The first impression you get when you read the title is that this is going to be about practicing the Zen way.
However, it is mostly a historical documentary with few practical examples.
The first few chapters discuss how Zen started, its link to Buddhism,
Taoism, Confuciusim and how it migrated all the way from India, China to
Japan.
The latter chapters do give more practical insights but not enough to start practicing a specific routine on regular basis.
The historical references do offer an amazing look into the Asian
culture, religion, thoughts, differences between Buddhist schools, their
link or lack of to Chinese Taoism and Confuciusim.
Sean Runnette as narrator with his soothing and calming voice adds to
the content of the book to give a well-deserved ride into eastern
philosophy.
For these reasons, I recommend this book as a starting point for anyone
looking to learn about Zen, or for anyone already practices Zen and
meditation to understand the origin of how it all started.
Below is the summary with few personal quotes and ideas. This summary is
different from previous titles it is usually much more
compact. Here I found it compelling to add more descriptions to
provide an intelligible understanding of the content.
Philosophies of Zen:
---------------------------
○ Not a religion but a liberation of, similar to Taoism.
○ More Chinese than Indian, but now more Japanese than Chinese.
○ Understanding from the literature may be tricky because of language differences between east and west.
The two main Chinese philosophical traditions:
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○ Confucianism
• Provide society with system of communication
• Conventional knowledge
• Linear
• Con Fu Tzu or Confucius died 479 bc
○ Taoism
• Pursuit of older men
• Inward liberation
• Unconventional knowledge
• Nonlinear
• Originator Lao Tzu,
• Spontaneous
• The art of not doing "woo way"
• Metaphorical and exaggerated
• State of mind, a state of wholeness without ego.
• Book of changes "I
Ching" has 64 abstract figures, turtle shell each with 6 lines, divided
negative and undivided or positive, maybe the source of both thoughts,
dating to 3000- 1200 BC.
• Tao here implies what was there before creation.
• Ching is mental power.
• The inferior man when hears of Tao will laugh at it and if he didn't it will not be the Tao.
• Shin,
slightly lower than heart mind is too critical and heart is too
emotional, "Wo Shin": no mind, or original mind, In Japanese Kojoro.
• The sage makes provision for the stomach and northern eye, judging by the experience not by theorization standard.
○ Zen produced by Taoism which is the original way of Chinese liberation combined with Indian Mahayana Buddhism.
Buddhism:
---------------------------------
○ There is claimed resemblance between Taoism and Buddhism that lead someone to think they must have met earlier (2000 bc).
○ Far eastern Buddhism is far more palatable than its Indian and Tiberian counterpart.
○ All forms of Buddhism believe in the middle way and claim enlightenment can be claimed from human state.
Hinduism:
--------------
○ the world is God playing hide and seek with Himself, the one dying
into many, many dying into one, The beginning everything was Atman, the
self, He said first I AM, The Divine circle goes on and on for periods
of 1, kappa which is 4320000000 years, objective is the Atman
enchantment from everything else, Brahman is without duality.
○ Issues related to understanding Indian Buddhism (Upanishad 800 to 300 bc)
.....1- Problems interpreting ancient Sanskrit, the current transition
is compiled by birthing and Ross contains many errors or guess works,
affecting our understanding of the Hinduism; Veda and the Upanishads.
.....2-Hard to know the real
form of Buddhism, there are 2 main Buddhist scripture 1 is the Pali
Kannan or southern school of Buddhism (Ceylan, Burma, Thailand) and
Sanskrit Tiberian Chinese Kannan or Mayhana or the northern school,
although the southern is most probably is the earlier, compiled after
100 bc. But Pali Kannan still doesn't necessarily present exact word
from Buddha.
.....3- No marked historical references of the texts
Mostly oral Communications and most properly changed to suit the time.
