Conclusion of Lecture

And it takes time, you know, until you actually practice our way and extend our way in our everyday life. So there is no reason why you should try to attain something. Anyway, to continue our practice without giving up [laughs], that is the most important thing for you.

Thank you very much. -   -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-08-25 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC  - Going through Suzuki lectures and posting anything that can stand on its own. Not looking for zingers or "the best of." I find that following these excerpts daily provides another way to experience Suzuki's teaching. - DC

Interview with Peg Anderson and Will Stocker

 Interview with Peg Anderson and Will Stocker - done 25 years ago at her home in Palo Alto - two who sat at the Haiku Zendo.

Ignore

When you do not understand this kind of teaching [as described yesterday - knowing the appropriat way, the middle way], you will not find good teacher, you know. You will ignore him [laughs], even though very best teacher is right here, like me [laughs, laughter]. No-- I don't think so [laughing]. You will ignore it: “He is talking about the same thing over and over.”  -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-08-25 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

More on Ananda

Wrapping up this week's focus and Ananda Claude Dalenberg, here's his cuke interview with a brief history.

Much more linked to from his cuke page

Photo SRO346 with names - Ananda is 2nd from the right in front.

Appropriate

To do something which is necessary when it is necessary, in the most adequate, appropriate way [laughs] is very difficult, you know. Someone who can do things in this way is good priest [laughs], good student.  -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-08-25 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

Mountain Gate Study Center curriculum

Jay Gilbert just wrote: I saw your blogspot about Ananda. I wondered if you can put out a call to see if anyone has a copy of the old Mountain Gate Study Center curriculum. Remember when we has a framework for Study Center classes? Abidharma, Koans: Blue Cliff/Mumonkan, Emptiness. I don't remember the specific categories, but then one class of each category would be offered either at City Center or at GGF each "semester". I rather remember there were 6 categories, but it was so much more comprehensive than any online courses I am seeing, or the current SFZC offerings. Ananda designed it, and I am grateful for getting such a comprehensive grounding in the teachings of the Buddha.

DC - I'm putting out the word looking for it. Thanks Jay. He says he looked for it when he was shuso but that he couldn't find a copy of it anywhere.

Ananda Claude Dalenberg's cuke page

Photo from SFZC 1973 Wind Bell article on the new Zen Buddhist Study Center.

I should get all references to Ananda from the Wind Bells and put it on his cuke page, but I found this using cuke's Wind Bell search set up by Peter Ford.

Middle Way

We have been studying the same thing [laughs], you know, over and over again -- sometimes by Prajnaparamita Sutra, sometimes by five ranks, sometimes by ten powers. But actually, they are various explanations of zazen power. And if you extend our understanding, you will understand everything in the most meaningful way-- the most adequate way. That adequate way is called the middle way. -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-08-25 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

Remembering Ananda Dalenberg

A memorial piece I wrote for Ananda. - DC

Ananda Dalenberg's cuke page

Photo - SR0044

Oct. 1966 At Rinsoin

L to R: Shunryu Suzuki, Hoitsu Suzuki, ?, Grahame and Pauline Petchey, Phillip Wilson, Claude Dalenberg - by Fumiyo Yanagita

Ears and Eyes

You are not aware of your ears, you know. Even though you are not aware of your ears, you hear something. When you see something,  [laughs] you cannot see your own eye. So our practice should be like this, you know. You should not be aware of your practice. -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-08-25 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

No Buddhism

When you can intuitively know what is our way, you will extend your way until you have attainment in its true sense - where there is no Buddhism [laughs] -- no Buddhism. -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-08-25 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

Ananda's Publication

Claude Ananda Dalenberg for years had a little photocopied publication he'd send out that had various names - Cloud Hidden Friends, Universal Life Friends, and Zen Freethinker, We're missing three or four issues. The SFZC's library copy was thrown out at some point which I still haven't gotten over. It's got letters and contributions from Gary Snyder, Marian Derby, and many other of our friends. One of my regrets is that I never did contribute. It makes me a little sad. You had to contribute to receive it. He'd mail them out. Here they are.

