Please chant with me. Vairojana buddha, pure dharmakaya. Lojana buddha, complete sambhogakaya. Jakyamuni buddha, myriad nirmanakaya. Maitreya, Buddha of future birth. All Buddhas throughout space and time. Lotus of the wondrous Dharma, Mahayana Sutra. Manjushri, Bodhisattva, great wisdom. Samantabhadra, Bodhisattva, great activity. Avalokiteshvara, Bodhisattva, great compassion.

[01:08]

All honored ones, Bodhisattva, Mahasattvas. Wisdom beyond wisdom. Maha Pranayapadamita As I said yesterday, before it's, how do you say, pro-forma? Before it's pro-forma for me to say, thank you very much for participating in creating this wonderful practice period, I want to say it now, when I don't have to do it.

[02:18]

Thank you very much for creating this wonderful practice period. Say you're welcome. Thank you. You're welcome. This little stick I have here, somebody, one of our students made this for me. Actually, I think he made it for somebody else that wasn't appropriate to give it to, so he gave it to me. And this is called in Japanese, a kotsu. And people say, what is it, or what's it for? And some people say it's a backscratcher, or a party favor. But another meaning of it, of course, it's a symbol of leadership, but also another one I thought was nice is that it's a hook.

[03:24]

to pull the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas down into our little room. Now having chanted the vow of an amazing Zen teacher, amazing Buddhist teacher named Dogen Ehe, his vow we chanted, And in that vow there's an expression of renunciation of worldly affairs and a vow of adhering to true Dharma and maintaining the Buddha way in this life and throughout countless lives. And there is also a confession of karmic accumulation, and there is a vow to practice confession and repentance, and by the power of that confession and repentance, we will be able to truly practice the Bodhisattva way.

[04:47]

a way of, you know, devotion to practice with the aspiration to attain the highest enlightenment for the welfare of this world, and all worlds, and all times. This is an amazing vow that people are able to make. Then, after that, I wanted to invoke the presence of all these Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, and even the presence of the Saddharmapundarika Sutra, the Lotus of the Wondrous Law, Mahayana scripture, to prepare us to begin studying a Mahayana scripture together at the last part of this practice period, a scripture which is said to be the parent, the mother and father of the Saddharmapundarika Sutra.

[06:01]

And it's called the Samdhinirmocana, excuse me, it's called the Shurangama Samadhi Sutra. The sutra about the heroic stride of the Bodhisattva. The sutra about the samadhi of the heroic stride. being totally settled and firm and resolute and calm and one-pointed about this Bodhisattva stride, so that it's and the heroic stride are non-dual.

[07:08]

The mind of the practitioner of the Samadhi is one-pointed with this amazing stride, with this amazing walk of the Bodhisattva. So here, in English and a little Sanskrit, is the Heroic Stride Samadhi Sutra. Thus I have heard, at one time,

[08:14]

The Buddha was in Rajagraha on Giridrakutra Pravata, Vulture Peak, with a great assembly of monks, 32,000 monks. and Mahasattva Bodhisattvas, numbering 72,000. These Bodhisattvas were universally known. They possessed the Dharanis. They were gifted with eloquence. and delighted in expounding ceaselessly, well-established in Samadhi, never strayed from it.

[09:23]

They were skilled in knowledge and of inexhaustible wisdom. They possessed the certainty concerning the profound teachings that had penetrated the profound expositions of the Dharma. For innumerable, incalculable periods, they had cultivated good dharmas and still recall them. They had overcome Mara, the deadening forces of the world, and adversaries to the way. They had secured perfectly adorned Buddha fields. They possessed great goodwill and great compassion. And their bodies were adorned with all the marks.

