Well, if you go for refuge in, for example, if you go for refuge in an example, in an exemplary person, for example, like the Buddha, or if you go for refuge in compassion, that refuge is best if you're not doing it as an external thing. If you're doing it as an external thing, then you'd be at risk of grasping it. So we often say bodhisattvas worship the Buddhas without abiding in the difference. So you can look at whether you see the difference, but whether you're abiding in it. And what would be the examples of abiding well?

[01:02]

For example, if someone criticized your understanding of the Buddha or criticized the Buddha according to your understanding. You might notice that you have, for example, you might notice that you don't that you feel humiliated or you feel like humiliating the person who did it, or you feel stressed and sort of unwelcoming of that comment. If you take refuge in like your sitting place, and then you come to your sitting place and somebody else is sitting there, you might not, you know, welcome that and say, that somebody's sitting in my place. I wanted to give my place away and somebody finally has accepted my gift.

[02:05]

But a lot of times people when they come to their seat and someone else is sitting there, they maybe feel some stress about, you know, or even angry that someone has taken their place. And then if you do notice that you seem to be sticking to your place or to your thing, then we practice compassion towards that. We didn't welcome the person taking our seat before we had a chance to give it to them. Or we didn't notice that we gave it to them. We thought they took it before we gave it. But now that I notice that I kind of am sticking, then I can be kind to my sticking. If somebody calls and then if I think, oh, I'm being stingy about my seat, then I can be kind to that judgment of stickiness. I quoted a

[03:07]

Ralph Waldo Emerson saying that, you know, talking about going down into the secrets of the human mind, and he talked about patient with negligence and patient with rebuke. So if somebody's sitting in our seat or eating our lunch, we may feel that there's some You know, we feel some unwelcoming to that, and then we may rebuke ourselves. Or we may say to them, you know, that's my seat, and they may rebuke us. So part of finding the place of not abiding is to be patient with our rebukes of ourselves or our rebukes of others and their rebukes of us. And then any shortcoming or confusion about that, again, be kind to that. And that kindness will take us to a place where our mind is more and more willing to tolerate non-abiding.

[04:19]

So there's three kinds of patience. One is patient with hardship, like illness and cold and stress in the body. and heat and insect bites and illness, those hardships, patience with them. And then the next one, I haven't heard people say that the next one's harder than the first one, but it seems to be harder. for some people that they're fairly patient with hardship, but the next one is abuse or insults and reproach from sentient beings. When sentient beings treat us with disrespect or humiliate us, that's even more difficult sometimes than physical hardship. And those two patiences get us ready for the third type of patience, which is patient with that things don't really arise. In other words, that there's no basis for abiding is really a patience which is more advanced.

[05:24]

And it's hard for us to have that patience if we don't have the first two kinds. Not impossible, but we have lots of opportunities for the first two kinds. Not that often do people necessarily, unless you're really into the practice, you may not notice the opportunity for non-abiding very often. But if you practice the first two types, which also include your reproachful attitudes about yourself. You practice patience with them and generosity towards them. That opens you to welcome this patience with things that aren't actually offering no way to be apprehended. This is how to go down into the cave of the secrets of the mind. Yes. I wonder if you would recommend either of two ways of looking at what you just said as a practice.

[06:34]

One might be that if my seat is vast enough, no one can possibly be sitting in it. No one could be sitting in it? No one could be sitting in it. Yeah. And the other might be that if I and my seat are one thing, I think they both sound good. And I thought of another one. My seat is so big, everybody can sit in it. Thank you. Yes, Jill. The relationship that you were talking about has to have words. I think I mean, can it be simply sitting next to someone, isn't it?

