The concept I would like to discuss, the actual word I would like to discuss with you is about speech. So if the Buddha wants this to happen, let it happen. If not, I just remember that the ancients passed beyond living in the mountains and forests. And only then did they unite with the way. And they could use the mountains and rivers for words, and the Indian rain for a tongue. That's where it founded the great entrance. And I thought mostly by speech.

[01:04]

Nagarjuna praised the Buddha, the teacher of the clinical writing, as the foremost of all speakers. Today I would like to discuss the precept of not speaking of others' faults. This precept is words are words. Receiving and transmitting this precept, the Bodhisattva becomes faced and extremely dynamic and potentially very beneficial This is the combination of critical discrimination, or this is the phenomenal combination of the critical discriminating capacities of the thought and the mysterious power of speech.

[02:25]

Discussing the faults of others can be very harmful to individuals. It can even be a condition for people to war with each other. On the other hand, there are public cases in which a critical comment pointing out someone's fault in public has been an occasion for great awakening and complete This precept points to the good heart of the Bodhisattva who can work with these capacities of thought and speech in such a way that brings great benefit to all beings and the potential harm of speech avoided. So what is the

[03:32]

Phenomena meant here by the word discussing the fault of others. Or it is speaking of others with the intention to cause disrespect or disharmony between you. This phenomena could just as well be described by the word slander. Here slander is to intentionally make statements which are injurious to the well-being or reputation of another person. This is not speaking of another person's faults. This is directly speaking of another person's faults face to face with that person. It is speaking to others about it This is not speaking of another person's faults directly face to face with that person.

[04:37]

It is speaking to others about someone's faults either in front of the person or behind the back. The conscious or unconscious is that others will disrespect and not appreciate her as a result of what is said. Of course, the harmful intention often goes unrealized because the slanderer may wind up being the one who is less respected and less appreciated by the audience. When I was a teenager, I had a friend, I thought he was my friend, and whenever I interested in, if the interest got sufficiently intense, and there seemed some possibility that she was interested too, he would make some comment about her, notice something about her.

[05:58]

That would make me doubt the appropriateness of the relationship. It didn't occur to me at the time that he might have been keeping it all to himself. One time, I met a girl, and he didn't have a chance to say anything against it. When he finally came on the scene, I'd already realized it wasn't about us and I accepted that. Anyway, a slight negative comment can throw confusion and lack of confidence into a person's heart. There are

[07:03]

Many stories, and I'd like to hear about them if you know others now, have more devastating results from speaking about his faults. From literature and daily life. Wrenching. And I came to this tragic story, a good one, about a fellow. A truly A noble person, a great person, who listened to the comments of this trusted saint, who very cleverly spoke untruthfully about faults in a fellow's way. Gradually, a fellow lost himself in his life. And basically, made him stay.

[08:06]

Because he was suddenly speaking the falsehood of another human. And in such a way that he never thought to check. So he was able to watch. what can happen to a perfectly beautiful human mind when poisoned by such a quite different but related aberration of speech is so-called harsh speech. This refers to consciously or unconsciously speaking out of anger. in a rough and unpleasant way. However, in this case, the speech is directed to you directly, not behind the back or to someone else.

[09:16]

Coming from someone who has great power, trust, or authority in other's lives, harsh words can be extremely insidious. Just as a parent or teacher has to be very of her yes. That is her one. She must also be perhaps even more of her no. That is her coldness. I previously talked to you about the difficulty of the teacher showing warmth to the student too early and confusing or distracting you. So there is actually a new way.

[10:30]

One way is kind of called the granting way. If you show a syllable and warmth, to the student's practice to confirm their efforts so that they can relax, think of their discipline, and do what they did. Another way is called a drastically or a withholding mode, which is usually applied to the more advanced students who are already quite skilled. A coldness. It challenged them to go beyond their well-established practice. A disturbing word could break them free from their imperturbable composure. But these harsh words, these no, these coldness, must come at the right time.

[11:33]

at the right time. I'd heard that Master Ma yelled at and that he was deaf for three days. The great Master Enlightened many moods by yelling, slapping, and hitting with sticks. There is a story of God. After many years of shouting and waking people up, The old master was about to depart. In the introductory words to the story, it is said, devoted entirely to others, one's self is unknown.

