Dear All,
I am very pleased to announce a new series of Talks by our Kyonin on an ancient poem cherished in Soto Zen for over 1000 years ... the "Song of the Jewel-Mirror Samadhi" (Hôkyô Zanmai - 寶鏡三昧). It is attributed to the founder of the Soto Lineage in China, Dongshan Liangjie (Tozan Ryokai/Tungshan Liangchieh - 洞山良价), who lived in the 9th Century C.E., the 38th Zen Ancestor and the 10th generation after Bodhidharma in our line. The great Soto Teacher Masunaga Reihō wrote:
It is a wild ride, with many strange images and hidden meanings, twists and turns. I hope you will enjoy the trip as guided by Kyonin. We are planning that Kyonin will introduce a new Talk each month, covering a few lines for us. All will be posted in this thread. Here is the first. Kyonin will soon jump in here with a copy of the full text for you. In this first Talk, however, we do not go much beyond just the beautiful title itself:
Kyonin apologizes for being a little excited about this first Talk, and going maybe a little fast this time, and he said that he will slow down a bit in coming Talks. I am excited too.
Gassho, Jundo
SatTodayLAH
I am very pleased to announce a new series of Talks by our Kyonin on an ancient poem cherished in Soto Zen for over 1000 years ... the "Song of the Jewel-Mirror Samadhi" (Hôkyô Zanmai - 寶鏡三昧). It is attributed to the founder of the Soto Lineage in China, Dongshan Liangjie (Tozan Ryokai/Tungshan Liangchieh - 洞山良价), who lived in the 9th Century C.E., the 38th Zen Ancestor and the 10th generation after Bodhidharma in our line. The great Soto Teacher Masunaga Reihō wrote:
[Tungshan] wrote the Hōkyōzanmai (Pao-ching san-mei) in verse style. Made up of four-character lines, it contains a total of 94 lines and 376 characters. Its rhythm
and tonal qualities make it easy to chant .. and has, since the middle ages, been [recited] in morning and evening readings in Sōtō temples. In this work Tungshan made use of the divination techniques [I-jing] that flourished in his days and worked out the theory of the Five Ranks (go-i). Through these devices the Hōkyōzammai systematized
Zen theory and a phase of Zen practice. ... Hōkyōzanmai, then, points to a state of mind in zazen when, like a jeweled mirror, it reflects all things as they are. It is the Buddha Mind that has passed untarnished from master to disciple since the days of the Buddha. It is the true law -- the actual state of all things and the inborn life
of man. It tells us to embrace all things in their suchness with the impartiality of a polished mirror -- and adapt ourselves to them. It tells us also to avoid destroying ourselves or harming others, to transcend the dualism of love and hate, and to express ourselves as we really are in altruistic social action. In this work [Tungshan] gave expression to a major feature of Sōtō Zen -- creative thoroughness in daily life. (from: The Sōtō Approach to Zen)
and tonal qualities make it easy to chant .. and has, since the middle ages, been [recited] in morning and evening readings in Sōtō temples. In this work Tungshan made use of the divination techniques [I-jing] that flourished in his days and worked out the theory of the Five Ranks (go-i). Through these devices the Hōkyōzammai systematized
Zen theory and a phase of Zen practice. ... Hōkyōzanmai, then, points to a state of mind in zazen when, like a jeweled mirror, it reflects all things as they are. It is the Buddha Mind that has passed untarnished from master to disciple since the days of the Buddha. It is the true law -- the actual state of all things and the inborn life
of man. It tells us to embrace all things in their suchness with the impartiality of a polished mirror -- and adapt ourselves to them. It tells us also to avoid destroying ourselves or harming others, to transcend the dualism of love and hate, and to express ourselves as we really are in altruistic social action. In this work [Tungshan] gave expression to a major feature of Sōtō Zen -- creative thoroughness in daily life. (from: The Sōtō Approach to Zen)
Hokyo Zanmai Talk 1
Kyonin apologizes for being a little excited about this first Talk, and going maybe a little fast this time, and he said that he will slow down a bit in coming Talks. I am excited too.
Gassho, Jundo
SatTodayLAH
Comment