{"id":507,"date":"2008-09-27T10:32:00","date_gmt":"2008-09-27T10:32:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/2008\/09\/on-becoming-buddha\/"},"modified":"2008-09-27T10:32:00","modified_gmt":"2008-09-27T10:32:00","slug":"on-becoming-buddha","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/2008\/09\/on-becoming-buddha.html","title":{"rendered":"On Becoming Buddha"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Notes: the photo is a sculpture by James Hunoldt<\/a> and this is a slightly modified version of what I just posted on the training blog.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n


<\/span><\/div>\n
In the study group on Thursday we worked through part of a commentary by Sen\u2019ne, a 13th century Zen guy, on the\u00a0<\/span>genjokoan<\/span><\/span>. I\u2019ll try to present the heart of it here.<\/span>\n

<\/span><\/div>\n
And then there is digesting the material and actualizing it in our practice and life. After 30 years, I\u2019m still amazed and the depth and subtlety of the presentation of our dharma<\/a> ancestors and how this is an endless journey.\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/span><\/div>\n
Sen\u2019ne doesn\u2019t have much to say about the first character,\u00a0<\/span>gen.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Nelson Character Dictionary<\/span><\/span>\u00a0says this\u00a0<\/span>gen\u00a0<\/span><\/span>means\u00a0\u201cpresent, existing, actual.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/span><\/div>\n
About\u00a0<\/span>jo<\/span><\/span>\u00a0Sen\u2019ne says, \u201c<\/span>We should carefully think over this word\u00a0<\/span>jo<\/span><\/i><\/span>\u00a0(<\/span><\/span>\u6210<\/span><\/span>).\u201d\u00a0<\/span>Our practice is to reflect deeply on this life \u2013 deep, clear reflection is really at the heart of what we can offer the world wondering-in-circles of analysis split off from heart and body.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n

<\/span><\/div>\n
Nelson\u00a0<\/span><\/span>has this on\u00a0<\/span>jo<\/span><\/span>: \u201cbecome, get or grow (old), form (a part of).\u201d For the two characters together,\u00a0genjo<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span>Nelson<\/span><\/span>\u00a0has \u201cexisting state of affairs, present situation, status quo.\u201d\u00a0
<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/span><\/div>\n
This is close to how most translators present genjo<\/span>\u00a0but Sen\u2019ne seems to have taken those ingredients and cooked a feast.\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/span><\/div>\n
Let\u2019s start with his usage of\u00a0<\/span>jo<\/span><\/span>\u00a0or\u00a0<\/span>become.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0This isn\u2019t a small thing \u2013 it goes to the heart of what it means to\u00a0<\/span>become<\/span><\/span>\u00a0Buddha. Sen\u2019ne: \u201c<\/span>This should not be understood as people commonly understand the meaning of\u00a0<\/span>jo<\/span><\/i><\/span>\u00a0(to become).\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n

<\/span><\/div>\n
And this:\u00a0<\/span>\u201c<\/span>However,\u00a0<\/span>genjo<\/span><\/i><\/span>\u00a0does not mean that something that has been concealed is now being revealed.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n

<\/span><\/div>\n
If\u00a0<\/span>becoming\u00a0<\/span><\/span>doesn\u2019t mean<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/span>something that wasn\u2019t present becomes present, what kind of\u00a0<\/span>becoming\u00a0<\/span><\/span>are we talking about<\/span>?<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n

<\/span><\/div>\n
Sen\u2019ne: \u201c<\/span>We should understand this\u00a0<\/span>jo<\/span><\/i><\/span>\u00a0(to become) on the [ground of] buddha.\u201d \u00a0What is the meaning of that?\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n

<\/span><\/div>\n
He goes on to explain this by way of the following citation: \u201cBy practicing according to the teaching, living beings naturally accomplish the buddha way.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n

<\/span><\/div>\n
Accomplishing the buddha way depends on practicing according to the teaching. What teaching and what practice are not specified here and seem to be left open to our inquiry. But probably we can agree that wholehearted zazen, the foundational practice of Soto Zen, is what Sen\u2019ne has in mind.\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/span><\/div>\n
\u201cAlso,\u201d says Sen\u2019ne, \u201cpractice according to the teaching is not a practice in order to attain some result.\u201d<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/span><\/div>\n
When we sit down precisely according to the spirit of the teaching (not practicing to get some result), we become buddha immediately \u2013 just as naturally as our senses depend on name and form (see previous post).\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/span><\/div>\n
Becoming buddha is natural in that sense. Enlightenment depends on practice in this way.<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/span><\/div>\n
What are the specific implications of this for you?<\/span><\/div>\n

<\/p><\/span><\/div>\n

\"\"<\/div>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Notes: the photo is a sculpture by James Hunoldt and this is a slightly modified version of what I just posted on the training blog. In the study group on Thursday we worked through part of a commentary by Sen\u2019ne, a 13th century Zen guy, on the\u00a0genjokoan. I\u2019ll try to present the heart of it […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":182,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-507","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nOn Becoming Buddha<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Notes: the photo is a sculpture by James Hunoldt and this is a slightly modified version of what I just posted on the training blog.In the study group on\" \/>\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\/2008\/09\/on-becoming-buddha.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"On Becoming Buddha\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Notes: the photo is a sculpture by James Hunoldt and this is a slightly modified version of what I just posted on the training blog.In the study group on\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/2008\/09\/on-becoming-buddha.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=\"2008-09-27T10:32:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/tbn0.google.com\/images?q=tbn:ucHs_7cjxYMmnM:http:\/\/images.agentcenter.com\/client\/5\/6\/1\/22165\/list\/res\/95288\/Jim_Hunolt_-_Becoming_Buddha_1.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=\"2 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\/2008\/09\/on-becoming-buddha.html\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/2008\/09\/on-becoming-buddha.html\",\"name\":\"On Becoming Buddha\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2008-09-27T10:32:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2008-09-27T10:32:00+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/#\/schema\/person\/45224391b7690e99673782337bd0eabd\"},\"description\":\"Notes: the photo is a sculpture by James Hunoldt and this is a slightly modified version of what I just posted on the training blog.In the study group on\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/2008\/09\/on-becoming-buddha.html#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/2008\/09\/on-becoming-buddha.html\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\/2008\/09\/on-becoming-buddha.html#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/wildfoxzen\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"On Becoming Buddha\"}]},{\"@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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