[07:43]

That's your supportive person. Well, yeah, that is definitely part of it. Like Ananda went to see the Buddha. He went in and he bowed to him and walked around him and sat to the side. They met. That was their meeting. And then Ananda said something. He said, this is half the holy life. So... Sitting silently next to people is part of our meeting and supporting each other. It's part of the way we... It's part of our spiritual friendship is in silence and stillness and also walking together. Those are all... There's a lot of... Well, in this intensive, there's lots of opportunities for that kind of meeting. You know, and then when we bow to each other, there's a meeting there

[08:46]

and there's a timing, and there's a sense of learning a way to bow to somebody that they, for example, do not feel humiliated. And a sane person can find that way of bowing. Because some people can bow and maybe humiliate someone, you know, like bow in a way that sort of conveys they're better than the person they're bowing to. Like... I don't know. But you can maybe imagine a bow that would hurt somebody and a bow that would make somebody feel respected. And so we actually, mostly that's what people do here. When they bow, they do express their respect, but sometimes people don't bow to each other and sometimes people feel a lack in the meeting because the person doesn't convey, you know, I respect you by using the form. So we can use these forms which are available to express friendship without saying anything.

[09:58]

If you become very advanced, can you have this sort of relationship out in the world with everybody? That's the possibility. But even the Buddha who was out in the world walking around, some people couldn't appreciate him. Like, you know, Kezan just said something about one of the, you know, one of the people after, I think after, so there was Mugtaka and then there was this other monk who I think his name was... And then there was Asha. And Asha said that when people just see me, you know, when they meet me and just see me, they are relieved of suffering.

[11:05]

But, and what did you say? But if they don't do something, they don't see me? Yeah. The Buddha goes up to see somebody but the person doesn't have a beneficial friendship. They don't even see the Buddha. So the Buddha can be available for beneficial friendships, for good friendships, but some people, because they haven't been practicing friendship, they don't even see the opportunity. I felt that way about Suzuki Roshi. I couldn't understand why Zen Center was sometimes empty. Well, almost nobody in the Zen Center, just him and me. Where are all these people? Don't they know what they're missing? I went to Zazen one time over on Bush Street, evening Zazen at 5.30.

[12:08]

I went into the room, and he was sitting in his end all by himself. And we sat. And afterwards, I said, where is everybody, Roshi? And he said, they went to a demonstration, you know, downtown. And... Yeah. They weren't availing themselves of the wonderful opportunity. And I knew some other people who, I knew Suzuki Roshi really loved them and I couldn't believe how little they were around Zen Center, availing themselves of his compassion. He was like, he was underemployed in regard to some people. They didn't avail themselves, and I knew that he wanted them and would be happy if they were there, and they didn't. Somehow they just got distracted from this opportunity. So he was pretty developed, but not everybody could see him. But a lot of people saw him, which is great. Yes?

[13:10]

That brings to mind... question that I often have is that, you know, I feel like I want to study and I want to, you know, take the Bodhisattva route, but I can't square that up with how I live. I feel like I have both the ends. You can't square that up with how you live. Well, I mean, I can in terms of how I behave, but I don't mean that. But to come and sit here for a month, I don't, I can't. It doesn't work for you yet. The conditions aren't there. And yet, I don't know, maybe that's being silly of me, not to avail myself to as full an extent as I might. Well, when you're talking, you remind me of Sudhana. He wanted to, he set his mind on true enlightenment, but he didn't know how to practice the bodhisattva way.

[14:22]

So it may be that your heart's getting more set on enlightenment, but there are certain situations where you don't quite see how to learn and practice the bodhisattva way. If you're here doing an intensive like this, you may feel like, oh, now I feel like I see a way to do it. But there are some situations where maybe you don't see And Sudhana was traveling around. He wasn't in a practice period. He was a pilgrim going from situation to situation. And there was big spaces between when he was with the teachers. But he was following his previous teacher's instruction in this travel. And he was meditating on the previous teacher's teaching joyfully. And he still didn't know how to practice the Bodhisattva way, he said. He was practicing the Bodhisattva way and yet didn't know that he knew how.

