To learn the Buddha Way

is to learn ones own self.

To learn ones own self
is to forget ones own self.
To forget ones own self
is to be enlightened
by the myriad dharmas.
To be enlightened
by the myriad dharmas
is to let ones own mind and body
as well as that of all others
fall off.
( from: Chapter Genj-kan in the Shbgenz by Master Dgen )

 Contens

Photo by SATO Migaku

Opening Comments:
Concerning the World of Emptiness (5)
By YAMADA Ryun 04

Words of Yamada Kun Roshi (31) By TONOIKE Zenyu 08

Teisho: Hekiganroku (Blue Cliff Record) Case 79 By YAMADA Kun 10

Zenkai Schedule 15

A Request 16
 Opening Comments:

YAMADA Ryun

Concerning the World of Emptiness (5)

Master Dgen

In recent issues I have been looking at how those who have clearly seen
Emptiness have conveyed that world of Emptiness to us. In the previous issue I
introduced Mugaku Sogens communication of the world of Emptiness. In this issue I
want to touch upon the world of our Master Dgen
The reason I say our Master Dgen is because the fundamental position of
the Sanb Kydan is stated as: to stand at the origin point of the Buddha-Way through
the Dharma Gate of Master Dgen. (cf. Kysh, nos. 146, 147, 309).
Among Master Dgens written works the Shbgenz most directly and
clearly transmits the world he discovered. However, the ShoBGenZ is an extremely
difficult book. Because the enlightened eye of Master Dgen was so sharp he moves
back and forth between the world of Emptiness and the phenomenal world freely
without hindrance. So unless the person who reads this book also has a clearly
enlightened eye, he cannot follow Dgen. However, since the Shbgenz marks a peak
for conveying the true world, it excites all the more the desire in one to rise to its
challenge. Actually, I have found myself in such a position of wanting to take on its
challenge. And so, through the medium of the Kysh, I would like to start taking up
this challenge as best I can in the near future.
However, in this issue I do not intend to begin a lecture on the Shbgenz. In

4
this monumental work of the Shbgenz the starting chapter entitled Genjo Kan
begins with the following words:

When all dharmas are the Buddha-Dharma, then there is delusion and
realization, there is practice, there is life and there is death, there are buddhas
and there are ordinary beings.
When each of the myriad dharmas is not myself, there is no delusion and no
realization, no buddhas and no ordinary beings, no life and no death.

These few lines which adorn the opening of the chapter in the Shbgenz
convey succinctly the world of Emptiness of Master Dgen. It is no exaggeration to say
that if one can absorb these few lines perfectly there is no need to continue on to the
other 95 chapters. I would like to try to explain in some small way these words of
Master Dgen.
First of all is the phrase when all dharmas are the Buddha-Dharma. All
dharmas refers to the whole of existence, including all the material beings that
surround us as well as our inner world, the world of the heart. The phrase When all
dharmas are the Buddha-Dharma refers to the time one looks at the world from the
position of having seen perfectly clearly that all beings which exist are at the same time
totally empty. Buddha-Dharma means All dharmas as seen from the essential
world that Shakyamuni Buddha discovered. The essential world discovered by
Shakyamuni Buddha means the following: the essential nature of the whole of
existence is just one boundless firmament and that firmament is just one law of cause
and effect. When seen from the standpoint of the Buddha-Dharma the phenomenal
world, the world of the mind is relentlessly unfolding. How is it unfolding? Master
Dgen describes it as delusion, realization, practice, life, death, buddhas, ordinary
beings. And one could continue further: mountains, rivers, flowers, moon, happy, sad,
painful, hungry, thirsty and so on and so on. All is an unfolding of the one boundless
firmament. Or, to use another expression, it is the function of one single law of cause

