I've had to chase the troops of the targeters through. We just chanted Dharma together. Can you hear me well in the back? Can you hear me well in the front? We just chanted Dharma together. We chanted Dharma together. beings are brought to maturity in Buddha's wisdom.

[01:10]

And we chanted an unsurpassed, penetrating mantra. Now as we begin this year together, in the midst of so much change and chaos and suffering, we chant Dharma together. How wonderful that we can do this together in this world and bring beings to maturity in Buddhism and compassion. Now we're also starting a January intensive here in this valley. The people who live here and 40 or so guests have come in to stay present and still and quiet with the Dharma.

[02:35]

to support each other, to let go of distractions from being present with the Dharma. I don't see everything that's going on with the people but I don't usually see them walking around holding a device in their hand, reading it. They walk around like with their hands open or carrying a broom or something. They're not looking at these... No criticism of that, but this is a place where we're trying to actually not entertain ourselves by looking at things other than what's going on right here. And taking care of this truth.

[03:41]

Today is Sunday. Yesterday we had a service here in the morning and we chanted Dharma together. We do that. We chant Dharma together. We chant unsurpassed, penetrating and perfect teaching together. And yesterday we did it together. We did it today too. But yesterday we did a chant that not too many people had memorized and we could do it because we had lights and Today we had to do abbreviated service and chant things that people knew by heart. Because we couldn't read in the dark. So we chanted this morning too. But yesterday morning we chanted one of which is called in the original, Sandokai. And it can be translated as The harmony of difference and unity is a teaching about how the world works.

[04:59]

Which you can see. Like I'm this old man and you're this young man. I'm a male, you're a female. We can see these differences. That's part of our life. Differences. Republicans and Democrats. Differences. Ukrainians and Russians. Differences. This is the world of suffering. Where we're different. And we don't skip over this world. We honor it. We acknowledge it. It's the world where the weather's stormy yesterday, and today, like this, very lovely. And tomorrow, we shall see. Difference. And there's another world where we're all the same. There's a world where we're all the same, and we're all working together intimately, in peace.

[06:06]

And those two worlds are in harmony. are intimately working together. We chanted that, that verse which has that title. And the beginning of the verse is, the mind of the great sage of India, the mind of the Buddha, the mind of great compassion and wisdom, That's how it starts. The mind of the great sage of India. And the next part is usually the way it's translated is the mind of the great sage of India is intimately transmitted. I agree. Being not a native speaker of Chinese, when I look at it, what I see it says is first two characters,

[07:10]

Mind of ancient sage of India. Four. Intimate transmission. It doesn't say is. It doesn't say the mind is transmitted. To my eyes it says the mind of the Buddha is intimate transmission. It is intimately transmitted. Intimate transmission. That's what the Buddha's mind is. It's intimate communication. That's what the Buddha's mind is. The Buddha's mind, what's going on there, is intimate communication between all beings, between differences and the way we're all the same. Intimate. Now, at the beginning of this year, I wish to commit, I wish to make this communion the ultimate concern right now of this life.

[08:28]

The final concern right now is the Buddha mind, is the way we're intimately Transmitting to each other. That's what I wish to be devoted to. That's my faith. That's what's going on, and I wish to be devoted to that. I wish to be distracted from that. If I pick up a device, as I pick it up, I wish to remember What? Wholehearted communion with all beings. Not to pick an electrical device up and distract myself from that. And now I'm going to put it down.

[09:32]

But I wish to not distract myself from the communication. What was really going on? in our life. So we have like three kind of — here's some difference, okay? We have the people who are here for the three weeks intensive. We have you people who have come in to chant the Dharma for today and will be leaving later today. And we have another sangha, another assembly, who's watching from all over the whatever. But some people are watching, I guess. And so I'm talking to you, and you, and you, and you, all these people, I'm saying, we have the chance to create a vessel to hold the faith in Buddha mind.

[10:41]

to hold faith, the faith of intimate transmission. It's always here. It's just a matter of being present for it and allowing it and remembering it. We can do it. This whole three weeks we have a chance to be here and sit quietly and be present with this intimate communion with this Buddha mind. And we also have a chance to notice when our mind wishes for something other than being present for this communion. Maybe we might want to prove our point in a conversation rather than listen to the Dharma. Oh, I got distracted.

[11:47]

I'm sorry. So this is a training opportunity to create a training vessel where we are trusting in Buddha mind We are trusting in the Buddha mind. This mind is chanting the Dharma together. Beings are embraced and brought to maturity. Every person we meet, there's a chance for us to meet in such a way, with such sincerity and respect, that we are brought to maturity through that meeting, in that meeting, by that meeting.

