Good morning, everyone. This is the first day of Genzo-e Sesshin. This is my first lecture during this session. Maybe for some people, the word Genzo-e might not be familiar. So first, I'd like to talk about what Genzo is. Genzo, of course, is an abbreviation of Shobo Genzo. And that, in English, is True Dharma Eye Treasury. And this is a title of Dogen Zenji's major writing. Dogen Zenji was the founder of Japanese Soto Zen Buddhism.

[01:11]

He was born in the year of 1200. So, he was born about 800 years ago. And he went to China when he was 23 to practice Zen. And he came back to Japan after 5 years. And he received Dharma transmission from a Chinese Soto Zen master whose name was Tendo Nyojo. And when he was 33, he started to practice with his students at his own monastery in Kyoto. The name of the monastery was Koshoji. And after that, he wrote many writings.

[02:18]

Shobo Genzo is a collection of short essays, and only in Shobo Genzo he wrote more than 90, 90 fascos. And Shobo Genzo and other writings of Dogen had been studied in our tradition. Japanese Sotozen tradition. But shobo genzo was very difficult. You know, it was written in the 13th century. But he wrote in Japanese. It was kind of very unusual for Japanese Buddhist priests who wrote in their own language. Buddhist writings were written in Chinese, in Japan.

[03:22]

I think it's like Chinese. Chinese language is like Latin or Greek for European scholars. Unless it was written in Chinese, it has no authority. So, you know, almost all the Buddhist writings were written in Chinese, but somehow Dogen wrote his writings in Japanese. It was very unusual. But his Japanese is also very unusual. It's very difficult. You know, you can imagine some English writing written in 13th century mixed together with Latin and Greek. even for, you know, modern Japanese, cannot read, really, without a special education. So, Shobo Gendo has been translated into modern Japanese for us.

[04:31]

Because it was very difficult, not many people studied, but they copied. and stored it in a treasure house, in a temple, and worshipped until 17th or even 18th century. After 18th century, you know, Sotozen scholars started to study very scholastically. And until then, you know, the Shobo Genzo was copied by hand. Not many people could even read it. If you want to read it, you have to travel to the temples where the manuscript was stored and stay there and ask their permission to copy it. And it took a few months just to copy it. That was how Shobo Genzo was studied and distributed.

[05:40]

within the very small community of Sotozen priests. Shobo Genzo was first published in 19th century. Early 19th century, I think, 1816. So, less than 200 years. Until then, Shobo Genzo was not available publicly. But that fabrication was with woodblock printing, so still not so widely available. And in the 20th century, after Meiji Restoration, the Japanese society had experienced a big change. every Buddhist order had to find a way to make their teachings available to the wider public.

[06:54]

Otherwise, they lose their support from the people. So, in 1905, so about 100 years ago, at Eheiji, the Abbot of Eheiji, started to have a gathering of studying Shobo Genzo. The first one was about 70 days in May, June, and early July. During that time, the Eheiji Monastery was open to the public. Of course, not everyone. Both priests and lay people. And they could stay and practice together with the training monks. And they had a lecture on certain fascicles of Shobo Genzo every day.

[07:55]

That was called Genzo-e. E means gathering or assembly. So Genzo-e means gathering to study Dogen Zenji's Shobo Genzo. The first lecturer or teacher who invited to give lectures on Shobo Genzo at the Genzo-e was Oka Sotan Roshi. Oka Sotan Roshi was a teacher of Kishidaiyan Roshi, who was a teacher of Suzuki Shunryu Roshi. and also Hashimoto Eiko-roshi, who was the teacher of Katagiri Dainin-roshi, who founded the Minnesota Zen Meditation Center. And also Sawaki Kodo-roshi, my teacher's teacher, also studied with this person, Oka Sotan-roshi. And Oka Sotan-roshi was also a founder of Antaiji,

[09:03]

where I was trained. And later, Kishizawa Ian Roshi and Hashimoto Eiko Roshi and Harada Sogaku Roshi, those well-known Roshis, were invited as a lecturer of Genzo-e. So, Genzo-e is relatively new tradition in Japan. Since I started to work for Soto Zen Education Center, I thought, you know, there are many translations of Shobo Genzo, but even in Japan, just reading Shobo Genzo doesn't make any sense for many people. So we need some commentary, but commentary in English is not available.

[10:09]

So I wanted to have a kind of a gathering to study Shobo Genzo in depth. And I think two years ago I asked Branch-san if it was possible to have such a gathering at the Subarashiko Zen Center. And Branch-san agreed with it. And last year, I think in March, we had the first Genzo-e, and we studied Rogen Zenji's Shobo Genzo Sansui-kyo. Sansui-kyo is mountains and water sutra. I gave two lectures a day. Each lecture was 90 minutes. So for seven days, I talked more than 20 hours.

