After our last meeting, I called a few people and asked them to write a summary of what they could remember was discussed last week. So I wanted to thank Jeremy and Eric Davis and Clay, Eric and Clay aren't here for writing those summaries. Did some people read them? So there's a website for this group and there's three kind of summaries which are, there's some overlap and there's some different perspective there, which I thought was really, I really enjoyed hearing, reading that. I also, by the way, invited some women but they didn't write anything. And tonight I would like to again, just not again, but now during this meeting, tell you that I think it might be interesting if some of you would write a summary of what you think

[01:04]

we discussed. And you could even add in comments of things that weren't discussed that you think of later. And if you're at the meeting, it might be interesting for you to see what happened because you might have forgot, but also to see what other people's perspective on the event was. And if you miss a meeting, then if people do this, you could keep continuity. And then if some people who never can come, like some people around the country read this website and keep in touch that way. So it's an opportunity for you to help out, being mindful and kind of like reviewing what you're hearing in these meetings and help other people be included in the Dharma.

[02:05]

So please do, if you'd like. So there's a website, and is it complicated to figure out how to get on it? Anybody know how? You know how to do it? Yeah, so Cindy could help you, if you want to know how to do it. What's the name of it? You could go to RevAnderson.org. Okay. And then there's probably some, there's already some summaries on there from last week, so you can put in summaries for this week, or summaries and comments for this week. Because like I said, even some of the people who wrote summaries are not here tonight, so they might be. At least you could write to say thank you for writing the summary last week. Another thing was that this morning somebody called me from KQED and asked me if I would be on a radio show about monasticism. And the person said, the person who, we want you to do it with somebody who's just written

[03:15]

a book about monasticism around the world. And he said, that person's giving a talk at Zen Center tonight. And I said, I am too. I said, I assume it's in a different room. And it is. So he's, this guy's over in the next room. And so, just by coincidence, we're going to be on radio on May 1st at 10 o'clock, if you want to listen in. 10 a.m. And also 10 p.m. But if you call, if you listen to the 10 a.m. show, you can call in and, you know, behave yourself. Is that sound, your baby?

[04:28]

Yeah. It sounds kind of like a fan or something. She's a fan. So last week we talked about settling the great matter. And in one sense, as Jeremy wrote in his summary, the great matter in Buddhism is Buddhahood. And there's another way that the great matter, it's, there's this term, it's a two-character term in Chinese, which appears in Mahayana Buddhism in general,

[05:31]

but also appears in Zen in particular. The term in Japanese is pronounced daiji. I think in Chinese it's dasher. And the first character means great or vast. The second character means matter, but it also means business. It also means reason. So the great reason or the great business of Buddhism, in one sense, is Buddhahood. But another aspect of it is the great reason for Buddha. So Buddha is the great reason, but also what's the great reason for Buddha? Buddha is the great meaning of Buddhism. There's little meanings and big meanings.

[06:32]

Each one of us is a little meaning in a sense. And all of us together are the big meaning. All of us together are Buddha. Buddha is not leaving one of us out. But in a sense, each one of us, in a sense, leaves other people out. Because the nature of human beings is that they sometimes think of leaving somebody out. Like, I don't want that person in here. But really we're all, the wholeness of it all, the wholeness of all of us is Buddha. And that's the main point or the big matter of Buddhism. But also, it's the big reason for Buddhism. All of us are the reason for Buddhism, or the reason for Buddha.

[07:37]

Because Buddhas appear in the world because of all of us. And again, for each of us, Buddhas appear in the world for each of us. If only one of us was here, that would be enough to bring a Buddha. If this planet had one sentient being on it, that would be enough for a Buddha to appear here. But it turns out there's more than one sentient being. So there's more than one reason, in a sense. There's a lot of reasons. So for all the sentient beings, the great matter or the great reason why Buddhas come to the world or appear in the world is that they want, they wish, Buddha's desire to awake, to open sentient beings. To open the beings who have a habit of thinking that they're separate from other beings.

