Categories

13/31 Kai-in-zanmai

海印三昧

kai-in-zanmai

Samadhi, State Like the Sea

Kai means “sea” and in (a translation of the Sanskrit word mudra) means “seal” or “stamp.” Zanmai (a phonetic representation of the Sanskrit word samadhi) means the state in Zazen. So kai-in-zanmai means “sea-stamp samadhi” or “samadhi as a state like the sea.” These words appear frequently in the Garland Sutra. Master Dogen explains that the words describe the state in Zazen, or the mutual interrelation between subject and object here and now. In this chapter Master Dogen expounds on samadhi as a state like the sea, quoting from the Vimalakirti Sutra, the Lotus Sutra, and from a conversation between Master Sozan Honjaku and his disciple.