Monday, August 24, 2009

Dogen instructed,

Practitioners, only if you subdue the mind is it easy to abandon yourself and the world. Being concerned about your worldly reputation regarding speech and behavior, refraining from doing evil because people will think ill of you, or doing good at every opportunity because people will respect you as a Buddhist practitioner, you are still being moved by worldly sentiments. Moreover, wantonly committing evil deeds shows that you are an entirely depraved person.

Finally, forget evil intentions, forget your own body, and carry out your activities solely for the sake of the buddha-dharma. Just be alert in every encounter. As for beginners in practice, subdue evil in your mind, and carry out good with your body without being concerned whether they are worldly or human sentiments. This is the meaning of abandoning body and mind. (Shobogenzo Zuimonki, Book 2, Chapter 1)

1 comment:

GreenSmile said...

To Dogen's list of attachments to one's effects, one might add that you might simply have presumed your efforts were not replaceable.