Buddhism and Hinduism:
---------------------------------
○ Buddha died 545 bc, lived at time when Upanishad already exist, but
shouldn't be looked at as upgrade to Hinduism as it is castless, Buddha
couldn't find the Atman, when he gave up he ate a bit and sat through
the night when he got clarity and understanding of complete
enlightenment, release from Samsara, but can't be put in words,
The four Noble Truth:
-----------------------------
○ The first truth is Dukkha: Dharma is the cure, death, sickness, sore grieve all are Dukkha
The point here's there's no Atman or self
○ The second truth is Trishna, grasping or clinking, Samsara round of
birth and death, Karma is conditioned action, shapes the individual
until awakening, however, for Mahayana and Zen Karma is moment to
moment.
○ The third truth: Nirvana, end of Karma, grasping, Nirvana means
blowing out of flame from Sanskrit or turning, or cessation of turning
of the mind. Yoga is the practice of stopping these turning,
○ The fourth Noble truth: the eight-fold path Dharma which has 9 paths,
the first 2 have to do with thoughts, the other 4 have to do with
action, the final 2 with awareness or contemplation, the last one is
complete contemplation or Samadhi,
Contemplation is that there's no object to grasp and no one to grasp it, that's the nonduality and that s Samadhi,
Diana or sitting meditation is the source of Chinese Chan or Japanese
Zen, difficult to explain as any explanation will cast an understanding
of action Which it is not.
Mahayana Buddhism:
------------------------------
○ The aim is to reach Nirvana and Not to construct a philosophical system.
○ The Buddhism of Pali Kannan leaves problems unanswered, precepts sometimes difficult to understand ...
○ Pali Kannan reaches the end by action, Mahayana would jiggle the key until it turns
○ Origin not found before king Ashoka grand son of king Gupta who converted in 262 bc,
○ The Mahayana text was translated into Chinese by Kumarajiva 400 ad.
○ Different doctrines assign different levels of truth.
○ No self to bring it under control.
○ In Mahayana Buddha is seen as a personification of reality forming the
basis of cults worshipping Buddha as God, as well there were other
personifications such as Amitaba.
○ Dharma Datu, one of the final culmination of Indian Mahayana.
The four classification which became considerable importance to Zen,
(let everything be free and be as it is; don't separate yourselves from
the world)
1) Unique individual, thing or events (sh)
2) The reality underlying things (li)
3) There's no incompatibility between things and principles, or between Nirvana (void) and samsara (form).
4) No obstruction between things, everything ever involves others.
Mahayana thinks of Buddha's body as:
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1) Triple body, a body of transformation, includes all universe of form.
2) Body of enjoyment, wisdom, compassion, Sambora Kaya, maybe called body of realization
3) Dharma Kaya, the void, the Sunya itself.
○ Yoga Chara defines 8
discriminating consciousness, there's consciousness appropriate to each
sense. Starting with 6th Sense consciousness, Central mind classifying
activities, Store consciousness the Supra mind includes all seed of all
possible forms equivalent to Chita itself, the store consciousness is
from where the former world arises spontaneously or playfully as Mahaban
doesn't believe the production of the world comes from the mind by
series of causes as all causes are from the Maya world.
So the yoga Chara describes the production of the former world arises as follows:
The store consciousness--> Mana where differentiations are made --> six sense producing senses --> external world.
○ Budusit yoga involved
reversing the process, instilling the mind, let the categories of Maya
fall into potentiality, world can be seen in its unclassified suchness,
then Karuna awakens and boddhisatva let the projection arise again
having become consciously identified with the playful and purposeless
character of the void.
The rise and development of Zen
---------------------------------------------
○ Zen means Dhyana or meditation but not necessarily of Zen
○ Directness pointing.
○ Awakening is natural, very simple.
○ Not found before the Tang dynasty by then Zen has already been established
○ No real, documented trace was found in the Indian Buddhism, but there
was a similar tradition in tantric Buddhism and Tibetan Buddhism.
○ The creation of Zen can be explained by exposure of Taoism and Confussism to the main principle Mahayana Buddhism.
○ Kumarajiva started translation of sutras between 384 and 413 AD.
○ The original story is that it arrived in China in 520 by Indian monk
Bodhi dharma, but some cast doubts that the reason for the story is to
create a link to the Buddha himself, It really there was no Dayna Zen
school until 200 of acclaimed Bodhi dharma.