[12:55]

We must exert the drama fully. not bothered by there being no one. It is necessary to have the ruthless ability to snap a wooden pillar in two. Mean treatment like breaking a wooden pillar should be used something After a lifetime of teaching and destroying people's treasured truths and releasing them, Linji says to his great disciple, Sanchen, after I die, please don't destroy my treasure too.

[14:06]

Sanchen said, how would I dare? How would I dare destroy the teacher's treasury of truth? Then she said, did someone suddenly come up to me and say, why not this? What do you say? Are you ready? Done. And Lindsay said, one final chance. Who would have thought the night gradually would be destroyed by a blind ass? This was the recognition of the dharma, the sancham.

[15:12]

This was the complete acrossment of a lineage down the line. At this time, these harsh words were not to another. This was the infinite love of the Zen tradition. In order for it to happen, there had to be harsh words at that time. This is the fate of the lineage line. But as a follower of ,, I also respect in this way. And sometimes .. The vital dharma, the dharma, treasury of truth, which is always destroyed and always refreshed.

[16:22]

This limby line came to Japan in the Tokugawa era. There was, in this world, a Zen master named Hakuin. He was a very fierce Bodhisattva. Now, all the Vinidai priests descend from this one teacher. All the other lines evaporated in his presence. He enlightened no one knows how many beings. When he was 58, he retired because he couldn't say no anymore. His benevolence came from his para, into his chest, up into his neck, into his mouth,

[17:39]

And all I could do was chortle and love sewing, too, just like this. So I retired and just did thousands of pieces of little old ladies making tickets. In innumerable forms, just showing the sweetest blessings on the earth. Before I retired, though, And all over Japan, people came. All the Zen students came from all over Japan to study with me. Japan was entirely .. If there was a person like that in Japan now, people from all over the world would come to study with me. He would be considered, certainly, a Zen teacher. Amazing person. Amazing benevolence. Amazing skill.

[18:41]

but often, not always, on the first side. During his lifetime, there was a monk named Shlodo. He studied with a teacher named Ho. Ho had some realization of the state of nothingness. He told his teacher, But he wanted to test his realization by visiting . He wanted to go to the great master and debate. The teacher said, I don't think so. It's not time yet. This is just the beginning of your realization. Stay with me longer. that Chodo would not be dissuaded and would see the great Hapu. He said, if you insist, please at least take a letter of introduction from me.

[19:51]

to . This is the temple near . Beautiful view, no? When he arrived, he immediately barged in to Hakuin's quarters. Hakuin was taking a bath at the time. He barged into the bathroom and presented his understanding. Hakuin, sitting in the bath, said, If things are the way you say, you did not come here in vain. But he had a long trip, so resting was populated. Finally, after apparently leisurely bath, Hakuin emerged and met with Shodo formally. Thereupon, Shodo presented the letter of introduction. Hakuin opened and read it. He said, this young fellow is

[21:02]

not without some insight. However, he is of modest potential and inferior ability. Haku immediately hollered at him and said, You are of small capacity and your potential is inferior. What good is it for you to consider what you have accomplished as of our great work? fire coming out of his eyeballs.

[22:07]

Poor Togo, having everything he cared about, snapped away, went immediately insane. He went back to his hometown and built himself a little Meditation. At the time of year when we have our retreats to celebrate the enlightenment of Shakyamuni Buddha, and gather child monks and cats, and force them to come and sit with me. If the cat ran away, he would chase after them and beat them for breaking the rules. At the end of his life, Hakun said, I taught many people.

[23:27]

I hope I did some good. But I made two mistakes. Showed up and one other. One time, I spoke partially to a lone person and destroyed him. Hard speech is powerful coming in the future. It should not be kept. I seem to be coming apart or coming from an authority figure, a director, a treasurer, a parent. Both these ways of speaking, both is false. It undermines their good name and the respect that they hold to them. It's speaking harshly to people.

