Embodying the Lotus Sutra 

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Donald Moyer asked me to give him a
some kind of description of the kind of course that I would be offering this
summer and I wanted to ask you if you had any suggestions. Part of me just
wants to keep studying the Lotus Sutra, keep practicing the Lotus Sutra, but I
didn't have a chance to see if you want to do that, so I gave a description to him
which doesn't say anything about the Lotus Sutra but would be quite compatible
with the Lotus Sutra. What I said
about the description of the class was something like, entering and realizing the truth or something like that.
Yeah, entering, embodying and enacting. Entering, embodying and enacting.
Entering, embodying and acting the truth. And I think also I went on to say that
the source of truth is unconstructedness and stillness.
Does something like that sound familiar? No? Yeah. And so I said the course would be to offer ways of
entering this unconstructed stillness, emerging from it and embodying it in the
world. That's actually kind of a way that certain Zen teachers, who remain
unnamed at this time, teach Zen meditation. But it's really also, without saying
Lotus Sutra, it's the way the Lotus Sutra works. So I think I'd
like to hear from you how it's going either now or if you want to send me
emails or something to say how you feel about studying this and practicing this
Sutra, this Lotus Sutra. Is there anything you want to say now? Yes.
That sounds good to me. I'd like a little more connection. Meditation seems to be central to all Buddhism.
The Buddha was meditating. I've never had instruction in standing meditation, for example.
So when we stand at the end of our sitting meditation, I'm just doing whatever.
I'm looking around and trying to think of where do I put my hands and what am I supposed to do?
And I sometimes think, just one other quick thing, I hear things that you say about the Lotus Sutra
and about the loose, kind of like last week you were talking about selflessness and I was asking about
not clinging and kind of meditation. I was wondering if meditation was a way of practicing that.
And so the connection to the practice of meditation, which seems to be central, like one should practice
or one is... Do you see what I'm saying? I do. And so I'm asking for a little bit of that.
Well, in this class, the meditation is the Lotus Sutra. That's the meditation.
But we're also sitting. Are we sitting on the Lotus Sutra? Are we thinking of that?
Not supposed to be. I'm not saying you're supposed to, but I'm just saying that this class,
the meditation of this class is the Lotus Sutra. And the Lotus Sutra is a discourse.
It's a written discourse, but it also can be a verbal discourse. So this discourse is what is contemplated.
So the meditation in this class is basically to contemplate the Lotus Sutra.
Perhaps I made a mistake by not saying sitting or...
When you're sitting in this class, when you're sitting or standing...
When we're not talking, you're not doing a Dharma talk, we're just...
When I'm sitting here with you in silence, I'm contemplating the Lotus Sutra.
That's what I'm doing when I'm sitting with you.
And I think some of you are learning how to contemplate the Lotus Sutra when you're sitting.
And some of you haven't learned how yet. That's what the class is for.
It is also a meditation to contemplate or to pay attention to your breathing when you're sitting.
Or to contemplate your posture when you're sitting. Those are also meditations.
In those cases, the meditation is the body or the breath. That's the discourse in a sense.
The discourse of the body or the discourse of the breath can be something you contemplate.
But the first meaning of meditation in the English dictionary is a discourse that is the object of contemplation,
which is given by an author so that the contemplators will understand the intention of the author,
will understand the mind of the author.
So this Lotus Sutra is a physical object in my hand right now,
and I can open it and read it, and I actually will pass you pieces of paper,
which will have words on it later, and you will be able to read it out loud.
And so the Lotus Sutra will become a physical thing in your hand,
and it will become a physical thing in the air, which will be bouncing into your ears.
This Lotus Sutra is a physical thing, and in this physical thing,
there are words which tell you that this physical thing is the embodiment of the truth.
The highest truth is embodied in this text.
When you meditate on this text, therefore, you are meditating on the highest truth.
You are contemplating the highest truth.
You are contemplating this meditation object,
and this meditation object is telling you that it is the embodiment of the supreme truth.
In other words, it's the embodiment of Buddha.
So this class is actually called the Embodying Lotus Sutra,
and the Lotus Sutra is the embodiment of the Lotus Sutra.
And the Lotus Sutra is the embodiment of Buddha.
It's Buddha in the form of a book.
If you contemplate what's in the book, even if without opening the book,
this book is telling you that you are contemplating Buddha.
There are many kinds of meditation in the world,
and one type of meditation is the meditation of what we call Bodhisattvas.
These are beings who are on the path to becoming Buddhas.
They meditate on Buddha.
They meditate on the highest truth.
And the Lotus Sutra is one of the things that has appeared in the world
to help Bodhisattvas meditate on the truth.
It is a teaching of the truth,
and the teaching that's in here about the truth
is that it doesn't tell you what the truth is,
but it tells you that this is the embodiment of it.
But there are other meditations, like, for example,
you could say, when you're standing,
that you'd be aware of your standing posture.
