This podcast is offered by the San Francisco Zen Center on the web at sfcc.org. Our public programs are made possible by donations from people like you. It is so nice to be here after, I think, after 10 years. The last time I gave a talk, in this then Zendo was, I think, 2002, so 10 years ago. And that was a few weeks before I had the first Genzoe at the city center. At that time, I lived in San Francisco. I talked. about San Suikyo, or Mountains and Water Sutra of Shobo Genzo.

[01:00]

At Green Gallery, as a kind of introduction to that chapter of Shobo Genzo, I talked about one poem about Mount Rue by Sushi. I don't believe that was 10 years ago. The next year, in 2003, I moved to Bloomington, Indiana. So I have been living in Indiana for nine years. In Indiana, Zen Buddhism is still new and small. So my Zen Do is still small, and I like small things. Anyway, when I was in San Francisco, I worked for the Sotoshu International Center.

[02:02]

So I was very busy. So I didn't have much time to work on making books. But after moving there, I had some time to make books. So one of the focus on my practice since moving to Indiana was making books. And last month, this is my second book entitled Living by Vow, was published from Wisdom Publication. This morning, I'd like to introduce one of the stories in this book the story is about how Shakyamuni became Bodhisattva this is much before he was born as a Gautama in India excuse me because this is

[03:20]

interesting and also important and helpful that we are going to study this Genzoe, the chapter of Shobo Genzo, Yui Butsu, Yobutsu. Only Buddha, only a Buddha together with a Buddha. So what is Buddha? And what is Bodhisattva? I think as an origin of Mahayana Buddhism, this story is very... interesting and helpful to understand our practice, what we are doing, actually. This book is based on my lectures I gave at MZMC, Minnesota's Meditation Center, when I was a teacher there from 1993 So the lecture was given almost 20 years ago.

[04:23]

So it took me almost 20 years to make this book. But I talked, while I was at the Zen Center, I talked about the verses and sutras from the sutra book. the sutra book used at that Zen Center. The verses such as four Boj Sattva vows, and a verse of repentance, verse of three refuges, and robe chant, and meal chant, and the Heart Sutra, and Hokkyo Zanmai, and Sutra opening. verse, because those are the most familiar Buddhist literature, actually, for many practitioners practicing at Sotozen centers.

[05:33]

But not those verses and sutras, verses are not often explained. So I thought it helpful for the practitioner to talk about those verses. Anyway, all those verses and sutras are about boysatva practice based on boysatva vow. That is my understanding. And the origin of boysatva vow is from this very old story about Buddha's previous life. This story appeared in the introduction of Jataka stories, that is part of Pali Nikaya. So this is not from Mahayana text, this is from Pali text.

[06:37]

Of course, the same very similar story appeared in the Chinese translation also. But this time I used the Pali version. It says this story took place countless eons ago. So many years ago. There was a So after his parents died, someone took care of his family property.

[07:43]

until he became old enough to inherit the family wealth. When he became, I don't know, 18 or 20, or I don't know how old he was, but when he was ready to inherit his family wealth, the person showed how much wealth his family had. He said, for seven generations, his ancestors accumulated the wealth. The family treasure was filled with gold and silver, gems and pearls, and other variables. So he had a lot of wealth to inherit, but somehow he didn't want to inherit the wealth. What he thought, he was still a very young person, but what he thought was, you know, all those his ancestors and parents, you know, worked so hard, maybe not only a good kind of work, because, you know, at that time, maybe there are a lot of wars.

[09:08]

So they had us... certain difficult situations to accumulate those wealth. And when his parents died so young, when he was a kid, that means behind that there must be some sad and painful stories. But anyway, when he saw the family wealth, he thought, You know, all of his ancestors and parents, none of them, when they died, they couldn't take even a penny of the wealth. So he thought that is not so meaningful to live, you know, keep the family wealth. He wanted to live different ways, so...

[10:11]

he told the king of the country that I want to give this wealth to the poor people. And he entered the mountain and became a spiritual practitioner. At that time, when he left, he thought as follows. He saw that a life transmigrating within samsara, the cycle of birth, sickness, aging, and death, was suffering, and he wanted to find the path of deliverance, liberation from the suffering of samsara. That is a cycle of birth, sickness, aging, and death.

