So this evening, I want to go through Park Geun-jin's commentary on what he calls five ranks. And tonight, I'm going to give myself the liberty of calling these positions whatever I like. No leaping. Especially since the translation refers to the positions as the five ranks. And if you get out your copies, you can follow it. Hakuen, of course, as you all know, Hakuen was in the 18th century in Japan and he revived

[01:16]

In the history of Zen, there have been periods where various schools have almost died out, and then miraculously can come back to life. And this has happened several times to the Soto school, and several times to the Renzai school. And the Soto and Renzai schools are the two surviving of the five schools of Chan in China, which survived in Japan. and survived to this day. And this is one of them, this Tsao Dung or Soto school. And Hakuen was a parent of the Rinzai school in Japan. And he was a really big figure in Japan, Japanese Zen. he revived the Rinzai school and systematized the koan study.

[02:32]

He did it by systematizing the koan study. And when he did that, he used the five ranks, which are called the go-i koan, go-i as koans. Go means five. ranks. So they're called the Go-I Koans and they're epitomized, the epitome of, he calls it the epitome of Zen, is in the Go-I Koans. So this is the highest form of Koan study actually in the Rinzai school, is to study the Go-I Koans. even though actually the precepts are the end of koan study in the Ren's High School.

[03:33]

They don't study the precepts until the end of their system. We don't have a systematic koan study in the Soto School, although we do study koans, but not in a systematic way. And of course our major koan is Genjo Koan, Dogen's Genjo Koan, which includes the essence of all koans. And we practice Genjo Koan moment to moment in our lives. And Genjo Koan is not different from the five positions. As a matter of fact, if we understand the five positions, we'll understand the meaning of genjo koan. You look like you're puzzled.

[04:35]

I don't know about genjo koan. Well, we studied it last practice period, I think, or the one before that, in this room. You were sitting right there. Maybe you weren't there when we studied the Piyanjo-Koan. Anyway, I apologize if you weren't there. If you want to know about the Piyanjo-Koan, You can read, a good commentary to read is The Way of Everyday Life by Maizumi Roshin, by L.A. Zen Center. In this, in Hakuin's exposition of the five ranks of the apparent and the real, gou yi, wu wei, in Chinese wu wei, Hakuin lays out a little bit of his history.

[06:15]

and many references. And before, he actually gets to talking about each one of the ranks. If you've read this, you'll see that. And so as we go along, I want to comment on some of the references that he makes, some of which are pretty important, actually. So I'll read the text and make my commentary on it. Because I'm going to start here where it says the five ranks, not the first three paragraphs of the page, but where it says, the five ranks of the Ascendant and the Real, the orally transmitted secret teachings of the monk who read Ananto. This word secret could be misleading. This kind of teaching,

[07:18]

you know, it was usually reserved for the monks, and often reserved for those monks who the teacher felt an affinity with. So it's not usually, in this kind of teaching in the past, it was more like private teaching. And the kind of teaching that you keep within the family style, and you don't just print it up so everybody can bandy it about. So it has that feeling of concern that it doesn't get misused or misconstrued. So it's not exactly secret, but it's more like something that you don't just show to everybody.

[08:21]

But nowadays, the five ranks is the property of everyone, and this is the way things usually go after time. At one time it was the property of the Soto school, and then it became the property of the Rinzai school, and now it's public knowledge. So he says, we do not know by whom the jewel-mirrored samadhi was composed. He starts out talking about the jewel-mirrored samadhi. He doesn't start out talking about the five ranks, but he talks about the jewel-mirrored samadhi. We do not know by whom the jewel-mirrored samadhi was composed. From Sekito Osho, Yakusan Osho and Ungan Osho, it was transmitted from master to master and handed down within the secret room. Never have its teachings been willingly disclosed until now.

[09:29]

After it had been transmitted to Tozan Osho, he made clear the gradations of the five ranks within it. So as I explained the other night, the five ranks is the heart of the Hokyo Zamai. or the Jewel Mirror Samadhi, and composed a verse for each rank in order to bring out the main principle of Buddhism. Surely the five ranks is a torch on the midnight rope, a ferry boat at the riverside when one has lost one's way. But alas, the Zen gardens of recent times are desolate and barren, directly pointing to the ultimate Zen, is regarded as nothing but benightedness and foolishness. And that supreme treasure of the Mahayana, the jewel-bearer Samadhi's five ranks of the apparent and the real, is considered to be only the old and broken vessel of an antiquated house."

[10:31]

He's talking about the Soto school. It's like, at that time, he used to criticize the Soto school unrelentingly. And so very likely the Sota school at that time was rather degenerate. And he really filed on, he has some treatises which are quite cruel, actually. So he says that, don't some people think that this is just considered to be the old, the work of the old broken-down vessel of an antiquated house. No one pays any attention to it. Today's students are like blind men who have thrown away their staffs, calling them useless baggage. For themselves, they stumble and fall into the mud of heterodox views and cannot get out until death overtakes them.