5
and effect.
Now next, what is when each of the myriad dharmas is not myself? Myriad
43
dharmas means the same as all dharmas and refers to the whole of existence. What
does it mean to say that each of them is not myself? Actually this is the same as are
the Buddha-Dharma. It refers to when one has discovered that the essential nature of
all existence is simply one boundless firmament. However, in the expression myriad
dharmas are not myself Master Dgen is not speaking of the world as one firmament
unfolding itself as the one law of cause and effect functioning. Rather he is pointing to
the one boundless firmament itself. There is no functioning of the law of cause and
effect; we can say that he is simply pointing at the law of cause and effect itself.
In one boundless firmament delusions, realization, buddhas, ordinary beings,
life, death, mountains, rivers, flowers, moon and so forth do not exist at all. In the same
way, in the law of cause and effect itself there is neither form nor weight nor smell,
nothing at all. And, of course, no mountains no rivers no flowers no moon. Only the
law exists. You may see that the law of cause and effect is another name for one
boundless firmament.
But why did Master Dgen, when he expressed this world, choose the
expression when the myriad dharmas are not myself? This expression taken in itself is
saying: when all existence is not myself. Master Dgen is actually saying that all
existence, that of matter and mind, is not the essential nature of myself. He had
discovered most clearly that the essential nature of his self is just one boundless
firmament prevailing through the whole wide universe, and he is trying to convey this
discovery when he is saying the myraid dharmas are not myself.
However, the world which is unfolding and one boundless firmament are
really one being. They cannot be separated. It is just as in cinema where one cannot cut
off from the white screen the images of towns, people, cars, mountains, rivers and so on
which appear on it. However the people, cars, mountains and rivers on the white screen
do not actually exist. It only looks as
42 if they exist. The essential nature of the images is

6
nothing more than one white screen.
By the way, I want you to note that in the words I have quoted from Master
Dgen the word, emptiness, does not appear once. And yet the world he discovered is
conveyed with startling clarity. Always and everywhere Master Dgen conveys the
world that he himself has seen in his very own words. There is absolutely no
dependence on the conventional phrases used by the Patriarchs. When ones eye is
pinpoint clear, one can do this.
For example, the words, when all dharmas are the Buddha-Dharma, then there
is delusion and realization, there is practice, there is life and there is death, there are
buddhas and there are ordinary beings can be expressed in the words, emptiness is
form of the Hannya-Shingy Likewise, those of you who have worked on the Five
Ranks of Hen and Sh of Master Tozan Gohon, the founder of the St Sect, know that
he is expressing the same world in the words Sh-ch-Hen.
Likewise, the words, when each of the myriad dharmas is not myself, there is
no delusion and no realization, no buddhas and no ordinary beings, no life and no
death are the form is emptiness of the Hannya-Shingy and Hen-ch-Sh in the
expression of Master Tozan Gohon.
However, Master Dgen is in no way encumbered by these expressions used
before him but conveys the true reality in his own unique words. This phenomenon
pervades the whole of the Shbgenz. Master Dgen had the clear eye of all the
previous great Patriarchs and maybe even a clearer one.
(to be continued)

(Translated by Jerome CUSUMANO with the assistance of SATO Migaku)

7
 ********************************************
Words of
Yamada Kun Roshi
(31)
********************************************

When One Understands,

the Ten-Thousand Things are
Separate and Different

The Chinese character ordinarily pronounced iro in Japanese commonly refers to

color such as black or white or red. But as used in the Buddhist tradition it also means
everything in the phenomenal world. Therefore, it is preferable in this context to pronounce
the character shiki [another, rather classical pronunciation of the same kanji] to imply the
above-mentioned connotation. It is the shiki of Shiki soku ze k (Form is nothing but
emptiness) in the Hannya-shingyo Sutra.
All the things of the phenomenal world have qualities and form, but the qualities
and form of each of them are different. No two things are exactly alike. The differences
between things are clearly manifest.

The distinctions reflected in the eye of great enlightenment, however, are totally
unlike the distinctions that we see in the world of phenomena. Zen always looks at the world
from the standpoint of the enlightened eye. The differences reflected in the ordinary eye are
those of the world of appearances, where everything exists individually and separate and is
indiscriminately mixed up with everything else. There is no living blood passing between
things. But each of the distinctions of the world of Reality reflected in the eye of great
enlightenment is precipitously high and profoundly deep. A pillar as pillar exhausts the whole
universe. The single pillar is all that there is throughout the universe; there is no room for
anything else to show its face. An oak tree as oak tree is the whole universe appearing as a
40 to be seen in heaven or on earth. It is the same as saying
single oak tree. There is nothing else
that the abbot is complete and independent as abbot; the young priest is complete and

8
independent as young priest. When we laugh, heaven and earth are filled with Ha, ha, ha, ha,
ha; when we cry, there is only our sobbing.
There is an interesting story in a book entitled Sonn Rjin Kemmom Heiki. Sonn
Rjins personal name was Sheki; Sonn was his Buddhist name. He was a venerable priest
of the Soto Sect, who served as head priest of the famous Taishin-in Temple in Sendai during
the Genroku Era (1688-1704). This story is from a collection of 108 Zen stories about Sonn
Rjin compiled by his disciple, Senior Priest Menzan Zuih (later known as Eifuku Rjin).
The original is a bit difficult so Ill just relate the general meaning to you.

