"Zen Master Goes to Europe" Part 14

[선혜]

From: "Mu Sang Sunim"
Date: Tue, 09 Oct 2001 05:02:50 -0000
Subject: "Zen Master Goes to Europe" Part 14

From "Zen Master Goes to Europe" (unpublished)
by Zen Master Seung Sahn and Mu Sang Sunim
copyright 1990 David B. Gerber


MAY 1: LONDON, OXFORD, LONDON


Bowing, 6:00. Anne and Richard join us. Half hour sitting. Dae Soen Sa
Nim gives the following kong-an talk:


ORIGINAL ENLIGHTENMENT, FINAL ENLIGHTENMENT


"Enlightenment is a name. This name is only a teaching word.
Originally there is no enlightenment. Already everybody has everyday
enlightenment. Drinking coffee, coffee enlightenment; walking, walking
enlightenment; watching television, watching-television enlightenment;
driving your car, driving enlightenment. Moment to moment only
enlightenment, enlightenment, enlightenment. Enlightenment means clear
mind. Clear mind means there is no subject, no object, no inside, no
outside. Only, outside and inside already become one. If you have
becoming one, what do you want? That's all! That's enough!

"So, moment to moment keep clear mind, moment to moment get
enlightenment. It's not special. If you make special, if you make
enlightenment and unenlightenment, you cannot get enlightenment. This
mind already separates enlightenment and unenlightenment, so it makes
enlightenment special. So no enlightenment. The Heart Sutra says, "No
attainment with nothing to attain." You must attain no enlightenment.
There is nothing. Nothing also is not correct. When you drink, only
drink. When you are tired, only sleep. If someone is hungry, give them
food. That's all. It is very simple.

"Everybody has too much understanding, so they are not simple. Not
being simple, they want enlightenment, they make something. If you
want enlightenment, although you spend your whole life practicing, you
cannot get it. Even if you spend an infinite time sitting Zen, you
cannot get enlightenment. So we say, put it all down. Only one word,
put it all down, but very important. But many people want something.
This wanting something comes from our karma. Everybody has karma. When
karma appears, you lose clear mind. When karma appears, you lose
yourself. So this mind is not clear. It becomes like a demon's mind.
We say, 'demon', but people's demon mind is worse than original
demons. Demons only do demon action. That is correct. But when human
karma appears, someone's face is wonderful, but his action is demon
action. That is worse than a demon.

"Long ago there were great monks and scholars who had great
understanding. They understood all philosophies--Taoism, Confucianism,
Buddhism. They understood, but they completely digested this
understanding. If you digest all your understanding, then your mind is
very simple. But you understand many things, read lots of books, talk
a lot, experience a lot, but you cannot digest this, so you cannot get
your own things. You have many things that belong to others. So this
mind is very complicated. It cannot decide. This means your intellect
controls you. If you put other ideas into your mind, you must digest
them. Then they become yours. This is very important. So scholars long
ago took everything in and then digested it. But their mind was
nothing. It's like a computer. A computer can do many different
operations, but when it's resting, it's nothing. Push a button--click,
click--the answer appears. Very simple. So put everything into your
mind, then digest it, then when you use it, pick out the right thing.
Then the answer appears.

"So the ancient scholars and great Zen Masters, their speech, their
understanding and their actions always became one. But people today
cannot digest, so their understanding goes this way, their actions go
that way. Then their master computer cannot decide--go this way? go
that way? They have a problem.

"One day Mang Gong Sunim, my grandteacher, visited Kyeong Ho Sunim,
his teacher. It was Kyeong Ho Sunim's birthday, so Mang Gong Sunim
brought some meat, some drink, and some rice cakes with him. Kyeong Ho
Sunim was very happy to see Mang Gong Sunim. 'You are so busy, how can
you find time to come?' Mang Gong Sunim said, 'No, no, Master, I am
not busy. It's your birthday, so I'm visiting you. You already have
everything, so I'm bringing you something, this food.' So he took out
the meat, the alcohol, and the rice cakes.

"Kyeong Ho Sunim said, 'Oh, wonderful. Where did you get all this?'

"Mang Gong Sunim said, 'Nowadays I have no hindrance. If someone gives
me wine, I drink. If they don't, I don't drink. If someone gives me
meat, I eat. Meat and rice are the same. If they don't, I don't eat.
If rice cakes come, I eat rice cakes.' This style talking.

"Then Kyeong Ho Sunim said, 'Oh Mang Gong Sunim, you are wonderful.
But my mind is not this style.'

"'Oh? Then Master, what is your style?'

