This morning we just did a Bodhisattva ceremony, Ryakufusat. It means short, abbreviated, repentance and renewal ceremony. The ceremony has these two aspects of repentance and renewal. And so we say, all my ancient karma from beginningless greed, hate, and delusion, born of body, speech, and mind, I now fully avow. This is an acknowledgement of our worldly life. We don't say, oh, excuse me, or I'm sorry, although that's okay.

[01:13]

We don't count all of our mistakes or transgressions or errors one by one. What we do, this kind of repentance, is to be able to stand in the center of the eye of reality. After we chant the repentance, then we renew our intentions. We chant the names of the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas and the four vows and the precepts. And where we are is right in between, right where those two meet, where acknowledgement or repentance and renewal meet.

[02:25]

which is right in the center of the eye of our true nature. Each one of us is Buddha, which means that essentially our nature is the same nature as everything else in the universe. more than we can, more than is possible to think about. So a purpose of repentance and renewal of vows is to be right here, right now, in reality, without any hindrance. And to open ourselves.

[03:42]

It's not so much my transgressions or my faults or my shortcomings. When we say my, what we mean is I and everyone else. So all my ancient karma means all the ancient karma of everyone who has ever lived and will ever live in this world. So, as well, we take it personally, but also not too personally. In this way, we identify with all of human life.

[04:47]

So whatever it is that takes place in human life which obscures our realization of our true nature, we acknowledge that, we realize that. So to acknowledge all our hindrances is very important. All my ancient karma, karma means action, but it means action which is volitional. All my purposeful action, whether conscious or unconscious, And then there's a result from our actions.

[05:54]

Each one of our actions has a result. And this action and result, in a broad sense, we call our karma. And then we say, all my ancient twisted karma from beginningless greed, hate or anger and delusion. So greed, anger and delusion are called the three roots of ignorance or defilement or unwholesomeness. And the three good roots are non-greed, non-hate and non-delusion. When those are mentioned, they don't have a name.

[06:59]

You can think up names, but it's just the absence of greed, the absence of anger, the absence of delusion. This is what we call our good karma, good karma and bad karma. Bad karma is rooted in greed, hate and delusion, categorically. And good karma is non-greed, non-hate, non-delusion. Those are the three good roots. But you can't say anything. It's just the absence of greed, hate, and delusion. Greed, ill will, and delusion. Because basically everything is non-defiled. Basically, each one of us is Buddha, but when

[08:12]

greed, ill-will, and delusion arise, then our Buddha nature is obscured. So greed, ill-will, and delusion are like clouds which cover the sun. But the sun is always shining. The sun is always there. The moon is shining, but the clouds are very heavy, very dark. and don't allow that luminescence to come forth. So our ancient twisted karma is our actions which are rooted in greed, hate and delusion and obscure our nature, true nature, Buddha nature, which is always there, ready to be revealed at any moment.

[09:26]

Sometimes we get an insight into our nature and we say, but it doesn't stay there. We resume, we turn back or the curtain opens and we get a glimpse and then it closes again. And we find ourselves just where we were with the difference. The difference is that because the curtain opened, we have some idea or some inspiration of which way to go. And then we look for a direction of how to get there. And then we work hard to maintain that direction. And so to maintain that direction takes some intention. And that intention sometimes is called vows.

[10:34]

or direction. So after we acknowledge our ancient twisted karma born of greed, hate, and delusion, and body, speech, and mind, we renew our intention. So we say, I take refuge in Buddha, Dharma, Sangha. And then we recite the three pure precepts to renounce all evil, to reveal beginner's mind, and to save all beings. Basically, you can say them in different ways, different ways to say those three pure precepts. We chanted a little bit differently today. And those are very general, three general directions for our life.

[11:44]

And then we have the ten precepts, the ten specific or grave or precepts. don't kill, don't steal, don't misuse sexuality, don't drink or take dope or sell it, and so forth. And those are the 16 Bodhisattva precepts. They include the ten prohibitary or specific precepts, the three pure precepts, and the three refuges. Refuge means to be yourself. You say, I take refuge in Buddha, I take refuge in Dharma, I take refuge in Sangha.