[15:28]

And therefore he asked for more instruction. He was enjoying practicing it, which is great, but he still wanted more instruction because he still really didn't know what the way was because it's so vast. and so wonderful that nobody really knows it, neither the student nor the teacher. So the student keeps asking, what is it? Please teach me. And the teacher says, OK, I'll teach you this stuff, but how can I teach you? And on and on we go. So in some sense, you're saying right now, I don't know how to practice in some situations. Would somebody please teach me how to practice in those situations? so that bodhisattva practice is living wherever you are. That's what you want, right? And so you're like this pilgrim that somehow you don't see how to learn and practice the bodhisattva way sometimes.

[16:33]

So say so. with a spiritual friend, which you're doing right now, and say it again and again like he did it over and over and over. It isn't like you say it, find out, and then you do it, and that's it. You say it, you actually find out, you enjoy it, and then you ask again. Again and again you say, please teach me. You're in the environment of saying, please teach me. So we say, I go for revision Buddha. So we don't actually say it that way. We don't say, in the morning we say, I go for refuge in Buddha. We don't say, Buddha, please teach us. But that's another way you can understand. When we say, I go for refuge, we're saying, I want to understand the Dharma. Please teach us. Please teach me. Over and over, please teach me. And so wherever you are, you can say, please teach me.

[17:36]

And if you say, please teach me, you're following instruction I just gave you, and you can enjoy that. And I haven't yet sent you to your next teacher. Yay! But someday you will go to your next teacher, I hope, and you will tell your next teacher, I've set my mind on enlightenment. but I don't really understand how to practice the Bodhisattva way. I understand that you teach it. Would you please teach me?" And they'll teach you, and then they'll say, but how can I know? And they'll send you someplace else after the wonderful teaching, and you'll be so happy. It's your job to keep asking. to keep saying that this is what you want and to keep asking for instruction and to listen to it, including that the person giving it also says, but how can I really say?

[18:44]

I can say all this, which is great, but just like now I'm saying this, but how can I really say? This isn't really reaching it, but I'm saying this in this relationship. And this is like the book. You asked, I responded, we listened, and now we go on. So please ask again and again, like the boy did. Are you ready for that? Yeah, great. Yes, Sam? The real function of a spiritual friend is to insult. Is to insult you? What does that mean? that the real function of a spiritual friend is to insult you? Well, I don't know what he meant by that.

[20:02]

Can you correct my thinking as I give way to what I think it is? What do you want me to do? Or correct my posture on this response if I can get you to feel it. Well, I don't know if I can correct your posture, but I can touch your posture if you show it to me. You're speaking of someone sitting in my chair or sitting in someone's chair. Yeah. Is that your chair? You speak. So if I'm speaking of someone sitting in what I think is my chair, yeah? I feel you're speaking of me. You feel insulted that they're sitting in? Yeah, that feeling of insult might be helpful to you to help you find that you're abiding in your chair.

[21:18]

that you're abiding in the idea that it's yours. You can have the idea that it's yours, but not abide in it. Just like, I got this idea, but who knows whose chair it really is? I mean, I used to think it was mine, but now this person's sitting in it, and I don't know whose chair it is. Speaking of Trungpa, one time people asked Suzuki Roshi about him drinking. And Suzuki Roshi said, well, usually we don't do that. But when it comes to him, I don't know what to say. So usually that could be called my seat. But the teaching of the Buddha is that That's not my seat. And that's why we call it my seat. So if I come to there and I think, oh, somebody's sitting there or the Christians which used to be there have gone somewhere else.

[22:32]

Sometimes that happens. Now I get to see, do I, am I insulted? And if I am, I think, wow. I thought I was over that. So whoever did it, I never know usually who did it. Nobody ever comes and tells me, well, I did that just to help you. But if I felt that, I hope I would feel, well, thank you for showing me that I'd become possessive of that seat. which of course soon it will not be my seat anymore. I don't know whose seat it will be, but then it will be an opportunity for someone else to see if their mind is dwelling in ownership of that seat. And for future generations to help that person, to test that person to see if there's any clinging or sticking in their mind.

