met a tiger. And the tiger nudged his elbow and told him to go back up. Kind of said... Three weeks later, Some monks started to come up the mountain, and pretty soon he had 1,200 disciples. So people at the foot of the mountain gradually learned about him. He maintained the monastery with the assembly. He also says he used to sit with a miniature stupa on his head, like this.
[42:55]
So if he fell asleep, he would go, pow! And I remember when Tatsagami Doshin was here, he told me that he used to sit at Eheiji, or maybe at his temple, when he was young, he used to sit with a can of nails on his head. And when he fell asleep, the can of nails went... So later, Li Zhongrong recommended to the emperor that the place should be given the name of Tongqing Monastery. which means rejoice together. Prime Minister Pei visited there to inquire about the profound mystery. After that, Zen students from all over assembled there. Now this is a koan, treated as a koan by Master Mumon. In the Mumon-Kon, it's number 40 in the Mumon-Kon. So I'll go over it a little bit just because Mumon has some
[43:56]
a little different way of talking about it and some comments that are his poems. When Guishan was with Pai Chong's assembly, he was the cook of the monastery. Pai Chong wanted to choose a founding teacher for Monk Da Gui. He invited all his monks to make a presentation, saying, the outstanding one will be sent. So that's very different. Then he took a water bottle and set it on the floor and said, don't call this a water bottle. What would you call it? The head monk said, it can't be called a wooden clog. Now I have a wooden clog. Pai Chong then asked Guishan his opinion. And Guishan turned over the water bottle and walked with his foot and walked out. Pai Chong laughed and said, the head monk loses. Guishan thereupon was made the founding teacher at Mount Takwe. And then Mu Man has a comment.
[44:58]
Though Guishan was altogether valiant, he could not leap out of Pai Chang's trap. If you scrutinize what happened next, you'll see that he accepted the heavy and rejected the light. How? Look, removing his sweatband, he shouldered an iron yoke. I will read it again. Though Kuishan was altogether valiant, in other words, he stepped out and did this thing, right? He could not leap out of Pai Chang's trap. In other words, the head monk had some investment in this thing, you know. The head monk thought, Why should the Tenzo be sent and not me? I'm the head monk.
[46:00]
So right there, you know, Manas is way up. His Manas is really operating full speed. And Guishan Manas is not there. He just sees the situation and acts. He doesn't care. whether he gets this, he's content to be the Tenzo, because that's what he was asked to do. He has no thought other than to do what he was asked to do, and he does it well. And he has no thought of doing this in order to become the abbot of Ma Kuei. So this is a kind of pure act, and this is what everybody recognizes. This is what his teacher recognizes. And this is what the necromancer, the feng shui master recognized right away about him.
[47:04]
He could just see that right away. So, what happened is, by doing this innocent act, he put himself in a dangerous position by having to become the abbot of this place. He could not leave out of Pai Chang's trap. Of course it's not a trap, but it's a trap, right? Because after he did this thing, there was no way he could get out of it. So you may think that becoming the abbot, if you're not an abbot, you may think that becoming the abbot is a great thing to do, a great achievement. If you scrutinize what happened next, you'll see that he accepted the heavy and rejected the light. The light was being the Tenzo, although that's heavy too, believe me.
[48:06]
And the heavy was taking on the responsibility. So how did he do this? He removed his sweatband, which the Tenzo wears, and he shouldered an iron yoke, which means that once you're there, you can't escape. Once you get to the top, there's no place else to go. You can't get out of it. So be careful. Be careful what you ask for. So, And I wrote down, an innocent move gives you a big headache. So then, Mu Man has a verse.
[49:12]
He says, tossing bamboo baskets and ladles away, he swept all impediments before him. Pai Chong's severe barrier cannot interrupt his rush. Thousands of buddhas come forth from his feet, from his toes. So tossing the bamboo baskets and the ladles, that's his kitchen work, right? Tossing them away, he swept all impediments before him, right? Cleared the way. And Paichang's severe barrier, which is, what do you call it? interrupt his rush. So it's kind of like his destiny, right? It's not like something he wanted, but it's more like his destiny was to have this happen. Because his mood was just innocent, just being himself, you know? Just completely being himself and doing what comes next. If you are just completely yourself and just do what comes next, this is what will happen to you.