[10:29]

In this case, by the way, marks his lakshana, which is different than the marks we were talking about yesterday, which are nimitta. They had reached the other shore of great vigor. They were acquainted with all languages and other skillful means. Their practices and bodily attitudes were perfectly consummate. They were all determined as to the three doors of deliverance. Through unobstructed knowledge, they had penetrated the triple world. They had formed the resolve never to abandon anyone. They were gifted with mindfulness, intelligence, and understanding, as well as patience and knowledge.

[11:44]

The Bodhisattvas endowed with such virtues were the Bodhisattva avaivartaka, dharmacakra, pravataka, setting the turning of the Dharma wheel rolling irreversibly. The Bodhisattva utpadacitta dharmacakra pravataka, setting the Dharma wheel rolling after having aroused the thought of Bodhi. The Bodhisattva anavrana dharma-chakra-pravattika, unobstructedly setting the dharma wheel rolling, the bodhisattva vimala-suddhi, unstained purity, the bodhisattva eliminating all veils of passion,

[13:03]

The Bodhisattva delighting in adopting pure bodily attitudes. The Bodhisattva royal intelligence adorned with marvelous marks. The Bodhisattva not deluding any being. The Bodhisattva intelligence like a sea of infinite virtues The Bodhisattva of senses ever concentrated and undistracted. The Bodhisattva of truthful sounds. The Bodhisattva, praise of all the gods. The Bodhisattva, sovereign king of Dharanis. the Bodhisattva Adornment of Eloquence, the Bodhisattva Manjushri Kumarabhuta of Gentle Splendor, Crown Prince of Dharma, the Bodhisattva Maitreya, Love, the Bodhisattva King and Queen of Mount Sumeru,

[14:33]

the Bodhisattva intelligence, like a sea adorned with jewels of virtues, the Bodhisattva of great adornments, the Bodhisattva great marks, the Bodhisattva mark of light, the Bodhisattva majesty of light, the Bodhisattva pure intelligence, the Bodhisattva sovereign of joy, the Bodhisattva dhrid-daś-tama, firm might, and the Bodhisattva dhrid-hamati, firm, resolute intelligence. These and approximately 72,000, 71,900 other Bodhisattvas were there, but I'm not going to say their names today.

[15:44]

In addition to all those who existed, in addition to all those who existed in the three-fold, mega, thousand-fold universe by way of Sakyas, Brahmas, Lokapalas, kings and queens of gods, Devas, Nagas, Yakshas, Gandharvas, Ashuras, Gurudas, Kimaras, Mohuragas, Manushayas, Anumanushayas, universally known, having planted good roots and resolutely intent on the sublime teachings were present in the assembly also. And I brought this painting of a section of the assembly around the Buddha.

[16:51]

This is just a section of it. This is like more sort of in the bleachers, not in the center of it. Around the Buddha there's the great Bodhisattvas and the monks, but you see here there's some pretty frightening-looking creatures, some of these converted demons and spiritual forces which can, which could, prior to being tamed by the Buddha, interfere with the path. And there's also some... these might be bodhisattvas. Anyway, they're not monks, but they're very nicely dressed and look very serene and relaxed. But I particularly want to draw your attention to the beings at the top of the picture, some of which have horns coming out of their heads and, you know, fangs sticking up and down out of their mouth.

[17:58]

but all of them are dressed up very nicely for church. And again, as I mentioned, in the Buddha's assembly a great variety of beings are present, because Buddha is entertaining and converting all beings. So we can put this picture out in the entryway if you want to look at the range of a section of the assembly. Then the Bodhisattva Dhridhamati, Resolute Intelligence, present in this great assembly, had this thought. I would like to ask the Tathagata a question.

[19:05]

I would like to ask a question that would be such as to protect the lineage of Buddha, the lineage of Dharma, and the lineage of Sangha. I would like to ask a question which would be such as to obscure and eclipse the dwellings of Mara and confound proud people. Thus, those who have not yet planted good roots will plant them immediately. those who have already planted good roots will add to them. I would like to ask a question so that those who have not yet aroused the thought of supreme perfect enlightenment will arouse the thought now.

