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. The focus of today's talk is meditation to realize intimacy... with pain and disease. I propose that what I mean by intimacy with pain and disease is peace with pain and disease.

[01:00]

peace and ease with pain and disease. And to bring the teachings from the sutra, unraveling the deep intimacy, to bring the teachings that the images that appear to consciousness or the objects of consciousness are nothing other than consciousness or just conscious constructions. pain for us is experienced as separate from the mind that knows it, from the mind that feels it.

[02:33]

The mind constructs a phenomena of pain, both in direct perception and in conceptual cognition, which appears to be separate from the knowing of it or separate from the subject of it. It's actually mind appearing to itself as separate from itself. In conceptual cognition, there is a concept intervening between the object. There's a concept appearing to intervene between the object and the consciousness.

[03:35]

But the object is consciousness. In direct perception, there's no intervening concept, but the the pain is still a mental construction which appears to be out there on its own, separate from the knowing of it. So both at the level of verbal and nonverbal cognitions, there's this false appearance of the way the pain is. Because it seems to be out there, not only is it a painful feeling, but we're afraid of it. And the mind is agitated when it believes the externality of anything. So the mind is agitated, somewhat anxious, and in this case, experiencing a mental construction of pain.

[04:45]

There's pain somewhere too, but in some sense the mind is protecting itself from the pain by making up its own version of it. It's coping with the pain by constructing its own version of the pain, which is also painful, but at least it's its own construction. If we can realize the intimacy of the mental construction, with the mind constructing it. We can be at peace with the whole situation. That's the proposal. Once again, in the sutra, Maitreya asked the Buddha, when tranquility practice

[05:50]

observing practice or insight practice are combined, at what point are they united? So combined means, in one sense, means do one, then do the other. Do one, then do the other. Then try to do them at the same time. When they're actually united, at what point are they actually united? And the Buddha answers, they're united... Oh, no. Yeah, at what point... Yeah, they're united when they mentally attend to the one-pointed mind. So... When they're not united, then the practice on one side is to attend to the mind itself, the uninterrupted mind.

[07:13]

That's the tranquil practice. The other practice is to attend to the images of mind, to observe the images of mind. When they are attending to... The one-pointed mind. They are united. But take away one-pointed and just say, when they are attending to mind. Somehow, before they were attending to two aspects of mind, now they're attending to mind. The one-pointed mind. The one-pointed mind is the mind that realizes that the image... which is the object of consciousness, and the consciousness are the same thing. So we look at the uninterrupted mind.

[08:17]

We look at the mind. We don't look at the different objects. We look at the mind. We look at the mind. No matter what the object is, we look at the mind. No matter what the object is, no matter what the image is, no matter what the concept is, we're looking at the mind. I'll be looking at the moon, but I'll be seeing you. I look at the moon, I look at the stars, I look at the comets, but I always see mind. This is the tranquil gesture. If you're tranquil, if you're still, and you look at the stars of pain, and you observe them in a calm state, which came from not looking at the stars of pain, but looking at the mind which is always there with the pain, if you look at them and observe them carefully,

[09:30]

in calmness, a time may come when you see that these images are just mind. When you see that they're just mind, you're doing the same practice, which is the calming practice. So the observing practice turns into the calming practice when you understand that the objects of consciousness are mind. And the calming practice becomes the observing practice because the observing practice right now is looking at objects which are understood as mind. So the pain which is being considered in a tranquil mind at first is an object. And looking at objects is somewhat

[10:33]

looking at objects that are external, that are out there, is somewhat agitating. But the tranquility which develops from looking at the mind can withstand some amount of observing external things. So we're looking at external things, we're looking at pain, And just looking at the pain like any other thing that's seen as external is somewhat agitating. But if we keep looking at it, it's possible to see its mind and seeing that it's mind. The two practices of meditation are united and they're observing the one point in mind. They're observing a mind which is a realization. It's a mind that that is being observed because these two are united, it's a mind which, when observed, these two become united.

[11:45]

When you look at the mind, which is both the mind itself and objects, which it always was, or when you look at objects which you understand are the same as the uninterrupted mind, the mind is united, And the mind is actually a realization of the teaching, that the objects of consciousness are none other than mind. And then it, it, what, the one point in mind, is attending to suchness. But you could also say, instead of it, which it doesn't say in the sutra, the sutra says it, It says it right after, right after. It, it, it, what's it? One point in mind. This mind, it, is the realization that the object, the image of consciousness is none other than consciousness.

[12:53]

It. And it, then it, is attending to suchness. So the one point in mind is a realization that objects of mind and mind are one, not separate, the same thing, that consciousness is that kind of a thing. Consciousness always arises having objects. Objects always arise being mind. Realizing that is the one point in mind, and that one point in mind, it observes suchness. the realization is observing the way things actually are for us. But you can change the it to they. And the they is calming and insight. They are tending to suchness.

[13:56]

And you could also change it to the bodhisattva. The bodhisattva is At this stage, the bodhisattva is the union of these two practices. The bodhisattva is the realization of the mind. The bodhisattva is attending to mental, mentally attending to suchness. And in this way, this practice realizes intimacy with all phenomena that are known, with all objects of awareness. Realizing that the objects of awareness are intimate with mind, realizing that we, the living being who is a conscious creature, realizes intimacy with whatever is happening. And this is the removal of the causes of suffering.