[12:47]

But to take refuge in Buddha means to keep all the precepts. This is the main thing. Take refuge in Buddha means to keep all the precepts. But there are some Buddha outside of ourselves. We have to be very clear about this. It doesn't mean to take refuge in my ego. It doesn't mean to take refuge in some Buddha outside of myself. It means to take refuge in Buddha, which is my true self. So you can also say, return to Buddha, or return to myself, to my true self. Or to stand at the center of true self. And taking refuge in Dharma means to take refuge in the reality of the way things really are.

[13:59]

Dharma means several things. It means truth, or Buddha's truth, or the law. or reality. So to take refuge in Dharma means to take refuge in the way things really are without illusion or delusion and to understand as much as you can what is real. and not to be fooled by anything, not to be fooled by Buddhism. When we study Buddhadharma, of course we let it all in, but we should also challenge Buddhadharma.

[15:14]

We should also question Buddhism. In the course of 2,500 years, there are many things that have crept into Buddhism which are not necessarily reality or truth. And we always have to keep looking. and testing and questioning every aspect of Buddhism. Is this real? Is this true? Is this right? So that we're always standing in reality. religion that doesn't question itself easily becomes victim to its own doctrines and its own dogma.

[16:18]

So we have to be very careful. So investigating the truth, Shakyamuni Buddha said, you should investigate the truth. You shouldn't take what I say without questioning it and without finding your own way. So to study Buddha Dharma is to find your own way, to find your own truth. That doesn't mean to reject Buddhism or your friends. But within the practice, you have to come up with your own reality. Not your own made up reality, but your own understanding of truth. This is very important. That's why it's important to, when you practice, to really practice.

[17:22]

when you study, to really study critically and carefully. And to take refuge in Sangha is to take refuge in your friends, to practice together with your friends in a narrow sense and with everyone and everything in a wide sense. Dharma also means, you know, we say dharmakaya. Dharmakaya means the great essence of things beyond thought and consciousness. out of which everything springs forth. But dharmas are all the things that are sprung forth from dharma.

[18:28]

So dharma with a capital D is essence of mind or universal nature or call it whatever you want. And the dharmas with a small d are all of the phenomena in the world, in this universe. So dharma and dharmas are related to each other. So each dharma carries essence of mind. In a grain of sand is the whole universe. But if you try to crack it open and find it, you can't find it that way. You can't vivisect a grain of sand to try and find the essence of mind. A grain of sand, just as it is, is the essence of mind.

[19:35]

Do you see it or don't you? So, Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha form is the focus for how we, it's a focus for studying the Dharma and practicing. In the meal chant we say, Vairojana Buddha, the Dharmakaya Vairojana, we pay homage to the Dharmakaya Vairojana Buddha, We pay homage to the Sambhogakaya Lochana Buddha and we pay homage to the Nirmanakaya Shakyamuni Buddha. Vairochana Dharmakaya is maybe you could say is Buddha.

[20:36]

To take refuge in Buddha is to take refuge in the Dharmakaya, Vairochana Buddha. Vairochana is a name of Buddha, which personifies the essence of all existence without moving. It's the unmoving essence. It's both the manifest and unmanifest essence. And so you can say, take refuge in Buddha is take refuge in the Dharmakaya Buddha of your own nature, in the essence, not just in the manifestations, in stillness, beyond consciousness. And to take refuge in Dharma

[21:44]

is like Sambhogakaya Buddha. Sambhogakaya Buddha is the manifest Dharma. It's the expression of Dharmakaya as both the law and things. Everything in the world, in the universe, exists according to the laws of Dharma. So to take refuge in dharma is to not only understand how things work, but to act in accordance with it. And this is the law of karma. If you act outside of the law of dharma, then you create unwholesome karma.

[22:46]

And if you act within the laws of dharma, then you create wholesome karma. So it's important to know how things work. And the essence or the law, the main law of karma, of dharma for us is everything changes. No thing has its own being. and everything is interdependent with everything else. This is the law of Dharma. And if we don't act in accordance with these laws, then we become lost, or we get hurt, and we hurt others. So it's very important to understand what is Dharma. This is Sambhogakaya Buddha.

[23:52]

And Nirmanakaya Buddha is the person, Sangha. One person is Sangha. Nirmanakaya Buddha is Shakyamuni Buddha. the manifestation or the embodiment of Buddha as a person, walking and talking and so forth. And we say each one of us is Shakyamuni Buddha. In the old translation of the meal chant, we used to say the innumerable Shakyamuni Buddhas. So to take refuge in Buddha means to take refuge in the Buddha within ourself, that is ourself.