[20:22]

I would like to ask a question so that those who have already aroused, the thought will become irreversible in this thought. And irreversible bodhisattvas will rapidly attain, unsurpassed, complete and perfect awakening. I would like to ask a question so that being speculating on objects and attached to false views will arouse the thought of abandoning them. And beings attached to inferior teachings will become resolutely attached to the sublime teaching. Those who are resolutely intent on sublime teachings will experience great joy.

[21:30]

Having had this thought, Dhrithamati rose from her seat and having arranged her upper robe on one shoulder, having placed her right knee on the ground and having extended her joined hands towards the Bhagavata, she said to him, I would like to question the Bhagavata Tathagata. on a small point, if the Tathagata gives me leave to ask a question. The Buddha said to Dhridhamati, question the Tathagata on whatever you wish. And I, in answering these questions, will delight your mind. then the Bodhisattva Dridhamati said to the Buddha, Bhagavat, what is the samadhi through which a Bodhisattva rapidly attains unsurpassed, complete, perfect enlightenment?

[22:54]

He is never apart from meeting Buddhas face to face, illuminates her own light in ten directions, acquires wondrous wisdom so as to subdue all maras, Obtains mastery in knowledge and wins spontaneous knowledge. Obtains untaught knowledge and does not depend on others. Possesses indestructible eloquence up to the final limit.

[23:55]

Obtains basis of supernatural power and thus ensures herself of incalculable lifespan. What is the samadhi through which a bodhisattva expounds to the listeners, excuse me, expounds the vehicle of the listeners to the listeners, and expounds the vehicle of the independent Buddhas to the adherents of the independent Buddhas. What is the samadhi in which the Bodhisattva expounds the Mahayana to adherents of Mahayana, penetrates the teachings

[24:59]

of the Sravakas, the listeners, without entering into the predestination of the listeners. Penetrates the teachings of the Pratyekabuddhas, the independent Buddhas, without entering into the vehicle, the predestination of Pratyekabuddhas. Penetrates the teaching of the Buddha without entering into complete cessation. Manifests the figure, color and bodily attitudes of the listeners without ever straying inwardly from the thought of enlightenment. Manifest the figure, color, and bodily attitudes of the Prajagabuddha without ever straying inwardly from the thought of great compassion of the Buddhas. Manifest the thought of an illusory concentration

[26:06]

Manifests through illusory concentration the figure, colors, and bodily attitudes of a Tathagata. Manifests through the power of her own goodwill, the presence among the Tushita gods, assuming of the last existence the assuming of the last existence, the entry into womb, the birth, renunciation of the world, the occupation of the seat of enlightenment, the teaching of the supreme Dharma. Manifest through the power of profound wisdom, the turning of the wheel of Dharma. Manifest through the power of skill and means, entry into nirvana. manifests through the power of concentration, the distribution of relics, manifests through the power of previous aspiration, the disappearance of the sadharma, the sublime teaching.

[27:21]

We may go over this many times in the future, but in this list of things that Dhritamati hopes the Bodhisattva may obtain, expound, penetrate, and manifest, one of the things that may not be clear to all of you is that they wish to penetrate various vehicles for the sake of those who are practicing the vehicles without abiding in those vehicles. They wish to attain many forms in order to teach beings in those forms without abiding in those forms. For example, they wish to become, you know, take the form of an arhat, or a Buddha that gets enlightened, a person who becomes enlightened even without hearing the teaching, they hope to take these forms and give these teachings without actually abiding in these teachings.

[28:42]

Because, as you know, unsurpassed, complete, perfect enlightenment is not nirvana. Nirvana becomes a skillful means of the Buddha, a skillful means which is used to help beings, so the Bodhisattva attains nirvana, but then uses it as skill and means. That's why it says they attain it through skill and means. They attain it as a skill and means, not as a goal. So this is the question he asked about the Samadhi. What then, O Bhagavat, is this Samadhi through which Bodhisattvas manifest such virtues but without definitely entering into parinirvana. And by the way, the celebration of parinirvana is coming up soon.

