All for one and one for all

I have never much liked hierarchical organisations, or in fact, hierarchical anything at all. Once in the long ago, reading about a particular Buddhist movement, it was revealed that  those who were members wore various colour sashes around their waists, this to distinguish the "level of attainment" of each. Which tended to make me feel just a little bit queasy. Moving on from this, linking it with other things, I once wrote a blog called (in a slightly tongue in cheek manner) "My fertile period", in which I included one or two poems that I had written. At the beginning I wrote:-

I think that the reason I eventually stopped attempting to write poetry was that I discovered the "real" stuff. Which is sad in certain ways. Even though our own attempts are often no more than doggerel they are ours and often seek to express emotions, viewpoints and human empathy. That such is expressed in what in a literary sense is poor is in many ways beside the point. Knowing ourselves and expressing ourselves has a value beyond literary merit as such. 

Yes, now I think it is sad in every way, and the "value" in all our expressions becomes clearer by the day.

No matter what

There is, in the world of zen, a story concerning Bodhidharma - he who "came from the west" - and he once quizzed those who sought to learn from him.

Bodhidharma was about to go back to India. He said to his students, "The time has come. Can you express your understanding?" 

One of the students, Daofu said, "My present view is that we should neither be attached to letters, nor be apart from letters, and to allow the Way to function freely." 

Bodhidharma said, "You have attained my skin." 

Nun Zongchi said, "My view is that it is like the joy of seeing Akshobhya Buddha’s land just once and not again." 

Bodhidharma said, "You have attained my flesh." 

Daoyu said, "The four great elements are originally empty and the five skandhas do not exist. Therefore, I see nothing to be attained." 

Bodhidharma said, "You have attained my bones." 

Finally Huike came forward, made a full bow, stood up, and returned to where he was.

 Bodhidharma said, "You have attained my marrow." 

Bodhidharma

Well, this little story, given our sad predilection for grading everything as "better" or "worse", or as "right" or "wrong" - and thus leads to different colour sashes and eventually to inferior and superior races and cultures and much worse - is often understood in the sense of our own movement along the path of "awakening", of the gradually "deepening" of our understanding. Thus we are "polishing a stone, hoping to make a mirror". This is to seek attainment rather than realisation, or in Christian terms, to justify ourselves by works rather than by faith. 

Dogen understood the story differently, within his own totally non-dualistic manner, stating:-

If you take these different responses as being superior or inferior to each other, you have missed the intent of Bodhidharma. We should realize that although each disciple’s expression of the Dharma was different than the others, nonetheless, each in his or her own way contained the teacher’s whole being.

Each precious moment

Dogen goes on to speak of authenticity of practice, rather than different levels of realisation. and thus however lowly one's symbols and practices are as in, say, a peasants religion, it is authenticity that matters, a point made by Hee-Jin Kim in his fine book on Dogen. The Bible makes the very same point, that we are all one in Christ Jesus our Lord. 

Tonight the Music Man Project takes to the Royal Albert Hall. Begun about twenty years ago, the joy of music is shared with those often referred to as having "special needs", who play the instruments and sing. I have had the pleasure of seeing one of the shows (at the London Palladium) and those on stage shared their joy with me. Maybe wrong to highlight just one person, but one young girl in particular grabbed my attention. Her "authenticity", selfless in a performance of pure joy and exhilaration, was everything that reality could be. She had all the moves!

All the moves

Why grade it according to any mode of assessment or calculation, giving her perhaps a blue sash and another a red? 

For as Dogen says:- "nothing throughout the entire universe is concealed". 

(Nevertheless, as Hee-Jin Kim summarises, "the mystery of emptinesss and thusness had to go beyond this: intimacy had to be ever penetrated")

The road goes on forever.

Related Quotes:-

"To cast off the body-mind did not nullify historical and social existence so much as to put it into action so that it could be the self-creative and self-expressive embodiment of Buddha-nature. In being 'cast off,' however, concrete human existence was fashioned in the mode of radical freedom - purposeless, goaless, objectless, and meaningless. Buddha-nature was not to be enfolded in, but was to unfold through, human activities and expressions. The meaning of existence was finally freed from and authenticated by its all-to-human conditions only if, and when, it lived co-eternally with ultimate meaninglessness."

(Hee-Jin Kim, on Dogen)

"Love has no why"

 (Meister Eckhart)