"'I cannot get freedom. I want something. Maybe I want garlic. In the
temple there is no garlic, so I go to the city, I buy some garlic, I
put it into the ground, it grows up, a lot of garlic appears, then I
eat it.'

"Mang Gong Sunim heard this, his mind went, 'Bong!' 'Zen Master,' he
said, 'I am sorry. Before I didn't understand. Now I understand.'

"Mang Gong Sunim's mind was only original enlightenment. Kyeong Ho
Sunim's speech was final enlightenment. In original enlightenment,
everything is no hindrance. Seeing just like this is truth, hearing
just like this is truth, everything just like this is truth. So there
is no hindrance, everything is O.K. Practicing is O.K., not practicing
is O.K. This style mind. This is already past primary point.
Understanding primary point is first enlightenment; only like this is
original enlightenment. Final enlightenment means, not only me. I want
something. This means, you must keep the Great Vow. Then you must go
straight. Don't check yourself. If you say, 'Something comes, I eat;
nothing comes, I don't eat,' there is no vow there, there is no
Bodhisattva, no great love, no compassion. Coming is O.K., going is
O.K., suffering is O.K., not suffering is O.K. This style mind. This
is no good. You must go straight, do hard training for other people.
This is correct teaching. So soon Mang Gong Sunim understood: 'Ah, I
am sorry.' This is a famous story.

"So it is very important first, to understand your true self, then to
understand using your mind. First understand my true self, then
understand outside. We talk about substance, name and form, and
function. When these three come together, you can use your mind, use
kong-ans, teach other people. Attaining substance is first
enlightenment. Next, you must attain name and form. When substance and
name and form come together, this is original enlightenment. Then
next, attain function. This means, how do you use substance and name
and form. So substance, name and form, and function come together,
this is just like this, final enlightenment. So this means, you must
keep the Great Vow. Then you can get enlightenment, use it, and save
all people. So only go straight. If you go straight, you already have
substance, name and form, and function. Great Zen Masters use these
with complete freedom. Sometimes they only say, 'Katz!' Sometimes they
only hit. This is only primary point, first enlightenment. But first
enlightenment is sometimes final enlightenment.

"Here is an example. Mang Gong Sunim and Hye Wol Sunim were Dharma
brothers. Everyone used to eat in the Dharma room, ritual style, with
four bowls. So once everyone took their bowl and waited for the signal
to begin eating. Just before the chugpi was hit, Hye Wol Sunim
shouted, 'Katz!' Everyone was surprised. But the head monk already
understood, he just hit the chugpi three times. Everyone ate. Just
when it was time to bow at the end of the meal, Mang Gong Sunim
suddenly shouted, 'Katz!' Again, everyone was surprised. Nobody
understood. All the monks, even the Zen monks, started talking and
arguing among themselves. Some said this Katz was first enlightenment,
some said it was original enlightenment, some said it was final
enlightenment. Finally some of the monks went over to Mang Gong Sunim.
"Master, we don't understand. Before we ate, 'Katz!' After we ate,
'Katz!' Which one was first enlightenment, which one was final
enlightenment? Were they both first enlightenment, both final
enlightenment. Zen Master, which one?'

"Then Zen Master Mang Gong said, 'Katz!' So this Katz is final
enlightenment. Katz is Katz. This is not first enlightenment. So Zen
Masters may only hit, only use Katz. Sometimes this is final
enlightenment, sometimes first enlightenment, sometimes original
enlightenment. They use these with freedom. This story is very famous.
So only go straight."



Dae Soen Sa Nim remarks, "Once in Korea there was no rain. So in one
village all the people together prayed for rain. Then it rained. This
is 270 degree style, special energy. Outside, there is the Earth's
magnetic field. Inside, people's energy. It's the same energy. When
the two come together, then special energy appears."

Later Dae Soen Sa Nim discusses his teaching style. Anne and Richard
had some feeling that some English people thought that Dae Soen Sa
Nim's talk was too gimmicky, they could not believe it. Perhaps a
propos of this, Dae Soen Sa Nim remarks, "My teaching style is like
billiards. You want to hit this ball, but you cannot hit it directly.
So you aim for the side of the table. Then it goes around, around,
around, bouncing--nobody understands--then hit! from behind. So
someone asks me a question. I talk, but they say, 'You're not
answering my question' (one bounce), then I keep going, going, then
finally, bong! hit! 'Oh!' So this style is necessary. Only talking,
talking, intellectual style, you can't do it."

