On this 24th day of February, I wish to extend my heartfelt congratulations to the director of Green Gulch for a happy birthday. I hope your health continues. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday, dear Fu. Happy birthday to you. Our name is actually Furyu. So when singing happy birthday, Furyu works quite nicely. Happy birthday, dear Furyu. So I wish her the same thing I wish all of us that we have good health and that we live

[01:25]

fully and are able to realize the Buddha in our life. I wanted to discuss the three pure precepts during this session as to help us understand what it is to just sit and also to use the practice of just sitting to help us understand this essential teaching of Dharma, the teaching which all Buddhas have given of abandoning evil, giving up all non-virtue, and wholeheartedly practicing all that is wholesome and benefiting all beings.

[02:32]

But I noticed that I'm really enjoying talking about the abandoning of evil. I'm really enjoying it. I'm really having a good time considering the abandoning of evil. And I feel I don't want to go on before giving it, I wouldn't say full attention, but a little bit more. I somewhat regret though that during this session we won't have so much time to consider the next two very wonderful precepts. So, a feeling that has been developing in me about these precepts, particularly the first two, is that the first precept of abandoning non-virtue

[03:54]

is a kind of a slippery path. Yeah. It has a lot to do with being focused. It has a lot to do with one point and what's coming to me is that the next precept of practicing good in a way is not so slippery is the precept which is actually the precept of reward. By being willing to completely commit ourselves to what is our ultimate concern, to give up everything else and just penetrate deeply into one single form of practice, we realize the source

[05:24]

of all the laws of the buddhas and we realize the abode of the teachings of all the buddhas and then as a reward comes the practice of all wholesomeness which in a way is very broad because we don't have to do it it's like everything becomes the opportunity for practicing good once we have abandoned everything except for the one practice which we say is ultimate. Because the ultimate is not two things. The ultimate doesn't vary. It is what we say is highest of the highs for us. it is what we say is the most important thing for life.

[06:27]

However, once we say that, then what is required is abandoning everything else for that. And everything else but that, you can say is non-virtue, is a distraction, is a laziness, So this one-pointedness is slippery, it's easy to slip off, and also this one point is not something that you can get a hold of, or that any Buddha can get a hold of. It is a measureless, boundless ultimate. Still, even though we can't get a hold of it, we can give our whole heart to it.

[07:34]

And somebody asked me yesterday, now are you saying that if we just completely give ourselves to putting our hands together and just completely give ourselves to just sitting cross-legged and making this mudra, that then we'll be able to take care of whatever comes up? And I said, the way you put that sounds to me like a belief, like I believe that if we do that, then we will be able to do this other thing. For me, it's not a belief. I don't think that way about this. To me, it's more like a bet. I think the best bet is to live that way, is to give ourselves completely to one thing, And I just bet my life on it. I don't think it's likely or unlikely. I just forget about that stuff and just give everything to it.

[08:40]

And although I say this, I also want to say that the great function appears in this world without being stuck in a fixed pattern. So although we choose a form and we study that form thoroughly, as we study that form to the limit of study, we find out that that form is formless. Just as we study the mudra thoroughly, we find that everything in the universe comes crashing in there, and you cannot anymore say what the mudra is.

[10:08]

I find, I hear, I understand that it's by giving ourselves totally to one thing that we find out that that one thing is formless. And we find out that that one thing which we have given our whole life to is nothing at all. And because we realize that zazen is nothing at all, and doesn't matter at all because it is nothing at all. Because of that, everything matters. In other words, because of that, we naturally, spontaneously realize good. Everything is good then. I forgot the date, but quite a few years ago, back in the 70s, I first saw a translation of a fascicle by Dogen called Zammai, O Zammai.

[11:30]

Samadhi, O Samadhi. Samadhi, sovereign of all samadhis, king and queen of all samadhis. And I read it, and it starts out, To sit cross-legged is to make a leap straight away transcending the entire world and to find oneself exceedingly sublime within the headquarters of the Buddhas and the Zen cronies. And I thought, whoa, that's kind of strong, Dogen. Just crossing the legs and zoom, you're in Buddha's clubhouse, transcending the entire world, just crossing your legs.

