Homeless Kodo's "TO YOU" - Chapters 30, 31 & 32

[Jundo]

ATTENTION: We are coming toward the endless-end of 'TO TOU' in a couple of weeks. Please keep an eye out for information on our upcoming readings, here in the NO WORDS BOOK CLUB!

Dear All,

Moving on, although no place to go ...

As it is a fairly easy read, and chapters are rather short, consisting mostly of small quotes, we will take a few chapters at a time. This week, Chapters 30, 31 and 32.

The rules of the game are pretty easy: Just mention here, in our discussion, any quotes (none, one or many) that ring your bell and resonate with you, and briefly say why.

That's it!

If you need a version to "cut and paste" a quote, there is one here. However, PLEASE PURCHASE THE ACTUAL BOOK! I ask everyone to use the following only for ease in cutting and pasting a quote or two into this discussion, not for purposes of reading the entire book. Thank you!

https://drive.google.com/file/d/13v2mybc4y3kiro9cIny5rnkWOVaVAXf_/view?usp=sharing

What trips your trigger, strikes your fancy, inspires and makes your day? Try to say why it does so for you. (You can also feel free to disagree with Ol' Kodo too, but be prepared to say why!)

Gassho, Jundo

STLah

[Shokai]

Master Dōgen doesn’t expect anything from us that’s not humanly possible. It’s
simply a matter of becoming natural, without empty thoughts or peculiarities.
Buddhism in general doesn’t demand anything special from us, only that we
become natural.

Just sit and let happen what happens.

That’s why we don’t practice now in order to attain some private satori later on. By nature, we have always, eternally been true buddhas.

gassho, shokai
stlah

[paulashby]

Page 191: Any Buddha that humans have thought up isn't a buddha.

Reflection:
You can visit the emerald buddha in Bangkok
Or the reclining buddha the size of an airplane,
many stone buddha's mark the pilgrim path of Sri Lanka,
the buddha's face in Angor Wat is larger than the jumbo screen built by the Dallas Cowboys,
In Taiwan and Vietnam and Japan your neck strains just to look up at monumental buddha statues,
None of them are buddha.
How do you capture Non-Being and all Being in bronze?
How do you hold buddha in a thought?
Take a picture of everything that also includes the camera.
with a smile, Paul SAT LAH ANANDA

[Tairin]

I really liked these three chapters and there were many quotes I could have picked but I’ll stick with this one

In "beyond-thinking" there are neither ordinary people nor buddhas.
Beyond-thinking is true practice and true activity. Zazen is beyond-thinking put into practice.

Tairin
Sat today and lah

[Heikyo]

Our hands and feet don’t have more than a square meter for their range of activity. Nonetheless, we affect the whole universe.

To me, this speaks of how we are all the universe and everything we do will have an impact, which sort of links back to the precepts we are studying for Jukai. The precepts help us make sure that our impact on the universe is positive.

Gassho
Paul
Sat today, LAH

[Tai Do]

There’s no buddha outside of practice, and no teaching except for beyond-thinking. Those are Master Dōgen’s essential principles.

[…]
The Lotus Sutra as well as the Garland Sutra and the Shōbōgenzō are nothing but lies, when they’re not put into practice. Withoutzazen, Buddhism is a total lie.

When you, inseparable from Buddha, put Buddha’s activity into practice, only then are you a buddha. When you act like a fool, then you’re a fool.

These quotes return to the idea that the buddha-dharma is practice, not doctrine, dogmas, and ideas.

“Saving the others before saving myself” is ultimate selflessness. I forget myself, and the separation between myself and all suffering beings dissolves.

A bodhisattva is someone who awakens suffering beings. He’s an ordinary person who has what Buddha’s aiming at clearly and decidedly in sight.

These other quotes show that the dissolution of self-other separation is something that becomes real not only in zazen, but also in following the precepts and working to save all sentient beings.

Gassho,
Mateus
Satlah

[Jundo]

I just corrected the thread title, which should be ... Chapters 30, 31 and 32. ... not Chapters 30, 31 and 31 ... although 31 is very good, so you may wish to study it twice.

Gassho, J

stlah

[ZenKen]

I found many passages to sit with in these chapters:

The expression "awakening the mind" means saving the others before saving yourself.
"Saving the others before saving myself" means that you and all suffering beings on this great Earth attain the way simultaneously. It means experiencing through your own body that mountains and rivers, grass and trees and the lands of the Earth are all buddha nature.

In other words it means returning home.

I love this reminder of the oneness of all things. We're not so special, but neither is that magnificent sunset. Or perhaps we're all equally special...

A bodhisattva is an ordinary person seeking the way.

This feels like it follows on from above, and the two together really pulled me up short and reminded me to be humble and compassionate and grateful - and also wondering and delighted with everything around me.

Buddha is sharp-witted, cheerful and free of attachment. Nevertheless, lots of people these days think that Buddha is dreary and ominous.

I think this sums up what a lot of people think - oh, Buddhists aren't allowed to care about anything, they're not allowed to get angry etc. 'Free of attachment' and 'dreary' are two very different things. Still, I appreciate the reminder, as it reminds me that I can perhaps take myself too seriously sometimes and it's better to just live joyfully, without clinging (too much) to that joy.

Sorry for the very late response here.

Gassho
Anna
satlah