When I [Senior Priest Menzan] called on the master one day in June, I brought
along 10 ripe melons and offered them to him. The master had his attendant Ekizui
float them in cold water and then peel one. The master tasted it himself first and
then gave me some to taste. Then, laughing, he said, Is the melon sweet or is your
tongue sweet? If you say the melon is sweet, it has nothing to do with the tongue. If
the tongue is sweet, it has nothing to do with the melon. In other words, where does
the sweet taste come from? Try to tell me!
I answered, It comes from the harmonious union of cause and effect
between melon and tongue. Thereupon the Master said, That is the explanation of
a scholar, not the living experience of a Zen priest. At this, I begged him, Where
does the sweet taste come from then? Please tell me! The Master said, When it
comes down to saying concretely where the sweetness originates, even the Buddhas
and Ancestors have no idea. If you thoroughly investigate this where, you find the
whole universe is melon; outside of melon there is no tongue. The whole universe is
tongue; outside of tongue there is no melon. There is no self. There is no other. It is
beyond subject and object. This is called the Buddhas and Ancestors true
transmission of the pivotal activity of non-thinking (hishiry). From now on, you
should exert yourself even more assiduously and, investigating thoroughly, clarify it
for yourself...
My joy knew no bounds. Truly this is due to the surpassing grace of the invisible
Buddhas and Ancestors as well as of the Guardian Deity of Buddhism (Ryten). I
bowed and withdrew.

Please appreciate these words.

(edited by TONOIKE Toshio, translated by Joan RIECK)

9
 CASE
CASE94
79

HEKIGANROKU Tsus Sounds of

(BLUE CLIFF RECORD) the Buddha
By Yamada Kun

Instruction:
In revealing the great activity there are no set rules. In catching
alive, there is no wasted energy. Just tell me, what person is this
who formerly came this way? To test, I bring this up. Look!

Case:
A monk asked Tsu, All sounds are the voice of the Buddha. Is that
right or wrong? Tsu said, Right. The monk said, Oh Master,
dont make farting and grunting noises. Tsu hit him. The monk
asked again, Slanderous words and fine phrases all return to the
highest principle. Is that right or wrong? Tsu said, Right. The
monk said, May I call Master a donkey? Tsu hit him.

Verse:
Tsu! Tsu! The wheel of activity has no obstruction.
When one is cast down he gains two.
It is the same with that, it is the same with this.
What a pity, a man playing without end in the tide.
In the end he falls into the tide and dies.
But if he is suddenly brought to life, a hundred rivers reverse their
course with a great surge.

On the Instruction:
In revealing the great activity there are no set rules. In
catching alive, there is no wasted energy. Just tell me, what person
is this who formerly came this way? To test, I bring this up. Look!
When a true Zen master leads a disciple, great activity comes into play
but there are no set patterns or rules to the way he or she teaches. There is no
way of predicting what the next move will be. It is a game with no rules. In his

10
Hekigansh-Dokugo (Soliloquy on the Blue Cliff Record) Yasutani Roshi says,
There is no typographical manufacturing here! The minute you think hes
going to strike from above, he comes from below. He may descend upon you
without the slightest notice.
Likewise when the Zen master is catching alive, that is, bringing the
student to realization, there is not a bit of wasted energy. Its the easiest thing in
the world. Has there every been a person like this? the Instruction asks us. An
example will now be presented to us and we are advised to observe carefully.
The Instruction, needless to mention, is talking about Tsu Daid Zenji
who appears in the Main Case. Tsu Zenji was in the Soto lineage, fifth in
succession from Seigen Gyshi Zenji, the master with whom the Soto Sect
eventually had its start. Rinzai Zen began with Nangaku Ej Zenji. Both of
these masters were topflight students of the Sixth Patriarch.

