Stopping and Seeing The Foundations

Transcription

1 PRMARY PONT THE BUDDHST TRADTON Stopping nd Seeing The Foundtis Buddhist Meditti by Hl Roth Hl Roth is our own cscious processes, processes nd ptterns Brown which n Assistnt Pressor Religious Studies t University in Providence, Rhode slnd He hs prc ticed Zen with Joshu Sski Roshifor 15 yers, nd is ly mk in Rinzi trditi He is regulrlyfeturedspeker t "Seminr Sutrs" cducted nnully t Bodhi Mndl Zen Center in Jemez Springs, New Mexico through experience You might cll Stopping meditti introvertive medit ti ts lmost exclusively de sitting Zzen is form Stopping Seeing you might think s extrovertive medit hve cscious ti; its ten de s wlk, s live, s do vrious things, within phemenl world This is lso s Vipsyn (Snskrit; Pli: Vipssn) or Seeing kinds t seems to me tht, mg ll religis world, its been Buddhism which hs explored most fully vrious kwn spects csciousness, nd how to bring bout unitry csciousness tht is produced in number different mys Through Stopping develop bility to grdully slow our rml cscious thoughtprocesses And this is usully de in Buddhism by focusing e object: it could be k (Koren: kgn), it could be brething Different sects Buddhism hve developed different foci for use in this Stopping meditti As you increse your fcility, your bil ity to ccentrte nd become epointed, you develop wht ticl trditis will begin by quoting short pssge from writings seventh century Buddhist mk, Chih, who ws mster T ient i school Buddhism like to think: this short pssge s kind fundmentl Buddhist model meditti Although Buddhism hs very mny schools, nd hs been trnsmitted to mny different countries nd exists in mny different cultures, this bsic structure Buddhist medi tti hs remined re meditti down Ctinued next pge remrkbly csistent throughout mny pths for entering relity nirvn, but in essence y ll re ctined within two Summer Seminrs 1990 nd prctices: Stopping Seeing Stopping is primry gte for overcoming bds crving Seeing is essentil requisite for ending cfusi Stopping is wholesome resource tht nurtures mind Seeing is mrvelous rtwhichfosters intuitive wisdom (prjn) Stopping is effective cuse ttining medittive ccentrti (smdhi) Seeing is very bsis en lightenment t should be kwn, n, tht those two techniques re like two wheels chriot, two wings bird; if ir prctice is lopsided, you will fllfrom pth (Adptedfrom Shinzen Youngs trnslti in R Robinss The Buddhist Religi, third editi) Studies in Buddhism June 4th Self nd NSelf in Stephen Collins, Ccordi New University; John Tbor, University Mexico; Terry Ymd 15th Methods Gret Zen Msters Sj Arntzen, University Albert; Dvid Chppell, University Hwii; Mirim Levering, University Tennessee Spsored by Rinziji For point tht hes mking here is tht re re two complementry spects Buddhist medittive prctice: Stopping nd Seeing Stopping is process, kind stepby step development mentl nd physicl clmness t is literlly clled Stopping in Chinese, which is trnslti Snskrit term Smth Seeing is stepbystep heighten ing wreness; wreness mens sensitivity nd clrity to 8th ndi, Chin nd Jpn June 11th nd informti, University New Mexico write or cll The Winter/Spring 1990 Seminr Sutrs Bodhi Mndl Zen Center P O Box 8, Jemez Springs, NM (505) Pge 15

2 PRMARY PONT Stopping nd Seeing Ctinued from previous pge is cll smdhi, por medittive ccentrti This two wings e The or two wings is Seeing or Vipsyn This involves grdul development fcility to see different kinds ptterns which underly our cscious experience And s re ble to do this, develop wht is kwn s intuitive wisdom We develop clrity into underlying structure our own csciousness This leds eventully to experience tht is clled in erly Buddhist writings, "Seeing things s y relly re" And in erly Buddhist writings, this mens Seeing things in terms Three Mrks All Cditied Phemen: tht y re t self (ntmn); tht y re impermnent, cstntly chnging (nity); nd tht y re dukkh (usully trnslted s "suffering" but probbly "unst isfctory" is better trnslti) people becoming enlightened by following e or or prctice exclusively n Thervdin Buddhism sometimes her "dry insight workers," people who prctice Vipsyn meditti exclusively But se people re excepti, t rule This emphsis complementrity Stopping nd Seeing is seen in some very importnt Chn texts The Pltform Sutr tlks bout unity dhyn (ccentrti) nd prjn (wisdom), s r wy sying tht must hve n equl blnce beten Stopping nd Seeing medit ti The erly Buddhist writings tlk bout this prctice Stopping, nd ctully identify nine distinct