[11:14]

So this is the same as Shakyamuni Buddha found when he left his palace, his father's palace. And he thought, suppose a man, after falling into a heap of filth, heap of filth, that means he becomes dirty, He cares about a distant pond covered with lotuses of five colors, lotus flowers, of course, symbol of Dharma. The man ought to search for the pond. We should go to the pond and clean our body. If he does not, that's not the pond's fault. In the same way, there is a lake. the great deathless nirvana.

[12:16]

Deathless means beyond or free from the cycle of birth, sickness, aging, and death. In which to wash of the defilements of my harmful karma. If I do not seek it, That will not be the lake's fault. That is my fault. So I should go to the pond that is in Nirvana to clean his harmful karma. Because he was so young, I don't think he himself did harmful karma. But probably he thought of his ancestors' karma. Probably. So he probably think he inherited the... harmful karma also from his ancestor. Anyway, he left the country and started to practice by himself in the deep mountains, Himalaya.

[13:21]

Because he was very capable, eminent person, after a while, after practice, he attained... called superhuman knowledge and some of supernatural power. So he became a powerful person, spiritual person. But he didn't know about Buddha. But one time, one day, he was flying. One of the supernatural powers he attained was he could fly in the sky. So wherever he needed to go, he could fly. And when he was flying, he found one town where people were working to fix the street. It seems they had a storm or something, and the street was very muddy.

[14:31]

And also people were making a decoration of the street. and people seemed so exciting, seems like they had a festival. So Sumedha came down and asked, what's happening? Then the people in the town said, Buddha is coming. The people invited the Buddha named Deepankara. Sumedha was very delighted that Buddha is coming so he could meet with Buddha. So he offered his help to fix the road because the town people knew he had a superhuman power. They asked him to fix the street. The story said, if he used his magical power, he could fix the Lord very easily, but he didn't want to use his magical power for Buddha.

[15:57]

So he started to fix the Lord with his own hands. Unfortunately, before he completed his work, Buddha and his sangha monks arrived. So one part of the street was still very muddy and Smedda didn't want Buddha to walk in the muddy road. So what he did was he had long hair and he loosened the hair and he lie down on the muddy road and put his hair on the mud and ask Buddha to walk on his hair. That was his offering. So the posture of putting his hair on the ground is a similar posture of making prostration that we do.

[17:07]

Anyway, at that time, when Buddha was walking on his hair, somehow something happened. Because of Buddha's presence, he had some transformation in his mind. Until then, he wanted to escape from sansara, and wanted to enter nirvana. But then he, at the moment he met with Buddha, he changed his mind. And it says, the story says, when Sumedha lying in the Maya looked Deepankara Buddha.

[18:09]

He made a vow. If I want, I could now enter the Buddhist Sangha to become a monk. And by practicing meditation or studying Dharma, free myself from deruded human desires and become an alhat. So he thought, if I became Buddha's disciple, he could release from delusions and desires and become alhat. Then at death, I would at once again nirvana. After he attained alhat and he died, he entered nirvana. And ceased to be reborn, so he doesn't need to be born again in Sansara.

[19:12]

So his transmigration will be ceased. But he said, but this would be a selfish cause. This would be a selfish cause to pursue. For thus, I should benefit myself. So he could be released from the suffering of samsara and enter nirvana. But he says that way of practice is selfish. You know, this is from Paranikaya. I want to help all beings as Deepankara Buddha is doing now. I am determined. So he made a vow. He was determined.

[20:13]

I vowed to attain what Deepankara Buddha attained and benefit all beings. So he changed his mind. First, originally he wanted to become free from sansara and enter nirvana. But when he met with Buddha, he changed his mind. That way of practice is selfish to him. So he vowed to attain whatever the Pankala Buddha attained. That means he wanted to become a Buddha. I am determined. I vow to attain the Deepankara Buddha attained and benefited all beings. That was his vow. And he was still, you know, lying on the ground.

[21:19]

Then the Buddha, when walking on his hair, he knew the person took a vow to become Buddha. Then Deepankara said to his assembly, this young person would become Buddha after many years later of bodhisattva practice. So this was the prediction that this young person, Sumerida, who took a bodhisattva vow and a Buddha, previous Buddha, gave a prediction that this person will be able to become Buddha. That is a kind of origin of Boyesatoba practice. So, upon seeing Deepankara Buddha, Smeda abandoned his earlier intention to escape from samsara.

