Welcome to Green Dragon Zen Temple. Welcome. Maybe I should ask, is there a green dragon in this temple? Is there a cave in which the green dragon lives or through which we may descend to meet the green dragon? I think The Green Dragon Cave that we can descend down into to meet the Green Dragon.

[01:09]

And I think the Green Dragon Cave is our conscious mind. For hundreds and hundreds of years Zen folks have been talking about going down to the dragon's cave to meet the dragon. I imagine this dragon is wrapped around and playing with Unsurpassed and unsurpassable treasure. The treasure of perfect wisdom. Now in this Temple of the Green Dragon we are in the midst of a period of intense practice, more meditation practice in this hall than usual for three weeks and

[02:30]

our topic of meditation is wisdom which goes beyond wisdom. So there can be wisdom which understands the conscious mind for what it is, and bring some freedom. And then there can be another wisdom which goes beyond that wisdom, which doesn't even abide in wisdom, which doesn't even abide in freedom from delusion and suffering, which transcends enlightenment and even transcends enlightenment. In the tradition of this temple, there is a teaching of wisdom gone beyond wisdom called the Mother.

[03:39]

All Buddhas are born of this wisdom, which doesn't abide in anything. It doesn't abide in non-enlightenment. It doesn't abide in enlightenment. And last Sunday I talked here and mentioned that in some of the scriptures which teach this perfection, the enlightening beings, those who wish to realize unsurpassed awakening in order to benefit all beings. Those enlightening beings, those bodhisattvas are encouraged for the sake of this to give life to a mind which doesn't abide in anything.

[04:44]

A mind of no abode. Mona. Do you understand? Mona? Mind of no abode. Now there is the proposal made by the Buddha in India long, 2,500 or more years ago. There is the proposal that the context in which we can descend into this cave of our mind and meet the dragon who offers us, who playfully offers us perfect wisdom, that the context of this descent and meeting is actually meeting with good friends.

[06:02]

Buddha doesn't seem to recommend going down into this mind and exploring it. for the sake of discovering transcendent wisdom, going down there alone. Rather, go down with a good friend, a beneficial friend. In Sanskrit and Pali, in Sanskrit it's called kalyanamitra, a friend, spiritual friend, spiritual benefactor. good, admirable friend. So many times people have come to this temple and other temples where I've practiced and they ask, in Zen do you need a teacher?

[07:10]

And I often don't just say right away, yes. I sometimes say, well, eventually. And I would say now, eventually means if you're not going down into the cave of the green dragon to explore your dark and confused mind, maybe you don't need a teacher if you stay away from such a place. If you can stay away from your mind, you don't need a teacher. Matter of fact, a teacher won't do much good if you're staying away from your mind. But if you're studying your body and mind deeply, then a good friend will support you actually practicing enlightenment in that context. So there's a story that once upon a time the Buddha's attendant, who was also his cousin, whose name was Ananda, he came to the Buddha in India, the Buddha Shakyamuni, and he bowed, paid his respects, went to one side and sat down.

[08:47]

And then Ananda said, this is half. And I stopped there halfway through what he said. This, there's a seat right there. Coming, in other words, I have come to meet you. I am sitting with you in your presence. And this is half the holy life, this being together here. Me being with you respectfully. This is half the holy life, Lord. Admirable friendship, good friendship, good comradeship, good camaraderie.

[09:59]

And the Buddha says to his dear disciple, don't say that, Ananda, don't say that. Good friendship, admirable friendship, admirable comradeship, admirable camaraderie is actually the whole of the holy life. A practitioner has admirable people as friends and companions and comrades, she can be expected to develop the eightfold noble path of enlightenment. This is the way the Buddha supposedly talked 2,500 years ago.

[11:07]

When the practitioner has good friends, she can be expected to and pursue the path of enlightenment, she can be expected to develop and pursue a relationship with perfect wisdom. It's not like there's the practice of enlightenment and the good friends. The relationship the friendship is the whole practice. And in that whole practice, there is the practice of perfect wisdom.

[12:13]

But if I think that I'm practicing by myself, not in relationship with good friends, I will not be able to practice perfect wisdom because it lives in that relationship. I'm actually happy now that I can quote our current Pope with appreciation when he says, the truth is relationship. He said it in Italian, I don't know. Do you know? No, no, no say. In Soto Zen, as transmitted from China to Japan through Dogen Zenji,

[13:28]

we are encouraged to worship the meeting between good friends. The meeting between good friends is called in Chinese menju, which means face receiving or face-to-face transmission of perfect wisdom. We worship the meeting of good friends. We honor the meeting. Of course we honor the good friends too, but it's really the meeting that we enter. Speaking of this, I brought up a very well-known phrase of the Buddha, excuse me, I should say, a phrase which people say the Buddha said, and maybe the Buddha did, but anyway, whether or not many people quote it, and it's the phrase, be a light unto yourself.

