during this session. I would like to explain the practice of breathing, breath. The practice of breathing is maybe easy, but not so. Actually, it is pretty difficult to understand the proper way of breathing. Even in Japan, even Zen master doesn't explain the proper way of breathing in detail. So, most of students understand the way of breathing

[01:10]

in a vague, very vague. Their understanding is very vague, vague. Because apparently even though you read Dogen's work, it seems to us that he doesn't explain clearly the proper way of breathing. But if you read, just through, if you read Dogen's work, particularly Kanda Zengi, just briefly, you know, you don't understand clearly the proper way of breathing. Because he

[02:22]

doesn't express, he doesn't show, he doesn't show the way of, the proper way of breathing in words. But actually if you read carefully, you can, you will be understand, you will understand the proper way of breathing according to the meaning of the Chinese character, the Chinese character. This time, I would like to explain the proper way of breathing according to the meaning of Chinese

[03:24]

character, which Dogen Zenji show very simple word in Kanda Zengi or in the Zengi of Shobo Genzo. The first of all, today, I would like to make little remarks about the reason why we need the proper way of breathing before proceeding my talk. The Dogen Zenji says,

[04:27]

in the paragraph of explanation of the practice, the explanation of the breathing, the way of breathing, he says it is easier, it is easier to comprehend the law of transiency. And regulating mind, regulating mind provide man with a great opportunity of the regulating of breathing, regulating breath, enable man easily comprehend the law of transiency

[06:35]

and comprehend the principle of regulating mind. From this point, to regulate the law of breath, enable man to comprehend easily the principle of transiency. This is very important point. That's why, according to Dogen's thought, it is very important to practice proper way of breath. In the practice of Zen Buddhism, there are three important points, which we have to learn at any cost.

[07:52]

As long as you are the student of Zen Buddhism. The one is regulating body, regulating body. The second is to regulate mind. The third is to regulate the breath, or to regulate the body is to express a proper position, proper posture of your Zazen. This is regulating body. This is first important point. And second is to regulating mind.

[09:01]

The third is to regulate the breath. Those three are very important for us to learn. In order to understand the principle of transiency, the principle of regulating mind. So this time, I would like to explain the practice of Zazen in terms of regulating breath. I would like to explain those three in terms of the practicing of regulating breath. Those three have very close relation with each other. They are completely inseparable. If you can practice properly the way of breathing,

[10:24]

it identifies itself with the practice of regulating mind, regulating body. So each has very close relation with one another. I think, as you know so well, how important to take breath is. As long as the life endures, this is very important. Because if it stops breathing, you must die.

[11:46]

From this point, you must realize that how important the practice of breathing is. But most of people, most of people don't realize how important the practice of breathing is. On the other hand, most of people realize entirely how important money is. When money start to, start to, money is, when you realize there is no money with you, I think you start to struggle for your life at any cost in order to make money.

[13:00]

Partly because to support, because of supporting your life physically and spiritually. Partly because of enjoying your life in the light of the money. But most of people are liable to be neglectful of taking good care of the breath, the presence of breath in our daily life. This is real truth. Now why, why does the breath is very important, the presence of breath is important?

[14:02]

Why is the presence of breath important? Why does the realization of breath enable man to comprehend the principle of transiency, the principle of regretting mind? You know, when you try to learn the theme, when you try to learn how to swim in the ocean, in the pool, first of all, a teacher makes every possible effort to teach you learning how to float in the water, on the surface of water.

[15:20]

Now, to float on the surface of water is first of all very important for us to learn how to swim. Not only learning to learn how to swim, but also to learn how to live in this world. The other day I mentioned to one of old ladies how to live, explaining how to live. Because she always suffers, she always suffers controlling her own body and mind also. Even though her mind wants to rush into, wants to be in a hurry to take good care of her body and her mind rapidly,

[16:40]

it is really impossible for her to control rapidly her body, her body, her mind. Because, I'm sorry for her, she is very old. So whatever she does, it takes a long time to wear the kimono, to take out something from the hangers. It takes a long time to stretch her legs, to stretch her legs or to stretch her hands. Whatever, no matter what she wants to do, it takes a long time. I'm sorry for her, but it can be helped. But her mind, it makes her suffer.