[12:48]

Every meeting has that opportunity. I've been considering the question of whether I really am willing to let go of everything else. I've been thinking about that. For example, we don't have our usual source of electrical power here.

[14:05]

And a few minutes ago, just a few minutes ago, I thought I saw a little flickering on an answering machine. It was a hallucination. But I thought, oh, the power is back on. And I thought, when that light went on, . Now, when I thought how silly I am to get so excited about a flicker on an answering machine, I started to remember, oh, yeah. I'm here for this intimate communion. Even when lights flicker or there's hallucinations of light flickering, no matter what people bring to me, I'm here.

[15:12]

What I'm really here for is that we communicate. In order for that to happen, I have to pay attention to others. If I'm paying attention to others, I'm doing my job. My job is to give my attention to everybody. That's my job. And that giving attention, that generosity, is what matures beings. Matures me and matures others. I mature when I give my attention. I'm here to listen to others. I mature when I listen to you. I'm here to speak to you. As a gift, I give these words to you.

[16:18]

Attention to. In this giving of my being, of my attention, we mature together. We mature together. In this practice we are chanting the Dharma together. I observe beings. We mature together. In observing each other with eyes of compassion, Buddha is brought to maturity. Wisdom and compassion are nurtured and protected. And there's a slight difference between looking at somebody and thinking of some other time or place. Even though you're looking at them, you're a little bit wondering how much longer this is going to go on. Or is there somebody more interesting to talk to than this person? But if I have that thought, that thought I can also communicate with and listen to.

[17:31]

And then I'm not distracted from the communication. Everything's included. To learn how not to be tricked into thinking that we're doing something other than Buddha Mind. that there's something else which you could temporarily take a little break from Buddha's mind and do something else. That's quite a bit more entertaining than just taking care of this. Intimate communion with all beings. Yeah, fine. When's the power going to be back on? I'm not saying we don't do that.

[18:38]

I'm just saying, when's the power going to be back on? Okay, there it is. What about simultaneously remembering the Buddha mind is right there. Don't forget the Buddha mind when you're playing with that wants to know what the weather is going to be and when the power is going to be back on. And also, who's the loveliest of them all? Mirror, mirror on the wall? Who is it? That's fine. You look better than you did yesterday. This is the world of difference. We're not trying to get rid of it. It's getting plenty of attention. How about just don't forget the Dharma?

[19:39]

How about not forget the intimate communion at the same time? No matter what's happening in the realm of difference, can you remember the Dharma? Everybody wants you to. One of the stories which many of you have heard before is about two of our ancestors, ones in China, in the Tang Dynasty, more than a thousand years ago. They were together. They were together. And what were they doing? They were chanting Dharma together. And how did it sound when they chanted Dharma together? As the story goes, one of them was named Da Wu, and the other one was named Jun Yan.

[20:44]

Dharma brothers, same teacher, Dharma brothers. And one of them was sweeping the ground with a tool, which in English we call a broom. Zen practitioners do sometimes use tools like brooms and electronic devices. They sometimes use them. They don't always have a broom, but they often do. And people come here from far away to use our brooms. You know, and pick the broom off and sweep the ground and put the broom back. is an ancient Zen practice. Sweeping the ground with brooms. So our wonderful ancestor, our compassionate ancestor, yin-yang, was sweeping the ground.

[21:48]

And his Dharma brother said to him, you're too busy. In other words, he accused him of being distracted from the Buddha mind when he was sweeping the ground. He was, and he was sweeping here, not there. He was sitting with this broom, not another broom. He was in the realm of difference and he was busy in that realm. That was the accusation. He didn't deny it, which would have been just more sweeping. Do you understand? Denying what people say about us is sweeping the ground, sweeping away accusations. We are often busy. cleaning the house. So he didn't say, I'm not busy, I'm not distracted.

[22:51]

He just said, you should remember, you should know that there's one who's not busy. Even though I'm busy, I remember there's somebody right here who's not busy. What is the somebody who's not busy? The mind of Buddha is not busy. The intimate communion of all beings is not busy. It's completely still. All the beings are in intimate communion. That intimate communion is immovable and not moving. The way all the busy beings are working together is stillness. Right now, all of our hearts are beating. Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom. Busy hearts we have. That's good, right? But the way all of our hearts are in communion, that's not busy. That's silent.

[23:53]

The way our hearts are busy, we can hear. The way our hearts are in communion is silent. and unmoving. The way our hearts beat is moving. Squeeze, let go. Squeeze, let go. Squeeze, let go. The way our hearts are in communion is in silence and stillness of Buddha mind, which includes all the lively, active living beings So, again, part of Zen practice is to take care of the tools, to take care of the brooms. Why take care of the brooms?