○ There were several patriarchs involved, the fifth is Honran 601- 675 AD, and Waynoka 637-713 AD.
○ The definite beginning of Chinese Zen/epic of Zen activities last 200 years of the Tang dynasty 700 to 906 AD.
○ Eventually Zen formed a difference such as awakening doesn't happen
slowly or in stages but in one sudden awakening, sitting meditation some
regard as an artificial way of stilling the mind.
○ After this era several schools took over but eventually 2 main schools
of Zen was most populated; the Rinzai and the Soto school.
○ Around 814 there were distinct Zen practices emerged such as "Day of
no work is the day with no food" emphasizing the importance of work.
○ The connection to the Tao is obvious throughout Zen texts except Zem
believes it will be all forgotten as soon as one achieves complete
understanding.
○ Toward the late Tang dynasty, Zen was becoming one of the most popular teachings of Buddism in China.
○ In 845 there was brief but vigorous execution of Buddhist by Taoosim
Emperor, Zen survived the most, expanded to a point where it was feared
to lose its essence, other problems arose such as who will lead,
eventually a system established that no one can lead unless established
Saturi going back until the time of the Buddha.
○ Kuon method established as a process.
○ Soto school doubted this Kuon method while Renzi school embraced it.
○ The Rinzai school introduced in Japan in 1191, Soto in 1227.
○ Zen arrived in Japan just after the Kamakura era giving the samurai flavor of Zen with its practical qualities.
○ Bushido established the Tao of the warrior which was a puzzle to convention Buddhist.
○ Zen affected all aspects of Japanese culture such as painting, poetry, and art in general.
○ Zen continues to prosper in China until the Ming dynasty 1643, where
divisions among different Buddhist schools begin to fade, and the
popularity of the pure land school with its easy way of invoking the
name of Amitabh began to be fused with the Kuon and practice it.
○ Other few Zen schools continue to follow Soto or Tiberian Buddhism.
Soto and Rinzai school today put emphasis on Zazen or sitting
meditation, unlike the tong Masters where we can't find much reference
to sitting meditation in their schools.
Principles of Zen
-----------------------
○ Empty and marvelous
○ Tao is without difficulties
○ When u stop liking and dislikes
○ Don't be concerned with right and wrong, as this sickness of mind
○ To eat is to survive, to be hungry.
○ Freedom of choosing.
○ Unborn is also undying.
○ Life is a position of time and so is death, like winter and spring,
winter doesn't become spring nor spring becomes summer, ie don't resist
the flow, same with thoughts.
○ Not a system of improvement
○ Upaia is Zen way of awakening, direct pointing
○ Before the world was manifested there was no names, once the Buddha
arrived there were names, so we got hold of forms, in the great Tao
there was absolutely nothing secular or sacred ..Once there are names
everything is classified in limits and bounds, therefore, the old man
west of the river (Matzu) said it's not mind, not Buddha, not a thing,
reflecting on the teaching of the Tao Chi Ching that; "the nameless is
the origin of heaven and earth, naming is the mother of 10,000 things"
..
○ When we look for things there's nothing but mind, when we look for mind there is nothing but things.
○ Only when you have no thing in your mind, and no mind in things are you vacant and spiritual empty and marvelous.
○ This marvel state can only be described as Freedom in Action.
○ The Tao without doing anything "Woway" leaves nothing undone,
○ Thinking is like boiling an egg, at one point it needs to stop.
○ 1159 to 1278 Zen actually fosters Confucianism and was the reason for its introduction in Japan.
○ Studying the Dharma, making rituals, all lead to karma, for nothing surpasses putting on cloth and eating food
○ Haiku introduces haiku.
○ Zen; to travel well is better than to arrive.
Zazen and the Quan
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○ In Soto, the practice of Zazen in daily activity is pronounced and necessary to the realization of Buddhahood.
○ In Renzi, on the other hand, it is more structured and you need to graduate based on passing 15 Quan problems
○ The Quan system is founded by haka-ween 1685 to 1768 who gave structured and 6 stages completion that take up to 30 years
○ Satori is sudden realization of any point so you may have several ones
during the course of your life, not a single enlightenment step/stage.
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