This podcast is offered by the San Francisco Zen Center on the web at www.sfzc.org. Our public programs are made possible by donations from people like you. Inspired and appreciative of the work that's been done to take care of Tassajara, not just yesterday with the... fire marshal working on flood control and the director and people meeting and but all the work you know that took place ahead of yesterday thinking it through how are we going to take care of Tassajara in the event of and it's really inspiring as I said inspiring and very thoughtful and so as Erin announced, there'll be some meetings with crew heads and crews to look at what we will do in case there's something to really, that we really need to attend to.

[01:17]

There's different levels of attending. You know, Kabarga Creek was named because Pat Phelan's husband, Tom Kabarga, I don't know if they were together at the time, had read about a village in India that had a creek and in the night there was some kind of a flood or during the monsoon or something and the whole village washed away. And he said, what would prevent that from happening right here at Tassajara with this creek here? So we named it Kabarga Creek. And I think of Cabraga Creek as a cautionary name to remind us we have to be aware, we can't assume, and we have to be thinking and attuned to the mountains and the weather and the rain and each other and act accordingly, skillfully.

[02:17]

So we'll see. I'm glad Leslie's back safe. and we'll see what happens. I don't know if some of you have seen the black and white picture that's hanging in Jamesburg of water, which is going over the top of the old steam rooms. You know, when you look at the old baths with the little bridge, there's a, to the right, near the water, is a building, which was the old steam rooms, and the creek is topping that, and Aaron said, That was a rainfall of 13 inches within 24 hours that swelled to that degree. So we will see what will happen, and I have full confidence in the creativity and intelligence of everyone here to respond. And, of course, I don't think we thought about this, or I certainly didn't,

[03:20]

how this would impact the Sashin and our schedules, and we'll see. We'll see what will happen. This is... don't know. I'm not sure if you have been reflecting on the five remembrances which the Buddha was, which Shakyamuni or Siddhartha, Gautama Siddhartha, was reflecting on at this time in the story. And if you've found that sobering or encouraging to practice or what exactly, but to take up Siddhartha, after his charioteer Chana what who really spoke the message the mess there were messengers but Chana the charioteer who worked for the family was the one who had to say these things and Chana just so you know in the story later became one of the Buddha's followers became an arhat Chana the charioteer so

[04:47]

When the Buddha returned back to his, excuse me, he wasn't the Buddha then, Siddhartha, back to his life, everything looked kind of different. It didn't look so enticing or he had this, he was turning this like, why aren't people taking this up? Why aren't people upset? Why aren't people talking about this? things that he had seen and understood. So he had a kind of spiraling down mind. You know, he wasn't buoyant and buoyant as maybe he often was, happy-go-lucky. He had a different, his mood, he had a different cast of mind. And I want to just, and the next part of the story is called The Great departure. And I wanted to bring something up with you that I find pretty interesting and also important, I think, for our sense of how to work with and use these stories so that they're user friendly and work for our own practice life.

[06:12]

all the different stories and iconography and how do we relate to them in a full way that meets our own psyche and our own practice endeavors. So the story that we're so familiar with and know so thoroughly, many of you could tell the story probably easily. was a Theravadan tale, a Theravadan story that is not in the canon. It's a post-canonical tale that was taken up, picked up by Western Buddhologists and scholars and anthologized, analyzed, imparted to students, over and over and over again. It's not that it was an unknown story, but it wasn't, there are many stories of the Great Departure, many stories of the Buddhist life with different details, and this particular one was, most stories are not like this one, but this is the story that has come down to us through the scholars, and I would venture to say androcentric scholars, who thought, oh, this is

[07:42]

This is great. This is leaving home and family and setting out as the great hero on your quest. And we like that one. That goes along with all the other kind of, you know, Greek myths and things. We like that one. And the other ones, we're not so interested in those. So that one is the one we know of and have worked with. So I wanted to offer another story which is from the Mula Sarvastavada Vinaya. The Sarvastavadans was another school different from Theravadan school. And this is in their canon. And it's a very different story. And there's also other stories where the Buddha leaves behind basically his parents sobbing you know, when he sets off and leaves. There's no wife, no son.

[08:44]

There's just leaving his parents to go off on his quest. So in this story, I think at this point it's the same. The Buddha has seen these things and is troubled, he has a troubled, he's affected very, very strongly and he's, He is married to Yasodhara. They don't have any children, and they're in bed in the night, and she has these bad dreams. She wakes him up and says, all these different dreams which he calms her down, it's okay, you know, they're about him, I think. It's okay, I'm right here, don't worry. And in the night, they make love. And she conceives, she becomes pregnant.

