This podcast is offered by the San Francisco Zen Center on the web at www.sfcc.org. Our public programs are made possible by donations from people like you. Good morning. Welcome to Beginner's Mind Temple. I wonder how many of you are here for the first time today. Would you raise your hands? A few? Okay. Well, a special welcome to you, and I hope that there will be something in your morning here today that will feel to you like it was worth coming out for. Today is a special day here at City Center because this afternoon we're going to have a Jukai lay ordination ceremony in which five lay practitioners will receive the Bodhisattva precepts and it's a wonderful ceremony

[01:22]

It's very inspiring, and you're all welcome to come. You're invited. It begins at 2.45 today. So I want to use this time now to talk a little about the ceremony and about the precepts themselves. I'm getting over a cold, and I'm kind of... aware that this microphone is going to pick up every sniffle, so I'm sorry about that. The process for receiving the precepts or taking jukai begins with asking the permission of a teacher here to do so. And then when begins sewing a rakasu, which is the bib-like garment that some of you have on.

[02:27]

And then you would, as part of this process of getting ready for the Jukai ceremony, you would study and practice the precepts, either one-on-one with your teacher, or or maybe in a precept study group or a class, whatever you and the teacher work out. So we do this ceremony at least once a year, and usually two or three times a year. And sometimes it's a priest ordination, and sometimes it's a lay ordination. And in either case, the precepts that people receive are exactly the same. The difference is in how everyone understands the expectations that we have of those people after the ceremony, what kind of life they will lead.

[03:34]

So a priest ceremony is leaving home and attaining the way and... a lay ordination ceremony is staying home and attaining the way. But the important part is attaining the way, and that happens in both ceremonies. So in my early years at Zen Center, after I had been around long enough to notice that we do the same ceremonies over and over again, year after year, I used to wonder how the senior practitioners and teachers could sustain their enthusiasm and freshness about these ceremonies, how they could see it happen in a very similar way year after year and still bring a fresh mind to it. Well, for one thing, every time we do it, the people participating are different.

[04:41]

And in the case of a Jukai ceremony, they're usually very enthusiastic. They've worked hard for this moment and looked forward to it for a long time, often invited their friends and family, and it's a big deal. And that's contagious. So we all feel that and share in it. And I also found that these ceremonies that would be repeated, actually I would get more out of them every time. They would seem deeper to me and I would just love them more and more. They'd become familiar, sort of like a favorite song. You know, when you know all the words and you have your favorite lines and your favorite parts. So that's how I feel about many of our ceremonies, and I really love this particular one a lot.

[05:44]

And my favorite lines in this ceremony are the very first ones that are said right away by the preceptor. Invoking the presence and compassion of our ancestors. In faith that we are Buddha, we enter Buddha's way. And then we chant the names of Buddha and the main bodhisattvas and ancestors all the way to our own founder, Shinryu Suzuki Roshi. We chant all of those names. So we bring our ancestors into the room. We invoke them. We invoke their presence. And we praise them and thank them and ask for their support in this endeavor of receiving the precepts today.

[06:56]

We invite all the manifestations of Buddha and the ancestors from past, present, and future, beyond space and time, in faith that this is possible. So we do this with our big minds. And we invite them to share with us their wisdom and compassion. So this faith that we are Buddha, what is that faith? We profess faith in this basic Buddhist tenet that we are Buddha, that we are one with Buddha, that we are Buddha nature. Even though we probably can't believe it yet, we do it based on the teachings we receive from our teachers.

[08:09]

And we hear this so often that we get used to the idea and believing it becomes more and more possible. So hearing it believing it, and experiencing it as true work on each other and on us, strengthening our faith. I think that the process of asking for permission to receive the precepts brings up various issues for people. And one is that the vows themselves seem impossible. So we're basically vowing to live for others, for the benefit of others, to put others ahead of ourself, or to live for all beings, including ourself.

[09:25]

So it moves us away from self-interest to our shared humanity and our shared living in the world. And I think that sometimes people don't feel worthy of ordination. They may say, well, I've only been practicing for a little while, or my practice isn't very good. So they may not feel deserving or worthy of receiving Jukai. And they may be concerned about what their family and friends will think if they're ordained, how they will react. And I think that's a very important point. Today, some of the people who... are participating in this ceremony have invited their family and friends to come and witness this ceremony.

