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Meiho Noel MacDonald
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Practice and enlightenment
Some of the things that we wrestle with from day to day are how to concentrate body and mind. How to understand and follow the forms of practice. How to view the various aspects of life and regulate our daily conduct and understanding the relationship between practice and enlightenment.
Practice means ongoing daily activities centered in Zazen. Enlightenment means actualization of Buddha nature through practice.
People have a tendency to view enlightenment as being separate from practice and to seek some splendid insight as the goal of Zazen practice.
Dogen Zenji taught that this is an illusion, that one must fully understand the wholeness of practice and enlightenment. "Shu sho ichi nyo" means "Practice and enlightenment are one." There is no separation between practice and enlightenment.
Understanding this means freedom from ordinary dualistic thinking. But, understanding is not the goal. "Enlightenment is actualization of Buddha nature through practice," is what Dogen Zenji taught. So, when someone asks, "What is the goal of practice?" I say, Continuous everyday practice is the goal.
When you practice Zazen you must do it with no aim or goal in mind because seeking something outside of yourself is an illusion. This is called the freedom from non-attachment.
Dogen Zenji said that the experience of the Buddha way is not complete unless there is non-attachment to practice and enlightenment. By dropping away attachment, and letting go of everything, having no goal, you open yourself to the ultimate path of the Buddha Dharma.
When you let go of everything, you are open to everything without any preconceptions. There is nothing that is not you, no self, no object.
Dogen Zenji said, "The great way of all Buddhas thoroughly practiced is emancipation realization."
Emancipation means that in birth you are emancipated from birth. In death you are emancipated from death. There is detachment from birth and death. This is the practice of the great way. There is letting go of birth and death and vitalizing birth and death, this is the practice of the great way.
Realization is birth, birth is realization. At the time of realization there is nothing but birth, totally actualized and nothing but death, totally actualized.
Meiho Noel MacDonald
Month of June, 2007