Omori Sogen

by Hosokowa Dogen

  Se Mu I comes from the sutra of the Bodhisattva of Great Compassion (Jpn. Kannon, Chin. Kwan Yin). In the sutra the Bodhisattva Kannon (Kanzeon Bosatsu Makasatsu) gives fearlessness in the midst of calamity of any kind. Consequently people call this bodhisattva Se Mu I Sha—the “Giver of Fearlessness.”

  The gift of fearlessness is the removal of fear or anxiety from the kokoro (mind, hearts) of people. To say it in another way, to give fearlessness is to give absolute peace of mind. If the highest stage of swordsmanship is to give fearlessness, then without doubt it is identical to Zen. Given this, the next question is what is the process by which a swordsman attains that state.

  Here I would like to remind you of the quotation used at the beginning of this chapter from Nakae Toju’s Bun Bu Mondo. He stated that there are those who do not revere Heaven’s decree. They are atrocious, treacherous and have no respect for anything. They should either be brought to justice and punished, or a campaign should be launched against them so that the whole nation can be returned to peace. This is called Bu (Martial).

  There are people who lack human qualities and whose behaviour is atrocious. They break the peace, violate the civil order and stand in the way of Bundo (Bun—civilization, literature, art, civil affairs; Do—Tao, Way). The jitsuryoku (force, ability, genuine strength) of Budo is needed to defeat and put down this trouble and disorder. In Zen it might be acceptable if priests do not have this force, but any Martial Way without jitsuryoku is not a genuine Martial Way.

  Shimizu Jirocho once asked Tesshu, “Teacher, in an actual fight, swordsmanship is of no use, is it not?” Tesshu asked him to explain what he meant. Jirocho replied, “When I draw my sword and face the opponent, although I will probably get wounded, I simply glare and say kono yaro (you bastard!) and they usually run away.” Tesshu then said “Is that so? Then with your long sword try to strike me. I will take you on with this short wooden sword and if you can even scratch me you will be the victor.“ Jirocho glared at Tesshu who was sitting cross-legged on the floor. After a moment Jirocho said to himself, “This is no good. No matter how I try, I cannot attack the teacher, I have no strength in my hands and feet. Teacher! I don’t understand what is happening.” Tesshu answered “This is the same as when you say kono yaro and your opponent is carried off his feet.”

  Tesshu then wrote the characters Gan Fu Ho Ko Ki Hi Dai Jo Bu and gave the paper to Jirocho. The phrase means it will not be fearlessness if your gan (glare, stare) does not have koki (vibrant force or dazzling light). Even without this force, you might argue that this frame of mind is equivalent to Zen, but it does not qualify as part of the Martial Ways.

  For example, one can speak ill of the young Musashi and call his swordsmanship beastly. As you recall, in fighting for his life he sought victory with all of his strength and will. We recognize that this was an animal form of egotism and that by definition it is fundamentally opposite to Zen because Zen negates the ego. Zen works at a deeper level than the ego. But once that egotism is penetrated, the result is far more genuine than that achieved by seeking for No-self, No-Mind in mere abstractions.

  As with Musashi, egotism can cut through egotism and thereby transcend it. There is then a synchronous change of “self,” sonomama (just as is), to “No-Self.” It is like the puckery persimmon that changes, sonomama, to a sweet persimmon. There is a firm and concrete nature to these things.

  Suzuki Shozan in his work Roankyo puts it this way:

  … present day instruction in zazen teaches to avoid awakening thoughts. But if you ask me, the thought of avoiding thoughts is already a thought. It’s just that they have not realized this. To awaken great thoughts means that all small thoughts cannot be present. People today think that zazen is to be practiced without awakening thoughts and I am opposed to this. I awaken thoughts as great as Mt. Sumeru.

  There are many teachers of Zen that teach that the world of Mu is like the empty sky. This will cause the immature Zen student to understand Void as something empty and this abstraction will lead to a flimsy enlightenment.

  When one forgets his biological origins and characteristics, he separates himself from the multi-faceted nature of human existence. Such are the peace activists who call for “Peace!” in their hollow and feeble way. The current reality for all humans is truly severe: eat or be eaten. In the face of these conditions, it is time to unfold the great lessons of these teachings from Budo.