[17:48]

So I said, how about floating? How about floating on the surface of your life? What you are confronting, what you are being confronted with, moment after moment, whatever you do, when you want to try to stretch your hands to take out something from the hangers, don't worry about how much, how much, how much does it take you, how long does it take you. Please take a time to take out, to take out something from the hangers. Stretching her hands, it means, it means not to worry, not to be concerned about how long it takes her so much

[19:11]

to take out something from hangers, to stretch her hands. It means that she has to, at any cost, float on the surface of her life. In the domain of stretching her hands, trying to take out something from the hangers. Not yielding, not yielding to worry too much. This is very important, but it's not so easy, it's not so easy for us how important to float on the surface. The other day I mentioned that one of the famous western thinkers, Keio Kigo, maybe Keio Kigo may say,

[20:20]

the happiness is just like floating in the water, on the surface of water. Then, anyway, when you try to learn how to swim, a teacher make every possible effort to teach you how to float. And then you have to learn, at any cost, how to float, first of all. But on the other hand, someone says, I don't care, I don't care how to float on the water. All I have to do is to move blindly my hands and my legs. Before I learn how to float, because it's possible to swim.

[21:25]

Maybe it's possible to swim, but such a swimming is not complete. Because you miss a very important point. And it's extended to the fundamental lesson. The fundamental lesson, in attempt to learn how to swim, to float is the fundamental lesson you have to do. Then, you try to float, you try to jump into the water, and try to float in every possible way.

[22:43]

But on the contrary to your mind, your body starts to sink into the bottom of the water. At that time, you are surprised. What shall I do? Then you start to struggle, you start to move your hands and legs. But at that time, we have the least very important point which we have to take into account. Where is the responsibility? Where is the responsibility which you must be taking, which you must take?

[23:52]

When you cannot swim, when your body starts to sink into the bottom of the water, who must take responsibility for this? Your body? Your body itself must take responsibility for it, for this lack. Or, the water itself must take responsibility for this. What do you think about this? There is something wrong on your body, there is something wrong in the water, which is what?

[25:09]

If there is something wrong on your body, in your body or on your body, it means that you can never learn how to see it. But it is true that you can, you will be able to learn how to see it after the practice, hard practice of long years, one years, two years. It is true. If so, I think there is, I don't think there is something wrong on your body. Because, see, if you can learn how hard, how to swim, you can, you will be able to swim. This is real truth.

[26:21]

Then, do you think there is something wrong on the water or in the water? I don't think so. Water doesn't care, you know, water doesn't care no matter who, no matter who jumps into the water. Karage jumps into the ocean, he doesn't care, you know, ocean water doesn't care. Or, big ship is running on the surface of water, it doesn't care. No matter who jumps into the water, no matter what jumps into the water, no matter when. If so, who is, who must take responsibility for this?

[27:35]

Saying, I can't see. And then, if you say, I can't see, if you have some idea, I can't see. I think before you jump into the water, you feel some fear, you know. You are hesitating, you are hesitating. When jumping into the water before, before you are doing, you know. Anyway, in the lesson, taught by, taught by a teacher, swimming teacher. Then he teach you, he teaches you, how to swim in order, you know.

[28:45]

How to swim. So, it is easy to learn how to swim. So, in a couple of days or in a week, it will be possible to float on the water. Then you think, oh, I can float, I can float on the surface of water. Then you believe yourself, yes, I can float, I can float on, in the water. Yes. But, one day, let's imagine someone threw you away, you know. Over the boat, suddenly. You forgot completely what you had learned.

[29:48]

And then, you feel, you feel, you know, you feel a very strong, the fear, scared. And then you start to struggle, you know. You start to move your hands, you start to move your head. The more you try to move them to let you float, the more your body starts to sink. From this point, you know, you can, you realize how difficult, how difficult to learn how to swim, how to float on the water.

[30:54]

On the surface water. There is something what disturbs you. What is it? This is the memory, I think this is memory, the old memory of passing years. What had accumulated in your brain, I can't sweep. But, after learning, after learning how to float, through the teacher, you think, I can't float. Then you forget, you forget the such a fixed ideas. I can't swim, I cannot swim, I cannot float.

[31:59]

But the moment when you are thrown away over the board, you cannot help realizing that there is something what disturbs you. This is, this is old memories, or passing memories, you know. What you have accumulated in your brain, then it makes you, it makes you evoke suddenly, you know, the feeling of, feeling of fears, scares. I mentioned before, who must take responsibility for the fact what you cannot swim.