[29:49]

We celebrate it on February 15th. So it might, maybe we can start preparing for that ceremony. One of the ways that we might start preparing for it is that, due to my physical condition, I might assume the posture of the Buddha on his deathbed. If my legs swell up too much, I might be lying down up here in the parinirvana pose, not implying that I'm going to die on the 15th, but just to give my legs perhaps a more appropriate position, and also for you can get ready for Parinirvana yourself. What is this samadhi through which the Bodhisattva attains all these virtues without definitely entering into Parinirvana?

[30:58]

The Buddha said to the Bodhisattva Dhridhamati, excellent, excellent. Oh, Dhridhamati, you question the Tathagata on this subject for the welfare and happiness of many beings. sometimes in the sutras the Bodhisattvas ask questions and the Buddha says, thank you for the question, and of course we all know you're asking that question for the benefit of others, which on one side has the side to it of, of course you know the answer to this, but innumerable beings don't, so you ask this question so I can answer it.

[32:08]

You sense that it would be good for people to hear this teaching, you've already heard it before, you understand it, but you ask this for others' welfare. That's one understanding of it. Another understanding that comes up is, how about us? How about us asking questions? And when we ask a question, even if we ask a question which we don't necessarily think, oh, I know the answer to this, but some of the other people don't, it might be a question that you don't think you know the answer to. Like, for example, what's the schedule tomorrow? Or is it okay if I take a break from the schedule? How do I deal with anger? Or what do I do if this happens? Or how should I meditate on this?

[33:09]

Even if you don't know the answers to those questions, when you ask them, please consider asking them the question, even though it seems to be, you know, something you'd like to know, or something you think you need to know, or something you want to know. Even if it's all like that, still, can you ask a question primarily? Shift your priorities. It doesn't mean that you don't want to know the answer to the question. It doesn't mean you don't want to ask the question just for the fun of asking a question. It doesn't mean that. You might actually want to ask the question just for the fun of asking a question. Like me, that's what I used to do, I used to ask questions primarily for the fun of asking the question, not to get the answer. When I first heard about Zen, or read about Zen, I got this picture in my mind from reading of a line of students sitting on nice little tatami mats or on wood floors, smoothly polished by daily rubbing, just sitting there, you know, ready

[34:31]

for a bell to ring and then the bell rings and they get up and they sometimes they run into the room and they sit down and they face the teacher and they say, ask a question. They say, what is it? They say, who are you? They say, who am I? They say, what's Zen? They say, what samadhi does a bodhisattva practice in order to? They ask questions like that and I thought, how cool. ding, ding, scurry, scurry, scurry, sit down, hi, ding, run out. I thought that was neat. So I came to do that. And I did it, with and without the bells. And I think I mostly did it, mostly did it for the fun of asking the question. But they were questions I kind of was interested in. But I didn't really care if I got an answer, and sometimes I didn't. I didn't mind.

[35:33]

I was mostly wanting to go and ask the question. But you know, I didn't have the concept, I didn't have the intention, the priority that I was asking questions for the welfare of all beings. Not at the first, but later, as I practiced more and more, I thought, if I was asking the questions for the welfare of all beings and there would be no end to my questions, then I wouldn't have to worry about being selfish, because I'm really asking for the benefit of others. Suzuki Roshi was, you know, when I first came to Zen Center, he wasn't as famous as he is now, so Zen Center wasn't as populated as it is now, and he was like more accessible than you might imagine. If he was alive now, of course, nobody could see him.

