August 8th-9th, 2015 - OUR MONTHLY 4-hour ZAZENKAI!

[Jundo]

The readings for today's Talk from Master Keizan's Sankon-Zazen-Setsu (Theory of Zazen for Three Personality Types) will be posted immediately below in this thread.

Please 'sit-a-long' with our MONTHLY 4-hour ZAZENKAI, netcast LIVE 8am to noon Japan time Saturday morning (that is New York 7pm to 11pm, Los Angeles 4pm to 8pm (Friday night), London midnight to 4am and Paris 1am to 4am (early Saturday morning)) ... and visible at the following link during those times ...

... to be visible on the below screen during those times and any time thereafter ...

LIVE ZAZENKAI NETCAST at GOOGLE+ IS HERE:
CLICK ON THE TAB ON LOWER RIGHT FOR 'FULL SCREEN

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CV_Lc-1qbU

https://plus.google.com/events/chg6q5pqgevpjesisk75j3bi0ug

Dharma talk audio / podcast episode:

http://treeleaf.podbean.com/e/august-2015-zazenkai-dharma-talk/

FOR THOSE NOT ALREADY MEMBERS OF THE CIRCLE WHO WISH TO JOIN TO SIT LIVE WITH A CAMERA, INSTRUCTIONS are posted AT THIS LINK. WE ARE NOW LIMITED TO 10 INDIVIDUALS WITH CAMERAS, BUT ANY NUMBER CAN WATCH LIVE 'ONE WAY' AND SIT-A-LONG VIA THE ABOVE SCREEN. IF JOINING WITH CAMERA, PLEASE MAKE SURE YOUR MICROPHONE IS MUTED:

The Sitting Schedule is as follows:

00:00 - 00:50 CEREMONY (HEART SUTRA / SANDOKAI IN ENGLISH) & ZAZEN
00:50 - 01:00 KINHIN
01:00 - 01:30 ZAZEN
01:30 - 01:50 KINHIN

01:50 - 02:30 DHARMA TALK & ZAZEN
02:30 - 02:40 KINHIN

02:40 - 03:15 ZAZEN
03:15 - 03:30 KINHIN
03:30 - 04:00 METTA CHANT & ZAZEN, VERSE OF ATONEMENT, FOUR VOWS, & CLOSING


Our Zazenkai consists of our chanting the 'Heart Sutra' and the 'Identity of Relative and Absolute (Sandokai)' in English (please download our Chant Book at the link below), some full floor prostrations (please follow along with me ... or a simple Gassho can be substituted if you wish), a little talk by me ... and we close with the 'Metta Chant', followed at the end with the 'Verse of Atonement' and 'The Four Vows'. Oh, and lots and lots of Zazen and walkin' Kinhin in between!

Please download and print out the Chants we will recite at the following link (PDF):

Chant Book (PDF)

or

Chant Book (SHORT VERSION HTML)

I STRONGLY SUGGEST THAT YOU POSITION YOUR ZAFU ON THE FLOOR IN A PLACE WHERE YOU ARE NOT STARING DIRECTLY AT THE COMPUTER SCREEN, BUT CAN GLANCE OVER AND SEE THE SCREEN WHEN NECESSARY. YOUR ZAFU SHOULD ALSO BE IN A POSITION WHERE YOU CAN SEE THE COMPUTER SCREEN WHILE STANDING IN FRONT OF THE ZAFU FOR THE CEREMONIES, AND HAVE ROOM FOR BOWING AND KINHIN.

ALSO, REMEMBER TO SET YOUR COMPUTER (& SCREEN SAVER) SO THAT IT DOES NOT SHUT OFF DURING THE 4 HOURS.

I hope you will join us ... an open Zafu is waiting. When we drop all thought of 'here' 'there' 'now' 'then' ... we are sitting all together!


Gassho, Jundo

[Jundo]

Our reading this month ...