[33:13]

I said neither, I said neither in the domain of your body, nor in the domain of water itself. Who is it? What is, what is something wrong? What is something wrong which makes you confused, which makes you sink into the bottom of the water? I think, you know, the, the, the some, the some idea which is reflected in the mirror, which is called your mind.

[34:33]

Prevent you from floating on the water, consciously or unconsciously anyway. Do you understand this point? Some ideas, some ideas, I can't swim, I can't swim. You have already, already something, something very strong, very strong in your brain, preventing you from doing something. There is, there is nothing, nothing wrong on your body, nothing wrong on the water.

[35:39]

There is something wrong in the domain of some hypothetical idea, I can't swim, I can't swim. Consciously or unconsciously, this is real truth. That's why if you start, if your body starts to sink, unconsciously your hands, your legs, your whole body starts to move. Even though you don't like, even though you said, you murmur, you start, you murmur, you murmur to yourself, I can't, I can't float, don't move, be quiet. But your hands, your legs, your whole body starts to move. What make you, what make you start?

[36:43]

What make you move? What compare you, what compare you to start to move? Then, if you want to, if you want to float, the first important thing is that you have to believe, there is nothing wrong on your body, on the water. Nothing wrong, nothing wrong in the domain of your body, in the domain of water. This is very important point, but you can't, it's maybe difficult. Because you, we have already something strong or stubborn,

[37:47]

which is called ideas, or hypothetical ideas, or which is called reflections, which is called some reflections in the mirror. Which is called, you are liable to hold up something to mirror, to a mirror. I can't sleep. You know, some students, Zen students tell me sometimes, you know, during Zazen, I found there are many delusions coming through my brain. I can't stop, I can't stop, what shall I do?

[38:51]

What you said, what you said, I can't stop is already, I can't stop means that you have already something trouble, some trouble. Strictly speaking, the answer is very simple. How about stopping? How about stopping? That's all. What you said, I can't, I can't stop, I can't stop, you know, I can't stop creating my thought through the brain. But it's all, it's some trouble, it's all trouble. It is trouble, it is trouble which make, which lead you, which lead you to confusion to another, to one confusion to another. That's why Dogen then says,

[39:57]

first of all, try to have proper posture of your Zazen, but today I look at, I have look at the posture of all students in this Tendon. There are nobody who have, who has proper posture. Someone has hanging down, somewhere the head, head is hanging, you hand down your head, something like this, curving you, curving the upper part of your back, like this, sticking up your chin, someone has very strong tense, you know, like this,

[41:07]

like this. It's pretty difficult, if you have such a Zazen, if you have such a Zazen, it's pretty difficult to understand, to get rid of, to get rid of some trouble. The hypothetical idea, what you're saying, I can't stop. It seems to me that it is the completely same. You say, I can't swim, I can't float on the surface of water. But there is, there is something wrong, there is nothing wrong on your body, there is nothing wrong on the water,

[42:09]

there is nothing wrong on your body, or nothing wrong on your Zazen, Zazen itself. Do you think, do you think there is something wrong on Zazen, in Zazen? I don't think so. Zazen is Zazen, you know. No matter what you do, you know, even though you sleep, Zazen is Zazen. If so, the first important point is, that you have, you believe, you believe first of all, that there is nothing wrong in the domain of your body,

[43:14]

nothing wrong in the domain of the water, on Zazen, of Zazen, or of your body. And then, you start to learn, you start to learn according to the sun's suggestion, how to swim, how to float. That's all. Even though you try to float on the water, the teacher says, stretch your leg, stretch your hand, stretch your back. But if your body is curved like this, curving body tells you that the center of,

[44:15]

the center of gravity doesn't rise in the stomach. If you want to float on the surface of water, you have to, you have to rise the center of the gravity. Must rise in the hara, you know. For this, you have to, you have to stretch your body, you know, like this. Without the scare, without having some fears, without yielding, without yielding to a certain ideas, I can float. You should forget, you should throw away

[45:26]

the gravity. First of all, and all you have to do is to follow, you know. The teacher's suggestion, how to float, that's all. Follow him. At that time, suddenly you realize that your body, your body is floating, you know. And, the fact, the reality, the reality that your body is floating enable you, enable you to understand what your body is. Having relation with water,

