Zen Training

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don't worry
when i wake up in the morning
i think about them
on
monster agreed ill will and illusion has taken over
what we call our country
and i don't want to talk about all time
i think about it all again
and you know we could talk about all of them
and what about you but i'm already know
oh is played out every day
you know what we already know
islam
ha
present so called government
the so-called president and his so-called
a master
i am
this
ah
taking it taking the nation apart
in the name of created eleven delusion
ah everyday another revelation but the revelation doesn't really a revelation because they already know
it's just a matter of being played out as you see
and like a movie actually
you expect us to things that are being played out to play out
you expect the government to be missed the and dismantled
and if you didn't expect that you really naive
i know what people expected
anyway so i want to talk about zen practice
ah
but there's something called the people say that cope zen training
so what is that training is the opposite of what's happening
in our country
to our country is just the opposite
and some
you know there's no real definition from what is that sent training
because in the sense we don't think so of it as training
usually we think of training and as a goal where do you train for something which you have steps in training and a goal there's something i'm sad but
ah
it's not a curriculum
centrally is not a curriculum it's how we live our life moment by moment
according to ah
what we work for you to come
a feel is the laws of reality
so
i made a little list of things
that i'm glad we consider that we we trade with of were concerned with and our daily activities
well first of all buddha is an obstacle
wish we could put it this wonderful baby right the food is an obstacle
buddha
ah
i'm
but it is an obstacle to r
self-centeredness
and since mostly we operate under our self centeredness i didn't fit all the time but without realizing it most of the time were operating out of our
self-centeredness which is delusional
and for good as an obstacle because
when we're practicing dharma
we run up against buddha
our true nature
and then we have a lot of problems that
but i'll get back to that
so learning how to control our ego the zen practice
and we say get rid of you should get really of people but you cannot really get rid of your it doesn't mean
i'm a buddhist language sometimes it's kind of like black and white what up nuance
but i'm getting rid of is not possible because eagle is important
and it's how we out we control our impulses
how we teach our ego so buddha teaches our ego we are too
we're parked i have a double nature self centered nature and buddha-nature course simpson and nature is good nature but it's
self centered nature is buddha delusion
but as as a delusion as andaluz delusion being
so boot it takes many roles
so when
buddha is actually teacher of our self centered ordinary being self so myself i me and my i mean mind three that the trump trinity of
the trinity egocentric centricity
so for ego is is that are delusional side are delusional so it's necessary it's important to have delusion
but delusion means
do dualistic understanding the basically could delusion delusory understanding in buddhism is that
is the dual touristic nature which means good and bad right and wrong yes it no because we live in a dualistic world
except that it's hard even though we live in a dualistic world it's more than just a dualistic world but we have to pay attention to the dualistic world
otherwise we can really operate as a person
so
but our buddha nature
ah educates us hopefully if we really pay attention if we have faith in our buddha nature than buddha nature really can guide us
we have to face and good and enter buddha nature can guide us
from what we mean by giving us up over to ourself or to r buddha nature are big mind instead of our small pine which of course as until the stick and unconscious stickle
so we need to have some ego some sense of self but are put in nature lets us know that our sense of self is false
but we accept that
the
self during the source files
the self settling on herself
herself during the self pilot so fill the to when we say self the to notions
one is floors laugh and big self so small subset of the big so that's the self doing the self by yourself
so selfishness is the activity of the self
of the ego
so if nerf
meaning me first me big
be control
me want
i'm so so learning how to not have how to guide the self rather than how to eliminate it because it's necessary so if we have no desire
a characteristic of himself as is a phone and desire if we have no desire
because as i boy i like to say when desire is turned to a practice is not recall desire
this called were taking my call it were seeking mind
another worth putting yourself under the control of your buddha nature that's why thinking mind
letting and having faith in a in your true self rather than and in this town
good centered self which is always changing
what is it
so this is how we practice this is how we train ourselves
adam
zen training
and of course it the center essential act activity of the zen training is doesn't or you can actually let go of your ego but can they go your self centeredness and merge with your to nature which is the
universe
so it looks like you know when you sit zazen you're separating yourself from the world in a sense that's true but it's not so
but
separating
are merging
ah eco with the universe is actually to let go of the south and be one with universe which means that your instead of limiting yourself you're expanding yourself
so the more we can limit or diego centricity lot bigger we get
so
we should also be aware of my surroundings
not just you know
