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Reflection on stillness is a gate of Dharma illumination; for [with it] we do not disturb the mind. 寂定觀是法明門、不擾亂心意故. The last of our dharma seals is silence, stillness or nirvana. It’s a mark of existence because this is the complete freedom from duality. We need to work with forms and objects in order to live in the world, but it’s also true that all those things are not separate from emptiness or nirvana. The word for stillness here is seijaku 静寂, sometimes translated as silence, stillness or quietness. The first kanji is silence, stillness, peace or tranquility. The second is silence with a connotation of nirvana. When we compare the kanji for seijaku to the kanji for nirvana (jakumetsu 寂滅), we see that jakumetsu is written with the same kanji for silence plus the kanji for extinguishing, like extinguishing a flame. The roots of the word nirvana are about blowing something out, in this case, the flames of suffering and affliction that happen when we don’t see reality clearly. Or, at least we don’t feed those flames if we can avoid it. In the Lotus Sutra, there’s a parable about a father trying to save his children from a burning house. It’s another way to depict the Buddha trying to help us experience nirvana by dealing with the fires of our delusion. Another translation of the gate statement is: Investigating peace is a gateway to the light of the Dharma, for it dampens the flames of passion. This isn’t saying we should never have strong feelings about something. It’s referring to the flames of the burning house, the flames of craving and aversion that keep us trapped on the wheel of samsara. Thus the stillness in the gate statement is the stillness or silence of nirvana, the stillness that happens when we’ve let go of craving and aversion and delusions about the self. However, blowing out the flames doesn’t mean we become inert, that we’re still and silent because we’re dead and there’s nothing going on. One of the places that seijaku shows up is as a Japanese aesthetic that’s about tranquility in the midst of activity. Maybe you’ve heard of wabi-sabi, the beauty of things that are “imperfect, impermanent, and incomplete.” Something that’s incomplete, like a flower bud that’s not open yet or something that’s falling apart, suggests impermanence. This coming and going is considered beautiful. It can be so subtle that it takes a quiet mind and real attention to be aware of it. It’s said that there are seven principles of wabi-sabi (1); the seventh is seijaku: tranquility in the midst of activity. It’s not a lifeless stillness; it’s an energized stillness. This is the stillness of zazen. We’re not moving about and we’re not actively engaging with thoughts but there’s still plenty happening. When we turn that around, we can also be physically very active and busy, but inside we can be calm, tranquil and concentrated. This is taking zazen mind off the cushion and out into the world. Tranquility in the midst of activity can look like either tranquility or activity, but both are there. There are lots of Japanese arts-related or cultural activities that live in this intersection of stillness and activity. One is the tea ceremony. Tea master Sen Rikkyu in the 16th century taught that jaku 寂 is one of the four main principles of the Way of Tea. (The others are purity, respect and harmony.) Rather than being a dreamy psychological state, it’s the dynamic concentrated energy of one’s innermost being that comes out in the actions of the ceremony. Of course, we can apply this to our own liturgy and forms, to our zazen, to the way we cook and eat meals during sesshin—and to the way we cook and eat meals at home. So how do we get to that point of stillness within activity? We’ve said that seijaku is the stillness of nirvana. In nirvana, we’ve extinguished the fires of craving and aversion and the suffering that results from that kind of delusion. As a result, we’re able to settle down and concentrate on the here and now without being distracted by chasing after things and running away from things. Without distractions, we can see things as they really are and live in an authentic way. One of the biggest delusions and distractions is the attachment to a concept of self. Last week we saw that no-self is one of the marks of existence, and yet we create all kinds of trouble for ourselves by ignoring that reality. A scholar named Theodore Ludwig wrote an article about religious aesthetics in the tea ceremony. In a section about seijaku, he said: Since there is disturbance as long as the “I am” idea persists, tranquility is the expression of the artist’s selflessness. The “I am idea,” or attachment to self, is one of the biggest mind disturbances there is. As soon as we disturb the mind, it’s like throwing a stone into a calm pond. It makes