[22:33]

Now he aspired to live like the Buddha, staying in samsara to help all living beings. So he didn't become a Buddhist monk. He determined to live within samsara to help all beings. And since that time, it is said for more than 500 lifetimes, he was born... and die one lifetime and be born again and continue this Bodhisattva practice based on his vow. And finally, after more than 500 lifetimes of that kind of practice, he was born as a Gautama in India. And within that lifetime, he actually attained Buddhahood. and became Shakyamuni Buddha.

[23:36]

That is the story. This is a really long story, and within the Jataka story, Jataka is a collection of more than 500 stories. That is why it said Shakyamuni was born more than 500 lifetimes, and he was not only a monk. or a spiritual practitioner. Sometimes he was a king, sometimes he was a beggar, sometimes he was even a monkey, or a deer, or a bird. So he became all different kind of forms of living, and practiced 10 parameters. The early version says he practiced 10 parameters, and within those 10 parameters Five of six parameters in Mahayana teaching is included.

[24:39]

So I think this story of Shakyamuni, since he allowed bodhicitta and took a bodhisattva vow until he really attained and became a Shakyamuni Buddha, it took more than 500 lifetimes. This is a long story. But this long story, I think, is a basis or origin of the idea of Sambhogakaya. Sambhogakaya, one of the English translations of Sambhogakaya is a reward body of Buddha. Because of his long, continuous practice, he became a Buddha as a result. Anyway, this story, to me, is really interesting. I think many people go through this kind of, not a stage, but a transformation.

[25:53]

In my case, my family, I was born until my father. For six generations, my family had been a merchant in Osaka. It's not a big business. It's a small business. So they are not so rich. But after six generations of working as a merchant, there must be some property accumulated. But fortunately or unfortunately, my family lost all the property in one night, during one night. That is 1945, in March, in Osaka was burned by American Air Force. We lost everything. So when I was born three years later, 1948, my family had no property.

[26:59]

I... I really appreciate that. If the family property were there, I couldn't become a monk because I was the oldest first son. In Japanese culture, the first son had the responsibility to take care of family business and property and take care of parents. But when I was a kid, my father said, We don't have any property, so you are free. You can become anything. But he didn't expect me to become a Buddhist monk. That was too extreme for him. So he was not happy. But anyway, I believed that I was free. So when I was a high school student, I had many questions about life.

[28:00]

And the way people lived in Japan, that was 1960s and 70s. Japanese people in that time worked so hard after World War II. Japan lost all, everything, and even people were starving. After that, people worked so hard to become rich. And in the 60s and 70s, Japan became rich again. That was the time I became a teenager. And I didn't like that way of life. My parents or teachers and the entire society expected me to study hard and go to a good, famous college. college or university and get a good job, work hard and make money.

[29:05]

When I was a high school student, I couldn't find any meaning to live in that way. Why do I have to work deep for making money? That was my question and no one actually gave me the answer. I didn't want to live in that way, but I didn't find any alternative way of life until I had a chance to read my teacher's book. My teacher was Uchiama Kosho Roshi, and a friend of mine knew someone who practiced with Sawaki Roshi, so my friend knew Uchiama Roshi. And he... allowed me to read Uche Moroshi's first book entitled Chiko or the Self. When I read my teacher's book, somehow I wanted to live like him.

[30:09]

That means I didn't understand. I knew nothing about Zen or Buddhism, but I understood when he was a teenager, he had the same question. And he devoted his life to find the answer. And after he found the answer, he continued to practice and share the practice, in his case, Dogen Zen's teaching and practice of Zazen. After he found that was his answer, he continued to practice and share with younger people. Before that, I read many books about religions, and I knew there are many such spiritual teachers, but Uchiha Moroshi was the first actual person who lived in that way. So somehow I wanted to live like him.

[31:14]

But my first motivation was I wanted to escape from this material world. And so I went to Komazawa University to study Buddhism to understand what the answer Uchya Morosh found. So after studying Buddhism for three or four years, I understood what is then or what Buddhism is about. And Uchya Morosh put emphasis on both sattva verbs. He didn't like ceremonies, rituals, so we didn't even have morning service at Antaichi. But before and after he gave a Dharma talk, we chanted four boy satwa vows. That was the only vows we chanted at Antaichi.