[46:26]

you realize, in other words, you realize there is nothing wrong with your body. And then also, you realize, you realize that water, the quality of water, that drives you, drives you into float in every possible effort. The moment when your body is floating, you realize this point. Then you, you are very happy, wow, my body is floating. But before the realization, realization of this point,

[47:31]

unconsciously your hands, your legs start to move. Try to, try to float, try to float. Try to float. Then, strictly speaking, to float on the water means that you comprehend, you comprehend the quality of your body. What the quality of your body is, what the quality of the water is. What the relation with each other is like. In other words, you understand, you comprehend the whole total,

[48:36]

the totality of the presence of your body, the presence of the water. Before the realization of this point, you always try to make every possible effort to catch just to some part, a part of the existence, you know. You try to, you try to see the swimming in terms of your ideas, I can't swim. Then it makes your body stiff, unconsciously, you know. I can't swim. This preconception is, this preconception makes your body stiff unconsciously and makes your body sink into the water.

[49:38]

It means you comprehend your body. In terms of just a certain part, a certain point, not whole, not totality. Totality. Then, in order to float on the water, first of all, I mentioned you forget, you throw away the preconception, I can't float, I can't float. Then, following the instruction how to float, given by teacher, in other words, it means,

[50:55]

it means you must understand, you must comprehend your body, the quality of your body, the quality of the water. Not comprehend, not comprehend the quality of the hypothetical ideas, I can't swim. Or not comprehend, not comprehend the old memories, old memories you had, you have accumulated in your brain. All you have to make every possible effort is to learn the reality, to learn. Then, the body itself, enjoying itself becoming true to itself,

[52:16]

enjoying the becoming true to itself. So, learning to float on the surface of water doesn't exist within the world of hypothetical ideas. I can't swim. It exists beyond, beyond this, beyond hypothetical ideas. In hypothetical ideas, you are always, you are always a slave, slave to, slave to fears.

[53:26]

And also, these fears make you confused. This fear impels you, compels you, compels you to confuse. So, you have to seek, you have to seek the very important point of learning how to float beyond the domain of, the domain of hypothetical ideas. You have to seek the very important point in the domain of your body itself, in the domain of comprehension of your body, the way as it is, comprehension of the water as it is.

[54:39]

The body itself has nothing to do with your struggle, your suffering. The water has nothing to do with your suffering. If so, all you have to do is to know, to comprehend deeply what your body is, what the water is. And then, at last, what should you do? All you have to do is to enjoy yourself, to enjoy becoming true to yourself. At the moment, at the moment when you jump, when you jump into the water,

[55:49]

according to the instruction given by the teacher, stretching your body, stretching your legs, that's all. That's all you have to do. Then, realization of the floating water, never men comprehend the principle of the learning how to swim, how to float, comprehension of how to float. You realize, you realize this point. You realize the comprehension of what the water is, what your body is, what the relation between two is. Then, before you are slave of a hypothetic idea saying, I can't swim, I cannot swim.

[57:20]

Then, first of all, all we have to do is to stretch your legs, stretch your hands, stretch your body. To be intimate, to be intimate with the self, the way as it is. At that time, at that time, you can, you come to comprehend the principle of transience, the principle of what the life is, what the swimming is. That's why Dogen Zen says, the regulating breath, breath,

[58:44]

never was meant to comprehend the law of transiency, and the principle of regulating mind. So, from this point, from my talk, I think you will understand, you have understood that how important the regulating, the practice of regulating the breath is. Regulating the breath is to float on the water. In order to float on the water, first of all, you try to have proper posture.

[59:44]

In proper posture, I lead you to regulate smoothly the practice of breath. Yes, regulating the breath smoothly enables you to have proper posture. So, briefly speaking, to regulate breathing, which is called in Japanese, Chōsoku, or Nensoku. Nensoku, or Nensoku, is to think deeply. To think deeply means that the mind keeps close to the whole process of the respiration.

[61:11]

Without separating from each other, one another. At that time, regulating the breath is called in Japanese, Chīshin, or Chōsoku. The character of Chī in Japanese means to be, to have, to have the scrupulous care, scrupulous attention. In other words, to pen, the other words, to pen,

[62:05]

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