First and foremost I just want to clarify why I doing this post and give you all some context. Originally when I came to this sub I knew very very little about Zen other than what the west are lead to believe. I’d heard of Zazen, Dogen, Zen gardens and Japanese temples. I didn’t even know who the Patriarchs or Zen masters were other than Bodhidharma, now I’m reading Huang po, Joshu and Layman P’ang. So thank you guys!
Anyway, I stumbled across this ‘Nishijima’ guy who had done a translation of Dogen’s Shobogenzo. I wondered if Dogen had a total misunderstanding of Zen and put too much emphasis on Seated Meditation due to mistranslation or, was it the only thing he could understand from what ever sources he was exposed to ‘written or verbal’. I say this because of the controversy around him actually going to China and studying with Rujing.
I decided to do some work, which turned out to be a lot more confusing and difficult that I expected, but I wanted to find out for myself and not rely so much on other’s opinions. So hesitantly I purchased Master Dogen’s Shōbōgenzō, (Book 1) Nishijima and Cross trans
And to be clear, this is not an attack at people who enjoys Dōgen. It would be nice if we could have healthy discussions about Dōgen here, although from what’s in the Shōbōgenzō, I can see why it doesn’t go down well.
Anywhoo, get ready for some ‘WTF’
BENDOWA Page 9
[Someone] asks, “Among the three kinds of training64 there is training in the balanced state. And among the Six Paramitas65 there is the Dhyana Paramita, both of which all Bodhisattvas learn from the outset and all Bodhisattvas practice, regardless of whether they are clever or stupid. The Zazen [that you are discussing] now is surely [only] one of these. Why do you say that the Tathagata’s right Dharma is concentrated in this [practice of Zazen] - If you thought that was a headf#ck wait till you read Dogen’s bit…
Dogen - I say: the question arises because this right-Dharma-eye Treasury, the supreme and great method, which is the one great matter of the Tathagata, has been called the “Zen Sect”. Remember that this title “Zen Sect” was established in China and the east; it is not heard in India. When the Great master Bodhidharma first stayed at the Shaolin temple in the Sung-shan mountains and faced a wall for 9 years, monks and laymen were still ignorant of the Buddhas right Dharma, so they called [Master Bodhidharma] a Brahman who made a religion of Zazen. Thereafter, the patriarchs of successive generations all constantly devoted themselves to Zazen. Stupid secular people who saw this, not knowing the reality, talked at random of a Zazen Sect. Nowadays, dropping the word “Za,” they talk of just the “Zen Sect68. This interpretation is clear from records of the patriarchs. [Zazen] should not be discussed as the balanced state of Dhyana in the six paramitas and the three kinds of training. That this Buddha-Dharma is the legitimate intention of the one-to-one transmission has never been concealed through the ages…. It goes on and ends with “just remember that this [transmission of Zazen] is the whole truth of the buddhas dharma; nothing can be compared with it.
64 - Are the Precepts, the balanced state, and wisdom.
65 - The Six Paramitas are, giving, keeping the precepts, patience, diligence, the practice of Zazen (dhyana) and wisdom.
68 - Zazen Sect, “Sitting Dhyana Sect” Dropping the (ZA) gives “Dhyana Sect”
Aaaaaaaaand Back in the room. What? What’s going on? I’ve just got to Chapter 5 JU-UNDO-SHIKI and I think I’m about done, this book makes absolutely no sense to me and doesn’t compare with what the Zen masters are saying. I’d would recommend people who are still confused by Zen and Japanese Buddhism to try it out, read it for yourselves, I’m sure there’s a PDF version, or get a second hand copy. I had to see for myself, but man, this is a difficult read. It sometimes mentions that Zazen isn’t just Sitting, then Zazen is just Sitting, I don’t know if Dōgen is confusing Zazen with Dhyana (this was a burning question for me). I’m putting it to bed and what’s clear is, it ain’t what the Zen Masters are talking about. I don’t think it’s even worth carrying on reading, I don’t know, just seems like a headf#ck.
This isn’t an attack at people who enjoy Dōgen, I just wanted to find out for myself what he was all about. But if anybody can say something, I’m all ears.
Submitted March 14, 2022 at 11:28AM by S1L3NTASSAS1N https://ift.tt/oyqHuil
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