[10:32]

So this is a public declaration of an intention and their family and friends are encouraged by this to expect this of them and possibly call them on their shortcomings. And actually, this is one of the reasons to do such a ceremony, to publicly receive the precepts. It's a little bit like if you're going to lose weight or stop smoking and you tell your friends and family that that's your intention, then you feel a little bit sheepish if you're eating a hot food sundae or smoking a cigarette in front of them. it's a little embarrassing. So it brings up a higher standard of behavior. One of our former abbots, Reb Anderson, wrote a wonderful book about the precepts and about the ceremony.

[11:49]

And he talked about how people approach him... when they ask permission for jukai. And he said often they will say, instead of saying, may I receive the precepts, they might say, I want to start sewing, which is a reference to making the rakasu. And he just finds it very interesting that somehow it's easier... for people to say, I want to start sowing, then I want to receive the precepts. May I do that? And he says that his own personal criteria for allowing people to receive jukai is an understanding of what it means to take refuge in Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha, and the courage and willingness to ask for in a straightforward way.

[12:51]

So I think that's an excellent criteria myself. It's a public declaration of commitment. And I think it's a little bit like a wedding. It expresses love and commitment to a path of practice. And the bodhisattva path of practice is expressed through receiving and living the precepts. So the first part of this ceremony, the first thing that happens is that each initiate receives a new dharma name and a robe. So the robe is the rakasu that is you have sewn yourself. And you can look around, people that have the bibs.

[13:55]

It's a miniature okesa, so this over-the-shoulder robe that I have on is an okesa, and a rakasu is simply a smaller version of the same thing. And both are regarded as Buddha's robe. And so if you're wearing Buddha's robe, what does that make you? And I really love the fact that all of our ceremonies have so many of these elements that really point to the basic truths that are being ceremonially enacted. And during the sewing process itself, so you sew, and you sew a particular stitch, and with each stitch you repeat a mantra, namu kiei butsu, namu kiei butsu, which means I take refuge in Buddha, or I plunge into Buddha with each stitch.

[15:18]

So I personally found this to be a wonderful practice that I enjoyed a lot. It's very calming and contemplative, and I love the kind of sewing that we do on ropes. I wish I could do more of it. And it's usually done in the sewing room with other people who are preparing for some form of ordination. with the teachers there and the other people. So a little sana or community forms of all the people that are sewing at a given time. And I still remember and feel connected to the people that I sewed my rakasu with many years ago and the people I sewed my okesa with. It's an additional wonderful thing about this sewing. And there's the opportunity to work with the sewing teachers, which is a real treasure.

[16:22]

And yesterday, I asked our head sewing teacher, Blanche Hartman, to tell me a little about the history of this practice of sewing. And I hope I can communicate it not too badly, because she's sitting there. She said that there was a woman in the early days when Suzuki Roshi was here who wanted to be ordained by him, and he had never ordained a woman and didn't quite know what to do with that request. So he suggested that she go to practice in a women's monastery in Japan, which she did. And this monastery, the abbot, was a woman. And at some point, this woman abbot was very curious and interested about what was going on in America in this place that this woman had come from.

[17:28]

So she made a trip to the United States to see what was going on and visited Suzuki Roshi and Zen Center. And she was so impressed with all the lay people that were gathered around him, how sincere they were and how devoted to Zazen, which was really unusual, that she kept pestering him to do Jukai. She said, you have to ordain these people. So finally, a Jukai was arranged. And she came to teach people how to sow their ruckuses. And they did. They learned how to sow ruckuses. And she would come every year and teach a new crop of people how to sow ruckuses. And eventually, a priest ordination was scheduled.

[18:30]

And I think it was for seven people. And Blanche is nodding her head. That's encouraging. And this time, she sent someone else. She sent a colleague named Joshin from a different monastery in Japan. And Joshin's son went to Tassahara and started sewing these robes with helpers. And Blanche was assigned to help her, to take care of her while she was there. And she was sewing like a house on fire. She didn't go to the baths, which is the main fun thing to do at Tassajara, and she didn't get much sleep. She just kept sewing and sewing and sewing. And Blanche was really worried about her, tried to get her to stop and take a break. And finally she said, I promise you, I will get these robes done.

[19:37]

Please, you know, pace yourself, take care of yourself. Go have some dinner, take a bath. So Blanche learned how to make the robes. Each ocasa has eight corners, and the corner is the most complicated part. So that was 56 corners that Blanche made for that ordination. Thank you. What would I know? Thank you very much. So we also have this bowing clause. So four on this and four on this. Anyway, so Blanche became a sewing teacher and has been doing it ever since. And she told me that she didn't do this out of any particular interest in sewing. She did it because she was so impressed with Joseon San's devotion to this practice that she wanted to carry it forward, and she certainly has.