[15:01]

even when the object, or especially, and maybe first of all, when the object is pain or disease. But the same with pleasure. If we see pleasure out there, we're sick. We're agitated. We're frightened. Once again, many people think that concentration is to focus your mind on an object. But I propose to you that that's a warm-up to focusing your mind on the mind. And actually, to focus your mind on an object is actually a little agitation. It's a little movement.

[16:03]

which we know how to do. We know how to move the mind towards something, to bend the mind towards something. We have that mental factor always available. Turn the mind towards the object. Move it towards the object. Turn it towards the object. Advert attention to the object. It's called an omnipresent mental factor. Now we're going to let go of that and let the mind not turn anywhere. which is really hard for us to do. So we warm up to it by turning it towards a select group of objects, like just the breath. And not the whole range of breath, but like in-breath and out-breath. Or maybe just out-breath. Try to simplify the turning so it just turns sort of to a small topic of objects. And the other ones, we say, don't turn towards those. Don't agitate yourself about those.

[17:06]

Just agitate yourself about one. Attending to the mind, there's no movement necessary. Attending to the mind is the same as attending to not moving. Attending to the mind is the same as attending to being yourself. Now. Considering the amount of movement, the imagined movement of the mind adverting here and there to objects, making a commitment to advert it towards just one is virtually not moving relative to the amount of movement that's usually going on. But the complete not moving is for the mind to be attending to the mind. which is not something looking at something, it's the mind not distracted, it's the mind not moving, it's the mind becoming settled.

[18:15]

But once again, here's something to imagine and then forget about. Imagine being tranquil and concentrated, peacefully, flexibly, brightly calm. And then a teaching comes up and you feel... it would be okay to look at it and you contemplate the teaching or you contemplate some object like pain and you look at the object and it looks like it always has out there and then you look at another one which might be very similar this may be a similar teaching and you study the teaching or you study the pain in your calm you can do it and then you see it's not out there and you may or may not tell yourself that you've achieved intimacy you don't have to but I say that that is

[20:10]

attending to suchness and that that is what bodhisattvas according to the sutra and I agree that's what bodhisattvas train to pay attention to and when they are able to pay attention to it they continue to pay attention to it and paying attention to that is the same as paying attention to Buddha and they pay attention to that for the rest of their career except when they forget and then they practice confession and repentance and go back and start over. Buddha is the same thing. It's not something out there. It's not something in here. It's not the mind. It's not the object. It's the realization. that the object is none other.

[21:12]

That's the Buddha that you pay attention to. And one more thing that is said for this teaching, which it doesn't say in this sutra, but it says, Vasubandhu says later. So Vasubandhu and Asanga, this is, in a sense, this is their main sutra. the founders of the Yogacara school use this sutra, and Vasubandhi talks about attaining mastery of this consciousness only, but he calls it a concept only. Instead of chitta-matra, he calls it vijnapti-matra. Vijnapti means like just an image or a concoction. He says, when you attain this concept only, or this fabrication only state, which is called vijñāpti matrata siddhi, when you attain that, that attainment is also a mere concept.

[22:28]

Hopefully that will protect people from substantiating this attainment into another thing, that's out there. My sense is that this is the central yogic function of the sutra. It's the center of Bodhisattva's yoga practice. And again, in terms of the theme of intimacy, this is the way to realize intimacy with all things. With pain, with disease, with other sentient beings, with our philosophies, with everything.

[23:38]

And in the intimacy, the signs or the packaging of what we become intimate with no longer disturb us. And we enter. We enter the middle way. requirements for admission to the middle way are being very kind to everything up to the point of enthusiastically practicing tranquility and learning teachings which then in tranquility we bring up or come up as is appropriate in the space

[24:48]

tranquil space to be contemplated that's the we have to do this kind of work fortunately we already have done it to some extent you have heard the teachings and if they're not clear to you then they need to be clear so that you can contemplate them once you're calm and then If you contemplate them in calm, you can realize that these teachings that you're contemplating are nothing other than a manifestation of consciousness right now. And then you have intimacy with the teachings and enter the middle way of the teachings. And as you know, the first teaching of the Buddha is the truth, the teaching of the truth of suffering.

[25:51]

So now we can say the truth of suffering, the suchness of suffering, is that it's nothing but a manifestation of consciousness. And the origins of suffering, the truth of the origins of suffering, the suchness of the origins of suffering, are that it is a manifestation of consciousness. And the same for the next two truths. The sutra also goes into seven kinds of suchness, and four of the seven kinds are the Four Noble Truths. So, the early teachings of the Four Noble Truths, starting with the truth of suffering, starting with the true suffering. Those are four suchnesses that the bodhisattva studies in order to be perfectly enlightened.

[26:54]

To look at these truths, to understand the way they're taught, and then to see the suchness of them. The teaching and reality of the first truth of suffering is none other, as you're studying it, as you learn about it, it's none other than a manifestation of your consciousness. Then you become intimate with the reality of that teaching. And then the teaching, the Dharma does its work. So I I skipped over the seven suchnesses because I thought there would be a bit much, but now I feel like you're ready for me to bring up the seven kinds of suchness, but I'll do it on another occasion. I really pray that you are as happy with the

[28:09]

this teaching as the Buddhists and Bodhisattvas are with it. They're very happy about this teaching. The Maitreya Buddha and Maitreya Bodhisattva and Manjur Sri and Avalokiteshvara and Paramakta Samudgata and these people, they're very happy about this teaching. I hope you are too. 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.

[29:02]

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