Don't Skip Any Steps

Genjo Marinello Osho, Abbot of Chobo-ji gave a beautiful teisho entitled, "Buddha's One Language." This talk is on Case 95 of the Hekiganroku, and it involes the one true language of Buddha. Though relatively short in duration (about 30 minutes), I found that what Genjo Osho expressed went far longer than 30 minutes my mind. To paraphrase his own expression, It's like shaking a snow globe. Every time that We shake it, "We see or notice something else."

One of those something else's for me that has held my focus the last day or two is when he clearly and cleanly say, "Don't skip steps." More precisely he shows, "Run quickly past the place where there is no Buddha. No Buddha is much harder to come to. And when we've encountered It, we don't want to leave... No Buddha, no Dharma, no Sangha, no form. No mouth, no ears, no eyes, no nose, no tongue, no body, Muuuuuuuuuuuuu. Even where Mu is exhausted. This is no Buddha, no Dharma, no Sangha, penetrating past the outward myriad forms and experiencing personally and thoroughly no Buddha, no Mind, no Heart, no Purpose, no Way. But even if You realize cellular-ly through and through, if You were to stop there, weeds will grow like a jungle, says Engo's introduction.

It's true that if You stop there weeds will grow like a jungle. You cling to emptiness... or You cling to Your experience of no Mind and no Buddha... even no Mu. But It's a step that cannot be skipped, anymore than the ritual or the form or the gratitude to the ancestors or the chanting or the sweeping the floor or preparing meal the can be skipped. Or zazen can be skipped. Or learning the ritual of the bowls can be skipped. It cannot. Totally necessary. But if you get stuck there..."

For me his expression is like winning the lottery. Genjo Osho's teisho radiates and shows everything, especially the point that there are a great many things in our lives that are not to be skipped. Sometimes we cruise though situations and other times we have to grind it out. Either way the easy or the difficult should not be skipped. It's like dancing. As we move, 1-2-3, 1-2-3, 1-2-3 not 3-7-1-6-8-2. Skipping details and points can often bring painful results, because we bypass what can be most essential.

Internalizing Genjo Osho's words, I find myself compelled. No skipping on my practice. No skipping on my family. No skipping our on my friends. No skipping out on my responsibilities. No skipping, no skipping, no skipping. Just moving straight ahead, the best I can, with mindful follow-through.

The complete Teisho on "Buddha's One Language" can be listened to online or found in the iTunes music store under Choboji Media, in the Buddhism section. Either way it's free and available to You. If and when You listen, please come back here and comment. We can all learn form what You notice and see. No skipping any steps.

Jaye Seiho Morris, Curator
digitalZENDO

Comments

[Jack Daw]

Thanks for the pocast link! Will make for great listening as I sit in the airport waiting to fly back to Jersey.

Cheers,

[hockeybuddha]

Thanks for the link. I enjoyed the podcast. I remember when I first thought about "nothing to do, nothing to be done". I started thinking things like 'What do I do now?', 'Do I need to do this?' and other emotions and thoughts similar to those. I noticed I was becoming rigid. In my daily life I was less flexible, less compassionate. The weeds had grown.

Have a cup of tea. So simple, yet profound.