[11:39]

They never know that the five ranks of the ship that carries him across the poisonous sea surrounding the rank of the real, the precious wheel that demolishes the impregnable prison house of the two voids." He's kind of echoing the Sixth Patriarch in the Platform Sutra where he's talking about the ship that carries one across. The Sixth Patriarch has a poem in the Platform Sutra where he talks about the Mahayana and the practice of the non-dual ship that carries one across the sea of vexation. So he's saying that the five ranks are the vessel that carries them across the poisonous sea surrounding the rank of the real, the precious wheel that demolishes the impregnable prison house of the two voids,

[12:42]

two voids, it's a little uncertain about what he's saying there, but it means that dharmas are void, all dharmas are empty, and all people are empty. But that one should not be attached to that view. Say, you know, the Heart Sutra says, All dharmas in their own being are empty. And all skandhas, or skandhas actually are humans. Five skandhas is another term for human being. Five skandhas are empty and all dharmas are empty. But it shouldn't be attached to that view, even though it's correct. They did not know the important road of progressive practice.

[13:49]

They are not versed in the secret meaning within this teaching. Therefore, they sink into the stagnant water of Srilaka-hood or Prachikabuddha-hood. They fall into the black pit of withered sprouts and decayed seeds. Even the hand of Buddha would find it difficult to see. into that which I was initiated 40 years ago." Now he starts to talk about he and his teacher. He says, into that, no, no, that into which I was initiated 40 years ago in the room of Shouju, that's Shouju Rojin, his teacher, I shall now dispense as the almsgiving of dharma. I'm going to tell you what happened when I was with my teacher. When I find a superior person who is studying the true and profound teaching and has experienced the great death, I shall give this secret transmission to him, since it was not designed for men of medium and lesser ability.

[14:51]

Take heed and do not treat it lightly. Yes? Can I ask you a question about one of these lines? Yes. You do not know the important road of progressive practice. Is that a koan statement? Yeah. I would assume that he means Koan practice. Or here, you know, there's a tendency here to treat the five ranks as progressive practice. I think that's what he's actually talking about. That kind of progression. Because when he comments on the ranks, positions. He does so in a progressive manner. But we shouldn't be attached to the progressive manner that he presents. That's one way of presenting it. So anyway, I think that's what he's talking about.

[15:55]

The great death is like body and mind falling away. Dogen's body-mind falling away. He'll allude to this a little more. It's like the ability that when one experiences the great death, one is reborn. And the dual mirror samadhi becomes their mode, actually How vast is the expanse of the sea of the doctrine? How many-fold are the gates of the teaching? Among these, to be sure, are a number of doctrines and orally transmitted secret teachings. Yet never have I seen anything to equal the perversion of the five ranks." He's not talking about the five ranks as being perverse.

[16:58]

He's talking about the way people have perverted them. The carping criticism, the tortuous explanations, the adding of branch to branch, the piling up of entanglement upon entanglement. The truth is that the teachers who are guilty of this did not know for what principle the five ranks was instituted. Hence, they confuse and bewilder their students to the point that even a Shariputra or an Ananda would find it difficult to judge correctly. So this is, when I was talking the other night, that the five ranks came to such a state of perversion or distortion, I would say, through commentaries that they were dropped altogether for a long time from being transmitted as teaching.

[17:59]

for various reasons. So that's what he's talking about. Or could it be that our patriarchs delivered themselves of these absurdities in order to harass their posterity unnecessarily? For a long time I wondered about this. But when I came to enter the room of Shouju, the rhinoceros of my previous doubt suddenly fell down dead. Do not look with suspicion upon the five ranks, saying that it is not the directly transmitted oral teaching of the Tozan line. You should know that it was only after he had completed his investigation of Tozan's verses that Shouju, his teacher, gave his acknowledgment to the five ranks. Well, he must have thought a lot of his teacher. His teacher acknowledged it, so it must be right. But we would think the same thing. After I had entered Shouju's room, and received the transmission from him, I was quite satisfied.

[19:06]

But though I was satisfied, I still regretted that all teachers had not yet clearly explained the meaning of the reciprocal interpenetration of the apparent and the real. This refers to the lines, I believe, refers to the lines in the Hokyo Zanmai where it says, Like the six lines of the double-split hexagram, the relative and absolute integrate. So this is like the overall integration. They seem to have discarded the words reciprocal interpenetration and to pay no attention whatever to them. Thereupon the rhinoceros of doubt once more raised its head. In the summer of the first year of the Kahn-N era, 1748 to 1751, three years, in the midst of my meditation, suddenly the mystery of the reciprocal interpenetration of the apparent and the real became perfectly clear.

[20:16]

It was just like looking at the palm of my own hand. The rhinoceros of doubt instantly fell down on me. Scarcely feel the joy of it. Scarcely bear the joy of it. Although I wished to hand it on to others, I was ashamed to squeeze out my old woman's stinking milk and soiled the monk's mouth with it. All of you who wish to plumb this deep source must make the investigation in secret with your entire body. My own toil has extended over these 30 years, do not take this to be an easy task. Even if you should happen to break up the family and scatter the household, do not consider this enough. You must vow to pass through seven or eight or even nine thickets of brambles. And when you have passed through the thickets of brambles, still do not consider this to be enough.

