Good morning. Good morning. Good morning. Can you hear everybody? No. That's better. That should be better. Okay. Well, welcome to our opening session today for our spring practice period, which will begin with 3.30 or 4 this afternoon with the entering ceremony for our head student, our shuso for the practice period, Marie Hopper. What's your daughter's name? Kisen Hoshin. Kisen Hoshin. Beautiful name. So I want to talk about this a bit, about our practice period, and a bit about our shuso.

[01:10]

I want to start by reading a... This was Suzuki Roshi's spring message in 19... in 1967 at Sokoji Temple, Japan, I mean in San Francisco. He said, real human happiness is not at all obtained by the removal of every difficulty. If it were, it would be a bloodless, dull, and wintry sort of time thing. I'm sorry. And then he recites a poem. To the person who is just waiting for blossoms, I want to show spring in the grasses among the snow.

[02:16]

And then Tsukiroshi has a comment on this poem. He says, the grass among the snow holds the quickening of spring within itself. This is not the dreary cold stillness of winter, but the stillness of light and warmth held within the wintry world." So this makes me think about the spring flowers and the wintry world. the wintry world holding the warmth and nourishment of spring within itself. So, to further think about this poem, this comment, on each moment our life holds the next moment The death of this life holds the life of the next moment within itself.

[03:24]

And the life of this moment holds the death of this moment within itself. And the death of this moment holds the life of the next moment within itself. So we should be able to appreciate the space between these two moments, the stillness of the space between birth and death on each moment. This is our zazen and our practice. So this brings me to this list of practices that I always post every time we have a practice period. And the essence of all these practices is embodied in this poem, in this commentary of Suzuki Roshi, how we live moment to moment.

[04:43]

During this practice period, the class that we have will be Dogen Zenji's Genjo Koan, how our life proceeds moment by moment from sasen. So I'm just going to read you a little passage of Suzuki Roshi in this book, Dogen Dogen's Genjo Koan, three commentaries, one of which is Suzuki Roshi. He says, Zen Buddhists were very serious about their way of life and the people's way of life.

[05:52]

In other words, people who are not just monks. They revised the Indian precepts. In India, they could practice Zazen all day long because the monks were supported entirely by the people. After they finished their household life, they became monks and their children supported them. But Chinese monks supported themselves and could not sit all day long. Whatever they did should be Zen. So they adapted the practice more to everyday life. Chinese Zen was more practical. They knew how to apply Zen in everyday life. How to apply Zen in everyday life is not difficult. If we live in each moment, that is Zen. Whether you are sitting or working, living in each moment is Zen. Zen is in our everyday life. You may say the Indian way was rather lazy, not active enough.

[06:53]

Indian Zen emphasized many of some mysterious states of mind, but in China they emphasized direct experience. In this way, Buddhist philosophy was actualized in Zen practice. The oneness of Zazen practice as everyday activity was brought to society So Zen is the source of the philosophy, and the art, and the source of art, and the source of religious life. So that's part of his introduction, at the end of his introduction to Genjo Goan. So in our practice here, practice period brings us focuses, gives us a focus. Our spring practice period gives us a focus for our practice to give us a renewal of our practice for the rest of the year.

[08:06]

And then next year we'll have another practice period to renew our, give us a new focus and impetus to practice for the next year. So we do this once a year. Actually, we do it twice a year. We have an aspects of practice in the fall, which leads us into the winter. And then in the spring, we have our spring practice period, which brings us out of this. Of course, we don't Winter is still winter. And so this is renewing our life, renewing our practice. That's the purpose of our spring practice period. And since we're during the year, there's a kind of graph. During practice period, we have this

[09:12]

fade off because we start to collect a lot of stuff on our empty table. During practice period we kind of empty ourselves out and then we begin to collect things again. Collect mind structures and objects and various activities, worldly activities. So then when we have the practice period we let go of a lot of that instead of over again, so that we keep our mind fresh and clear and clean, our mind and body clear, clean and fresh. This is the essence of Suzuki Roshi's practice and the essence of Dogen's practice, which they have so nicely bestowed on us, just how to keep clean, how to keep our mind and the body clean and clear continuously.

[10:23]

This is what sasheen is about. So as we sit sasheen, little by little, the gross goes to the bottom and the mind becomes clear and clean. And we can start and enter each moment with a clear, clean mind. even though a lot of stuff goes by. But without clinging to it, we keep our mind clear. So I just want to talk about some of the practices which we can focus on. And I'm thinking that if you just take one practice, or one or two practices, and really use those practices, focus on those practices that will help you keep your mind clear.