[08:42]

These beings who think that they're separate from each other. To open them to Buddha's wisdom, which is they're not separate. So the wish to help us understand that we're not separate is one-fourth of what it takes to make a Buddha come into the world. So maybe some of you want to hear the other three-fourths. Right? Who wants to hear? Okay. So the second aspect, actually it's just one reason with four parts, the second aspect of the big reason for Buddhas appearing in the world is they desire to show people the wisdom which understands that we're not separate. And they desire to awaken us to it. And they desire to help us enter the truth,

[09:46]

the wisdom of the Buddha that understands our real relationship. So that's the great reason or the great matter and settling that great matter in some sense is to enter into this process of wishing for these things and appreciating that the Buddha's appearing in the world out of this wish. And one other aspect of this is that, the funny thing is that a lot of times in Buddhism you hear the teaching about that you're supposed to like have few desires or no desires. And it's a tricky situation but actually Buddhas do have desires. They have these desires. They desire to open us to Buddha's wisdom and so on.

[10:54]

That's their desire. But these Buddhas that, the Buddha who desires us to be open to and understand Buddha's wisdom they want that, they desire that, but there's no seeking in their wanting. They feel compassion, they are compassionate, they want us, they desire us to have wisdom but they don't seek anything. They're actually in a kind of state of consciousness, a Samadhi, which is called wishlessness. In other words, they don't wish for anything other than what's happening. And yet in that space they desire for us to be wise. So, they really, really want us to be wise, they really, really want us to understand

[11:58]

but they're relaxed about it. They're not like feeling like what we have all the time in the world. There's an urgency but they're not in a rush. And if we are lousy students, they're patient with us. If. Yes? Karin? Karin. It's been five years. Karin. It's been five years. Karin. Karin. Are you patient? I'm so impatient. You are? Well, come on. You know, that's why the Buddha is here for me. That's right. What's the nature of the Buddha? What's the nature of? The Buddha. The nature of Buddha is an emptiness, an ungraspability whose essence is compassion.

[13:01]

It sounds like we're talking about separate ones. No, no, that shows that they're not separate because they aren't some substantial thing out there on its own. Emptiness means interdependence. Buddhas are the interdependence whose essence is compassion. Buddhas are not like you or me. Buddhas are the relationship between you and me and everybody. But not just that. Not just all the interrelationship. It's not just the way we're interrelated with each other and helping each other. It's also compassion. That's sort of the essence of this interrelationship. It's not just a vast non-attachment. Because in emptiness there's no attachment. It is a vast non-attachment. But it's also filled with compassion.

[14:08]

But it's not just compassion. It's compassion without attachment. Which is, again, wishing for people to be happy without attachment to that. So if I wish you to be happy, or you wish someone to be happy, but if they're not, you don't beat them up for not getting with the program. So some people really push this unhappiness thing a long time to make sure that Buddha will let them be unhappy for one more week. And I'm not saying, you know, I've had it. If you don't get enlightened in the next two weeks, I'm quitting. I'm kicking you out of the universe. Buddha says, Buddha's kind of like, what do you call it? What do you call it? Paradoxical therapy, you know.

[15:10]

I hope you have the courage to be unenlightened as long as you have to. What? If you're going to be smart, I'm going to get enlightened. When I was a kid, my mother thought I was pretty smart because I learned fairly young this thing which she called reverse psychology. Like I would say to my little brother, you don't want to clean your room, do you? You can't clean your room. You don't know how. Let me do it. And it worked pretty, for a while. Until he was about six. And then, he didn't want to clean the room anymore. And we lived in the same room. So I just gave up and lived in a pigsty. But then, he moved down to the basement and had his own room

[16:14]

and it was spic and span down there for some reason. When he had his own room, he kept it neat. This happened. This is a true story. Laughter So desire is part of Buddhism. But there's such a thing as inappropriate patterns of desire. So the question is, what's the proper shape of desire? Desire is a natural part of a Buddha. They want, they desire us to be wise and become free. They want that. They desire that. But this is not an inappropriate desire. This is a desire which is appropriate for a Buddha. And desiring that people would be unhappy

[17:17]

and live in misery and bondage, that's not an appropriate desire for a Buddha. Wishing that certain people would be, you know, punished or hurt in some way. Wishing harm for people is not an appropriate desire for a Buddha. Wishing to have too much for oneself and one's friends is not an appropriate desire. But wishing to have the right amount and wishing everyone to have the right amount of what they need, this is appropriate. So how can we have the appropriate pattern and structure of desire? How can our desires mature into a form that's beneficial? Is there anything you'd like to bring up about this?