[21:21]

Vow to investigate the secret teachings of the five ranks to the end. Anybody in the brambles? What's that? Do you want to do? Oh, yes. Yes, in fact, it's true. So reciprocal interpenetration is what we translate as integration. Yeah, reciprocal interpenetration. It means, yeah, where it says here, the relative and absolute integrate. Just simpler, more simple language. Okay. And that breaking up the family and scattering the household, is that in reference to the sangha? That means becoming a monk.

[22:23]

Leaving home and going to the monastery. Even if you leave home, it's just the way of saying it. For the past eight or nine years or more, I have been trying to incite all of you who boil your daily gruel over the same fire with me to study this great matter thoroughly. But more often than not, you've taken it to be the doctrine of another house. It's our doom. And remained indifferent to it. Only a few among you have attained an understanding of it. How deeply this grieves me. Have you never heard, the gates of dharma are manifold? I vow to enter them all. Monks in those days were they sincere people seeking the way or the spiritual?

[23:25]

in monasteries, the way I understand it is young men very early go to a monastery and are trained and they leave the monastery. I mean, this is way back when. Anybody who was in a monastery was truly... In a monastery? I mean, well, seeking the Lord. Devoted to the Way 100%. There have always been all kinds of people in monasteries. So... Well, more so, in different times in history, though, it's been more... In different times in history, it's been different. But if you try to say, if you... well, you know, if you try to say that there's a time when everybody, the golden time, you know, when everybody who was in a monastery was on 100%, you know, I don't think that's ever been true. I don't think that's ever been true. I think there are many reasons why people went into monasteries throughout the ages. And often, in the beginning of some movement, there are a lot of sincere people.

[24:33]

Only the sincere people do it, right? But then as the monastery gets older and the school goes through many changes, sometimes people come because food is good. Or because when I say the food is good, it means there's no food anywhere else. And it's a kind of refuge for people. So there have been all kinds of monks. There always will be all kinds of monks. And some will be of the highest quality and caliber. And some will just be there to feed themselves. Because, you know, they don't have to cook for themselves. It's not like the kids. You always have this range of people, of types of people in monasteries. But the monks that went into those monasteries were all celibate. And they were all ordained.

[25:34]

Mostly ordained. Actually, 6th Patriarch was not ordained until after he left the monastery and came back 15 years later and got ordained by the abbot who recognized or layperson when he got the transmission. But he's saying right here, you know, he's saying, where are all the people, you know? They're not around. Sometimes the monastery is full of people who really want the Dharma, and sometimes the monastery is just empty, you know? So, I understand what you're saying, but I don't think there's ever a time when it's just a lot of people who want to Dharma. Well, probably my wording of the question was what I was thinking more of when it was more conventional, where young people would go in for so long and train, and in that regard it would

[26:48]

were true, just noxious in a way, then, you know, it's like, you just do that for two years out of your life and you go on and do something else. Yeah, I see what you're saying. Mostly the nox were permanent nox. But still, anything you say doesn't hold. You know, when I think about that, yeah, but Nothing holds. Well, that's what happens when I ask my questions, and I guess there's no way to ask questions that... There's no one answer for anything. There's no one answer. I mean, I know that, but it's so confusing. It's hard. Then how do people ask questions? You know, how do you ask questions? Well, I think all these questions are good. Oh, I'm sorry. I'm not... if I'm sounding... Strong, I'm not meaning to sound strong at you.

[27:59]

You just think of what you want to know and then you ask the question. But my response is that I can't answer that question in any definitive way. When I think about it, everything I think about as how it would be just kind of crumbles when I think that this is the way it is, or was. So that's all I'm saying. So where were we? He says, for the past eight years, I've gotten... How much more should this be true for the main principle of Buddhism in the essential world or something? I think it's worth noting what a character this guy is. What's his name?

[29:00]

Hako. He's this very individual guy, and he doesn't seem very friendly. Like if he met somebody from the Soto sect, he'd probably think he was a bum or something like that. That's right. And he also says, waiting for the one or two people who he could actually pass this on to, And this is more usual than the whole bunch of people around who pass this to transmit the teaching to you. So what he's doing here, he's not considering that transmitting the teaching, he's just sort of giving you a taste for encouragement to study or something? Yeah, he's giving you, that's right, this is like a kind of common care encouragement So Sojūrōjin, his teacher, had said, in order to provide a means whereby students might directly experience the Four Wisdoms, patriarchs, in their compassion and with their skill in devising expedience, first instituted the Five Ranks.

[30:19]

Now this is a very important thing that he's saying here. He's saying, in order to provide a means whereby the students might directly experience the Four Wisdoms. The patriarchs in their compassion and with their skill and devising expedience first instituted the Five Ranks. So the Five Ranks were instituted, he's saying, in order for the people to experience the Four Wisdoms. The Four Wisdoms would be... No, they're not there. So I want to talk a bit about the Four Wisdoms. I've talked about them before. Last year and the year before. It lists them out. Yeah, it lists them out. What are the so-called Four Wisdoms? They are the Great Perfect Mirror Wisdom, the Universal Nature Wisdom, the Marvelous Observing Wisdom, and the Perfecting of Action Wisdom.