stges medit tive ccentrti which n individul prcticing this kind Stopping meditti proceeds through These re kwn s dhyns in fct, it is dhyn tht lends its nme to school B uddhism tht prctice Ch n is Chinese trnsliter ti Snskrit term dhyn, nd Zen is Jpnese prunciti Chinese trnsliterti The dhyns re kind signposts in development smdhi They re presented in very interesting pssge from erly Buddhist Cn preserved by Thervdin school The text is kwn s Holy Quest t ctins n erly versi Shkymuni s First Serm t Deer Prk We begin with fifth dhyn, " plne infinite er": And gin, mks, mk, by pssing quite beyd plne infinite er, thinking Csciousness is unending enters nd bides in plne infinite csciousness And gin, mks, mk, by pssing quite beyd plne infinite csciousness, think ing s t nything, enters nd bides in plne thing Andginmksmkby pssing quite beyd plne thing, enters nd bides in plne neir percepti r npercepti This mk, 0 mks, is clled One who hs put drkness round Mr ( Evil One) nd who, hving Hl Roth blotted out Mrs visi round unseen Thus, Seeing is ctinued clrity tht get s pply Stopping to our everydy lives The pssge quoted bove indictes tht Stopping nd Seeing must be prcticed toger Theyre complementry f cn e tht it hs rnge, goes (From LB Horners Middle Length Syings [Mjjhim Niky 11745]) ccentrti prctice in this mnner, our prctice is blnced fcn t, become unblnced towrds Stopping side or Seeing side is dynmic reltiship beten two Ech builds up or The degree fcility develop in smdhi crries over into our everydy lives, nd helps us develop clrity, clrity to see whts relly going beneth our feet The mount clrity tht develop in our everydy lives keeps us from becoming too ttched to experiences tht develop through Stopping meditti, keeps us from tking too much pride in ttinments tht hve through Stopping meditti So two spects, Stopping nd Seeing, blnce by so Evil One Notice res very importnt trnsiti: up to this point hve mk who psses beyd plne infmite csciousness move thinking "re is t nything," but when beyd plne thing, mk is t thinking or selfreflecting; re is lger selfndobject differenti eighth stge: neir percepti r ti And so, thts npercepti And gin, mks, plne neir mk, by pssing quite beyd percepti r npercepti, enters nd bides in stopping percepti nd sensti r Pge 16 re some exmples in Buddhist literture Ctinued pge 18

3 SevenDy Yg Meng Jg Jin with :;::::::::::::;;;:;;;;:::::::;::;:;:;;::::::: ZEN MASTER SEUNG SAHN ntroducti to Zen" Workshop A twosessi workshop designed to introduce beginning philosophy, history, nd prctice methods DO AN SUNM will led this discussioriented workshop designed to give you firm foundti in Zen prctice, nd to help you develop regulr meditti prctice t home April 22 & 29, 9:00 2:00 $5000 ($3500 KUSZ members) student to bsic Zen Foundtis Zen Retret This discussi with ctul prctice edy sitting, chnting, nd wlking meditti JACOB PERL, JDPSN will give Dhrm tlk nd led retretnts in Soen Yu (Zenstyle energy brething) MU SOENG SUNM will tlk tiger while sitting") is dily retret schedule includes sitting, chnting, wlking, nd bowing medittis s ll s work prctice Vegetrin mels re eten in silence in trditil temple style Minimum prticipti is two dys Entry Mdy, April 9, 1990 t 10:00 m Entry Wednesdy, April 11, 1990 t 6:00 pm Entry Fridy, April 13, 1990 t 6:00 pm Retret ends Sundy, April 15, 1990 lte fter $4500 per dy ($3500 KUSZ members) $27500 full retret ($20000 KUSZ members) A retret blnces Yg Meng Jg Jin ("to lep Hert Sutr DO AN SUNM will instruct retretnts My 20,1990,9:00 4:00 chnting $5000 ($3500 KUSZ members) ChristinBuddhist Retret in trditil Koren Zen like time sustined meditti The This edy, prcticeoriented retret brings toger four HUNT, OCSO; FATHER ROBERT MORN, OM; BARBARA RHODES, JDPSN; nd DO AN SUNM You will lern nd prctice meditti techniques tht cn be pplied to your life, llowing you to become wre nd focused llowing God, or to unfold without moment, nturlly present expecttis June 9, 1990,9:00 4:00 $5000 ($3500 KUSZ Members) wderful techers: FATHER KEVN One This will be to Dy Retret dy strg prctice tht will lso prepre you sit more intensive meditti retrets JACOB PERL, JDPSN will give kgn teching interviews The retret prctice will include bowing, chnting, sitting, nd wlking medittis DO AN SUNM will orient rctrctnts in retret forms Youll observe silence blnce n informl dy, including vegetrin lunch June 17, 1990,9:00 4:00 $3500 ($2200 KUSZ members) Summer Trining Progrm Providence Zen Centers 1990 Trining Progrm will provide beginning