[36:34]

I mean, everybody would want to see him. He'd be the oldest, most venerable teacher of Buddhism in the world. I mean, he wouldn't be the oldest, but he would be the most venerable, especially in the West. Maybe not in the East, maybe there's some people in the East, but in the West he would be the most venerable, and, you know, he'd also be old, so almost no one could see him. But in those days he was still pretty strong, and not so many students, and I lived in the same building, so I could ask him questions all the time, practically. Or rather, when I saw him, I could ask him questions for a long time, like, just keep going, you know, because I had a little notepad. But I stopped, you know, I stopped. At first, I was just asking the questions, just to ask the questions, and partly to get the answers. But after a while I felt like I should stop now, because even though he doesn't seem to be trying to get away, and nobody's waiting in line, I'm just being kind of like, I'm kind of gorging on this, so I stopped, even though I didn't finish my list.

[37:40]

And then they asked me to be director of the building in the city center. So then I had all these questions for the welfare of other people, so then I had to stop. There would need to be no end. because I had questions about other people's needs and other people's practice and so on. But I still didn't really understand the full scale of my questions. Now I propose to you that you consider, from now on, that you ask questions like Dhridhamati, that you ask questions for the welfare and comfort of all beings Even though the question is something you'd like to know about, you're basically doing this for everybody, for everybody's welfare. You question the Tathagata on this subject of samadhi for the welfare and happiness of many beings. You question the Tathagata about samadhi through sympathy and pity for the world.

[38:46]

for benefit, welfare and happiness of the great body of beings, humans and gods, for the protection of present and future bodhisattvas?" You ask this question. Why not? Why not have that basic agenda? Every time you ask a question, too much? Not for Dhridhamati, and he's the one who's getting us into this samadhi. Then the Buddha says, know this, you have planted good roots, you have honored and served innumerable hundreds of thousands of niyutas, of kotis, of Buddhas. That means lots of them. of the past. You have trodden all the paths.

[39:48]

You have overcome Mara and adversaries. You have obtained an independent knowledge regarding all Buddhadharmas. You have won over and protected throngs of Bodhisattvas. You know the treasure of all teachings of the Buddha. That is why you have come to ask me a question. already asked in the past of Buddhas, as numerous as the sands of the Ganges." This question about this samadhi has been asked innumerable times in the past, is what it says here. sometimes people read the scripture, or even translate the scripture, and their view of the scripture is that mostly what the scripture is, is a description of the samadhi.

[41:14]

And they don't see much instruction about how to practice the samadhi. Sometimes maybe I look at the scripture and don't see much instruction about how to practice this samadhi. But sometimes I look at the scripture and places I didn't see there was an instruction, now I see an instruction. So there are certain places that are pretty clearly like, they say, okay, here's an instruction about the Samadhi, here's how you practice the Samadhi. Other places it doesn't say, here's how you practice the Samadhi. But maybe some places you'll see how to practice the Samadhi. So one way to practice the Samadhi that I see now

[42:17]

is to hear the teaching that the questioning of the Buddha about this Samadhi has been going on for a long time. And when you or I wonder about this Samadhi, when we wonder what this Samadhi is, which has these qualities, And when we wonder what this samadhi is, this amazing samadhi, when we wonder about this, not to mention if we would actually ask out loud what this samadhi is, and not to mention if we wonder and ask for the benefit of all beings, we are asking a question which has been asked innumerable times for the benefit of all beings. This sutra is telling us that part of the samadhi is asking questions about the samadhi, wondering about the samadhi, part of the samadhi is wondering what the samadhi is, and have that wondering be for the welfare of all beings, and maybe gradually become convinced and firmly

[43:51]

firmly convinced that you're wondering about this samadhi is part of the practice of this samadhi. It doesn't say, as it's describing this, that this is part of the instruction of the samadhi, but it seems to be at this moment. So some of us are wondering what this samadhi is, or what samadhi is it that makes it possible for bodhisattvas to obtain, penetrate, manifest, and so on, all these wonderful virtues, and also we're wondering what that samadhi is, and also we're wondering how can I realize that I'm in this samadhi, how can I realize

