Bankei's nothing to do with rules

[ BANKEI ZEN Translations from the Record of Bankei by PETER HASKEL ]

Nothing to do with rules

"That's why, in my place, I'm always telling everyone, 'Abide in the Unborn Buddha Mind and nothing else!'

Other than that, I'm not setting up any special rules and making them practice.

All the same, since everyone got together and decided to practice for [a period of] twelve sticks of incense4 every day, I told them,

'Go ahead, do whatever you like'; so I'm letting them practice every day for [a period of] twelve sticks of incense.

But the Unborn Buddha Mind isn't a matter of sticks of incense!

When you abide in the Buddha Mind and don't become deluded, Sermons • 59 then, without looking for enlightenment outside, you'll just sit in the Buddha Mind, just stand in the Buddha Mind, just sleep in the Buddha Mind, just get up in the Buddha Mind—just abiding in the Buddha Mind, so that in all your ordinary activities you function as a living buddha. There's really nothing to it.

"As for zazen, since za ['sitting'] is the Buddha Mind's sitting at ease, while zen ['meditation'] is another name for Buddha Mind, the Buddha Mind's sitting at ease is what's meant by zazen.

So when you're abiding in the Unborn, all the time is zazen; zazen isn't just the time when you're practicing formal meditation. Even when you're sitting in meditation, if there's something you've got to do, it's quite all right to get up and leave.

So, in my group, everyone is free to do as he likes. Just always abide at ease in the Buddha Mind. You can't simply remain sitting from morning till night, so do walking meditation5 for one period; and you can't just keep on your feet, either, so sit down and meditate for one period. You can't very well do nothing but sleep, so you get up; and you can't just keep on talking, so I let you practice meditation. But this has nothing to do with rulesl

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Winddrakes Rule set: So easy enough right? Why is this so hard? Why would anyone want to even do this? What up with rules? How do we become deluded? Can we ever really not be in buddah mind?

Ok I will take a crack at my own questions but please feel free to help.

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So easy enough right? Yes!

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Why is this so hard? Not sure that it is, maybe there is just stuff my body like more then other stuff.

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Why would anyone want to even do this? Well easy answer is to emancipate ones self from suffering but to my recollection no zen master ever promised this, maybe you guys can come up with a quote. Honestly this is a great question. My activity here and with Zen in general is authentic but I cannot say why I keep coming back.

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What up with rules? Certainties, assurances, lack of trust in the populous, not sure... manipulation maybe, agendas. wisdom, common sense formalized, expression of justice and ideals, boredom... could be any of these.

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How do we become deluded? I do not think we actually are, I am kind of shocked to be writing this.

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Can we ever really not be in Buddha mind? No

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Ok thanks all, just a daily exercise in mystery and participation lovingly presented before a board of strangers.

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Submitted November 04, 2018 at 09:11AM by windDrakeHex https://ift.tt/2P9T8lY