nd dvnced student with intensive residentil experience in vrious forms Zen prctice sitting, wlking, chnting, nd bowing medittis; work prctice nd kgn teching interviews; ll with support group cting toger June 9,1990 through June 21,1990 Full progrm $35000 (KUSZ Members $22500) both r, These just few meditti trining nd prctice CNr" VDNC ZN P"Ol 1Ac4 528 Pound Rod Cumberlnd Rhode slnd t (401) Nme Address Stte City Zip Phe Dy Evenin VSA/MC Exp Signture {1 11 re progrms t Providence Zen Center Plese send complete informti Plese send informti Plese send informti progrms residentil trining renting fcilities for retrets Registrti Yg Meng Jg Jin Retret April 9 15: 1990 Entry: _M 10 m _Wed 6 pm _Fn 6 pm ntroducti to Zen Workshop April 22 & 29,1990 Foundtis Zen Retret My 20, 1990 ChristinBuddhist Retret June 9, 1990 One Dy Retret June 17,1990 Summer Trining Progrm June 9 21, 1990 TOTAL AMOUNT ENCLOSED $ Pge 17

4 PRMARY PONT Stopping nd Seeing Brhmn, which is sme s Atmn, kind Universl Self Erly Buddhism is very unesy bout doing tht; it tries Ctinued/rom pge 16 No more percepti; t even bsic pure sensti This is experience complete merging self nd or, subject nd object; wht might be clled "unitry c sciousness," wht is sometimes referred ings "csciousness with to in Buddhist writ object," or "objectless c sciousness," or in some Zen writings s "bsolute smdhi" This is lso sometimes clled "experience bsolute s zero" But this is t, in nd itself, ultimte Becuse text ctinues: And hving seen by intuitive cnkers re utterly destroyed Now cnkers is wisdom his (prjn) technicl term; se re srvs, desire for sense experiences, desire to be reborn pssis nd igrnce bout wy world is relly put toger, bout wy our csciousness works So it is t trnsiti beten bsolute smdhi, cessti sensti nd percepti, nd return to phemenl world, when re is this moment clrifying insight into fundmentl processes existence And it is this moment which, in Buddhist trditi, is ten spoken s moment enlightenment; it is this moment this return to phemenl world tht is stori thts tlked bout in Zen trditi At this point e begins wht you might cll positive very hrd to void objectifying this experience t ll Hence emphsis doctrine nself tseemstomefromredingerlysutrsththkymuni Buddh is very ccerned bout effects which belief in Universl Self hs es bility to prctice When you identify n "Ultimte Ground Cosmos", ndlook up experience it s gol, tht ctully prevents you from trnscending yourself This ccern for objectificti this bsolute zero experience differentites erly Buddhism from Upnisdic Hinduism Ar difference is tht re emphsis t ly Buddhist trditi in erly be much greter, Buddhism but throughout seems to life in phemenl world, pplying Stopping to everydy life YVe experience dt hve to wit tnty, thirty, forty yers (until hve bsolute zero experience) to develop prjn, to develop insight into our cscious thoughtprocesses nd into wy experience world nsted, in Buddhist prctice, re re mny different levels experiencing this As develop n incresing clmness in our zzen prctice, lso develop n incresing bility to pply our ccentrti in our, dilylives ts t n llorthing propositi this, We dt hve to wit tnty, thirty, or forty yers prjn to develop smdhi, in which you mnifest this experience bsolute smdhi through your own everydy life, through your own cscious experience This is full relizti prjn; this is without tied self or cogniti being by ego This is lso clled in erly Buddhist writings "Nirvn with n types Nirvn in erly Bud dhism: "Nirvn with reminder" nd "Nirvn without re reminder" very wkwrd English trnslti; it sounds mmtics problem Nirvn with reminder" is minder" ts like re two living phemenl world fter you hve this foundtil experience bsolute zero You might cll it mode in selfless phemenlity people tlk bout Nirvn s if it re this experience bsolute zero, but dt think thts right t is rr mode experience when you return from bsolute zero to living in phemenl world This "Nirvn with reminder" is cceived differently A lot in different schools Buddhism Tht ccepts which re bsed is, re re different this mode experience These vry from "emptiness" nd "suchness" ndin Perfecti Wisdom writings to Rinzi s "True Pers No Fixed Positi" Now looking bck to ndin bckground Buddhism, it seems to me tht experience bsolute smdhi or bsolute zero is objectified in Hinduism nd rised into ccept ultimte ground Pge 18 cosmos: Hover, when re ble to experience bsolute zero, nd n return to phemenl world, re is gret trns formti csciousness, nd simultneously