[09:45]

So this is from the Sarvastavadan school. And he makes the decision to go on the quest for her sake, for his own sake. basically says, you know, she will be with him when he goes on the quest. And she realizes that she's pregnant, and they have a kind of parallel quest. She's with child, and he's gone, and she hears these stories about him. In fact, the father sent someone to see how he was doing. Well, he went with his charioteer, but he couldn't have been that far. And they sent someone, how's he doing, as he studied with various teachers.

[10:47]

And those reports would come back to the family, so they were kind of keeping tabs on him a little bit. And when Yasodhara hears that he goes into, which I'll tell more, but where he does these ascetic practices, she, in a parallel way, does ascetic practices too and stops eating. And that's like, we can't have that because she's pregnant, you have to eat, you have to take good care of the baby, the unborn child, and you have to eat, keep her strength up and all. So they decide, let's not give reports back to Yasodhar anymore because it's... too strongly affects her and her decisions so they they didn't keep her posted on what the Buddha was going through because he he as you might recall goes to the extreme so she is pregnant in this story and these are these are archetypal stories you know they they hold

[12:02]

for us images and patterns and truths that are very deep. And she remains pregnant the entire time the Buddha is on his quest for six years. What's the longest animal that stays pregnant? I don't know. What? Elephant? Two years or something? Anyway, So she's pregnant, carrying this child for six years, and on the night of the Buddha's enlightenment under the Bodhi tree, which we'll get to, she gives birth to Rahula. Now in the Theravadan story, they translate the word Rahula, the baby son, as fetter, which I always thought was kind of a downer for a name for a baby. But in the Sarvastavadan, The translation of Rahula is, it was the night of the full moon and its moon god is the meaning of Rahula, the full moon, the night of this birth.

[13:13]

It was a very different feeling, right? And so she has her life-changing watershed experience of giving birth at the same time that the Buddha gives birth to that Shakyamuni Siddhartha gives birth to the Buddha really through his realizations. So this is a kind of, this is a different quality, different feeling of the story, very different actually than the Theravadan story at the great departure. sees his wife and new baby and first of all he has disgust when he sees the harem that he has access to and they go into great detail about that which is one of those ways in which there's a turn where rather than

[14:24]

the person working with desire works with their own desire. Instead it turns to the object of one's desire in the object somehow is the problem or what's attractive or not attractive in the object. Whereas the object is just inconceivableness and we bring to it our desires or disgust or any feelings or meaning. We carry that forward and give it to the object. The object itself is a dependent, co-arising, empty of own being and is unfathomable, inconceivableness. And then we, with our karmic consciousness, give it all sorts of meaning. So in this case, you can find this in the sutras and

[15:25]

writings where it's as if there's some problem in the dependent goal rising, you know, rather than the meaning one gives to it or the desires one has or has for it or not for it. So in any event, whether the story that we're familiar with, where the Siddhartha, he still has to, he lets go and renounces. The great departure is a kind of great renunciation, a letting go of a way of life, relationships, to set forth. And I think that you could say, each one of us could say, this is something we're familiar with. This is how... This is our way-seeking mind. This is turning in a new direction, letting go of past endeavors, actions, activities, relationships to take up something fresh and new and unknown because it is our heart's desire, because our way-seeking mind is too strong to

[16:49]

to ignore this. And Chana, the charioteer, and this wonderful horse that doesn't make any sound, instead of clip-clop, clip-clop, as he leaves the palace, he has like puffiness under his hooves, so there's no sound, like little clouds. I think in some of the artist's depictions of this, he's like walking on little clouds so that he makes no sound and silently gallops away. Chana takes him. And then Siddhartha leaves Chana and the horse, who has a wonderful name, I can't remember, and then he expresses his renunciation. in a traditional way, which is traditional in many different societies, in many different ways, which is cutting the hair.

[18:00]

Siddhartha has long hair that he wears in various styles, I guess, and he undoes it and then takes his sword and just lops off this and I think he gives it to Chana. Anyway, he cuts off his hair as this expression of letting go of his everydayness, his everyday life that he was used to and these attachments and out of, not because he rejects family or wife or child, if they're in the story, or parents. It's not a rejection. It's a turning towards something that needs to be taken care of, that cannot be denied, that has to be met.

