Amen. Amen. Can you hear the PA system? Yeah, there it is. And... Each time I chant an unsurpassed perfect and penetrating Dharma.

[01:18]

I think of sayings by Dogen and there was a place in Dogen where he wrote a little poem that said, difficult to say, easy to practice. Easy to say, Difficult to practice. And unsurpassed, not that we're comparing it to anything, penetrating. Isn't everything obviously itself each moment? And it's no self each moment? Perfect. Perfect in its imperfection, just being exactly what it is.

[02:33]

So today we're having a one-day sitting, and I would like to talk about shikantasm. Maybe a dangerous subject to talk about, but sometimes we do dangerous things. And I have a little anecdote about Suzuki Roshi in that regard. someone gave me this little book. Gil Fransdahl gave it to me. He put it together, Remembering the Dragon. It's Suzuki Roshi's Western students who were giving little anecdotes about Suzuki Roshi. And here's one of the anecdotes that caught my eye. Suzuki Roshi was in prep school.

[03:49]

You know, I grew up in the British system. I'm actually not so clear what the prep school is. Is that previous to high school or after high school? It is high school? It's prep for college? Yeah. Anyway, he was in Kamazawa, which also has a university in Tokyo. He was in Kamazawa prep school. And for reasons, the anecdote didn't listen, it didn't describe. He went to the storage room to get a melon. And when he lifted the melon, Unassociated, but coincidental. Someone turned off the lights of the storage room.

[04:55]

And so it was utter darkness. And in the utter darkness, he turned around and took a step. And there was a steel hook hanging from the roof. And it snared him just above the right eye. And so he realized he couldn't get out of this by himself. And so he just stood there with the melon as best he could, unmoving, with this shearing pain of the hook. And according to this story, He stood like that for about an hour before someone came in, turned on the light, and helped him remove the hook. So Suzuki Roshi told this to one of his students when he'd come to the States and started a Zen center.

[06:11]

And he said, I learned a lot. from that experience. I learned how to be calm and non-reactive in the midst of pain and suffering. Is that an unsurpassed, penetrating, perfect Dharma? on for yourself like what if you were in the midst of the difficulties of your life in the midst of the challenges the uncertainties the regrets the yearnings all of that can it be deeply related to just the way it is

[07:15]

without any malice, agitation, distress. And then interestingly, I would say, well, on a good day, with sometimes, but on other days, No, I have something to say about it. Some reaction. Can our conditioned being and how it becomes reactive or agitated, distressed, can the unsurpassed penetrating and perfect Dharma can it be a reference point that helps us see our agitations the ways in which we struggle when we're sitting Zazen can

[08:49]

the notion of just sitting without any gaining idea, without getting lost in all the machinations of our mind and memories and anticipations. can the proposition of shikantaza help us to see what we create each moment? In becoming yourself, You know, there's one piece where sitting and being yourself, just to sit as yourself, just to sit, just be yourself, is no problem whatsoever.

[10:14]

That is meant That is what's meant by just to sit. You know, that is no problem. It includes... That's an endless problem. Because this human condition is... has such deep conditioning about its own welfare, its own wish and yearning for happiness, contentment, ease, accomplishment, and the challenge of

[11:15]

our practice is that we have a foundation that helps us see just what's happening each moment. I don't know if it makes sense to you, but it makes sense to me that Suzuki Roshi would say, and I learned a lot from just standing there with my left eyebrow hooked up, unable to escape the pain and suffering of it. You know, if you want to see how your mind moves, just try to focus on a single object. the admonitions of relating to the breath in Soto Zen.

[12:31]

And take what I say next because I am a hybrid of many of Soto Zen, Rinzai Zen, Yoga, and who knows what else. But I would say this, that as we start to sit, can we ask ourselves, what's the disposition that helps, that supports non-suffering within the human condition? How is that a guidance? How does that express itself in the body, in the posture?

[13:34]

How does that express itself in the emotional disposition, the psychological disposition? How does that express itself as we endeavor to be present in the moment? And my Zen heresy is that we can take up particular practices in the service of Shri Kantaza. It's helpful in a conditioned way if you can sit comfortably.

[14:39]

If you sit in a way that has a stability, has an uprightness, an openness, Maybe even in a way that helps the energy of your being, the physical being, to flow. In this chapter of becoming yourself, Suzuki Roshi he likens that to a coin, a monk comes to Dongshan. And he says to Dongshan, you know, here in this monastery, often it's too cold and often it's too hot.