You'd be aware of your actual posture.
And that's there too.
And part of what we will get into, perhaps,
is that your body, since the Lotus Sutra,
since the truth can be embodied in this sutra,
according to this sutra,
this sutra says that the truth is and can be made flesh by this sutra,
and this sutra also tells you that it can be re-embodied in other ways,
because the truth is the truth of emptiness.
This sutra is empty.
And because it's empty, it can embody the teaching of emptiness.
This sutra is empty.
This sutra doesn't have a self.
It's selfless.
See the sutra? It's selfless.
Being selfless, it tells you,
I am selfless and I am the embodiment of the truth.
And it implies, or even says,
you are selfless and you, therefore, can also be the embodiment of the truth.
The truth can be embodied in the Lotus Sutra and re-embodied in you,
and can be re-embodied in our culture,
in our society, in our relationship with each other.
I'm here with the intention of helping you keep your mind on the ultimate truth,
so you can embody it,
and also to help you put your mind on the Lotus Sutra,
which is not just the ultimate truth,
it is the embodiment of it.
So, in that sense,
this is the most advanced possible kind of class,
but it's also kind of simple, too.
All you've got to do is think about this book.
All you've got to do is think about this book.
Be devoted to this book.
And by being devoted to it,
it's implied that you think it's worthwhile.
It's a worthwhile book.
It's a book which, if you take care of, you will have a happy life,
and you will manifest the truth in this happy life,
or you have the happy life of manifesting the truth,
and also you will in that way,
your life in that way will transform this world into a happy world.
This is the proposal of the Sutra,
which tells you the power of the truth.
The ultimate truth has the power to transform the world,
and all the individuals in it.
So, I asked how it was going.
I got a question from Gary.
Is it Gary?
And I gave a response.
Any other things you'd like to say about how the study is going?
Farouk?
Could you come closer, please?
Sit there, maybe?
It's always a comfortable spot.
Well, then speak up if you don't want to leave your comfortable spot.
I really like the description that you gave.
The new one.
How to enter the unconstructed...
Yeah.
How to enter the source of the truth.
It's not easy, no?
Once you enter it, you do embody it.
If you bring your body with you as you enter.
You might know it.
Was there another hand? Yes, Rit? Stephen?
At this point, I have no intention of reading the Lotus Sutra,
or even owning it, actually.
But I'm very happy to hear you talk about it.
Is that okay? Is it sufficient?
Is it sufficient?
Is it sufficient?
What you just said is something which I consider to be a gift from you to me.
Now, do you want to know if you've given me enough gifts?
Is that what you want to know?
I liked you...
Actually, I'm not into liking or disliking the gifts you give me.
I'm into loving the gifts that you give me,
which is not to like and dislike them, fortunately.
So you just keep giving me gifts, and I will keep appreciating them,
not liking them.
If I like them, that's my problem.
I welcome your gifts.
I do not like or dislike them. That's my vow.
I vow to welcome Stephen's gifts,
and give up liking and disliking them.
I vow to welcome Stephen's gifts.
And if I can welcome Stephen's gifts,
there's a possibility I will welcome the Supreme Truth also.
If I get into liking and disliking Stephen's gifts,
the door closes on the Supreme Truth.
I'm distracted by liking and disliking Stephen and his gifts.
But fortunately for you and me, I'm not into that.
I'm into welcoming Stephen, however he appears.
And when Stephen says, is that sufficient?
I would say, thank you very much.
Do not stop.
Do not think, oh, that's enough.
No, I don't have to practice anymore.
No more gifts from me. No.
Please do not do that.
Keep giving. Okay?
And I have a lotus that's right here for you to change.
You mentioned email. I don't know the email address.
Would you mind?
Rebassistant.
Rebassistant at sfzc.org.
Is that right?
That's right.
Okay, so at the beginning of the sutra, I told you, you know,
there's this amazing scene,
and the Buddha does not teach the Lotus Sutra.
By not teaching the Lotus Sutra,
the Buddha teaches us how to relate to the Lotus Sutra.
Excuse me, he doesn't teach the Lotus Sutra,
which means he doesn't teach...
He doesn't teach the Lotus Sutra means
he doesn't teach the lotus flower of the Supreme Truth.
He doesn't teach the wondrous truth.
He's teaching the Lotus Sutra because he is the Lotus Sutra.
What he's doing is the Lotus Sutra.
So he's showing you the Lotus Sutra,
and in the Lotus Sutra,
he tells you he's going to teach you the truth,
and he doesn't teach you the truth directly.
But that's how he teaches you the truth.
That's the beginning of the sutra.
He teaches you that the truth is empty,
and that the truth is emptiness,
and that what he's doing is manifesting the teaching
which he's not teaching you.
He's showing you what he's not teaching you.
And wonderful things go on from there,
and then we come up to, for example,
chapter 13 and 14,
which I'd like to discuss with you
during this class series,
where they give wonderful instructions
about how to teach the Lotus Sutra.
