First, we aspire. We give rise to the wonderful spirit of compassion. The desire, the wish, to attain freedom and complete awakening so that we can bring benefit to all beings. Because of this inspiration and this aspiration and this intention, we may then wish to receive the great precepts of the Buddha. Receive them and take care of them. Once we receive them, we then can enter the gate to the world of Zen meditation.

[01:07]

Because of our aspiration to become awakened for the benefit of all beings, we receive the precepts. The precept, first of all, of awakening itself, then the precept of the Dharma, and the precept of the Sangha, and the remaining precepts to stop all evil, to practice all good, to benefit all beings, And then the great precepts, which vary from monastery to monastery and temple to temple and person to person. Working with these precepts in the midst of our fellow practitioners,

[02:19]

suffering with our shortcomings, gradually the true spirit, the true aspiration to drop all self-clinging gets stronger and stronger until we can quite naturally enter the realm of the forgotten self. The story of our great ancestor, Yaoshan 1E, the 36th ancestor in our lineage, is a kind of model of this process. As a young person, he was inspired to enter the Buddha way he became a monk and received the precepts.

[03:25]

He studied the Buddhist teaching, the scriptures, and the commentaries thoroughly. And he practiced the precepts very scrupulously. But at a certain point, he lamented to himself. thinking a true person ought to be purified apart from these laws. Who could believe that simply following these trifling precepts scrupulously would suffice? Who could believe that it is simply a matter of being scrupulous about particular details of our actions.

[04:32]

And yet, the person who said this was a young person who had received the precept and had worked with them carefully for a long time. To say that before you received the precepts is skipping an important step. When a person becomes a head monk in our tradition, they come to the abbot and they say, I've received Buddha's precepts and have entered this monastery, but I am not yet ready for this responsibility. Receive Buddha's precepts and enter the monastery. I'm not quite ready but anyway I enter anyway because you're forcing me to do so by your request so I will become the head monk.

[05:33]

Receiving the precepts is not the whole story. After you receive them you have to enter into the realm where there isn't any fixed self to cling to. That's where we really receive our true self. But still, we must receive the precepts in order to take this step, really. Otherwise, we're just dreaming that we're practicing Buddha's way. But this young man, he received the precepts and realized there was another step he needed to take. So right away he went to visit the great teacher, Shirtol. He went into Shirtol's room and asked, I've been studying Buddhist teaching for some time and have learned a little bit.

[06:47]

I've been following the precepts carefully. But I've heard that the Zen people have a way to directly point to the human mind, to see its nature, and to become Buddha. Please, Teacher, Be compassionate to me and explain this to me." Shirtou said, being just so won't do. Not being just so won't do either. Being just so and not being just so won't do at all. How about you?"

[07:50]

Huan Yee was speechless. Shetho said, the conditions are not here. the conditions for you are not here. Go see Master Ma." So accordingly, when he went to visit Master Ma, he paid his respects and asked the same question. Master Ma said, I make him raise his eyebrows and blink his eyes. Sometimes I don't make him raise his eyebrows and blink the eyes.

[08:56]

Sometimes raising the eyebrows and blinking is right. Sometimes raising the eyebrows and blinking is not right. How about you? Wanyi was greatly enlightened at that moment. Therefore, he bowed to the teacher. Master Ma said, What truth have you seen such that you bow now." And when ye said, when I was with Sirto, I was like a mosquito climbing up on an iron bull. Master Ma said,

[10:01]

You are just so. Take care of this. Still, Shurto is your teacher. aspiring to benefit all beings, receiving the precept of Buddha, entering the meditation hall, and then there it is right in front of you.

[11:18]

Shirtou was his teacher. He was awakened with Master Ma. Shirtou showed it to him. When he was with Shirtou, he saw it. He didn't know he saw it, but he saw it. He couldn't say a word, but in fact he was a true person at that moment. He met it face to face. All his thoughts vanished. He was there with himself. However, he couldn't say anything because the conditions weren't there for him to say anything. Not yet. Rather than explain it to him, after having presented it perfectly and having him respond perfectly, he sent him someplace else to another great teacher to have it explained so he could understand.

[12:44]

Insight and understanding are two different things. you can be completely one with yourself and not necessarily know it. But you may need a little further help to be able to talk about it, to be able to give it words. Later, many years later, when Yaoshan Wenyi was a teacher himself, he would say to his monks, I speak now to reveal to you the one who has no words." When he stood with his teacher, Sirto, speechless, there was the one who has no words. He went to Matsu to learn how to speak.

