CHANTS AND SUTRAS
Gatha of Atonement
All evil karma ever created by me of old
On account of my beginningless greed, hatred, and ignorance
Born of my conduct, speech and thought,
Now I atone for it all.
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The Three Refuges in Pali
Buddham saranam gacchami
(I go to the Buddha for refuge.)
Dhammam saranam gacchami
(I go to the Dharma for refuge.)
Sangham saranam gacchami
(I go to the Sangha for refuge.)
Dutiyampi Buddham saranam gacchami
(For a second time, I go to the Buddha for refuge.)
Dutiyampi Dhammam saranam gacchami
(For a second time, I go to the Dharma for refuge.)
Dutiyampi Sangham saranam gacchami
(For a second time, I go to the Sangha for refuge.)
Tatiyampi Buddham saranam gacchami
(For a third time, I go to the Buddha for refuge.)
Tatiyampi Dhammam saranam gacchami
(For a third time, I go to the Dharma for refuge.)
Tatiyampi Sangham saranam gacchami
(For a third time, I go to the Sangha for refuge.)
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The Three Refuges
(Thich Nhat Hanh and Plum Village version)
I take refuge in the Buddha,
the one who shows me the way in this life.
I take refuge in the Dharma,
the way of understanding and of love.
I take refuge in the Sangha,
the community that lives in harmony and awareness.
[bell]
Dwelling in the refuge of Buddha,
I clearly see the path of light and beauty in the world.
Dwelling in the refuge of Dharma,
I learn to open many doors on the path of transformation.
Dwelling in the refuge of Sangha,
shining light that supports me, keeping my practice free of obstruction.
[bell]
Taking refuge in the Buddha in myself,
I aspire to help all people recognize their own awakened nature,
realizing the Mind of Love.
Taking refuge in the Dharma in myself,
I aspire to help all people fully master the ways of practice
and walk together on the path of liberation.
Taking refuge in the Sangha in myself,
I aspire to help all people build Fourfold Communities,
to embrace all beings and support their transformation.
[bell, bell]
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The Four Great Vows
Creations are numberless, I vow to be one with them
Delusions are inexhaustible, I vow to endure them
Dharmas are boundless, I vow to be teachable
The enlightened way is unsurpassable, I vow to embody it.
Shi Gu Sei Gan Mon (Japanese)
Shu Jo Muhen Sei Gan Do
Bon No Mujin Sei Gan Dan
Ho Mon Muryo, Sei Gan Gaku
Butsodo Mujo Sei Gan Jo.
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Evening Gatha
Let me respectfully remind you
Life and death are of supreme importance
Time swiftly passes by and opportunity is lost
Each of us should strive to awaken, awaken
Take heed, this night your days are diminished by one
Do not squander your life.
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Meal Gatha
First,
Seventy-two labors brought us this food,
We should know how it comes to us.
Second,
As we receive this offering,
We should consider
whether our virtue and practice deserve it.
Third,
As we desire the natural order of mind
to be free from clinging,
We must be free from greed.
Fourth,
To sustain our life, we take this food.
Fifth,
To attain our Way, we take this food.
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Maha Prajna Paramita Heart (Hrdaya) Sutra
Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva
(The Awakened One of Compassion)
Doing deep Prajna Paramita,
Clearly saw emptiness of all the five conditions,
Thus completely relieving misfortune and pain.
O Shariputra (a disciple), form is no other than emptiness,
Emptiness no other than form; Form is exactly emptiness,
Emptiness exactly form;
Sensation, conception, discrimination, awareness are likewise like this.
O Shariputra, all dharmas are forms of emptiness,
Not born, not destroyed;
Not stained, not pure,
Without loss, without gain:
So in emptiness there is no form,
No sensation, conception, discrimination, awareness;
No eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, mind;
No color, sound, smell, taste, touch, phenomena;
No realm of sight,
No realm of consciousness;
No ignorance
And no end to ignorance …
No old age and death
And no end to old age and death;
No suffering, No cause of suffering,
No extinguishing,
No path; No wisdom and no gain.
No gain and thus the Bodhisattva lives Prajna Paramita
With no hindrance in the mind,
No hindrance, therefore no fear,
Far beyond deluded thoughts,
This is Nirvana.
All past, present and future Buddhas live Prajna Paramita,
And therefore attain anuttara-samyak-sambodhi (enlightenment)
Therefore know Prajna Paramita is the great mantra,
The vivid mantra,
The best mantra,
The unsurpassable mantra;
It completely clears all pain –
This is the truth, not a lie.
So set forth the Prajna Paramita mantra,
Set forth this mantra and say:
Gate! Gate! (arriving, arriving)
Paragate! (fully arriving)
Parasamgate! (fully arriving together)
Bodhi Svaha! (Awake, Rejoice) Prajna Heart Sutra!
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Sutra on the Heart of Realizing Wisdom Beyond Wisdom
(The Heart Sutra)
Avalokiteshvara, who helps all to awaken,
moves in the deep course of
realizing wisdom beyond wisdom,
sees that all five streams of
body and mind are boundless,
and frees all from anguish.
Oh Shariputra,
form is not separate from boundlessness;
boundlessness is not separate from form.
Form is boundlessness; boundlessness is form.
Feelings, perceptions, inclinations
and discernment are also like this.
Oh Shariputra,
boundlessness is the nature of all things.
It neither arises nor perishes,
neither stains nor purifies,
neither increases nor decreases.
Boundlessness is not limited by form,
nor by feelings, perceptions, inclinations, and discernment.
It is free of the eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, and mind;
free of sight, sound, smell, taste, touch, and any object of mind;
free of sensory realms, including the realm of mind.
It is free of ignorance and the end of ignorance.