[11:10]

In English. I was completely exhausted. But somehow I enjoyed it. And it seems people also enjoyed it. So that's why we have the second one. now, and I'm very happy about that. And this year, we are going to study on another fascicle of Shobo Genzo, titled Gyoji, Shobo Genzo, Gyoji. Gyo is practice, and ji is protect or maintain. And usually this word, gyoji, is translated into English as continuous practice. Continuous, ceaseless practice.

[12:13]

And this gyoji is the longest fascicle in Shobo Genzo. Because it's very long. It has two parts. And I tried to make my own translation. And I made the English translation of only the first part. And I think the first part is enough for seven days. So, this Genzoe, I don't talk on the second part. But, so, this morning I'd like to introduce the very first paragraph of Part 2 of Gyōji. And, actually, the Gyōji, Shōbō Genzo Gyōji, is a collection of stories of well-known Chinese Zen masters.

[13:23]

In Zen tradition, there are many collections of so-called koan stories. And usually, the main point of those collections is enlightenment. How Zen masters attain enlightenment. But this Gyoji is kind of unique. The topic is not enlightenment, but practice. So Dogen didn't write how they attained enlightenment, what kind of experience enlightenment was for each teacher. But he basically wrote about practice, how they practiced, how they kept practice in many cases in very difficult conditions. And the Part 2 of Gyoji starts with Bodhidharma.

[14:40]

And this section of Bodhidharma is actually the longest section in Gyoji. But I just read a few, maybe I can say one paragraph. I'm going to talk on this one paragraph because this is kind of important to me. My teacher's name was Uchiyama Kosho Roshi. He retired. He was the Aboto Ban Taiji for 10 years. After Sawaki Roshi, his teacher died. That was 1965. And he became But when he started to serve as Abbot, he said, I would be Abbot only for 10 years. And he retired at 75, because he was a physically very weak person.

[15:47]

He had TB. He lived with TB for 50 years. Anyway, he retired when he was 62 or 63, as a Zen teacher, very young. But, you know, he had to, because he couldn't do Sesshin anymore. His Sesshin, or our Sesshin, was very kind of unique. We only sat, nothing else. No lectures, no doksan, no work period, no chanting. One period was 15 minutes, and we sat 15 periods a day, and 10 minutes between each period. Anyway, when he... Oh, no, not when, but before that. In 1970, one American an old lady from Massachusetts visited Antaiji and asked my teacher to come to this country.

[16:59]

But because he was physically weak, he couldn't. So he sent one of his disciples, one of my Dharma brothers, whose name was Karako Shojo-san. So Shojo-san came to this country in 1970. He visited San Francisco Zen Center and met with Suzuki Roshi. And he went to Massachusetts. And he started a small group of practitioners in Northampton, Massachusetts. But Shojo-san had a physical problem after three years. So he went back to Japan. But that group of people continued to practice together. Uchiyama Roshi, my teacher, sent another disciple. That was, I think, 1974. The person's name was Koushi-san, Koushi Ichida.

[18:05]

When Koushi-san left Kyoto, Uchiyama Roshi kind of gave instruction or recommendation to chant this part of Gyoji every morning. Because this is important. This was important for Uchiyama Roshi himself. And he thought it was very helpful to really, you know, keep this teaching of Dogen about Bodhidharma really coming from India. was helpful and encouraging us. And next year, Koshi-san came to this country one year before me and another disciple. So Uchiyama-rochi retired in 1975.

[19:08]

And myself and Eishin-san, another Dharma brother, came to this country in 1975. When we visited him to come to this country, before coming to this country, he also recommended us to chant this part of Gyojin. But we are kind of bad students, or good students. We never chant it. You know, at Antaiji we had no chanting. We had no morning service. We never chanted even the Heart Sutra, except the time we went for Takahatsu. So, during five... I stayed in Massachusetts for five years. During five years, we never chanted anything. So, when I went back to Japan, I forgot even the Heart Sutra.

[20:12]

Anyway, so we didn't chant, but this part of Gyoji was very important for me during that period of time. Not only that time, but since then, even today. So let me read the paragraph. This is my translation I made a few days ago, and it's not edited yet. So it's not a good English, I'm sure. So don't laugh. Oh, you can laugh. I try to make it as literal as possible, so it's not really good English. The first ancestor of China, Bodhidharma, came to the East from the West. Because of the instruction from his teacher, Venerable Prajñātāra.