On the Case:
A monk asked Tsu, All sounds are the voice of the
Buddha. Is that right or wrong? Tsu said, Right. The monk said,
Oh Master, dont make farting and grunting noises. Tsu hit him.
The monk asked again, Slanderous words and fine phrases all
return to the highest principle. Is that right or wrong? Tsu said,
Right. The monk said, May I call Master a donkey? Tsu hit him.
The monk is quoting from the Nirvana Sutra (Jap.: Nehan-Ky) in
asking his questions. As those who have attained realization know, all the
myriad appearances of the phenomenal world are the essential world itself. If we
use the expression revealing the essential world, it descends into a duality. In
truth, however, the phenomenal world, just as it is, is the essential world itself.
Whenever Gutei Osh was asked anything about Zen, he would immediately
stick up a finger. This stick I am holding here is the essential world itself.
Buddha is just another name for essential nature.
And now here is a monk asking Tsu if all the sounds in the world are
truly the voice of the Buddha, as recorded in the sutra. Tsu answers, Right.
Engo adds a short critical comment to this line, saying that Tsu in effect is
throwing himself forward and telling the monk to do what he likes. This right
transcends all distinctions of difference and equality. Tsu speaks while
observing the living fact. In this respect, his answer is the same as Jshs Mu.
There are the two aspects of difference and equality. Difference is the
phenomenal world where everything is separate and distinct. Equality is the
essential world which is totally empty. But these two are actually one and the
same; they are not two different things. Rather than being a case of
transcending or not yet divided, it includes these two aspects of difference and
equality while at the same time transcending them. Tsu is, in effect, leaving
himself wide open to attack. The monk can attack from the aspect of difference

11
or from that of the essential. To use a metaphor from Japanese swordsmanship,
if Tsu holds his sword high over his head, Tsus breastplate and gauntlet are
left wide open to attack. The monk can strike anywhere he likes. In the crucial
comment, Engo says, hes sold his body to you. He leaves his flank open.
How does the monk respond? Oh Master, dont make farting and
grunting noises. Some interpretations see the original Chinese as meaning the
sound of a pig grunting or vulgar talk. But, it can also have the very earthy
meaning which I have given as the translation. The original Chinese also means
the sloshing of water as it is poured into a bowl. At any rate, the monk, with his
reply, is attempting to catch Tsu up with his reply of right by coming up with
the most offensive and vulgar sounds he can think of. The monk still has
something up his sleeve as he tries to trip up his master. He is still caught up in
ideas of Oh, this too must be the voice of the Buddha! as he carries his excess
mental baggage about in futile attempts to trick Tsu. His hidden motives are
actually visible from a mile away! So what does Tsu do?
Tsu hit him. Whack! The following interpretations have traditionally
been given for Tsus response. To say that all sounds are the voice of the
Buddha is to speak from the standpoint of the essential world. But, as I have
already mentioned, the essential and phenomenal are actually one and the same.
In the phenomenal there is distinction. There are things that we must say to our
superiors as well as things that we must avoid saying out of respect. Otherwise,
everything descends into a state of what is called bad equality. Its all right to
say that there are essentially no distinctions but we must never forget this aspect
of the phenomenal. We are all equal as human beings, but there are very
important distinctions (parent-child, teacher-student, etc.) which must be
observed if there is not to be total chaos. There is a very definite difference
between the president and a beggar in the streets and we are not free to forget
these differences and speak only in terms of non-differentiation or equality in
making judgments. We must not fall into blind equality.
To say that all sounds are the voice of the Buddha is to speak from the
essential standpoint. But, at the same time, there are things which are proper to
say to ones master and things which are not. This monk is forgetting this and
clinging to the single aspect of equality. According to most traditional
interpretations of this koan, Tsu strikes the monk to flail out against this blind
equality. This is also the gist of Engos short critical comments appended to this
case. Yasutani Roshi, in his commentary on this case, says, This monk is
carrying around the dregs of Zen Buddhism. Yasutani Roshi sees the monk as
telling his master not to talk irresponsibly, for all the world like a pig grunting
and farting. Iiida Tin Roshi sees Tsu as hitting the monk for sticking to blind
equality. I myself have trouble accepting the claim that Tsu had the intention
of striking out against bad equality when he hit the monk.
On the contrary, Im sure he was striking at that concept in the monks
head, those ideas of This, too, is the voice of the Buddha! These are the