[19:06]

And so we have to let go. And there may be great sorrow or excitement or readiness, but there has to be some letting go, either in the mind. Letting go in the mind is knowing that things are impermanent, knowing that our happiness, our peace is not tied up with getting things, having those things, because with the five remembrances, everything that is dear to us, all those that we love, of the nature to change and are impermanent and we can't have those forever to make us happy or safe or secure or feel valued or worthy or any of it we that's not where our peace lies and so knowing that

[20:12]

Knowing that things are impermanent is renunciation. Whether you have things or not, renunciation isn't necessarily that you give up everything like layman and laywoman pong and go out into the lake and sink all your possessions in the middle of the lake. That's one way. That was what they decided to do. That's not necessary for everyone. It might be necessary for some people. but knowing that they are impermanent, knowing that they will go away. So what Suzuki Roshi defines enunciation is, not that you give up everything, but knowing that they will go away. And bearing that in mind, this is a remembrance. But we get fooled very easily, and we want our stuff, and we think if we had that then, we would be happy. And it takes forever. you know, to stop fooling ourselves, I would say. This is our human life.

[21:15]

This is samsara. Samsara is the grammar for samsaras. If only then, you know. If I just had this, then I would be happy. That's samsaric because when you get the thing, then it gets a scratch on it and it gets old and it's out of style. Like next month and then and there's a new software and then if only then and it just keeps churning and churning. So Siddhartha cuts off his hair and sets out to find these religious people that he saw who can teach him, who can teach him how you know, to be relieved of suffering and the causes and conditions of suffering. So he sets out.

[22:16]

And Yasodhara, in that story, which I like, she sets out, you know, with all the changes that she's going through and concerns and needing to care for her life and the life of her unborn child and all the relationships change. So when thinking about the story of the life of the Buddha, please entertain these different ways that might meet you better. in a commentary on this new story, it's not a new story, ancient story that we're not so familiar with about Yasodhara and the Buddha and the night of the great departure that they make love.

[23:22]

I mean, it's like rather than total disgust at, you know, relationships and so forth, it's expressing deeply their love for one another in this particular way. Someone in commenting on it said they just had this enormous relief because they've never been happy with Rahula being named Fetter and Siddhartha leaving them and kind of sneaking out in the middle of the night. And they were just very happy to hear this other story. And, you know, in our discussion on spiritual bypassing, I was thinking, is there any spiritual bypassing there, you know? And I don't think so really, but I know people have said, look, this is your responsibility. Take care of your family.

[24:23]

Leaving, you know, this is not okay. This is no great example of a spiritual life. I don't like it, you know? So you can turn it for yourself. You can choose a story that's user-friendly for you that meets your, you know, that meets your truth around some of these things. Because these stories are really about art quest. They're not about, you know, these were, we don't know, you know, exactly. These are, myths, you know, this is mythopoetic, is that the word? These are stories that meet our deepest, our lives, our deep lives, and can encourage us to, just the way stories do, how a story can help us

[25:30]

when the going gets rough, when it's hard, when we lose our way, these stories are for us, on our path. I was trying to break the story into seven parts to have some to tell every day, so I'm gonna leave it, we'll leave it there, with the Buddha's cutting off his tail. which I think was blue. Is that true? No, couldn't have been blue. Anyway, and heading off to meet, find some teacher to help him. I want to be cognizant of the time because we're going to end in time for these meetings to take place about caring for Tassahara.

[26:34]

So this morning we chanted Fukanza Zengi, Universal Admonitions for Zazen, which Dogen wrote upon returning from China. First thing, almost like landed and got off the boat and wrote it practically. and then different versions over the years, edited and so forth. And at the end today, when we're coming to the end of the Fukanzasangi, it says, if you concentrate your efforts single-mindedly, that in itself is negotiating the way. Practice realization is naturally undefiled going forward in practice is a matter of everydayness. That little section which practice realization is naturally undefiled, harken back to the koan that I mentioned yesterday about, and I apologize for saying nanchuan instead of nanyue.

[27:47]

I'm embarrassed, you know, that after all these years of hearing and telling these stories that, you know, Nanyue doesn't jump into mind. Nanchuan jumped into mind. So it's Nanyue Huirong, who was one of the main disciples of the sixth ancestor, 677 to 744, and in that dialogue with them, which the Fukanza Zengi alludes to, practice realization is naturally undefiled, I wanted to come back to it. And also something else in Fukanza Zengi, if you concentrate your efforts single-mindedly, maybe I'll say something about the single-mindedly. Yesterday I mentioned about the Tai Chi teacher saying, you know,

[28:52]

where your thoughts go, so goes the chi. And in whatever our practice is, just sitting, counting the breath, following the breath, are we, where is our mind? Is there a single-mindedness about this? Single mind, unified mind. So to bring our thoughts or bring our mind completely to just sitting, which is nothing particular. It's not either this or that or this or that. It's whatever is arising in that moment without a particular object of your concentration. So whether it's sound of the valley stream, which we are so I'm very happy to hear this kreek singing again in the zendo, and we'll be hearing it shouting probably, roaring maybe later today.

