Dogen Sangha Blog

  by Gudo NISHIJIMA

Japanese / German

Saturday, November 8, 2008

MMK (5) Examination of Layers of Concepts

1. Before the age, when the characteristics of space haven't been clear yet,
The space hasn't become the object of recognition at all.

The time, when the space has become recognised as it is, might be since the time when people have become able to discuss the space,
But before that time it might be impossible for people to understand that the space had also had some kinds of characteristics, at all.


2. At the age, when it was perfectly impossible for human beings to know the characteristics of the space,
The existence of the space hasn't been known at every district at all,

And because the existence of characteristics had been too much vague,
Even in the case that the space actually was going on, it was impossible for everyone to find the place, where the characteristics actually were.


3. A fact, that something does not belong to a group which does not have any kind of characteristics, suggests that it belongs to a group, which has some common characteristics.
When something is only intending to go ahead, it does not have entered into the efforts of entrance into characteristics yet.

Furthermore when a similar characteristic and a different characteristic are combined into one,
the same combination between the similar one and the different one can not occur again at all.


4. In a case that some characteristic hasn't appeared yet, it might be completely impossible for the characteristic to manifest itself at all.

In the situations when any kind of characteristic hasn't appeared yet, it is impossible for us to look at the fact that whether any kind of characteristic actually exists in the characteristic, or not.


5. Therefore it is impossible for us to recognise a characteristic itself, and it is impossible for us even to know whether any kind of characteristic really exists, or not.

About the characteristic itself, it is not clear whether it has any kind of characteristic, or not,
And it is completely impossible for the characteristic to be known whether it is actually existing, or not, at all.


6. In the situation that it is not clear whether something exists really, or not,
How is it possible for us to decide that it does not exist decisively?

The decision that something does exist really, or something does not exist,
Has already got out from the true reason, and so,
Our act to decide either something exists, or not, might be impossible for them to receive the
benevolence of afirmation by the Universe at all.


7. Therefore in this world there is no fact that something exists intellectually,
And something does not exist intellectually.
And so there is no characteristic intellectually, and there is no fact to have any kind of characteristic intellectually.

The space and the other concepts other than the space are never estrangement from us as the five kinds of concepts at all.


8. Those things and phenomena are just possible to be seen by ourselves exactly.
However people, who are not so clever, think that those things and phenomena do not exists actually.

They do not look at those things and phenomena in front of us really as the excellent happiness,
Which are just existing in front of us as the excellently balanced happiness just in front of us.

1 Comments:

Blogger Uku said...

Dear Nishijima Roshi,

thank you for this part of MMK.

I believe that practising daily Zazen and studying the Way of Buddha, we can realize the characteristics and then forget them. The dropping of the body and mind.

Thank you for your efforts and teachings, Roshi.

Gassho,
Markus

10:05 AM, November 09, 2008  

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