[11:26]

So, I'm going to start with Dogen calls practice period peaceful and harmonious abiding with all things. That's what practice period means. ongoing, keeping your mind, keeping peaceful and harmonious abiding. If you were in a monastery, it's more peaceful and harmonious surroundings, but we're practicing peaceful and harmonious abiding in the midst of worldly affairs. It's much more difficult, much more difficult, and we can only give ourselves so much And we have so many obstacles. So the obstacle course of peaceful abiding is where we exist. I once gave a talk when I was talking about these road bumps.

[12:37]

You go down certain residential streets You drive down those residential streets, and they have road bumps, so that you don't have to go slow. You can't go any... If you go too fast, you know, you're going to hear all the stuff in your trunk going... So, you have to go slowly over the road bumps. So, that's one practice, is go slowly over the road bumps of your life, which is also called patience. Patience is the ability to be where you are without anxiety, without wishing for the next moment. We think of patience as waiting for something. That's also patience. But the patience to cultivate is the patience to be where we are without moving into the next moment too quickly.

[13:43]

And we have something next to do. That next thing occupies our mind before we're finished with the present thing that we're doing. So how to be able to have calm mind, be centered, and just pay attention to the one thing that's present now. And then next the next thing will be the present now, and then the next thing after that will be the present now. But how to not move out of the present now into the next moment before it arrives? So this is a problem we have in the age of anxiety. The age of anxiety is the age in which we now live.

[15:01]

When you're having a conversation with somebody, or you're moving with someone or just addressing someone, how to have a beginning, middle and end that's complete. and have a conversation, and before you know it, we're thinking about the next moment. And what's next? Oh yeah, I have to do that. And so we don't end completely this moment's activity. Begin the activity, have the middle, and then end. One nice way of ending is to bow. That's a kind of finality. rather than leaving something undone. And then we have a moment's pure activity, a moment of reality, which is not simply driven by mental construction.

[16:10]

How to actually be, because mental construction tends to want to go on to the next thing. How to stay with the present activity until it ends. So that's a practice that we all can be doing. So then there's the practice of finding the right rhythm and making adjustments, which centers around balancing and integrating your zazen and the activities of your daily life. You know, I think of the rhythm

[17:15]

In a monastery, there are various bones which create the structure of the practice. You get up in the morning, there's zazen, there's service, there's breakfast, there's study, there's more zazen and so forth. These are the bones of the practice. They're the structure. So how do you structure your life? What are the bones of your practice life without being in the monastery? The bones of practice life are get up in the morning, stretch. How many of you stretch? How many of you take 15 minutes or more to stretch when you get up in the morning? Every day. Good. You know, we have a sangha of people that have been practicing 40, 30, 20, 10, 5 years steadily.

[18:30]

And believe it or not, they're getting older. We're getting older. So we have to take care of ourselves. And stretching is because the body, when you get older, that's another graph. When we're younger, we start going, you know, we're flying, going up. And then at some point, we start going the other way. And when you're going this way, it's called growth. And when you're going this way, it's called demise. So when you start going this way, the body and mind, maybe, contract. When you're going this way, they expand. And when it's going this way, it contracts. And unless you keep stretching as you're going downhill, you're going to lose it.

[19:38]

You have to keep expanding, even though you're going against the grain. so to speak. You can just keep going that way and fine. But if you want to practice, you have to extend yourself. You have to, every day, you have to extend yourself. People get smaller as they get older. People just get smaller and smaller, unless they expand. Unless you exert good posture, stretch your body, in very fundamental ways. And exercise. Keep walking. There's something called power walking, which is simply moving your arms while you walk. And if you do that, you find your walking becomes more vital and aerobic.

[20:43]

It's very simple. You don't have to do anything extra. You don't need any tools. The body has its own weights and balances, and if you know how to work with the weights and balances of your body parts, then you stay healthy and alive. Because I see a lot of people who are older, I've been practicing a long time, kind of backing off, you know, because, well, it takes effort to keep going. It takes effort to keep going. So I encourage all you oldies to not let old age slow you down. You have to work. But the work is your life, you know. Why give up? to sit-ups, which can be crunches.

[22:08]

You know, we call them crunches or sit-ups, which not only strengthens your abdomen, but helps the blood to circulate through your organs. When you do this, the center is here, and you're pushing the blood through your organs. And that's what keeps your organs healthy. So I highly recommend that. So there are the bones of practice, and then there is the flesh of practice, and the blood of practice, the thought of practice, and the activities of practice. structure of your practice every day.

[23:09]

Every morning I will get up, and every morning I will stretch. Certain mornings I will come to Zazen at the Zen Dome, if I can, what works for me. Then I'll go to work, or I'll go to school, or I'll, you know, whatever you do. That's your work. In the monastery, the work is sitting zazen, study, and so forth. But the work of a layperson is you sit zazen, and then you go to work. And in the milieu of work practice, or school practice, or whatever you do, that's your daily practice. It's not just earning money. This is how you live your life. your life in a vital way every single day. So, finding the right rhythm.