[14:46]

And some people interpret that as don't have a teacher. don't depend on spiritual friendship. Practice on your own. And I can leave that understanding and have some difference of opinion with it, but also I could interpret that statement to mean, be a light unto yourself, study yourself. Bring a light to yourself. And another interpretation of this, which I actually agree with, is be a light unto yourself means don't go for refuge in some external thing. I agree with that. So in other words, if you go for refuge in a good friend, if you go for refuge in good friendship, if you go for refuge in the enlightened one, go for refuge in that enlightenment as an external thing or an internal thing.

[16:09]

go for refuge without making the refuge external. That, I think, with spiritual friendship in which we can realize perfect wisdom. That expression is apogipa bhava. Bring light to yourself. Understand yourself. Learn about the self that appears. The green dragon cave of karmic consciousness. And that study, which we can do right now, studying ourself, it is possible when we do it together with good friends.

[17:46]

If we do it alone, we may not be successful. If we try, it will be hard and unsuccessful. If we do it together with good friends, it will be hard and successful. Oftentimes, you know that expression, on my way to the lecture hall, such and such happened. Or on my concert, such and such happened. Stand-up comedians sometimes would say that, right? So on my way to this talk, someone said to me, may your talk go well.

[18:55]

May you have clarity. Something like that. And I said, thank you. And then I thought of something that happened just before that on the way, where I ran into a definition of sanity or a sane person. The sane... believe that confusion, acknowledged, is a virtue. So wishing me clarity is fine, and also being confused and acknowledging it is a virtue, which the sane believe in.

[19:59]

The sane believe in acknowledging their own confusion and others as a virtue. And they also believe that humiliation of another person is the worst thing we ever do. Sanity should not be our word for an alternative to madness. It should refer to whatever resources we have to prevent, no, to present

[21:05]

to present humiliation. Prevent humiliation. It makes more sense. And I have two books I want a big one. And they're both books about going to meet good friends. One's a book about a boy, a young man, we don't know exactly how old he is, who goes on pilgrimage in India long ago.

[22:18]

And the great vehicle was thriving. And the other book is about a young man, a boy, who goes on pilgrimage in China during time of Zen being very fluorescent. And there's some things about these pilgrimages which I thought might be helpful to bring up. These pilgrimages to help the pilgrim study herself, learn about herself, learn about her mind, and realize perfect wisdom. This big book is, this is the last chapter.

[23:26]

This is a very big chapter. It's actually a scripture all unto itself. It's not just a chapter. It has many chapters. It doesn't have many chapters, actually. It doesn't have chapters. So it's a scripture which is the last chapter of a scripture which is bigger than this. Three times as big as this. So it's one of the largest scriptures in all of the tradition. It's called in Sanskrit, ganda-vyuha, or into reality. It's a description of entering into reality by going on pilgrimage to visit teachers. And it's from a larger book the flower adornment scripture, or the Avatam Saka Sutra. So in this scripture, a lot goes on, and I don't think we'll be able to stay in the room long at all.

[24:41]

but I maybe can abstract something, make some comments and a little bit of specifics from this big pilgrim's tale. At the beginning of the book, the great teacher, Manjushri Bodhisattva, the Bodhisattva of perfect wisdom, who is depicted in the large statue in the center of this meditation hall. That handsome young man up on the gold cushion in the middle of the room is what we call Manjushri Bodhisattva. the perfect wisdom bodhisattva. So that bodhisattva was someplace doing a talk and many beings were there enjoying the talk and there was a large group of girls that came and a large group of boys that came.

[26:12]

And one of the boys was named Sudhana. And he appreciated the talk of the great teacher very much. And he praised it very much. And he said to Manjushri that he, partly from meeting Manjushri and hearing Manjushri, his mind, his heart became settled. deeply set, deeply resolved to realize supreme perfect enlightenment because he met this good friend. The sincere wish to realize enlightenment for the welfare of all beings does not arise from the person in whom it arises.