13, 14, and 20.
And chapter 15 is a wonderful chapter,
and chapter 16 is the fundamental chapter
of the Lotus Sutra.
It doesn't tell you what the ultimate truth is,
it doesn't tell you what the wondrous Dharma is,
but it tells you the basis upon which
this sutra is built.
It tells you the basis upon which
we can manifest,
and the Lotus Sutra can manifest
the supreme truth which the Buddha does not teach us.
So this chapter 16 is the center of the sutra,
and it's the fulcrum of the sutra,
where the sutra shifts from one way of teaching
to another way of teaching.
But it's in some ways the central
and most important chapter in a way,
especially from Dogen's point of view.
So I brought this with me,
and I thought we could recite this text tonight.
And I think I'll pass this out again next week,
and again next week.
I think this may be the main recitation piece of the class.
Now this is not the whole of chapter 16,
this is the verse section.
There's a prose section before the verse section,
which is about twice as long as the verse section.
So this is about one third of chapter 16.
And
there's a section in this chapter 16
which I often recite to you,
and which is written on the back of my robe.
So the part I often tell you about is that
those who practice all virtues,
are gentle, flexible, harmonious, honest and upright,
will see the Buddha teaching the Lotus Sutra right now.
Remember me telling you about that?
That's what it says here on my scripture.
That's in this section you'll be reciting tonight.
Chapter 16?
It's chapter 16,
which is called The Lifespan of the Buddha.
The Lifespan of the Tathagata.
That's the name of this chapter.
This is the foundation upon which
the truth of this sutra is built.
Are you ready?
Shall we begin?
The World Honored One,
then desiring to reiterate the teaching's meaning,
spoke thus in verse.
Would you chant with me?
Since I have realized...
We have a different version now.
At that time, the World Honored One,
wishing to restate this meaning,
spoke verses saying,
...to teach and exform
the practice and the means of living beings,
so they enter the Buddha way.
And throughout these limitless eons,
in order to save living beings,
I expediently manifest nirvana.
But in truth, I do not pass into quiescence.
I remain here, always speaking the Dharma.
I always stay right here.
And using the power of spiritual penetrations,
I cause inverted living beings,
though near me, not to see me.
The multitude see me as passing into quiescence.
They extensively make offerings to my Sharira.
All cherish ardent longing for me,
that their hearts hook up to me in thirst.
Living beings then faithful and subdued,
straightforward with compliant minds,
single-mindedly wish to see the Buddha,
caring not for their very lives.
This time, I and the Sangha's assembly
all appear together in Magic Vulture Mountain,
where I say to living beings
that I am always here and never cease to be.
But using the power of independent devices,
expedient devices,
I manifest ceasing and not ceasing to be.
Living beings in other hands,
reverent, faithful and aspiring,
I speak the unsurpassed Dharma.
For you who do not hear this,
think I have passed into quiescence.
I see human beings sunk in misery.
Yet I refrain from manifesting for them
in order to cause them to look up in thirst.
Then when their minds are filled with longing,
I emerge and speak the Dharma.
With such powerful spiritual penetrations
throughout a sum chaos of eons,
I remain always Magic Vulture Mountain.
And I will also dwell in other places
when beings see the eon ending.
Ravaged by the great fire,
my land is peaceful and secure.
Always filled with thousands of humans,
gardens and groves, halls and pavilions,
and various precious adornments.
There are jewel trees, many flowers and fruits,
where living beings roam in delight.
The gods play celestial drums,
always making various kinds of music.
And mandarpa flowers,
all scattered on the Buddha and the Great Assembly.
My pure land is not destroyed,
but the multitude see it being burned entirely.
Worried, terrified and miserable,
such ones are everywhere.
All these beings with often this
economic causes and conditions
pass through a sum chaos of eons
without hearing the name of Triple Jewel.
All who have cultivated merit and virtue
who are compliant, agreeable and honest
will see me here speaking the Dharma.
Sometimes for this assembly,
I speak of the Buddha's lifespan as limitless.
To those who see the Buddha only after long intervals,
I speak of the Buddha as being difficult to meet.
The power of my wisdom,
the unlimited illumination of my wisdom,
is such that my lifespan is one of countless eons,
attained through long cultivation and work.
Those of you with wisdom
do not have doubts about this,
cut them off entirely and forever.
For the Buddha's words are real, not false.
They are the clever expedience of a physician
who to cure his insane children
is actually a lie,
says he is dead,
and none can say that he speaks falsely.
I too am like a father to the world,
saving all from suffering and woe.
But those whose duties they are,
I speak of cessation,
although I actually remain.
Otherwise, if they go and see me,
they would grow arrogant and lax,
unruly and attached to the five desires.
They would tumble into the evil path.
I am aware of beings
who practice the way,
and those who do not.
I speak various dharmas for their sakes,
to save them in an appropriate manner.