[18:30]

Elmer? I made a mistake. I thought, when the question was asked of Corinne, you would say, awakening. I'm awakening. Buddha's awakening. The nature of Buddha's awakening? Yes. Well, that's not wrong. But it's sort of like, I'm giving you a synonym as the essence. So you asked me, what's the nature of an awakened one? Awakening. That's okay, that's true too. But what is awakening? Awakening is, of course, one of the things awakening is, is awakening. But also, awakening is not awakening. So, that's another thing about awakening, is it's not awakening. Okay? The reason why it's not awakening is because... What? Because everything is awakening.

[19:39]

Well, because everything is awakening, yep. And also because it's an emptiness. It's not... It's not an awakening, whatever an awakening is, it's not that. It's not a thing of awakening. Of course, awakening is awakening, but... The profound meaning of awakening is that it's not awakening. But it's not just not awakening. It's awakening that's full of compassion. It's a not awakening that's full of compassion. It's an awakening that's free of awakening. It's an awakening that is constantly going beyond awakening. It doesn't like... It's not an awakening that sits in there and it continues to be awakening, awakening, awakening. It's awakening that keeps letting go of awakening, giving it away. So awakening doesn't become a thing. It never was, but... The mind can make it that way.

[20:41]

So the awakening process keeps... Jumping out of any category or any grasping of awakening. And carrying nothing with it. And in that way, facilitating its essence, which is compassion. Any holding to awakening will interfere with the operation of compassion. Because, you know, anyway, you see that. Good. Yeah, that's what it is. Right. That's exactly what it is. Gatte, gatte, paragatte, parasamgate, bodhisvaha. Gone. Gone. Gone beyond. Gone completely beyond. Gone beyond. Welcome. Nice to see you. Whatever. This?

[21:44]

Oh no. Yes. Welcome, welcome, welcome. But before welcome, it helps to let go. To leave. Check out. And to check way out and check completely out. And then, oh, life. Wow. This one? Me? Welcome. You? You? Welcome. I didn't break this cup. Oh. Is emptiness suchness? Ah, not quite. Sort of.

[22:46]

It's kind of suchness. Suchness is the way things are. And the way things really are, ultimately, is emptiness. But also the way things are is that they seem to be not empty. So, in a way, suchness is more like emptiness and form, or emptiness and phenomena. So the way things are is not just that there's emptiness, but also there is superficial, there's a possibility of superficial understanding of what's going on. So, ultimately, suchness is empty, but conventionally, suchness is superficiality and appearances. But sometimes suchness is called emptiness. But, you know,

[23:53]

there also is all this superficiality happening all the time. Michael? How is the essence of emptiness compassion? How? Buddha. That's how. That's, you know. That's how. How do I find Buddhas in the midst of suffering? How do you find Buddhas in the midst of suffering? Well, first of all, that's where Buddhas are, is in the midst of suffering. Okay? All right? I'm telling you that. Got it? No. What's the matter? I don't understand.

[24:55]

Well, I'm just telling you their address. Buddhas are not like, you know, sort of like, excuse the expression, in the suburbs of enlightenment. They're not like, you know. Did I say the suburbs of enlightenment? They're not in the suburbs of suffering. It's not like there's all this suffering, and then like there's downtown suffering, and then Buddhas are out in the suburbs. The inner city of suffering and Buddhas are out in the suburbs, or like way, way, you know, like out in the country clubs playing golf, like. All those people there in downtown suffering, the poor dears, they're in the middle. That's where Buddhas sit. Okay? That's their address. And then you said, how do you find Buddhas in the midst of suffering? Okay? In fact, the answer is that's where you find them. So if you want to find Buddhas in the midst of suffering, guess what you've got to do? Suffer? Yeah, you have to suffer, because that's where they are.

