n° 1 • 2014 • english version • £ 7 / $ 9,50 / € 8,50
zen road magazine
Texts and Interviews on Zen today:
with Kodo Sawaki, Philippe Coupey, Guido Keller, François Loiseau and Lee Lozowick.
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Editorial
E
“
xperience provokes expression.” A friend who is a zen monk said this to me as we were pondering the phenomenal number of books on Zen; So, why create a new Zen-magazine? To give space to our thoughts on Zen and to offer more accessible reading matter - in contrast with traditional teaching which requires slow reading and the beauty and depth of which leave many residual impressions.
Coverpicture by Juliette Heymann; all rights reserved
We have envisaged these impressions in a contemporary context. You will find them dotted about in different themes, which interest us as they concern the evolution of Zen in the West. As we don’t see Western Zen as completed or established but as something that that goes on being created, preserving authenticity and enabling daily practice. I wish you good reading with the thought provoking texts, the interviews and the fictional offerings which make up this first issue. Jonas Endres, Paris - March 2014
Zen Road magazine - n° 1 March 2014 - Published annually. Zen Road is a project of the Sangha Sans Demeure, disciples and friends of Zen monk Rei Ryu Philippe Coupey, practising in the lineage of Master Taisen Deshimaru. This magazine is the extension of our Website, www.zen-road.org. It’s also an extension in the sense that most of our authors and contributors are not members of our sangha. We would like the think that in future our circle will grow bigger, with a view to better communicating and exchange the vision of Zen. We are always interested to hear from readers, so do contact us. Zen Road / Jonas Endres • Dojo Zen de Paris • 175 rue de Tolbiac • 75013 Paris • France 3
Summary S u m m a r y
Poems and thoughts.
p. 6 - 13
Three poems and one thought. From the Middle Ages in Japan to the present day in the West.
Actions of the Full Universe
p.14 - 29
Originally published in the 1940’s this fine example on the uncompromising teaching by Kodo Sawaki was for the first time translated into English by Jeffrey Broadbent in the 1970’s. It disappeared since and we hope to publish it entirely in one way or the other. Here some excerpts to get started...
Sexuality in Buddhism
p.30 - 37
Two texts by the Zen monk Philippe Rei Ryu Coupey on inappropriate sexual behaviour according to the kai, the precepts, and on homosexuality and misunderstandings between Buddhists and gay people.
The zen ruffian
p. 38-49
An interview with Guido Keller , editor and blogger. Just like a true agent provocateur , he raises and opposes different issues in Buddhism , speaking out on vegetarianism, contemporary Zen masters, literature and deceit......
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p. 50-63
Trouble in Paradise An interview with Francois Loiseau, a Zen monk in charge of the dojo at Frejus, who bears witness to the difficulties of trying to run a dojo in a region where materialism has raised itself to an art form. How to transmit the dharma at a time when Zen has become synonymous with well –being and relaxation?
p. 64-77
A question of mind An interview with the monk Philippe Rei Ryu Coupey on Zen and the direction it is taking today.
p. 78-83
Zen trash Four short stories by Lee Lozowick, Master Baul, extracts from a collection of the same name, Zen Trash. Colourful, comical, full of digressions and extraneous details, they really surprise with their liveliness and the mind of the author, who returns in these brief stories to the great tradition of tales and fables.
p. 84
Imprint and contact
Zen trash Zen trash 5
The waves die out on the shore. The light wind holds its breath. The abandoned boat gently drifts. In the silence of the night, The moon in the depths of the firmament Spreads her peaceful light. Master Dogen (1200 - 1253) , poem of the San Sho doei
Photo by Juliette Heymann, taken at Saint-Malo (France, English Channel)
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Of course our civilization needs great works. But what’s more important – great works, or great people? We could say that the world needs great men and great women without great works.
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Photo by Agnès Villette
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Kodo Sawaki (1880 - 1965)
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Kodo Sawaki Satori from one Nights’ Lodging Actions of the Full Universe Te x t s o n t h e « S h ô d ô k a » a n d i t ’s author Yôka Daishi
Talks given in the 1940’s, the transcriptions have been translated from Japaense into English by Jeffrey Broadbent in 1974. Broadbent practiced Zen with Kodo Sawaki in the 1960’s.