I am always thinking,
how can I cause living beings
to either go in such a way
to be perfect the body of a Buddha?
Would you pass those back to me now?
So I can bring them next week.
Asamkhyeya
Ah, yes.
Asamkhyeya.
Asamkhyeya.
Asamkhyeya.
Asamkhyeya.
Asamkhyeya.
That means, you could say,
that means incalculable,
inconceivably great.
More than a billion,
more than a trillion.
Even more than the national debt.
Many, large, large number of eons.
So in the earlier part of the chapter,
the Buddha tells the story of this parent
who is a physician,
and the children become ill
because they eat poison,
and he gives them medicine,
and some of them receive the medicine
and use it and become well.
Others, because they become so loony
from eating these toxins,
don't take the medicine.
So then he says,
so then he says,
I gotta leave town, guys.
And he sends a word back
that he's dead.
And then the ones who
were so intoxicated
that they wouldn't take the medicine,
they grieve the loss
of their dear parent.
And in their grieving,
they sober up.
And in their soberness,
they remember
the medicine that he gave them,
and they take the medicine
into their bodies,
and they become well.
And when they become well,
their parent comes home.
So, by analogy, the Buddha says,
some people will not take the medicine
unless I go away.
So I go away.
And after I go away,
they sober up in their sorrow
of losing their Buddha.
Now, some people do not even care
that the Buddha went away.
Some people are so intoxicated,
they don't even mind that the Buddha went away.
They're so intoxicated,
they don't know the Buddha is here.
And also, when they hear that the Buddha is left,
they don't even care.
So either you realize the Buddha is here,
which is great,
because that's what the sutra is saying,
or if you don't get it,
you would like the Buddha to be here,
and you really would,
and you really would like the Buddha to be here.
You would like to meet the Buddha.
And you're longing for the Buddha.
And through your longing,
you will sober up,
and when your longing is full,
the Buddha will appear to you.
The Buddha is already here with us,
is what this is saying.
And one of the ways the Buddha is with us
is this sutra.
There's other ways the Buddha is with us too.
The Buddha is with us all the time in every way,
but this is one way to help us concentrate.
Now, another way...
Because the Buddha is always with us
and didn't go bye-bye,
we can realize Buddha,
because Buddha is here with us.
And one of the ways to realize it
is to touch the Lotus Sutra.
Another way to realize it
is to open it up
and read it.
You know, use your body
to make sounds.
Read it with your eyes.
But realize that when you read it with your eyes,
your whole body
is reading it.
That will make the embodiment
more full.
Or sing the Lotus Sutra.
Say the words out loud.
That also is a way
for you to realize that
your reading is not just in your head.
And as you know,
when we read, we often hear,
when we read with our eyes,
we hear the words in our head,
in our mind.
So reading, actually,
what do you call it?
It's one of these cross-circuit,
cross... what do you call that?
When two senses cross?
It's one of those things where...
It's a synesthetic
that you're reading with your eyes
and hearing with your ears.
It's a neurological event,
this sutra reading.
Another thing you can do
is copy the Lotus Sutra.
You can just copy the title,
but you can copy the Lotus Sutra.
And then when you copy the Lotus Sutra,
you can have a Lotus Sutra
copying area in your house.
Now one of the nice things
about America
not being such an overpopulated country
is a number of you probably have
a desk in your house someplace
that you can clear some space
and make a...
and make a...
and make a...
a scripture copying...
a scriptorium, right?
Make a scripture copying area in your house.
A place where you copy
the Lotus Sutra,
a place where you embody the Lotus Sutra.
By having a place and also having a body
that goes to the place
and has some kind of
writing instruments and paper
and you prepare the space
and your house starts to change
into a truth
embodying center.
A truth manifesting
place in your house.
Now to have
a meditation cushion in your house
where you sit
is also manifesting
meditation practice.
Your house is transformed
into a meditation place
when you make a meditation place in your house.
And in addition,
if you want to meditate on the truth,
one way to do it
in addition to sitting and thinking about the Lotus Sutra
or thinking about the teaching
of emptiness.
Thinking about how everything is empty.
Thinking about everything selfless.
Thinking about how everything selfless
is embodying the Lotus Sutra
because the Lotus Sutra teaches
that people who want to teach the Lotus Sutra
spend time thinking about emptiness.
So when you think about the emptiness
you are not only doing bodhisattva
meditation on selflessness
you are manifesting the Lotus Sutra
you are manifesting the teaching of emptiness
by practicing meditation
the teaching of emptiness.
So you can consider now
whether you would like to
whether you would like to
make a place in your house
where you
copy the Lotus Sutra
and you might think about
if you want to do that
do you want to copy one chapter
two chapters
all chapters, do you want to start with the first chapter
or maybe you could start with the sixteenth chapter
since we are doing that in class.
This is something for you to consider
I am not pressuring you
I am not pressuring you
to do that because
I am coming to you
from chapter
fourteen
rather than chapter thirteen.