ripples, we can’t see to the bottom anymore, and we also can’t clearly see the reflection of the sky. We can think of seijaku or stillness within activity as an expression of no-self. Once we can let the small self get out of the way, we see clearly right to the bottom of reality and we also clearly reflect that reality back out no matter what we’re doing. That’s why our teachers say things like zazen is doing zazen. There’s no “I” that’s doing zazen (or dancing or cooking or whatever). If attachment to self is one of the biggest causes of our suffering, then letting go of that attachment must be one of the most important things we can do in manifesting awakening. Stillness in the midst of activity is how we concretely experience the teaching that samsara and nirvana arise together and can’t be separated. We’re manifesting stillness right here, not waiting to get to somewhere else called nirvana where everything is perfect. As bodhisattvas, we use this imperfect, impermanent body and mind as the ground of our practice. It’s all we have. Delusion, forms and everyday activity exist in the middle of absolute peace. All that’s going on, and yet the mind is not disturbed. My dharma great-grandfather Kodo Sawaki had this to say: Fundamentally we can walk in any direction: east, west, south or north—whichever way we wish. Each and every activity permates the entire ten-direction world. We simply practice manifesting eternity through our action in each moment. Once Sen no Rikyu needed a carpenter to drive a nail into an ornamental alcove post in a teahouse. After looking here and there, Rikyu decided on the best spot. The carpenter marked it and then took a break. Afterward, he couldn’t find the tiny mark. He asked Rikyu to search again for the best location. After a while, the tea master decided on the spot and indicated to the carpenter, “Right there!” When the carpenter looked carefully, he found it was the very place he had marked the first time. Don’t you see? There’s always clear aim right in the midst of emptiness in which nothing is fixed. We must have a decisive direction. (2) He’s showing how form and formlessness are interpenetrated. Formlessness or stillness doesn’t mean we don’t have a direction in our day to day lives. If that was the case, we couldn’t carry our our bodhisattva vows and we might never get on a cushion. We don’t stop moving; we just stop being disturbed. Kosho Uchiyama made some comments about what his teacher Kodo Sawaki said: East, west, south or north, whichever way we go, we just live the self that is only the self, and fortunately there’s no direction forbidden us. So it’s okay for us to stride majestically wherever we go as the self that is only the self, with peace of mind. But at the same time, in the midst of formlessness, which demands no particular direction, there must be a decisive aim. No matter what we do, we should do it so each of our actions expands throughout the entire ten-direction world. Eternity is manifested in each moment. Because I live a lax and unsophisticated life, I would simply drive a nail into the post in a haphazard way, without asking a carpenter. But for someone like Sen no Rikyu, who sees into emptiness, there must be a way of driving a nail as an expression of formlessness. We human beings may stride in any direction: east, west, south or north—whichever way we like. Only when we actualize the self that permeates the entire ten-direction world and practice manifesting eternity moment by moment will the peace of the self that is only the self no matter what ripen. (3) There’s an example of inner tranquility leading to skillful action in the world. When the mind is not disturbed and we have clarity, we can let go of the small self and still have direction. Sen no Rikyo could act with precision in the midst of formlessness. Stillness leads to wholesome, skillful action. Dogen says the opposite is also true: skillful action leads to inner stillness. It’s just another version of his famous teaching that practice and awakening are not two. In the beginning of the Bendoho, he writes about the teaching of dojo daishu ichinyo: In activity and stillness, together with the community. Interestingly, the kanji are: 動静大衆一如, literally activity - quiet - great - the people - one - suchness. Of course, it’s always true that we’re all together within one suchness or one reality, but sometimes we forget. Dogen says: All buddhas and all ancestors are within the Way and engage it; without the Way they would not engage it. The dharma exists and they appear; without the dharma, they do not appear. Therefore, when the assembly is sitting, sit together with them; as the assembly lies down, lie down also. In activity and stillness at one with the community, throughout deaths and rebirths do not separate from the monastery. Standing out has no benefit; being