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Part 1
Satori from one Nights’ Lodging A Short Biography of Yôka Daishi
O
ther than this Shôdôka, Yôka Daishi has another work known as the Yôkashu1. He was a very great man of the Tendai Sect who became a disciple of the Sixth Patriarch2. The Shôdôka means The Song of Shôdô, i.e. The Song of Enlightenment about the Way. If one does not become enlightened about other things it’s O.K. That which is called the Way is the “previous sage’s footprints”, i.e. the traces left by the sages who walked by the road the sages have stepped on. To take this Way and move it into oneself and make it one’s own way of life is to know the Way, and to know one’s true direction. Even in putting on make-up, it is no good imitating others. Everyone has their own way of putting on make–up. Those with a flattish nose will put extra white powder on the bridge and make the tip stand out. Those whose forehead is too high will bring down their forelock and make a little bonsai tree out of it. Those with long chins will grow a beard to fool others. Those whose crown is growing bald will borrow hair from the sides and arrange it strand by strand on top. Those without hair, like me are unable to do this. In the same fashion, what we do by ourselves can be found in everyone; or in terms of time, the eternal ‘just-now’ ; the ‘just-right-here’ of all the worlds of the ten directions; this is the Way. I think this “Way” is exactly like a steering-wheel. Although our friend may handle the wheel in one way, we still have to have our own way of doing things. We do not proceed along externally fixed lines. The individual has to take the wheel each moment by himself and go along. In accordance with how we handle the wheel we go towards a goal. In other words, we must make ourselves empty in any situation. Therefore, the way one’s mind really digests ideas and the way one is actually going right now is the Way. In other words, you yourself are the Way. This is the self we need to ascertain. It is not someone else’s. To imitate someone else will not be appropriate for you. Thus the Shôdôka is a song of the heart. The Shôdôka is a song meant to reveal one’s own Way through melodious chanting and resonant poetry.
1
Collected Works of Yoka (Taisho 48 pg 387). Ten chapters on the essentials of Zen practice.
2
Enô (683-713), the famous Tang Dynasty priest of the Zen sect.
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There are various reference works for this but the best is Chidonsha Iseen Osho’s Shôdôka jiki setsu3. The name is taken from the two characters “Jiki” and “Setsu” in the line in the Shôdôka which Can be translated as, “The mark of the Buddha is to cut directly to the root-fundamental (of Truth)”. Jiki means direct and Setsu means to cut As for recent works there are the lectures of Arai Zenji. Anyhow, this Shôdôka is not even two thousand characters in length, with less than three hundred lines, so it is just a short piece and easy to remember. I always carry it around and if I have a little time, open it up and chant softly. Truly it has exquisite beauty. In this text we will only present a short biography of Yôka Daishi, the author of the Shôdôka. For details please consult the Dentôroku4 or the Plattform-sutra5. The Dentôroku says: “Zen master Yôka Genkaku was a native of Yôka of Unshu6. His original surname was Tai”. If one goes to the Koshu area, one can see many gravestones with the name Tai. “When he was still young, he left his home to become a Buddhist monk. ”Young” means around five or six years old. “He studied the entire Tripitika…” What is called Tripitika are the sûtras, vinayas and sastras. “…being particularly well versed in the profound and subtle
3 The Shôdôka jiki setsu is said to be unusual among commentaries in that it does not rely upon authorities but urges the reader to taste the truth for himself. Its author is Chidonsha Issen Osho. 4 A chinese text written around the year 1000, not to be confronted with the Denkôroku (Record of the Transmission of the Lamp) by Master Keizan. 5
Written in 780, 50 years after Eno’s death, this is not a sutra written by the 6th patriarch.