[13:50]

And he spoke so well, he said, when I was with Shinto, I was like a mosquito climbing on an iron bull. Again, when we have head monk ceremonies at Zen Center, before the monk starts answering questions, before the head monk says, now I will be like a mosquito climbing on an iron ox. I will be the voice of the one who has no words. Please excuse me." And the Shuso speaks for this same true person that's always been there throughout our history. this person who we originally aspired to be when we first entered the temple, when we first went to meet Master Surtow.

[15:09]

And now we understand. So Master Ma was very happy. The young monk, Wenyi, was very happy, and Wenyi stayed for three years with Matsu as his attendant. One day, Master Ma said to Wenyi, How do you see things these days? Wenyi said, I have shed my skin completely. There is only one true reality. Master Ma said, your realization may truly be said to accord with the essence of mind.

[16:23]

and has permeated your whole body. Since you have come to such a realization, you should gird your loins and live on a mountain, wherever it may be fitting. When you said, how could I presume to live on a mountain? Live on a mountain means be a teacher. Go live on a mountain someplace and let people come and study the Dharma with you. He says, how could I presume to live on a mountain and teach? Master Ma said, otherwise, if you don't, there is no constant going without stopping.

[17:28]

No constant staying without going. You may want to help, yet there will be no one to help. And though you try to act, there will be nothing done. You should make a boat. Don't stay here. So Yaoshan left and went back to Shirtou. How do you see things these days? Having shed my skin completely, there is only one true reality. Having shed my skin completely. Our job is to shed our skin completely.

[18:33]

We enter our meditation practice by taking the circle, the ring, the seal, the mudra of the Buddha onto our body. But the body it fits is a body that has been shed. So we sit and we engage this skin and we connect with this skin completely. We connect completely with these skins, with these bones, with this body. And by completely connecting with this body, it will be shed. And when it is shed, there will be just the one true reality.

[19:36]

It's difficult to reach this realm, but if you're willing to completely connect with yourself, you will be able to completely forget yourself and you realize that you are always in that place. But nothing is more difficult for us than to completely be just ourselves. Everything else is easier. and everything else is a total waste of time. But of course we should also be somewhat patient with ourselves and but especially with others for wasting this time. Because if we try to do it ourselves we'll realize how difficult it is. If we look at ourselves we'll realize how strong our habits are to not just connect with this body and this breath and this mind.

[20:40]

And then we will be sympathetic to others who also have trouble doing just that. Now, as the story goes, Huan Yi is back with his original teacher, Shirtou. And I also want to mention here that this story shows you that this ancestor of ours, Yaoshan Huan Yi, Yakusan Igen, you see he studied not only with Shirtou, he also studied with Matsu. So you see that our ancestors, this great ancestor of ours, studied with both of the teachers who are the fathers and grandfathers of all Zen schools.

[21:42]

Between Master Ma and Shinto, between these two teachers, all the Zen schools that live in the world today come from these two teachers. So, those are called Rinzai and Soto and all that kind of stuff, but our ancestors studied both sources of these two schools. So people are bickering now, sometimes, which is better, this way or that way. But the original spirit of our way is not to take these schools seriously and to study with all teachers. So you can see in our ancestors this way. He not only was, he didn't just study either, he was Matsu's attendant for three years. He studied closely with Matsu and became the successor of Shoto. Now he's back with Shurto, and one day he was, of all things, sitting. This was something he apparently did quite a bit of, and there's many stories about him sitting.

[22:47]

This is one. He was sitting, and his teacher, Shurto, said, what are you doing? And he said, I'm not doing anything at all. And Shirtou said, well then, you're sitting idly. And Wenyi said, if I was sitting idly, then I would be doing something. You say you're not, then Chateau said, you say you're not doing anything. What is it that you're not doing?

[23:48]

When he said, even the 10,000 sages don't know. Chateau was very happy to hear him say this. And we don't know when, but sometime later he composed a little poem about this disciple of his, which became a famous Zen poem because it doesn't just apply to his disciple, it applies to all Buddhas. He said, though we've been living together from the beginning, I do not know his name. We go along just being thus, leaving it all to the flow of destiny. Even great sages of antiquity don't know him.

[24:58]

How could hasty people understand? This applies to every relationship in our life. We've been going along together from the beginning, but we don't even know each other's name. What are you doing here? I'm not doing anything at all." This is a pretty strict kind of practice. You're invited to do it. It's kind of advanced and it's also, of course, very beginning.

