Reflect on how Dogen's teachings in Genjo
Koan relate to your practice; to zazen
and practice.
Genjo Koan is, to a large extent, a kind of song,
an expression of confidence and faith, It’s not
an expression of confidence and faith that you can grab
on to. It’s
something that’s beyond that, that you are engaged
with everything. If you can open up to that responsibility,
courage – fact- then everything is a practice.
Dogen is
talking about an attitude receptivity and activity
in each moment. It’s about participating
with things in a real way. It’s not about “If
only I had this set of conditions I could practice” or “If
only this were happening things would be really good.” Setting
up conditions can certainly be useful — not
because the conditions are useful, but rather because
we’re clarifying our minds and opening
to meeting things.
Only
Buddha and Buddha
Another
fascicle of Dogen's Shonbogenzo, Only
Buddha and Buddha (Yuibutsu
yobutsu), has many of the same elements — birds
and fishes, time and ash, the seasons... — as
the Genjo Koan. If you found the Genjo Koan engagging,
reading
Only
Buddha
and
Buddha
may
help
you understand
what Dogen is after.
When you realize buddha-dharma,
you do not think, "This is realization
just as I expected.". Even if you think
so, realization invariably differs from
There's a section that completes some
of the ideas introduced in Genjo Koan.
There's been a saying since
olden times. No one except a fish know
a fishes heart
yet those who really under
You should know the fish
always know one anothers' heart
Again, when a bird they can
not ever imagine this hundreds of thousands
Those traces may be even
more evident
Buddhas are like this. You
may wonder how many all know their own
traces;
Both Genjo Koan and Only Buddha
and Buddha are found in Moon in the Dewdrop: Writings
of Zen Master Dogen, edited by Kazuaki Tanahashi.