[23:35]

So that kind of insult, maybe that wouldn't make sense. It's not really that Maybe a spiritual benefactor provides an opportunity for a person to imagine that they're insulted. I would think that a good friend does not have an insulting thought about anybody. when they're a good friend at that moment in their mind. So we say, you know, it's not usually in our culture here, we say a disciple of Buddha does not slander, does not praise self at the expense of others. They don't think that way. And when we think that way, at that moment, we're not lined up with Buddha. But we actually might be very respectful of someone and they don't feel respected. And so we might offer them an opportunity to not feel respected and then for them to wake up to, oh my gosh, the person that respects me I thought didn't respect me.

[24:44]

That might be very helpful. To find and be kind just to abiding and then let go of it. So that might be an understanding of that teaching. broader definition of insult than just hurtful speech. It also means a shock or like a wound, something that's fixed. A shock on something that's fixed, yeah. A shock or a wound, like an organ can receive an insult or your skin can receive an insult. Yeah. So the insult can show us maybe a point of fixation. Yes? Could you come up closer?

[25:45]

I'm having trouble hearing you. You can sit here. I can hear you. Yeah, right. someone does come here and the other ends up getting insulted. So I think there is also the responsibility of the person who got insulted to face the other in a kind way so that we keep the suffering that results from being insulted. Yeah. Thank you. Yes. This might be two questions, but regarding bowing, I've always wondered when we have formal meals in Resendo and I'm serving, and I've been taught to be present with people when I'm in front of them.

[26:56]

And then when I'm moving between people to go quickly so that the people can be served quickly, my understanding of what I've been taught might be wrong. But sometimes, and sometimes when I'm vowing, either to begin or end the interaction with someone, with care, One or both people will bow very slowly, and sometimes I don't know, should I, I gotta go, like, maybe. And maybe I'm just answering my own question, because maybe as a server, I bow however the person I'm serving bows, but then there's other people to serve, so I could completely just... Do you have any recommendations on what you would do in that circumstance or an attitude to work it? I think some sense of

[28:01]

some openness to accommodating your way to the other person. Being open to that is good, but if someone bows really fast, it doesn't mean that you have to sort of speed up necessarily to their super-fast bow. But at the same time, in your heart, you may be kind of like open to maybe speeding up, even though you can't because you're so quick, perhaps. But like, again, do you look down on them for bowing super fast? Or do you look down on them for bowing super slow? And if you do, then that's a sign that we're a dwelling. That precept of not thinking that you're a better bower than other people. It's okay to think you're a good bower. Just don't put other people down. And so I'm doing a really good bow here now. That's fine. But not looking down on your bow.

[29:05]

And if I am looking down on your bow, I'm probably clinging to something like my view of myself or what a good bow is. But I still do the bow the way I'm doing it and I'm aware of it. And then I watch whether the other person is how in sync I am with them or they are with me. But I'm open to us not being in sync exactly. I'm open to that. And sometimes we aren't. But I can feel, not look down on the person because they're not doing it like me. Or not look down on myself and slander myself because I'm not perfectly matching them. But here's an opportunity to meet with this form. And that's part of what makes the meal such a wonderful event is these many meetings that happen

[30:06]

And then there's the holding the bowl and the server putting the food in the bowl. That synchronization is, you know, it's a great opportunity for really being kind and at the same time, yeah, really being kind at the same time. And also someone may give you instruction, like say, do this or do that. And then you can attune with that, too, and listen to that. And listen to it. And see if you're resisting it. Or maybe like, oh, now I got the real way to do it. And that's the way it's going to be. But more like, oh, that's interesting. I hear you. And then watch how you respond to it. Yes? I didn't realize that I am abiding in having in attunement, and thinking that I know what attunement is.