[24:14]

There's also personal practice and extending personal practice. When you come to the Zen Do, it looks like personal practice, and it is personal practice, but you're also supporting all the other people that are practicing with you. So you're extending yourself. to all the people that are practicing with you. And by extension, offering your practice to the world. Then when you go out of the zendo, you carry that light into your practice place. So that you're practicing all the time. Continuous practice. It's not, now I'm doing it, now I'm not. No, this is not practice. That's called enlightenment. Enlightenment is when you know you're not practicing.

[25:15]

Or this is not practice. That's enlightenment. So then, when you go out into the world, that's the flesh of practice. And then the blood of practice is how your energy circulates and is extended to wherever you are. And then the thought of practice is called mindfulness. You're always aware, this is practice. You may not be aware this is practice, but you're aware this is not practice. Because if you keep thinking, oh, this is practice, this is practice, that's not good either. Suzuki Roshi used to say, you just come and sit zazen in the morning, and then you leave and forget about it.

[26:17]

You just do your activity. But you do your activity totally. You're totally one with the activity that's being present on each moment. for yourself, during practice period, to limit activities which you're just kind of flirting with. Are they on the fringe? What are the basic activities of my life? To really focus on that. Focus on your family. Family practice. During this practice is going to be the head student. When I was at Tassajara practice period, I did share that with the abbot, Steve Stuckey, last year.

[27:21]

And our shuso, we chose, was a mother of a one-year-old child. Her husband, the wonderful priest, he took care of the child, and he did the practice of taking care of the child. She did the practice of sitting zazen all the time and doing the schedule and giving wonderful talks. It was quite impressive. And so I don't have a problem here. I think this is kind of an expansive aspect of our practice because Marie has two children pretty rambunctious. Their practice is vitality. And she wants to include mothers and families in some way.

[28:25]

And I think that's great. So we haven't figured that out exactly, some of it. But I think we just have to go along and help see how things are going and make it up as we go along. I like that idea. So, this is like taking care of family as a practice. Taking care of children as a practice. Our practice is quasi-monastic and it's never really worked too well. as a focus, family and children. So, I think this is a nice opportunity. So, one aspect of our practice, I started to talk about this and I got sidetracked, but one side of our practice is coding to the Zen Do and personal practice.

[29:29]

And then the other side is extending that to others. So it's not just my practice. It's not my practice, it's Buddha's practice. So, how would Buddha do this? Actually, it's not how would Buddha do this, it's how is Buddha doing this? You think, oh, there was a Buddha in the past. How can I set an example for myself? example of practice. That's the main thing. Because we choose someone who is enthusiastic about practice and has practiced for a good number of years and done a good number of positions. And now having two children, you think, well, that's the end.

[30:35]

But actually, I took her out of there to beat youself. It was quite unexpected. She went, oh, really? Yes, really. So we should all, I want us all to support her. And I know she's, we can't help supporting her because her enthusiasm is so overflowing for practice that it's contagious. So we set an example for ourselves. She will set an example for herself. And we'll all be lit up by it. So there's something else about practice period, is that we have a class. And in the class, we'll be studying Dogen's Ginjo Koan. And I would like you, if you're in that class, to be prepared.

[31:43]

I want you to study the material, so that when you come to class, you'll be familiar with it. So, otherwise, I just end up giving a lecture. So, now, there are... When I was giving a commentary on Dogen's Ginja Koan, there was only one commentary. that was worthwhile using, which is Maezumi Roshi's commentary, which I still think is great, and which I will issue to everybody in the class. And then there's the new translations and commentaries by Nishirin Bokusan, three Japanese, Nishirin Bokusan, Suzuki Roshi, and Uchiyama Roshi. So I will also, we will also use Nishihari Bokusan's commentary, along with Maezumi Rushi's commentary.

[32:49]

And now there's so many commentaries that it's, you know, we have to limit ourselves. So you can read whatever you want, but in a class it would just be those two. So this other practice is to practice with the intention of not being pulled around by karma. Not being pulled around by karma or circumstances. Sometimes we find ourselves in certain circumstances and we don't know how we got there, but it's because of our karma. because of our actions which produce results. So, to be able to, without reacting, to respond to circumstances.

[33:50]

By responding to circumstances, instead of reacting to circumstances, we have the ability or the positioning to not be caught by circumstances or being careful not to create actions which will bind us. So, when we get angry, to stop. And anger will come up It does come up. Anger comes up, lust comes up, all kinds of emotions and feelings and thoughts come up. But then to step back and say, should I continue with this? Gives us a choice.