[26:02]

Buddha taught lots of things to do. Buddha was willing to teach things to do, but he didn't really mean to do them. For example, he taught about breathing practices. following the breathing, and so on. He even said, breathing in, I know I'm breathing in. Breathing out, I know I'm breathing out. Breathing in, I feel joy in my body. Breathing out, I feel joy in my body. This may seem like doing something when you read it, but it's not really doing anything. It's just being a normal human being. Breathing in, breathing out, and knowing what you're doing. This is not really doing anything at all. And 10,000 sages don't know this. So, sitting here, erect, completely connecting with your body, completely feeling your skin on your skin, feeling each breath completely, each breath completely, that's not doing anything.

[27:18]

That's just simply being who you are. If you think it's doing something, then we are patient with you. It's natural to think it's doing something. If you think it's accomplishing something, again, we're patient with this. It's not accomplishing anything. If you think you're improving, okay, it's not really improving. There's nothing to improve. It's just, moment by moment, You have a body. You have breath. You have mental activity. That's all. And there's a way to live that's not doing anything. The door to this realm of one true reality has no particular signs. It is wishless and empty.

[28:22]

Every breath can be the door if you don't wish it to be the door. If you don't wish the breath to be some other breath, if you don't wish the body to be some other body, then the body and the breath are marked by the signless. And you are practicing the signless samadhi, the signless concentration. And in this way, you can use your breath. You can use your mind. You can use your emotions. You can use your skin as a door to one true reality. And we don't know his name. But we've been together from the beginning and we go along together just being thus, according with the flow of destiny.

[29:38]

You people are sitting very well. From the beginning, you sat very well from the first night, and you're continuing. Please continue what you've been doing so far. Fortunately, there's even more stories about this relationship between Yao Shan Wan Yi and Sher To.

[32:08]

But maybe today you have enough, and tomorrow we can look a little bit more at their relationship. And then we could also find out a little bit more about what Yaushan did when he was a teacher. what was his sitting like later. To receive Buddha's precepts and enter the monastery partly means that you receive the precept of Buddha.

[33:18]

It means that you receive the precept of Yaoshan. And when you sit, your sitting is sealed, is circled. Your loins are girded, are wrapped with Yaoshan's practice. You wrap yourself with the confidence that you're doing exactly the same practice or you intend to do exactly the same practice as this great Zen teacher, Yao Shan 1E, to sit and not do anything at all. And this is what 10,000 sages don't know. But they all practice it.

[34:22]

and you are practicing with them, and when you practice with them, they practice with you. Give up the thought that you can't do exactly the same practice as the great Zen pioneers. Give up that thought. and sit with the confidence that you're doing exactly the same practice as all these Buddhas and Zen teachers. This is what it means to receive the precept and sit. You are responsible for the life of wisdom and compassion of these teachings. You're not doing it alone. but no one else can do it for you.

[35:27]

And check your motivation. Are you willing to receive this responsibility? If not, look again. What's the resistance about? Are you saying you're not good enough? Forget that. Look deeper and deeper into your heart until you can find the place where you say yes to this great opportunity. There is such a place in your heart where you can say yes. And then if you find that place, receive the precept of Buddha, receive the precepts of Yaoshan, and sit with that.

[36:44]

Yesterday I had a nice day sitting with you and after a while I developed some little problem in my knee. So some pain, shooting pain in the back of my knee. So it became difficult to walk. And so now I'm walking very carefully. And also I'm crossing my legs very carefully. You may notice that I'm doing it a little bit more slowly than usual. I'm looking for a way to cross my legs so that shooting pain doesn't happen. So I'm just carefully looking for that way. And when I walk, I'm carefully looking for the way I can walk That's not so painful. So I'm being very careful. My leg is helping me be very careful and live in each moment. The pain may get worse, and I may be sitting in a chair pretty soon.

[38:28]

We'll see. But I tell you, I'm somehow going to get through this session with you people. How about you? On Sunday I went and gave a little talk at the American Psychological Association meeting. It was on a panel. which was called The Art and Science of Peacemaking. And some of the people on the panel were psychologists who are concerned with peacemaking and conflict resolution among peoples and nations and ways that people can find peace through face-to-face transmission.

[39:41]

And some of the people were ambassadors who had actually worked on making peace treaties. One person there had made, I guess, more peace treaties than any other UN official. Another person was a man who works making peace among diverse racial groups in the Bay Area. And it became my turn... to give my talk, I was intending at the end of my talk to sing a song which you all know that we often sing, the Red Red Robin. Do you know that song? And also I went to a conference earlier this year which is called Heal Thy Planet which had lots of doctors and ecologists talking about how to heal thy planet, how to heal people, how to heal the environment.

