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...
practice want ifs
If you want to see things just as they are, then you yourself must practice just as you are.
thinking benefits want
Students, when you want to say something, think about it three times before you say it. Speak only if your words will benefit yourselves and others. Do not speak if it brings no benefit.
way want expect-nothing
If you want to travel the Way of Buddhas and Zen masters, then expect nothing, seek nothing, and grasp nothing.
spiritual want firsts
If you want to do a certain thing, you first have to be a certain person. Once you become that certain person, you will not care anymore about doing that certain thing.
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.