[24:59]

Dharmakaya, Sambhogakaya, and Nirmanakaya. Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha. Akin Roshi says, our life work is to accept the fact that we're on a bodhisattva path. To accept the fact that actually we all have to be bodhisattvas. And sometimes we wake up to that. And sometimes it's hard to wake up to that. And sometimes after we wake up to that, it's hard to manifest it.

[26:02]

But I think we all have to accept the fact that that's our path. Difficult or easy or whatever. So there's an old saying, when we sit Zazen, we keep all the precepts. That's pretty easy though. But what about when you're not sitting Zazen? When we're not sitting Zazen, it's not so easy to keep all the precepts. don't kill, don't steal, blah, blah.

[27:12]

Precepts are not written down, they're not the Ten Commandments. They're guidelines for our behavior. And we can also write our own precepts. And I think that we do write our own precepts. And, you know, morality changes, ways of thinking change in this world, ways of acting. And so precepts have to also undergo some kind of change. Usually, there are precepts which are somewhat fixed. You know, don't kill, don't steal.

[28:14]

These presets are not something imposed on us, even though they seem to be. Sometimes we say, well, I don't want to follow something that's imposed on me. But presets come out of our own understanding. They come out of our own wish to follow Dharma. When we understand Dharma, then we realize that precepts come out of our own wish to follow Dharma. But it's hard for us to accept that. So when we really wake up, and have the desire to follow Dharma, then the precepts will come from our own inner request. The Japanese Buddhist way of following precepts is a little different than in some other countries.

[29:30]

Sometimes it looks like the Japanese Priests don't pay much attention to precepts. Usually they don't talk about them in taisho or lecture. They're treated sort of like koans. And you talk over, you discuss the precept with your teacher in dokusan. Because precept is not so simple. Don't kill is not so simple. Sounds simple. Oh, don't kill. But did you ever not kill? Everything in the whole universe is being killed right now. And everything in the universe is bringing to life right now. So this precept sounds simple, but it's not so simple.

[30:37]

So Japanese Buddhists are very careful about how they deal with precepts, and not so much in a literal sense. But I know that my experience with Suzuki Roshi was he didn't talk about precepts so much, or if he did, he would do it cursorily, but he was talking about precepts all the time. But he didn't say, this is precepts. Because precepts should come out of your understanding. They should be your precepts, not something imposed. Sometimes we have to impose, you know, like little kids, we say, don't do this and don't do that and da da da. But when we're grown up, You know, we should, precepts or right way of living should come out of our natural desire.

[31:41]

But I think in America, we have to talk about precepts and we have to have some real guidelines for practice. Otherwise, we get lost. So there are several ways of talking about precepts. One is literally. Literally, don't kill. Well, if you look at literally don't kill, I think that's good. And you can take it so far. Don't kill people. That's good. Don't kill for pleasure or for thoughtlessly or mindlessly or protect life, sustain life, maintain life.

[32:52]

That's the other side. But on the other hand, Every time you scratch your nose, you're killing something. Every time you walk or breathe, you're killing something. Life is being terminated. Some kind of existence. It's impossible to eat without killing something. And we may make some differentiation between animals and plants, but plants scream. This is now a well-known fact, that plants scream when we cut them. So we really can't get away from it. But how do we handle it?

[33:53]

So, knowing that we can't get away from killing, and knowing that it's possible to try not to kill. In between those two, you have to do something on each moment. So real precepts lies in this area. What do you do on each moment? How do you act on each situation? Not with a formula, but according to the circumstances. So how we deal with the precept of not killing is big koan for us.

[34:56]

It's not something that we can figure out so easily. You have to figure it out situation by situation. Don't steal is the same thing. Don't lie, same thing. So, we're always standing in the creative moment, aware of birth and death on each moment, and aware of the consequences of our actions on each moment, and having to choose on each moment, having to make a choice.

[36:14]

There's no fixed way. And if we are able to do that, then we are always alive and we're always interacting with life as life. As soon as we have a formula, then our life becomes mechanical and we start to die. So there's no formula. There's just choice in this every living moment. And we make our best effort to make the right choice. Because we know that everything we do has consequences, both for ourselves and for others. This is karma. So it's important to acknowledge our ancient twisted karma, born from greed, hate and delusion, and body, speech and mind.

[37:58]

And be careful. Be very careful. So today, we're sitting all day, and we can keep the precepts pretty easily, but be careful.

[38:21]

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