[20:47]

So she's been doing this for many decades now. I know that there are people who have come from all over the country, from other sanghas, to spend a week or two sewing with Blanche. And I know from my personal experience that it is the best way to be around Blanche. It's great. It's the nirvana of Blanche. So now Blanche is 88. And she has trained a whole bunch of new sewing teachers. So this practice will continue. It will stay alive. And I just think it's great. So thank you, Blanche. And thanks for sharing the story with me. So this robe is sewn with a lot of love and effort and support from the teachers and the Sangha.

[21:53]

And then in this ceremony, you get it back. So you have a little ceremony where you give it to your teacher, and it has a blank white panel on the back, and the teacher writes something on it. before the ceremony. So when you get it today, it will be a surprise, what's written on it. And it's kind of a gift from the teacher to the student, and it's a lot of fun for both of them, I think. And when you receive your raucous today, you'll do a little chant. And the last line of the chant is... I will wear this robe of Buddha with the mind and body of its sacred meaning. So that's another one of my favorite lines. And I think probably the most exciting part of this ceremony, the most interesting part, is receiving your new Dharma name.

[23:10]

because it represents some aspect of how your teacher sees you. And we all want that, don't we? We all wonder, how do people see me? So I think this is the most interesting thing. And especially your teacher, who presumably you care about and want them to care about you. According to the tradition that we follow here, you get two names. And the first name is some aspect of how the teacher sees your current practice. And the second name is the potential the teacher sees in you. So it's a fun moment when people open their rocket suits and see what their name is. The next part of the ceremony is avowal and repentance. It's a purification preparatory to receiving the precepts.

[24:16]

And we'll chant three times the same words we chant before service every morning. All my ancient twisted karma from beginningless greed, hate, and delusion born through body, speech, and mind, I now fully avow. It's an acknowledgement that we're enmeshed in karma from all the causes and conditions of the past and that we live in practice within that reality. And seeing this, I think, is the first step to living in harmony with all beings. Understanding our complete interconnectedness, is how we dispel the ignorance that lies at the root of all evil and all of our misdeeds and mistakes.

[25:24]

So this chant wipes the slate clean and says, we can start anew from here. We can begin again. And that's the nature of precept practice. we will continually fall short in trying to live up to these vows. We will continually fall down and get up and fall down and get up. And getting up is renewing our intention, our vow. And every time we renew it, we strengthen it. This is symbolized by the fact that There's a bath time in the schedule for the ordinance today. So right before the ceremony, they bathe and put on clean or new clothes to be pure, to receive the precepts.

[26:29]

So finally, we're ready to actually receive the precepts. There are 16 of them, and... The first three are the three refuges. I take refuge in Buddha. I take refuge in Dharma. I take refuge in Sangha. Then the three pure precepts and the ten clear mind precepts. And after the preceptor in the ceremony offers each category of precepts, she asks the initiates, even after realizing Buddhahood, will you continually observe them? So this is the bodhisattva ideal that expresses, that practice is not a means to enlightenment.

[27:32]

It's a way of living out our awakened mind, enacting the enlightenment that we have. And then the preceptor says, you are seated with Buddha and are a child of Buddha. So these precepts are how Buddhas live in the world. So I mentioned the three refuges, the first three precepts. And you also chant, I take refuge in Buddha as the perfect teacher. I take refuge in Dharma as the perfect teaching. I take refuge in Sangha as the perfect life. So we accept Buddha as an example of how to live. We are willing to pattern our lives on his example and accept his teachings and practice with his teachings to make them real in our own lives and to see if they work for us.

[28:40]

And we take refuge in sangha, the community that supports us. Very important sangha. We mirror each other and provide friendship and support for each other. The legend of Buddha's life. tells the story of Rahula, Buddha's son, asking Buddha for ordination. And Buddha asked one of his main disciples, Shariputra, to ordain Rahula. And the ceremony, which became the prototype for our ceremony, was offering him the refuges. asking him to take refuge in Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha.

[29:42]

So that is the essential crux of the ceremony. Then we have the three pure precepts, which are expressed in many different ways. But in our ceremony today, we'll say, I vow to refrain from all harmful conduct. I vow to engage in skillful conduct. I vow to live for the benefit of all beings. So that's very open and flexible, and it expresses the overarching intention to do what is helpful and not harmful for all beings. It's based on our understanding of our deep inner connection with others. and the emptiness of any personal self that we can own or control or keep.