[12:42]

I crossed my legs. I didn't notice that. I crossed my legs hundreds and thousands of times, and I hadn't noticed that that would happen. Funny thing, huh? That right under my nose, I was leaping far beyond the entire world and entering the realm of Buddhas. I didn't notice it. Nonetheless, it happened every single time. And it happens to you every single time. According to this very strange bird, For transcending the highest of the heights of the Buddhas and ancestors, there is only one Dharma. Therefore, Buddhas and ancestors practice it. And they never exert efforts elsewhere.

[13:51]

And this accomplishment of this fantastic transcendence and peace has no particular sign. The lifeblood of Bodhidharma is simply cross-legged sitting. Before he came to the West, they had not yet known this cross-legged sitting. For this reason, when for one lifetime or for 10,000 lifetimes, from the beginning to the end, one does not leave the room and does single-minded cross-legged sitting from morning till night, giving up everything else That is the queen of samadhis, samadhi.

[15:07]

What is 10,000 years? What is one lifetime? What is from the beginning to the end? When you hear that or when I hear that, I think, oops. Well, it's all over because when I was a little kid, when I was first born, I didn't right away started sitting cross-legged. I wasted, so maybe it's all over now for this lifetime. I didn't give my whole lifetime to it. I've just given, you know, the last few years. And maybe I'll give the rest, but that's not my whole lifetime. What does it mean, a whole lifetime? It means right now. And even right now, it's pretty hard to give ourselves to this cross-legged sitting morning till night, right now. to give ourselves for ten thousand lifetimes from morning till night right now that's the king of samadhi's samadhi that is to refrain from unwholesomeness that is to put all of your chips down on the

[16:57]

source of all Buddha's Dharma. To make this mudra with your whole heart, not holding back anything, then you use this form to realize emptiness. But if we hold back a tiny bit, that reservation blocks the realization that this form is nothing at all. it's very slippery very slippery this practicing this first precept is very slippery because it has to do with the ultimate the ultimate it has to do with number one in your life and whether we are willing to pay the price for number one

[18:24]

whether we trust that number one will take care of number two and so on. That if we can give ourselves to one thing we will be able to take care of all of our friends. What are you going to bet on? And are you going to spread your bets? Because you don't really know which one is best and you don't want to take a chance I'm making this bet, but I also have to admit sometimes I chicken out and I try to hold back a little. But I feel no justification for that in the teaching. It seems pretty clear that you've got to bet everything on something.

[19:38]

but it's hard. I found in my little notebook, I found this poem. I think it's by Robert Frost. It's called, I think it's called, Grasping the Day or Grasping the Moment. Carpe diem. Age saw two quiet children go lovingly by at twilight. He knew not where they were going, whether homeward or outward from the village or, chimes were ringing, churchward He waited, they were strangers, till they were out of hearing to bid them both happy.

[20:56]

Be happy, happy, happy, and sieve the days of pleasure. Seems like it should be Seize the Day of Pleasure. Maybe I copied it wrong. The age-long theme is age. Twas age imposed on poems. There gather roses burdened. to warn against the danger that overtaken lovers from being over flooded with happiness should have it and yet not know they have it. But bid life seize the present It lives less in the present than in the future always, and less in both together than in the past.

[22:17]

The present is too much for the senses, too crowded, too confusing, too present to image. Focusing on one thing is very difficult because you get into the present and the present is very crowded, very turbulent, very confusing. After a while you don't know what's going on. So we want to retreat from the present and go do something else other than this one thing. This is our habit. This is our laziness.

[23:20]

So this first precept is called in Sanskrit, the precept of, or that's not Sanskrit, that's English, it's called Krati Moksha Samvara Shila, the precept of the discipline aimed at liberation. You use some discipline, some form, completely, which is aimed at liberating us. Once we're liberated, we're liberated from the form. We may continue to use it, but we don't have to. Many Zen ancestors, after attaining liberation through using the cosmic mudra with their whole being, continued to use it.

[24:49]

Some Zen ancestors who used orioke practice to attain liberation after liberation continued to practice with orioke. But they wouldn't have to. But a lot of them did. This session is, you know, it seems like it's more than half over. there's so little time left this is a metaphor for our life there's not much time left but even in the little time that remains it might be possible for us each of us to give ourselves completely to one thing I really don't care what it is

[26:13]

whatever you give yourself to completely, I think can become the queen of samadhi's samadhi. Now this giving ourselves to something completely is sometimes called being upright. Giving yourself to your posture is called upright posture.