[24:29]

go directly against the voice of the factors that don't teach. Kind speech is nothing other than it not only in a wholesome way and with a pleasant voice. Kind speech can bring benefit to the person's opening and encourage others to hear it, too. Kind speech and formulation. It may be difficult to say, it may be sufficient to say that practicing this precept from the start involves admitting and addressing the diversity of speech in ourself and acknowledging

[25:30]

the immense ills that can result from the abuses of truth. As long as these unwholesome tendencies are epidemic in us, the precept naturally suggests various antidotes. First, there is the practice of thorough confession of our own fault. And in this, one might get special emphasis in contemplating the ugliness and negative results of speaking in an unwholesome way. Second is the practice of praising and rejoicing in the virtues of others. And also rejoicing in the merit and beauty of rejoicing in self. Third is to practice and teach, still subject to these unwholesome impulses.

[26:43]

That is at the end of the list of antidotes. That's three. Did you hear them? They're actually how to be a doctor. I wouldn't say they're exactly fun. The depressing ones don't fall. It isn't exactly funny, but it's effective. Other rejoicing in the United States is really great when you get into it. Very sashimi out there. You're going to talk, you're going to talk, and you're going to talk to yourself, and then you have to talk to yourself to get your thoughts. You try. Oh, you're going to break it? Total inspiration. Anyway, there it is.

[27:51]

There's no problem. There's really no problem. It's also a fortune cookie I recently got. Katisha said, when I say evil in another, a violinist told a story about the recital he gave to the great cellist, Pablo Casal. He played with a great master, but partly because he was so nervous to be in the presence of Casal, he didn't do very well.

[28:55]

And he was quite embarrassed. Mr. Pissall broke into an exuberant and extravagant expression of praise. He was very excited, pointing out all the things that the violinist had to say. Afterward, the violinist was somewhat relieved. that Casals had teased him ironically, which had been so mediocre, talking as though he had done really well. Sometime later, some years later, he met Pablo Casals again, and he said, I'd like to bring up something that happened some time ago.

[29:58]

Actually, I think I got it wrong. I think he performed another decider. In this time, he was more mature and less flustered by the presence of the master. He did really well. And again, Pavlov exuberantly arranged the performance. Then he said, I'd like to bring something up to consider. Some years ago, I performed for you a rather poorly Yet you praise me highly. I didn't know what you were doing. Exuberantly. Didn't you do such and such a thing well? Didn't you do such and such another thing with skill? Didn't you do that well? Didn't you do... That's what I praise. I praised your skill, and you had it.

[31:05]

As for the mistakes you made and the things you didn't do well, I leave that to you to criticize. My job is to praise. At the end of the day, during which I have not spoken to none of others, path to peace and freedom is at least a little bit clearer. However, this precept is not just concerned about whether one should or should not criticize others. Beyond practicing these wonderful antidotes, He intends to graciously and thoroughly uproot all obsessive impulses from which perverted speech arises, and then to go straight forward on the path and to compassionately liberate the great potential of human speech.

[32:25]

This precept is about how all sentient beings together with the great earth, mountains, rivers, grasses, trees, wind and rain can realize the Buddha way at the same time. In ancient Buddha, In speaking of the wholesome heart, of the Mahayana.

[33:32]

The use of the word Mahayana means that great wisdom and compassion are united in the Bodhisattva's heart. This means great devotion to the welfare of all suffering sentient beings, united with deep insight into the emptiness of all phenomena. The Bodhisattva's heart contains immense warmth and vast state. Vast, warm states. That's what this precept is about. With a heart like this, a Bodhisattva is able to embrace and sustain all beings. In particular,

[34:34]

Bodhisattva is greatly able to embrace and sustain all beings caught up in nasty ways of talking about others, who are caught up in nasty ways of talking to others. With such a heart, a Bodhisattva can embrace and sustain those beings, not embrace and sustain diversity of speech, of the beings who are calling for wisdom. Of course, the Bodhisattva starts by embracing the self, by admitting and acknowledging the tendency to perverse speech in himself.

[35:40]

And by compassionately accepting these unhealthy, unwholesome patterns of speech, Bodhisattva himself, Bodhisattva laid the foundation for the study of the dependent core writing of these obsessions. when one carefully, kindly, and thoroughly inhabits one's body of affliction. Got a body of affliction? When one carefully, kindly, and thoroughly inhabits one's body of affliction and one's mass of confusion and non-virtuous patterns of speech, and then fits upright in the middle of all that suffering, All this reveals itself to this courageous bodhisattva.

