When I was at, when we were at Pasajara in, I think 1973 it was. It was a difficult time for me. on. When I had some wobbliness, I always went to Every time I wonder about some time to talk that's coming up, I always think about, well, let's see, I should talk about something always happens to provide some beginning point.

[02:37]

A few days ago, I was with some people when we were talking about practice. And somebody said, actually they had some questions. They said, if my breathing is good, breathe easy, and my mind feels calm, and my attitude is good, why do I have to sit in this posture? Why can't I lie down? Why can't I close my eyes if that's comfortable?

[03:43]

Why do we need to sit in this posture? The interesting thing about that kind of question, or the tendency to want to do that, people come to practice, although we didn't know it, people don't know it. The rationalizing mind that says, oh, if I do this, we justify some comfort or some convenience.

[04:56]

Little by little we go astray because we rationalize in our mind that it's okay not to do this or it's okay not to do that. We find that we've gone astray. Now, we want to come to practice. And we don't know what's happened, we don't know why. But when we first start to do this practice, that kind of question maybe comes up for most of us, for lots of people. Why do I have to do that? Not understanding, because I have been practice.

[06:30]

Actually, this practice is not hard, so-called hard. Practice here called easy. It is our mind that makes it hard. that in itself is quite hard.

[08:14]

Our culture, our society Shortcuts. It's the cause of the greatest suffering.

[10:29]

This is the cause of suffering, I think. Because laziness finds joy in an activity, in being fully involved and at one with what we are doing. short-circuiting, denying our own true self.

[11:45]

When that happens, we wind up not liking ourselves, we lose respect for ourselves, but we don't understand why. So it's a problem for us when we're too much, too much addicted to conveniences, physical, mental. We develop and for each other, because our emphasis is then on simply using.

[12:57]

This is very convenient and it's fine, but when we forget that it's just some machine, we think everybody is just something to use. So the danger is we lose respect for ourselves and each other, and we simply go about using things. And when we discover we can't use somebody, we go to war with them, try to conquer them. We wind up competing, fighting, and becoming very separated. His basic question of

[14:22]

basis for a very serious problem. Actually, what this practice saying, kind of Zen saying, that said we should, from a blade of grass we create a golden Buddha,

[15:34]

It takes a constant effort to see Buddha, not just in the statue, but in everything, smallest thing, leaf, blade of grass. To see Buddha, to create Buddha in even a leaf, a blade of grass, I'm very satisfied to see the work of some artists, to see Buddha that way. Some artists create Buddha for me. Most people are willing to let the artist create Buddha or let someone else wonderful teacher we may have, we have to do the work.

[17:19]

When we don't practice we have, our mind is full of delusion, full of illusory ideas. And this leads to a way of thinking puts us in a trap, a wrong kind of intellectualizing about everything, when we live in delusion, when we are filled with illusory ideas. Because of discriminating and rationalizing mind, we fall into this kind of intellectualization about everything.

[18:42]

When that happens, we can't see how things are going. One of the eightfold paths is right observation. When our mind is full of illusory ideas and discrimination, it prevents us from seeing how things really go. How we can be in our society or our civilization without being trapped by it or being owned by it is a big question, a big question for most of us.

[20:07]

People that want to practice usually have harmful to us in some way, preventing us in some way from being truly ourselves, trapped. How to be in our society, how to utilize our civilization, to really be part of it, to enjoy it, to function in it, not to drop out of it, to be really part of it, and participate with everyone, happening. How to do that without being owned by it? Even in this country where we are very free to do anything we want, we feel trapped.

[21:13]

We can feel trapped. Through Zazen we can As in, we give up discriminating mind, and become free of emotional attachments. We are free from emotional discriminating mind, and these illusory ideas. everyday life. True Buddhism comes to us, Zazen, only when we

[22:32]

full acceptance of what appears, and we can have full acceptance of our practice. Without any shortcuts, even with confusion about what, exactly what we're doing, we go ahead anyhow. True Buddhism doesn't appear to us by trying, trying to grab it. This truth appears to us when we have complete acceptance, when we trust this practice and trust ourselves. when we sit down in this practice.

[23:39]

When we have true respect for ourselves and our practice, then we don't concern ourselves with At that time we really can trust how this practice has been set up for us by our friends and teachers and everyone who came before, hundreds and hundreds of years. This way has been set up to help us practice true practice. hard, not set up to be easy, not set up to be anything like that, just established to help us practice true practice.

[24:53]

So we trust that. urge or feeling, something like that, and we want to practice. If we feel somehow we want to practice, we start with trusting that. We have to trust that. I don't know what it is. Trust it. Then we have to trust the practice that is appealing to us. Trust both. I was talking to a woman who said, for six... I found this practice six years ago, but I don't do it.

[26:11]

Very rarely do I do it. I feel I must sit, but I can't. She said, I feel I must sit, but I can't. This may not be unusual. I don't think many people speak that way, but probably not so unusual. The problem is we all work to set up our lives in some way with some organization or some security or some way we define our life and ourselves so that we can relieve anxiety, know what we are doing, feel we know what we are doing, we've set things up in some way, have some image of ourselves in how we fit in this world, and it enables us to go ahead every day with some idea of how to proceed.

[27:33]

If the way-seeking mind is really there, when we sit down, we see our illusory mind within the framework we've established. We see something in some subtle way. We don't know what we will see. But when we sit down, something wants to crumble. Something that we have set up, some illusory thing that we have established, wants to crumble because it's not in the true nature. And this feels kind of threatening. You work so hard to set up something, and you sit down and it wants to crumble. Somewhere back here it says, you work so hard, you can't give it up. So even though she wants to sit to her true nature, doesn't want to be owned by it or trapped by it, nonetheless, part of her doesn't want to give it up.

