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Teachings of Zen Master Daikaku #2: Otter Voice Meeting Notes

Teachings of Zen Master Daikaku #2

John Pulleyn41min

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

00:03

This is day four of this July, 2025, seven, day sesshin, and Day Four is when things start to flow more easily. I are no guarantees, but based on decades of my own practice and working with students, chances are that although thoughts and pain and drowsiness may still occur in the second half. The worst of it is over. The drowsiness and the pain are largely the effect of the thoughts, of clinging, the thoughts, and thoughts just thin out as sesshin moves on. It's not even so much our effort that's doing that. It's just sitting still for nine or 10 or 11 or more hours a day, and doing making some effort at keeping the mind. And the practice will leave the thoughts thinning out, settling. It's inevitable. If you think that you're an exception, then you're just not seeing your mind the way it is. Thoughts settle over the days, and as thoughts settle, these pesky problems of drowsiness and pain are not as bad. They sort of recede. They're they're, they recede into the background. More other problems may arise, other problems with one's psychological afflictions, but these other things, they they kind of get swept, swept along by the growing power of one, zazen, sitting and moving Zazen.

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

02:37

Almost all awakening experiences, not all of them, but almost all happen in the second half of sesshin has won fewer thoughts just means fewer thoughts about oneself, and that sort of clears the way for seeing beyond self and other. Going to return to our text. This is a book called The original face, an anthology of Rinzai Zen and we were reading from the 13th century Zen Master daikaku Just a little more on this, and then we're going to skip to another master then the

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

03:32

question, or the question, let's put it that way, the question, some say we should turn to The point where not a single thought is born. What about this? Daikaku? The non production of a single thought is an expression referring to complete absence of any signs of birth, extinction, going or coming. That is any

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

04:10

attachment to change, birth and death, and that's suffering come from the mind, if you don't know where thoughts come from, you cannot know the root of birth and death. Sentient beings are constantly afflicted by lustful, angry, foolish thoughts. Those are the three poisons, greed, anger and delusion, which which drive them, making them turn away from their inherent nature. If the clouds of delusive thought clear, the moon of our self nature appears and. The thoughts you hated before then become knowledge and wisdom, and you can use these thoughts to talk about reality and teach. Zhao Zhou said, You people are used by the 24 hours. I make use of the 24 hours. The way this is translated, it sounds like he's kind of bragging, but it just couldn't possibly be the case with Zhao Zhou. He didn't even he didn't begin teaching till he was 80, and reportedly lived to the age of 120 so every, every koan in which JoJo appeared just Joshu, every koan in which he appears, he's at least 80. Well, not everyone, because in a couple of them, he's the student, but as the whenever he's the master in any koan, he's 80 or 90 or 100 or 110

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

06:14

so he's really saying, rather than use, being used by the by rather than being driven to use daiku word, rather than being used by this discriminating mind all the time, you can reach the point where then you can use it in a in a wise way to help others. You a

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

06:46

question, even if thoughts arise, by the way, let me go back to this non production of a single thought.

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

07:00

I think, I think this is different from the idea that no thought arises. Non production of a single thought is different from not the not arising of any thought. I i don't know i would just based on my experience in non production means not generating more thoughts with your attention on the wrong thing. I don't know about a realm where no thought ever arises. You don't have to thoughts in themselves are not the problem. It's our attachment to them, our clinging to them. And if we don't cling to them, if we just leave them alone, then we in Zen. We can sometimes call this no thought, a little bit like anger. If anger arises and we don't cling to it, we don't nurse it with thoughts about the the supposed offense, the person who may then it's almost like it's not Anger.

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

08:38

Hiroshi kaple used to quote Harada Roshi in Japan as saying, The the enlight the anger of the enlightened person is like snow falling on wet pavement. It's not that there's never any snow, but it doesn't last. It's a huge difference from the ordinary person, how they their experience of anger. But then back to the questioner here, even if thoughts arise, they have no reality of their own. Okay, the questioner is speaking from the point of view of the the non substantiality of thoughts. So what's wrong? And then daikkaku says, even though they have no no reality of their own meaning, no substance to them, no roots to them, as soon as they arise, you go wrong. It's like things in a dream, when you awaken, you realize they were unreal. Weren't you mistaken? That is, weren't you deceived by the dream? That which makes mistakes and produces dreams is a. The sentient beings false views one day, if they hear the teaching of enlightenment, are inspired and are inspired with faith. This is much better, even so those who do not have a really genuine aspiration for enlightenment do not realize the errors of their minds, because their application of effort is not careful. Even though, from time to time, they suppress small thoughts, they are not aware of the big thoughts. If you don't cut off the root source, even if you have some affinity with the way, it will be impossible to escape birth and death that is to go beyond suffering. This translation small thoughts and big thoughts