[30:03]

So if that arises, then single-mindedly we're with that. Or if it's breath or posture or some movement in the room, whatever it is, nothing particular. but single-mindedly with it. And our mind in wandering around, which our monkey mind can be... I wanted to bring up a posture thing, which I probably have talked about before, but I want to say it more strongly now, is all the area of the head and mouth, you know, in Phukansa Zengi, the tongue on the upper top roof of your mouth and still, you know, to rest the tongue and the mouth parts, teeth and lips both shut, although not clenched, they're closed but not, your teeth are not touching necessarily, that is too but closed, just about touching, lips closed and very quiet.

[31:16]

All these mouth parts which are very connected with language obviously and production of thoughts, we move our mouth parts around, we can get activity going. So we want to quiet all that. And also, one way that's really important is Phucan Zazengi, ears in line with shoulders, nose in line with navel, which means this is the top part of the head, this back part, not the front. So the chin is dropped. That allows the ears to be in line. And the neck is, I don't like to say flattened, because I once said that, and someone overdid the flattening and kind of wrecked their neck. So it's not really flattened. It's chin dropped.

[32:17]

It is kind of flattened, but it's that eye at the back of the skull is open, you know? that eye right under the skull to imagine there's an eye there and you don't want it to be closed, you want it to stay open. And that will help with single-mindedly concentrating on each moment or being present for each moment, whatever it is. And if it's following the breath, Placing the thinking mind with the breath, unifying the thinking mind and the thoughts with breath, wherever the breath takes you. And this head position is a very important posture point for a Zazen, single-mindedly.

[33:23]

And I think sometimes I go around with Kyusaku, you know, to get a straight. And some people, I'll tap on the back of your head sometimes, which means, you know, there's a straight and you're touching, but then the head's way out here. So bringing the head back, that means ears over the shoulders, this will allow you to be unified. and stay with each moment. And the kitchen is going away now.

[34:26]

This other line, you know, going forward in practice is a matter of everydayness. Our life at Tassajara is so simple, really. And we get a chance to see very clearly our desires, large and small, our dreams, our regrets, because really that's all that's happening, you know, especially with lots of sitting. Things are so simple, we can really study, study the self and see, see where we need to work, what we need to examine, in a very plain and simple way.

[35:50]

And what I was saying before about knowing that things of the world do not make for relief of suffering or happiness or peace, long-lasting, true happiness and peace, and to be very close to that and see and know because life is so simple. And there's great joy, I feel, that can happen during a practice period that we share with one another in the simplest of ways. you know, the simplest of things. And it's rare, the uncomplicated, simple life that we lead, kind of everyday life. And thinking about it's ending the practice period and leaving and going into a more complex situation, to be able to be with other people in that same joyful way, even though people you meet may be very caught up in different ways than you are.

[37:39]

just to be with people in a simple way without trying to dissuade them or stop them from doing the stuff they're doing. It's impossible. It's not up to us to try and change somebody else's life. But just their contact with you and your appreciation for your life and a simple and contented feeling will be helpful to people, I think. Helpful to everyone who comes in contact with you. Everydayness. So back to the practice realization is naturally undefiled going forward in practice. It's a matter of everydayness. So this, I want to say that. Go on again. about Nanyue. So when Nanyue met Hui Nong, the sixth ancestor, every time I say the sixth ancestor, I have this image when we visited the sixth ancestor's temple in China in 2000 with a group led by Reb and Andy Ferguson.

[39:00]

And when Reb got to the sixth ancestor's temple, he began to bow. there was a place to bow, and it was very hot, it was really humid and hot, and he bowed and bowed and bowed, and he just kept bowing and bowing, and people joined him, I don't know how many bows, like 108 bows, and he just paying homage, you know, requiting our debt to this ancestor from whom flows all these schools of Zen, And I can see his back, you know, when I say the Sixth Ancestor, I see Reb in doing a full prostration with his back, totally wet. It was so hot and just bowing over and over. It was so moving to me. So when Nanue first met Hui Nang, Hui Nang said, where are you from?