三根坐禅説
Theory of Zazen for Three Personality Types
Sankon-Zazen-Setsu by Keizan Zenji
(translation by YASUDA & ANZAN, with some adjustments from Masunaga and Kennett)

In traditional Buddhist descriptions, there the three levels of capacity that Buddhist practitioners exhibit (sankon 三根; Sk. trīṇi indriyāṇi): dull (donkon 鈍根), middling (chūkon 中根; Sk. madhya indriya), and sharp (rikon 利根; Sk. tīskṣṇa indriya) capacities. These are three different capacities that Buddhist practitioners exhibit.

Dogenologist & Historian Carl Bielefeldt comments (Dogen’s Manuals of Zen Meditation, footnote 33 on p.152):

Here [in the “Theory of Zazen for Three Personality Types”] Keizan distinguishes three levels in the understanding of zazen (corresponding to the traditional Buddhist disciplines): the lowest emphasizes the ethical character of the practice; the middling, the psychological character; the highest, the philosophical. The second, he describes as ―abandoning the myriad affairs and halting the various involvements, ‖ making unflagging effort to concentrate on breathing or consider a koan, until one has gotten clear about the truth. (In the highest zazen, of course, this truth is already quite clear.) In his influential Zazen yojinki as well – though [Keizan] repeats the Fukan zazen gi passage on nonthinking—Keizan recommends the practice of kanna [Koan phrase centered Zazen] as an antidote to mental agitation in zazen (ibid. 497b).

JUNDO QUESTION: However, is there really a “high” and “low” and “middle” here?

I.
上根の坐禅は、諸仏出世の事を覚らず、仏祖不伝の妙を悟らず。飢え来たれば喫飯し、困じ来たれ ば打眠す。
万象森を指して、以て自己と為すに非ず。覚・不覚倶に存せず。任運堂々として、只麼に正坐す。
然も是の如くなりと雖も、諸法に於いて分かれず、万法と異にして昧まさざるなり。
The person whose zazen is of the most profound type has no interest in [questions such as] how the Buddhas [appeared] in this present world. Such a one doesn’t speculate about the truths which cannot even be transmitted by the Buddhas and Ancestors. She doesn’t [doctrinalize] about "all things being the expression of the self" because she is beyond "enlightenment" and "delusion". Since his views never fall into dualistic angles, nothing obstructs him, even when distinctions appear. She just eats when she is hungry. He just sleeps when he is tired.

II.
中根の坐禅は、万事を抛捨し、諸縁を休息し、十二時中、暫くも怠惰無し。
出息入息に就いて斷々として工夫す。或いは一則の公案を提撕して、双眼を鼻端に注ぐ。自家本来 の面目、
生死去来に渉らず。真如仏性の妙理、慮知分別に堕せず。不覚不知にして覚せずということ無し。
明々了々として、古に亘り今に通ず。当頭十方世界に明らかに、全 身万象の中に独露す。
The person whose zazen is of a medium type abandons everything and cuts all ties. Throughout the day she is never idle and so every moment of life, every breath, is practice of the Dharma. Or else [as an alternative] he might concentrate on a koan, eyes fixed, his view in one place such as the tip of the nose. Considerations of life and death, going and staying, are not seen on her face. The mind of discrimination can never see into the deepest unchanging truth [of Buddha nature]. [While not thinking dualistically, he is not unenlightened]. From the far past up to right now, wisdom is always brilliant, clear, shining. The whole universe throughout the ten directions is illuminated suddenly from her brow, all things are seen in detail within her body.