Ananda's cuke page

Memorial Service for Robert Lytle

Sunday, July 19th at 3pm

Green Gulch Farm Zen Center

1601 Shoreline Hwy, Muir Beach, CA 94965

This is the plan but of course it's contingent on how things are going virus-wise in July.

Robert Lytle cuke page

Not Perfect

And so, to some extent, when you want to practice zazen it is necessary to have some belief or, you know, or understanding of our way, complete understanding so that you can believe in it. When there is no doubt in the teaching, you can believe in it, you know, even though the understanding is not perfect. When you understand it, you know, completely, you will find out this is just intellectual understanding. So you have to actually attain the teaching in its true sense--not only intellectual understanding, -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-08-25 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

No Buddhism

When we understand our teaching or our practice, actually there is no teaching or no Buddhism [laughs], because whatever you do, that is Buddhism itself. But it does not mean everything is Buddhism and there is no need to practice our way [laughs]. That is wrong understanding. Only when we thoroughly practice, can we teach this understanding.  -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-08-25 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

Ananda Claude Dalenber

I think we can spend all week with Ananda Claude Dalenberg. For starters, take a look at his cuke page which leads many places. 

Book on Betty Warren

Featured Betty Warren a couple of days ago. Her cuke page is so full, thought it would be good to point out Nitsa Marandonatou's wonderful Book on Betty Warren with many photos:

Catherine E. "Betty" Warren - it's a PDF

All Vehicles

Whatever teaching you observe, that is our teaching, our Mahayana teaching. So you cannot, you know [laughs], abandon Mahayana way. When you have true understanding of our practice, that is including all vehicles, without abandoning the Mahayana vehicle.  -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-08-25 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

Jean Ross

Jean Ross was the third woman in this trio who started practicing at Sokoji soon after he arrived - after she met Shunryu Suzuki at Kazemitsu Kato's class on Buddhism at the AAAS, American Academy of Asian Studies. Here she is with Suzuki in about 1964.

Cuke page on Jean Ross with excerpts from Crooked Cucumber and her Japan reports in the early sixties from the Wind Bells. She was a pioneer woman in the world of Zen. - dc

Motorcar

In its narrow sense, teaching is something which was told by some sage. That is the teaching in its narrow sense. But in its wide sense, everything is the teaching for us: the color of the mountain, the sound of the river, or sound of the motorcar [laughs] even is a teaching of Buddha. We understand in this way. -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-08-25 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

Della Goertz

When Shunryu Suzuki first came to America he was most fortunate to have a young Kazemitsu Kato as his guide into his new land. Kato was the priest who had been taking care of Sokoji ceremonies till the new priest arrived. Kato took him to his class on Buddhism. Three of his earliest and strongest students came from that class. Yesterday we featured Betty Warren. Today it's Della Goertz. If you read Della refering to Kaz, that's Kato.

That's Della on the far left in this 1964 photo, SR0165 in the photo archive - with some names

Della Goertz page with a great deal from her and on her.

Still on the Ten Powers of Buddha

So you will have incessant practice when you observe the truth through verbal or non-verbal things. You strengthen your devotion and you will hear everything as Buddha's teaching. So in this way, back and forth, you will practice our way endlessly and, as Dogen Zenji said, without any trace of it, you know, this kind of practice will continue. This kind of pure practice will continue forever, endlessly. This is the power we obtain through our practice. -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-08-25 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

Betty Warren

Thinking about Betty today. Tons on her at her cuke page. An inspiring woman. - dc

The Tenth Power

When you devote yourself to your practice, you will have the power of understanding through everything and through various teaching--verbal teaching and non-verbal teaching.  -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-08-25 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

Tardy

Katrinka left for the US today for six weeks and in the last time we had, I forgot all about posting on the 16th. It's there now by date thanks to the little time machine here in Blogger. Have a good time in lockdown dear. - dc

The 5th Power

When you are doing something with calmness of your mind, with good concentration, without being involved in any prejudice, or without sticking to your own viewpoint, then you know things-- you see things as it is. So you know-- so you know what people want, like Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara. So satisfying people with what they want, this power naturally will appear. -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-08-25 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

