Haiku for Tsubaki Sensei

First winter morning:
the mirror I stare into
shows my teacher's face.

Misogi Bells ring...
Black hakama and Dogi
winter is cold silence

Sitting at crossroads
far into winter
the path disappears.

Sitting

Ching bell fades out.
The fragrant Jasmine remains.
A perfect morning!

Gradually sudden Enlightenment

The Following is a Response from Shi Yong Xiang to the Question Of Sudden or Gradual Enlightenment as we Come from both Linji/Rinzai and Caodong/Soto lineages.

The debate about whether enlightenment is "sudden" or "gradual" that is made famous in traditional Chan/Zen is much like how our successors will view the "mind-body" debate of Western philosophy. In a few decades, the "mind-body" debate will be viewed as a matter of historical fact (of how Westerners "used to think" about the human experience) and it will not act as a source of actual philosophical confusion. "Mind-body" will be seen for what it is: a linguistic misrepresentation of human expression. We will in the near future collectively see "mind-body" (bodymind) as a biopsychosocial phenomenon that is irreducible, inseparable, and fully integrated rather than two distinct entities. In fact, progressive-minded heatlh professionals see the practice of medicine and healthcare one day soon expressing itself in a way that does not differentiate the treatment of the mind and the body (unlike how we treat it today, which is as two separate considerations). I anticipate the day greatly.

We should view the enlightenment issue this way now as a contemporary Buddhist Order. There is no longer a serious debate in modern Chan/Zen among serious teachers concerning the nature of enlightenment as sudden or gradual. The reason? We now understand the world differently than the Chan and Zen teachers of medieval China and Japan. While they are commended for their sophisticated view of reality as holistic and--mostly, but not always!--nondual, the fact is that contemporary Western philosophy is as holistic and nondual now as they were then. The reason we are at least as holistic today is simply because today we have much more information about the Universe--we don't just propose and believe that the Universe is interconnected--we can prove it to doubters. We can demonstrate how deeply interconnected (quantum physics) and how vastly interconnected (Einsteinian physics)--we know that even the most foreign of nations are comprised of people who are more similar to us than they are different, a fact that even the most holistic of Eastern civilizations did not understand during their time (China and Japan were extremely hostile towards non-Chinese and non-Japanese respectively). Today we do not just propose the world is global through philosophical reflection and personal insight, we can show it is global because we have touched the sky and the ocean floor, and can map how the price of tea in China really does affect the New York Stock Exchange! This is not a matter of being "better" than our ancestors, so don’t make that fallacy (as many will when you bring up these points to them). Our ancestors are valuable and we are valuable, each to our own unique place and time in the evolution of humanity. Today we continue learning about our Universe and touching its deepest corners because of the very ideas cultivated and promoted by global and holistic thinkers of our past, the pioneers of thought. In the future when mind-body is no longer debated but taken as “common sense,” those of us living today who work to make bodymind the preferred perspective act as the seeds of the future. We are growing the future of humanity today through our thoughts and actions.

Enlightenment is like all realities and is not unique as the Chinese thought during the time of Chan's development. There were some pressures during Buddhism’s assimilation process in China that influenced the development of this debate. The Indian philosopher-monk Nagarjuna had taught that the underlying nature of the Universe is impermanence (“doctrine of emptiness”). The Chinese saw Nagarjuna’s doctrine of emptiness as similar to how they understood the teachings of the Dao--something that interpenetrates all things, that is both the originator of all things and all things in-themselves. Now, add to this the idea that Buddhist authority is ultimately derived through the lineage of unbroken dharma masters extending back to the Buddha, and you have the seeds of the "gradual" vs "sudden" enlightenment debate. See, if enlightenment is gradual, then it means it does not exist at some point. But this de-mystifies the dharma teacher, including the Buddha. If we say that enlightenment is "sudden" then that means it is more of an "uncovering" of something that was already present in us. Some took the view that enlightenment must be cultivated over time and developed into its fullest expression, while others (the 6th Patriarch and the “Southern” school) took the view that enlightenment is naturally expressed in all things, we must simply uncover it. The reality, of course, is somewhere in the middle. It is not either/or, but BOTH. It is the same as causality, which is continuous (“this” cause transforms into “that” effect) and at the same time unique (the next “thing” is not the same as the previous “thing”). Enlightenment requires both a cultivation (gradual enlightenment) and an expression of a natural nature (sudden enlightenment). The lesson is language gets in the way, and we must be very careful about thinking we can express “truths”--we are not talking about truths at all. We are talking about the best way to talk about the experiences that we have, both individually and collectively.