[25:56]

They're all hovering around your suffering. But the way they hover is they hover cool. They're not hovering like, you know, isn't it neat how, look at it, it's suffering so much. And they're not hovering like, oh, we're going to help him. They're just like blissfully with you in your suffering. They're right there with you. They're not like the slightest distance away from your suffering. So if you want to find the Buddhas, you've got to be right there with your suffering. If you're at the slightest distance from your suffering, then you're at the slightest distance from Buddha. But if you have no distance from your suffering, not at all, and also you're not like banging your head in it and saying, oh, poor me, when is this going to be over? You know, distracting yourself from it. You're just sitting there and suffering. You know, you're upright and relaxed in the middle of your suffering.

[26:59]

That's what the Buddhas are doing, the same thing. They're right there next to you, like sitting there relaxed with you. They don't like that you're suffering. They just like you. It's like if you, you know, you love this person, you don't like their suffering, you love them. And you hold their hand, you sit next to them while they go through this hell or heaven or whatever suffering it is. They're just with you. And if you're with you too, then you're with the Buddhas. They're right with you. Now, if you look around for them, then you turn away from your suffering. So don't like look around, okay, here I am, now where's the Buddhas? Because then you're distracting yourself from where they are. They're not looking around for you. They're just with you. They're with you, with you, with you, with you. That's why, that's the reason, they're not away from you. And if you turn, when your suffering gets strong, they don't like back off. When your suffering gets weak, they don't back off. When you have pleasure, they don't back off. They're always with you, enjoying, giving you Dharma all the time,

[28:01]

teaching all the time, teaching you the truth. Truth, truth, truth, truth, truth. And if you're there with your suffering, you're where they are. And the truth is coming to you. And the more you sit there with your suffering without moving away or towards it or anything, the more and more you become more and more intimate with the Buddhas. Because that's where they live. And wherever you go, they go with you. And if you're there, you're with them. But if you're checking out of your suffering and distracting yourself, then you're distracting yourself from the person you want to be close to, the Buddha, which is not other than you. Because, like I said, they're not the slightest distance from your suffering. But how boring not to distract yourself from the suffering. So, and how mean to Buddha, to say, you know, I have better things to do than be intimate with you, bub. And that's where they are. They are there. And if you're there, you're with them. They're there with you already.

[29:03]

And if you're with you, then you're with them. So, in Zen, we settle ourself on ourself. We settle ourself on our suffering. You settle yourself on your suffering. You drop away your resistance to these Buddhas who are with you all the time. Who are never distant. Who are what you really are, and what you really want. But, of course, it's hard to be content, to have continuity in this presence. Maybe most of you have been there. Some. But to do it moment after moment, in the onslaught of stimulation, and people saying, Hey, would you please stop being present? This is making me nervous. Yes? How do you communicate this in a situation where you feel

[30:04]

that the ear of the other is not open? I might say, Would you like me to clean your ears? And then, you know, if you say yes, please, I think you just heard me. So I guess your ear opened when I said that. Now, we could give some Q-tips that go further on this. Do you know what Q-tips are? So, but basically, apparently, in the past, the person wasn't listening, and then when I asked them, they said yes, so then I think they started listening, because that's a pretty good answer,

[31:04]

I think. That would be enough for Buddha to take the next step. And then the Buddha might say, Are you here? And, you know, usually when I ask people if they're here, you know what most people say? No. In other words, most people don't lie to me when I ask them that. Or they say, I'm not sure. They actually, like, stop for a second. First of all, they are listening enough to, like, hear that, and then stop. Am I present? And most people actually say, Well, I don't know, or I don't think so. Which is the way, actually, most people feel they are. They don't feel very present most of the time, or they're unsure about what presence is. So a lot of times people say that, they say, Well, no, or I'm not sure, or well... And when they say that, they look kind of their faith seems weak about their presence.

