Zachary discusses important features of the mental landscape that are revealed through zazen and how they relate to our everyday lives.
He explores two major modes of being - normally translated as “the relative” and “the absolute” - that become apparent when we sit, and talks about how to talk about the relationship(s) between them. There are a number of texts from the ancient literature, notably the Sandokai and Tozan’s 5 Ranks, that explore this relationship and how it develops with practice. Zachary speaks, in concrete terms, about how these modes of being show up in zazen and why they’re of interest.
正中偏
三更初夜月明前
莫怪相逢不相识
隐隐犹怀旧日嫌
偏中正
失晓老婆逢古镜
分明觌面别无真
休更迷头犹认影
正中來
无中有路出尘埃
但能不触当今讳
也胜前朝断舌才
偏中至
两刃交锋不须避
好手犹如火里莲
宛然自有冲天志
兼中到
不落有无谁敢和
人人尽欲出常流
折合还归炭里坐
Zachary’s Translation:
The Crooked in the Straight
Around Midnight, before moonrise on that first night
No wonder you don’t know it when you see it
You’re still reminiscing on your sketchy past
The Straight in the Crooked
Rising late, she stumbles across an old mirror
She clearly meets herself face-to-face - no separation
But still mistakes her reflection for her head
Straight On Through
Within nothingness is a road out of the dust
If you just avoid the obvious faux pas
You’ll surpass the past masters who left everyone speechless
Arriving at the Crooked
There’s no need to shrink from sharp confrontation
An adept is like a lotus in the land of fire
As though you can soar at will
Arriving at Both
If you don’t fall into “is” or “is not”, who dares to chime in?
Everyone wants to be extraordinary
All the same, you come home and sit by the hearth.