III.
下根の坐禅は、且く結縁を貴んで善悪の業道を離れ、直ちに即心を以て諸仏の性源を顕す。
足、仏地に結んで悪処に入らず。手、定印を結んで経巻を取らず。
口を閉じて縫うが如く緘じるが如くにして、一法をも説かず。眼を開いて大ならず小ならずして、
諸色を分かつこと無し。耳、善悪の声を聴かず。鼻、好悪の香を嗅がず。身、物に寄らず動作頓に 止む。
意、攀縁せず、憂喜共に尽くす。形相如々にして木仏の如し。縦い心、種々の妄想顛倒を起こすと 雖も、
其の咎を作らず。譬えば明鏡の上に更に浮影 を留めざるが如し。
The person whose zazen is just ordinary views all things from all sides and frees herself from good and bad conditions [from the karma of good and evil]. The mind naturally expresses the True Nature of all the Buddhas because Buddha stands right where your own feet are. Thus wrong action does not arise. The hands are held in Reality mudra [position for Zazen] and do not hold onto any scriptures. The mouth is tightly closed, as if the lips were sealed, and no word of doctrine is spoken. The eyes are neither wide open nor shut. Nothing is ever seen from the point of view of fragmentation and good and evil words are left unheard. The nose doesn’t choose one smell as good, another as bad. The body is not propped up [the body relies upon nothing whatsoever] and all delusion is ended. Since delusion does not disturb the mind, neither sorrow nor glee appear [sorrow and joy both drops away]. Just like a wooden carving of the Buddha, both the substance and the form are true. Worldly thoughts might arise but they do not disturb because the mind is a bright mirror with no trace of shadows.

IV.
五戒・八戒・菩薩の大戒、比丘の具戒・三千の威儀、八万の細行、諸仏菩薩の転妙法輪、
皆此の坐禅の中自り現前して、尽きること無し。万行の中、最勝の実行は、唯坐禅の一門なり。
僅かに坐して一歩の功徳を進むれば、則ち百千無量の堂塔を作るに勝れり。
何に況や常に修して退くこと無きをや。永く生死を解脱して自己の心仏を見ん。
行住坐臥、無作の妙用に非ずということ無し。見聞覚知、悉く是れ本有の霊光なり。
初心後心を選ばず、有智無智を論ずること無し。此の如きの坐禅、専精に修行して 忘失すべからず。
The Precepts arise naturally from zazen whether they are the five, eight, the Great Bodhisattva Precepts, the monastic Precepts, the three thousand rules of deportment, the eighty thousand Teachings, or the supreme Dharma of the Buddhas and Awakened Ancestors. No practice whatsover can be measured against zazen [all these arise from zazen limitlessly]. Should only one merit be gained from the practice of zazen, it is vaster than the construction of a hundred, a thousand or a limitless number of [temples &] monasteries. Practice just sitting ceaselessly [Just do Zazen for ever without ceasing]. Doing so, we are liberated from birth and death and realize our own hidden Buddha-nature. In perfect ease go, stay, sit and lie down [The four activities of going, staying, sitting, and lying are nothing but natural and unexcelled functions]. Seeing, hearing, understanding and knowing are all the natural display of the True Nature [are all the light of original nature, natural manifestations of the True Self]. From first to last, mind is mind [There is no choice between the beginning mind and the ripened mind], beyond any arguments about knowledge and ignorance. Just do zazen with all of who and what you are. Never stray from it or lose it.

[Mp]

Thank you Jundo, I will be there live. =)

Gassho
Shingen

#sattoday

[Anshu Bryson]

See you all there!

Gassho,
Anshu

-sat today-

[Kakunen]

I will be at Zendo.

[Getchi]

Daughters soccer gala is tomorrow,but I'll be watching the recording as I've actually been reading on this lately. GasshoGe off.SatToday.

[Kyonin]

Thank you Jundo. I'll be there live.

I'll see you guys tonight

Gassho,

Kyonin

[Dosho]

I will be here.

Gassho,
Dosho

Sat today

[Joyo]

I'd love to sit this one live, but I can't commit to tonight. I'll sit with the recording for sure, especially Jundo's talk.

Gassho,
joyo
sat today

[Sekishi]

See you all soon.
Gassho,
Sekishi
#sattoday

[RichardH]

I'll have join in a bit late. Just heading home after a long outing.
Deep bows Sangha

[Sekishi]

No invite today. Will sit one way.
Gassho.

[RichardH]

Late sorry. "Hangout full" sitting one way..

[Sekishi]

Thank you all. Lovely to practice together.

Nine bows,
Sekishi

[Kyonin]

Thank you all who sat and will sit.

And thank you Jundo for the talk. I need to listen to it again.

Gassho,

Kyonin
#SatToday