Expedient Ability

When you do not think that what you are doing is the absolute itself, you have expedient ability. This is something which you should do with kindness, with the same mercy as Buddha's mercy. That is the actual power we have as a Zen student. -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-08-25 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

Talking about the Ten Powers of Buddha

Whatever you say, that is not emptiness itself but it is the good expedient or good devices, an expedient ability to instruct people and alter their conduct. If someone is too rigid, or someone is too partial to some idea of emptiness, or the relative, or some kind of teaching, we can correct their understanding by the expedience. So whatever the teachings are, those teachings are just good devices. And good devices are very important. And to have power of good devices is one of the important points for us. And so whatever you do, that activity should be a good device to instruct people [laughs]. You should be a good example for people. -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-08-25 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

Cuke 2020 Presentation and Appeal for Support

Recently we sent out an email, for the first time since 2012, asking for contributions to Cuke Archives. There were links at the bottom of the email message to the Cuke 2020 Presentation with brief pages for Goals, an Overview, thirty Statements of Support from some noble friends, and Who We Are. The presentation begins with a Message from me, David Chadwick. At the top and bottom of every page there are links to the Donate page. And there are neat photos throughout such as this one.

We invite you to read the Message and urge you to make a contribution via PayPal or check through the mail to help cuke stay afloat. There's a lot more to be done.

Talk

If you have good friend to talk about emptiness with, you can talk about it and say whatever you like [laughs]. Whatever you say, that is emptiness [laughs, laughter]. And you can enjoy the discussion of emptiness [laughs, laughter]. But that is not, you know, the emptiness we mean [laughs, laughter]. But this kind of understanding helps our study of course. And we should not say that you should not write anything about Buddhism or talk anything about Buddhism. -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-08-25 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

Tricycle review of Ledger

Here's a good review of Jane Hirshfield's new book of poetry featured yesterday. - Approaching Life’s Unanswerable Questions.

Jane's cuke page

Somethingness

Because of somethingness, emptiness makes sense. So we rather put emphasis on somethingness or everyday activity without sticking to some idea of emptiness. -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-08-25 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

Jane Hirshfield's new book of poetry, Ledger

The Slow Joy of Jane Hirshfield’s Ledger 
by Colleen Morton Busch in Orion Magazine

Penguin Random House page for this book

Jane's cuke page

Emptiness

When you say “just emptiness,” that is idea of emptiness, not actual emptiness. When we attain emptiness by all parts of our body, that is real emptiness, you know, actual emptiness. When everything exists in its own way and expresses the absolute, we call it a true emptiness. -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-08-25 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

Zen Mudra

Mark Foote's Zen Mudra site 

Hadn't been there in a while. Chock full.

Still at the Blackboard

Although there is black and white, those are two sides of the one coin - absolute and relative. And there is some difference in the way of practice in Rinzai and Soto. Soto puts emphasis on this one [white] and Rinzai puts emphasis on this one [black]. So Rinzai puts emphasis on enlightenment and we put emphasis on each part of the body which participates with the practice of the absolute. So that is why we are concerned about mudra or posture or every form or manner of your activity. -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-08-25 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

Labyrinth

Got a donation today to Cuke Archives from a person in Burlingame. I recalled Burlingame. I stayed at the Mercy Center there twenty years ago. Not in the convent adjoining. Gave a talk. Sat zazen with Father Hand who had studied Zen in Japan for a long time and created a zendo and a labyrinth for walking meditation. There are a lot of images of it online. Here's one. I'd like to go back and walk that labyrinth. I'm into walking meditation these days and back then I liked to walk. I still like to walk. - dc

Pointing to characters on a blackboard

This is black, this is white, as you see [laughs, laughter]. But for me [laughs], this is white and this is black [laughter]. Black, you know, signifies the absolute, and white signifies the relative. This is nighttime. This is daytime. Nighttime you cannot see anything, you know, but daytime you will see everything in its relative sense. But absolute-- you don't see, you don't hear, you don't think. That is the absolute. -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-08-25 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

Sunday is a day off

To take it easy - and answer emails.