[50:18]
Your destiny will unfold. And you just know what that is. So, Pai Chong's severe barrier cannot interrupt his rush. Thousands of Buddhas come forth from his toes. That's kind of nice, you know. He brings thousands of people across and whatever he does creates a Buddha. So that's the koan. Do you have anything that you want to discuss? verse, that final long line, thousands of Buddhas come forth from the post, it's like an echo of the Mahayana Sutras, the Lotus Sutra, the emanation of beings of light, the illumination of Buddha lands from the feet of a Buddha.
[51:39]
So I think that's particularly important. Yeah, I think that's right. And this rendering of complete than Dogen's record, because it's not just kicking over, but he kicks over, or upsets it with his foot, and then leaves. And leaving, I think, should be understood as part of the activity. I think Dogen fastened only on the upsetting. Yeah, leaving is also part of the activity. Because leaving means forgetting all about it, or, you know, no trace. Coming with no intention and leaving with no trace. That's right. Good observation. Well, let's just have a moment of Silence.
[52:55]
A moment of aeration. Well, let's turn to page 16. This is 23, right?
[54:01]
Page 16. Great story. Master Fa Yuan of Mount Wuzhu in Qi province studied with priest Hai Hai, Xu Dan of Mount Hakukun. He inquired about the great matter and deeply penetrated bone and marrow. Xu Dan appointed him to be the chief miller in the monastery, Chinese monasteries, they would have a mill and a miller and the mill was some little distance outside the monastery walls and so the person who was the miller would be someone who could take responsibility and was a trusted monk so that he could be left out there by himself and nobody would worry about him and he knew that he would do good work.
[55:19]
So he was independent, somewhat independent. So every year, Fa Yuan collected money by selling rice and wheat bran. And he earned interest by lending the money. Isn't that interesting? So he hired workers with this money to do temple improvements and put the rest in a temple treasury. So that's kind of interesting, because you tend to think of a religious institution as not doing usury. But if you don't worry about that, if you reserve judgment according to the standards that you were brought up by, maybe it's not so bad. Zen Center, do we have accounts?
[56:25]
Yeah, Zen Center has accounts where we put our money so that we get interest. Matter of fact, if you put your money in the bank, you get interest. And what? We're paid royalties. No. And the way of supporting monks changed from India to China. Suzuki Roshin used to talk about the monk that came to India, that came to China from India. But he couldn't stay very long because he wore his summer robes and he couldn't eat Chinese food. Unless he adapted to the country he was in, there was no way he could survive.
[57:28]
So when Buddhism came to China from India, there were a lot of young men who wanted to be monks, and I guess women who wanted to be nuns. It doesn't talk so much about that. But the monks would go out begging. And so the Chinese people were agricultural people and strong family-oriented people. And here the young men were going to the monasteries and they weren't working in the fields to support the families. they were not being productive, which was just unthinkable to the Chinese people, that young men would be like this. And so it came to pass that the Chinese, and there was a time when the Chinese monks, they had it set up so they had servants, and the servants would bring them tea at all hours of the day,
[58:48]
and serve their meals and take care of them. And it became kind of cushy for them. And then there was a kind of revolt. And the monks, especially the Zen monks, decided that they would work. And old Pai Chong said, a day of no work is a day of no eating. This is a big change from the Indian style. And so the monasteries acquired land and they told monks actually worth the land. And they also rented out their fields and got revenue from that. So there were times when the monasteries had a lot of land holdings and were supportive by their landholdings, both from the peasants who rented their fields and from the monks who worked in the fields.
[59:58]
So since that time, in India, monks didn't do anything, except beg. But begging was not a very welcome kind of activity in China, although they did do it. the monks worked and they all did Fushin Zomu in their garden, in the fields. And so work practice became a part of Zen practice in China. So he hired workers with his money to do temple improvements and put the rest in the temple treasury. But one day, someone made an accusation about him to Xu Dan, the abbot. Every day, Fa Yuan drinks wine, eats meat, and entertains farmers and young women at the mill.
