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T o Study the Way of Buddha

Harada Sekkei

Seeing that self and other are the same body is expressed in Zen as Self and other are not two

T o study

the Way of Buddha is to study the Self. To study the Self is to forget the self. To forget the self is to be enlightened by all things. To be enlightened by all things is to cast off the body and mind of the self as well as all others. All traces of enlightenment disappear and this traceless enlightenment continues on and on endlessly. In this teaching of Eihei Dogen Zenji, everything is thoroughly stated about the nature of human life and the world. Practice (studying the Way of Buddha) is to ascertain the essence of things (Self). This is to realise that there is no separation between self and things (forgetting) and that everything is part of ones body (enlightened by all things). Seikyo Zenji said, Sentient beings are deluded by the self and chase after things. However, when there is the realisation that there is nothing to compare outside of ones functioning right now (seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, feeling, thinking), seeking mind ceases, great loving mind flows forth, and the true nature of the Self is manifested. Seeing that self and other are the same body is expressed in Zen as Self and other are not two and the condition where self and all things are one is called the Dharma (causality). However, this is a realm that does not permit the intervention of any viewpoint arising from the ego-self.

Bodhidharma: drawing by Marcelle Hanselaar

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 The habit (viewpoint arising from the ego-self) of dividing the essential nature of oneness into self and other, life and death, pain and pleasure, rising and falling, and so on, is the source of all delusion and anxiety. However, when the source of this delusion disappears completely, this condition is called liberation. It is also called essentially there is no substance to anything, nirvana, and the moment now. Shikantaza (just sitting) is the quickest way to forget the ego-self and verify this matter for yourself. When the self is forgotten, then the joyous activity that is free of the ego-self is born (all traces of enlightenment disappear) and verifies yourself at every moment, in every place, in any situation (continues on and on endlessly). It is from this that the Buddhist precepts originate. It is the only way that mankind can make great progress, reach great peace. Long ago a Chinese poet called Tufu wrote These days, people reject this Way (of Buddha) as if it were dirt. * If there is no awakening to the Way of Budd ha, wont human beings continue to wander endlessly in this chaotic world?
Harada Roshi is the Head Priest of Hosshinji in Japan, is the author of The Essence of Zen, and was General Director of the Soto Zen sects European Office for Administration and Teaching in Italy. This article is taken from the Spring 2001 issue of Hosshinji Newsletter and reprinted with their kind permission.
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From the Buddhist Publishing website

New Year retreat at the Golden Buddha Centre. Click here for more information

Turning the hand up, clouds form; turning the hand down, rain falls. Many are the fickle and insincere who turn their hands this way or that. Dont you remember the devoted friendship of Kan and Po when they were poor? These days, people reject this Way as if it were dirt.
*Friendship in Times of Poverty

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Photos by Cris Cyders and Tony Fairbank, on a trip to China with Red Pine.

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New Books
TARAS ENLIGHTENED ACTIVITY: An Oral Commentary on The Twentyone Praises to Tara
by Khenchen Palden Sherab and Khenpo Tsewang Dongyal Snow Lion, 242 pp. 42 line drawings and 2 photos. ISBN 9781559392877 $16.95 female Buddhist deity Tara is an object of devotional worship and meditative practice for Tibetan Buddhists everywhere. She clears away fears, overpowers negative emotions, and enables all beings to reach enlightenment. She has special resonance as a source of female spiritual wisdom. Tibetans of all schools and traditions recite the verses on which this commentary is based. Focused, contemplative meditation in relation to the myriad aspects of Tara work to transform the practitioners mind into those enlightened qualities and mind states that Tara represents.

DEITY, MANTRA, AND WISDOM: Development Stage Meditation in Tibetan Buddhist Tantra
by Jigme Lingpa, Patrul Rinpoche,and Getse Mahapandita, translated by the Dharmachakra Translation Committee Snow Lion, 266 pp. ISBN 9781559393003 $29.99

The Old Zen Master web sale 2 + p&p was 8.99 by Trevor Leggett This is an ideal book for those who know nothing of Zen, and also for those who are long-term practitioners. The author points out that occasionally a new slant, a new angle, or a new illustration-especially if it is an unexpected onecan be a help in absorbing practice, study and devotion.

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The

Deity

Mantra, and Wisdom contains four of the most cherished Tibetan Buddhist commentaries on the practices of visualization, mantra recitation, and meditative absorption. These three elements form the core of development stage meditation, one of the most important practices of Buddhist Tantra. The authors of these timeless classics--Jigme Lingpa, Patrul Rinpoche, and Getse Mahapandita--have all profoundly shaped Tibetan Buddhism with their vast scholarship and deep spiritual realization. In these eloquent and inspiring writings, they explain the fundamental philosophy of the development stage, showing not only its profound insights into the nature of reality, but also how to make this view a living experience through the practice of meditation.

Trevor Leggett (1914 - 2000), was one of the leading writers on Zen Buddhism in the West. He knew Japanese and lived for a considerable time in Japan. He has written several well-known books on the subject. Among his many books on Zen are A First Zen Reader, The Warrior Koans, Zen and the Ways, Yoga and Zen, and Fingers and Moons. He was also head of the BBC Japanese World Service for 24 years.

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