Bodhisattva’s Vow—Torei Enji

When I look deeply into the real form of the universe, everything reveals the mysterious truth of the Tathagata. This truth never fails: in every moment and every place, things can’t help but shine with this light.

Realizing this, our ancestors gave reverent care to animals, birds, and all beings. Realizing this, we ourselves know that our daily food, clothing and shelter are the warm body and beating heart of the Buddha. How can we be ungrateful to anyone or anything? Even though someone may be a fool, we can be compassionate. If someone turns against us, speaking ill of us and treating us bitterly, it’s best to bow down: this is the Buddha appearing to us, finding ways to free us from our own attachments— the very ones that have made us suffer again and again and again.

Now on each flash of thought a lotus flower blooms, and on each flower: a buddha. The light of the Tathagata appears before us, soaking into our feet. May we share this mind with all beings so that we and the world together may grow in wisdom.

thanks Carol Spooner (translator haven't found)

Gotsugotsu toishite zajo

Dogen Zenji says in his instruction: Gotsugotsu toishite zajo. Gotsugotsu toishite means “like a mountain,” you know, which one your body should be, like a one big mountain. And he said “think non-thinking.”  When you do this, you cannot think, you know. But your mind is pervading every part of your body. So that is “think non-thinking,” not usual thinking in terms of good or bad. But your mind is everything and is every part of your body. When you practice zazen in that way, figuratively speaking, you are manifesting the Buddha in each world, in every pore of your body.  -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-08-25 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

Pervades

Your mind pervades all over your body. And all the parts of your body are participating in one activity.  -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-08-25 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

John Steiner remembers John Eric Nelson

Among the pieces on our dear late John Nelson's page, is a touching rememberance from John Steiner. John Steiner on John Nelson

Photo of John with Kim and their two kids, Bergen and Eric.

Questions and Answers with Shunryu Suzuki

There's a new selection in the Subject dropdown on the Search page, Search 1, on shunryusuzuki.com. It's Questions & Answers. Choose it, click on search, and many many links to lectures with Q & A are listed below. You can also add key words or years to narrow the search. Here's what it looks like below. Try it out.

Zazen Instruction

And I always explain how you do it, you know: That is to have right posture. Having some strength here [hara], and having perfect mudra here, like this, and you feel as if you are trying to open your arm little bit. And you pull your neck up-- pull your chin in and stretch your neck as if you are supporting something on your head. And you have strength here [hara], especially when you inhale. In other words, your inhaling comes to the bottom of your tummy. At that time you feel as if you are opening your arms. Actually they shouldn't move. And without losing your power here in your tummy or putting some more power in your tummy, you exhale.  -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-08-25 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

Unified

You practice our way as a one unified activity, mind and body, and each part of your body from the end of your nail to the [laughs] top of your head.  -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-08-25 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC 

Not Knowing

Received the following question today;

Do you know if any of Suzuki Roshi's talks are about ‘not knowing mind is most intimate’ or even where he references? I’ve been on your site as well as SFZC‘s and could not find anything in reference to this.

My answer which may help the reader see how to search through all of the extant Shunryu Suzuki lectures:

"Not knowing is most intimate" is the way that koan, number 2o in the Book of Equanimity,  is expressed these days. I first heard it as "Not knowing is closest." I don't remember Suzuki Roshi talking about it specifically. You can easily search for the words at shunryusuzuki.com.

Here - I'll go there and see what I can find. At shunryusuzuki.com I knock on the gate and go to Inside the Gate where there are various options, the most prominent being


Shunryu Suzuki Lecture Search Form

The Garbageman and the Goddess

A Tassajara Story about The Garbageman and the Goddess - from David Schneider

David Schneider page

Eight Power

The eighth power of Buddha is the mysterious power of showing the appearance of the Buddha in each pore of body. That is actually zazen practice. This is actually the explanation of our shikantaza. When you practice zazen in its true sense, actually you are Buddha himself, and in each pore of your body you have so many worlds [laughs]. And in each of the world, there is Shakyamuni Buddha. This is explanation of our shikantaza.  -------------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki lecture - 68-08-25 as found on shunryusuzuki.com. Edited by DC