A Happy Life: Precept Practice<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"We've been using Diane Eshin Rizzetto's excellent book, Waking Up to What You Do: A Zen Practice for Meeting Every Situation with Intelligence and\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/2013\/11\/a-happy-life-precept-practice.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"A Happy Life: Precept Practice\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"We've been using Diane Eshin Rizzetto's excellent book, Waking Up to What You Do: A Zen Practice for Meeting Every Situation with Intelligence and\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/2013\/11\/a-happy-life-precept-practice.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Wild Fox Zen\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/dosho.port\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2013-11-24T17:17:04+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/wp.patheos.com.s3.amazonaws.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/files\/2013\/11\/IMG_1024-300x224.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Dosho Port\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Dosho Port\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/2013\/11\/a-happy-life-precept-practice.html\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/2013\/11\/a-happy-life-precept-practice.html\",\"name\":\"A Happy Life: Precept Practice\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2013-11-24T17:17:04+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2013-11-24T17:17:04+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/#\/schema\/person\/45224391b7690e99673782337bd0eabd\"},\"description\":\"We've been using Diane Eshin Rizzetto's excellent book, Waking Up to What You Do: A Zen Practice for Meeting Every Situation with Intelligence and\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/2013\/11\/a-happy-life-precept-practice.html#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/2013\/11\/a-happy-life-precept-practice.html\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/2013\/11\/a-happy-life-precept-practice.html#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"A Happy Life: Precept Practice\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/\",\"name\":\"Wild Fox Zen\",\"description\":\"Living the Dream\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/#\/schema\/person\/45224391b7690e99673782337bd0eabd\",\"name\":\"Dosho Port\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7b9712e98924dea6c08d55890403352f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7b9712e98924dea6c08d55890403352f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Dosho Port\"},\"description\":\"Dosho Port began practicing Zen in 1977 and now co-teachers with his wife, Tetsugan Zummach, with the Vine of Obstacles Zen. 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{"id":2140,"date":"2013-11-24T11:17:04","date_gmt":"2013-11-24T17:17:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/?p=2140"},"modified":"2013-11-24T11:17:04","modified_gmt":"2013-11-24T17:17:04","slug":"a-happy-life-precept-practice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/2013\/11\/a-happy-life-precept-practice.html","title":{"rendered":"A Happy Life: Precept Practice"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

$\"\"$ <\/a>We\u2019ve been using Diane Eshin Rizzetto\u2019s excellent book, Waking Up to What You Do: A Zen Practice for Meeting Every Situation with Intelligence and Compassion<\/em><\/a> in our current precept study for Wild Fox students and for those in the Vine of Obstacles: Online Support for Zen Training.<\/a><\/p>\n

I think I can speak for the group and say we\u2019ve found considerable utility in Rizzetto\u2019s working of the precepts. She\u2019s very grounded, in-the-world, and has a keen eye for the psychological or moral aspect of the precepts. The book also includes many student voices and leaves me with a sense of how this work was a collaborative effort more than any work I can recall.<\/p>\n

So I recommend studying her perspective and integrating it into precept work.<\/p>\n

A couple points here to intended to complete or balance what she offers.<\/p>\n

First, Rizzetto offers new renderings of the precepts and naturally, they emphasize the aspect that she and her students seem most interested in. Nothing wrong with that, of course.<\/p>\n

I find versions are much like commentary on the precepts. Here\u2019s one:<\/p>\n

I Take Up the Way of Taking Only What is Freely Given and Giving Freely of All That I Can.<\/em><\/p>\n

Here\u2019s a more bare-bones translation:<\/p>\n

Taking up the Way of not taking what is not given.<\/em><\/p>\n

The bare-bones proto-precepts, imv, include the moral (perhaps what Rizzetto calls \u201cintellignce\u201d) and compassion aspects of the precept and also invite the koan of the fundamental perspective. In addition, each precept in the proto version is impossible. And it is on that ground that we vow to actualize it.<\/p>\n

The fundamental perspective is a key piece of what Zen has to offer to the conversation about ethical living. And despite what is often said about the fundamental and how it is often abused to justify harmful behavior, I find it to be the most practical and intimate aspect.<\/p>\n

Finally, I notice in Rizzetto\u2019s commentary that the precepts are used to identify with precision a person\u2019s negative aspects. I.e., practice in order to be a better person. That\u2019s one way to work.<\/p>\n

Another is to view the precept as a call to manifest the truth of this moment \u2013 even to enjoy the truth of this moment. For example, here\u2019s Dogen\u2019s poem for the above precept :<\/p>\n

The self and things of the world are just as they are.
\nThe gate of emancipation is open.<\/em><\/p>\n

Dogen\u2019s reading of the precept is that \u201cthings cannot be taken.\u201d<\/p>\n

I\u2019m reminded of Spinoza making a similar point: \u201cBlessedness is not the reward of virtue, but is virtue itself; nor do we delight in blessedness because we restrain from our lusts; but on the contrary, because we delight in it, therefore we are able to restrain them.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

The proto-precepts provide for more diverse, thicker interpretations, including the Rizzetto versions, but the Rizzetto versions (and other modern renderings) may not encourage the same diversity or breadth of meaning. And in most things, I lean toward enhancning the opportunities for those who come after us to realize and make manifest this one great life.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"