6 On shu (Ch. Wen-chou) is in Chekinang Province which borders on the East China Sea south of the Yangtse River. 17
“I
am enlightened” – these are the words of a really intolerable boor. We don’t know if we are enlightened. Of course, there is also no consciousness of delusion. There is no consciousness of delusion and no consciousness of enlightenment. This is the only direction we can possibly go in. Thus there is no necessity to become enlightened and there is no necessity to be deluded. Therefore, in the past we were not deluded and now we are not enlightened. This state is “the unthinkable”20. But even though we say, “without thought, without concept”21, it’s not at all as if the soul embarked upon a balloon and drifted away into the mist. •
20 HISHIRYO “Non-thought”. A key term of Dôgen Zenji found, among other places, in the Fukanzazengi “Zazen is to think of no-thought. What kind of thought is not-thought ? Nonthought. This is itself the essential art of zazen”. 21 MUNENMUSO, MUNEN means no distracting thoughts; MUSO is similar in meaning. Both indicate freedom from mental operation.
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‘Being here’ - painting by Guy Seika 29
Sexuality in Buddhism Two texts by the Zen monk Philippe Rei Ryu Coupey. In the context of his commentaries on the the kai - the precepts which are received by those who take ordination as a Bodhisattva or monk - , Philippe Coupey has spoken about sexuality, its influence on society and how it is perceived in Buddhism. In these texts he is against ‘consumer sexuality’ – looking for happiness in having a lot of sexual relations with many different partners – and also opposes the Buddhist position on homosexuality, whilst also considering the often mistaken attacks by the gay community against Buddhism. 30
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Photo by Christophe Chatverre: Wooden fish at the zen temple La Gendronnière, France
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Bad sex: A disorder That Spreads Across all Society by Philippe Coupey, zen monk On this subject it is written in one of the sutras:
“If the way of sex between a man and a woman is right, the climate, the weather is right; if the practice of this way is disorderly, the climate, the weather, the cosmic order are affected and disrupted. And this leads to the decadence of civilization and to its loss.”
Kai. Jap. “precept”. The ten precepts received by those who take bodhisattva, monk or nun ordination are: not to kill, not to steal, not to lie, not to cause suffering with sexual activity, not to give or consume intoxicants, not to speak of the faults of others, not to be miserly with the benefits of the Dharma, not to be angry, not to denigrate the Three Jewels.
Commentary:
With regard to the first three kai (precepts), it is interesting to note how the sutras emphasize the importance of the well-being of society, of the country, whether they are discussing the action of killing, stealing or sex. In the end it is always a question of thinking of others. Clearly a bad sex life influences the people around us, our children and our parents but also the nation. We must always come out of ourselves, come out of our personal preoccupations. Thinking of others is the best way to cure ourselves of any mental imbalance. We could establish a parallel between a bad sex life and an extravagant State. If there are a lot of thieves in a country, the country will become impoverished; it will experience difficulties on an economic and financial level, etc. In the same way, if everybody starts telling lies—that’s the fourth kai. I’ve just been reading a book by Michel Houellebecq, Platform. The narrator is in Cuba. In one passage, a Cuban says that if everybody starts stealing, as they are doing, when theft becomes general, the country falls sick. This worker who gave his whole life to the Cuban revolution says that “the revolution failed to create ‘the new man’.” And so, he tells us, “Societies and society are in the end only a laborious and elaborate device for fixing things so that some people can escape boring and difficult work…” This worker was beaten, he had struggled all his life, absolutely in vain… Cuba was finished. The workers around him and in the factories—on a nationwide scale, “were doing nothing but stealing, they were working badly, they were lazy, always sick, always absent from their jobs.” So “This Cuban society had become incapable of ensuring the survival of its members.” To come back to the question of sex, as you know, many traditional religions forbid sexual practice. However, this is an error, because love is necessary— at least for human beings. But there are so many misunderstandings on this subject, even among certain Buddhist believers… 32
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If a person often changes partner…
In the Buddhist texts it is said that if a person often changes partner, it will first affect his physiology and then his psyche. Karma becomes complicated and influences everybody around him, first his children, then his family and the Sangha. The fundamental bases of morality have sunk, and this has heavy consequences. Through the practice of zazen, we are more and more sensitive to this question of causes and effects. And the more we practice, the more we notice the consequences of our actions, on others and on ourselves… Today, on the subject of sexual behavior, it’s a complete mess.