[24:58]

Because to be in the intimate communion. We want to take care of the brooms in a way that expresses that we have not forgotten Buddha's mind. Not a tool? Yes. Of it? Yes. Does that way express confidence in the mind of Great Communion? Yes. I put this broom back where I got as an act of devotion to Buddha's mind. And we tend in this temple and other temples, they say to people, Please put the bruised back where you got them. And that we don't usually say, to express the Buddha mind. But that's why we're putting them back. Not just to have...

[25:59]

but to have a temple so that other people can use that broom to express Buddha's mind. I put the broom in the closet so that other people can put the broom in the closet so that other people can put the broom into the closet to express the Buddha mind. When I use the broom, it's in communion with all of you. who in the future will use this broom. I'm doing this for all beings, not just to have a clean temple. And part of this is, in the early days of Zen Center, people asked Suzuki Roshi, the founder, for some practices by which they could be a little stricter. In other words, a little less distracted from the Buddha mind. And he said, when you're done with the brooms, hang them with the head up. People were starting the brooms with the head down.

[27:04]

As an act of respect, we put the broom head up. And we have little hooks that you can hang the brooms head up. so that other people can do that was transmitted to us intimately by the Buddhas. Put the broom back to where it was and in the condition it was in. When we work in the fields, we sometimes work with a tool called a hula hoop. It could also be called a stirrup hoop. The end of the stick looks like a stirrup. It's called a hula hoop. Is that right? No. What is it called? Hula hoop. Hula hoop. Hula hoops if you need them. So we get the hula hoops, we get the hula hoes which have been set out for us, and then we return them there.

[28:12]

But before we return them, we clean them. They're given to us clean, and then we clean them and return them. This is a Zen practice to express Buddha mind. Put things back where you found them. in the same condition that they were in when you received them. Where did they go and were they clean? Now what if they're dirty? That's a tough one. What if you find a bunch of dirty cups on a shelf? That's a more advanced question. But usually around here the cups on the shelves are clean and we put them back clean. hopefully are clean, and we put them back clean. This is in the realm of difference, clean and dirty, here and there.

[29:13]

But this is a chance to express intimate by putting it back where you got it in that condition. And this is all leading up to my current big problem around here. So, generously gave the community an electric Fiat. Cute little Fiat. Generously given. In basically new condition. for the staff to use for personal errands. Not for real long trips, because it's electric. So, in this world of change, I needed to borrow that car a couple of days ago.

[30:21]

Just a couple of days ago. And I got in the car, this nice new car, and to my great sadness, the floor was really filthy. And the type of air I could tell took, you know, months to accumulate. You couldn't get all that stuff in there just in one visit. And I just couldn't understand how the car could be so dirty, because this is a car which is given to me, used for my own transportation, and was given to other people to use for theirs, but they didn't clean it after they used it. Did they think that Zen practice only operates in the tool sheds or in the kitchen, but not in the cars?

[31:30]

I don't know what they thought. But I'm saying it to you folks who use that car. Excuse me for saying this, but I cleaned that car. It took me a while. But we have some tools to use to clean the car. So one of the tools we have is a is a compressed air blower. I couldn't even vacuum it up. I had to blow it out. And I happened to blow myself out. And I... If you want to, there could be a tour of that Fiat. It's up in the parking lot. I believe if you go look at it, you will find it clean because since the power was out, I don't know if anyone's been using it because it's electric. Nobody used it since I used it. It's like clean. So dear, dear bodhisattvas of Dream Coach, here's an opportunity for you to take care of that car like you're taking care of your eyes.

[32:37]

It's given to you to use. And when you receive it, if it's dirty, that's kind of a problem, but maybe in that case I need to clean it myself. and then give it to the next person clean. And maybe they will say, oh, somebody cleaned it, but now I don't have to. If it's clean when I receive it, I kind of want to return it as clean as when I received it. And if it's not clean, I want to clean it so that it will be given to the next person clean and that they could receive it clean and return it clean. I was thinking of asking the director to have a meeting with the people who use the car and talk to them about this. But I'm using this opportunity instead. I don't want to corner people with inaccuracies.

[33:40]

I want to beg all the people who use that car, that beautiful electric car, I beg you to, if you receive it clean, return it clean. I know you're busy. Yuen Yuen says, you're too busy. If you're busy and I know you're busy, remember there's somebody who's not busy. And that's what we're here for, is to remember that one and demonstrate that one by cleaning the car. and returning it clean. And if it's clean, return it clean. If you reserve it dirty, clean it. So I received the car, okay. It's dirty. I don't have time to clean it, but I do have time to drive it and go, you know, shopping. That I have time for, but I do not have time to clean it.