[31:23]

When you talk about the Four Wisdoms, We usually talk about the Four Wisdoms in connection with the Eight Vijnanas, or the Eight Consciousnesses, and the Three Bodies. The Three Bodies are the Dharmakaya, Sambhogakaya, and the Manakaya. So every day in our meal chant we pay homage to the Dharmakaya, Sambhogakaya, and Manakaya. But we don't say anything about the eight wisdoms, the four wisdoms and the eight vijnanas. But tonight, we will. Followers of the Way, even though you may have pursued your studies in the threefold learning, anybody know what the threefold learning is? Followers of the Way, even though you may have pursued your studies in the threefold learning continuously through many kalpas, if you have not directly experienced the Four Wisdoms, you are not permitted to call yourselves true sons and daughters of Buddha.

[32:49]

Followers of the Way, if your investigation has been correct and complete, at the moment you smash open the dark cave of the eighth or alaya consciousness, the precious light of the Great Perfect Mirror of Wisdom instantly shines forth. But strange to say, the light of the Great Perfect Mirror of Wisdom is black, like lacquer. This is what is called the rank of the apparent within the real. That's the first rank. So then he goes He gives us a little taste of the ranks. Having attained the great perfect mirror wisdom, you now enter the rank of the real within the apparent. When you have accomplished your long practice of the jewel mirror samadhi, you directly realize the universal nature of wisdom and for the first time enter the state of the unobstructed inner penetration of noumenon and phenomena.

[33:53]

That's the absolute and the relative. But the disciple must not be satisfied here. He himself must enter into intimate acquaintance with the rank of coming from within the real. That's the third rank. After that, by depending upon the rank of the arrival of mutual integration, he will completely prove the marvelous observing wisdom and the perfecting of action wisdom. At last, he reaches the rank of unity attained, and after all, comes back to sediment, coal, and ashes. That's the fifth rank. So he's equating the four wisdoms with the five ranks. The four wisdoms are usually associated with the eight vijnanas and three bodies, but now he's associating them with the five ranks.

[34:54]

So, soon I will talk about the three bodies, the eight consciousnesses. But the disciple, oh yes, why, now do you know why pure gold that has gone through a thousand smeltings does not become ore a second time? My only fear is that a little gain will suffice you. How priceless is the merit gained through the step-by-step practice of the Five Ranks, of the apparent and the real? By this practice, you not only attain the Four Wisdoms, but you personally prove that the Three Bodies also are wholly embraced within your own body. Have you not read in the Daijo Shogun Gyōron, When the eight Consciousnesses are inverted, the four Wisdoms are produced. When the four Wisdoms are bowed together, the three bodies are perfected. Therefore, Soke Daishi... Soke Daishi is the Sixth Patriarch.

[35:59]

Daikon, you know. There we go. Therefore, Soke Daishi composed this verse. Your own nature is provided with the three bodies. When its brightness is manifested, the four Wisdoms are attained. He also said, the pure Dharmakaya is your nature. The perfect Sambhogakaya is your wisdom. The myriad Nirmanakayas are your activities. This brings us up to where he starts to talk about the first rank. And so, in the Platform Sutra, Sokedakshi, who we know, Daikon Eno, he has all these names, talks about the three bodies, the four prajnas, as they're called, prajna wisdom, and four aspects of prajna actually.

[37:13]

and the Eight Consciousnesses. So, I'll read you what he says. It's not too long. Biku Cherdung, a native of Xiaozhou of Anfeng, had read the Lankavatara Sutra a thousand times. A thousand times. When Bodhidharma came to China, it said that he had with him the Lankavatara Sutra. And that's what he asked people to study. He said, please study the Lankavatara Sutra. The Lankavatara Sutra is influenced by the Vijnanavada school, mind-only school, consciousness-only school, which propounded the model of the eight consciousnesses. and probably also brought forth the idea of the four wisdoms.

[38:22]

So this bhikkhu, Chiradunga, had read the Lankavatara Sutra a thousand times, but he could not understand the meaning of trakaya and the four prajnas. Trakaya is the three bodies of Buddha, the dharmakaya, the sambhogakaya, and the nirmanakaya. And he couldn't understand the meaning of the four prajnas either, which are the great round mirror wisdom, the equality wisdom, the observing wisdom, and the perfecting of action wisdom. They're called different things in this sutra. And thereupon he called on the patriarch for an interpretation.

[39:27]

So he says, As to the three bodies, explained the patriarch, the pure Dharmakaya is your essential nature, the perfect Sambhogakaya is your wisdom, and the myriad Nirmanakayas are your actions. You say the nirmanic buddha is the nirmanakaya buddha. In the old meal chant we used to say we pay homage to the innumerable nirmanakaya buddhas all over the world. Well, it got translated, you know, a different way. Somebody left it out. So each one of us is the nirmanakaya. Nirmanakaya means embodiment. Dharmakaya is the potential. It's like the energy. The ground.