*An Important NOTE about Nagarjuna: When I point out the weaknesses to the teachings of Nagarjuna, it is not to de-emphasize or undermine his importance in the history of Buddhism, but to point out his humanness. You must see and appreciate the critical contributions Nagarjuna made to Buddhist thought, but more importantly you must see and appreciate his purpose in the bigger Buddhist picture. Nagarjuna served to reorientate Buddhism to the teachings of impermanence, which were during his lifetime being washed over by a very analytical, rigid, and arguably “un-Buddhist” movement. Nagarjuna was trying to point Buddhists back towards the essential teaching of impermanence that expresses itself through all things. The Buddhist analytical tradition that arose after the death of the Buddha that Nagarjuna was opposing emphasized the “substantive” nature of all things, much like how the Greeks were trying to divide the world up into its smallest “parts.” Nagarjuna saw the danger of this: it looked like the teaching of “self,” or atman--the very teaching Siddhartha Gautama reacted against. While Nagarjuna succeeded in the short term, he also took his logic to its radical conclusion, which introduced some (ironically enough) “un-Buddhist” tendencies back into Buddhism, only from the other side of the radical spectrum. He said that all is impermanent, but made this teaching into an “ultimate” teaching rather than (as the Buddha insisted) a contingent teaching. Remember the Buddha denied the teaching of “ultimates” because human experience and human language is far too limited to get us there. Nagarjuna fell into the trap of thinking that human logic could uncover ultimate truths, and “intuitively” asserted the absolute existence of impermanence. Instead of just saying “all is impermanent” he essentially added “all really is impermanent” (“empty”). A minor point to some, but a major point in the history of Buddhist thought.

Nagarjuna is to be appreciated. But, I do want every monk who comes through OPB to avoid the mistake many overzealous Chan and Zen students and teachers have and continue to make (even in the West): over-appreciating Nagarjuna and his doctrine of emptiness. The danger of over-valuing something is that it opens the door to worship. Buddhists respect, but do not worship because nothing is fundamentally superior to anything else (like how monotheists worship God as superior to all other things). In Buddhism, like Daoism, there is existential equality--all things matter equally.

Mindfulness is the door to our Monastery.

Mindfulness is the door to our Monastery. We practice mindfulness to realize that everything around us can be an element of our Monastic experience. Our temple, our monastery, our lives are in the here and now: this is important to live by example and also gives us a home to go to where ever we are. Mindfulness is not something out there, or a idea that is in abstract form but rather a concrete example to live and follow and explore each and every moment. There are no down times in life. When waiting in line be mindful, when tasting food be mindful, when angry be mindful of what made you angry. etc... Shaner Sensei has said" our lives are our Monastery", we are responsible for maintaining them . The good news is each moment is a new one and an opportunity to do better, to start fresh to begin anew.

What is the legacy of your example.

I have thought about the nature of my commitments lately.
I look to my vows for guidance as well as my daily affirmation. I sit Daily ,I practice and Teach Aikido both of which require time. Loyalty is essential to any training regardless of style or affiliation. However it is on a personal level as much as is one’s character. If you practice for personal gain there your loyalty lies, and your development will suffer. We have all seen people come and go in training. Both Formal study in OPB and Aikido are training for life and it demands a certain commitment. This should obviously imply a sense of duty or obligation to one's teacher.

RAD Class In Febuary

I will be teaching a Basic RAD Class at Parks and Recreation Department | City of Lawrence, KS

1141 Massachusetts, Lawrence, KS 66044

office (785) 832-7909 | fax (785) 832-7938 Call for pricing and availability.



Rape Aggression Defense (R.A.D.)

Participants will be provided realistic self-defense options design just for women, regardless of their level of physical conditioning. Learn techniques and information that can be effectively used from the first day of class. Learn how to develop a defensive mindset, understanding offensive and defensive postures, recognizing vulnerable locations. Each participant will receive a manual for reference and practice.

Who am I

AS I am searching for an internal understanding of the divine nature with in.
I realize I am am Buddha Nature just as you are.
I believe in the divinity of my humanity which is the expression of the Buddha nature and I know all that is passes through myself.

Rather than a statement of the obvious, this certainty connects me with the pain of all beings, as I work to understand and relieve their suffering my suffering and illness decreases.

AS I bring true joy and peace to others I too am elevated. The easiest way to peace is to put others first, as i elevate my brother I can not help but elevate my self.