Extract given from the teachings at the Summer Camp : kusen of 25/08/2006 at 6.30 am

Kodo Sawaki tells us : « Take yourself firmly in hand, without hurting yourself”.
“Firmly”, in zazen, means: to carry the weight of the body on the knees, to sit in balance on the tripod formed by the knees and the perineum, for the neck to be in line with the back, the chin tucked in. Concerning that, we have to be firm.
“Without hurting ourselves” means: erasing incessantly all tensions which are building up, taking care not to feed them unconsciously.
Of course, if we practice like that, our thoughts will evade us. We cannot be sitting down and standing up at the same time. So, if we practise attention, profound attention to what is happening here and now in our body-mind, we cannot, in addition catch hold of our thoughts and chew them over at length.

Do we agree to letting our thoughts evade us?
In Zen we sometimes speak of decision. This is where the true decision lies: Do we agree to letting our thoughts evade us, to letting go of the control that we have over our lives and over other people’s lives? This is where the problem of faith lies. Some people think themselves cleverer that others, they think that they have the right to order others about; this is a complete absence of faith.
Whether we like it or not, phenomena appear and disappear. It was not us who decided to be born; it is not us that will decide about our death, essentially. It is not us who decide about the appearance and disappearance of phenomena. This is what the Buddha tells us:” Do not show greed towards phenomena which you like, do not show aversion towards phenomena which you do not like.”
There is a state beyond liking and disliking, which is equanimity, true happiness, which includes sadness, suffering but also joy. To embrace absolutely all human sentiments, that is what true freedom is, peace of mind. Just as today when the trees are still green and the mist cancels out the bright colours.
Seeing things as they are, without manifesting aversion, without manifesting greed, that is right view.

I explained how these sentiments of aversion and greed manifest, how it is difficult to exit from the vicious circle where the fixation on certain aspects, gives rise to violent emotions; these violent emotions amplify the fixation and this causes an inflammation of the mind: the world of hell opens at our feet. The Buddha says: “You do not understand, you do not see this world of conditioned co-production, you do not participate in this world”.

Each phenomenon is born in the presence of all others; each of these births takes place at the same time as the others. There is no single cause, rather an infinity of causes each biting the tail of the previous one. As long as we do not feel deeply the interdependence of all the phenomena, and, of course, of our participation in this interdependence, we can only experience a selfish emotion. As long as we are focussed on the idea of me and mine, as long as we believe in this entity of me and mine – an entity which is separate from the rest of the universe -, we will go from error to error.

We have to understand that we are a fleeting form of the universe which changes incessantly according to circumstance, as much as all the others, in interaction with all the others. If we do not understand this, life is difficult.
To study this aspect is to clarify the problem of life and death, of birth and death, of appearing and disappearing.

In the Shushogi Dogen writes: « To clarify the question of life and death is the only important issue for those who want to study the Buddha Way”.

This does not at all imply philosophical study; it just means we should understand that our peace of mind depends on the peace of mind of the others and that the peace of mind of the others depends on our own peace of mind.
Because our mind is attached, fixed on a point, we are like a crazed dog pulling at the chain. Rise to a vast and high vision, to the Buddha’s gaze!
In the end man looks at the mountain like the mountain looks at man.