different from others is not our conduct. This is the buddhas’ and ancestors’ skin, flesh, bones and marrow, and also one’s own body and mind dropped off. He’s talking here to novices in a training temple, but we can see how what he’s saying applies to us in our practice with the sangha. Doing things together with others and following a schedule is a great way to free ourselves from selfish clinging. If you’ve ever done sesshin or residential practice, you’ve seen what a great practice it is for letting go of ego. It’s actually a good demonstration of what we can live without. Usually, the demands of the ego seem imperative: we think we can’t live without determining for ourselves how we spend our time, being recognized for our specialness, or doing things the way we expect to do them. During my very first sesshin, during orientation the teacher explained the daily schedule and said that the time for taking showers was during the break after work period. A new participant said, “But we can take showers when we get up in the morning, right?” No, the teacher repeated, the time for that was during the break. She had no ability to imagine that a) there was a world without morning showers and b) she didn’t get to decide when to take one! Not only does acting with others help us let go of clinging and picking and choosing, but it becomes a clear manifestation of Buddha nature in a non-discriminative way. In other words, all of our actions are a reflection of awakening. We don’t think, Well, I’ll be on my best behavior in front of the teacher or my sangha friends, and in front of others I don’t care. We just do what’s being done, maintain the same stillness and zazen mind, and don’t change our behavior based on who’s watching. Maintaining the harmony of the community is activity within stillness. Someone who shows off, wants his own way, is looking for a reward or doing some other ego-based thing is breaking the harmony of the sangha. That’s not activity within stillness, because the mind is disturbed by self-clinging. Giving up the ego is an important part of seijaku. In his instructions for temple officers, Dogen keeps pointing out that that work is for the sake of the public or the community, not for one’s own gain. Doing for the sake of others is being in accord with the Way. Dogen goes so far as to say that practicing on our own makes us vulnerable to demons, while practicing in a community protects us from them. The demons he’s talking about are things like laziness, or going astray in our practice and misinterpreting teachings to match our own ideas. Also, on our own without a community we’re vulnerable to self-clinging. Being in a sangha reminds us over and over again that we’re not the only ones affected by what we do. As soon as we lose stillness or tranquility, we’re liable to do something unskillful. Without teachers and sangha friends to reflect that back to us and point out that we’ve gone off the rails, we might never know. We can see that the teachings of this gate are like a wheel. Giving up ego and craving and aversion helps us settle into silence and tranquility. On the flip side, if we’re in a place of stillness, no matter what we’re doing, we are not troubled by craving and aversion and we’re not separate from nirvana. It’s a very direct way into Dogen’s teaching that practice and awakening are not two. He says we can’t separate stillness and activity; they arise together. There is always activity in the midst of the stillness he’s talking about. Historically in both Buddhism and Christianity there have been those who’ve criticized “mystical” practice as being about withdrawing from the suffering of the world. Jesuits who encountered Buddhism two or three hundred years ago thought that Western philosophers wanted answers to the problems and scandals of the world, while we just wanted to go into a happy blissful state of our own, like animals, and escape from everything. This is not what our teachers are teaching. Stillness is not about barricading ourselves in and enjoying our own peace. It’s about being able to take meaningful action in all aspects of our lives, action that corresponds with how things really are, not based on our own ideas. Yes, quieting the mind will likely reduce our own suffering, but as bodhisattvas we turn that around and give it back to the universe. Questions for reflection and discussion
Notes
(1) The seven aspects of wabi-sabi are: fukinsei (不均斉): asymmetry, irregularity; kanso (簡素): simplicity; koko (考古): basic, weathered; shizen (自然): without pretense, natural; yugen (幽玄): subtly profound grace, not obvious; datsuzoku (脱俗): unbounded by convention, free; seijaku (静寂): tranquility, silence. (2) Uchiyama Roshi, Kosho. Zen Teaching of Homeless Kodo. United States, Wisdom Publications, 2014. p. 71. (3) Ibid. p. 71-72 Comments are closed.
