Weeds Flourish When Disliked: 100 Days Webinar 2

Here’s the link for the Moon Reflected in the Water 100 Days, Webinar #2 (click here). Once you get it rolling, click View and then Video if you want to see my mug jawing away.

We’ve been working with the fanning/bowing koan from Genjokoan so the talk includes a number of thoughts about how to work with such a question and the normal flow of greed, anger and ignorance that first appears to be a barrier to this work. I then work through the first four sentences of Genjokoan as preface to the truth happening point of bowing/fanning and discuss the Genjokoan first lines in context of the Heart Sutra.

Below you’ll find my translation (with my brother’s great help) of the first four stanzas of Genjokoan and the homework for the week.

1

When all dharmas are

the buddhadharma

there is delusion and realization

practice, life and death

buddhas and living beings.

2

When ten thousand dharmas

are no self

there is no delusion

no realization

no buddhas

no living beings

no birth

no death.

3

Since the buddha way

intrinsically leaps through

abundance and deficiency

there is birth and death

delusion and realization

living beings and buddhas.

4

No matter what you say about it

flowers fall when lamented

and weeds flourish when disliked.

Homework:

– Refresh practice basics: Zazen, Study, Work

– Recite the above four stanzas before zazen

– Discover one creative way to quietly contemplate the question “What was it the monk saw that he expressed by bowing?”

– Share your experiences at the Wild Fox Blog

– Disclose your true feelings about this work to one other living being.