It is a bank holiday, also raining, so we spend the morning doing
chores and resting. At 12:30, Anne and Richard come with a lunch which
we eat in our room: rice, salad, and cheese. Then at 2:30 we leave for
Oxford. Robert, who attended the lecture and workshop and also made a
tape, drives Dae Soen Sa Nim and Anne. The rest of us take the train.
It's a little frantic, some make the 3 p.m. train, some, the 4 p.m.
train. We meet in Wadham College, Oxford, then drive with Kabir, a
history student from India, to the house of Dae Soen Sa Nim's students
Marcey and Mona, where we have dinner. Our talk is at 8 p.m. and is
under the auspices of the Buddhist Society. Linda gives a short talk.
Dae Soen Sa Nim teaches basic form and tells two stories:


HIDDEN WORDS


"We have been talking about transmission of mind. Here is a famous
story. Once in China there was a great king who built the Great Wall.
His name was Jin Shi Wan. He was worried about the Mongols coming into
China, but his real enemies were inside, not outside. This king had a
general named Aloksan. Aloksan was a very strong general. The king's
wife, Yonguvie, was the most beautiful woman in China. We say she was
the Eastern Cleopatra. But Yonguvie didn't like the king, he was very
old. Instead she was in love with the young general, Aloksan. She
wanted to go outside and meet him, but the king always made her stay
inside the palace with him.

"Aloksan would wait by the gate for times when the king would be
asleep or occupied with business. Yonguvie had an attendant, Ongyo.
Sometimes she would shout to her, 'Ongyo, bring me water!' Ongyo would
answer, 'I cannot.' This meant, 'Don't come to my room.' Other times
Yonguvie would shout, 'Ongyo, bring me fruit!' Then Ongyo would bring
fruit. This meant, 'You must come in.' So calling Ongyo, asking for
fruit, asking for water, these words had no meaning. This only
transmitted Yonguvie's mind to Aloksan--come in or don't come in.

"Kong-ans are like this. If you attach to their words it's like
saying, 'Bring water? Why bring water, water is not necessary? Why
bring fruit, there's already a lot of fruit in the room?' If you
attach to these words you don't understand Yonguvie's mind. These are
hidden words, inside they have meaning. So someone once asked Zen
Master Dong Sahn, 'What is Buddha?' He said, 'Three pounds of flax.'
'Three pounds of flax' has no meaning, but behind there is a meaning.
We will check. What is Buddha? What is Buddha nature? What is three
pounds of flax nature? Are they the same or different? Someone asked
Zen Master Un Mun, 'What is Buddha?' He said, 'Dry shit on a stick.'
So one Zen Master said, 'Three pounds of flax,' another Zen Master
said, 'Dry shit on a stick.' The question was the same, but the
answers are different. 'Three pounds of flax' means, if your mind is
clear like space, then your mind is like a clear mirror. Red comes,
there is red. White comes, there is white. Three pounds of flax come,
there are three pounds of flax. Buddha comes, there is Buddha. Only
reflect. You can see this wall, only white. You can see outside, only
dark. You can see inside, only bright. So if you attach to these words
you don't understand. If you don't attach to words, everything is just
like this. Just thinking. Three pounds of flax is three pounds of
flax. No meaning. But no meaning is big meaning."


SO SAHN'S MAGIC TEACHING


"Long ago in Korea there was a famous Zen Master, So Sahn Sunim. He
completely understood magic, but his body was very short and his face
was not so good. He had a disciple who had been in the army. The
disciple was tall, strong, and good looking. He would always follow
his teacher, but his teacher was very short, so the disciple would
often think, 'Can this really be my teacher?' One day the two of them
were walking on Myo Hyang Sahn mountain. The mountain was very high
and had a long waterfall, the water coming down in a narrow ribbon. As
they were passing in front of the waterfall the disciple was thinking,
'Can this really be my teacher?' Then he looked over at the waterfall
and saw the water--not coming down but only going straight up. Very
surprised, he shouted, 'Teacher! Teacher! Why is the water coming up?
Why doesn't it come down?'

"The Zen Master said, 'That is your mind!'

"The student understood and said, 'I am sorry.' Then the water again
began to come down. This is a famous story about using magic to teach
Zen."



Soon after the talk we leave to take the 10:15 train back to London.
There is some confusion, but we get there. Susan, Marcey and Mona's
daughter, goes with us and accompanies us on the rest of the trip.

On the train, Edward leads us into the first class section, thinking
class doesn't matter, or if it does, we can say we're sorry, we didn't
understand. A short time before our arrival a conductor comes, writes
up charges for everyone, fining us one pound each for sitting in first
class. Edward says, "It was clear that there was nothing we could do
but pay. That was our correct situation."

Dae Soen Sa Nim says to David, "Write that down."