[34:42]

Oh, yeah, well, I don't know about that. Now, I don't use that car much, so it's not going to be that much difficult for me, when I do, to clean it if it's dirty. If not, it won't be that difficult for me to say, perhaps quietly, perhaps not, Hallelujah! People are practicing Zen here. They clean the car after they use it. Wow! You go over to the car. It's a community car. You open it up, and it's clean. Who's practicing? Somebody's practicing here. This is a practice place. These people take care of not just their own car, but the community car that they use. Wow. This is a real bodhisattva hangout. So anyway, we could have a tour of it now.

[35:47]

I think anybody who... It's right up in the parking lot. You can go look at it. And again, I don't know if somebody used it since I cleaned it, but it's up there. And anybody who does use it on a regular basis can go look and see how you... And if anybody does not want to do the practice... if anybody wants to not do the practice of cleaning the car after they use it. So if you receive the car dirty, you don't have to clean it before you drive it. You can just wait and clean it up after you get it dirty too. So if anybody does not want to clean the car after they use it, I'd love to talk to you about that. I'd love to hear your reason. And maybe I'll say, that's a really good reason. I think when we're leaving, then we'll get back, maybe. But maybe not. Okay, so I hope that everybody is motivated now to take care of everything in the universe as an act of intimacy of the mind of the great sage of India.

[37:05]

I saw at least two people. Maybe five. Maybe everybody wants to do that. I do. I want to take care of the sage of India by taking care of brooms. fiats, cops, people, newts, rats, gophers, trees, the ground. I want to take care of everything to express. And I need to train myself because I can get distracted from that. Like, I'm too busy to clean the car. We should hire somebody to do that. Or maybe the maintenance should clean the car so that the people who drive it don't get bothered. It's just so funny. So we have a shop up there too, you know. So the residents can use the tools in the shop.

[38:11]

So they can go in and use the shop, and then when they're done with the tool, just drop it on the ground someplace. Don't even bring it back to the shop. Can you believe people do that? They borrow a shovel and don't put it back in that place where the shovel was? Or they bring it back and don't put it on the shovel rack? Can you believe that in a Zen temple somebody might do that? Of course they don't, but I mean, they might. But actually, yeah, I think put the shovels back in the condition in which they receive them, or better, leave this world that you have been given in as good condition as it was given to us. This is the mind of the great sage of India. Is there anything that this great assembly would like to discuss?

[39:14]

Any offerings? Hello, I haven't seen you from All your time. Welcome to the comedy. Please sit on my seat. I'm giving it to you. That's the way I sit. Select transmission from butt to butt. And I appreciate butt to butt transmission. Yeah. So thank you for this talk on... Excuse me. Thank you for this talk on differences and how they They arise in maintaining things.

[40:33]

When I first, first, first came into Buddhism, the story that attracted me briefly, the priest who had the very fragile bowl, and he put it on the shelf, and someone was like, oh my gosh, it's going to fall. And he said, well, I already see it as broken. And as you were speaking this morning, the first Zen practice that really attracted me cleaning the bowls ahead of time and doing all that and then I realized oh my gosh there's a big difference between the seeing that something is already broken and just letting that be and cleaning the fiat and you know keeping it in as good condition or even can you help me with that if you accept that it's already broken that helps you take care of it. If you think that it's not going to be broken, I will interfere with you.

[41:39]

We take care of broken things, and broken people. If you try to take care of people who aren't broken, you're going to have big problems. And it's going to interfere with you being devoted to it, You might say, well, darn, I'm not going to take care of you anymore. You're no good. Taking care of, I take care of broken things. That's the only kind of things I take care of. Broken things. Do you take care of the brokenness or just the broken thing? Do I take care of the brokenness or just the broken thing? You know, if I have to choose, I'll choose the brokenness. Because the brokenness is the hard part.

[42:46]

The brokenness, the not-so-goodness, that's where I might hesitate to give myself to the brokenness. I might prefer to take care of unbroken things. I might want to take care of those. Take care of the beautiful, healthy, unbroken people. I might be attracted to them, perhaps. A lot of people are trying to appear unbroken so people will take care of them. If I look like I'm unbroken, that would be very popular. That's right. That's a distraction to try to appear unbroken or to try to be unbroken. So I take care of the broken, not to make it unbroken, but to express Buddha. Thank you. Thank you. Anything else this morning?

[43:55]

It's still morning, I think. Did you want to offer something? Please. It's a family affair. Excuse me, I'm broken. Please take care. Even though I am. Of course, in reality, you will. Don't get distracted. Is that good?