Chapter thirteen
if I come to you from chapter thirteen
I would put tremendous pressure on you
and I will explain to you
how the Lotus Sutra teaches
the high pressure and low pressure
methods of teaching
and how they work
but tonight I am being kind of low pressure
I am being gentle about this
and I sincerely
welcome you
not copying the Lotus Sutra
if you don't copy the Lotus Sutra
I will welcome that
if you don't memorize it
if you don't read it
if you don't recite it
I will welcome that
and if you do read, recite, copy
and start teaching it
I will welcome that too
however
in the latter case
I would say
you would be actively manifesting
you would be embodying the Lotus Sutra
in your life
and the Lotus Sutra is saying
hello, please embody me
hello
I am the truth
please embody me
please embody the truth
please bring this truth
into form, into flesh
in this world
and transform yourself
transform the truth
into yourself
and transform the world
by manifesting the truth
and this way of truth
is saying that this way
of manifesting is not fixed
it can be any way
but
it is necessary
that you think that this way
is manifesting
otherwise you miss it
what do you think about that?
how do you feel about that?
this is my notebook about the Lotus Sutra
yes
is this the embodiment
of the Lotus Sutra?
is it a embodiment of the Lotus Sutra?
do you wish it to be an embodiment of the Lotus Sutra?
I think that it is
do you think it is and want it to be?
I know that it is
do you also want it to be?
yes
so the Lotus Sutra says
the teaching of the Lotus Sutra says that
Lori can transform the teaching
of the Lotus Sutra into her notes
on the Lotus Sutra
and since the Lotus Sutra
is empty
and selfless
you can fill the Lotus Sutra
with your notes on the Lotus Sutra
you can fill and fulfill
the Lotus Sutra
by you having notes on the Lotus Sutra
and your notes
or your interpretation of the Lotus Sutra
your interpretation and your note taking
of your interpretations
of what I am saying
those are intimately
intertwined with the Lotus Sutra
the Lotus Sutra doesn't reject
your interpretations of it
because the Lotus Sutra is open
and empty
it needs you to fill it with your life
it wants you to fill it with your life
but her notes are not empty
her notes are also empty
but her notes may not say
that they are empty
her notes may say
something which sounds like she is saying
that the truth is in her notes
I don't know, we have to read her notes
her notes are empty
everything is empty
but not everybody says everything is empty
and some people who teach
the highest truth of emptiness will tell you what it is
the Lotus Sutra is teaching you
the highest truth
and the Lotus Sutra says the highest truth is empty
ness and empty
empty and emptiness
but it doesn't tell you what emptiness is
in that way
it's so cool
it's so appropriate
so her notes
are empty
but I don't know if her notes
say that her notes are empty
maybe she will let you read
show you the place where it says
these notes on emptiness are empty
she is going to write that now
was there somebody else?
Gary, this is your number 3
so I want to let some other people go first
anybody else have any questions
before Gary does number 3?
Ok, Gary, number 3
If we were to copy
the Lotus Sutra
I would like to copy what we just read
to translate that particular translation
which book
or translation was authored
is that from?
I believe it is from
do you have all 3?
do you have all 3 copies?
do you have several translations?
No
Gary, I'm going to give you
if you want to copy this
you can take it home with you
please bring it back next week, ok?
so if you are going to use it for that purpose
Steven
if you
was that chapter 13
a little touch of that?
that was a whiff of 13
so I would guess that 13
is not a real good chapter for Steven to start with
which translation
do you have?
do I have?
this is
this one is called
the 3 fold lotus
this is a translation by
this has 3 sutras in it
it has the main body of the Lotus Sutra
and then it has the
Sutra of innumerable meanings
the Lotus Sutra starts off by saying
that the Buddha went into
the Samadhi of innumerable meanings
and there is a sutra about that too
and that is in here first
and then there is a sutra at the end
the Sutra of Samantabhadra
or universal goodness
Bodhisattva
Bodhisattva who is like
going to make sure that the Lotus Sutra teaching
goes on
while Buddha is hiding out
so Buddha goes away
until we
are ready to let Buddha
reappear but in the meantime
when we can't see Buddha we have
Samantabhadra who is making sure that
copies of the Lotus Sutra are available
so that is the 3 fold lotus
and this is a translation by
Kato Suthill and somebody else
this translation
Kato Suthill
and then there is
I don't know what to do
I could bring pieces of paper but you can also just
email my assistant and get the names of them
there is quite a few English translations
that are good, about 6
Gloria
I suppose this is ok
but I just started doing it
and I just
went online and found
2 translations
you found them online?
yes
and I just set a pointer to both of them
and I go
is that ok?
that is totally alright
as a matter of fact it is wonderful
that is Burton Watson
another one
there is an English translation
from Sanskrit by Kern
and that is by
Hurwitz
so Michael has got Hurwitz
Norbert has got
Watson
and here is Kato Suthill
and then there is an institute
here in Berkeley called the Numata Institute
and they did a translation
and
there are a few more
I haven't seen any
the lotus sutras
because there are so many
I think nobody is going to get that far off now
because they all look at
the other ones
but it is interesting
that they still feel
that there is some nuance
that they want to do some new translation
I have a confession
I am still busy not copying the
D'Angelo Poem
from previous classes
you are still busy not doing that?
what do you mean not doing it?
thinking I should
wishing I did
thinking about it
so now
I don't know
how to put this in the line up
of things that I am not copying
would you like a suggestion?
ask me for a suggestion
what do you suggest I copy?
would you like to copy the D'Angelo Poem?