[40:06]

And I also said this yesterday wrong. I said, from Yu Province, which is a whole other koan. Somebody asked somebody else, where are you from? They said, Yu Province. But he said, Mount Sung. Nanyue said, Mount Sung. Where are you from? Mount Sung. And Hui Nong said, what is it that thus comes? And Nanyue couldn't answer. And for eight years, he turned, as Doken said, that mud ball until he came back to Hui Nong eight years later and presented, it says in the Koan, his move. And the character they use for move is in Go. In the game of Go, he presented his move. which I don't think is exactly strategy, it's just like, this is what he's got, this is his best, you know, this is it.

[41:16]

And said, I understand now that you instructed me when I first came to see you eight years ago, you instructed me, what is it that thus comes? So now he sees it and we can see it is this a question that Hui Nung is asking Nan Hui, or is this an instruction? I now see that you instructed me eight years ago, what is it, what is it that thus comes? And Hui Nung said, what do you understand? And Nan Hui said, various translations, but basically speaking about it does not hit the mark.

[42:20]

And Huinang doesn't leave it there. He says, well then, are you saying there is no practice realization? Practice and realization? Practice realization. And Nanhui says, it's not that there is no practice realization, It's just that it cannot be defiled. It cannot be defiled meaning separated in a dualistic way in order to say something about it. Saying something about it hits the mark. It cannot be spoken about. Speaking about it hits the mark. These are different translations. And after that Hui Nang said, you know, I am like this, you are like this too.

[43:21]

All the Buddhas and ancestors are like this. Buddhas and ancestors of old are as we, we in the future shall be Buddhas and ancestors. So this Many of you have studied this probably, I think it's brought up, and this term, what is it? What? You can turn it as a question, as a meditation life question, each moment, what is it that thus comes? The 10,000 things are coming forward. Do not try to control them, are coming forward. carry yourself forward and create meaning about all those objects and think you know, allow the 10,000 things to come forward and realize themselves as the thus come one, which is English for Tathagata.

[44:26]

The Tathagata, which is another name, epithet for the Buddha, for the awakened one, is the Tathagata. Tatata is suchness. the Tathagata, the Thus Come One. So what is it? As a question, what is it that thus comes? Or, as an instruction, what is it that thus comes? Now that might sound like, who are those comics? Who's on first and what's on second? I don't know who's on third? Abbott and Costello. You know, it's like you can imagine a little routine with Hway Nung and Nanyue with what? What is it that the... What is it? What? What? So is it a question or is it an answer? What? What if we lived our life with just one big, like if you were to draw it like a cartoon with a big question mark over our heads all the time, like what?

[45:37]

I think that would be probably closer to true everydayness, you know, it's like one big what? And to meet each moment with that much innocence and openness and intimacy of not knowing, I think this koan is really speaking to that. Where are you from? Mount Sung. What is it that thus comes? So practice realization cannot be defiled with our thinking about it in a dualistic way. First we practice and then there's realization. It's the usual way that Practice Realization gets defiled or dualized, dualistically thought about.

[46:41]

I'm going to practice, practice, practice, and then there's going to be Realization. Instead of, you know, practice Realization is naturally unable to be pulled apart. Shou ho jisou, true reality of all. of all the dharmas or all the things already. It's already one thing. However, we can't be slack about this. We can't be, you know, and think that we can have wind without fanning. We have to fan. We have to make an effort to realize this. which, you know, he studied for eight years, you know, this, this, turning this, turning this, turning this.

[47:47]

This is thoroughly studying something, thoroughly studying one's life, not just these phrases, but one's whole life. What is it that thus comes? So, it's, what is it that thus comes is the end of the talk, because it's time for storm reviews. So I ask you though to study if this is helpful for you with your full body and mind, single-mindedly, Staying with your life as it unfolds unstoppably. with our Zazen practice, which directly indicates the Absolute.

[49:17]

How do we meet this? The more we think about it, the more confused we get. Just sit down, be quiet, and make your full effort. So tomorrow, if we're all still here, we'll have question and answer, because I know we haven't opened it up yet. We'll do that tomorrow. Yes. Bigger what?

[50:32]

Disruption or excitement. But can it also be a matter of everything? Thank you. Thank you. Yeah, let's just take it in stride and not disrupt our session. It's just, yeah, the feeling of session. Thank you for listening to this podcast offered by the San Francisco Zen Center. Our Dharma talks are offered free of charge, and this is made possible by the donations we receive. Your financial support helps us to continue to offer the Dharma. For more information, visit sfcc.org and click Giving.

[51:14]

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