[21:17]

Prajñātāra is Bodhidharma's teacher in India. During the seasons of frost and flowers in the three years of his voyage, the wind and snow he had to endure must be more than we can sympathize. How many times he had to go through the mountainous waves under clouds and mist. He was going to the unknown country. Ordinary beings who hold dear their bodily lives could not even think of it. This must be his continuous practice out of his great compassion to transmit Dharma for the sake of saving deluded sentient beings.

[22:25]

That was done because he was the self of Dharma transmission and his world was the entire world of Dharma transmission. done because the entire ten-direction world was the true and genuine way, and he was the self of an entire ten-direction world. That was done because the entire ten-direction world was the entire ten-direction world. Which condition of the life could not be a royal palace? Which palace can be prevented from being the place of the way? Because of these reasons, Bodhidharma came from the West in such a way.

[23:33]

Because he was the self of saving deluded beings, he had no alarm, doubt, and fear. Because his world is the entire world of saving deluded beings, there was no alarm, doubt, and fear. That's it. I think this is very, to me, clear, a description of Bodhidharma's kind of a practice. Why he came, no, not came, he went to China from India. What made him to move to that movement? Of course, he was asked by his

[24:39]

According to the story, this is not a historically real thing, but according to the story, Bodhidharma's teacher asked Bodhidharma to go to China to transmit the Dharma. After, I think, 67 years, 67 years after his death, When Bodhidharma went to China, he said he was more than 100 years old. Do you believe or not? I don't believe. And according to the story, he went to China from India by ship. And it took him three years.

[25:46]

I'm not sure whether it really took him three years to sail from India to China. But I think, too, it was a difficult trip. That was the beginning of the 6th century. 527, he arrived at China. And Dogen Zen tried to... how can I say... describe the spirit of this Dharma transmission going through that difficulty. And even, you know, after he arrived, went to China Maybe he couldn't speak Chinese. So, he was just sitting... in a cave... for nine years.

[26:53]

He had no children. Until, you know, Heiko Aika, who became the second ancestor, visited. He was just sitting by himself. So it must be very difficult for such a person, more than 100 years old. But anyway, using this story, Dogenzen tried to describe what is our basic spirit of practice, of continuous practice, or gyoji. So he said, ordinary beings who hold dear their bodily rights could not even think of such a trip, such a practice. And he said, this must be his continuous practice out of his great compassion to transmit Dharma for the sake of saving deluded sentient beings.

[28:13]

This transmits dharma for the sake of saving deluded sentient beings is an expression from the birth of dharma transmission, body dharma made in the story of the Keitoku Dendoroku, record of transmission of Dharma lamp. Bodhidharma said, I came, I originally came to this land, in China, to transmit the Dharma, Buddha Dharma, and save deluded beings, deluded sentient beings, who made Joe. And second half is famous. And one flower opens five petals.

[29:17]

And it's bare fruit. It's naturally bare fruit as a result of Bodhidharma coming from India. And Dogen Zen used that expression to transmit Dharma and say or save deluded sentient beings. And saving sentient beings is, of course, one of the four bodhisattva vows. Sentient beings are numberless. We vow to save them. So that bodhisattva vow, or Buddha's vow, allowed Bodhidharma, he went to China, went through such a difficult voyage.

[30:29]

And Dogen Zenji himself went to China from Japan. It didn't take him three years, only two weeks. But it was still dangerous. Many Japanese died during the sailing from Japan to China. So he risked his life. Travelling used to be much more dangerous than it is. But somehow, those people who transmitted Dharma from India to China, or China to other Asian countries, People who went to visit China from Asian countries, like Japan, Korea, or Vietnam, or those countries, they risk their lives to study and transmit the Dharma. And so, I don't think this is... Dogen is saying here, it's not only about bodhidharma, but all people who

[31:40]

transmit Dharma from one country to another country. Buddhism has been transmitted from Asian countries to United States and other parts of the world. Many people went to Asian countries to study and practice Dharma. And so, it's not only Bodhidharma, and it's not only Dogen, but this kind of spirit or practice is even practiced today. And it's very difficult to visited to go to other countries in a completely different culture to study spiritual teachings and practices.

[32:44]

Not only that, come back and transmit, to teach, transmit people in this country, or their own country. It's very difficult. And also, you know, people like Suzuki Roshi, or Katagiri Roshi, and of course myself too, I came to this country and tried to transmit what I studied in Japan. It was very difficult. But why did this happen? Those people, including Bodhidharma, or Dogen, or, you know, we can include Suzuki Roshi. Why did those people do such a thing? And this is, I think, Dogen's answer, I think, for himself. Well, we don't have much time.