[40:33]

And sambhogakaya is called the reward body. But through many lifetimes, Buddha has his reward body, and so it's called Sambhogakaya. But Suzuki Roshi explained it, he had a very detailed explanation of the three bodies. It was printed in the windmill many years ago. He described Sambhogakaya as more like the spirit of Buddha, not an actual somebody that you can put your finger on. What does he call it here? He says, your wisdom.

[41:40]

So it's like the Lotus Sutra It was obviously not spoken by Shakyamuni Buddha, but it was spoken by the Sambhogakaya Buddha. It was spoken by, through Buddha's wisdom. So, he says, as to the three bodies, explained the patriarch, the pure Dharmakaya, is your essential nature. The perfect sangbhogakaya is your wisdom. And the myriad nirmanakayas are your actions." So he's, you know, instead of putting it out there, he brings it back home, this quality. Whenever anybody talks about some quality, some doctrine in Buddhism, he always turns it around to the person. He says, these are your qualities, not

[42:42]

qualities out there. Avalokiteshvara is not somebody out there, but you are Avalokiteshvara, you are Manjushri. So he says, if you deal with these three bodies apart from the essence of mind � essence of mind is maybe another term for the first rank or the Absolute, your true mind, big mind, essence of mind. If you deal with these three bodies apart from the essence of mind, there would be bodies without wisdom. If you realize that these three bodies have no positive essence of their own, because they are only the properties of the essence of mind, you attain the bodhi of the four prajnas. to attain the wisdom of the Four Wisdoms. If you understand it, the three bodies are not apart from the essence of mind and are only characteristics.

[43:49]

So, Dharmakaya, Sambhogakaya, and Nirmalkaya are characteristics of the essence of mind, as well as the Four Prajnas, or the Four Wisdoms. You can't go out and get the Four Wisdoms. There's no place you can buy them. And there's no place you can go to get them because they are intrinsic in our essence of mind and only appear at the right time. So he says, listen to my stanza. The three bodies are inherent in our essence of mind, by development of which the four prajnas are manifested, the four wisdoms are manifested. Thus, without shutting your eyes and your ears to keep away from the external world, you may reach Buddhahood directly.

[44:54]

Now that I have made this plain to you, believe it firmly and you will be free from delusion forever. Don't follow those people who seek enlightenment from without. These people talk about Bodhi all the time, but they never find it. And so Chirad Dung asks, may I know something about the four prajnas? He says, if you understand the three bodies, you should understand the four prajnas as well. So your question is unnecessary. That's how you ask questions? That's how you ask questions? If you deal with the four prajnas apart from the three bodies, there will be prajnas without bodies, in which case they would not be prajnas. The patriarch then, out of another stanza, the mirror-like wisdom is pure by nature. Here's the word purity. The mirror-like wisdom is pure by nature. The equality wisdom frees the mind from all impediments.

[45:56]

He doesn't describe them, he's just kind of saying what they do. The all-discerning wisdom sees things intuitively without going through the process of reasoning. The all-performing wisdom has the same characteristics as the mirror-like wisdom. I think that's a bad translation, because the all-performing wisdom is actually the wisdom of the senses. I mean, of course it has the same characteristics as the mirror-like wisdom, but that's not the way to describe it. The first five vijnanas are consciousnesses. Now he's going to talk about the eight consciousnesses. Are you following all this? I'll make a diagram in a minute. He says the first five vijnanas, that is consciousness, depend respectively on the five senses. So I'll make a diagram.

[47:02]

I'm going to start from the bottom to the top, even though the hierarchy is the other way. So maybe I'll start with eye, ear, nose. Those are five... These are the first five consciousnesses, because these are the consciousnesses through the senses. Then, he says, the first five consciousnesses depend upon the five sense organs.

[48:08]

I think Jung called it the collective unconscious, which is not, the parallel is not exactly right, but it's, there's some, you can see the similarity in collective unconscious which, you know, all knowledge is stored there, everything is stored there. And it's stuff that we all know, whether we know it or don't know it. And all the seeds of memory go into the alaya vijnana. And at the right moment, when the seeds are watered, they sprout and habit energy is formed. The sixth consciousness is Manas.

[49:12]

That's mind consciousness. And this is the consciousness which discriminates the data coming in from the five sense consciousnesses. And by discriminating it makes sense and order and gives messages to the mind and the body. So this is what we ordinarily call mind. And in this model that you have, this is the seventh consciousness. So in this model, there are seven levels of consciousness. And the seventh consciousness is called the ego consciousness. This is consciousness of individual, individuation.

[50:13]

This is the level of consciousness in which we become self-conscious. So, neither of you seem progressive here? No. I mean, everything has some kind of progressive order, but this is hierarchical. This is vertical. It's not like... It's a model of the hierarchy of consciousness. The hierarchy in what way? Well, the hierarchy means the levels on which things work.

[51:23]

Right? The levels on which things work. In every object, in every phenomenal object, there is a hierarchy of parts, right? I don't know. You don't? Well, let's look at our body. There are the feet, and the legs, and the arms, and then there's the trunk, and the organs, and the head, and the brain, and so forth. And this is part of the hierarchy of the human being. hierarchy of parts. Some are called higher and some are called lower. Some are more important than others. Some are more important than others and everything has a different function. So it's not a judgmental hierarchy.