[32:10]

So then I sometimes ask again. And then maybe they say the same thing, and then I wait a little while and ask again. And sometimes, like a third or fourth time, they say, I'm here. And now we're pretty much here. Now we're pretty much, this is it. Shall we continue? And then they sometimes say, But what happens when I leave the room? I say, Well, would you see that it is harder to stay present when, you know, somebody's not asking you, Are you present? So then sometimes maybe they say, Well, maybe I should be asking myself when I'm walking around. Are you present? Are you present? Hmm? Yeah, I am. Are you present? Yeah. Like that, you know, that story of the it's called the Master Koan.

[33:13]

Zuigan gets up in the morning and he says, Master? Then he says, Yes. Are you awake? Mm-hmm. So you can call yourself Master if you want to. But you can also say Bernd or Gary. Gary, yes. You're not Gary. Why do you say yes? Okay. Maybe Master's better. Are you here? Yes. Is this where you want to be? Yes. All day long, no matter what anybody says to you, don't let them fool you. They aren't, in other words, don't, don't, even no matter what they say, don't think they're asking you to not be present. When they say, Come here, they don't mean leave where you are. They really want your

[34:15]

presence to move, to dance with them. But don't be fooled when people talk to you all day long. Don't be fooled. I won't. I won't be fooled. I know you want me to be present. I won't be fooled by anything you say. Don't be so present. You're too damn present. You make me nervous. I won't be fooled. Because it does make people nervous when you're actually there. Because they think, you know, they think maybe you'll notice that they are, too. And then what will happen? Like, there'll be two of you there, and then, like, wow! Anything might happen. Yeah, right. It's dangerous. So let's both pretend like we're not here. That should be safe. And that's what most people do.

[35:15]

Kind of like, well, I'm not here. You're not either? Okay, fine. So let's talk about the weather, okay? There's some weather today, right? Rather than, you know, I'm nervous. Me, too. I'm still nervous. Me, too. But I'm present. Me, too. And so on. Moment by moment. Present. And a person not listening? You feel like you're not listening? You say, hello? Hello? Do you want me to talk to you? Do you want to listen to me? Am I listening to you? I don't know. I'm not sure. But when you said that, I felt like you were listening to me.

[36:19]

When you said you weren't sure if I was listening to you, I felt like you were listening to me. That wasn't my answer. It wasn't? What was your answer? Read. Read? I talked about desire for what? Desire for enlightenment? Oh, the desire that enlightened beings have, yes. The right desire for unenlightened beings is pretty much the same desire as enlightened beings have if the unenlightened beings, what do you call it, wish to be enlightened beings. So we adopt the same,

[37:21]

we basically have the same vows as the Buddhas. So we actually have the same desires, the same intentions. If we have different intentions than Buddhas, or from Buddhas, then the Buddhas will usually help us with the intentions that are different too, until we learn how those work, and then we evolve our intentions, our desires evolve. So, you know, I wrote in my notes something about Buddha's desire. So desire can be, since Buddha desired, desire can be beneficial. Desire can be great. Can be. But some patterns of desire are not, and I didn't write not okay, because I don't really feel that these patterns of desire that aren't the same as a Buddha, I don't really feel like they're not okay. Because I don't think Buddha thinks they're not okay. Matter of fact, these patterns of desire

[38:22]

which are not like the Buddhas are the type of patterns which make the Buddhas appear in the world. And then the Buddhas want to educate these patterns of desire so that they become mature. So they're not really not okay, they're just not yet fully beneficial. Pardon? They're still seeking. There's still a lack of respect. Some desires don't have respect accompanying them. And again, I remember when Suzuki Roshi surprised me I think it was around he was going to do a wedding ceremony and he was talking to the couple and he said, I don't remember what he said, but he said something like, it's nice that you love each other, but respect is more important. Or, respect is also important. I think he said more important. I thought, that's an interesting idea. In other words, you can love someone and desire someone

[39:22]

and really think someone's great and really appreciate them, but in some ways not respect them. Like, I love you, but I don't have time to listen to you, or something like that. So, you can desire but not respect. And again, respect means to respect, to look again. So, you can desire something positive for someone even, but respect is to look again to see, well, who is that? Because usually when you look at somebody, who you see there is what you think is there. And what people are is not what you think they are. What you think I am is not what I am. I'm not necessarily better or worse than what you think, I'm just not what you think. And you're not what I think. But I do think of something. If I respect you, when I look at you and I see what I think you are, if I respect you, I stop and say,