Extension of the sexual domain
Michel Houellebecq, in the same book, Platform, from which I just cited a passage, proposes in an ironic tone that there should be clubs for tourists “where people can eat, drink and fuck.” And, says Houellebecq, “The formula is particularly good”—for those who go to Cuba. He explains in detail, “If you stay in Paris, there are partner-swapping clubs.” And he lists the addresses of some of them in the eighth and sixteenth arrondissements. He also gives the address of a sadomasochistic club that he knows personally. He has not yet tried, he tells us, a necrophiliac or pedophiliac club, but that will come… This is certainly a long way from our experiences and our personal problems. Having said that, it’s not so much better to run after married men with children, or vice versa for married men to flirt with and seduce others, and even worse when it’s monks and nuns in the sangha. The whole world is affected by it. Furthermore, as I often say: if love and sex are bad (we know what “bad” means by now), all society suffers. We have a tendency to think it’s only ourselves who suffer. Again, this is the vision of the little ego, me, me … and that causes suffering, as I’ve said, in the Sangha and the world… If those who govern us make mistakes in relation to this kai—and we could quote many examples (our presidents, heads of state, men of the church)—it brings about consequences for the people, and for us all. That is one of the reasons why our zazen practice is indispensable, not only for us but for everybody, for all things. If for example our heads of state, our politicians, lie (and they lie all the time, you have only to listen to the radio: they tell complete fabrications), this supports a moral depravity that goes against the cosmic order. What is happening? It’s this order which is manifesting and will manifest its anger. • 33
This dog is a friend of Guido Keller, we’re gonna meet him later in the interview...
The zen ruffian 38
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An interview with Guido Keller, a German editor with a weakness for the lineage of Kodo Sawaki and for ancient Buddhist sutras, of which he has published a great number via his Buddhist publishing house “Angkor Verlag” which is quite well known in Germany. He is active on the Net and also has an on-going blog of juicy texts which he has sub-titled “Commentaries by a Zen ruffian on Buddhism and life in this world.” Some people may think his style presumptuous, since he - not a practitioner of Zen - is criticizing monks, talking from high up. But who is he, actually? Not an intellectual, nor erudite , he does nevertheless seem to know Zen and Buddhism really well. He isn’t affiliated to any organisation, having always preferred to stay independent. He isn’t looking for allies, but stays by himself. Perhaps he is among the future spokespersons for Buddhism? In English: dooyen.wordpress.com In German: angkor-verlag.blogspot.com • der-asso-blog.blogspot.com 39
Ownership is another criteria you bring up, it goes along with conduct and dependence on power – I guess you rather focused on excesses like collecting sport-cars, but the three mentioned criteria take also place in every “good” religion, owning a temple, clerical structures... You reproach dilution mainly to those masters, who often go into societal matters. What is your criticism of the engaged Buddhism of people like Glassmann and Thich Nhat Hanh ? And why doesn’t Genpo Merzel figure on the “dilution” list? With his “Big Mind®”-process, he promises that he can produce for his customers a Buddhist enlightenment experience in just a few short hours. Monks committing an ‘error’ - that is s.th. to be judged by the Vinaya, if the monks are ordained in a respective tradition. Thich Nhat Hanh (TNH) for example is, but no one is trying to get the twenty older monks together for a “Vinaya Kamma” - as demanded by the Palicanon - to reprimand him for the co-ownership of his institute in Waldbroel which is a violation of the monastic law. I just point that out because those monks insist on Buddhist rules, formulated thousands of years ago in the Palicanon or moderately renewed (but still rigorous) as in the case of TNH. They get beaten at their own game, when they present fake written authorizations. I do not believe that these are important, but they do and so do many of their followers. These are all ridiculous traps in which those teachers catch themselves. As ‘phonies’ I mainly criticize those who put on a show (of zazen in concentration camps, for example) and cannot let go of possessions (money, cars, houses, women etc.). Of course a guy like Genpo Merzel could also be included in the ‘dilution’-category. T. I am just 44
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The sap from Tokyo by Natsume Sôseki
trying to make someone who is looking for a Buddhist tradition think twice before getting involved with these people, their ‘practice’ and their attitudes. Someone googling for orientation and running into my blog can get a free warning. ‘Lack of authorization’ is the lack of being an author. It was once said that a disciple has to top his master to become his follower. The question is what we would consider to be that ‘topping’. The first master - and it doesn’t matter if he’d only existed as a metaphor and never as a historical figure - is the Buddha. What he stands for in the Zen tradition is an enlightened mind that is able to let go of everything. The phonies do not let go, they accumulate, hoard, expand, they mainly follow the law of business as marketing people, managers and entrepreneurs do. This is not wrong in itself, but if you put them to the test and see if at the same time they could let go of everything, what will you find out? Of course, in that respect a lot of the old masters might have been phonies, too, we just do not know so much about them. But if you’d extract the best of a Glassman or a Thich in a hundred years, you would still not get anything worth of Takuan’s or Ikkyu’s insights. The zen of those teachers I attack is diluted by their greed. In some cases, it is just greed for followers and worship. In the case of TNH his megalomania is obvious when he tries to advice US presidents by naive letters.