[31:15]

I want so much to attune, and I think I know what it means and what it feels like to attune, that I don't want to let non-attunement happen, what I want non-attunement to happen. You find attunement really enjoyable? I do. Yeah. I confess. You find what you think attunement is really enjoyable. Yeah, so there it is. And then to perfect that attunement and that joy, give it away. It doesn't mean you don't do it again and enjoy it again, but it becomes perfect when you let go of it. And even though it's enjoyable if you hold on to it, creates stress for you and for you anyway. The other person may or may not be stressed because they may not be abiding in your holding. They may say, oh, she seems to be originally holding to this way of bowing that she likes so much. Oh, there she is.

[32:18]

She's really enjoying attunement. And no one could move her off that without getting a lot of stress. But I'm okay with her doing that. And then you maybe can feel that, and you feel like, well, maybe I don't have to hold on so tightly to this thing I love so much, this wonderful attunement. Some people that, you know, that does happen between people sometimes. Like student and teacher meet at perfect attunement. And then the next time they meet, it's not there. And then can they adjust? It was so good last time, that meeting. And today it's kind of like not like that. And like, can we find a new life to practice here? A fresh one, even though it's not like that great one we had yesterday. Oh, that was so good. There may be some grieving necessary so we can let go of that and have this present one which is not so nice. But if we cannot abide in the present one, even though it's not as enjoyable, there's just as much freedom.

[33:25]

And sometimes we're having a good time and we're having such a good time that we don't notice that we're clinging and causing stress. that that Yeats poem comes to mind, you know? Something like, once there was a mermaid who found herself a sailor boy and took him for her own. She pressed her body to his body and in joy took him down. She forgot in her cruel happiness that even loved ones can drown. So, Yes? How do you determine? Well, you know, some of the stories in the sutra, one of the people he's going to visit, well, actually several of the people he's going to visit, as he approaches, he was sent to visit this next person by the last teacher who

[34:34]

Well, it looks like the last teacher was a great teacher, and he's just full of joy of the teaching of the last teacher who said, you know, go see somebody else. So then he's going in joy, doing all these wonderful bodhisattvic meditations as he travels, and he approaches the next teacher, and some of the people who don't understand the teacher tell him that this person is probably not good for such a... Here's this... very pure and innocent heart, you know, and they see them approaching this person who they do not see as a spiritual teacher. And they say, you know, stay away. And so he listens to that. But some other people who do understand the teacher, they say, no, go ahead and see him. So he goes and sees him. And it works out every time. Another case, he's approaching the person and he sees the person doing things that don't look good to him. But he still goes up to the person and says, you know, I'm devoted to this, but you seem to be not being kind to people.

[35:46]

But he still goes up and talks to the person and the teacher teaches him what he's actually doing. And he can find spiritual friendship in the situation which he originally didn't think was appropriate. So that's part of what's in that book, is that some people look like really unlikely bodhisattva instructors. But he was sent by his last teacher, who he trusted. And now he's going to do this. But he doesn't just walk away from the person. He goes up and meets them and brings up his questions. And even that person, after he makes him comfortable to ask his usual question, please teach me, even that person, after he teaches him, says the same thing. How can I know how? And he sends him on to the next one. So does your last teacher who you trusted send you to this next teacher?

[36:51]

That's one thing you can use. And do you have the courage to go and meet this person? And if you don't, be kind to that and wait until you do. until your kindness is strong enough so you have the courage to meet this person. It can be applied Again, this is friendship. This is spiritual friendship. And it doesn't have to be student-teacher. It can be just friends. The Buddha said, you know, referred to himself as a good friend. He said, relying on me is a good friend.

[37:53]

So anybody who's a good friend in this situation, that's what we mean. That's the context. Both can be teachers. Both can be students. One can be a student. One can be a teacher. There's no fixed position there. It's a friendship. It's a relationship. So the same could be applied to any friendship. Is it a friendship? And again, what's a friendship? But that's what we're looking for. We're looking for friendship and to look for friendship without a fixed idea of what friendship is. I often think of the The dialogue, the Socratic dialogue called lyceum, I think it's called, or lysis, lysis, where Socrates is talking to this young man about what friendship is, and they never find out what it is. They keep inquiring into it, but they are, it seems like a wonderful spiritual friendship that they have, even though I can't exactly put my finger on what it was about it.