  By putting our whole being into following the Way, the inevitable destruction of aiuchi (mutual killing and mutual striking) is transcended and becomes ainuke (mutual passing), the true swordsmanship stage of Se Mu I. Having first made that experience our own, it is our duty to share it with the world. Starting from the defensive posture of aiuchi (mutual killing and mutual striking), let our opponents cut the flesh that embraces nuclear weapons and we in turn will cut their bones. In this way we will be able to live and they will also prosper.7

  In my opinion, we must step forward into the world of Zen and Swordsmanship in Oneness, the state of ainuke that appears with the sword that “Gives Life.”

  Chapter 5

  Practical Zen

  Practical Zen contains selections from Omori Roshi’s writings that present solutions to problems encountered in Zen training. These solutions are based on Omori Roshi’s own training and his translation of Buddhist philosophy into practical application.

  Zen Training1

  In order to train in Zen, the form of zazen need not always be taken. As long as the essence is the same as that of zazen, you can do anything. Eastern cultural arts and martial arts all have the same essence as that of zazen. This is what is called samadhi. Although I do not know too much about the West, I am sure that samadhi exists there. If you can attain this samadhi, whatever method you use is good.

  At my dojo, in addition to zazen, we do Zen while holding a brush or a bamboo sword. In reality, we are holding the brush and writing words, or we are practicing Kendo with the bamboo sword. There is, however, the Zen of sewing, the Zen of cutting vegetables, the Zen of keeping accounts, the Zen of typing. It is all right to have all kinds of Zen. That is why I think that sitting in meditation is not an essential condition in Zen.

  You may wonder then, “Why do Zen priests do zazen?” It is because in samadhi, there is ji-zanmai (samadhi limited to a particular field of activity) and oo-zanmai (the great samadhi). Ji-zanmai is the samadhi only when you are doing something. For example, you are cutting vegetables, and you forget about cutting and the hand that is cutting. This is ji-zanmai. It can be achieved through your work or in the performing arts.

  Oo-zanmai, however, is the fundamental and best samadhi that is universal and can be experienced during zazen. In an instant, the mind, body and breath become one, creating stability and samadhi. This samadhi can be used for anything and under any circumstances.

  For example, a person who practices Kendo holds his bamboo sword and faces his opponent. If he forgets his opponent and his ego, enters samadhi, and truly experiences this state, then even when he puts his bamboo sword down, he must be able to maintain this frame of mind. Usually, however, it is a different world when he puts his bamboo sword down. A teacher of flower arrangement must also enter samadhi and become one with the flowers or she will not be able to make an arrangement that will move or touch people. But when she puts the scissors down, she reverts to her ordinary self.

  People of ancient times have said the same thing. For instance, there is Suzuki Shozan (1579-1655) who was a samurai to the Tokugawas. Later, he became a Buddhist priest. His words have been collected in the book, Roankyo.2 For example:

  A certain person asked what the state of samadhi was. Shozan unsheathed his sword and held it in the seigan no kamae (the middle position) and said, “Well, do you understand? If you understand this, it is the easiest way for a samurai to achieve samadhi. That is so, but why can’t the samurai understand Zen? Because when they lay their swords down, the state of samadhi is lost.”

  That is what he
taught. In ji-samadhi you become skilled at becoming one with something, but even if you separate from that thing, you must maintain the state or be able to attain this state instantly. To say it in another way, when you do zazen, you attain samadhi during the thirty minutes to an hour that the incense is burning, but when you stand up, you return to your former state. This is not good.

  The person who brought zazen from India to China was Bodhidharma.3 In his teaching of zazen, many Indian traces still remain. It is said that the distinctive characteristic of Bodhidharma’s zazen is hekikan gyoju. Hekikan means to face the wall and to see your true nature. It does not mean that you must always face a tangible wall. Your mind must become like a very steep wall that does not allow anything to approach. That is the state of hekikan. The meaning of gyoju is to concentrate your mind. In order to achieve hekikan gyoju, the monks in India meditated in the cool of the night under the moon and in a refreshing breeze. Sitting on rocks under trees, the monks would concentrate their minds and try to see their true natures.