I would suggest you do that
first
because that won't take you very long
to copy
does typing count?
does typing count as copying?
yes it does
it does count
but I would recommend you do it by hand
I just
recommend you do it by hand
but typing is fine
why is by hand better?
why is by hand
preferred?
I think
it is a little bit more body into it
you know
you have to sort of like
guide the pen a little bit
rather than just press
the pressing is pretty much the same motion
over and over
whereas you have to do all these different things
with your body to write it
and also the copy that you make
will be different from the copy that I make
if you write it
so it will be more
your body will be more
in your hand written copy
than
if you and I
both type it
so it is a little bit more physical
and I think
if you made somebody a hand written copy
and gave it to them I think they probably feel
more from you than if you typed it
they feel
more Tracy there you know
I would think
but typing is good too
thinking about it
just think about it
that counts
and when you think about it you can think
in a typing way or
hand written way
you can think about it
writing with your feet
you can think about sticking your head
in ink and doing it with your head
the more ways
the more you are transforming the world
this sutra is about
bringing the truth
into the world
it is about a truth that
occurs
in the world
so I have been
the lotus
is one type of a flower
but the lotus is a flower
which grows in mud
it is a particularly beautiful flower
but it grows in the mud
but it grows in mud
and water actually
and so it puts down
roots into the mud
the seed goes into the mud
and the seed germinates
and puts out sprouts
and puts the roots out into the mud
and from those roots in the mud
the stalk
comes up
above the water
and leaves
come up above the water
and then this flower
stalk comes up in the middle
into a form of a bud
and all the while
the roots are in the mud
and then
the flower opens
and when the flower opens
the fruit
is exposed
and then the flower
is revealed
and the flower petals drop off
and the fruit is completely exposed
and then the stalk
becomes
soft
and limp
and the fruit
is then
lowered back into the water
and then
the seed pods
in the lotus fruit
swell up
Have you seen a lotus fruit?
It's kind of like a disc
and it has holes in it
inside the holes are these seed pods
they're like little balls
that's actually not a seed
that's a seed pod
and then they swell up
inside this
enclosure
and when the pressure gets strong enough
the seed pods
burst
and in their bursting
they propel
the seed pod holder
up out of the water
the broken thing
comes up out of the water
and the seed pods go flying
all over the water
so the lotus is
particularly demonstrative
of the process of
transformation and spreading of the truth
that by its own process
it explodes
and the explosion
is part of the reproduction
it's part of the spreading
and then
the seed pods
go down in the water
again, break apart and the seeds come out
and then they go into the mud again
and then
so this is how this truth can spread
and how it can
root and grow
and flower and fruit
and go beyond the fruit
into more seeds and more roots
and more flowers and more fruit
so it's a
flower which is
demonstrating very much reproduction
and
spreading
and continuing
of the teaching
the teaching
of the truth
and the embodiment of the truth
the embodiment of the teaching
may I finish now?
the Buddha
is the Sutra and the Sutra is the Buddha
the truth is the Buddha
and the Buddha is the Sutra
and the Sutra is the truth
and the truth is the Buddha. And this truth and this Buddha and this Sutra are always
here. And then part of what the Sutra is doing is
speaking about or expressing the issue of who is going to take care of the lotus? Who
wants to take care of the lotus? Do you want to take care of the lotus? Do you want to
take care of the Sutra? Do you want to take care of the truth? And do you want to take
care of it so that it can be transformed and manifested in this world? And also deal with
the dynamic between this is the manifestation of the truth and the truth is not limited
to this manifestation. That because the truth can be this book, the truth can be manifested
in other ways. But if this is the truth, then how do you take care of this book? And there's
no fixed way to take care of it, but somehow the issue of reverence and veneration are
part of what's going on here. So I brought the Sutras over in this container.
Now I could try to promote this container and say that this is a very lovely container.
It's so lovely. It has all these names of these wonderful Zen students on it, practicing
at the Zen Center, crossed out. It's inter-departmental male, inter-departmental female.
So I thought maybe I'll try to find another way to take care of these copies of the Lotus Sutra
and recycle this back to the inter-departmental mailbox.
But doesn't the envelope contain the heart of the Lotus? The envelope contains the heart
of the Lotus Sutra now. It did before. So it was a, what do you call
it, a noble servant of the Lotus Sutra. But it contains it now, when it's empty.