12
concepts which would lead the monk to try to set a trap for his master. Dont be
caught up in concepts! Tsu seems to say as he strikes the monk. If he had been
thinking in terms of whether or not the monk was guilty of blind equality or not,
he would never have been able to act with such agility and freedom. The minute
Tsu sees concepts appearing on the horizon he strikes. This is revealing the
great activity with no set rules, as it says in the Instruction. He certainly
wasnt considering what he was going to do. It is only a person of great ability
who is capable of such appropriate action. Although most persons with any wits
about them would have comprehended by this time, this monk still holds out
with his cherished concepts.
The monk asked again, Slanderous words and fine phrases
all return to the highest principle. Is that right or wrong? Tsu said,
Right. The monk said, May I call Master a donkey? Tsu hit him.
The highest principle is the true fact, the fact which exists before
meaning arises. Whether it be coarse language or fine phrases, it is all the
essential fact. The monks second question is the same as the former one. Tsu
again answers, Right. The monk replies, May I call Master a donkey?
Whack! Tsu hits him immediately with his stick. Once again, Tsu was not
hitting the monk to strike back at what he considered an instance of blind
equality. He struck out at the concepts which would lead the monk to try to trip
his master up on his words. Needless to add, if we were to analyze the monks
thoughts we would find more than enough traces of bad equality mixed in. But
that is not the reason Tsu is hitting him. Get rid of those concepts! he seems
to say again as he strikes a second time.
When I consider what the response would have been if this had been
Hgen Zenji (a patriarch with whom I feel a close affinity) instead of Tsu, I
imagine the exchange would have been something like this:
A monk asked Hgen, All sounds are the voice of the Buddha. Is that
right or wrong? Hgen said, Right. The monk said, Oh Master, dont make
farting and grunting noises. Hgen was silent for a while and said, Oh Master,
dont make farting and grunting noises.
There is no meaning in Hgens reply. It is the same as Mu. It is the
same as Right!

On the Verse:
Tsu! Tsu! The wheel of activity has no obstruction.
When one is cast down he gains two.
It is the same with that, it is the same with this.
Setch, beside himself with admiration, can only murmur Tsu, Tsu
in beholding Tsus wonderful Zen activity. The absolute freedom in turning the
wheel of the Dharma is known as the wheel of spirited activity. And this activity
is totally free, without a bit of obstruction. In truly spirited Zen activity, the

13
response is always instantaneous. Whack! This kind of activity will never
appear if there is still intellectualizing.
The next line about casting down one and picking up two is a reference
to Tsus responses. He says Right two times and hits the monk two times. He
gains twice.
It is the same with that, it is the same with this.
According to Yasutani Roshi, he first said right and then hit him, the
next time he said right and hit him. The first bout and the second bout are
exactly the same. Both exchanges follow exactly the same course and Tsu hits
in exactly the same way.
What a pity, a man playing without end in the tide.
In the end he falls into the tide and dies.
But if he is suddenly brought to life, a hundred rivers reverse
their course with a great surge.
To be playing without end in the tide means to be fooling around
endlessly with concepts. Such a person will eventually drown in a sea of
concepts. If we fool around with concepts we will drown in them. If the monk
were suddenly brought to the great life of enlightenment, a hundred rivers
reverse their course with a great surge. This is a reference to when the waters
of the rivers flow into the sea. I once saw a movie showing the incredible force
with which the Amazon River reversed its current upon flowing into the sea.
To make a great fuss about kensho is not a central matter. But the
deeper the state of delusion before realization, the greater the joy upon attaining
true enlightenment. The feeling of relief upon sloughing off the heavy burden
which we have carried up to now is beyond description. If the burden was light
perhaps the experience itself will be one of saying, Hmphh, so thats it. But
when the burden of delusion has been very heavy, there will be cases where we
are beside ourselves with joy. Sugawara Juho Roshi, the former abbot of
Kenchji Temple in Kamakura, practiced diligently for many years but there was
still a thin film of delusion separating him from the truth. When those delusions
finally disappeared, the Roshi simply said, Hmph, so thats it. Perhaps it was
because his delusions had disappeared to the point where there was only that
thin film left.
Todays case, while not all that different, gives us an opportunity to
savor Tsus wonderful Zen activity. Just like Jsh with Mu, Tsu used the
single word of Right to cut off all delusions.

