This podcast is offered by the San Francisco Zen Center on the web at sfzc.org. Our public programs are made possible by donations from people like you. Today we will perform a memorial ceremony after this talk. memorial to the events of 10 years ago today. And a memorial to all the suffering and unhappiness and cruelty and disappointments.

[01:04]

The fear that has been in this world for the last 10 years and is here today. offer such a ceremony here with your support today. You offer this ceremony here with our support. If we do so in the context of embracing the great vehicle, of embracing of understanding of truth and a life devoted to realizing enlightenment through the welfare of all beings.

[02:20]

To the happiness of all beings. to help me to be happy in a world just like this. This is what the enlightened ones are devoted to. And this is what the enlightened beings are who are on the path to realizing what they're all concerned living in a way that you support beings to be happy in our present world. You wonder, how can you possibly be happy with such suffering?

[03:30]

In this room, there are statues of enlightening beings. One of them is called Avalokiteshvara Bodhisattva. The Bodhisattva of infinite compassion. And the statue of that Bodhisattva is in the back of the main altar. And also, there are paintings of Bodhisattva on four sides of the large incense burner in front of the main culture. Bodhisattva, given a compassion, is surrounded by sages. Bodhisattva, in this case, looks like a woman, a human woman.

[04:58]

And she's surrounded by shade-headed monks. Look, I can't tell if the male would be now, but she seems to be a woman, a human woman. Ms. Lodi Sarka's response to this world of suffering is to observe them, observe all the suffering, and observe all the living beings, all their unhappiness, all their fear, all their greed and hatred, all their confusion, all their violence, to look upon them all, to contemplate them with eyes of compassion. She represents a way of living, of constantly contemplating all the living beings with eyes and compassion.

[06:14]

With no limit in scope or time. all living beings with eyes of compassion. And the teaching of the Lord Sutra is that this need eyes, this contemplation of all beings, assembles an ocean of happiness, an ocean of merit, an ocean of virtue. and worshiping a blessing beyond measure.

[07:16]

This voice is a representative of the Green Vehicle. but presenting the ignorant compassion of a great vehicle to meet every situation with reaction. This does not mean that she does not sometimes protest, but the protest comes from compassion, comes from generosity and ethical. discipline and patience and courage and serenity she ends up but she's not always showing what she always is doing is contemplating all that we needed with eyes of compassion

[08:42]

This is how she assembles a potion of blessing. Do you wish to join her in this practice? She wished to join this great, enlightening eating in her practice of contemplating living beings with eyes of compassion, assembling an ocean of happiness beyond measure. I see some people nodding as though they're saying yes. Even if I say yes, I understand that I may get distracted.

[09:50]

I may forget some moments to look upon the big being with eyes of compassion. And when I forget, I just said to me, forgive me. My commitment to compassion. And I'll let you touch Dr. Boyes up, but he's looking at me with eyes of compassion when I forget. And I remember, and perhaps, again, I joined this great practice of assembling a boundless, immeasurable portion of happiness in this very world of soul. This is the basic work of the Bodhisattva of infinite compassion.

[10:53]

But the Bodhisattva has another dimension of her practice, and that is the practice of wisdom. So in the lotus of the true Dharma scripture, This bodhisattva of infinite kandashram is contemplating all living beings and assembling this ocean of happiness and blessing for suffering beings, but they are still suffering. This bodhisattva wishes more than just to bring blessing. This bodhisattva wishes to the bodies, also to the days. So she must develop wisdom too. In Harsutra, her wisdom practice is pointed to.

[11:59]

In the Moral Service of Bacchanta Harsutra, which says, when practicing deeply the Prajnaparamita, perfection of wisdom, clearly saw that all five advocates are empty upon pain, and thus relieved all suffering and distress. Is this wisdom joined with compassion? It's this wisdom that grows out of compassion that actually liberates people from their confusion. The compassion brings blessing and helps them open to the practice of wisdom, which brings liberation.

[13:03]

of the practice of wisdom is also to contemplate all beings with compassion. But then, in this compassionate contemplation of all beings, which means every human we meet, every non-human we meet, every emotion we have, every thought we have, to meet every experience of living being with compassion. And in that context, We investigate this living being. We ask this living being questions. This is an example of a life of wisdom to acquire into what is a living being. One example of this is a story about a Chinese man who lived in the Hong Dynasty more than a thousand years ago.

[14:35]

He suffered and he studied the teachings of compassion. And he tried to practice them. But he still didn't understand the truth. And he went to study with a Zen teacher named Baijong. This mom's name was Changya. And Changan leaves fragrant cliff or fragrant precipice. And the second part of his name is which means obstacle to wisdom.

[15:46]

And in fact That was his situation. He was a very brilliant young man, and he studied hard the teachings of the great vehicle. But his wisdom was instructive. There was a barrier to his wisdom. His teacher, Bajan, the great Zen teacher Bajan Yaya, shortly after he started the study with them, And so then he continued to study with Bajang's disciple, Guishan. And Zen Master Guishan saw her sincere and compassionate. Another man this was. So he said to him, please bring me a pivotal word, an essential word,

[16:53]

Bring me an essential word. From yourself, before you were born. Bring me a pivotal word from yourself before you entered your mother's womb. Before you knew east and west. And Xiangyang tried to bring the teacher such a worry, but the teacher didn't accept any of his words. He gave up and left his teacher and went to a cemetery.

[18:01]

where one of the teacher's ancestors memorial was located. And he just lived in the cemetery and took care of the ancestors' memorial site. Cleaning around the memorial site to the ancestors. And then we, again, will intend to perform morning service for the welfare of the big beings. Can't wait at the same time to be taking care of the mother of the Buddha ancestors. While he was cleaning around the memorial site, sweeping and breaking, tidying up the land around the memorial site of the enlightened ancestors, he swept some debris towards a grove of bamboo and a pebble.