[27:15]

It doesn't arise from great teachers. It arises from the meeting between living beings, unenlightened non-Buddhas and Buddhists and their representatives. And so here in this massive description of pilgrimage, The young man meets the great teacher and this commitment and desire to realize enlightenment arises in him. And he tells Manjushri about it. And he says, since I have this wish, I think it would be good for me to find out what is the practice which realizes enlightenment. And Manjushri says, it is good that you think that.

[28:18]

It is good that you think you need to know the practice in order to realize the enlightenment. And Manjushri says, and you will find the practice by meeting spiritual benefactors. And then Manjushri talks to him about how hard it is to meet spiritual benefactors, to find good friends who will support this work, going down into the mind and studying the self, bringing the light of consciousness into the confusion of consciousness. into the confusion that surrounds an immature understanding of the self. Yeah, Manjushri says, it's good that you think, having set your heart on supreme enlightenment, that you should find out about the practice of bodhisattva.

[29:39]

It is hard to find beings who set out with the heart of perfect enlightenment. It is even harder to find beings who, once they have set their minds on enlightenment, seek the practice of bodhisattvas. An enlightening being is to attain certainty through true spiritual friends, spiritual benefactors for the realization of all knowledge. An enlightening being is to attain certainty through spiritual friendship, spiritual benefactors. One should indefatigably seek spiritual benefactors and be tireless in seeking spiritual benefactors. One should fully follow the appropriate instruction of spiritual benefactors and should carry out the techniques skillfully devised by spiritual benefactors without interruption.

[30:55]

And then Manjushri says to the boy, go. And he tells him where to go. And the place to go is to the next teacher. There is a monk named Megashri. And mega, I think, means cloud. And shri, I think, in this case, means maybe light. Radiant cloud. Go see him and ask him about the bodhisattva practice. Go and ask him how... should learn the conduct of enlightening beings.

[32:06]

Go and ask him how enlightening beings should learn about the conduct of enlightening beings. The next set of pilgrimages in China, the monk goes and asks the teachers, the good friends, how is a monk supposed to do the practice of being a monk? How is a Zen student supposed to do the practice of being a Zen student? So Manjushri's telling the boy, go and ask Megashri. how an enlightening being should learn the conduct of an enlightening being, how to apply it, how one should fulfill it, and so on. And so on and so on. I'm not going to bother you with all the so-ons.

[33:09]

And then Sudhana, the boy, pleased, enraptured, transported with joy, delighted, happy, cheerful, laid his head at Manjushri's feet in respect, circled Manjushri hundreds of thousands of times. Manjushri says, go see Megha Shri and ask him. And the boy is that this great being has now sent him to see another teacher and ask him about the practice which he wants to learn. But before he leaves, he bows to Manjushri and circles him hundreds of thousands of times. He's not hastily departing. After circling him hundreds of thousands of times, he looked at him hundreds of thousands of times.

[34:11]

I have not, I don't think, looked at this beautiful boy on the altar hundreds of thousands of times. But every time I look at him, I really love him. I'll probably get in trouble for telling you this, but he looks like my wife. He's so beautiful. I love him so much. And I get to look at him right in the face. Thank you. I don't know if I've done it hundreds of thousands of times like this boy did, though. Around him. I don't think I've walked around him a hundred thousand times, but I've walked around him more than a thousand times. And I've never regretted it. This is an Indian text, they exaggerate things. He looked at Manjushri hundreds of thousands of times with a mind full of love for his spiritual friend.

[35:28]

Unable to bear not seeing with tears streaming down his cheeks, he wept and left Manjushri. Transported with joy and love, he wept as he left his teacher to go see his next teacher. and now we go on to visiting fifty-two and I have not verified each of the fifty-two but all the ones I've checked so far follow a certain pattern which is he leaves now he leaves Manjushri

[36:44]

And he's full of joy about the meeting he had with Manjushri, where he was encouraged to study himself and learn about the mind of bodhisattvas, to learn about the mind of no abode, to learn how to love a bodhisattva, to love the Buddha. to worship the Buddha without abiding in the difference between ourselves, to love someone, to love a really good friend without abiding in the difference. He learned that and felt great joy in that in his meeting with Manjushri. But for some reason, instead of staying with him, he sends him to the next teacher and the next teacher. He actually just sends him to the next.