when we're thinking too much we tend to forget our surroundings professors do this out time i'm always thinking about something you have to be kind around by the hand because their minds are are so active
yeah so when i commend the zendo and i borrow the altar and i'm thinking about my talks and thinking you think i pick up my in which i'm not supposed to do and i just think automatically because the mind is distracted by what i'm gonna do next
the central heating is to be focused on what we're doing now
what we can do next it's okay but what we're doing now is really important because this is the only moment there is
so then is not an academic curriculum
although academic it's okay it's included but it's not the focus
we don't graduate
no graduation where you're finally it
because actually we did have time but we don't not
so
ah
progress in a zen training is to actually be where you are
it's not going from place
i'm finding something out or getting more knowledge
but we just knowing really who you are
that's difficult we don't like to accept who we are mostly because we want to be what we want to be instead of being what we are
so zen practice of radical
acceptance of where we are
that's our training
oh and then there's i'm taking responsibility
one aspect of sin training
is to we say
what aspect in a zen training is too
practice with others
practicing with others
but people people often come in and they don't have the a doesn't instruction
and practice for a while and then she is it okay if i practice at home and of course you can do anything you want why should i be the ugh
tell you where you can do at home to what everyone when i first started practicing
well it is this in san francisco and i would go to window but then i go to golden gate park and sit in the bargain you know if experiment with doesn't
which you find you know but sanga practicing with saga is where training takes place
so
although i don't like the idea of proselytizing or saying you have to come to the zendo you know to build up the saga
well with your presence although i do think that but that's not my goal in teaching
but it should be your goal in being a student
it's too because your presence you think will they're over there sitting in the zendo and i get to go there when it as soon as you go through her you are actually creating the practice for everyone
you may think i'm just a beginner but if a beginner a beginner's practice encourages everybody we tend to think the older people been practicing for years they are encouraging everybody which they are but a new pet
person who doesn't know what you're doing and is making this effort to find out that encourages everybody
so the practice of a novice it's just as important in helping people to practice because when they see your struggles and they said your difficulties and how you approach and ah
take the practice on is that that's the most encouraging thing for everybody and for the people have been practicing for forty years that's really encouraging
but people have know that they think i'm just you know
whatever you do think some people think they already know all about it
and then when they come up against buddha they run away
so good i can be an obstacle
ah so the obstacles are practice
that's the that's the most important thing in our practices obstacles is an obstacle course
and i have to be a little bit athletic
flexible
not athletic meet people from to become in gym shorts you know to as if it's a in a physical therapy but
ah
ah flexibility
and lightness is ah
our training how to be flexible and like
and more than one by likeness of body and mind when like shining through the body and mind and light that shines through the body mind
comes from having flexibility and alive ah likeness about body mind agility
he's an important things
not happiness and weightiness ah and profundity
can be heavy gravity is profundity in music
but it's also
important the seriousness of seriousness needs to be balanced by likeness
an agility of mind agility of body mind and flexibility a body and mind
so everything is balance
i'm
you know what we non duality
is
to understand or
understand
or
practice non duality is what zen practice is
i'm so we have everything has two sides but the two sides really are two sides and one coin
we do we tend to not quite grasp the one the the whole coin
we didn't fall into heads or tails
but non-duality is the whole coin
tell a tale of details and heads needs tales
you can't cut up tails and just have a have but that's it we're always doing wrong with swelling into one side of the other it's very hard to walk that tightrope between heads and tails
and that's what we do in zazen we walked the tightrope between heads and tails we fall into happiness
pain or pleasure
but we have to understand that has pain and pleasure and displeasure in pain
that's not in the non masochistic understand it
now that you love the pain gets a little masochistic but you understand the pain and except pan as and when you can do that it's vulnerable
because he rise above it
it's not that you wallow in it
when you can rise about pleasure and pain
have you have the whole coin
and that's what pleasure is
it's it's what reality is
hmm so taking responsibility as i said in some
ah when you
practice with the saga concentrating and you don't have to do anything special but as you
practically lives a place to practice with the mississauga caught the zendo so that's what your practice and training takes place part of your training
but and then you your presence helps everyone that encourages everyone and
if we're only practicing by herself we am
we don't have any correctives
so it's easy to go astray
so practicing but others are gives us corrective
i'm practicing her teacher the saga and
studying the dharma together
and just associating with each other
ah is the actually what quick
create for teaching
not even having to say anything
the less we have to say
