LIVING by VOW: Verse to Open Sutra - pp 249-256 (END)

[Jundo]

Dear All Vowers,

We now come to the end of the book which, fittingly, is the Verse to begin! It is a short chapter of only 7 pages, but very rich. Take it slowly this week.

Any reflections on the chapter, or on the book as a whole?

I point out the emphasis throughout the chapter (and the book) on going higher and deeper to that which is right here, and trying to fathom and understand that which is ultimately beyond measure because boundless!

One comment I will drop in on some Buddhist terminology which is often confusing to folks: Dharma.

Dharma can have three meanings, all of which appear in this chapter. Basically, Dharma is (1) The Buddha's Teachings about Reality, (2) Reality itself and (3) each individual thing and phenomenon within Reality (this last sometimes indicated as lower case "dharma(s).") You sometimes have to judge from context which is meant.

In any case, now we close this lovely book.

Next time, we will returning with a few more Koans of the Book of Equanimity/Serenity.

Gassho, Jundo

SatTodayLAH

[Mp]

Thank you Jundo. =)

Gassho
Shingen

Sat/LAH

[Tairin]

Thank you Jundo. I have very much enjoyed this book.

Dharma can have three meanings, all of which appear in this chapter. Basically, Dharma is (1) The Buddha's Teachings about Reality, (2) Reality itself and (3) each individual thing and phenomenon within Reality (this last sometimes indicated as lower case "dharma.") You sometimes have to judge from context which is meant.

I used to find this very confusing until I realized it really is all the same Dharma.

Locking forward to reading the Book of Equinimity for a while.


Tairin
Sat today and LAH

[Meitou]

I like the flavour of the Verse for opening the Sutra, it might be nice to memorise it and have it in mind each time I start a Dharma related book. I very much liked Okumura Roshi's dissection of the word 'now' and all its implications.
I've really enjoyed this book and despite our in depth look at it, I still feel that I've only just started to scratch the surface and can return to it again and again.
I have a couple of questions of course!
Have we ever studied The Lotus Sutra here? Is there a recommended commentary or version?
Will the koans from The Book of Equanimity be published here in the book thread; should I search out the book?
Please forgive my ignorance if these questions have come up before.

Thank you everyone who travelled this journey with me.
Gassho
Meitou
Satwithyoualltoday

[Jundo]

Hi Meitou,

Have we ever studied The Lotus Sutra here? Is there a recommended commentary or version?

Well, the Lotus Sutra is best described as pages and pages of wild scenes and parables, fairly disconnected but with a few central themes running through (such as the timeless Buddha, Upaya expedient means, the One Vehicle and more). Imagine the Book of Revelations meets Alice in Wonderland.

We have studied it quite often, but in the sense that Master Dogen's Shobogenzo plays off time and again the various scenes and parables in his Shobogenzo, so we have discussed them individually many times. It is not strictly necessary to read it cover to cover to see how Dogen made use of it. It is a wild ride.

The best introductions are these essays and this book by Taigen Leighton (the book is an expanded version of the essays) ...

http://www.ancientdragon.org/dharma/articles/lotus_sutra_and_dogen

http://www.thezensite.com/ZenEssays/DogenStudies/The_Lotus_Sutra_as_a_Source.html

https://www.amazon.com/Visions-Awakening-Space-Time-D%C5%8Dgen-ebook/dp/B005BP2FUW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1527509107&sr=8-1&keywords=taigen+dogen+lotus

https://terebess.hu/zen/mesterek/Leighton-Visions.pdf

There are several translations available online for free, such as here ...

https://www.nichirenlibrary.org/en/lsoc/toc/

I like this modernized English version by Gene Reeves for readability ...

https://www.amazon.co.jp/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?__mk_ja_JP=%E3%82%AB%E3%82%BF%E3%82%AB%E3%83%8A&url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=lotus+sutra

Will the koans from The Book of Equanimity be published here in the book thread; should I search out the book?
Please forgive my ignorance if these questions have come up before.

We will be reading Koans 75 to 80 in the coming weeks, continuing where we left off. I believe that most of the book chapters are available online, although it is a very nice book to purchase, and I recommend it.

Gassho, J

SatTodayLAH

[Meitou]

Hi Meitou,



Well, the Lotus Sutra is best described as pages and pages of wild scenes and parables, fairly disconnected but with a few central themes running through (such as the timeless Buddha, Upaya expedient means, the One Vehicle and more). Imagine the Book of Revelations meets Alice in Wonderland.

We have studied it quite often, but in the sense that Master Dogen's Shobogenzo plays off time and again the various scenes and parables in his Shobogenzo, so we have discussed them individually many times. It is not strictly necessary to read it cover to cover to see how Dogen made use of it. It is a wild ride.

The best introductions are these essays and this book by Taigen Leighton (the book is an expanded version of the essays) ...

http://www.ancientdragon.org/dharma/articles/lotus_sutra_and_dogen

http://www.thezensite.com/ZenEssays/DogenStudies/The_Lotus_Sutra_as_a_Source.html

https://www.amazon.com/Visions-Awakening-Space-Time-D%C5%8Dgen-ebook/dp/B005BP2FUW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1527509107&sr=8-1&keywords=taigen+dogen+lotus

https://terebess.hu/zen/mesterek/Leighton-Visions.pdf

There are several translations available online for free, such as here ...

https://www.nichirenlibrary.org/en/lsoc/toc/

I like this modernized English version by Gene Reeves for readability ...

https://www.amazon.co.jp/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?__mk_ja_JP=%E3%82%AB%E3%82%BF%E3%82%AB%E3%83%8A&url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=lotus+sutra

We will be reading Koans 75 to 80 in the coming weeks, continuing where we left off. I believe that most of the book chapters are available online, although it is a very nice book to purchase, and I recommend it.

Gassho, J

SatTodayLAH

The Book of Revelations meets Alice in Wonderland - I'm tempted now!
Thank you so much for the information and links Jundo.
Gassho
Meitou
Satwithyoualltoday lah

[Onkai]

Thank you, Jundo. In this chapter I liked the part that discussed the Dharma as immeasurable, that any yardsticks we may use are finite. It all seems to point to an egolessness. The whole book was wonderful.

Gassho,
Onkai
Sat

[AlanLa]

This chapter is so simple, yet I read it twice and also sat with it twice, including today. My original impression was to ask why is this vow at the end of the book and not the beginning, supposing it was one of those contrary zen things, but I understand it better now because this vow contains everything, thus a fitting closing/non-closing. Zen to me is about Being and Doing, and that's what this vow is about; to just BE with the dharma is one thing, but you also need to go out and find a way to DO the dharma. Actually, because there is no separation between Be/Do, you can't fully Be with the dharma until you Do dharma in your life. So to me, this chapter is here to say, "Now that you have read (been with) all these vows, it's time you go out in the world and actualize (do with) them."

[Joyo]

Thank you, Jundo. I have been slowly reading this book now for over a year. I started following along with the book club, but I felt I needed to go back to the beginning and start over. So, half-way in, I started over again. I am now on the Heart Sutra chapter. This is a really beautiful book, but also a bit intimidating as there is just so much to learn from it. I'm sure I could read it 10x and still learn.

Gassho,
Joyo
sat today/lah