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About the text The Ippyakuhachi Homyomon, or 108 Gates of Dharma Illumination, appears as the 11th fascicle of the 12 fascicle version of Dogen Zenji’s Shobogenzo. Dogen didn't compile the list himself; it's mostly a long quote from another text called the Sutra of Collected Past Deeds of the Buddha. Dogen wrote a final paragraph recommending that we investigate these gates thoroughly. Hoko has been talking about the gates one by one since 2016. She provides material here that can be used by weekly dharma discussion groups as well as for individual study. The 108 Gates of Dharma Illumination
[1] Right belief [2] Pure mind [3] Delight [4] Love and cheerfulness The three forms of behavior [5] Right conduct of the actions of the body [6] Pure conduct of the actions of the mouth [7] Pure conduct of the actions of the mind The six kinds of mindfulness [8] Mindfulness of Buddha [9] Mindfulness of Dharma [10] Mindfulness of Sangha [11] Mindfulness of generosity [12] Mindfulness of precepts [13] Mindfulness of the heavens The four Brahmaviharas [14] Benevolence [15] Compassion [16] Joy [17] Abandonment The four dharma seals [18] Reflection on inconstancy [19] Reflection on suffering [20] Reflection on there being no self [21] Reflection on stillness [22] Repentance [23] Humility [24] Veracity [25] Truth [26] Dharma conduct [27] The Three Devotions [28] Recognition of kindness [29] Repayment of kindness [30] No self-deception [31] To work for living beings [32] To work for the Dharma [33] Awareness of time [34] Inhibition of self-conceit [35] The nonarising of ill-will [36] Being without hindrances [37] Belief and understanding [38] Reflection on impurity [39] Not to quarrel [40] Not being foolish [41] Enjoyment of the meaning of the Dharma [42] Love of Dharma illumination [43] Pursuit of abundant knowledge [44] Right means [45] Knowledge of names and forms [46] The view to expiate causes [47] The mind without enmity and intimacy [48] Hidden expedient means [49] Equality of all elements [50] The sense organs [51] Realization of nonappearance The elements of bodhi: The four abodes of mindfulness [52] The body as an abode of mindfulness [53] Feeling as an abode of mindfulness [54] Mind as an abode of mindfulness [55] The Dharma as an abode of mindfulness [56] The four right exertions [57] The four bases of mystical power The five faculties [58] The faculty of belief [59] The faculty of effort [60] The faculty of mindfulness [61] The faculty of balance [62] The faculty of wisdom The five powers [63] The power of belief [64] The power of effort [65] The power of mindfulness [66] The power of balance [67] The power of wisdom [68] Mindfulness, as a part of the state of truth [69] Examination of Dharma, as a part of the state of truth [70] Effort, as a part of the state of truth [71] Enjoyment, as a part of the state of truth [72] Entrustment as a part of the state of truth [73] The balanced state, as a part of the state of truth [74] Abandonment, as a part of the state of truth The Eightfold Path [75] Right view [76] Right discrimination [77] Right speech [78] Right action [79] Right livelihood [80] Right practice [81] Right mindfulness [82] Right balanced state [83] The bodhi-mind [84] Reliance [85] Right belief [86] Development The six paramitas [87] The dāna pāramitā [88] The precepts pāramitā [89] The forbearance pāramitā. [90] The diligence pāramitā [91] The dhyāna pāramitā [92] The wisdom pāramitā [93] Expedient means [94] The four elements of sociability [95] To teach and guide living beings [96] Acceptance of the right Dharma [97] Accretion of happiness [98] The practice of the balanced state of dhyāna [99] Stillness [100] The wisdom view [101] Entry into the state of unrestricted speech [102] Entry into all conduct [103] Accomplishment of the state of dhāraṇī [104] Attainment of the state of unrestricted speech [105] Endurance of obedient following [106] Attainment of realization of the Dharma of nonappearance [107] The state beyond regressing and straying [108] The wisdom that leads us from one state to another state and, somehow, one more: [109] The state in which water is sprinkled on the head Archives
October 2024
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