[61:05]
So the entire temple was stirred up. Hearing this, Fa Yuan purposely bought meat and wine and hung them on the wall of the mill. He bought cosmetic power and gave them powders and gave them to the farmers and young women and asked them to paint their faces. When the monks came to the mill, Fa Yuan took the young women's hands, teasing them and laughing without any sign of shyness. Xu Dong one day called into the abbot's room and asked him why he was doing it. Fa Yuan said, nothing. Yes, yes." Xudan slapped his face, but Fa Yuan did not flinch. Fa Yuan said, I need to settle my account and find someone to take over my position. Later, Fa Yuan told Xudan, I paid for the wine and meat that is hanging in the mill and put 300 plus 1,000 sim in a temple treasury. Xudan was greatly surprised and realized that the accusations came from the jealousy
[62:13]
of petty minds. While at Xu Dan's community, Zen master Yuan Tong Fa Zun was Xu So. And he accepted an offer to be abbot of Mount Simion. So he asked Fu Yuan to be the Xu So at his new place. So what do you think about this story? Yes. that he did the exact opposite of what people would ordinarily do. And he didn't offer any excuses or explanation to make people look at themselves. Yeah, he made them look at themselves. That's right, Abbott had to look at himself. You know, what was his, you know,
[63:17]
He believed these people, right? Instead of trusting his knowledge. That's interesting. Very unusual. Does Shuso have something to say, bro? I think it's interesting that when you were asked the question about whether you've been doing this or not, you said yes. Yes, yes. Well, that's just what it says, you know. Who knows what he really said. He didn't say no, no. Something like assent, you know. Not denying it. Yeah, some way of not denying. So, you know, the story says yes, yes. That's a funny thing to say, isn't it? Yes, yes. Sure, sure, yeah. Well, I had a feeling that even though he was entertaining the farmers and the young ladies that he did that for human practice.
[64:27]
Even when he was doing that, yeah, he was doing it as practice. observation. Yeah, so he was supposed to be taking care of the people who were accusing him. Like, thinking, well, God, if they're accusing me of this, they're going to end up looking stupid if it isn't true. So in a way, he kind of acted it out so that they wouldn't look foolish. Not denying anything, and he wasn't accusing them of, right, and not making them look foolish. That's right. Tom, you look puzzled. Yeah, well, you know, the first accusation was made about him. I don't see why he didn't do what he ended up doing in the end. Why do all this drama with the human and cosmetics world? And also I have a question. Somebody accused me of being an outrageous drunk.
[65:29]
And I went out and bought a couple of cases of booze and came back here and drank them all up. And then you called me in and said, what's this all about? And I said, yeah, yeah, yeah. I don't think I'm going to come out of this smelling like a rose and, you know, being, you know, like one of the great executives in history. But you cannot copy what he did. You can only be influenced by the spirit of what he did. So in the end, he did make a gesture. He said, I'd pay for all his stuff. That's how the abbot discovered. He said, well, all the accounts are in good order. Everything's in good order. It's not like. In fact, my first question, why bother with all this drama? Why not just tell me everything in the first place?
[66:31]
Well, it's like the case of Hockaway. and the baby. Do you know how to go into the baby? Yeah, I have the same question in that case. Just deal with it right there in the first place. Keep it as a good poem. If you're successful, you can have fun. You can afford to have fun. If you can pay for your fun, why not? It's a good teaching. It reminds me, in part, of a story about Prince of Pearls, which was that he gave a lecture someplace, and before the lecture, it was announced no smoking. This was in the days when there was no smoking in Scotland, including in the walls. And so he gave the lecture, and he smoked throughout the lecture.
[67:34]
At the end of it, somebody during the question time got very outraged. They asked you not to say, they said no smoking, how come you were smoking, blah, blah, blah. Why did you stop, blah, blah, blah. And he said, because I wanted to stop. Period. And it's the same kind of story of if I go and copy that, it's outrageous. But when he did it, and the way it's read, it's told in the story. It's the same kind of thing with outrageous behavior. He was just straight forward to me. He didn't have to make excuses. And was willing to take whatever consequences someone else might have offered. I think that's the thing that strikes me in this, is that you do what you do, and you accept the consequences. I'm trying to decide whether I see that they're the same or not.
[68:48]
In some way, I can see what you're saying, but not completely. I can't see it completely. It kind of seems like what Fritz was doing was proclaiming his right to do something, even when everyone else agreed not to. Not the way the story came, or maybe that's partly. The emphasis in the story, as I read it, was that he was saying, I'm standing up for what I'm doing. right to respond to that. Which it seems to me is what this guy is doing when he's carousing, which is not supposed to be accepted.
