Dogen
Dogen
Dōgen Zenji, also known as Dōgen Kigen, Eihei Dōgen, Koso Joyo Daishi, or Bussho Dento Kokushi, was a Japanese Buddhist priest, writer, poet, philosopher, and founder of the Sōtō school of Zen in Japan. Originally ordained as a monk in the Tendai School in Kyoto, he was ultimately dissatisfied with its teaching and traveled to China to seek out what he believed to be a more authentic Buddhism. He remained there for five years, finally training under Tiantong Rujing, an...
spring lying eye
All that's visible springs from causes intimate to you. While walking, sitting, lying down, the body itself is complete truth. If someone asks the inner meaning of this: Inside the treasury of dharma eye a single grain of dust.
lying drinking thinking
Set aside all involvements and let the myriad things rest. Zazen is not thinking of good, not thinking of bad. It is not conscious endeavour. It is not introspection. Do not desire to become a buddha; let sitting or lying down drop away. Be moderate in eating and drinking. Be mindful of the passing of time, and engage yourself in zazen as though you are saving your head from fire.
stars moon rivers
Clearly I know, the mind is mountains, rivers, and the great earth; sun, moon, and stars.
firsts oneself
When one first seeks the truth, one separates oneself from it.
ocean opportunity roots
Do not miss the opportunity of offering even a single drop into the ocean of merit or a grain atop the mountain of the roots of beneficial activity.
tree plums world
When the old plum tree blooms, the entire world blooms.
men buddha-nature every-man
Every man possesses the Buddha-nature. Do not demean yourselves.
practice understanding intellectual
Cease from practice based on intellectual understanding, pursuing words, and following after speech.
universe
Nothing in the entire universe is hidden.
path
Coming, going, the waterbirds don't leave a trace, don't follow a path.
mistake life-is masters
A zen master's life is one continuous mistake.
reflection moon sky
Realization doesn't destroy the individual any more than the reflection of the moon breaks a drop of water. A drop of water can reflect the whole sky.
spiritual school buddhism
As I study both the exoteric and the esoteric schools of Buddhism, they maintain that human beings are endowed with Dharma-nature by birth. If this is the case, why did the Buddhas of all ages - undoubtedly in possession of enlightenment - find it necessary to seek enlightenment and engage in spiritual practice?
short-life discipline today
Students today should live fully every moment of time. This dew-like life fades away; time speeds swiftly. In this short life of ours, avoid involvement in superfluous things and just study the Way.