[45:02]

Yeah. Great. Great. So the part that stands out for me is when you say, I give myself. So perhaps it's level of development. I don't know. Currently, if I present nature, I'll just say if I'm present, there's a here-ness that receives. There is a here-ness that receives. So I receive you. So the giving feels, when I hear that word, like it's going toward, and maybe that's precisely what I'm opening up.

[46:23]

Because... No, I don't mean going toward. Okay. I mean that it is moved as a gift. Letting yourself be the way you are. No, I don't. I don't mean contours. Back when you first said that you're not going to see, you said you see. You're not going to see or go for. Right. Neither one. Right. That's the way to do it. Right. You don't have to. Right. Yeah, what I have received sometimes from others, what I received from here is, I don't know the exact words that have been used, but something like that they haven't felt

[47:28]

but I'm not sure what words to use. Like there's a lack of sharing on some level. Yes. And yet, to not be here seems undemonstrable. Yeah. What just popped in my mind that may not be relevant, but anyway, people in mountains, when they see fresh fish, it gets rotten. So they never see fresh fish. Yeah, there's some fish that have some . So when they see fresh fish, it looks like rotten fish to them. Uh-huh. If people on the beach, on the ocean side, saw the fish that they would eat, they would realize, oh, they're eating salted fish.

[48:35]

Uh-huh. If people are used to salted fish, and they're accepted to a fresh fish, it must be rotten. So it's a perception, do you think? No, it's what they're used to. Yeah. So what people are used to, some people, what they're used to is people leaning into them all the time. Uh-huh. trying to control them at the sign that they care. Yeah. So it's confusing sometimes that people count too much or too little. So when they see a caring not too much or too little, it's kind of putting that one back to care. What he might look like. Yeah, he don't care. They're holding back. because you're not watching me. So again, the instruction for this intimate transmission is, this intimate transmission, there's a fire between us right now. And this fire between us is something that you're awkward with.

[49:40]

And don't go away from it, leave it. Leave it out. It means not the hot. You get cold, you go away, and you get burned. But people who are in fire with you, They may think that since you're not leaning into this thing, that you're holding on. And that's now . We're not intimate with beings in order to get them to think that we're generous. We're not giving to them so they'll think we're generous. Yeah. And if we don't give to them in a way that they think are generous, they might think it's not generous. And it's not true. That's the difference. We're not trying to get them to stop thinking or start giving, but it's a generosity to help so everybody will think we're generous.

[50:46]

We're doing that to... express through their mind. They're doing that not to be popular, but to mature beings. Indeed, is to practice giving with them, and let them think what they're thinking. That's to, like, really, to be intimate with them, thinking that I'm speaking in children's books. It's a bit in the right chair, because then that's uncomfortable. If... Oh, I'm here. It's open, so that's... It's a part of intimacy. It's not discomfort. Yeah. Thank you. [...] Yeah, that's the thing.

[51:49]

She said, I didn't remember. So when you receive a tool, try to pay attention to what that will help you remember. It doesn't mean that you will. And that's part of being intimate, too, is saying, I don't remember where this tool goes. I want to put it back where I got it. Where does this tool usually go? Was this tool clean when I got it? You don't have to really ask, because the answer is, no, it wasn't. It was still clean. Anything else this morning? Yes, please come. Please come. Could you please excuse me to stay here and talk with you? Please face the heart. I have a problem. I said I can't hear you. If you come closer, I can hear you. Can we get rid of him? We'll get rid of him.

[52:50]

Thank you. Your original book has been needed. Personally, I really appreciate your work. Thank you for your talk today. It's a really warm hearted to me. I hope that it's what I experienced. There's so many from our original practices, which is a quick care of both brokenness and broken things. As we experienced it before, that integrated programs, which organized by our staffs, as well as the

[54:08]

outside professionals. And all these integrated programs really of the brokenness as well as the brokenness. So there is such a beautiful model of our key roots which often has to do with professions as well as other practice steps, for example. I'm wondering that if we can share this kind of practice from our individual heroes through our technology and voltage to more and more people in the world.

[55:13]

Also, if we can still take away our integrated programs to get more of our practitioners from our staffs, which is the natural self-practice. from the floral arrangement, from the calligraphies, from the zan parties, from all these real, literal zan projects. Put them into the integrative programs, which are our professional skills. which be practiced by themselves, as well as with the professionals of society.

[56:19]

In order to our brokenness, as well as the brokenness. Thank you. You're welcome. Are we quiet? Soundly.

[57:21]

May all your passions be breathed as they are to your hope, belief and peace. Amen. Amen.

[57:36]

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