[40:25]

close your eyes now and look again. This person is not, you know, look again. This is Reid. This is Andy. OK, fine. Look again. Or sometimes say, think again. Maybe this isn't really just Reid. Maybe this isn't Buddha. Maybe this is not Buddha and not Reid also. Yes! So everybody you look at is also, you know, whoever they are, they're also not that person that you think they are. So respect includes that. So desire with respect. Buddha's respect. And some of us have desire without respect. And so that desire is immature. It's not all bad. It's some good there.

[41:26]

But it needs to be brought to maturity by developing respect along with it. Which means that whatever you're desiring to do, look again, look again, look again. Check it out again. Close your eyes and start over. Don't believe what you think is happening. Don't grasp what it appears to be. Also don't reject what it appears to be. Respect what it appears to be and that will also free you from what it appears to be. And when you're free of what it appears to be, you can be a better servant to it. To believe in the Buddhas is...

[42:46]

To believe in the Buddhas is to what? Is to believe they exist on some other plane? I would say more like to believe in Buddha entails being open to the possibility that they exist on some other plane. In other words, to be open to the possibility of other planes of existence other than your thinking. To be open to that. To believe in it like, I don't know, I think being open is more... You know, just try to keep in mind that we live within the horizons of our own thinking. But the horizons of our own thinking are not what's happening in totality. So we have the image of when you go out in the ocean and you get far enough away from land and there's no islands, you look around, the ocean looks like a circle of water. But the ocean is not a circle of water.

[43:52]

But that's what it looks like to you. So we're usually in some circle of water. It's not what's going on in the whole ocean. It's just the way the ocean looks to you. That circle of water is not actually there except created by your own vision. To get up above and look down on the person, there's no circle of water around the person. But that's what they think is going on. And you kind of know it's more than the ocean but sometimes you forget and you think this is what's going on. So we can't help it. We live in these little circles but we can remember that we're just living in a circle. And if in the circle it looks like somebody is being mean to us or nice to us, we should remember that's not the whole story of what's going on. That's just a story. And enlightenment is to let go of that story

[44:53]

as what's really going on and to watch the circle change. You can never see the whole ocean but you can watch the circle lose its power and change. And in that movement of the circle, in that movement of your attachment, the letting go of your attachment to the circle, you start communicating with all beings and all Buddhas. You start realizing your true relationship. You start feeling free of suffering and you start feeling more able to respond appropriately to people. You start to be not so fooled by people which means you start to be not so fooled by your thoughts of what they are. But you know, people cooperate with their thoughts. Great.

[45:55]

And then when you look at somebody and you think they're not so great, then the person distracts you. They don't just tell you, that's just what you think. They say, you're a jerk. You're an idiot. So then that distracts you because then you think they said you're an idiot. You think that's what's going on. So you got fooled by your interaction. But they didn't really fool you. You fooled yourself by believing what you thought they said. But you always do, you know, you almost always do think people are saying something or not saying something. Like, either you do think that's a dog or you don't. So, you know, it's okay. But what's happening is not what you think that dog is. Fortunately. She said that she thought

[47:18]

that Buddhas appeared in the world because of suffering. And she said, is that different from Buddhas appearing in the world to help us realize we're not separate? It sounds a little different. But Buddhas don't just appear in the world just because we're suffering. No, that's part of it because if all beings already were Buddhas, Buddhas wouldn't appear in the world. There wouldn't be a world if all beings were already Buddhas. The world is created by people who believe in their thoughts about what the world is. So there wouldn't be a world for Buddhas to appear in if everybody understood. But when there's a world, there's usually somebody who thinks it's real and therefore they're suffering. So Buddhas do appear because of the suffering they want to free beings from suffering. But the way that they free beings from suffering,