[32:18]

So he put very much emphasis on living by vow. Four bodhisattva vows is really important. I understood that by studying Buddhism, Mahayana Buddhism, and also Dogen's teachings, and practice with Uchima Roshi, still my very fundamental motivation is I didn't want to live in that material world. So I wanted to escape, to find a kind of a better, more stable, quiet, healthy life. And after a few years, I practiced with Uchiha Moroshi at Antaiji. I came to this country when I was 27. And I lived in the woods in Massachusetts.

[33:23]

Only three Japanese monks from Antaiji lived in the woods in Western Massachusetts, and not many Americans knew what we are doing here. So not many came, not many people came, but we practiced, three of us practiced there. We had no financial support, so we had support our practice. by doing some odd jobs, like helping a blueberry farm to pick up big blueberries, or helping a potato farm to help harvesting. And a few years later, we started to work at a tofu shop. There is a big macrobiotic group in Massachusetts at that time. So there was a tofu shop. So we... work there, that is how we supported our practice.

[34:29]

Anyway, so we are very poor, and what we did was just working in the property. We had about five to six properties. We had many trees, but that was the only thing we had. So first thing we did was cutting trees, and digging the stumps and making vegetable gardens. And in the first half-year, we didn't even have water. So each day after morning, we walked to the neighbor's property and get water in the plastic container and return. And that was one day, Use of the water. So I dug a well with hands, with a shovel. We had no machine. Anyway, that was how we lived.

[35:34]

And we practiced for about five years. After a few years, I started to live in that situation. I had a chance to go to New York to have a sushi. There's a small Zen Center in New York City near from the Central Park. After the session, I had nothing before taking bus to return to Massachusetts. But I had some time, so I took a walk toward the south in Manhattan. Then I reached the place, at park, I could see the Statue of Liberty. At that time, I had nothing. I didn't have a driver's license, I didn't have a passport, and I didn't have money beside the ticket to return to Massachusetts.

[36:45]

So I had really nothing there. And I had no identity. At that time, I felt I was really released. I become completely free. If at that time I was hit by car, no one knew who I am. I was really happy about that. So I felt my escape was completed. So I don't need to escape anymore. But at that time, I felt I don't need to escape anymore. That means I can return to the world. From that point, not suddenly, but gradually, I tried to return to the world, not to become part of that world,

[37:46]

but to bring this teaching and practice and share the Dharma and practice with people. A few years later, I had to go back to Japan because I had problems with my body. My body was half broken, and I didn't have money to have treatment. So after I went back to Japan, my teacher asked, me to work for the Dharma because my body was half broken he asked me to work with my head that means working on translation that was the beginning of my work and practice as a translator and so I have been about 30 years I have been working on translation And some of the translation and these books are kind of fruits of my working.

[38:51]

Anyway, so I think I went through the same kind of transformation. First, I had a question or doubt, a problem about life, and I wanted to escape from this problem. problem or situation. And it took me more than 10 years of study and practice to realize, you know, in the case of Sumedha, he was very smart. The moment he met with Buddha, he changed his mind and he became a bodhisattva. But for me, it took 10 years to make that transformation. But I think many of us have the same kind of transformation. First, I want to be free from my problem.

[39:59]

And we studied Dharma and practice. And when I feel, you know, now I'm done, then... can open our mind and think how I can share this with other people. Probably, Shakyamuni Buddha himself had the same, I think much, much higher. It's not like mine. After he attained awakening under the Bodhi tree, the first few weeks, He didn't want to teach. He wanted to just enjoy the freedom he attained. But because of what's the name of the god Indra, Indra came and asked him to teach. He had hesitation.