  From India zazen went to China and blended with the active and realistic national character of the Han race. From its original emphasis on serenity, Zen became dynamic. As a result, six generations after Bodhidharma, during Eno’s (Hui-neng) time,4 the foundation of Chinese Zen was established.

  Eno defined zazen as, za (sitting) means “outwardly and under all circumstances, not to activate thoughts,” and zen (meditation) is “internally to see the original nature and not become confused.”5

  That is why zazen does not only mean to sit with your legs folded. Being unaffected by your environment, with your true nature undisturbed, you go, remain still, sit and sleep. Going, remaining still, sitting and sleeping must all be zazen. Eno emphasized that zazen is not something that occurs only when sitting in a prescribed position.

  Eno also said, “In this teaching of mine, from ancient times up to the present, all have set up no-thought as the main doctrine, no-form as the substance, and non-abiding as the basis.”6 The explanation of this is: “No-thought is not to think even when involved in thought. No-form is to be separated from form even when associated with form.” When a thought occurs, leave it alone. Not becoming attached to the thought is no-thought. Even if you see shape or form, you must not hang on to it. If you see its a priori nature correctly, that is no-form. Non-attachment is not attaching to one thing or to one place but to keep flowing smoothly like water. This is the original nature of man.

  The main point of Eno‘s teaching is to read the characters “kensho” not as to see (ken) your true self (sho) but as seeing is your true self. The action of seeing is the True Self. In other words, Buddha-nature equals the action of seeing. That is his view. The teaching of India is that in order to see one’s True Self, one must watch one’s Mind while quietly sitting on a rock under a tree. Eno, however, tells us, “The core of activities — for example, the activity of seeing, the activity of hearing, the activity of tasting, and so on (the activity of the five senses) — is True Nature. Eno is saying, “Seeing is your True Self.” This is the unique expression of the philosophy of Chinese Zen. What Buddha and Bodhidharma experienced is exactly the same thing. This is the foundation of Chinese Zen. The Zen that has been handed down to Japan is an expression of Zen originally expressed by Eno. This expression underwent various changes. Upon reaching Rinzai (d. 866), for the first time, it took on the distinctive form of our Rinzai Zen. It can be said that Rinzai constructed a strong house on the foundation that Eno built.

  In Eno’s case, even if the action of seeing or the action of hearing is discussed, and what we call the body and mind are not separated, there is a tendency to give priority to the mind. Rinzai, however, asserts “the True Man without Rank” and expounds the body. Having no rank, not belonging to anything, and being free, this is the True Man. Of course, what he is referring to is the complete human being endowed with a body. Rinzai clearly stated that the basic principle of the philosophy of Zen is the activity of the mind-body, of the true and complete human being that is YOU—the person who is listening to my lecture—the True Man without Rank.

  One could say that Rinzai’s view of Zen is extreme, but the process of this development is quite important. Under Gunin (Hung-jen),7 Chinese Zen separated into a northern and a southern branch. Jinshu’s (Shen-hsiu)8 line was named the Hokuzen (northern-gradual) School. Eno’s line was named the Nanton (southern-sudden) School. With one great push, Rinzai advanced the Zen that Eno started into the domain of the concrete actions of human beings. That became the foundation of Japanese Rinzai Zen.

  If we were to express these historical developments succinctly, we could say that Indian teachings emphasized mental aspects. Chinese Zen, however, perhaps because of the national characteristics of the Han people, placed the emphasis on the body. This form of Zen entered Japan and the complete person, the oneness of mind and body, the real and concrete action, in other words, Zen-ki (Zen dynamics or activity) came to be emphasized.

  Zazen

  As even Suzuki Shozan has said, “Zazen without kiai is a waste of time,” Even if you do one hour of zazen, it is only one twenty-fourth of the day. During that sitting, incense is burned and you sit still without kiai for what is just an instant. That kind of zazen is useless. Everything that you do in your daily life must be zazen. This is the “non-sitting” form of zazen. Shido Bunan Zenji (1603–1676) also stressed this non-sitting zazen. If you understand this kind of zazen, you have almost accomplished your zazen training.