[37:48]

He doesn't say, go visit 52. He said, just visit Megha Sri. And then Megha Sri will send him to the next person. And when each person he meets, after paying his respects and after going through a lot of joy as he approaches the other person, he's coming from the last teacher full of joy and also some sadness of separation from him because he hasn't really learned that his teacher is coming with him. He knows he's following his teacher's instructions, and he's very joyful about that, and he's very joyful contemplating his teacher's teaching. He's full of joy, and he's approaching the next teacher, and he immediately says finally, and each time he says to the teacher, noble one, I have set my heart on complete perfect enlightenment for the welfare of all beings,

[38:57]

But I don't know how to practice the bodhisattvas and carry out the bodhisattva practices. I don't know how to learn and carry them out. I've heard that you teach bodhisattvas. Please teach me to learn and carry out the practices of bodhisattvas. And then sometimes he goes on for quite a while about what bodhisattvas are like. And then after that the teacher usually says, I have realized lightening liberation called X. And each teacher has a different enlightening liberation which they know. Again, the boy says, I don't know what the way of the bodhisattva is.

[39:58]

These people are such amazing, wonderful beings. I want to be one of them, but I don't know how to do their practice. I've heard that you teach it. Please teach me. The teacher says, Well, a lot of times the teacher says, it's good that you ask. It's good that you set your mind on enlightenment, and it's good that you ask how bodhisattvas practice. And I have realized such and such an enlightenment, such and such a liberating enlightenment. And then they talk about their amazing enlightenment, which Sudhana gets to listen to. So the first teacher he visits is called Megha Sri.

[41:08]

And Megha Sri says, you know, I've realized this enlightenment. And he tells him about it. And then after he tells him all about it, he says, but how can I about or describe or explain the practices of bodhisattvas who, and then he talks about how wonderful bodhisattvas are. So, go see Sagara Megha. Sagara Megha is ocean of clouds. So then he goes and sees Sagara Megha and says the same thing. And Sagara Megha tells him about his great enlightenment. And then he sends him to the next teacher and sends him to the next teacher. So I'm going to come up to the fifth teacher whose name is Megha, just cloud. So now he's meeting Mega.

[42:12]

And they have the same interaction. And he says, you know, and so on and so forth. And Mega says, I know. [...] All these things he knows. And then he says, but how can I? of the practice or describe the course of the wonderful actions of bodhisattvas. Kosti so-and-so. So Megashri Muktaka. And I just saw the kitchen go to make lunch, so it's probably getting late.

[43:25]

And here's this big story about Muktaka coming up. And then there's another set of stories about a young boy in China. But probably I won't have time to get to the story about the young boy in China. But I'll just tell you his name. His name is Dongshan. And there is a story of his pilgrimages, too, about how he went to visit many teachers and how the teachers sent him to other teachers. So in China, the Zen tradition reenacted this Indian drama of going to see teachers, telling them that you wish to realize the way of the bodhisattva. The teacher saying, yes, I have this understanding, but how can I tell you? Go see somebody else. And you go see the other person, and you tell them. And they say, oh, that's great that you want to know.

[44:30]

And I've realized all this, and I know all this, and I know all that. And they show. And then they say, but how can I teach you? Go see so-and-so. So perhaps I could acknowledge my confusion as a virtue, that I'm not sure how much longer I should go on with this this morning or this afternoon. But actually I do intend to go on with it, but maybe I'll let you know. Fifty-two teachers he met.

[45:33]

And in many Zen stories, the student comes and says just this, you know, I have set out on the bodhisattva path. I don't understand the practice yet. Would you please teach me? And then the teacher teaches. and then says, but how can I teach this thing? Yes, I'm teaching, but basically I'm teaching, how can I teach this teaching? How can I teach the mind that doesn't abide in anything? If I don't say anything, if I do say anything, either way is fine as long as I don't abide. Once upon a time there was a person who we say was called Matsu.

[47:17]

He was a Zen master. And he had many, many enlightened students. And one day a monk came to see him. to ask him about perfect wisdom, to ask him about the mind which doesn't abide anywhere. And he said, the monk said, beyond the four alternatives or the four propositions and the 100 negations, what is the truth of the Buddha's teachings? Four alternatives are kind of instructions about the mind of no abode. The four propositions are existence, the proposition of existence, the proposition of nonexistence, the proposition of both existence and nonexistence, and the proposition of neither existence nor nonexistence.

[48:35]

These four propositions, none of them apply to the mind of wisdom. They're instructions to gesture towards the mind which doesn't abide. Existence is called slander. If you say something exists, it's slandered by existence. If you say it doesn't exist, it's slandered by underestimation. If you say it both exists and doesn't exist, it's slander by contradiction. And if you say it neither exists nor does not exist, it's slander by mere mental fabrication. None of them work. Those are the four propositions. They don't apply to the mind of wisdom. The monk's saying, beyond these four propositions, what is the meaning of the Buddha Dharma? Beyond these propositions which guide you to perfect wisdom, what is perfect wisdom? And Master Ma says, I'm too tired today.

