I guess I'll be bothering you again today with something more. A prince, I guess... I forget exactly, but I guess that probably the local temples came more under the control the local lord than they did of priests. Anyway, in this case, a prince invited Umong to come and take this temple, and then came to Umong and asked for instruction. Umong gave him a short various things. Basically, the most interesting part of what he said was, there is no path other than what is in front of you. There is no path other than what is in front of you. You should come to this stage where nothing is revealed. You should come to this stage where nothing is revealed.

[01:31]

This stage where nothing is revealed may be the stage of the beginner and the advanced practices. I'm still talking about the turtle-nosed snake this week. Seppo, I think I told you the story. Seppo says there's a... On the south mountain there's a turtle-nosed snake group of students. On the south mountain there's a turtle-nosed snake. I think you should look into that, that you should examine what it is. And he had a number of good disciples who became, of course, famous teachers.

[02:47]

And they said, one of them, Aereo, I told you Aereo's poem, in ten thousand forms, One Naked Body. Aereo said, Cho Kae Aereo said, today there will be, in this room, there will be many people who will lose their lives, give up their lives. was there. Uman took a staff and threw it down in front of everybody. Whoa, a snake! And someone told this to Gensha, another disciple, and Gensha said, say it that way. That is his way, but I wouldn't say it that way. And the person who brought him the story said, well, what would you say, a teacher? And he said, I'd say, what, what, why, why South Mountain? Anyway, that's the story. Quite famous story.

[04:11]

What it's about is fairly simple. It's about everyday-mindedness. But it tries to reveal something about everyday-mindedness. Everyday-mindedness? Every snake looks like a turtle, the head. Nothing special, just an unusual way to describe a snake. It's like third of the five ranks. A poem is, an old woman, maybe second, old woman looks in a mirror and sees her own face

[05:26]

and doesn't recognize herself. An old woman sees a face in the mirror, doesn't recognize herself, with a muddled mind tries to recognize herself, something like that. Joshu asked Unmon, no Joshu asked Nanak, Nansen, can everyday mindedness be approached? And Nansen says, if you approach So if you have some intention to approach everyday mindedness, you will miss it. Non-intentional mind, non-discriminating mind is needed to approach everyday mindedness. So this is the same type of story like have a cup of tea.

[06:59]

Yesterday I tried to suggest that, I suggested that this sea, this ocean which has no bottom, or the ocean of which the bottom is not underneath it, it means that things are not outside your mind. Objects are not outside space, in space. Objects and space are same. So not outside your mind doesn't just mean that everything is... you see it, you know, alone. It means pine needles, a tree, are quite close. That things aren't separate from you. Everyday mind means old woman, everything you see is you.

[08:20]

and sincere. Yesterday I suggested that to get your bearings or guidance in this ocean of everything, of Buddhism, sincerity was the main approach. And again, to look at the root of Sincerity. Sincerity means... Last part, sincere part, means to grow. Like cereal. And this first part is like single. It means one or same. So sincere means same growth. Same growth. And this is exactly the same as old woman recognizing herself in the mirror. same growth, but she doesn't know her own face. It means when you see things, you don't know them, because they look different from you, you think they're different. You don't recognize your own face, or same growth. So this is third stage, coming from within the real. It means

[09:50]

I'm today talking about it as growth or bearing some movement, coming from within the real, or absolute looks at you. You know, first stage of the rank, first rank, is when you see the absolute, satori, when you find in yourself the absolute. something beyond changing. Nothing. The world shatters. But if you stick to this stage, we call it Fox Zen. Relative world has no meaning. You've found absolute. Everything has transcendent value. Shining value.

[10:52]

The second stage is giving yourself over to relativity, to the relative. First is finding the absolute in the relative. Second is finding the relative in the absolute. Finding the relative as absolute. And third is the real identifying you. Instead of you seeing the Absolute in this stage, it's the Absolute sees you. This is the stage, umman means, the stage at which nothing is revealed. There is no other path than what's in front of you. the Absolute sees you. It's the same as Dogen. Dogen says, to study the manifold dharmas by using yourself or to reveal the dharma by using yourself is delusion. To reveal yourself

[12:23]

through the dharmas is enlightenment. For the dharmas to reveal you is enlightenment. So this third stage, we can say, is absolute looks at you. Now this is mirror, mirror, or everyday mindedness. And again, it means compassion. We can see that when you think of the famous phrase about Avalokiteshvara. When Avalokiteshvara meets a thief, Avalokiteshvara is a thief, thief meeting thief. So this is compassion, when you can take the form of whoever you meet, thief or crazy happy person. So it's everyday mindedness. It's also the same as Dogon's name, put high place, high thing on a high place and low thing in a low place. He means like, if you can't exchange, as Tsukiyoshi said, you can't exchange fire and water. If you're heating water, water should be in the kettle.