[27:21]

Giving yourself to the mudra is called the upright mudra. It means that you give yourself completely but not more than that. It means you don't overdo it. It means you use just enough energy to sit up straight and then that's enough. It also means you don't underdo it. You don't give yourself a little bit less energy than you need to sit up. You give enough tension to what it is for it to be what it is. and then you don't overshoot it and miss it in fact this is always the case but can you notice it? this uprightness is called refraining from evil and uprightness again is very slippery

[28:28]

It means coming right up to the point, not the slightest bit short, not the slightest bit to the left, not the slightest bit to the right, not the slightest bit beyond, but just right up to the point and then stop. It means turning the Dharma wheel to the extreme limit of this moment and stopping. That's called giving up everything for one practice. That's called being upright. That's called upright sitting. And at that point they get very crowded and very energetic and everything changes and we have to again watch the world turn into this place Watch infinite things come forth and create this. Witness again and again the birth of the universe here.

[29:33]

Very slippery. Now, if you are able to give yourself completely to such a slippery, challenging, awesome practice, then you get a reward. Then you get to enter into the self-fulfilling samadhi, the king of samadhi, samadhi. Because this uprightness this avoiding evil, this discipline in a form that's conducive to liberation, then gets you entry into the club, the self-fulfilling awareness club, which all Buddhas are practicing right now. And then this stuff happens, you know.

[30:48]

When you sit upright in this samadhi, the whole phenomenal world becomes Buddha's seal and the entire sky turns into enlightenment. All the Buddhas renew their original source You find the source of all the Buddhas and not only that, but then you refresh all Buddhas by your uprightness. All these Buddhas, you know, are kind of like, kind of drooping and limp, you know, until we give ourselves completely to being upright. And as soon as we are that way, as soon as we are completely ourselves, all the Buddha's kind of like, oh, good morning.

[32:01]

And not only that, but we increase their Dharma bliss and renew the magnificence of their awakening. This says magnificent, but another translation is we renew their adornments in awakening to the way. So that brings us to the practice of good. Quite naturally, everything becomes good from such a practice of uprightness. And all this wonderful stuff happens. Now the other night I was talking about, I mentioned in the precept class that one of the first practices pointed to in practicing good is abandoning your body, abandoning clinging to your body.

[33:30]

But maybe it's clear that if you do the practice of being upright you've already abandoned your body. You've already abandoned clinging to your body. It's not something additional you have to do. But in the practice of good, rather than just being an additional chore, like, oh my God, I've got to abandon clinging to my body, it's more like you're rewarded and you get the feeling like, oh, I didn't have to hold on to it after all. How nice. When you read at lunch at noon service the self-receiving, self-fulfilling awareness, what you're reading about there is the practice of good.

[35:03]

You're reading about the realm that you're admitted to by uprightness. You're reading about the realm of reward for for your faith. Watch.

[36:35]

Look. It's right under your nose. A couple of days ago the Eno got a telephone call from somebody who wanted to join Sashin. A very important person deigned to join us. A big name. I won't mention it. I don't want to distract you. I think you know some big names, don't you? Right? You know some big names? Ever heard of Bill Clinton? Ever heard of Bill Clinton? What did you say? Mr. Big. There you go. But it was Mrs. Big, actually. It wasn't Bill Clinton, but it was a female with a big name. I won't tell you who it is. But anyway, I don't want to distract you.

[37:39]

But anyway, I don't want to stir up your minds. But anyway, watch, watch, watch. So the Ino said, came to talk to me and said, well, I would be willing to let her join because it's nice to have big names. But he didn't really say that. But my main problem is, does she know Orioki? Orioki. So if she knows how to do Orioki, she can join. But he wasn't going to spend two hours teaching her Orioki in the middle of Sesshin. And guess what? She didn't know Orioki, so she's not here with us now. Which is in a way sad, because it's nice to have big names join us and make us feel like we're important, right? Anyway, he says, we don't need any big names. And I think I made some kind of sound like, oh, oh.

[38:44]

I was wondering, don't we need any big names? Like, for example, couldn't one of us perhaps be a big name? And then he said, we already have One big name. Big Mr. B. And I thought, oh, that's true. We do have one real famous name here, don't we? Maybe that's enough. And actually, now you think of it, there's a bunch of other famous ones, too. Like, you know, Mr. B's thousands of great disciples. We have a lot of big names here. So none of us need to be big names anymore because we've got so many. That's kind of a relief. So in other words, we can just practice. We don't have to worry about that anymore. In other words, everything's good.