[45:02]

life in Samadhi, life in such a Samadhi. How can I, how can we, how can such a life, such a Samadhi life be realized? And also, it might help to know something about what this Samadhi looks like so that I would know if I actually arrived in the right Samadhi. Now, one of the things which I'll tell you ahead of time, before this text says it, because we may never get to that part of the text, that this samadhi includes all other samadhis. So whatever samadhi you're in, you're actually in this samadhi. But even though you're in this samadhi, and you feel yourself to be in another samadhi, you may not realize that that samadhi is included, that you are still included in this samadhi. You may not realize that, you may not feel that, but you might be able to remember that. And then you might say, well, what if I'm not in any samadhi at all?

[46:07]

What if I don't even know if I'm in like a small little pipsqueak samadhi? I don't even know if I'm in one of those. Well, samadhi are also in this samadhi. So any samadhi you're in is in this samadhi. This samadhi also is the samadhi of being totally intimate with all beings who aren't in samadhi. So you're in the samadhi. And yet, you can understand that more and more and more and more, and ask the question and wonder about what this Samadhi is, even while being right in the middle of it. Like Dhritamati. Maybe he's in this Samadhi that he's asking about. And being in this Samadhi, being in this heroic stride Samadhi, Maybe your job is to get the Buddha to tell everybody what the Samadhi is.

[47:10]

Maybe your job is to stimulate the Samadhi to start talking about itself. Maybe you folks, each one of you, or maybe three of you, or maybe just one of you, has stimulated this practice period so that the Samadhi is now being read. So descriptions of this samadhi are now being recited. Maybe without even asking a question, you did that. Not to mention if you actually were wondering about this samadhi and were thinking of asking, what is this heroic martha samadhi? So I guess I would wonder, am I, are you actually requesting to hear about what this samadhi is? Any of you? So a lot of you are requesting to hear about this Samadhi, so maybe you're the reason why it's happening, or part of it anyway.

[48:15]

Maybe we all want to know about this Samadhi. So, it's happening. We're hearing about this, teaching about this Samadhi. This isn't the only place this Samadhi is taught. It's taught in a lot of sutras. but this is the only sutra that's named after the Samadhi. So many sutras you'll hear about the Samadhi, but this is the one that's called the Heroic March Samadhi. Dhridhamati, says the Buddha, in this assembly the Tathagata does not say a single god or goddess, nāga, yaksha, gandharva, a single śrāvaka, pratyekabuddha, who would be capable of formulating the question. Only a person as eminent as yourself is able to approach such a question. Listen well, then, and engrave it on your mind.

[49:17]

I will tell you of that samadhi with which bodhisattvas may be endowed in order to obtain all the virtues of which you speak, and of even greater ones that you haven't mentioned. Dhrithamati said to the Buddha, Excellent, O Bhagavat! And he began to listen. The Buddha said to Dhrithamati, It is the samadhi called surangama samadhi, concentration of heroic stride. Bodhisattvas who obtain this samadhi can, since you ask about it, manifest parinirvana, but without definitely ceasing to be.

[50:22]

And then it goes on. from there, but I think that's enough for today, don't you? The kitchen is left. Now, you and I and all beings can wonder, what is this Samadhi? Did you want to say something? Oh yeah, parinirvana is like ... pari means perfect. It means like you're ... so Buddha attained nirvana under the bow tree, and because of his background work as a bodhisattva, he obtained arhatship and Buddhahood at the same time. So he attained nirvana, and he attained nirvana and complete perfect enlightenment simultaneously.

[51:28]

So he became an arhat when he attained nirvana, and he also became a Buddha by attaining complete perfect enlightenment. But then at the end of his life, the Buddha did this thing called parinirvana, which is that he's not going to be around anymore. He did his Buddha thing. Now some people think that he's still around, but another thing is that Buddhas come and do their Buddhist thing, they lay out their Dharma, and that's it. They attain perfect enlightenment for the welfare of all beings, and then they split so that other people can become Buddhas, because you can't become a Buddha unless there's no other Buddhas around in your world. So they actually leave. and that's called perfect parinirvana, actually like poof, no more Shakyamuni Buddha.