[30:48]

So it moves us away from self-interest and towards shared interests with other beings. And this intention is very important. The idea of karma is based on intention. Karma means volitional action. And our intention changes what we say and think and do. It changes the world. It changes our own world. So I think, for example, of doing forgiveness meditation, which I have done at times. And you say to yourself something like, for whatever harm this person intentionally or unintentionally has done to me, I forgive him. And you probably find that sometimes you can't forgive that person, that you're not ready to, that you're still angry or hurt or something.

[32:01]

And then it's really helpful instead to change the words and the practice to, for whatever harm this person has done to me intentionally or unintentionally, I begin a process of forgiveness. So you move towards it. It's a very different feeling and effect from saying, I will never forgive that person. And I think we've probably all heard someone say that at some time. Maybe we've said it ourselves. It's possible to feel that way, and you can see the big difference. So that's the helpfulness and meaning of intention here. So our intention leaks out, consciously or unconsciously. and affects how we are with others and the world.

[33:06]

And others respond to it, and then everything gets bigger and snowballs. So we work with the three pure precepts, which are not about restraining or refraining from negative behaviors, They're about cultivating the mind of awakening from which good action naturally arises. So that's what the three pure precepts are about. If we truly intend to do good and not harm for beings, that will be the direction of our life, whatever mistakes. and shortcomings we may have along the way. And I think that's an excellent foundation for a life, that wishing to do good, wishing to help people, will result in a good life, a good and helpful and beneficial life.

[34:21]

So, the ten clear mind precepts. We're moving right along. I want to read the list of ten clear mind precepts. I vow not to kill. I vow not to take what is not given. I vow not to misuse sexuality. I vow to refrain from false speech. I vow to refrain from intoxicants. I vow not to slander. I vow not to praise self at the expense of others. I vow not to be avaricious. I vow not to harbor ill will. I vow not to abuse the three treasures, Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha. So there are many ways to express these ten precepts, and often they're expressed more positively. What you do do instead of what you don't do. Or instead of saying, I vow not to, saying a disciple of Buddha does not.

[35:28]

And I think that speaks to how they are. They're not intended to be something that you follow to a letter or something that will tell you exactly what to do in every circumstance. Wouldn't it be nice if we had that? So one of the ways that you can work with these ten precepts is that they're all related to each other. So if you make an effort to keep one precept, you're apt to be keeping all the precepts while you do that. And if you break a precept, it's very possible that you're breaking others at the same time. So I think it's worthwhile to look at any activity that you're wondering about, if you're wondering, did I break the precepts when I did this? Will I break the precepts if I do this?

[36:30]

To look at that, look at not just the seemingly relevant one, but all of them, and look at it from that perspective. So just for example, if you harbor ill will, you may be tempted to slander, or praise self at the expense of others, or be avaricious, or abuse the three treasures, or even kill. So I think that's a helpful way to work with these very specific precepts. And then, the ceremony is almost over, you receive a lineage paper. which is an actual graphical family tree of the ancestors of each generation of awakened beings back to Buddha, to Shakyamuni Buddha.

[37:39]

So going through India, China, Japan, and America. This afternoon, Victoria and I will be offering the precepts, and we represent second and third generation of American practitioners in this lineage of Suzuki Roshi, which means that the new ordinands will be the third and fourth American generation. And this document shows where you are on the family tree. along with Buddha, Bodhidharma, Ehe Dogen, Shinryu, Suzuki, Roshi. Good company, wouldn't you say? So you can see yourself on Buddha's family tree. Each new ordonance name is inserted on this document, on the family tree.

[38:41]

So... What's the most important thing? The bodhisattva way is practiced with big mind. If we believe that we're separate from other people, we will not be able to keep the precepts no matter how hard we try. But our efforts will remind us of our interconnectedness with other people. we'll see the consequences of our actions and learn from that and feel how much we're all a part of the same thing. It can't be otherwise. When we take the precepts, we accept full responsibility for everything that happens in the world by responding to what's in front of us.

[39:47]

by responding to the situation and the circumstances that we actually have in the best way that we possibly can. That's fulfilling the precepts. So if any of you out there are thinking about taking the precepts, I want to encourage you. Don't waste time. Don't waste this life. You won't be more worthy later. You're worthy now. And you can begin your life as a practicing bodhisattva and be on the family tree of Buddha now. So that's all I have to say. Thank you. Thank you for listening to this podcast offered by the San Francisco Zen Center. Our Dharma talks are offered at no cost and this is made possible by the donations we receive.

[40:49]

Your financial support helps us to continue to offer the Dharma. For more information, visit sfcc.org and click giving. May we fully enjoy the Dharma.

[41:03]

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