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

11:02

may not be the best, small thoughts of these little, harmless things that are flitting through the mind all the time and that we have some choice as to whether we stick to them. Big thoughts, I think, the way I see it is, he's talking about our deeper delusions about ourself and others and the nature of reality. These are these are notions. Let's call them notions or concepts that are more deeply ingrained and are not so easily sanded off with a few sesshins. These are the ones that keep causing us trouble. And the real trouble is we don't see him. We're not aware of them. We we just, we just kind of assume, unconsciously, that that's the way people are, that's the way things are. And then, if we stick with this long enough, we come to see that they were, they were acquired, these, these notions, these concepts about reality. We picked them up somewhere along the way, and then we just, just kept nursing them somehow it's so sobering after many, many, many, many, many years of practice to still from time to time realize that, oh, I didn't realize I had that notion that it's, it's, it's just kind of in the grain of the wood. I didn't see that it was something I had acquired long time ago.

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

13:13

Question The six patriarch said, it's way known, do not think any good or bad at all. To have no thoughts about good or bad surely is the essential point of sitting meditation. What are little thoughts and big thoughts? Daikku Do not think any good or bad at all. Are words that cut directly. Not only in sitting meditation, are they to be applied. If you reach this state, walking, standing, sitting and lying down, are all meditation. There's no need to cling to the form of sitting. An ancestor said, walking is also meditation, sitting is also meditation. Speaking silent, active or still. The body is at rest. The mind is at rest. And then back to daikku, one of the Buddha's discourses says, we are always in it, walking around, sitting and lying down. Little thoughts are thoughts that suddenly arise about what is before you. Big thoughts are thoughts of things like greed, hatred, folly, false views, conceit, jealousy and. Name and fame, profit and support. When sitting in meditation, those whose wills are weak may keep back little thoughts, but such thoughts as these, the big ones, these, these afflictions, will remain unaware in their mind, giving up these bigger thoughts these notions, is called directly cutting off the root source. When you cut off the root source, afflictions become enlightenment. Delusion becomes wisdom, the three poisons become the three bodies of pure discipline, ignorance becomes the objective reality of great knowledge. Need we even speak of little thoughts.

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

16:00

But here's the thing, these, these bigger problems, thought emotional problems, are are held in place by our are clinging to the small thoughts. The two are related.

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

16:26

Because you could say that these so called big thoughts, the delusions, our reactive tendencies, our blind passions are nourished by our attachment to small thoughts.

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

16:59

So we don't have to sit and think about getting rid of the big ones that is greed, hatred, delusion, jealousy and so forth that goes along with our non clinging To the thoughts other thoughts as they come up. I

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

17:46

a question someone who has long developed accomplishment at sitting meditation and whose work is pure and mature their spiritual work shouldn't have any afflictions or delusion in her mind. How can those who are just beginning to practice put an end to afflictions? And then the Master? Don't despise afflictions. Just purify your mind. Don't despise afflictions. Yeah, don't, don't,

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

18:36

don't, don't give anything in the mind other than practice that kind of attention. And

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

18:54

then he quotes an Ancient Master to practice the way you must be made of iron. Lay hold of the mind and it's settled directly approaching unexcelled enlightenment. Don't worry about any right or wrong.