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Trouble in Paradise
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TrouTrouble ble in in ParaParadise dise
François Loiseau
An interview with Francois Loiseau, zen monk, head of the Dojo at Frejus, Cote D’Azur in Southern France.
In the heart of a region dominated by individualism and materialism, Francois Loiseau paints a clear portrait of his times, whilst describing the day to day diff iculties he has encountered in the Frejus dojo.
The interview is illustrated with photos taken by Christoph Martin Schmid, a photographic artist. They have been published by the editors Seltman +Sohne in a book entitled “Trouble in Paradise.” See also his website, www.christoph-martin-schmid.com 52
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ZRM: What gives you a legitimate claim to be the head of a Zen dojo? François Loiseau: Firstly, my ordination as a monk and I have already prepared a document (he shows here an official, stamped document) ... this is my registration in the Sotosho Shumucho1! Certain monks and nuns were registered by Master Deshimaru. That is already something, that I am a monk of the Sotoshu. The second thing is that I have the approval of a godo2 belonging to AZI and Sotoshu: Roland Rech. So this is the legitimacy, this is the official approval. It is also tied to the fact that we do sesshins, that is that we meet with the sangha regularly and don’t just keep ourselves apart, in our little dojo, becoming a little provincial guru. We are supervised in our practice by one or more godos and also by the sangha, which is the mirror of our practice. This is the way in which I understand legitimacy.
Has it taken a lot of your time to set up the dojo? It’s a lot of work, as you have to find a location and where I live is a region where property is very expensive. It’s very hard to find somewhere. You have to get organised, get a group together, organise practice, put out some publicity to show you exist. Set up conferences and then make sure there are regular periods of zazen. At its height, the dojo at Frejus had 4 weekly sittings. You have to put together a team to share the work, so that people who come to the dojo find the doors open. You have to study the dharma. The present godos have studied a great deal. And above all, there must be a lot of sesshins3.
Do you earn money from the dojo? I actually lose a lot of money! The dojo costs me a lot. I take nothing. I haven’t taken anything for years, so I even pay for petrol for the car. Sesshins – that’s me too. Once the dojo began to be a bit more secure financially, I took 15 euros a month, but now practice has tailed off, as there are fewer people, I only take 5 and that doesn’t even pay for a packet of cigarettes. I can do it as I have worked all my life, I am retired, and I don’t need a lot of money. But I do understand that some dojo heads need the dojo to pay some of their expenses. But I don’t make anything. It’s voluntary.
1 Sotoshu Shumucho. The administrative office of soto Zen in Japan and other places, whose rules many sanghas, but not all, follow. 2
Godo:. Amongst Deshimaru’s disciples this term is used to refer to the teacher of zazen.
3
Sesshin: Lit, “touch the mind”. A period of several days of intensive zazen practice. 53
A question of mind An interview with Philippe Coupey, zen monk
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Photo: A zazen led by Philippe Coupey (in front on the right) during a sesshin 2008 in the Sarthe region of north-central France. The meditation takes place in an agriculture residential school during vacation.
