Genjokoan 9: To Forget the Self

Last updated on: May 17, 2009 at 6:21 pm by Dosho Port

Genjokoan 9: To Forget the Self 2009-05-17T18:21:00-06:00 Dosho Port

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Struck by lightening, burned, split apart, holes pecked through and yet this tree keeps growing. Some kinda thing you can never kill.

We’ve been working on “what is the self?” in these parts and that tree sure shows something – the self forgetting itself in inadvertent enthusiasm.

To study the Buddha Way is to study the self; to study the self is to forget the self.

Finally our practice is simple. Studying the self, becoming more and more intimate with the sense of subjectivity itself, suddenly the bottom drops out. The subject falls away. With the subject dropped, there is no object. With a unitive awareness tasted, the work begins to put such “into practice in the midst of the revaluated world,” as D-z put it.

On the cushion, forgetting the self might be no eyes, no ears, no nose. This is negative samadhi. Positive samadhi is forgetting the self in whatever we are doing. Just becoming the doing itself. So in Soto Zen we are rather meticulous about the way of walking, the way of bowing, the way of eating. It seems a bit compulsive at times but the true spirit is to forget the self through giving ourselves completely to whatever we are just doing.

With courage and perseverance, forgetting the self can be actualized. Really, dear reader. And with the dropping of subject and object, the edgy practice of enlightenment is a possibility. I think of the 7th ox herding picture (click here for a bunch of other renditions and various talks on the ox – thanks for your great work, Barry!):

Caution: some in the Soto school disparage breakthroughs and emphasize everyday life. This view might lead to the bracketing, denigrating and splitting off spiritual experience. It is the over-emphasis of application (i.e, practice – but of what? delusion?) and the underemphasis on enlightenment.

It is the flip side of what Lou Nordstrom described in his practice which seems to have over-emphasized enlightenment and the underemphasized application.

When either practice or enlightenment is overemphasized, the necessary ongoing dynamic conversation between them (two things which are not one or two) is impaired or cut off. And it is depressing to live such a divided life.

Dogen (and Katagiri too) did emphasize everyday life, everyday life vivified by actualizing the great earth’s goldenness. Dropping subject and object is wondrous. Practicing that realization in everyday life is difficult.

If subject and object fall away together and rise together, for example, what of the ten thousand things that advance and bug the hell out of us?

In my case, this weekend while settling into sesshin, some thoughts were arising about a meeting I attended recently. The beginnings of sesshin tend to be like that – digesting anything that has been stuck in the craw since the last sesshin. It seemed to me that the people at the meeting didn’t like me very much and I found myself caught in dialogue defending myself and taking some liberties in my little zazen fantasy pointing out their failings.

In studying the quality of subjectivity, I could see that “I” was in a victim relationship (note the passive language above like “thoughts arising”) with the objects – the memories and thoughts about a past experience.

When I remembered that subject and object, I and thou, me and my feelings arise together, I laughed (but not outloud).

Taking responsibility for subject and object provided the correct relationship for them to be quietly and lovingly sloughed off.

For Reflection and Comments (practice period participants, please post comments here):
What is one dharma insight you’ve had recently, and what is one example of how you’ve put it into practice?

Uncategorized

Previous Post

May 15, 2009

Don't Poke Your Head Into Zen

Next Post

May 19, 2009 Living Up to Our Insights

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Uncategorized

Select a Month August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 August 2021 June 2021 April 2021 February 2021 January 2021 November 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 August 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 December 2016 October 2016 June 2016 April 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 August 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

How did Jesus die?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Crucifixion Hanging Stoning Spearing