[48:18]

they don't just want to, they actually can help people become free of suffering. And the way that they actually help them to become free of suffering is they don't just come in and take the suffering away. They're not just like magicians who just come in and zap you and swipe your suffering and say, okay, you don't have to suffer anymore, I took it. They don't do it that way. They come and change your attitude. They induce you to look at things differently until you can see clearly. And when you can see clearly, you see that the source of the suffering is delusion, is ignorance, and then the suffering is over. So they want to free you from the suffering. But it isn't just that they want to free you from suffering. They also would like you to be happy. So it's not just freedom from suffering. It's also great joy. It's a double whammy. Freedom plus joy, rather than just absence of suffering. And the joy comes

[49:19]

from the lack of suffering in the sense that you're not afraid of people anymore. You're not afraid of people anymore. You're not afraid of people anymore because they're not out there. Or in here. They're not yours or not yours. So you're free of that. But also, you get to see beauty all the time. The beauty of our relationship. So it's like freedom from torment and anxiety and fear and all that in the repetition of that. Plus also the enjoyment of the actual relationship. And then the enjoyment of, if anybody hasn't been enlightened, the enjoyment of helping them learn too. So it's freedom from suffering and also the realization of wisdom. It makes that possible. But it is possible actually to be free of suffering but not be a Buddha.

[50:19]

So Buddhas don't just want you to be free of suffering. They want you to be free of suffering and even be a Buddha. Which is better than just being free of suffering. Buddhas are more than just being free of suffering. They're free of suffering with lots of tricks. They're free of suffering with lots of skill. So Buddhas want you to be free of suffering and they also want you to be really skillful. And they want you to then, of course, have the joy of practicing your skill of helping other people develop skill. So it's more than just freedom from suffering. Although, of course, freedom from suffering is like the first layer of the problem. Or the first thing that drops away. But some... It is possible theoretically to become free of suffering and not be a Buddha. And Buddhas want more than that for us. They want the very best. They don't just want us to be free of suffering. They want us to be Buddhas. According to some Buddhas. And some other Buddhas say,

[51:20]

Ah, it's good enough if they're just free of suffering. Which, I mean, it is good enough, but still. They want more than that. So I... Did you ask a question yet? Okay, go ahead. It's like the multiple Buddhas. The multiple Buddhas? Yes. The plural. Yes. Well, so, what's confusing about it? Do you see one Buddha? I don't know if there was one. Do you see it? No. So you heard there was one? And what did you hear about that one? Did you hear if he was alive or whether he was dead? I'm sorry? What did you hear about this Buddha? Did you hear that it was a man? Yes. Was he, like, cool? Huh? Pretty much cool? Was he, like, kind?

[52:21]

Was he alive? Seemed to be. Is he dead? Seemed to be. Yeah, so. So you heard about a dead Buddha. Okay. Okay? And I think a lot of... Have some of you heard about this dead Buddha? Okay. Well, a lot of people heard of that. So, another unfoldment of the teaching is that Now, Shakyamuni Buddha, the historical Buddha, he taught about other Buddhas. Okay? But I do not know of an example where he taught what was taught in later Mahayana scriptures. Okay? Which I'm going to tell you about. I'm just saying, I do not know of the historical Buddha teaching what I'm now going to tell you was taught by Buddha. In the Lotus Sutra,

[53:25]

the Buddha, who is Shakyamuni Buddha, but it's not regular Shakyamuni Buddha, it is a different Shakyamuni Buddha, with the same name. And the Shakyamuni Buddha in the Lotus Sutra says, you know, it appears, I appeared, the Buddha is talking to you, I appeared to have been born in India, you know, in a nice family, and I grew up in a palace, I left the palace, I went into the mountains, I sought the way, and I realized the way. I came back from the mountains and I taught the way for 45 years, and then I entered into Parinirvana. I disappeared. I went away. That's what appears to have happened, but that's not true. I'm always here. But I appear and disappear because without appearing and disappearing,

[54:27]

the full facility of my skill is not realized. But actually, I never really go away, and I don't really come. I'm always with you. That is taught. So, this thing about that there was a Buddha is that was useful, that helped a lot of people, that got Buddhism rolling, but as Buddhism has been rolling along, then Buddhism's bringing out this other stuff. Other teachings are coming out of the Buddhist tradition, and the teachings that are coming out, this big one in the Lotus Sutra is that Buddha is not really something that comes and goes. Coming and going is something that appears as a result of the human mind. This thing about birth and death comes because we see. There isn't actually, ultimately birth and death.