[28:53]

It's a big dilemma. So it's been a big effort. Even if we feel that way, some kind of threat to what we have established, even if we go ahead, when we go ahead, if we can go ahead, then there is the possibility of creating Buddha from a leaf, a tree, a glass of water, or a friend. This is why sangha is so important. When you sit together, when somebody comes with a tentative feeling like that, a scary feeling, and they say, I want to sit, but I just can't.

[30:08]

If they find you sitting, if they see that you sit day after day, continually, month after month, solidly, without doubt, without compromise. People are encouraged to join. This is the most important kind of teacher, Sangha. Sincere Sangha is the most Accept what we find when we sit down.

[31:19]

Accept our practice, whatever it shows us. Have perfect acceptance of what we are doing. When we can sit without discrimination, without emotion or lying, Acceptance is there. Dzogchen practice is the practice of acceptance. When perfect acceptance takes place, everything is oriented exactly as it should be, according to its own nature and circumstances. mind of acceptance, we have to be very flexible.

[32:29]

Flexible like some musical instrument. Both firm and flexible at the same time. We'll finely tune violin or guitar perfectly firm, but you will easily respond to your breath. Flexible also is the flowing river.

[33:35]

Everything is changing. When we have this kind of courage and attitude, it's religious life. Making our effort to really understand the truth of our life is called leading a religious life.

[34:53]

Making effort to understand the truth. Understanding the truth means seeing things as they naturally are. How are things really? In order to see that, we must have a perfect accepting mind. This is a zazen practice. We just sit down, no questions asked, no discrimination. No big deal.

[36:03]

Just sit down. without emotion, without discrimination. We can really see how things are. This is how we extend our practice into everyday life, wherever we go. Whatever we may do, whatever will come, we see it, without attachment. We do it completely, take care of it the best way we can.

[37:03]

Really quite simple, but at the same time requires effort. Constantly see Buddha in a plate of brass or stone or your neighbor who's making a big noise. Constant effort to let go of mind that wants Sangha effort, we make it easier and easier for everyone to do it.

[38:15]

Which is why we gather together on beautiful Saturday summer morning, instead of being fishing or swimming. We understand this truth, so we come together to encourage ourselves, encourage each other, encourage everyone. opportunity to search for truth. It all may sound very heavy-duty, but because everyone is such good friends, it's quite a joyful experience.

[39:30]

We actually have everything. We share our friendship. We share good times with each other. Why can't I take this? DNA, strawberry, antifreeze experience?

[40:56]

Experiment. Experiment? Right. Oh. Like any scientific thing we have to be careful. If we take one side or the other, let's just do science, or no, let's not do anything because it's dangerous. If we just take one side or the other, nothing happens. So we have to be balanced. So we can do that experiment. If they go in there too quickly and spray too quickly without knowing what they're doing, it's a big danger.

[42:06]

In favor of the experiment, we care. Same way about nuclear energy, all these things. Yes. It seems like there's another question. When someone asks a question, why do I have to sit so straight? And it seems like the other question is, why don't I know my Buddha nature when I'm not? So that's your question? Oh, I just noticed it. A big question. That was... Do you know something of the history of the practice?

[43:12]

Do you know of Dogen? And his question. That was his question. That was his question. When he was in Japan and studying, he said, How do we do this if we're already enlightened? Buddha says we're enlightened. Why don't I know it? None of the teachers can answer you. Go to China. It's a good question. Bye.

[44:32]

to decide, this is right for me, this is not right for me. We will understand, based on the sitting. When they say, just sit, they say, you understand. Don't just believe me. Sit and you will understand. This is what we're trying to say. I had that same experience when I first found the San Francisco Zen Center. sitting, or zazen, or anything. And he said, it never ended, dummy.

[46:35]

It took me years. Oh. In the spiritual guidance, we go to a lot of much more strict morality, much more philandric, more employed, where in a sudden feeling, something can happen.

[48:12]

or some way of more advanced I mean, there's a lot of, you know, as you say, there's a lot of people looking because since the life has physically only been extended, say, ten years,

[49:30]

get more and more out of life. If you give, you get more and more out of life. Mahayana Buddhism is not a shortcut. A shortcut means I have to get somewhere. So I take some shortcut. Mahayana Buddhism says, you have nowhere to go. And you're there. But you get on the path anyhow. So from that standpoint, Mahayana Buddhism is like Southern school. You're already there. Suddenly, you're already there. But at the same time, There can be no shortcut if we are already... if we are the goal itself.

[51:07]

It's impossible to shortcut when there's no distance. So, this is an interesting point because when we are concerned with shortcuts, what we're looking for Then we can begin to understand, oh, no need, I'm here. very practical standpoint, it's an opportunity for our mind to, you know, let go of things that concern it every day.

[52:26]

If you have a... excuse me? Yes. I'm talking about the whole thing, not just talking about the whole thing. Oh, yes. Yes, I understand. A full day is very good. That's not very long, actually. It seems long. It seems long. So start with half day. It's good. It's a very big help. It's a very big help. When we can do sashin, then when we go back and do everyday practice, you find It's help, it helps. And then later we do another one and we find it always helps every day. Practice, it's a big practice. Oh, okay.

[53:48]

Half day. Start with half day. One day is a shortcut. One day is, yeah. I don't know if they ever, in China and Japan, if they ever did one day retreat. They probably just did, you know, three months. But, But you'll find it's very helpful. Be glad you did. Everybody is. Thank you very much.

[54:44]

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