[36:45]

The afflictions unveil themselves and tell us their secret. This is a gift, not the result of willful analysis. not prying the obsession open. Rather, this revelation of the dependently co-arisen nature of the obsession comes through a friendly conversation between the bodhisattva and the obsessor.

[37:59]

kind speech practiced towards the perversity. Good morning, darling. How are you? Okay, that impulse to trash somebody. That's something. As a result of this friendly conversation, his habit of speech is dropping it. As a result of this friendly conversation with these habits of speech, the Buddha realizes their dependently coalescing nature and their emptiness and its liberality from them. Seeing the dependently coalescing nature of these obsessions, of these impulses to speak of others is to see the dharma, the dharma in the obsession, and see the dharma in the impulsivity.

[39:17]

This is the light of the precept. There is a light in all things. And is there dependent or isn't? And it is revealed through friendly conversation with the thing. Be it animate or feeling. Be it in your own heart or head. Be it outside. Seeing the dependently co-arisen nature and seeing Dharma, one sees Buddha. with all virtues, gentle and upright, one will see teaching now.

[40:29]

Dogen Zenji says, practicing all virtues means getting dirty in order to embrace beings who are mired in mud. Practicing all virtues means getting wet, saving all beings who are drowning in the oceans. Getting wet and dirty means omitting our home, anything. It means settling with our own possessions, practicing all virtues, and then to be gentle with all of them, to be friendly with all of them, and sit up late in the seat of David. through this friendly conversation with our internal and our external .

[41:53]

We then need the bodhisattva to have third enjoyable and beneficial conversations with everything. with sentient being and with the precepts themselves. Through such dependently coerced conventional and empty conversations with everything, we realize this precept. He says, we then see that within the Buddha Dharma, all practitioners are the same path, the same Dharma, the same realization, the same practice. Thus others will not be discussed and confusing speech will not occur.

[43:06]

through the friendly conversation with all things, we realize that there is no to criticize, but liberated from self and other. And we realize that all of us are always on the same path, that all of us always are The same pattern. The same practice. The same realization. Some bodhisattvas, I won't say all bodhisattvas, have conversations with the precepts. As a result of these conversations with the precepts, the precepts gradually start talking back. I'm here for you.

[44:24]

I'm dedicating my life to you. I receive and protect you. I want to transmit you. I'm nothing but working for you. Just tell me what I can do for you. I'll do it. I'm here for you, babe. Any way I'm useful, use me. Use me however you want. You're here for me. I'm here for you. What do you need? How can I be for you? You say you want to help all people. You've certainly been taking good care of me. I'll help you do the same with everything. It comes up and tells you its secret over and over. because you took good care of it. There is a total two-way trance, usually, of light between bodhisattva and the precept.

[45:34]

It's not bodhisattva and precept, two different things. It's not bodhisattva's making the precepts alive. It's not the precept making the bodhisattva alive. They both enliven each other. They're one thing. They are the same pattern. They are the same realization. The precepts say, I'm a little teapot, short and stout. This window, this is my spout. When I get all steamed up, then I'll shout, just tip me over and pull me up.

[46:39]

Entirely to the welfare of others, There must be the ruthless ability to snap pillars in two. This is not a personal ability. There must be the ruthless ability from empty for precepts to be empty. If the precepts are full of something, they're useless. They're dead. And then the bodhisattva is dead because precepts and bodhisattva are the same practice. Do you empty the precepts or do they empty themselves? Neither way. It is through this conversation, this dependent co-arising of bodhisattva and precept. empty precept, empty bodhisattva, empty conversation, then the precept can be whatever you need.

[47:43]

Repraising Nagarjuna's teaching, oneself, If the precepts have self-nature, cultivation of the precepts is not appropriate. And if the precepts are cultivated, then no self-nature associated . Bodhisattvas are not necessarily Buddhists. Yesterday, I saw a Buddhist, a beautiful priest Buddhist. It was a person who looked like a priest, and he was a Buddhist.

[48:50]

And I thought, how beautiful. And maybe that person is a Bodhisattva, but not a priest. There was a Bodhisattva who lived in Arizona, and he went to the Arizona Statemental Institution, and they had a guy there who thought he was Jesus. The other people there didn't think he was Jesus. He wouldn't talk to anybody if they wouldn't recognize that he was Jesus. So this bodhisattva went to the hospital and talked to this man. He said to the man, I understand you're a carpenter.

