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References: Kusen 280. The expression of the water

Sansui Kyo

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaJump to navigationJump to searchIn this book, Dōgen equates mountains and waters with the Buddha’s body and speech

Sansui kyō (Japanese: 山水經), rendered in English as Mountains and Waters Sutra, is a book of the Shōbōgenzō by the 13th century Sōtō Zen monk Eihei Dōgen. It is widely considered to be one of the most beautiful of all of the 95 books of the Shōbōgenzō according to Stanford University professor Carl Bielefeldt. The text was written in the fall of 1240 at Dōgen’s monastery

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Enlightenment for Dogen

In his essay Genjōkōan, written in 1233 for a lay practitioner, Dogen makes this instructive statement about the nature of enlightenment:

“To carry the self forward and illuminate myriad things is delusion, that myriad things come forth and illuminate the self is awakening”

In this short video the meaning of this phrase is illuminated by discussing the various meanings of ‘self’.

Adpated from Kusen given on 16th May 2020.

For More on Dogen’s Work Genjo-Koan, see this link below:

https://glasgowzengroup.com/cat_shobogenzo/chapter-1/

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The wren

Artwork by Margaret Kerr

The wren
Earns his living
Noiselessly.

Margaret Kerr

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Not Personal, Relational

Video adapted from kusen given on may 12th 2020.

Although in Zen there is a teacher and a student, the true teacher is the wholehearted interaction between them. The face of this teacher, perhaps now, perhaps lifetimes away, turns towards all beings.
Apdated from Kusen given on 12 May 2020

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The Gateless Gate Case 18, Tôzan’s Three Pounds of Flax

A monk asked Tôzan, “what is Buddha”? Tôzan replied “three pounds of Flax”

This video teaching is adapted from kusen given on 9th May 2020

For some references to the gateless gate see the following post:

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Walking and chanting the Lotus Sutra Odaimoku

Shogen walking whilst chanting the Odaimoku お題目 Namumyouhourengekyou 南無妙法蓮華経 in a tranquil area in Scotland with birdsong.

The Odaimoku お題目 chant – repeating the title of the Lotus Sutra Namumyohourengekyou 南無妙法蓮華経 – is principally associated with the Nichiren-shu school but was originally part of a Tendai chant, the school in which Dogen Zenji grew up with.

Here I am walking in a quiet Glasgow park whilst chanting, at a fairly slow pace so I’m not too much out of breath! We have been chanting it in our Chanting Group recently online.

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Walking and chanting the Boundless Life Ten Line Kannon Sutra

Enmei Jukku Kannon Gyo 延命十句観音経 – Boundless Life Ten Line Kannon Sutra. Shogen practicing chanting whilst walking in a peaceful spot near Glasgow in Scotland.

The Boundless Life Ten Line Kannon Sutra is chanted at various times such as by monks at Takuhatsu ritual begging while they walk in all weathers. It has a lot of energy and you can try it walking, or running slowly.

Visit our Chanting Group page

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Recorded Sayings of Master Joshu No. 73

We can often catch ourselves with the attitude that our practice is only ‘true’ when all the mess of our busy minds is cleared away. Even though we ‘know’ that our practice should be all-embracing, there is often the feeling that one needs to paddle hard in order to cross to the other shore. And even though we ‘know’ our practice should be all-embracing, there is often the conflicting feeling that one needs to drop that feeling of needing to paddle hard! This video discusses the way out of such self-spinning loops through an engaged concern for all beings in this moment, the true way to save this being. Not sometime in the future, but now

Adapted from Kusen given on 5th May 2020

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Morning walking after zazen

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The Mind Verses Competition

One of the founding myths of the Zen school in China is the mind verses competition between Shen-hsiu and Hui-neng, the sixth patriarch. In the story, the fifth patriarch Hung-jen asks his senior students to write a verse to demonstrate their understanding of Buddhism. Hui-neng, who is an illiterate labourer in the monastery, hears Shen-hsui’s verse and writes his own, which the fifth patriarch secretly approves and gives him the transmission