[15:45]

And when I first read that, I thought, yeah, a little bit like Tassajara. The monk asked Dongshan, is there a place that's not too hot or not too cold? And I would grant the monk, I mean, this is just my conjecture, I would grant the monk that he wasn't that naive. But sometimes the naive question is also the deep question. How can I be comfortable in my own skin? How can I be comfortable and content and settled?

[16:52]

with the attributes of my life just the way they are, even though some of them agitate me. Some of them, when they arise, I'm reactive to. Is there a way to bring forth in the midst of all these causes and conditions a sense of balance, a sense of acceptance of what's arising. And Dengshan said, the monk asked, is there a place where it's not too hot or cold? And Dengshad says, well, why don't you go there?

[17:54]

Yes, there is. Why don't you go there? And the monk asks, how did I get there? And Dengshad says, when it's cold, let the cold kill you. When it's hot, let the heat kill you. And when I was preparing for this talk, I thought, do I do that? And I would honestly say, on a good day, yes. And... at other times, sort of.

[19:01]

But can we have it as a reference? And then, this is in Suzuki's, Roshi's lecture that's transcribed in this book. He goes on and he says, Too cold is Buddha. Too hot is Buddha. Being reactive to too cold is Buddha. Being reactive to too hot is Buddha. Is there something there in that admonition? that shines a light for you on your responses when your life feels too much one way or the other or like if you think of this time in our world this time in the United States governance I don't know about you I'm finding it

[20:24]

kind of deeply, maybe distressing is the word. I deeply hope and would wish that it would be different. And what I do, what I try to do, is I try to dissociate that wish from having somebody to blame and blaming them, having a way to be reactive and thinking, yes, but this is justified. Can we meet this world, this life, this set of circumstances not in a neutral way, but with the passion of being alive in a way that we can see it and own it.

[21:41]

So for me, it brought to mind an old story, Indian story, that is both used in Buddhism, Hinduism, Jain, Sufism, and probably lots of other spiritual traditions. And it's the blind man and the elephant, for those of you who don't know. group of blind men approach an elephant. Usually in this story there's no description as to how that setup happens. And each one of them, you know, one touches its leg and says, oh, an elephant is like a tree trunk.

[22:48]

One touches its tail and And an elephant is like a rope. One touches its trunk and says, an elephant's like a snake. And then there's two versions of what happens next in this story. One version is they all start disagreeing with each other and saying, well, It's not a snake. It's a rope. It's not a rope. It's a trunk. And then in one version of this story, they argue passionately with each other. And then in another version of this story, they're all confused.

[23:52]

well, you know, I hear what you're saying, but my version of reality is different. So it's a simple enough story, but it can open up interesting questions for us. Because who doesn't live in the subjectivity of their own experience. And it's practice asking us to ignore our own experience in the promise of some greater experience, greater knowing. In Genju Kahn, Dogen says, you can see what your eye of practice can reach.

[24:59]

Maybe the takeaway from the story of the blind man and the elephant is that we should listen to each other. That our subjective experience is by the nature of our human existence limited. But when we add our collective experience, what would that look like? How does it relate to shikantaza? Can we sit and let elephant, elephant, elephant arise in endless ways? Can we let the moment arise in the myriad ways it does?

[26:11]

Can each moment be unsurpassed, perfect and penetrating? What's the disposition of that? What's the disposition of pausing in the midst of your busy life or in the midst of an intense response to being just what you're being in that moment? What helps you to dip into that kind of presence. And then the Suzuki Roshi's formula

[27:25]

This too is Buddha. Too hot is Buddha. Too cold is Buddha. Not liking too hot or too cold is Buddha. Is there a way that you can skillfully remind yourself, facilitate the experiencing of and unsurpassed, penetrating and perfect Dharma in that moment? Or, to be more modest about it, is there a way in any particular moment you can call forth the willingness to be that moment? Or are you waiting for your darkened room with a steel hook through your eyebrow?