It contains it, yeah, it contains the heart of it now. So we don't exclude the virtues
of this envelope. So is this how we practice compassion?
Yeah. So I could continue to use this too, with the sense that this is really a good
container for Lotus Sutras because it's empty and it's impermanent and it's been a good
servant. So I have to think about whether this is really the most appropriate container
for the scriptures. Maybe you'll keep your eye on me next week and see what I bring it in.
That's a like or dislike. If you don't do it, that is a like or dislike.
Are you accusing me of something?
No, no, no.
Are you accusing me of something?
Where is not the Lotus Sutra?
Where is not the Lotus Sutra?
I don't know.
But if you ask me where is the Lotus Sutra, I can say here.
The Lotus Sutra, which is actually beyond time and space, and the truth of the Lotus
Sutra, which really cannot be located in time and space, is now located in time and space
as this book.
But I'm not saying, you can't say the Lotus Sutra isn't somewhere, because it's not located
in not some place, but it can be located here.
But by its very teaching we know that the Lotus Sutra can be concretely manifested in
any way, but it requires us to join it.
The Buddha's appearance in the world requires us to practice.
If we don't practice, if we don't want to see the Buddha, the Buddha hides from us,
or makes it so we can't see it.
The Buddha is embodied, but the Buddha said in what he just read, that I make it so people
can't see me, I don't want them to see me if they don't want to see me.
I'm here at their service, my body is here, but I won't show it, I'll actually make it
so they can't see it unless they really want to see it.
And that would be partly that they would take the medicine.
When they take the medicine and become well, then they will see me.
But the Buddha's body is actually with us all the time, and part of its power is to not
show itself until we really are ready to see it.
This chapter is saying, but it's here, always.
And this is Shakyamuni Buddha, who historically went away, but he's saying the same is true
for infinite Buddhas, they're all here with us.
The Buddhas are present in this world, at the same time they're telling us, you have
to practice in order to realize this.
How can I venerate the Lotus Sutra, and take care of my garden, and redesign my garden?
And the biggest question I have is what to do about the snails.
Whenever you meet a snail, whenever a snail comes to you, always think of Buddha.
Dash, think of the ultimate truth whenever a snail comes to you.
And if you don't see a snail, don't go after any snails.
Just practice the Lotus Sutra, and see if the snails come to you.
And when they come, teach the snails the Lotus Sutra.
Okay?
But otherwise, I wouldn't necessarily tell you to have any relationship with the snails.
This is a gentle approach, by the way.
Isn't it positive, are you not also asking that even though we embody emptiness,
or we touch emptiness, or we see the emptiness of the conventional world,
we still go on tending our garden?
Is she asking that?
I'm asking if you're asking that, because that seemed like what you were asking.
I know what I've done in the past, and it doesn't feel right.
One, I've either poisoned them with sluggo, or two, I've done a catch-and-release program
of sending them off to Australia, which is the other side of the street for me.
I collect them and then release them, but I don't think they have good food there.
And I've got to bring in ducks to eat them.
So my choices have been either basically to collect them and transport them,
or kill them with sluggo, or let them have the garden,
or give up on the plants that absolutely go to zero if the snails are allowed to proliferate.
So what I heard from Rev is just to, I don't know what the answer is yet,
but if I just let the answer come to me.
I just know it doesn't feel right to put sluggo down anymore.
It feels convenient, but not right.
And I don't get that it's really kinder to put them on the other side of the road,
because I don't know if they can eat on that side of the road.
But it just bothers me.
Well, again, if you want to...
Again, this is the general approach.
If you want to be teaching the Lotus Sutra,
then you basically just think about the Lotus Sutra,
and then see who comes to visit you.
And when they come to visit you, you teach them the Lotus Sutra.
And while you're teaching the Lotus Sutra with them,
you may take a walk with them, or you may have lunch with them.
You have to see what's appropriate while you're teaching the Lotus Sutra,
whether you would move them or not.
I don't know what you'd do with them.
I don't know what I would do with them.
They aren't eating the plants.
I don't know if I need to protect the plants.
I feel that somehow plants are more allowed to be eaten than snails to be killed.
The source of this teaching, this truth,
is a place where the precept of no killing lives.
That's where the reality of no killing has its source, is in this teaching.
And meditating on silence and stillness,
meditating on this emptiness,
which is the unconstructedness,
the emptiness which is silent and still,
entering that place is entering the world of where there's no killing.
And then what kind of relationship do you have
in your garden with snails when there's no killing?
Then what is that?
And also no taking what's not given.
And no placing myself above someone.
That's the kind of world that is.
But there's still activity there.
You're still functioning.
I don't know what it would be.
You have to look and see what works in that place.
And if you're not in that place yet,
then you're trying...
You don't really see the no killing.
You don't actually see the no killing.
You're trying not to kill.
Which is fine.
Try not to kill.