[39:47]

Everything. When we sing that song yesterday, we got the whole world in our hands. So what does that mean when you have the whole world in your hands? What's in your hands? It's the whole world. It's important. It's good. It deserves your complete devotion. Now, if you practice uprightness, you can actually, you get a gift where you actually feel that way. You can actually feel like what's in your hand is worthy What's in your hand is good. What's in your mind is good. Even if it's distraction. Dogen's comment on this precept is that this precept of gathering together

[41:04]

Well, first of all, it's nurturing and guiding. It's the precept of nurturing and guiding all wholesome ways, or all wholesome things, or all good things. It's that setzu again. It's to fulfill all wholesome things, all wholesome ways, all wholesome practices. Dogen's comment on this is, it is the teaching of unsurpassed, complete, perfect enlightenment. And it is the path of the practicer and what is practiced. Now, when I first hear that, I think, oh, it's perfect enlightenment, unsurpassed and complete, and then it's the practicer And then, what is practiced?

[42:08]

There's the practicer and what is practiced. But another way to hear that is, it's the path of the practicer and the practicer is what's practiced. You take a practicer, the practicer is what is practiced. And what is practicing the practicer? unsurpassed, complete, perfect enlightenment practices the practicer. And the practicer practices unsurpassed, complete, perfect enlightenment. The first point here is that the practicer and the practiced, the dharma and the person, are not separate. And the enlightenment, the dharma, of that enlightenment is the enlightenment's not separate either. So when the kitchen goes, I always understand that they have to go.

[43:42]

But I also always feel like the lecture's over. So the Dharma talk's over. And I guess that's about all I can do on practicing good. And I'm not kidding, you know, when I tell you that I'm a little bit sad that I have to stop before I even got to that, really talk to that priest that much. But to keep talking, to try to assuage my sadness, doesn't seem quite right either.

[45:04]

Because my sadness is good. It's really good. It is unsurpassed, complete, perfect enlightenment practicing me as a sad person who couldn't quite talk about what he wanted to talk about after he finished the other stuff he talked about. But even though I'm sad, I'm also very happy. Funny, huh? Because I'm sad to stop, but I'm supposed to stop. So I'm doing what I'm supposed to do, even though it makes me sad. Just like, you know, some of you, when you come to zazen, maybe feel sad, even though you're doing what you feel like you should do, what you committed yourself to.

[46:28]

To fulfill these disciplines which are conducive to enlightenment, these pratimoksha samvaras, I will give my whole life to those disciplines, to those forms. I will give one life from the beginning to the end, from morning till night to those disciplines which are conducive to liberation. Then I will be able to practice good and then I will be able to practice benefiting all beings because the source of the Buddhas will be realized by that total devotion to one thing. And then I can talk to you without talking to you.

[47:31]

I can just sing. And there's nobody out there. And I'm just singing about that there's nobody out there. Because I really understand that there's just one thing And we're it. And that's it. And it's good. And that's my bet. I would like to practice that song one more time okay it goes the words are we've got the whole world in our hands and then after you do that a few times you say got the wind and the rain in our hands and then you got the

[48:40]

little small baby in our hands. And there's something else about lovers. Something about all you lovers, but I can't remember how that goes. But we can just do the one about the whole world and the wind and the rain and the little small baby. Is there any other important ones? What? Oh, and then everybody's the last one, right. What? Everybody here? No, well, the... Okay, let's... Huh? Not clap. Can the clappers go along with that? Okay. You know, you know what I grew up with?

[49:42]

The itsy bitsy baby. But the book I had says little small baby. It said we small, not little small. We small. Okay, we small. Huh? You want to do itty bitty or we small? Okay, itty-bitty, that's fine with me. Okay, so first is whole world, then is wind in the rain, then itty-bitty, then everybody here. Is that right? How about brother and sister? He's got you and me, brother, in his hands. Are you and me sister? Okay, ready? Ready? Whole world. Wait a second. Whoa, whoa, whoa. We got off.

[50:44]

We. We got the whole world in our hands We got the whole world in our hands We got the whole world in our hands the rain in our hands we got the wind and the rain in our hands we got

[51:25]

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