Tag Archives: awakening

Soto, Zen, Buddhism

Good morning!   This is Mother’s Day. So, we celebrate not only our direct biological mothers, but also bigger basic Mother Earth, Mother Nature, Mother Dharma, Mother Home, our true home, which the Buddha witnessed and established. So, we not only present carnations to our biological mothers, but also present ourselves the broader based Dharma Dhātu, Domain, Truth Territory, nirvana, unconditioned peace, and anuttara samyak sambōdhi, unsurpassed right awakening.   Twenty five centuries ago the Buddha sat in Zazen, settled in nirvana, witnessed this Dharma Dhātu, and was awakened to the truth beyond our ordinary biological living for the first time in the history of living beings, thus opened the Awakened Way for all. Nirvana means windless of karmas. We are all bound by karmas, actions, action results, and habit energies. So, the Buddha said that all living beings are karma machines, heirs, and relatives. He found the way to go beyond karma machines, karma life to Dharma life.   It is from small skin sacks to limitless liberated life, like bubbles to a great ocean, as if we take off our skin coats and merge into the great space. So, when we sit, stop our physical, verbal, and mental karmas (creation, action, function), breathe deep, we become one with the selfless, supramundane space like great space, sky or sea. He found and founded the Dharma of Dependent Origination, that is, all phenomena are interdependently originated and operate, thus there is no independent eternal self.   Usually we stick to small selves, in reality the sources of suffering. All problems in this world come from our sticking to small selves – global warming, mass extinction, etc. So, our ultimate solutions of them lie in selfless, supramundane Buddha Dharma life and living. The Buddha achieved the true Spiritual Revolution, the heart-mind- spirit revolution beyond materialism, militarism, money-ism, essential me-ism. Only there can we find true holy (wholly wholesome) harmony, health, and happiness.   It is really unusual, but not abnormal. It is truly aboriginal and normal. When we stop our karmas, we see the Dharma Domain, and see the true nature of ourselves. Only in this way can we attain amrita, ambrosia of immortality. So, as long as we stick to our small skin sacks, decomposing and destroying, we can never attain it. The Buddha opened the Dharma gate of amrita, ambrosia of immortality.  As in the common verse of the Seven Buddhas (quoted below), it really requires purifying one’s own heart, to do all good and to do no evil:   … Continue reading

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Habits Halfway or Holy (Wholly Wholesome)

Good morning!   The predicted snow did not come. The moon, however, now waning almost to half, can be seen partially in the clouds.   I read a little bit of the best seller, The Power of Habit. We can create new habits, either good ones or bad ones.   We must, however, come and see deeply enough into our karmas. Good habits in the short term may be bad karmas in the long run.   That’s why we need to take care, cure, and cultivate our karmas without stopping our practice in sitting, stilling, and settling.   While we are in karmas, we cannot see the true nature of them. So, we must constantly and concentratedly come to nirvana and awakening.   4/1/13  

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Wholly Wholesome Way World

Good morning!   Dogen, in his Genjokoan, Realizing Universal Truth, says,   Cultivation and verification by carrying around the self is delusion. Cultivation and verification of the self by all dharmas coming forward is awakening.   Awakening is seeing and stilling the delusion of the self. Until then there is no awakening. Awakening is accepting and appreciating the wholly wholesome way world in free full function.   2/20/13          

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Awakened One’s Awakening Day

Good morning!   Today, the eighth of December, is the day of the Buddha’s awakening. So, all over the world Zen practitioners, after seven day intensive sitting, celebrate his awakening – an unprecedented feast that solves all problems of all … Continue reading

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Yonder Shore or Summit

Good morning!   We are at the third day of the five day autumnal equinox period, the middle point of the true equinox, and we are at our equinox sesshin. Sesshin is embracing or containing our usually outgoing, diffused, and … Continue reading

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Actual Awakening and Unconditioned Peace

Good evening!   There is a famous scripture titled “Blind Turtle and Floating Log” (盲亀浮木) wherein the Buddha gave a comparison of a person being born as a human being and encountering the awakened way.   To be born as … Continue reading

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Transmigration or Transcendence

Good morning!   After a long flight of seventeen hours (the same as the time difference between here and there) I came back from New Zealand late last night.   After rain we see many fallen leaves here, but many … Continue reading

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Original State=Nirvana=Awakening=Free Full Function

Good evening!   This morning Scott and I worked in our garden clearing creeping Charlies, etc. covering and choking other plants, and the garden became pretty clean and clear.   Weeding is the major work in samu, doing duty. Eventually … Continue reading

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Triple Poison, Disease, Malady

Good morning!   When we get up early, come here, and sit together, we can enjoy fresh morning air, birds’ singing, and flowers blossoming.   With our practice way cycle (gyôji-dôkan: 行持道環) of aspiration, action, awakening, and unconditioned peace, we … Continue reading

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Neither Dreaming Nor Deluded

Good morning!   We are going to have a very warm day going up to 63 degrees – rather unusual. We, of course, cannot dream of it being in the 80s, or be so deluded as thinking of the 100s. … Continue reading

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