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

19:18

And then daikkaku says laying hold of the mind means judging if the mind is in a proper state or not. Yeah, judging to I think we have to appreciate that judging can be a good thing. That is, it's more in the realm of discerning. A teacher, or even a school teacher has to exercise judgment with with her students. So judging if the if the mind is in a proper state or not, I see that as as being able to notice and discern or. Ah, the condition of the mind at any moment, whether we're in thoughts or not. Those who know their minds errors are wise ones, and those with wisdom should not be diluted. It is like taking a lamp into a dark cave where sunlight or moonlight has never come in. The old darkness doesn't go outside, but suddenly it becomes light inside, with the light of wisdom, the darkness of ignorance and affliction don't have to go away to be gone. At night, the sky is dark, but when the sunlight comes out, the sky becomes daylight. The mind is also like this. Illusion is darkness. Enlightenment is light. When the light of wisdom shines, the darkness of affliction suddenly turns light. Enlightenment is not something separate. So we don't have to get rid of our afflictions, our defilements. We just have to bring the light of awareness, that is the awareness, this concentration on the practice, and then these things disappear. You

Unknown Speaker

21:52

all right,

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

21:54

I'm going to now leave daikaku, daikaku treatise on meditation. And skip back to another entry, another segment of this anthology, and that is the the Dharma heir of Hakuin Tou, a Toray.

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

22:27

It's just a little nugget of biographical information here in the introduction about Torre. You

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

22:47

the editor says that Hakuin and his enlightened successor Tory both went through exhausting years of effort. Hakuins first awakening took place when he was 20, when he was 24 his great awakening at 27 and his final realization at the age of 43 now Tori. Tori, like Ananda of old, Ananda was the attendant of the Buddha and then became part of the Dharma lineage, Toure like Ananda was first awakened as he began to lie down, exhausted and driven to distraction by his intense efforts in sitting later, he met Hakuin, but became desperately ill and had to be healed before continuing his work With Hakuin and Torres. Years are 1721 to 1792 in two. So he lived to be 71

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

24:22

so and he begins in what the Zen school calls ascending directly from the state of an ordinary person to Buddha. There are five discriminations. One is the meaning of same nature. Second, the meaning of different paths. Third, the meaning of urgency. Fourth, the meaning of progressive practice, and fifth, the meaning of returning to the basis. This is the essential road. First, same nature and. The fundamental nature inherent in sentient beings is not other than the fundamental nature of all the Buddhas of the past, present and future. Remember, sentient beings is just another way of saying the unenlightened, the so called unenlightened. So the fundamental nature of the unenlightened is not other than the fundamental nature of all enlightened ones. Their range of powers and qualities are also equal. Their lights are radiant, their knowledge wisdom and miraculous powers are all the same. This may be likened to the light rays of the great solar disk shining everywhere on the mountains, rivers and plains, so nothing is not illumined. Gold and jewels are bright in themselves, even when they are in mud the we have all kinds of gold and jewels in this Zen know,

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

26:12

however blind people do not see, are not aware of this light, even though they are In this very midst. So that's, that's the equality aspect of this true nature. And then second different paths, although in their fundamental nature, Buddhas and sentient beings are the same substance, no different. The directions of their minds are different. Buddhas shine inward to illumine the basic mind, fundamental nature, whereas sentient beings turn outward and get involved with myriad things. That is why sentient beings create greed and lust for things they desire, anger and rage towards people they dislike. And become fools by becoming congealed in their thoughts, confused and stupefied by these three poisons, they have lost their very fundamental mind, and and he would be the first to say, not not really lost. You can't lose it. No one can ever lose what they didn't have to gain in the first place. It's just nature. It's our nature, this fundamental mind. You

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

27:48

So this how ordinary people we turn outward and get involved with. He says, myriad things, objects, the mind we find and we learn this more. Most of all in sesshin, the mind is always turning up and looking outward at others, other people, other things. And the worst problem of all, objects, thoughts, those are the real troublemakers as far as objects, our thoughts. And so what we're doing in zazen, whether it's seshin or not, is turning the mind around and taking it off of objects, thoughts and other objects.

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

28:52

He goes on those in whom greed and lust run deep turn into hungry ghosts. Here we are with back in the six realms of unenlightened existence that I talked about a couple days ago, those in whom anger and rage run deep become anti gods or fighting spirits assurers, and those deep in folly and delusion become Animals. Those in whom the three poisons are equal fall into hell and suffer various miseries. These are called the Four bad dispositions. They are most dreadful. So these are the four lowest of the six realms of unaligned existence. I

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

29:43

just, just a word about hell, so called the realm of hell. I think it's, it's most it's easiest to understand this, just all four of them, actually, is, is just states of mind. You. Or states of evolution, even, but not places we say, In Buddhism, we say hell, not talking about underground with flames and pitchforks and devils. Just mean a TA, a place a state of great, great suffering.