[41:03]

But somehow, after a while, he watched the situation and people in the world who were suffering. see that some of them could understand what he found. So he stood up from his sitting and walked to the deer park and taught those five monks. That was the beginning of Buddhism. When he attained awakening, he became Buddha. And then he... Before he started teaching, I think he thought how he could teach what he found. And it took him a certain period of time, and that became his teaching. And when he started to teach those five monks, those five monks understood

[42:12]

and became Buddha's disciples. That is the origin of Buddhist Sangha. Those three, Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha, is the very basis of Buddhism, so-called three treasures. And when we become Buddhists, became Buddhist by receiving the Buddha's precept. We take refuge both three treasures, Buddha and Buddha's teaching, and the Sangha. So this process is very important. First we need to have a question, or we have a kind of a problem that this is not healthy this way of life is not healthy and we need to go we need to walk start to do something to find the place we need to go so we started to practice study and practice but

[43:40]

important point as a bodhisattva is to become free from our problems or suffering is not the goal but that is a starting point and we start to practice as a bodhisattva how to share this teaching and practice with all beings that is bodhisattva vow And during our practice in Soto Zen tradition, when we receive the precept, first we chant the verse of repentance. This chanting the verse of repentance at the precept receiving ceremony is a kind of a turning point.

[44:44]

to transform our way of life from being led by our karma. We make another karma, a wholesome karma, and we suffer not only ourselves, but we create suffering with other people, and we make repentance how much suffering or pain we created through our karma. And one of the definitions of Bodhisattva in Mahayana Buddhism is ordinary living beings are living being brought by karma. But Bodhisattva is living by vow. That is the origin of the title of this book. Living by vow means by making repentance, practice repentance.

[45:54]

We make transformation from the life we live, being proved by our karma, means our like and dislike, or fulfilling our desire. We feel, we think, usually we think when our... my desire is completely fulfilled, then we can be happy, or we can be satisfied. But according to Buddhist teaching, that is heavenly beings within samsara. It's not free still, being heavenly beings is not free from samsara, because there's no end. things are always changing. So when the situation changed, the heavenly beings need to go to somewhere else, possibly to hell again.

[46:55]

So that is the way we live before deceiving the precept, Mahayana precept, but when We receive the precept, we make repentance of the way we have been living, being proved by our karma. And we try to live by vow, bodhisattva vows. But as a bodhisattva, our karma, our karmic conditions still continues. Because our vow is not to enter nirvana. We vow to stay in samsara. But in fact, Sumedra made determination. We stay samsara to help all beings. So in order to work within samsara, we need our karma.

[47:59]

Karma is conditioned as this person. I am a Japanese. So I think in Japanese language, and yet I have to speak in English. This is really a terribly painful karma. I cannot be free from this karma. I have to keep this karma. But somehow I try to use my karma to use for the Dharma. as a part of a vow to share the Dharma with Western people. That is what I do when I give a talk or I make translation. So I cannot escape from karma, but I try to use our karma or condition for the sake of Dharma as a practice of vow.

[49:07]

So, you know, bodhisattva vow is not allow us to escape from samsara. But because of the vow, we have to stay in samsara. You know, that is the meaning of the first of the four bodhisattva vows. I'm not sure which translation you use, but that translation of four... Vosatova vows we use in Indiana is, beings are numberless, we vow to free them. Within this one very simple vow, there is a contradiction. That means beings are numberless, and we vow to free them. We vow to free them means we vow to free them all. This vow means until I free all beings, I don't enter nirvana.

[50:16]

That means I vow to stay in samsara until all beings enter nirvana. And there is no end. If beings are numberless, there is no end. This vow is fulfilled. You know, that means this vow is endless. That means there is no time we can enter nirvana because we vow to be a last person to enter nirvana. So this is a really strange vow. It's almost nonsense. You know, a clever person cannot take such a vow. If we take a vow with careful understanding, you know, this is simply a fantasy or a kind of a lying. But to me, this contradiction is really important. That means when all bodhisattvas take these vows, then no bodhisattva is in nirvana.

[51:21]

So nirvana is empty. That means all bodhisattvas are working within samsara. It's kind of a strange thing, but we can find nirvana within samsara if all the people live with that aspiration to help others first. Then we find nirvana right now, right here. To me, that is the meaning of Poisattva vows. So our vow, our goal, As a Buddhist practitioner, our Bodhisattva is not entering nirvana, but staying here, right here, within samsara, and work together, walk together with all beings, and find nirvana, right now, right here. It's ten after eleven.

[52:24]

That is what I have to say this morning. Well, I think we have time for question and answer after tea. So please give me a question or a comment if you have some. Okay. 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 and actualize the practice of giving by offering your financial support. For more information, visit sfzc.org and click Giving. May we fully enjoy the Dharma.

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