[38:59]

And they never found out what about it. And at the end Socrates says, well, we found out nothing more about friendship than we knew at the beginning. But we did have this meeting. And Socrates didn't say it. We just had a Socratic dialogue where they're studying themselves together. And I think you can look at that. In the relationship, are you studying yourself together Are you both studying yourself? Are you supporting each other to study yourself? And if you feel like you're not, then again, are you studying yourself with that opinion that we're not studying? So then you are again. That's sort of a guide to what a spiritual friendship looks like, is that both people are studying themselves. And if one is and the other isn't, the one who is studying herself is studying themselves with the opinion that the other person's not.

[40:01]

I think this person's not studying herself. Like in a way, I sometimes think that my granddaughter is not studying herself. That she's just, you know, ordering me around. But I think I should be sort of, what do you call it, question that, whether maybe she is studying herself, and I just can't see it. In a sense, you know, we could say really we're studying ourselves, but sometimes we can't see it. And spiritual friendship is to help us realize that that's what we're doing together. We're all trying to learn what the mind is, because understanding the mind is understanding wisdom. I'm enjoying this and I'm enjoying you telling me that somebody else has their hand raised, but I want to tell you I'm also aware that maybe I'm supposed to stop.

[41:05]

Yes? A granddaughter advocate here. Whatever they're doing, it's very adorable. So there was a boy. His name was Liang Jie, which means good servant. he was studying the Heart of Perfect Wisdom with his tutor one day. I don't know how old he was, but he was studying with his tutor the Heart of Perfect Wisdom scripture. They were chanting together or studying together. Yeah, it didn't say what... It said, I think they were... He was studying the Heart Sutra with his tutor and when they got to the part where the scripture says, you know, in emptiness...

[42:21]

no eyes, no ears, no nose, no tongue. He reached up and touched his face. And he said, but I have eyes and nose and ear and mouth. Why does this sutra say that there aren't any? And the teacher appreciated the unique gifts of his student and sent him to another teacher. And the person he sent him to was Zen master Mao, not Matsu, but another Zen master. And he studied with him and received the robe. And then he studied with him until he was 21, and he received the full priest ordination, monk ordination. And then he went on pilgrimage. And one of the first people he visited was the great teacher, Nan Chuan, who was one of the disciples of Master Ma that I told you a story about.

[43:31]

Master Ma who had the disciples Jurtsang and Waihai. By the way, I mixed up the colors. Y's head was black and Jer's head was white. Sorry. Glad I told you that story again. So another great disciple is Nan Chuan. So he went to visit Nan Chuan. So he must be about 21 by now. And he goes to see Nan Chuan. And Nan Chuan, it's the night before they're going to do memorial service for guess who? Master Ma. Right? And Nan Chuan says, I wonder if Master Ma will come when we do the ceremony. And the young man comes forward and says, he will come when his friend is here, when his companion is here. And Najvan said, this young fellow is worthy of carving and polishing.

[44:40]

And Liangjie said, don't crush the good. Don't praise me too much. And then he goes off to visit another Zen teacher named Guishan. And then when he meets that teacher, he said, There's a teaching about insentient, non-living beings teaching the Dharma. I don't understand it. teaching of the national teacher, Jung, about non-inanimate beings teaching the Dharma. I don't understand it. And Master Guishan says, do you remember the story? And he said, yes. He said, well, please recite it. So then he recites the story of a monk talking to the national teacher about non-living things teaching the Dharma. It starts, I'll just start it off for you briefly. A monk says to the national teacher, what is the mind of the ancient Buddhas?