[13:54]

And fire should be underneath. If you get them mixed up, you won't have any tea. To get things mixed up is to kill Buddha nature, Sugyoshi said. So, this sameness we're talking about, this same growth, means everything is different, actually. Each thing is unique. So again, Tepo I believe said, don't follow in my tracks, say something I can see. It means, he means A vent is the same, you know, just a turtle-nosed snake, but your response is something new. So this mirror wisdom or everyday-mindedness means some new growth. I think this is a little bit difficult.

[15:20]

to describe in words. You'll get completely mixed up which side of the equation is he talking about. But in this story, there's these guys, you know, Cho Khe Heryo, and Gensha, and Umon, and Setpo, And what characterizes the story is how identically they understand each other. Each one's response is the same, really. They all understand exactly what Seppo made, what Seppo meant when he said, there's a turtleneck snake on the south mountain I found today. Someone should go and check it out. So even though they responded with something different statement each time, they exactly understand each other, is the point of this story. And for us who are practicing, it means, you know, quit deluding yourself or distracting yourself with some pleasant event, some idea you're going to have some good experience

[16:55]

or you had remembering some powerful event, some turtle-nosed snake, turtle-headed snake. Just a snake, just the path. What is in front of you is the path. The stage at which nothing is revealed. Nothing is revealed because it's just exactly what you see yourself. This is pretty hard to put into practice. You can have the feeling of it and keep bringing yourself back to this path, this moment as the path, without discrimination. But to actually find it, thief is thief. Thief meeting thief. To actually find yourself in the mirror

[18:06]

or absolute revealing you is, I'll take some. Hakuin Dogen said, discarding body and mind. Your body and mind must be discarded. And your only guide, sincerity, Long practice at new growth, sane growth, single growth. No artifice, just the courage to let things be as they are. The ability to stay at a path or practice which is nothing except what's in front of you, which is A path in which nothing is revealed. Revelation is already dualistic. In real non-dualistic path. Different and same. Sameness is different. Nothing is revealed. Just your everyday life. Have a cup of tea.

[19:35]

But the exactness of this meeting is where a hair difference, a commentary says, a hair difference and the world is lost. It's some exactness. The next stage is called two swords meeting or two arrows meeting in air. So everyday mindfulness we can say is two arrows meeting in air. No idea of Buddhism or practice of self. Absolute is looking at you. This allows wisdom to function. This is manifold dharmas revealing you. Absolute sincerity, mirror just one with what you are doing.

[21:13]

stage at which nothing exists. To understand this kind of story thoroughly requires the joy of long practice. Practice, not as something added to you, but like your skin. Our everyday mind is practice.

[23:16]

in which suddenly you understand how nothing is outside your mind. Bottom of ocean is not under the ocean. Bottom of ocean is quite near. Difference is nearness. Difference is nearness. By difference we reach everything. By new response, don't follow an old track, by new response we reach everything. Cephal, who was not interested in marvelous statements or magical type things, used to, sometimes he'd get up before his group and just say, just cover heaven and earth, and he would leave. You know, the story begins, vastness, nothing outside vastness, fine as atomic dust. So, just cover heaven and earth, a new growth of everyday mindedness. If you hesitate, you're lost.

[25:06]

some teacher had carved over his temple gate. There's a dog here, and the dog first will take your head, then will eat your middle, and then take your legs. And when people would come, they would say hello, and he'd say, look at the dog, and he'd turn around and he'd go inside. And we call this religion? Yeah. You got a holy roller? That'd be fun. We should do a response call. Roll around on the Zendo floor.

[26:37]

New Style Mondo, which you saw. Jerome did that one. You know that story. Were any of you at Tathagatagarbha? Jerome did that? You were at Tathagatagarbha? I almost can't remember what he said. He came into the... Let's see if I can remember. He came into the... He was supposed to ask me a question. So, he came in and he said, Docho Roshi? How about a matcha soap? Never before seen. Oh yeah, go ahead. Never before tasted. How is it like a matcha soap, Guruji? And I said, what did I say then? What did I say? Well, Red is going to tell them. You don't know? Yes. You don't know? I don't know.

[28:11]

He said, I'll tear it again. Didn't I say give it a beat? Anyway, he started rolling on the floor. So we're throwing Jerome down in front of the students at Tatharat today.

[28:57]

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