[52:29]

But in the story of Shakyamuni Buddha, in many lifetimes, as a Bodhisattva, he obtained nirvana without ceasing to be, and even it says they manifest parinirvana without ceasing to be. So they even do this thing of looking like they're going poof without actually poofing. So people might say, well, then maybe Shakyamuni Buddha did parinirvana but didn't really poof. Well, I think the Buddha would say, yes, there isn't any real poofing. If you think, like, when I go into parinirvana, I'm really, like, becoming non-existent, that's not it. But if you think I'm going into parinirvana and staying existent, that's not really it. So, actually, the Buddhas do manifest parinirvana without being annihilated.

[53:38]

but without going on. Anyway, they're not available anymore. Somebody else has got to do the job. So parinirvana is not just attaining liberation and peace of nirvana, it's like looking like you're poofing, looking like the five aggregates are dispersed to the winds, looking like you're dead. And that's part of the skill of the Buddha. Part of the skill of the Buddha is to appear, and part of the skill of the Buddha is to disappear. But Buddha cannot last, and Buddha cannot be annihilated, and nothing else can either, according to the Buddha. So while the Buddha is talking, the Buddha mentions that quite frequently. Parinirvana is still not annihilation. because there's something, you know, Buddha has ceased to be, Buddha has ceased to be alive, and yet there's something about that that we're still thinking about.

[54:53]

As a matter of fact, we're going to have a ceremony on the 15th, you know, because of this thing still happening in a way, this, like, no more Buddha is still, like, something we contemplate. And this is like the fourth phase in the activation of thought. There's something there when the thought's not there anymore. You can contemplate something that isn't there. You can contemplate something that has perished. So we can contemplate Buddha. So they, the Bodhisattvas, enter into this, manifest this parinirvana thing without ceasing to be. And Buddhas manifest the parinirvana thing and cease to be. They actually cease to be, but even in their ceasing to be, they're not annihilated. Does that make sense?

[55:54]

Bodhisattvas manifest the parinirvana as a total show. they don't cease to be. Buddhas manifest parinirvana and cease to be, but are still not annihilated. But Buddhas do not take another birth to do another show, another kind of like, hey, I'm a baby Buddha, now I'm going to high school, now I'm like in the monastery, now I'm teaching Dharma, now I'm getting sick, now I'm like getting ready to poof, they're now poof, they're not going to do that anymore. But bodhisattvas look like they're going to die, they do this dying thing, but they do come back and do it again and again and again and again, because dying bodhisattvas are often very encouraging to living bodhisattvas, like Suzuki Roshi, you know. We had our own little dying Suzuki Roshi, and to me that was, when he was dying, it was like he was as good a teacher, he was encouraging to me as much

[56:59]

as when he was doing his nice little healthy Zen Master thing. It was really nice to see him healthy, running around, walking around, playing in this world with us, you know, hippies, telling us to wash our feet. It was great. But when he got sick and he couldn't trot around anymore and we had to carry him, when he couldn't go sit in the zendu anymore, when he couldn't walk anymore, it wasn't like he was less a good teacher. A little bit better, actually, but, you know, really no less as he was dying. So dying is part of the skill of the bodhisattvas, to appear to die. But for all I know, Suzuki Roshi was not a Buddha, and is now back, putting on shows someplace else.

[58:04]

Somebody, you know, wandering around this planet, approximately 31 years old. 30, 31, probably. walking around here, getting ready to put on a nice show, and then be a bodhisattva for welfare of all beings. Does that make sense? This is what bodhisattvas do. They appear, and then they, like, you know, practice, attain nirvana, and then keep teaching, and then they even do this poof thing of dying, just as a show. Because some people Even though the Bodhisattvas, a lot of people appreciate the Bodhisattva, who's like doing all this stuff, working in the kitchen, working in the garden, practicing meditation, studying teachings, asking questions, being asked questions, taking walks, etc., etc.