[33:46]

He said, that was done because he was a self of Dharma transmission. This is a kind of a strange expression in English. But in Japanese, he said, denbou no jiko. the Self of Dharma Transmission. And, he said, his world, Bodhidharma's world, was the entire world of Dharma Transmission. So, his Self, Bodhidharma's Self, is the Self of Dharma Transmission. And, his world, Bodhidharma's world, is the entire world of Dharma Transmission. So, Dharma Transmission is the only thing there. Both himself, his self, his life, and the entire world he was living in, is for the sake of Dharma transmission. Transmitted Dharma.

[34:50]

And that was done because the entire ten direction world was a true and genuine way. So this entire world is the place where we study and practice this Dharma. And he was the seraph of the entire Ten Direction World. Seraph of the entire Ten Direction World is also a strange expression, I think. The reality of our life is that we and all beings within this entire world are connected within the network of interdependent origination. So this person is one of us, and this entire world is one thing through the relationship. Without the relationship with all beings, this person cannot be here.

[35:56]

So when we take, it is like a net. And each one of us is a knot of each knot of this entire net. And when we grasp one knot, we grasp the entire net. So one person is really the entire world. And the entire world is one person, actually. That's the meaning of this Dogen's expression, the Self of Ten Direction One. Because, I think, the kind of awakening to the reality that we are connected with everything. You know, our life is not personal. When we awake to this relationship, interconnectedness, our life cannot be egocentric. We are still egocentric as a karmic person.

[37:02]

So that's why we need a vow. Such a vow, like sentient beings are numberless, I vow to save them, doesn't come out from my personal, individual, egocentric self. But once we awake to the reality of this interconnectedness, We cannot avoid this vow. Because if the other part of the network has a problem, that problem influences this person's problem. So we are really connected. So this awakening to the reality of interconnectedness is a source of Buddha's compassion. And that is the source of bodhisattva vow. That's why, even though it's very difficult as a person, individual person, but somehow we cannot stop doing it.

[38:09]

So this awakening is really important. And what Dogen is saying here is a description of this interconnectedness. One person and all beings. are one thing. Let me talk five more minutes. Which condition of life could not be a royal palace? This means Bodhidharma was a prince. He was born in a royal palace. But somehow he left his palace, like Shakyamuni. What Dogen is saying here is, even though we are not the prince, we were not born at a palace, still, wherever we are born is a palace, royal palace. That means within the interconnection, network of interconnected ordination, that's the palace.

[39:15]

That is, you know, world of Buddha, or world of Dharma. So we are already born in that palace. And wherever we are, that is the place of the way. Place of the way is a translation of dojo. I think some of you are familiar with Japanese word dojo. Do is way, and jo is place. These days we use this word dojo as a place to practice something. But originally, this word dojo is the place where Shakyamuni Buddha attained enlightenment. That was the dojo, the place where Buddha completed the way. That is dojo. So, wherever we are, that is the place we manifest Buddha's enlightenment through our practice.

[40:20]

So our practice is a manifestation of Buddha's enlightenment, Buddha's awakening. According to Dogen, our practice is not a method or a means to make this person awakened. But through the practice, Buddha's awakening manifests itself. So even though we are still ego-centered, karmic beings, Our practice can be Buddha's practice if we practice based on Bodhisattva vows. And because of these reasons, Bodhidharma came from the West in such a way. And because he was the self of saving deluded beings, he was really motivated by this vow to save deluded beings. He had no alarm, doubt, and fear.

[41:25]

To me, this was really helpful when I was in Massachusetts. We lived in a small place in the west of Massachusetts. And only three Japanese men lived together. We knew nothing about this country, actually. And we had no financial support. We had to support ourselves by doing many odd jobs. It was really difficult. Many times I had a question. Why I need to be here? If I came to this country, I mean stay in Japan, our practice was much easier. But as I said, we didn't chant this section. But reading this writing of Dogen was really helpful for us.

[42:30]

We don't need to be alarmed or surprised or having doubt or fear. That came from not Dogen's writings, I think. a certain theory or philosophy, philosophical teaching of Buddha written in certain Buddhist sutras. But that is the reality of life we are actually living at this moment. That's why we don't need to have fear, doubt or fear. if we awaken to that reality. That reality, whether we awaken to it or not, reality is reality. So it's already there. So we need a kind of faith. Faith and awakening. But if we feel that reality, we have no fear. One of the three offerings, according to Buddhist teaching, is a gift.

[43:37]

who are offering of fearlessness. And the source of fearlessness in Buddhist teaching is awakening to the interconnectedness of all beings. So there's no foreign country actually. No other people. Wherever we are, we are in the palace. Sometimes it's very difficult to believe it. But anyway, I think that is what Dugin said, and one more sentence. I said, and the entire world.

[44:14]

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