[40:50]

So in both those situations, I was confronted with people who deal with a lot of conflict and suffering, a lot of illness in people, among organizations, in our bodies. people who are encountering the stressful situation of what the harm that's been done to the environment and the harm that people are doing to each other. And in both cases, I was thinking of singing this song, this Red Red Robin song. But in both cases, I thought, now, will these people be insulted by me saying, hey, what the heck, you know? Let's have fun. I always wonder, are they taking themselves so seriously that they'll be insulted by me saying, let's sing a kid's song? But in both cases, the people were very accepting of just singing a song.

[42:04]

A lot of people who really are working to try to help, they know that the worst thing is to carry the burden and carry the burden and carry the burden and never put it down. They know that you have to put it down, otherwise you're going to get crushed by it. These old timers know that. So in both cases, it was very graciously received, this silly little song. They know that the worst enemy of those who are working to benefit beings, the worst enemy of those who are dedicated to helping and who have received the precepts, the worst enemy is to take it seriously. At the beginning, the problem is to take it seriously, and at the end, the problem is to take it seriously.

[43:12]

Take it seriously means attribute some inherent existence to it. So everybody's relieved to just laugh the whole thing off. And then pick up the burden again and go forward. So there's two songs that seem appropriate today. One song, I don't know which one to sing first. One song is a Red Red Robin one because Sylvia, is it Sylvia? You don't know the Red Red Robin song. You soon will. And the other song is called, I don't know what the name of it is, but it's the Try a Little Tenderness. Maybe the tenderness should come first. I don't know. What do you think? Tenderness, in other words, realize that there's some pain in this room.

[44:15]

And then once you really realize your pain, then you can drop it. Don't drop your pain before you embrace it. Don't drop your skin before you embrace it. Don't drop beings before you embrace them. So I forgot the words to that song, but it's something like, How does it go? Women get weary. Something like that. Start it again. Yeah, that's part of it. Anyways, it says something like, women get weary. Women do get weary wearing that same old dress.

[45:22]

When she gets weary, try a little tenderness. Anybody know any more? She may. Yeah. She may be waiting, just anticipating something she never will get. Possess. She may be waiting, just anticipating something she may never possess. So when she's waiting, try a little tenderness. waiting. But still, you can't live up to that precept. So in that case, try a little tenderness. Come on, sweetheart. Take it easy. We understand that you're waiting for something other than this.

[46:25]

We understand you're expecting some great enlightenment that's different from this. We understand. It's okay. Well, maybe we'll get it for you. Maybe in your case, we'll make a little exception. Oh, really? Oh, thank you. Why not? I mean, really? And then? And then she laughs, doesn't she? Because she knows she really doesn't want anything else. She just sort of wants to be able to want something else. And sure enough, she can. Especially when she gets weary. When we get weary... Oh, geez. Well, maybe it's time to rest. Could that be the case? Take a little rest, and then when you rest, you say, oh, well, maybe I could live here without expecting or anticipating. Maybe I could just be myself. Hey, wow. Anyway, try a little tenderness, a little tenderness when you can't quite just simply be yourself.

[47:34]

Take a little rest. Take a little rest. Don't have some fixed idea of how to achieve peace. It could be in an unusual, surprising way. And one of the ways that peace is achieved is by a little tenderness to help you settle into your skin. And sometimes it's not time to settle into your skin. Sometimes it's not the right moment. So, okay, later. How about later? Okay, later. Later. And then, okay, whether you've settled or not, ready? When the red, red robin comes bob, bob, bobbing along, along, there'll be no more sobbing when he starts throbbing his old sweet song.

[48:35]

Wake up, wake up, you sleepyhead, get up. Get out, get out of bed Cheer up, cheer up, the sun is red Live, love, laugh and be happy Though I've been blue now I'm walking through fields of flowers Rain may glisten but still I listen for hours and hours I'm just a kid again, doing what I did again, singing a song. When the red, red rain comes, bop, bop, bopping along. Bop, bop, bopping along. Now, is there some difference about the second verse, how it starts? I heard some other. I say, though I've been blue, now I'm walking through fields of flowers. Do you have some other way over there?

[49:35]

No? No? And then there's another song I don't know the words to. It goes, I knew them once, but I forgot them. It goes, you got to give a little, take a little, break a little, That's the glory of, that's the story of love. You gotta live a little. No, die a little. What's that? You gotta live a little, die a little? Is that right? Or it isn't live a little, die a little?

[50:37]

That's not it? How does it go? You got to live a little? And then try a little? That it? So, want to try a little?

[50:51]

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