[52:25]

Right? Not a judgmental hierarchy. It's just hierarchy of the order of how things work. Okay? Yeah. Okay, so then I had a little problem with, as the Manas coming before the Manas, it would seem as though that first consciousness of ego, that first ego consciousness would be prior to discriminating consciousness. Well, they're all related in various ways. Manas is a kind of discriminating consciousness. They're both discriminating consciousnesses. They both discriminate. But this Manas just discriminates without separation, without thinking that it's anything. In other words, this Manas discriminates to sense data, but doesn't say, I am apart from everything.

[53:37]

The manavajana is the consciousness that sees itself as set apart from everything else. So it's the individuating consciousness. Ego. And ego is not a bad word. Ego just means separation. Sense of a self. And in this case, the sense of a false self. It sees itself as it's not. In other words, it's the... See, this mano vijnana has a function. And its function is to send messages between manas and the alaya vijnana. It's the messenger. But what happens is the messenger takes the information and gets lost. As long as the messenger is just delivering messages back and forth, then everything is working fine.

[54:53]

But when the messenger starts putting the information in his own pocket and going off... Can you give an example of something like that? It's so common that it's hard not to give an example. But it just happens. It's the way we see the world. We see ourselves separated from the world, from objects. Right? We see the difference between myself and the chair, but we don't see that myself and the chair are not different. Okay? So, without this Mano Vijnana, Manas tells us that the chair and I are different. You know, this is the chair and this is me. But the Mano Vijnana says, doesn't allow us to realize that the chair and I are also of the same root.

[56:00]

So, Mano Vijnana, when we're born, we have very little mano vijnana consciousness. We have very little ego consciousness. But as we develop, and we're taken care of, you know, in the world we get taken care of. Mama takes care of me, you know. And we grow up little by little without the sense of individuation. I mean, the baby puts everything in its mouth and explores everything and doesn't, you know, doesn't really see so much separation. But as we grow older, we have the need for self-protection. And so fear drives us to think, to protect ourselves. And then in the name of self-protection, we start to build a wall or defenses. And the more we build defenses, the bigger our ego gets.

[57:08]

And then we... And the more separate we are, actually, the more we want. A person who doesn't feel that separation doesn't feel a lot of need for things, for anything extra. But the more separate we feel, the more we feel we need. So, the more we need, the more we build our ego. And the most egotistical persons are the people who are the most needy, generally. And we acted out in various ways. I don't exclude myself. But when mano vijnana is just doing its job of sending messages back and forth, then ego separation is greatly reduced. So, in Zazen, you know, when you're really sitting Zazen, you don't feel that you need anything.

[58:23]

Because Mano Vijnana is greatly reduced at that time. You mean, I feel like I should stop talking? From time to time. All of them would be reduced. Well, that's not so. There's still the sense of touch, the sense of taste, the sense of smell, the taste, the sense of hearing, and the sense of seeing. Because we actually keep our eyes open, as I've been. So, the senses are fully open. And discriminating consciousness, or manas, is still saying, you know, something. But we do keep that at a minimum. You know, it's not like we're lost in consciousness. But there's a point where that does happen, where one drops below the level of consciousness in the usual sense, and is just immersed in the first rank, where there's no separation at all.

[59:39]

And then as soon as we come back, then we start to discriminate again. And discrimination... Discrimination means to set apart. It means to divide. Discriminate means to divide. So discriminating consciousness is consciousness in making divisions. Yes? Wouldn't Manas, in the, say, in a sitting sadhana situation, be something like a bird call, hurt knee, White wall. Yes, and mano would be I need to get out of here. That's right I can't stand it anymore. This is painful. That's like that's Yeah See mana says this is a feeling in the knee Mana Vijnana says this is painful and I can't stand it And builds a story out of it Let's see what he said.

[60:56]

Since the first five vijnanas, consciousness dependent respectively on the five sense organs, and the alaya-vijnana, which is the storehouse or universal consciousness, are transmuted to prajna in the Buddha stage, while the krista-mano-vijnana, that's this It's translated as soiled mind consciousness or self-consciousness. And the mano-vijñāna, which is thinking consciousness, are transmuted in the bodhisattva stage. I won't go into that. These so-called transmutations of vijñāna are only changes of appellations, not a change of substance. In other words, they just turn. When you are able to free yourself entirely from attachment to sense objects, at the same time these so-called transmutations take place, you will forever abide in the repeatedly arising Naga Samadhi, Dragon Samadhi, if you just are not attached to sense objects.

[62:15]

Upon hearing this, Chir Dung realized suddenly the presence, the deprivation of his essence of mind. and submitted the following stanza to the patriarch. Intrinsically, the three bodies are within our essence of mind. When our mind is enlightened, the four prajnas will appear therein. When bodies and prajnas absolutely identify with each other, we shall be able to respond, in accordance with their temperaments and dispositions, to the appeals of all beings, no matter what forms they may assume. To start by seeking for the trikaya, that's the three bodies, and the four prajnas is to take an entirely wrong course, for being inherent in us, they are to be realized, not to be sought. To try to grasp or confine them is to go against their intrinsic nature. Through you, sir, I am now able to grasp the profundity of their meaning, and henceforth I may discard forever their false and arbitrary names." Well, that's nice.