[49:52]

The man said, that's right. He said, some bookshelves. The man said, fine. He built the bookshelves and shortly thereafter released. It takes, as Gregory Bateson said, it takes two to make a schizophrenic. At least, sometimes it takes a person, plus a staff of psychiatrists to make a schizophrenic. A schizophrenic is something that codependently . If somebody says Jesus, if somebody else says no, you're not. And he says, yes, I am. And somebody says, if you persist in this, you're locked up. We'll call you a schizophrenic. He says, fine. I prefer this world to yours.

[50:57]

The bodhisattva comes. The bodhisattva is on the same path as this guy. Same practice. Where is the same practice between you and a man who says he's Jesus? Where is it? When you see it, you can have a conversation. Say to Adam, maybe he's a carpenter. Ask them. If you meet somebody in a mental hospital and they say they're a Buddha, you could say, how did you get one? They'd say, that's right. Before noon, vegetarian. Say, well, you want? Fine, let's go.

[52:02]

No more schizophrenic. Just two people having lunch and conversation. When you realize the dependently co-arisen nature of a psychotic, You tip the psychotic over and pour her out. And now you've got an empty psychotic. But you're not a psychotic anymore. An empty psychotic is just a friend who you don't know. So you talk and talk and talk until you both forget about going home. And you talk lovingly and respectfully to this dependently co-arisen ball of light.

[53:10]

You love this light, this light manifesting as a person. You can even yell at this person sometimes if it's helpful, if they're ready. But there's no guarantee that this is somebody else. You don't know if it's somebody else because you don't know who they are. Because you depend on the call, rise with them. You don't talk to anybody anymore. You just have a conversation. Everyone from supplement. When I first looked at this precept, I thought, uh-oh. Does this mean that if this precept becomes no more critics, no more movie critics, or literary critics, or ballet critics, or music critics?

[54:27]

I don't like that. I love critics. Some more than others. I love them. I love their art often. When I read The New Yorker, I go right to the critics. I don't have time to read those books. Some of those critics take me right to the heart. Boom! I can just drink the nectar of the genius through their kind service and make the giants available. They're so kind and so helpful. Sometimes, maybe, they speak of the faults of the writers

[55:30]

the producers, the directors, the actors, the dancers. Maybe they do. But sometimes the way they speak at a vault is only helpful to me and to the artist. Sometimes it's very helpful to everyone. If they are trying to make me respect this person less, then they have a problem. And as Bodhisattva, I vow to do with them about what their intention is. But in this world of dependent co-horizons, in this world of conversation with all beings, with a fast, warm heart, nobody gets kicked out. The critics are not banished. We don't have a society that's a little bottomless. beautiful critical capacity of the human mind can be used to the fullest.

[56:38]

And if it veers off into an unbeneficial way, the bodhisattva rushes over and embraces the person and asks them, what's happening, babe? What's the matter? Are you a carpenter? precept, let you do whatever is appropriate. Master was a critic all the time. He had these little competitions for his disciples, little dharma tournaments. And then he would judge them afterwards. if they were ready. And he had a lot of people that were ready.

[57:48]

He had 139 people who were ready for anything. And he checked them out. One day, he was out looking at the moon. Three great ones. Nanjuan, Baijuan, and Xitan. Baijuan, Waihai. Ocean in the bosom. Xitan means treasury of wisdom. Nanjuan means, actually, Nanjuan, what is it? Fugan. Power of the brain. Universal vow. Universal vow. Wisdom treasury and ocean in the bosom.

[58:48]

And he said, full moon light, not like this. Now, what's it good for? Wisdom treasury said, it's good for making offerings. Ocean in the bosom said, right now, it's good for upright sitting. And universal vow said, nothing. And split. The judge, Master Meng, said, scripture is going to treasury.

[59:55]

Meditation practice goes in. Only the vow. has gone entirely beyond . This is criticism. It's a conversation with yourself, the form of everything. So the critics are safe. The bodhisattvas will help them. They'll help them stay on the true course of benefit for all beings. They'll help the Zen masters in their critical work. They'll help the literary critics, the painting critics, the music critics, the dance critics.

[60:58]

Be a punk.

[61:08]

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