[69:55]
Oh, I see. I see. But it's a different basis. To me, it's a different basis. Yeah. It's a different basis because he's not doing it. because it's something he wants to do. He's doing it because this is what he was told he was doing. Do you think that he wasn't doing it before? No. I mean, I thought that was Tom's question. He was already doing what? No, I don't think he was doing it. It's a false accusation. You didn't see it as a false accusation? But one day, someone made an accusation about him to Shuddam. Why did it come before that?
[71:00]
I thought nothing came before that. Nothing, no. He put the money in the temple treasury. Oh. Every day, and this was the accusation. Every day, Fa Yuan drinks wine, eats meat, and entertains farmers and young women at the mill. So the entire temple was stirred up. That was the accusation. Hearing this, Fa Yuan purposely brought meat and wine and hung them on the wall of the mill. He bought cosmetic powder and gave... I don't know why the farmers are doing it, but... He bought something for the farmers and cosmetic powder for the young women and asked them to paint their faces. And when the monks came to the mill, Father Juan took the young women's hands, teasing them and laughing with that sign of China. So he put on this act, is it right? You get that now? So Xu Dan, One day called him to the abbot's room and asked him why he was doing that. And Fa Yuan said nothing but, it's okay, yeah.
[72:05]
Xu Dan slapped his face, but Fa Yuan didn't flinch. He bowed and started to leave. Xu Dan yelled at him and said, get out, quick. Fa Yuan said, I need to settle my account and find someone to take over my position. So he'd been very generous, you know. And later, Fa Yuan told Xu Dan, I paid for the wine and the meat that is hanging in the mill, and it's a 300 plus 1,000 cent in the temple treasury. So I paid for everything, and all the accounts are in order, and we've made money. Xu Dan was greatly surprised and realized that the accusations came from his jealousy of petty minds. OK, so it's not the same. No, it's not the same. It's still not necessarily that he wasn't a good man. No? No, it's not necessarily. I mean, maybe he was a good man, and that position still came to the fore. No, the implication, even though it seems like the direct story itself, plus the implication is that
[73:18]
he was a good person and he was doing his job. But someone, a petty mind, accused him of doing something else. That's what it says. The first description of somebody who's very carefully managing resources. Right. Yeah. Very fastidious. Yeah. Well, I think it's also interesting. You have to speak up because you're talking to me and they can't hear you. It's also interesting to actually be able to do what other people say to do it. Because it means you have no, you know, you have no, if you can, you know, and do it well, that means that you don't, you have no image of yourself that you have to maintain how to do that. And, you know, it reminds me of when you said to practice of saying thank you. Yes. Whatever, you know, comes to you. That's the same thing.
[74:21]
It's exactly what that is. And also interesting to think of actually doing these things. Like trying to take on what people say you're doing. It's very difficult. It's a practice of gratitude no matter what, without discriminating good or bad. Or acceptance without discriminating good or bad. You can see how tough that is. But there is always, there is maybe always also some hope. Some hope? Yeah, you know, usually there is some little hope or projections that you get. Yes. So, you know, you can learn about yourself through that. Yes. Okay. I think we might be failing to appreciate the emotional life of this, in the beginning of the story, this young man, Fai Yan.
[75:27]
And he may have had some skills in milling and tending business, but he also may have had kind of like a party spirit, and he may have gotten inflated with his success. actually decided to taunt his peers. Taunt his peers? Taunt his peers. And being called into the Abbott's office, he could have been really, really scared shitless. He could have been maturing through this whole process. There could have been great remorse when he went to the temple treasury at the end of the story, turned in some money, and at the end of it, probably, I'm never going to do that again.
[76:33]
That would have made a good story too. It's a different story. But he sacrificed himself in front of the monastery. Yeah. If he had stayed, pathetic jealousies probably would have been totally disrupted in the function of the community. So he, not being invested in his image, of course, he just played it out. And it graciously led him to want to leave. He was saved, literally. Yeah. He didn't care. I think that's a good way of expressing it. Yeah, complete non-defensiveness.