[45:43]

And the national teacher says, walls, tiles, and pebbles. And the monk says, well, if they're the mind of the ancient Buddhas, are they teaching the Dharma? And the national teacher says, they're teaching it ceaselessly and incandescently. And the story goes on. So the young monk recites that story. And he says, I don't understand. Would you please explain it to me? So first he says, I don't understand. Would you please explain it to me? The teacher says, can you recite it? So he recites it. And he says, I still don't understand it. Would you explain it to me? And Guishan goes. And he says, do you understand? And Liangjie said, no, I don't. But here's a spiritual friendship. He's coming. He's saying, I want to understand. Please teach me.

[46:45]

I set my mind on enlightenment. Please teach me. I don't understand this teaching of another Zen master. Please teach me. And he goes like this. Do you understand? No. And he says, would you explain? And he says, this mouth will never explain to you. And he says, well, can you recommend another teacher? And he says, yes, I can. And he recommends the other teacher. And he travels to see the other teacher, who is named Yunyan. And he arrives, and he said, well, I visited Guishan. I asked him about this teaching from the national teacher. And, you know, I didn't understand. Would you please teach me? And Yunyan goes... Do you understand?" And he says, no. And Yuen Yuen says, well, if you don't understand my teaching, how are you going to understand the teaching of inanimate things?

[47:49]

And life with Yuen Yuen goes on and on and on. They have a wonderful relationship. Yang Jie goes to Yuen Yuen and says, I'm going to leave soon. And the teacher at Yuen Yuen says, after you leave, it may be hard for us to meet. And he said, it will be hard for us not to meet. And then just before he left, he went again to say goodbye. And Yuen Yuen said, again, where are you going?

[48:52]

I'm going on pilgrimage. And he said, and then Yang Jie said, after 100 years, what should I, if someone asked me what your teaching is, what should I say? And Yuen Yuen said, thank you, just this person is it. So he goes to the teacher, just about to leave, and he said, if somebody asked me what your teaching is, what should I say? And he said, tell them, just this person is it. And then the student, Liang Jie, was lost in thought.

[49:59]

And Yun Yan said, Jie, having assumed the burden of the great matter, you must be very thorough going. So he asked the teacher what his teaching was. The teacher said, just this person is it. He's thinking about it. He said, now that you've accepted the responsibility of this great matter, you must be thoroughgoing. You must follow through on this teaching. Just this person is it. And then he leaves on his pilgrimage. And I remind you that when he told his teacher he was going to leave, his teacher said, it will be hard for us to meet after we leave. And he said, it will be hard for us not to meet. So now he's traveling, and he comes to a river.

[51:09]

It's not a big river. I've been there. And he's crossing the river and he looks down and sees his reflection in the water and has his great awakening. He understands finally the mind of no abode. He was right that he could meet his teacher after he leaves. He met his teacher there in the water. He met his teacher in his reflection in the water and woke up. And then he had a little song came to him. And here's the song. Now, the book's upside down, so maybe I'll rotate it. Earnestly seeking to avoid external teachers. Earnestly avoid seeking a teacher outside yourself.

[52:11]

Seek the teacher, seek the spiritual friendship, but avoid seeking it outside yourself. We need spiritual friendship. He had a spiritual friend. Now he woke up to who his spiritual friend was. Just this person is your best spiritual friend, your true spiritual friend. Earnestly avoid seeking without outside, lest it recede far from you. Today I walk alone, yet everywhere I meet him. He is now no other than myself, but I now am not him. I must understand in this way in order for things to merge with suchness.

[53:21]

That's the story of that pilgrimage and that in that Zen story. But I'm enjoying the great Mahayana sutras showing us that what the Zen people were doing were enacting this great bodhisattva drama and that now we in the West can reenact the drama in our culture. using the teachings from India, China, and Japan as some guidance for the true spirit of spiritual friendship, which sometimes use whisks and reading glasses and vows. Thank you very much.

[54:25]

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