over that can be disputed less we have to say and just associate and to the same practice together then something subliminally that educates us so to speak
so that's taking responsibility
taking responsibility for yourself and helping others

so
you know
japanese ancestor matthew dog in most of us now and again was he was a fountain headwear soto zen practice from japan
which came to him from china
which came to china from india so long
road and that
a target has a m
know he wrote one hundred many festivals in is for gold shop again vote yeah
ah don't i
practice and
his first bicycle
the main physical is called kin joe co-op yes you know and
good and exam there's a she can tampa and can and go on practice for god it looks like one like she contessa is not common practice but it is
and on practice and study the dialogues some the old masters
as go on as
ah
ah
sometimes people think so
soto zen practice though can practice doesn't deal with coins but actually it's not so and tolkien wrote this farcical about go on called ginger go on which is the on of daily life
ah
and a question and tokens bicycles he's always quoting the cons of which some people back to sense
there are practice so are many practice is also common practice but we have one go on to cut the dogan left for us which is called the kindle go on
i am the car launch arises moment by moment
which we cannot escape
just not something that was thought up it's it's what we cannot escape basically and what and which we're always trying to escape
so i'm going to read you a little
definition which i think it's very nice a boys like this
from my my jimmy russia's former disciple
ah of course it it it's not his thing but he wrote this so
read to chabot gonzo is the name of a larger work with of which get joke on his part
it literally means a treasury of the true dharma i the i have wisdom which is able to bridge the gap
a
about one is duality
so ginger coin itself can be divided into two principal elements the word can go on
ginger means to make real or to manifest
sargento means manifesting manifesting means what we take is reality
right you look around and we see all the objects
the world and we call this reality or manifesting but everything manifests momentarily so i say things are not real although they seem real
what is really real is momentary so
to manifest or to make real and refers to phenomena
to the image know me to living of our lives in this most concrete sense but we usually call the reality of our lives
co on on the other hand points to the absolute side
the side of oneness of completeness so according to one trance lesion co means to make even are flat
this is like em
ha ah horizontal right
go means men even or flat
for equality basically
all things being equal
and on means to have its own position
so get your go on then beans on one level that the position we call a dominant position the position to each thing is absolute
in other words each momentary moment
is also eternal
are absolute
and so this table for example
and at the same time the infinite indestructible universe itself
in the same way each of us is all of reality
so get your car that means that everyday life is realization and everyday life is the way
the term buddha dharma has similar implications buddha refers to wonders to the absolute side and dharma refers to the side of differences
together they point to the ongoing integration of harmony of oneness and difference
palm sunday guy
the
as a harmony of oneness and difference but we usually divide them
so this is how we just start training is to understand
the differences the difference of wonders and the one is a difference
from
again joe is the
the wisdom of differentiation our our usual life how you everything relates to everything else nothing exists by itself everything on the existing relationship everything
so when we say well who am i
what am i
i'm the universe when we reduce our ego me to only what's really essential
then we actually grow
we we expand
when we are focused on our ego we actually contract
and limit myself
that's what people will big ego hester
to rely on greed l will on delusion in order to grow
but real growth is to that go of create ill will and delusion so that you can beer on your true
ah eliminated
be
this is how you blend with universe
which is our true body

so he says we can appreciate his life as his physical body which includes all things and as this for of
actually of living and doing another another in in either case the absolute and relative are inseparable but it is important to remember that these words and all words are only an explanation
that's why we have to actually practice
but if ah
important also to study because study keeps us focused on practice
instead of mine strength to an essential things
distractions
we study and study keeps the focus so it's important because the mind esophageal
we just kill
turn this way and that by interesting things

i
i'm gonna end with
you know
ah plus the been to who are one of our ancient indian ancestors
i'm the been die dire show
was great buddhist philosopher and
but he presented
a list of dharmas
our are diamonds
i'm
ah
ah thanks
when things actually
but very specific diamonds that are important for ah
any buddhist practice
as training
the wholesome dharmas and unwholesome diamonds
so there and these were codified one hundred dharmas
mhm
are eleven wholesome dharmas which we should cultivate
and there are a six afflictions and twenty derivative afflictions and then a lot of afflictions
and some intermediate afflictions
this is a indian understanding
so the eleven wholesome dharmas are faith
that's what i've talked about vigor
shame remorse absence of agreed absence of anger exit action absence of stupidity
that that's a good translation i like that translation
we think delusion stupidity yeah really is light is non laxness renunciation and not harming so if we practice these wholesome dharmas as a training