[28:33]

No. Another story that was mentioned in this little book. It's called Remembering the Dragon. Ryu. Shunryu. the dragon. His teacher asked him if he would, he didn't ask him if, in the way it's pointed there, he told him to do it, have this monk live in his temple, in Suzuki Roshi's temple. And this monk had been through the Second World War, and he was quite mentally psychologically unstable and he ended up killing Suzuki Roshi's wife and then which of course it was an earth-shattering tragedy and then there's a line saying and then after that Suzuki Roshi was

[29:55]

softer can you as you be yourself can you let moments of opening moments of softening moments of clarity can you give them an attention that helps them to teach you how to be Rather than be grasped at your version of the elephant, can something be more inclusive? You know, Suzuki Roshi was fond of saying the most important phrase in English is, the most important word in English is maybe so.

[31:05]

Maybe. That inquiring mind that doesn't fixate on fixed ideas, attitude. Can we let the mind be soft like that and still have the... of holding our own position. But this is how I see the world. This is how I relate to this. As we look and feel and read about what's happening in the world right now, Can you respond in a way that you can trust?

[32:17]

Can you respond in a way that has a wisdom and compassion to it? Can your glimpses of such a way of being Can they be listened to? Can they be instructive? Can they be remembered? In your vow of practice, for those of you sitting today, can you return each time you've noticed your mind wandering into some way of thinking or feeling? Can you return to this spacious inquiry? It's not a matter of figuring out.

[33:23]

It's a matter of opening up. It's a matter of being present. Can you behave in that way? Can you pick up a phrase like something like what your eye of practice can see? Can you explore not just what's being formulated by your consciousness, can you explore inquiry? explore the difference between having an answer and having a question. What's happening now?

[34:26]

Can it be an invitation to a more intimate involvement in who you are? Can it be remembering yourself? And then to return to my heresy, I would say that especially when we're sitting, both in aligning our posture and the sadness, openness and uprightness that we explore what it is to open with the inhale. Imagine you're silent asleep.

[35:33]

Your body is completely relaxed. And the inhale is received by your body. It's soft, open, and letting the breath enter. And then as the breath moves through the body, then releasing. In some ways, the opening, the receiving, the letting the moment happen, It is the compassion of our practice. That we accept ourselves. We accept the world. We accept the moment. And we hold it tenderly because of its precarious nature.

[36:39]

ever-changing nature. Category Roshi likened it to carrying a large piece of wet tofu. You hold it gently, you move carefully. It always amused me that simile, that analogy. And then we release The wisdom of not clinging. The wisdom of accepting that everything's impermanent. Each thingness that's constructed is just the moment's play of the waves upon the great ocean of existence. we let it go.

[37:48]

We let it in, we let it go. Can we study the breath in our city? Study not so much mentally, but experientially. Can we open to the breath? Can we release the breath? Not so much because we have a particular goal. But more, we're harmonizing with the nature of being. And I would suggest to you, even those of you who are not sitting today, but certainly as you're sitting, watch. because a lot happens in a one-day sitting.

[38:55]

Sometimes you're deeply enthused, purposeful, and then other times you're feeling fatigued and ready for the bell to ring so you can get up and stretch your sore knees. But even those of you who are not part of the sitting, Can you dip down into awareness? A couple of weeks ago, I was pushed by someone. I wasn't harmed. But in that moment, I felt violated. had this kind of... And carefully, fortunately, I didn't speak. But I had kind of outrage.

[40:01]

And then I thought, look at me, outrage. What a privileged and secluded life I live. You know, someone pushes you gently and... You're not even hurt, and still you're complaining about it. To be curious about our human existence, can what's happening now be stimulate our curiosity rather than, oh, I have to do this fierce, noble Zen practice. And will it work out perfectly?

[41:08]

Maybe in moments it will. And what it does, celebrate them and learn from them and maybe in moments it won't. Can you hold tenderly your being? And then you're sitting as you study the breath. I think it's case three of the book of Serenity. Prajnatara says, I study the breath, hundreds, the sutra of the breath, hundreds and thousands of times. Can you gently study, what is it to allow the moment to arise with the inhale?

[42:14]

What is it to release with the exhale? Okay. Thank you. that you may come to us for a day. Beings are numberless. I am not to save them. Delusions are and exhaustable. I am not to save them. God, my God, is His Son, and I'm blessed. God, my God, is His Son, and I'm blessed.

[43:20]

God, my God, is His Son, and I'm blessed. God, my God, is His Son, and I'm blessed. God, my God, is His Son, and I'm blessed.

[43:28]

@Transcribed_UNK
@Text_v005
@Score_80.38