[59:22]

They appreciate that, but they still don't start practicing. Because they say, it's just fun hanging out with this nice Bodhisattva. I'll let her do the work. I'll just watch. That is something like practice, just being interested in the Bodhisattva. But some people won't actually take the medicine unless the Bodhisattva puts on this little show called Puff. So they put on the show, poof. They go, poof. No more bodhisattva. You had one. You lost it. And then they say, ah, OK. They get really upset. And then they take the medicine. The people who took the medicine before the bodhisattva went poof, they aren't fooled by the poof. They still find it very interesting, just like they found the non-poof interesting.

[60:28]

But they aren't fooled by it. And those who have not yet taken the medicine, they get upset, so upset, that hopefully then they take the medicine, and then they understand. And when they take the medicine, the Bodhisattva comes back. And you see it was just a show. So Bodhisattvas do this show, go through this whole thing of, you know, this whole thing of, I'm in the womb now, I'm a two-year-old, you know, now I'm doing this thing, two-year-old, now, now, mine, mine, my diapers are changing now, They go through all this stuff, now I'm a Zen student, now I'm a Vipassana student, now I'm a Tibetan Buddhist, now I'm forming a new cult.

[61:34]

So they go through all this, and then that's very nice, and at the end there's a few people that have not come along and they go poof to finish the job, and then they come back and do it again. And again, and again, until they attain perfect enlightenment together with Parinirvana, really. And then there's no more Buddha. Now somebody else can be the Buddha after that. And in this tradition, the next Buddha is called Maitreya, love. But for that Buddha to manifest, we all have to forget all about Buddhism. I don't know if we're going to be able to do that. But if we can, we can just be Bodhisattvas, which is what this sutra is about. Okay?

[62:42]

You don't completely understand? Nirvana is cessation, okay, but it's not ceasing to be. It's called cessation, but the person is like walking around, okay, and still teaching. They have attained nirvana, but they have not attained parinirvana. When they attain parinirvana, they cease to be, and there's no more rebirth. Parinirvana means no more rebirth. It's complete ceasing. And it includes physical death. But still Buddhism doesn't say the person is annihilated, they just cease to be and there's no rebirth. But there's another kind of cessation, which means a cessation of suffering. Noble truth of suffering, cause of suffering, cessation, suffering ceases to be in nirvana.

[63:46]

But the Buddha attained nirvana under the bow tree and continued to teach for 45 years, then did parinirvana. So Bodhisattvas, of course, they attain nirvana the way Buddha did under the bow tree, and then they continue to practice after that. But then in addition to that, they also die as a show. And again, They ask questions for the welfare of all beings, and they die for the welfare of all beings. And in between questions and dying, everything else they do, they do for the welfare of all beings. Can we remember? Every breath, every step, every time you sprinkle gomasyo, every time you ask for some gomasyo to sprinkle, every time you pass the gomasyo so somebody else can sprinkle it, everything you do, is for the welfare of all beings. This is what Bodhisattvas do between being born, asking questions, and dying.

[64:57]

And they do it all the time. That's what Bodhisattvas do. They're always thinking of the welfare of all beings. Can this activity right now be for the welfare of all beings? How is this activity for the welfare of all beings? What is the samadhi by which the welfare of all beings will be realized? Also, I just wanted to mention this little thing here. I found this piece of paper in one of my books, and it says, you know, Suzuki Roshi has become, you know, famous, right? So on postcards they have his sayings, and the heading on this thing is, The Secret of Zen in Just Two Words.

[65:59]

And it has a picture of a flower in a sand garden, and at the bottom it says, Ha ha ha!

[66:11]

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