[49:44]

Go ask Jirdzong, one of his great disciples. So the monk goes and asks the next great disciple, some perfect wisdom, the same question. And Jirdzong says, why didn't you ask the teacher? And the monk says, well, he told me to ask you. And Jirdsong said, oh, I have a headache. I ask Brother Hai, which is Bajang Waihai, another great bodhisattva. So he goes to great disciple, Hai, and he says, asks the same question, and Hai says, when I come this far, I don't know anything at all. So he goes back to Master Ma and says, what happened?

[50:50]

And Master Ma says, Song's head is black, Hai's head is white. In other words, I'm the greatest Zen master in the history of Chinese Zen, but how can I teach you about the practice of the bodhisattvas? Go see somebody else." And then we go to the next verse and we say that. And if you think in terms of, you know, here we are today, Are there any? Woohoo! That worked out nicely. You think in terms of modern day, where are the spiritual friends? Where are the good friends? Who are the good friends?

[51:50]

Are you a good friend? If you are, someone might I have set my heart on perfect enlightenment. I've heard that you teach bodhisattvas how to practice the way of enlightenment. Would you please teach me? And then you get to say what you know. And how could I teach you? But somehow it seems like somebody has to come and say that they set out on this path and ask for instruction. Somebody has to give it and then say, but how can I give it? It looks like that kind of relationship is necessary for the realization of perfect wisdom.

[52:57]

In this retreat, we have to say what we really want. And if we really want perfect wisdom, we have to say so. If we really want to help all beings through perfect wisdom, we have to say so. If we really want instruction, we have to ask for it. And we have to ask somebody who's not just ourself, but who's not external to ourself. And we need to learn that. We need to worship this meeting where we say what we want and ask for what we want. And then if someone asks us, we need to tell them what we know and also tell them what we don't know. We know a lot, and yet how could we know the mind which doesn't abide anywhere and which subtly accords with all things and realizes the way?

[54:15]

In that kind of relationship, It's not all on one side or the other to do the work. It's a meeting. The so-called teacher can be aware of confusion inwardly and outwardly and acknowledge it as a virtue.

[55:48]

And the so-called student can be aware and acknowledge confusion inwardly and outwardly as a virtue. Have a chance to not humiliate each other. And in this sane environment, open the doors to wisdom. I brought this little whisk as a prop for some more stories, which I really feel perhaps I can't get to in this particular session, but I'll tell the stories in question and answer. where I've used the whisk. So here are some paradigms from the ancient times which we actually, if we wish, can enact in this world.

[57:19]

Look at that face with love and appreciation. I walk around it. I can listen to people express what they really want and I can to prevent humiliation when someone says what they really want. There's a resource which listens to what people really want without humiliating them for saying so. and also without humiliating ourselves when we say, how can I explain or teach the way of enlightenment? I want to stop for a second to see if I feel great joy at the prospect

[58:30]

of these meetings where people would express what their heart is set on and ask for the instruction they feel they need in order to realize what they want. I guess there's some things which maybe we think we want, but we don't think we have to learn anything. But when it comes to enlightenment, if we want it, it looks like there needs to be some learning. If we wished for enlightenment, we need to learn about ourself. We need to learn wisdom and compassion, and we need to do it in a relationship. We cannot do it alone. Of course, if you pick up a book and read it, you may think you're doing it alone, but you're not. The Buddha's here for you.

[59:33]

It can be that way. You can read the book and feel like, I'm alone. And suddenly you feel, oh, the spiritual friend has appeared. When the ancestor Dogen was close to death, this is the teacher who said that in his tradition he worshipped, he worshipped the meeting, the face-to-face meeting where Dharma, where the truth of wisdom is realized, that meeting. When he was about to die, he said, concerning the Buddhist teaching, there are 10 million things I have not yet clarified. The great teacher said that. I have the joy of not having mistaken views and having correct faith.

[60:48]

correct faith, trusting enlightenment for the right reasons, and trusting that this enlightenment is realized in relationship, where we express ourselves to another and learn about ourselves with another and vice versa. Thank you very much for opening your minds to this possibility of spiritual friendship, good friendship, wherein the life of enlightenment is practiced and realized.

[61:59]

May our intention equally extend

[62:07]

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