During a retreat in Germany, the “Sans demeure sesshin”, Philippe Rei Ryu Coupey answered questions about the practice from three disciples: Gernot Knödler, a journalist for the Hamburg edition of the newspaper Taz - Die Tageszeitung, specializing in city-development and environmental issues; Uli Schnabel, a journalist for Die Zeit, specializing in physics, brain research and the philosophy of science, who was also the tenzo (cook) during the sesshin; and Bertrand Schütz, a translator, cross-cultural trainer, and teacher of language and literature.
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Monk in zazen, no estheticisme in the background (Sesshin Sans demeure, Le Mans, 02/2008) 66
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What is Zen about? B.S.: Many images and concepts about Zen are in the public eye nowadays — it’s not something unknown anymore. We see Zen in connection to aesthetics and design; a perfume has come out with the name Zen; wellness products are sold with a picture of a Zen monk with a shaved head and rakusu... So what is Zen about? Ph.C.: Well it’s not about that! Zen is a practice. The practice is absolutely essential for everybody in this world. It’s not just us, it’s everybody. If we’re practicing, whatever we do is Zen. But we have to practice with a mind beyond our own little selves, getting rid of our egocentric attitudes. This is universal. This is Zen. B.S.: Universal for whom? For everybody, or only for religious people? Ph.C.: Everybody! “Religious” means nothing. It’s for everybody. Everybody’s religious. Everybody has a spiritual mind. G.K.: But not everybody believes in God. B.S.: Do Buddhists believe in God? Ph.C.: God has nothing to do with it. God is neither here nor there. God, the devil... those are just human concepts. We don’t fabricate anything. God is fabricated. In this practice, we don’t fabricate anything or construct anything. God is us. G.K.: Then what makes religion different from anything else, like going to school or going to work? Ph.C.: It’s not different. It’s an open mind, it’s looking from the inside. Religion is not a doctrine; it’s something experienced. G.K.: So what do you experience when you experience religion? Most people would say you experience God in some way, or you talk to God. Christians would say, “We pray, we talk to God, we believe in God, that’s what a religion is all about, and we try to get in contact with God.” 67
Lee Lozowick
Zen ttr Zen by Lee Lozowick
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Lee Lozowick, who died in 2010, directed for 35 years the Hohm Sahaj Mandir (also simply called Hohm Community), a community of disciples extending both within and outside the three ashrams he created in the US, India, and France, and the active groups he established in Europe, Mexico, and Canada. Lee identified his practice with the Bâuls of Bengal, India, a longstanding tradition that links together some aspects of Sufism, Hinduism and Buddhism. Surrounded by several different bands of musicians, he wrote lyrics and sang blues and rock in concert at big festivals in Europe, the US and Canada. He defined his music as the authentic western Bâul music, just as he defined his teaching as that of the western Bâul way.
rash rash
Lee Lozowick’s teaching is not an independent entity, but rather a part of a tradition and a lineage. Just as in other Zen stories, the real purpose of the following is not in documenting events of the past, but in their effect on the reader. The stories are messy - full of digressions, changed endings, colorful new details - not because Lee thought it would be cute and fun to put his own spin on the story, nor because he is just being irreverent to be bratty. But, as the Sufi master or the Zen teacher might do, these stories are presented to confound attempts to “understand” them intellectually, thus stirring up an altogether different possibility.
They come from his book “Zen Trash” (Edited and commented by Sylvan Inaco, Hohm Press, 2002). The dictionary defines “trash” as rubbish; but also as foolish talk. Yet, as can be learned from other traditions, it is often in the utterances of fools that the greatest wisdom can be found. In form these stories are just “trash,” in essence they hold the possibility of glimpsing reality.