When you still think it's possible.
When it looks like there is killing.
Try not to.
Try to avoid that falseness.
But if you're actually practicing the Lotus Sutra,
you're actually seeing not killing.
And then what kind of...
Then how can your relationship with the snails manifest it?
So, chapter 13 is kind of like,
well, if you can't do this, who can?
Chapter 14 is like, more gentle.
See if you can be gentle with the gentle and patient.
That's part of chapter 14.
Gentle and patient.
And not nasty with snails.
And then,
don't really be concerned with having a relationship with the snails.
Try to focus yourself on the truth,
and then see if the snails come to you.
Or dogs, or people, or whatever.
And then, when they come,
and people will come,
teach them.
That's the one part that I'm not so clear on,
is teach them.
Teach them,
show them how you're meditating on the Lotus Sutra.
Show them how you're meditating on
embodying the truth in your relationship with them.
Show them that.
Help open their eyes to how you're practicing with them.
Good question.
It looks like you understand how to practice, sort of.
Yes?
How did you eventually solve the doper problem?
Solve it?
I didn't actually solve it.
They keep coming.
They keep coming, yeah.
They keep coming.
And coming.
And coming.
You had fantasies of shooting them.
Shooting?
I think you said something once.
Not shooting.
Not shooting, I think.
I wouldn't say fantasy.
It wasn't exactly a fantasy.
It was a thought
of going to the hardware store
and getting some
very high-calorie gopher food
so that they would become so obese
that they couldn't get out their holes anymore.
I think...
Anyway, I did sort of think about gopher poison.
And then there's also gopher fishing.
You can fish for gophers too
by putting something delicious on the end of a hook
and putting it down the hole.
Somebody told me that.
I also thought of gopher snakes.
And
I thought of those things.
But so far I have not gone to the hardware store.
I did research gopher snakes on the internet though.
But the gophers are still coming
and they still make mounds
and then I rake the mounds away
and take the rocks and throw them away.
I do sometimes think
the gophers are making my garden rock-free
because they kind of regurgitate rocks up into these mounds
and I throw the rocks away.
So the garden is becoming less and less...
has less and less rocks in it.
It's surrounded by mountains of rocks.
The garden itself, I think...
Of course you can say, well, they keep going deeper and deeper.
They'll find rocks way, way down there.
That's just sort of among my discriminations.
You don't have to accuse me on that one.
Discriminations of the benefits of gophers.
They also kind of aerate the soil.
Okay?
But I, ladies and gentlemen,
have still not killed a gopher.
And they don't come that close to me
for me to get a chance to teach the Lotus Sutra.
You know, up close.
They don't get that close.
I do sometimes see them sticking their head up
and when I go over and look,
they pop away very quickly.
But, you know, these days I'm really not that troubled.
I don't feel that harassed by the gophers.
I think they're giving me kind of an easy time lately.
But it could get difficult again.
I hope I never have to come here and confess
that I killed a gopher.
I have done that.
It was euthanasia.
I come from Minnesota
and the mascot of the University of Minnesota
is the Golden Gophers.
So my wife refers to me as the King Gopher.
Actually, the King Gopher.
Gopher.
They tend to get more active when I'm out of town.
If you wanted to just be amused,
may I recommend, in case you haven't seen it already,
there's a wonderful Wallace and Raman movie.
I think they replaced gophers with rabbits.
But they definitely had a rabbit problem
and they sure had some interesting solutions.
I don't think they killed a single rabbit.
I'm talking just the lighter side of this problem.
I saw that movie.
It won an Academy Award, didn't it?
Cut.
So is Wilson the man?
Is Wilson the man or Gromit the man?
Wallace is the man.
Wallace is the man.
Gromit is the dog.
So I think Wallace actually turned into this giant rabbit, right?
Yeah.
He became this huge monster rabbit
because of his problem with rabbits, right?
Is that right?
Yes.
So I don't want to become the huge gopher.
That's right.
Also, people are giving me these gopher sounders.
There are these buzzers that you put down in the ground
to have a sound that annoys them.
Beep. Beep.
You have to move to another neighborhood.
Beep. Beep.
My gophers didn't mind it.
They actually are not exactly attracted to it
but they made a lot of mounds around the place where the sound thing was.
Maybe they are singing louder so they can't hear it.
But they didn't work.
But you see, a lot of people gave them to me
because they were afraid that I might kill the gophers.
And these things cost $49 a piece.
I would loan them to you if you want.
They look very ballistic.
But I don't use those.
I'm feeling pretty happy about my relationship with gophers recently.
And I think it has a lot to do with the Lotus Sutra.
So I'm just very happy to be studying the Lotus Sutra with you.
I'm trying to relax and not get too excited about it.
But I'm pretty darn happy about studying these wonderful sutras.
I feel like the seeds are germinating.
I shall return next week.
I will appear to leave Berkeley now.
Bye.
Thank you.
This is my seat, please.