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

30:26

And the really big difference between Buddhist hells and or the these six realms. And the important thing is that these are none of it is permanent.

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

30:50

I never had any religious upbringing, and it's still this staggering to me that people think that they can go to some permanent place called hell, permanent, pure, permanent,

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

31:09

where, where We can ascend and descend through these six realms. I

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

31:34

uh, just a stream of consciousness here about hell, one, one little kind of hell, maybe a mild a mild hell state is comparing oneself to others. So painful. Who would want to do that? Comparing what one thinks of one's own practice with what thinks of others practice. That's what it is. You're not even comparing your practice to others' practice. You're comparing your notion of your practice versus your notion of other people's practice. I bring this up because I do remember doing that and and I heard from all too many people who do the same thing, spare yourself that misery. Don't, don't waste your time directing your mind to others in that respect,

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

33:01

it's one of the great privileges of sitting in the Duke and the teacher's seat and doksan is to see that we're all in this together. We're all in the same boat. Pretty much everyone is fighting the same battle, struggling with the same things.

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

33:38

And then daikku, or excuse me, Torre continues, even though they have greed, anger and delusion. Those who restrain themselves and are not self indulgent are in the human realm and in this way, will not lose this bodily form, life after life. This is interesting. I remember a long, long time ago, I asked Roshi Kapleau whether, whether we could be reborn, because I never doubted rebirth, whether we could be reborn as animals. That's what a lot of people think of when they think of rebirth. Oh yeah, you're, you're, you're cat. Was your grandmother and and he said, very, very calmly, he said, my understanding is that you'd have to really blow it as a human being. I really have to do some terrible things to to lose your your your human the course of human existence. And that's what Tory seems to be. Saying here, those who restrain themselves and are not self indulgent in this way will not lose this bodily form, life after life. And then he says, those in whom greed, anger and delusion gradually quiet down, and who are not self indulgent even though they don't restrain themselves, that's I had to reread that two or three times this morning. Who are not self indulgent even though they don't restrain themselves, are born in heaven, known as the gods of the six heavens of desire, I guess, I guess it means it comes you don't need to restrain yourself, because you've kind of evolved to the point where it's not necessary. You just don't have cravings that would make you self indulgent. I

Speaker 1

36:00

Dory

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

36:15

continues. If you want to be free from this world of suffering, first you must contemplate impermanence. Those who are born must inevitably die. Even the young are not exempt. Even the strong are in danger. Even the rich and prosperous decline, even the noble and exalted cannot remain that way. Even a long life does not last more than 80 years or so. Thus, this world being im permanent, there is nothing enjoyable. The poor, that is nothing enjoyable, if you are have awareness of the precarious state of life. The poor suffer from lack. The rich suffer from possessions.

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

37:29

The high suffer from their high status, the low suffer from their low status. This would be more meaningful in the hierarchical society that was ancient China and Japan and Korea, they suffer over food and clothing. Suffer over wives and children suffer over wealth, suffer over official rank. This just may pause a lot of people, probably not many in this Zen doh and listening online. Many people might think, what do we suffer over wealth? How do you figure doesn't that solve all our problems? Well, we know this. It doesn't they've even done studies that confirm this, that beyond a decent level of comfort, that is of having enough food and shelter and so forth, having more Money doesn't make you happier,

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

38:41

it can become very much a burden, they say. And then Torah continues anyway, if you don't annihilate the nature of affliction somehow and arrive on the path of liberation, even if you ascend to the rank of sovereign of a nation, great minister, deity, spirit or wizard, it is still evanescent as lightning and Morning Dew, lasting only for a While,

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

39:20

even if you ascend to the rank of a cabinet officer, Oval Office, governorship, CEO of a huge company, it is Still evanescent as lightning and morning. Do everyone? Everyone surely gets this. We all get it in the mind, yeah, okay, sure. We all die, of course. But if I'll just say this. So as you get older, it becomes more real. As you see family, friends dying, becoming afflicted with disease and afflictions and injuries, it becomes more and more real,

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

40:29

but it's always been the case that young people it's harder to convince us when we're young, it all seems a little abstract, getting old and dying, our

Roshi Bodhin Kjolhede

40:55

time is up, so we'll stop and recite the four vows I

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