[77:40]
Just leaving yourself really open and not defending yourself. That's the really hard part. So you have to go through the whole thing in order for it to come out, right? That's, you know, when you read Dogen, you can sum up Dogen, you know, you can say, oh, well, that fanciful was like, blah, blah, blah. But Dad doesn't get it. You can sum it up and kind of understand it, but until you go through the whole thing and come out the other side, you don't really get it. Yeah, that's right.
[78:43]
Well, Hakuin, this is the way the story goes. There was a young girl in the village who had a boyfriend and got pregnant. And she didn't want to say who the father was. And her father was very angry and, you know, who is this person? It was the priest. The father takes the baby and gives it to Hagwin and he says, here, this is yours. And Hagwin says, is that so? And he takes the baby and takes care of the baby for a couple of years and some period of time. And then the girl feels kind of remorseful and she confesses, you know, that it was really the boy. And the father sheepishly goes back to And he says, the baby doesn't belong to you.
[79:54]
And I go, is that so? But also, the other priest kind of said, boy, that Ahakuan, you know, fathering that baby boy, you know. So they were giving the hard time to people. Yeah, if people believed that, they'd be messed up. Which makes a great story, but I believe in DNA. I don't see, I've seen a little changing from the others. They do make good stories, but they seem a little bit, something added. Why not just be simple and say, here's the account, make up your mind? I don't have to defend myself. Here's the account, you know, make up your mind. That's your way of handling it. That's your way of handling it. Yeah, you make sure it's all story. It wouldn't be as good a story. It also sometimes doesn't work. like when we talked about it before. I thought before you thanked me about at the end of this, everything was extremely clear.
[81:05]
It was an important point to make. And in the long sum of lines, I'm thinking that Hockling's behavior and this moment's behavior was an incredible teaching behavior. At the end of it, everybody who is connected, everybody who is present, and everybody who hears about this for centuries afterwards, has, you know, it's like the end of the teaching. That's right. It's obvious. He's not just defending himself. He's expressing the Dharma. That's right. That's the big difference. And I think that in his behavior, In his behavior, what I see in his behavior is sort of the hope that people will awaken. And in particular, with this transaction with the abbot, I sense that, that he really hoped that the abbot would awaken on the basis of his behavior.
[82:12]
That's right. Well, all of that I accept, but I also get a sense of one-upmanship in this story, that in a way he's saying, well, I'm really going to show these guys. I'm really going to get the better of them in the end by acting out this behavior. Well, I'm not so sure if that's so. You can read that into it, but I'm not sure if that's so. Because he didn't know at the end what it was going to be. He had no idea what the end was going to be. There was no calculation in it at all. He didn't expect that it would come out this way. He was just doing what he thought was the right thing. I think that's the difficulty of us reading these stories afterwards. And so I think even your work, Terry's version, we don't know what he felt. we have the facts passed down, but he might have been scared, and still he was doing that, and that was the outcome.
[83:19]
But to think because this outcome he was planning on... But that's not the story. No, but I mean, with all these stories, it's our difficulty because we have the story and the outcome, and then, you know, we don't look at... it's hard to look at the story you know, go step by step without knowing the outcome, which that person did. That's right. Yeah, it's easy for us to look at the overall thing and say, oh, why didn't he do this and that? You know, because we can see the beginning and the end. That's right. He can only see one step at a time. We don't know how much they saw. That's exactly right. That's exactly right. Yes? Along those lines, in the case of Hakuin, you know, there was no way Hakuin could have known. That's right. He didn't know. That's right. And so he was faced not only with the burden of raising a child, but also dispraise of the father and discrediting within the community.
[84:26]
That's right. So there was no blame. There was no discrimination. Nothing. It's just, oh, this is it. This is what, OK. And no way of knowing how it was going to turn out. Absolutely no. No way. Yes? You know, as long as we're true to the story, what I thought when I heard, yes, yes, is that when he was practicing giving farmers wine and entertaining the babes, he could come back and say, yes, yes, because he saw the dharma. Because he saw the... He could see dharma. He could see the dharma. So, even though he's being accused of doing something wrong, he could come back and say, yes, yes. Well, it's an interesting story, and it has a lot of morals. It's time to go to bed.
[85:28]
In the hour of the...
[85:59]
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