[19:38]

the shaft of a bamboo had went, and the obstacle to wisdom dropped away. He found the place where wisdom was born. He compassionately cared for his teacher And his teacher's teacher, he was devoted to the welfare of all beings, but he couldn't find a place where the obstacle to wisdom drops away. But he finally settled into that place, and then the gift came to him. He was practicing deeply the perfection of wisdom, and he saw that all five adjectives, for example, the adjective of form, the aggregate which includes sound, he realized that sound is empty of self.

[21:02]

He realized his self before he was born. And he became a teacher himself. And one day, when he was teaching his group, he said, a person is open a tree. And he's a tree. is growing out of the side of a thousand-foot cliff. He didn't say fragrant cliff. Trees are growing out of the side of a thousand-foot cliff, and a person is up in that tree, and the person is hanging from a branch, which she is bugging with her teeth.

[22:15]

She's hanging by her teeth. branch a thousand feet in the air. Her feet cannot reach a branch below, and her hands cannot reach or hold on to the branch below. When someone appears down below and calls up, what is the meaning? What is the intention of the Zen ancestor, of the ancestor of Zen coming from India to China? On the main altar, there's a small, relatively small, wooden statue.

[23:21]

on this side of the altar. And that statue represents the founder of Zen who came from India to China named Bodhidharma. So this person's angry by her teeth, a thousand feet up in the air, and somebody said, what's the meaning of Bodhidharma coming from India to China? This is Shang Yang's question. And he says, if she answers, she will lose her body and life. If she opens her mouth, I should say, if she opens her mouth to answer, she will lose her body and life. If she does not open her mouth, if she goes on and does not answer, she doesn't care for the sentient needs, to know the meaning of that.

[24:39]

And then he said to his group, at just such a time, what would you do? He found the place. It's a long struggle. It's a long devotion to the ancestors teaching. He found the place of his self before his mother was born. Now he wishes to induct his students into this place. just such a time, at just such a place, when we're just like this, what we do. At that time, one of the elders in the community came out of the room and came up to the teacher and said, I'm not talking about, I don't want to talk about after she went up in the tree.

[25:59]

I want to know, before she went on the tree, how was that? And the teacher laughed, walked what would you do? At such a time what would you do? I propose that just at the time is actually right now.

[27:02]

That right now is at the time. I don't know what I would do, I don't know what he would do, but I propose that the, what is, that the enlightened ones and the enlightened ones, I propose that Avilopiteshvara Bodhisattva, at just such a time, would bite the branch. And I propose that the answer And we sought the great answer to the question, what is the meaning of Zen?

[28:05]

It is wisdom. The answer is, gift. They are answered at the very moment of fighting the march. And also, asking the question, What is the meaning of life that the Buddhists wish to teach? The question, the asking, the probing is done by the Buddhists at the very moment of hanging by a branch with your teeth. also I propose that this bite is a relaxed

[29:12]

walking on the earth among holiday days, biting the branch moment by moment. There's no before or after at this time that just not It may have helped people in the past, that's fine. It may have helped people in the future, that's fine. But right now, the way to help people is by the big branch. Because that's what you're doing. That's who you are. That's your job. And that was yourself before It entered her mother's womb.

[30:53]

And that is easy to be distracted from. And that is asking What is the meaning of the Buddhist teacher? And that is answering the question. Before your mother, which is the most difficult job. And while you're painting, on the branch. And while you're just hanging by the branch, while you're hanging by the branch, while you're biting the branch and not doing anything more or less than biting the branch, at that moment, whatever happens to you, you save perfect Christmas.

[32:18]

If you try to be somebody other than we are, which is what we usually do, in order to help people, which is what we usually do, there still comes a kindness, you're trying to be helpful, but cannot teach it perfection of wisdom. Teach the perfection of wisdom by being yourself before your idea of yourself. This investigation of the moment, this investigation of being itself right now, in the context of contemplating all of the beings.

[33:39]

It's not all the Chris Morris practice. Do you wish to join other lucky test virus practice of contemplating sentient beings? I saw some nods. Now I ask, do you wish to join other lucky test virus practice of being yourself?

[34:46]

And speaking and acting from that self before you were born. Do you wish to do the practice of fighting that branch? The practice of yi yi yi. The practice of at just this very moment. Robert, I could hardly look to see it, and even not. I was too busy. And so it would be the same to you that when I asked you the question,

[35:51]

Even though you may feel yes, you can't answer. You're already done. A breeze that has just entered the hall. Summer's almost over, in a way. But I heard it's still hot in the central valley. I heard that Buddha's

[37:04]

in the midst of all living beings. I will be judged for our sits in the midst of all living beings, contemplating. I've heard that Buddha sits in the midst of fierce flames, turning the wheel of darkness for the welfare of all beings. I've heard that summertime has a living in 80s. Fish are jumping, and the coffee is all.

[38:24]

Your daddy's rich and your mama looks crazy. So rest with your baby. Eat the little water. This morning you're going to rise up to me. You're going to spread your wings and you'll take to the sky.

[39:28]

Oh. Until that morning, there ain't nothing at all. There ain't nothing at all. I'll invite the branch. Thank you for listening to this podcast offered by the San Francisco Zen Center. Our programs are made possible by the donations we receive. Please help us to continue to realize and actualize the practice of giving by offering your financial support.

[40:38]

For more information, visit sfzc.org. and click giving. May we fully enjoy the Dharma.

[40:49]

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