(translated by Paul Shepherd)

14
 A Request ....
The editorial board of the Sanb-Kydan Society (Jp.: Sanb-Krykai)
would like to welcome input from its readers. Please send us your contributions
in the form of short articles, sketches, photographs, and so on. We welcome also
your comments and suggestions concerning our magazine. The manuscrips thus
received may be delayed in publication or shortened on account of the limited
space.
Thank you for your understanding.

Important announcement...
In order to facilitate future activities, the Sanb-Kydan Society has decided to
take the following measures concerning the form of our publication, Kysh, and
the way in which the yearly membership fees are collected. We sincerely ask you
for your understanding and cooperation.

From No. 322 (January/February 2007) the Kysh will be put on the
"Members' Forum" (German page: "Forum der Mitglieder") of our homepage
(http: //www.sanbo-zen.org), in both the Japanese and the English language
sections. Members can enter this Forum using their ID ("user name") and
their password (cf. below). The Forum will be further enlarged through
constant addition of translation (English/German) of teishos and other
significant matters.
The Japanese part of the Kysh will be printed and bound as usual, but, as a
general rule, they will be sent only to the members residing in Japan.
Generally, the Kysh will not be sent to those members residing outside of
Japan. If, however, a member who has no access to the Internet informs the
secretariat of this, either the printed version of the English Kysh or the
booklet of the Japanese Kysh will be provided as requested.
To pay the yearly membership fees, use of a credit card will be introduced on
our Internet homepage (US $ 50.- ; cf. the "Membership fees/donations
Corner" of our homepage after September 2006). New members who submit
the yearly membership fees using a credit card will automatically obtain the
ID ("user name") and the password by which they can enter the "Members'
Forum."
The present members can pay their membership fees with this system, too.

16
 Furthermore, those members who have already paid their membership fees
up to 2006 and have their email addresses registered at the secretariat will be
informed of their ID and password upon completion of the renewal of the
homepage with the above-mentioned payment system. This will enable them
to enter the "Members' Forum" mentioned above. Those members who
acquire an email address and submit it to the secretariat will also be given
their ID and password upon request. Furthermore, the donations will also be
accepted with this system.
When the fees are paid by the credit card, no formal receipt will be sent to the
members, except in the case that such a receipt is requested. The automatic
email confirming the payment will take the place of the usual receipt.
Even after the introduction of the credit card payment system, the
conventional postal transfer will be continued, although it is confined to
domestic use inside Japan. For the payment from abroad, this credit card
system is strongly recommended; however, it will remain possible to transfer
money to the account of German Gemeinschaftsbank (40 Eur from the fiscal
year 2007 [April 2007-March 2008], for an indefinite period of time):

GLS Gemeinschaftsbank eG
(Postfach 00829, D-44708 Bochum;
Tel:+49-234-5797-0)
Bank Sorting Code (Bankleitzahl): 43060967
Giro account No. (Girokonto Nr.): 4011834500
Account holder (Name des Kontoinhabers):
Migaku Sato
In addition, in cases of some unavoidable circumstances, the remittance to
our Japanese CitiBank account would also remain possible (an amount of
money would also be US $ 50 /40 Eur).
CitiBank N.A. (SWIFT-Address: CITIJPJT)
Shinjuku Minamiguchi Branch
Ordinary account No.: 93981500
Account holder: Yukihiko Ogawa

We sincerely ask for your cooperation.

17
The KYSH (Awakening Gong), No. 319(1 July 2006)
Issued by: The Religious Foundation Sanb-Kydan
Hase 1-6-5, Kamakura-shi, 248-0016 Japan
Edited by: The Sanb-Kydan Society (Sanb-Krykai)
%Tokyo Kembikyin
Kudan-minami 4-8-32, Tokyo 102-8288 Japan
Tel: 03-5210-6669
Fax: 03-5210-6676
Email: sanbo3a@grp.rikkyo.ne.j p
http://www.sanbo-zen.org/
Editor in Chief: ASHIDA Osamu