the sustainer our life actually i practice life
so it's important to have a dog else's faith is the without trip we can't really practice
you know
and faith has a kind of bad name in because of people associated with certain
religious practices
but actually is the most important thing
without trace you can't really do anything you can't even stand up without cliff
why sit down and you can sit down
we're always dealing with gravity you know a whole life is controlled by gravity everything we do is control that gravity
that's why to have hey
it's been an important journal
nigger means
to actually put yourself into action to do something
and it covers a lot of territory
i'm asserting yourself initiating our practice
shame and remorse or actually called the guardians of the world
because there are people who haven't neither
and their control and got a country right now
no shame no remorse
as statements
i am not ashamed of what i'm doing i have no remorse
at group of it oh okay
gamble for you
yeah absence of greed happened to your absence of stupidity user god
agreed anger and stupidity and called the the poisons three poisons and they and society
if it's the am
ah
the actual about which the wheel turns
so absence of greed and for the ladder and social development is what precess that's called nirvana
when there's no grade no anger no stability which is hard
that's wanna
the cool thing
so ladies which i talked about
and flexibility and non blown answer non laxness
ah
as a directly onto a tomorrow you know that hard time it was taking care of things right now take care of what's in front of you right now
i find that hard rock sometimes
it means to let go and self-centeredness
and on harming man's
no
i sorry for the army so these are cookware
is to cultivate
the six fundamental afflictions our greed anger stupidity arrogance doubt an improper views improper use means we think
that
ah
what is actually harmful is harmless
and we think that what is pleasurable is really not pleasurable
and we think should
what works actually doesn't work has gone topsy turvy news
which is mentioned in portraiture upside down use
so
and then twenty derivative afflictions to avoid
rath hatred rage covering rage are recovering or as kind of associated with denial
our is
bramble deceit flattery conceit harming jealousy and stinginess so these are all impediments and we should realize when these arise
we should be aware of when is un wholesome factors are down as arise so we're practicing with them all the time
and then lack of shame lack of remorse which are the guardians
i'm an a major great affliction lack of faith laziness blackness which kind of like a topper
and restlessness is to be unsettled restlessly can't sit down and you can't stand up don't know what to do
distraction
out which surrounds us improper knowledge
i'm not sure what that is betting guess and scattered this means the mine easily is distracted
so everything is fine for our mind
especially in this busy busy society where everybody tries to seduce your mind
ah
everyday we actually
get these advertisements in the mailbox and then you you take it down the mailbox normally pieces fall out and get experience that didn't have to pick 'em up but him in the garbage terrible
everything's trying to seduce your mind kit this kit the do this to live and it's hard to just stay
a with a practice
really hard and even people been practicing a long time at some point they say well i'm going to go out there and get distracted
they don't say that
but it's easy something started to draw you away it's interesting
it's okay
sometimes people come back they say they don't say anything that they say oh this is just like when i lived i had somebody come over doctor may after twenty years or something so things are just exactly like when i lived i said i and he said home
there was no in between
so
that's some
ah
oh
some pointers
and
st training
it's not about getting anything it's actually about let it go
that's what's interesting is about it's not about getting something no gaining
the boy again to are burdened you are
we see look into people's garages
know
no does all his you know because we can't get rid of good regents
what you know
so we can't all be marks
or three bowls and three rubs and a bowl and doesn't dig the ground that's india china the mugs people didn't like the fact that all these young guys were going into into the monasteries when it was time for harvest
so
the months also cultivated fields that has work practice and that's how work practice developing in india there was no work practice in just big treat your food
and you bet you paid for it through your practice it's not that they got food free they paid for the hood through their practice
we say in a wheelchair as i've said over and over
may our virtue and practice deserve this meal
we can we
beans it's not free
it is freely given
but the they have to earn it
it's not just like ah you know
spoiled brat

so on
this is why if i practice is sincere
will always be for always be for fed

because i'm practice is not just for herself
this what people don't understand is located in the practice at home it's okay you should matter of fact
on the surface it looks like this is the zendo and you'll walk out the door and that's up there there's the world and then there's the zendo
but you never leave that once you enter the zendo as a practitioner you never leave the zendo
because it's like that little thing that when you open your computer and is the little finger on the bottom of them
then you and you can pull the whole thing over ripe
you pull the whole picture over
so when you walk out the door the zendo expands to a real are so you never leave
so okay
well if you're going to if you if you're never gonna leave you there were gonna come
if you're gonna if you're not going to die and i couldn't be born and if you're not going to be born you're not going die