Diamond

According to Shingon school, the something which is told by Buddha is not -- we cannot authorize anyone, or any teaching by what was told teaching -- what was told by Buddha. According to Shingon school the Diamond Sutra, Diamond Sutra is the supreme teaching which was told by Buddha and which told by Buddha without any audience. This is very funny [laughs].The teaching which was told by some special person, according to his character, or his ability, is not absolute teaching because it was told by him, like a medicine to the patient. If the patient changes, the teaching will change, so it is not absolute teaching. But the Diamond Sutra, which was told by Buddha to himself, is the only teaching which we can depend [according to the Shingon school].   But this is not a complete understanding. That is why Zen puts emphasis on our practice. Whatever the teaching is which was told by someone, is not absolute teaching. This is traditional understanding of our teaching. Not only Zen, but also for every school of Buddhism.      --------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki  lecture - 68-07-23 - as found on shunryusuzuki.com, from one of the newly discovered (2021) lecture tapes. 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. Go to https://www.instagram.com/cuke_archives/ for more daily Shunryu Suzuki lecture excerpts - with a photo

Tendai

According to the Tendai school, there are, the aspects of being and non-being, and the third aspect includes aspects of viewpoint of being and non-being, and it is something beyond being and non-being. That is the third aspect. And according to Tendai school, according to the third aspect, you cannot arrange our teaching this way or that way. To arrange the teaching this way or that way, a time span or a space span in the teaching which is in maybe the third dimension. But the absolute teaching which we transmit from master to the other is not this kind of teaching. According to the Tendai school it is so.         --------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki  lecture - 68-07-23 - as found on shunryusuzuki.com, from one of the newly discovered (2021) lecture tapes. 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. Go to https://www.instagram.com/cuke_archives/ for more daily Shunryu Suzuki lecture excerpts - with a photo

Transmit

All the teachings which was written is the second principle [laughs]. The first principle is the principle which you cannot talk about and which we transmit from master to master, from patriarch to patriarch. So how to transmit it is the point we should study [laughter].        --------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki  lecture - 68-07-23 - as found on shunryusuzuki.com, from one of the newly discovered (2021) lecture tapes. 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. Go to https://www.instagram.com/cuke_archives/ for more daily Shunryu Suzuki lecture excerpts - with a photo

One and Two

So since then, when Nangaku called him for the first time, "Where are you from?" he said, you know, that is already a question about the first principle: "Where are you from?" "Who are you?"

 "I don't know" is right, you know.

This kind of question and answer started from Bodhidharma, and intellectually, this point was discussed by many teachers, even before Bodhidharma came to China. According to the Sanron school they classify our teaching in two: the first principle, and the second principle. The second principle is the principle which we can study and talk about intellectually. And the first one something which we cannot talk about. If we talk about it, it is already the second principle. So we classify our teaching in two.       --------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki  lecture - 68-07-23 - as found on shunryusuzuki.com, from one of the newly discovered (2021) lecture tapes. 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. Go to https://www.instagram.com/cuke_archives/ for more daily Shunryu Suzuki lecture excerpts - with a photo

Don't Know

In the Bodhidharma story -- if the Emperor thinks he is the holy one, that is not true. When -- especially when the Emperor asked him "What is the first principle?" you know. First principle is not something holy, or not holy. Whatever you say about, it is not right. So he said "I don't know." [laughs] No, not a matter of holy or not holy. "Who are you?" he said. If I am Bodhidharma, that is not perfect, so he said, "I don't know."      --------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki  lecture - 68-07-23 - as found on shunryusuzuki.com, from one of the newly discovered (2021) lecture tapes. 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. Go to https://www.instagram.com/cuke_archives/ for more daily Shunryu Suzuki lecture excerpts - with a photo

Tassajara Tales

 A SFZC program hosted by Diane Renshawl. Check it out.

Not Usual

And this, you know, "I don't know," "Who are you in front of me?" you know, "What is the first principle," the Emperor asked. "I don't know," [laughs] he said. "I don't know," "There's no holy person," or "Nothing sacred -- no sacred teachings," that was his answer. "Then aren't you the teacher from India?" the Emperor asked. Bodhidharma said, "I don't know." [laughs] This "I don't know" is not usual "I don't know."      --------------------------- Excerpt from Shunryu Suzuki  lecture - 68-07-23 - as found on shunryusuzuki.com, from one of the newly discovered (2021) lecture tapes. 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. Go to https://www.instagram.com/cuke_archives/ for more daily Shunryu Suzuki lecture excerpts - with a photo

DC: This is verbatim what Suzuki said, running through the Bodhidharma and Emperor exchange like a dream sequence. The key is that the "I don't know" is not the usual meaning.

Learn the low down on Bodhidharma

 

Counterpoint Press page for this book with a good synopsis of the book.

Andy Ferguson cuke page

Listen to the recent cuke podcast with Andy (and another coming up soon).

On thing Andy points out is that there had been Zen in China for hundreds of years already when Bodhidharma arrived. Bodhidharma is the first patriarch of Zen in China because only his lineage survives.

Bodhidharma story continued from yesterday

And there were more -- more questions and answers. "Bodhidharma, I helped building temples and supported many -- patronized many teachers. What is the virtue of my deed?" And Bodhidharma said, "No merit." [laughs] That was his answer. So the emperor couldn’t understand what does he mean by "no virtue."

Tongue of a Crow

 Peter Coyote at Book Passage - video

Peter Coyote cuke page

Tongue of a Crow is Peter's recent book of poetry gathered from a life of writing poems. I just heard him read a number of them when he was a guest on Jon Joesph's Zen Luminaries series.