[63:18]

Good for him. Mana is the equality with them. When it's transmitted. And, no, I'm sorry. Mono-Vijnana is equality. Because, as you can see, Mono-Vijnana does not see things equally. Mono-Vijnana sees things very self-centeredly. When that Mano Vijnana consciousness, ego consciousness is turned, then it's no longer self-centeredness.

[64:28]

This is... Mano Vijnana is a kind of usurper. It takes the central position. And that's called self-centeredness. Because it's the idea of the self. So ego has two kind of meanings. One meaning is false self, false identification. And the other meaning is, there's actually something there that is called, that is identifiable as a person, and we call that the ego. I think that's more psychological. So we have a psychological ego. our actual ego is non-existent, but we give it substance. And it's our false self, it's our accumulated self.

[65:32]

And then Manas becomes And the five senses become infected with action. So, the mirror wisdom is the laya vijnana, which Or even back in the center. And as far as the three bodies, you have to get them in there.

[66:42]

This is very long. Two of the things together are motor tires. This is some motor tire. And these two, I think, are new motor tires. But it could be a little off. Mano Vijnana and Alaya together are Sambhogakaya?

[67:53]

No. No. Mano Vijnana is Sambhogakaya? I think that's right. Because these two belong together. Well, ordinarily, these are called consciousnesses. But, when Mano Vijnana is turned, and there's no longer self-centeredness, and that transmutation takes place, then they're no longer called consciousnesses, they're called wisdoms. So, alaya-vijñāna is then called the great round mirror wisdom. And this is equal to the first rank.

[68:58]

Alaya-vijñāna, when it's turned on its faces, is called the great round mirror wisdom. How do you turn it on? By eliminating ego, or self-centeredness. That's how you turn all of them off? Yeah, when... when that... when... when a lot of this... when Mano... Mano Vijnana is the only perversion that... is the only pervert... is the only level of consciousness that becomes perverted. The others are just... that... that doesn't happen. It's... It's Mahavijnana, which is the fly in the ointment. So the transmutation has to happen at that point and then all the rest... That's right. The transmutation happens at that point and all the rest... It's like pulling the string on the shutters. It's dropping self-clean.

[70:05]

It's dropping self-clean. And anything associated with ego, as we know it. In the psychological sense, but in the... existence, in the false sense. So how come the first rank happens at a lively, non-vignant, rather than at a monumentally vignant? Because the first rank is suchness. I mean, the first rank is called Amala, I mean, it's called the Absolute, right? And that's, or it's called Big Mind, right?

[71:06]

This is, like, a lot of vijnana is like, maybe like a funnel. This is the picture, right? And the funnel comes into the top of your head. Or to here, right? Here's where the funnel comes in. But the funnel, the top of the funnel is endless. But this, and when the, if the top of the funnel is endless, it means that where the bottom, the point of the funnel comes in is connected to this endlessness, right? And the only thing that stops that from... Well, if there was nothing to stop it, then there'd just be illumination through the eyes.

[72:07]

Because that's what that is, it's light. But this is a kind of filter. This mono vijnana consciousness is a kind of filter that doesn't allow that to happen. Because it takes... it's stomping up the hole. It's filling the space where the light should be coming through. And so its image is projected on the screen. So is mono rank 2 or rank 3? Well, on Mano, equality is the second rank. The great equality of wisdom, when Mano is turned, when Mano is inverted, then equality of wisdom takes its place.

[73:14]

The great equality of wisdom. Wisdom of Great Equality takes its place. So, that's just, that question illustrates the fact that we're laying out these consciousnesses of, when we're talking about the five rings, we're talking about that turning is already happening. Right. We're talking about the turning is already in place. So, we don't talk about Mano Vidyana as one of the characteristics of the ranks. We're talking about after this is turned. The ranks come, the five ranks are the qualities after conversion. You get that? Yeah, it's after conversion.

[74:18]

After... Well, there's four, but two of them go for one. There's still the sense that you're moving through those ranks. See, that's why, although you're moving through the ranks, in a sense, each one of the ranks is just a way, it's just a position from which, is a position to see a perspective, right? So they're different perspectives of this realization. You know, like different balances, right? Between the dark and the light, and the action and non-action, So that... it looks like you go from one to the other, and it's presented in that way, in an orderly way, but you don't have to go that way.

[75:30]

You can just see it. You see existence and life from the point of view of any one of them. So sometimes we're in, you know, you can see it as a progressive, but you don't have to see it as progressive. and you can see it is going various ways. And someone said, you start from the beginning, go through the five, and then you start again at one. So when Hakuin says, you don't get stuck in this rank or that rank, he means that you shouldn't be attached to some perspective. even if it's an enlightened perspective. So which is... just so I can make my little thing neat here.