[34:51]

If we simply react, we get caught. Not always, but generally when we react to anger, with anger, with lust or with envy or whatever. If we react, then we get caught by what it is that we're angry about. We get caught by the other side. So if we step back and consider and respond, then that gives us a choice. Responding instead of reacting. Responding means that I'm giving myself the opportunity to not get caught by my emotion. It's fine to have my emotion, but if I want to indulge in it, if I want to dive into the braided carpets of emotion, you'll find my bones 5,000 years from now.

[36:04]

So, be careful. Just be careful. That's called mindfulness. Be careful not to get caught by emotion thought, it's called. Technically it's called emotion thought. Either by our emotions or by our thought constructions. Have some perspective on things. In other words, save yourself. So, this all boils down to being centered. Not self-centered, but Buddha-centered. Settle on your Buddha, which is right here. This is where Buddha is. Right here, just below your navel. That's where Buddha is. center of gravity.

[37:13]

Joshi Sasaki, he's now 105, he says, Buddha is the center of gravity. I love that. So that's where we settle. And you don't get pushed off to the right or the left or back or forth. And this is demonstrated by Zazen. Sit up straight. Don't lean to the left or the right, forward or backward. Just sit up straight. And if you can't do that, sit up as straight as you can. We have to be able to... We have the ideal. The ideal of Zazen posture. We get Zazen instruction. This is the ideal of Zazen posture. But actually, not everybody can do that. So you have to modify your Sazen according to what you can do. And that's correct. That's absolutely correct.

[38:22]

So even though I sometimes go around in correct posture, it may not be fitting for you. So I try anyway. And if it doesn't work, I just let it go. Because you're finding your own way. But I have to teach the ideal. And when you're sitting in a chair, there's a way to sit that works. If you can't sit, at the end, you can lie down. There's no way that you can't sit zazen. But zazen also goes without effort. It's not just relaxing. It's making the total dynamic activity of your body-mind, the zenki of your body-mind, which means exerting your effort and at the same time letting go.

[39:26]

Letting go, there's a kind of relaxation, but it's more like release than relaxation. If I say relaxation, you go... That's not relaxation. That's not what I mean. It means effort and ease at the same time. As much ease as there is effort, so that these two sides balance each other perfectly. So in sansatana, you're looking for the balance. And when you find the balance, the effort is effortless. But until you exert the effort to do that, it's not effortless. and you're always looking for the balance. And when you find the balance, you can sit easily no matter what's going on. And it's the same in our daily life. It's exactly the same in our daily life as in Zazen. Suzuki Roshi says, we receive Buddha's teaching through Zazen, which I totally believe.

[40:34]

We receive Buddha's So they're hearing the texts and the lectures and all this, but the teaching is actually transmitted from Buddha to us through Zazen. And if you understand that, then you see how it extends to your daily life. This is why when we do sit satsang, we should offer ourselves completely, without reservation. If you have reservation, you can't do it. It has to be unreserved. Then your whole body and mind is totally one with your activity. So we should always be aware of our breath, and our posture all the time.

[41:42]

If I ask you, walking down the street and I stop you and say, where is your breath? Somewhere. You should be able to say, it's right here. My breathing is right here. Always. When you feel it up here, you know that that's not correct. because you're not allowing the breath to flow through your whole body. And so you get stopped. And the only part, it's only partial oxygen. When you're running, you don't breathe up here. When you notice little kids who have not yet been conditioned, hardly conditioned, Their breath is always here. When you watch their tummy, you go... You don't breathe up here. Unless they're traumatized or something.

[42:45]

But naturally, their breathing is always here. And then as we grow up, we become traumatized. We become conditioned. And our conditioning determines our posture and our breathing. up straight, or standing up straight all the time, or are aware of their posture all the time. My son, Daniel, when he was a little kid, used to always criticize me. Dad, why are you slumping? And my teacher, why are you watching TV? Why are you eating Mexican food? Yeah. You know, I have my problems.

[43:56]

And he's always pointing them out. Both me and my wife, of course. My Zen masters. Two Zen masters. So, we have to pay attention to people's criticisms. They may be wrong, but they may be right. Whether they're wrong or right, it helps us. So when somebody criticizes us, of course we get angry. But it's a gift. Medicine is a gift. Good medicine is a gift. And we should allow ourselves to be criticized. And right or wrong, thank you. This is a practice that I give to people sometimes. And you can do this. When someone criticizes you and it hurts, say, thank you very much, without being facetious. So that's a really good practice of letting go of self.

[45:08]

So letting go of self, being present on each moment, moment by moment, and letting go of the past moment, Not worrying about the next moment, but letting everything flow. It will, if you can do it. And then, why isn't it flowing? Well, because I want too much. So, Four Noble Truths. Why am I suffering? Because I want too much. It's simple. So, you may say, well, he's not a good example, but what he says is correct.

[45:58]

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