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The ve r y disgu s t in g p ri n c e s s There was once a prince riding through the jungle who stopped at some woodcutter’s hut. The woodcutter’s daughter is the most beautiful woman he has ever seen. And as the story goes, he was a nice prince – not very realistic though. Most princes would have just raped the woman, killed the father, eaten what was left in the kitchen and left. But this prince asked if he could have the daughter’s hand in marriage. Very polite. So the father, also unrealistically, goes and asks the daughter - instead of going: “Prince ?! For my daughter? Oh yeah! No more poverty!” - the father goes in and asks the daughter. “The prince wants to marry you. Please, please, please say yes.” But the daughter says, “Tell him to come back in three days and I will give him my answer.” So the prince goes away and thinks, “Great, I’ll come back in three days.” Meantime the woman gets the strongest emetics she can find and she starts tacking them, tacking them, tacking them and everything that comes out of her body – she throws up and gets diarrhea – everything that comes out of her body she puts in these big clay pots. The prince comes back in three days. “Can I have your daughter’s answer?” he asks. The father says, “She’s in the other room.” So the prince goes into the other room and she looks like hell – her eyes all sunken, her hair is all wild, she’s unwashed, she stinks. You can imagine after three days. She looks like the ugliest thing he’s ever seen. “Aahhhg !” the prince gasps. “What happened to you?” The princess points to the pots and says, “That’s what you were in love with. Look in the pots.” The prince understood that this is no ordinary woman. This is a woman who understands some deep spiritual truths, so he bows before her and asks to be her disciple. That’s how the story goes. In reality the prince would have said, “Jeezus, are you fucking crazy? What kind of idiot are you? I’m the goddamn prince! You could have married me! What are you, fucking nuts?” And he would have walked out. But in the story, the prince understood that the woman was a great woman of wisdom. So… It’s actually a story about all women, but it’s lost on most men. 80
Zen Road magazine - n° 1 march 2014
P e t e r ’s c a l l When we offer ourselves to the master in submission, if the master recognizes in us integrity and trustworthiness in our offer, then the master makes a gesture. He takes us. He offers us a way to serve him. You know the story of Jesus and Peter? Peter was a fisherman. Jesus was walking along the shore one day and there’s Peter repairing his nets or doing whatever fishermen do. And you know, Jesus walked up to Peter, and Jesus was obviously full of radiance, and Peter’s never seen anything like this, even though, of course, there was the historical paradigm which was, “ the messiah will come.” There wasn’t any Christianity in those days. You were either Pagan or Jewish, that was it ! So, Jesus walks up and he stands there. Peter looks up and he thinks to himself, “wow, could this be the messiah?”Jesus nods. “You got it, Peter.” And Peter goes, “wow! Cool!” So he says, “Will you come in? Can I offer you some glass of water or something?” But Jesus answers, “No. Follow me.”So Peter says, “Ahhh, okay. Yeah, I’d love to. Where can I meet you?”Jesus says, “No, no. Now! Follow me now! This minute; This instant; now !” Well, Jesus had a soft heart, so he said to Peter, “You can say goodbye to your mother, and then come right out!” Because you know how Jewish mothers are. Peter would have gotten nailed if he didn’t say goodbye to his mother. So Peter ran in the house, and he called, “Mom!” His mother came out and said, “Are you hungry? You’re too thin. Eat, boubola, eat.” Peter says, ”No Mom. I’m leaving… On a fast train…” No, actually he just said “I’m leaving !” His mother goes, “what?” - “To follow the messiah!” So his mother says, “What? Bring this clown to me!” I mean, all of this isn’t in the Bible, but…Peter brings his mother to the door and there’s Jesus. And the minute she sets eyes on him she says, “Okay.” That was it. Peter couldn’t have followed Jesus in a million years if Jesus didn’t call him to it. People tried following Jesus in those days, and they couldn’t do it, except for a few. You know, they say that at the Sermon on the Mount there were thousands of people. How many people followed Jesus? Thirty?… Forty… fifty… a hundred? We think to ourselves, “Imagine what it must have been like – the Sermon on the Mount, wow!” But there were five thousand people there and most of them didn’t give a shit. All they wanted was fish and they were happy, perfectly happy. “Wow,” they said to themselves, “ that was a great seminar,” and off they went home to fight with their families and their kids. “And the fish wasn’t bad either. And for a minute there I didn’t think I was going to get any, but…” Only the master makes the choice about who gets to serve. 81