see unity nd multiplicity; live in world without fixed self or ego ws younger, used to sk my techer, "Well, if is everything empty, nd if experience complete merging When subject nd object why dt just if this is bsis Buddhism wlk into wlls or stumble over n things? men, how does this work?" And he sid two things to me He sid, "Even in bsolute zero, you hve to come out nd go to bthroom" Then r time he sid, "You must reform your ego from some plce in complete emptiness" Tht is v_ery pround point We inevitbly hve to go to bthroom, so hve to return to phemenl world Thts r point t which Buddhism differs from Hinduism: in its emphsis Cdi tied Originti, fct tht even most pround experiences tht cn hve through Stopping meditti re lso trnsient complete merging subject nd object They pss wy; cnt even get ttched to m when see things s y relly re We hve to return to nd live in phemenl world When cn do this selflessly, when re lger

5 PRMARY PONT driven by our egoptterns, by kind compulsive drives tht hve, n BUDDHST simultneously ll individuls s sme ground which is bsis ll us Somee ce told me tht your Zen Mster, Seung Shn, uses this exmple think its quite pt "You her somebody screming in nger t you, nd you rect differently thn if you herd birds chirping ts very different wy bf living in world, but e tht think expresses nicely this trnsformed mode csciousness which erly Buddhists clled Nirvn cn see MEDTATON " SUPPLES with reminder", Now, s see it, se two fundmentl spects Buddhist meditti, Stopping nd Seeing, reflect two different spects our dily csciousness tht re cstntly going beneth our rml wreness, experience unificti, nd experience seprti My techer tlks lot bout this As understnd it, re is this ctinul unificti nd seprti going, s he sys, think metphoriclly, 64,000 tirries secd So tht, when her bird chirping, become e with bird n tht instnt re is seprti beten us nd bird is just this experience complete unity with birdchirping Then, seprte: recognize it s bird Then, seprte even more: objectify tht nd sy, "Ah, its crdinl!" or "Ahl ts e se pesky bluejys nd he is eting my com!" or "Those crows re in my grden!" We hve se secdry, tertiry rectis, This tends to obscure fct tht this ctivity unificti nd seprti is ctinully going beneth our feet One things tht hppens in Zen prctice is tht become clerer nd clerer se underlying movements csciousness, unificti nd seprti And so, develop different kind perspective our own experience: its lger whtmy techer clls "twodimensil perspective"; insted its "three dimensil perspective" Wht this mens is tht must fully experience wht is going within our csciousness, but t seprte from it, objectify it, try to pint picture it s if stood outside it (which is twodimensil perspective) Chung Tzu, old Toist, tlks bout wlking without touching ground; he lso tlks bout flying without wings, nd using igrnce to understnd see ech se three ides, especilly wlking without touching ground, s lovely metphors for wht experience is like, living in phemenl world in selfless, egoless fshi; mnifesting zero cstntly in our cscious experience A good illustrti this, think, is wht my techer clls "Zen Mth" He does this blckbord He sys, "Zeroequls Zero Oneequls Zero Zero Ten equls milli Sttues Bells &, ncense Cushis Ggs Benches Altr Scrolls Rosries For WHOLESALE Supplies Tpes Jelry Books & Posters fully illustrted nd ntted 41pge CATALOG, send $100 to: RETAlL & Twoequls Zero Fiveequls SHASTA ABBEY Zero A hundred equls Zero; thousnd equls Zero; BUDDHST SUPPLES equls Zero" This is lso, think, wht ws suggested by tht line from Dimd Sutr The line reds PO Box 199, Shst, CA (916) Dept P, Mt which Sixth Ptrirch Huineng herd nd suddenly becme enlightened something like: "You must rise thought which is supported " by thing t ll The sme thing: zero equls ten The sme thing: wlking without touching ground The sme thing: flying without wings; kwing through igrnce We cn experience this csciousness every dy, t every moment The blnced prctice stopping nd seeing leds us to this experience Through it, develop bility to ccord with ctivities unificti nd seprti which re dynmic ground csciousness t is very importnt to understnd tht in our prctice hve se two elements,nd its importnt t to neglect eir element, to work m simultneously Prctice nd PRMARY PONT, exploring link preserving beten meditti nd envirment, beten wreness nd chnge Plus report Zen Mster Seung Shns trip to Moscow for cti for "Globl Forum A Ecology will be me Summer specil issue Envirment" dt miss it Pge 19