[76:32]

I got one and I got two. Where's three, four and five? One, two, what? Ranks. We've sort of been attaching things here. Oh, where did they put them in the ranks? Well, he tells us here. I read it actually. Okay, I missed it. Sorry. Having attained the great, perfect, mirror wisdom, you now enter the rank of the real within the apparent." See, this is page 66. Okay? That's about where we were. The followers of the Way, even though you may have pursue your studies in the threefold realm, continuously through many kalpas, if you do not have directly experienced the Four Wisdoms, you are not permitted to call yourselves true sons of Buddha, or daughters.

[77:33]

Followers of the Way, if your investigation has been correct and complete, at the moment you smash open the dark cave of the Eighth Oralaya Consciousness..." That means turning, transmuting, right? Turning it. Parabhrati, I think it's... The precious light of the Great Perfect Mirror Wisdom instantly shines forth. So that's associated with Eighth Consciousness. The Mirror Wisdom is associated with Eighth Consciousness. That's one. But strange to say, the light of the Great Perfect Mirror Wisdom is black like lacquer. This is what is called the rank of the apparent within the real. Okay? That's the first rank. Having attained the Great Perfect Mirror Wisdom, you now enter the rank of the real within the apparent. When you have accomplished your long practice of the Jewel Mirror Samadhi, you directly realize the Universal Nature Wisdom.

[78:37]

That's the second one. And for the first time, enter the state of the unobstructed inner penetration of Luminon and Phenomenon. But the disciple must not be satisfied here. He himself must enter into an intimate acquaintance with the rank of the coming from within the real. After that, by depending upon the rank of the arrival at mutual integration, he will completely prove the marvelous observing wisdom. So, those two are the marvelous observing wisdom. And which consciousness? I'll read that again. But the disciple must not be satisfied yet. He himself must enter into intimate acquaintance with the rank of the coming from within the real. That's the third rank. After that, by depending upon the rank of the arrival at mutual integration, that's the fourth rank, he will completely prove the marvelous observing wisdom. So those two belong to the fourth rank.

[79:39]

I don't have the numbers here. Do you get that? In those two ranks. The third and fourth ranks are the marvelous observing wisdom. Correspond to. It says, and the perfecting of action wisdom. Which I thought was four. No, and the perfecting of action wisdom. But actually, the perfecting of action wisdom is... Even if it says it in that way, this is it. And he's observing his mind. This is the perfecting of action wisdom according to the Lankavatara Sutra and every other commentary. The first five? Yes. Perfecting of action wisdom is associated with the five senses. This is like being in the world through the senses, right? It's the perfecting of action wisdom in your daily life through your eyes, ears, nose, given the information that you have through your senses. It's like the what we call the ordinary world.

[80:47]

And is that, that becomes rank 4? That becomes rank 5. No, rank 4. It seems like what happened with the kangaroos is that they're not on that anymore. Yeah, but look, I know. You just go over the top. But it's just the way it's said here, okay? If you look carefully at the way it's said here, it looks like The way it's stated is a little funny. But the disciple must not be satisfied here. He himself has entered into intimate acquaintance with the rank of the coming from within the real. That's the third rank. After that, by depending upon the rank of the arrival at mutual integration, he will completely prove the marvelous observing wisdom and the perfecting of action wisdom. But it has to come out as five, right? Because I thought maybe five just was after we'd gotten... No. No.

[81:50]

Five is... Maybe five is all of them. So four... It's just the language. Unity attained is five, but where does that fit on this? Maybe it's all of them. It's the guy drooling over it. It's the perfecting of action. The perfection of action is the fifth rank. That's right. So, we got this straight, fairly straight. It's a lot to swallow at one time, right? What's that? Unity attained? That's the fifth rank.

[82:52]

Yes. Perfecting of action. That means that It seems to be. The text here has got it kind of mixed up between the fourth and the fifth. The way it's been translated, it looks like the fourth and the fifth are kind of interwoven. That's okay. If you're going to do it the other way, you're leaving the fifth... If you're going to do it the way they say, you're leaving the fifth rank out. Right? So it's just a little slick way of expression. In fact, you could read it that, and the perfecting of action wisdom at last,

[84:07]

That's right. Yes. That's the way I read it. Could you read that little verse that the guy who's talking with the 6th Patriarch talks about? He just kind of echoes the 6th Patriarch, actually. It's not very original. Where he says, OK, now I can meet anything if it comes up? Yes. That's a nice little verse. Intrinsically, the three bodies are within our essence and mind. When our mind is enlightened, the four prajnas, that's the four wisdoms, will appear therein. When bodhis, wisdoms, and prajnas absolutely identify with each other,

[85:11]

Oh, bodies! I'm sorry, bodies! With bodies and prajnas, absolutely identified, the three bodies, right, and the prajnas, absolutely identified with each other, we shall be able to respond in accordance with their temperaments and dispositions to the appeals of all beings, no matter what forms they may assume. That sounds like sitting back in court and ashes, kind of thing. That's right. When we're really enlightened, then we can meet everyone. Is that also the Genjo Koan? Yeah. Well, as we progress in here, Hakuin himself, I quote the Genjo Koan. That phrase, the Genjo Koan. It's a very famous phrase. So we'll look at that next time. Next time, we can actually start on the

[86:09]

@Text_v004
@Score_JJ