  Zazen does not occur only during the time you cross your legs, fold your hands, regulate your breath, and concentrate on your koan. Walking on the street, reading a book, working in the kitchen, writing a letter, are all zazen. In any situation if you throw your entire self into what you are doing at that time, you will go into samadhi. That is what non-sitting zazen is. If you think that zazen is only meditating at a fixed time in a fixed posture, your zazen will not progress.

  It has been customary from ancient times to begin one’s koan training with the koan Mu. In trying to concentrate on Mu, if you buzz like a mosquito and say, “Mu, mu,” from the tip of your nose, you are wasting your time. If you don’t say, “MU!” in one breath as if you are severing your life in hisshi zanmai (life or death samadhi), you will not be able to attain satori.

  There is a man named Nakazawa who is a student of mine from the days at my Jikishin Dojo. He accomplished his realization by counting his breaths. When he counted “Hitoo…tsu (Japanese for one),” he entered samadhi. When he said, “Futaaaa…tsu, (two)” he became “Futaaaa…tsu” In this way, he attained the absolute present and was enlightened. You can become enlightened splendidly by counting breaths. It is better to do it that way than to say “Mu” only with the tip of your nose.

  When you are doing zazen, you must exhale thoroughly. If you do that seriously and with all your being, anyone can realize their True Self.

  Zenjyo - the Kiai of Zazen9

  When Suzuki Shozan was asked what the kiai of samadhi was, he unsheathed his long sword, took a Kendo stance, and said, “It is this. You must not lose this kiai.” “Not losing this kiai” does not mean being ceremonious and pretentious, nor does it mean being physically unyielding. Hakuin Zenji said that the continuation of correct consciousness does not mean that we should become like the string holding the beads of the juzu (Buddhist rosary), rather we must become the beads.

  This is an important point. We must put our entire being into each thing that we are doing. When we are writing, we must throw our bodies and minds into each letter and enter samadhi. When we are doing zazen, we must become zazen and be in samadhi moment by moment. In this way, although we are tense and strained when we start to train, later we must gradually become soft and pliant. When we become soft and refined, our inner being becomes full of vital energy. This is real perfection.

  To reach this condition, we must regulate our breath. Regulating the breath is not losing kiryoku (vital energy) of the tanden. It is said that t
he tanden is so many inches from the navel, but it is not located in any fixed place. Everyone is different; therefore, we cannot say that the tanden is located two inches below the navel. The tanden is the center point which balances the entire body. It is not one definite point on the body. Each person must find it for herself or himself. When we breath out, we must use the lower abdomen. When we inhale, we loosen our muscles, and new air will fill our lungs. If we do this, oxygen will unite with red blood cells and circulate through the whole body. This becomes the basis for kiryoku. As we breath out all the air we can, all strength will leave the shoulders and the strength of the tanden will soften the abdomen and make the energy sink to the tanden.

  When we can breathe out no more and relax our muscles, in an instant air will fill the lungs. Then we breathe out again. Like the piston of a bellows heating up coal, this heats up the energy in our bodies. Our lower back will set its posture naturally, and our spines will straighten. We stand correctly because the kiryoku within us becomes complete. Fatigue is overcome, and we become revitalized. This is a concrete way to regulate and perfect kiryoku.

  In this way we are able to walk on the Way with little effort. We do not have to act superior. We need not be ashamed no matter where we go even if we go before God or Buddha. We are not ashamed of any part of ourselves.

  By breathing in the manner mentioned above, we cultivate our kiryoku. Furthermore, by our actions we make moral kiryoku flourish also. With our minds and bodies, we will be full of vigor. To perfect kiryoku does not mean to throw out our chests, it means to be composed and dignified. We must have an aweinspiring kiryoku which is disturbed by nothing.

  This is what is called zazen. This is what is called Nio Zen.10

  Koan and Realization in Zen11

  Basically the word “koan” refers to the instances in which ancient Zen masters were enlightened by some word or action. Originally it came from Kofu no Antoku which was an official edict of ancient China that absolutely had to be obeyed once it had been proclaimed. In Zen the term koan refers to cases which contain principles that a student of Zen has to realize absolutely.