[55:29]

Birth and death is something that's finitude, is something our mind creates. And also, infinitude is something our mind creates. What's actually happening is not finite or infinite, but our mind makes infinities and finitudes, and it creates birth and death. Buddha is not born and dying, but Buddha appears that way because it helps us. So, you know, like I said last week, we need a face. And in order to make a face, a face has to be born. But faces that are born have to die. So Buddha takes a human form to help people, but then also in Mahayana scriptures, Buddha says that this is just a show to help people. And also in that sutra, it says It's getting close to nine o'clock. In the sutra it says

[56:32]

those who are upright, those who practice all virtues, in other words, you practice generosity, precepts, patience, energy, and concentration. Those who practice all those virtues and are upright, present, harmonious, honest, and flexible will see me right now. So if you practice Buddhism, you will see the Buddha who doesn't come and go. You might have some vision, but if you see Shakyamuni Buddha, the historical Buddha who died, then your scholars are going to argue, that's not really Shakyamuni Buddha, that's just an idea you have. But you will actually see the Buddha that doesn't come and go. So it won't be a Buddha like a face. It'll be the Buddha that doesn't come and go. It'll be the actual Buddha. You'll see this if you practice Buddhism.

[57:37]

That's what the Lotus Sutra says. But still, to get people practicing, it's nice to have Shakyamuni Buddha come and appear in the world and say, come on, you guys practice. And then he goes away. And in that same chapter, the Buddha explains why he goes away. Because once he comes, if that was good, why don't you stay? Because you're eternal anyway, right? He gave the example. It's like a physician who has a nice little family. And he knows all kinds of medicines. And his kids get sick. And then he says, here's some medicine for you. And the ones who are fairly sensible take the medicine and become healthy again, become whole. But some of them won't take the medicine. So he leaves town.

[58:37]

And he sends word back by a messenger to the children who didn't take the medicine that he's dead. And then they feel terrible. Oh, God. And they really feel bad. They lost their dad or their mom. And in their grief, they become humbled. They come down to earth. They become humbled. And in their grief, they say, oh, he left us some medicine. And they take the medicine. And as soon as they take the medicine, she comes back. So the Buddha gave the teaching. Okay? But if the Buddha stays around, some people won't take the medicine. So Buddha leaves. So now they will take the medicine. If Buddha was around, some of us wouldn't take it. So Buddha leaves. So now we can take the medicine. And if you take the medicine, the Buddha will come back. You'll see the Buddha. The real Buddha

[59:44]

doesn't come and go. The real Buddha is emptiness. The Buddha that's a person is a manifestation of that emptiness whose essence is compassion. So that's why we can realize Buddhahood because you don't have to be Shakyamuni Buddha. You can be another kind of Buddha. I don't know what kind. But it's the real Buddha is emptiness. So we want to realize emptiness whose essence is compassion. And then if Buddha needs to appear somewhere in the world, that will be possible. Okay? And there are an infinite number of beings who have realized this emptiness whose essence is compassion. Or an infinite, uncountable number. And they're totally permeating this world because we've got all these sentient beings who are drawing them into work.

[60:45]

So, you know, we're extremely fortunate to have all this loving attention. But we have to really be present in order to receive it. If you're out of town, you can't receive the gift. So you have to come home and be where you are pretty steadily until you can kind of feel all the Buddhas around you helping you out. How are you doing, Hana? You're looking at the ceiling. Are there Buddhas up there? They're not up there. They're right there, closer than that. They're not just, you know, up there. They're closer. Can you let them in? Can you accept Buddha's compassion? Buddha's compassion is right at every pore of your body right now. It's not someplace else. Can you accept it and enjoy it? Please,

[61:47]

give Buddha a break. But we have busy schedules, so I don't know if that's possible. Next week, I hope to see summaries of what happened tonight. Thank you very much. They don't have to be summaries. They could also be elaborations.

[62:19]

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