Boundlessness is free of old age and death,
and free of the end of old age and death.
It is free of suffering, arising, cessation, and path,
and free of wisdom and attainment.
Being free of attainment, those who help all to awaken
abide in the realization of wisdom beyond wisdom
and live with an unhindered mind.
Without hindrance, the mind has no fear.
Free from confusion, those who lead all to emancipation
embody complete serenity.
All those in the past, present, and future,
who realize wisdom beyond wisdom,
manifest unsurpassable and thorough awakening.
Know that realizing wisdom beyond wisdom
is no other than this wondrous mantra,
luminous, unequalled, and supreme.
It relieves all suffering.
It is genuine, not illusory.
So set forth this mantra of realizing wisdom beyond wisdom.
Set forth this mantra that says:
Gaté, gaté, paragaté, parasamgaté, bodhi! svaha!
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This translation by Kazuaki Tanahashi and Joan Halifax
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* * * ^ (pok) Maka Hannya Haramita Shingyo
* Kan Ji Zai Bo Sa Gyo Jin Han Nya Ha Ra Mi Ta Ji
Sho Ken * Go On Kai Ku Do Is Sai Ku Yaku Sha Ri
Shi Shiki Fu I Ku Ku Fu I Shiki Shiki Soku Ze Ku Ku
Soku Ze Shiki Ju So Gyo Shiki Yaku Bu Nyo Ze Sha
Ri Shi Ze Sho Ho Ku So Fu Sho Fu Metsu Fu Ku Fu Jo
Fu Zo Fu Gen Ze Ko Ku Chu Mu Shiki Mu Ju So Gyo
Shiki Mu Gen Ni Bi Zes Shin Ni Mu Shiki Sho Ko Mi
Soku Ho Mu Gen Kai Nai Shi Mu I Shiki Kai Mu Mu
Myo Yaku Mu Mu Myo Jin Nai Shi Mu Ro Shi Yaku Mu
Ro Shi Jin Mu Ku Shu Metsu Do Mu Chi Yaku Mu
Toku I Mu Sho Tok Ko Bo Dai Sat Ta E Han Nya Ha
Ra Mi Ta Ko * Shin Mu Ke Ge Mu Ke Ge Ko Mu U Ku
Fu On Ri Is Sai Ten Do Mu So Ku Gyo Ne Han San Ze
Sho Butsu E Han Nya Ha Ra Mi Ta Ko * Toku A
Noku Ta Ra San Myaku San Bo Dai Ko Chi Han-Nya
Ha Ra Mi Ta Ze Dai Jin Shu Ze Dai Myo Shu Ze Mu Jo
Shu Ze Mu To Do Shu No Jo Is Sai Ku Shin Jitsu Fu
Ko Ko Setsu Han Nya Ha Ra Mi Ta Shu Soku Setsu
Shu Watsu
Gya Tei Gya Tei * Ha Ra Gya Tei Hara So Gya Tei
* Bo Ji Sowa Ka Han Nya Shin Gyo ^ (pok)
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Heart Sutra in Sanskrit by Bernadette Fernandes of Morning Star Zendo
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The Diamond Sutra (From Morning Star Zendo)
The Sutra of Perfection of Wisdom of the Diamond that Cuts through Illusion
Excerpts from the teaching dialogue in which the Buddha questions his disciple Subhuti.
Q1. Though all the sentient beings to be delivered by me are innumerable and without limit, / in reality, / there are no sentient beings to be delivered. / Why?
A1. Because should there exist in the minds of Bodhisattvas / arbitrary conceptions of phenomena / such as the existence of one’s self / or the self of another / or selfness as divided into beings / or selfness as unified into one universal self existing eternally, / they would be unworthy to be called Bodhisattvas.
Q2. When the Buddha speaks of great universes / does he have in mind any definite idea?
A2. No, When the Buddha uses the words great universes / he does not assert any definite idea. / He merely uses the words as words.
Q3. Is this true for the words Buddha and
Dharma?
A3. There are no Buddhas and there are no Dharmas.
Q4. Should a disciple strive to attain Buddhahood?
A4. No, that would mean the disciple is striving to attain something limited. / as in perfect-supreme-wisdom; / but true Buddhahood, whose essence is identical with the essence of all things, / is inconceivable / and beyond all striving.
Q5. How is it possible to explain this sutra without ideas of things and dharmas?
A5. This sutra can only be explained / by keeping the mind in perfect oneness and tranquility.
Q6. Should a Bodhisattva make an assertion / such as “I have entered the stream?”
A6. No. Because / he has not entered anything / nor has his mind entered any idea / such as form sound, taste. odor or touch.
Q7. Because of his virtue / will Buddha be reborn either in this world or any other world?
A7. No. / There will be no rebirth / either in this world / or in any other world. / It is because he knows this / the Buddha is called a Buddha.
Q8. Is there any one who is a fully enlightened one?
A8. No. Should a disciple cherish in his mind an idea such as / “I have become enlightened,” / he would soon be grasping after things / such as his own selfhood, / or other selves, / or a universal self.
Q9. If there is no distinction between one’s own self and the selfhood of others, / how do we practice kindness?
A9. We practice kindness / by giving not only objective gifts / but the selfless gifts of kindness and sympathy.
Q10. Is there any merit for acts of kindness?
A10. Bodhisattvas never seek merit / nor look upon kind acts as private possessions / but as the common possessions of all animate beings.
Q11. What does it mean to say there is no such thing as supreme-perfect-wisdom / and that the Buddha does not teach any fixed dharma?
A11. This means Bodhisattvas are not enlightened by an fixed teaching / but by an intuitive process / that is spontaneous and natural.
Q12. What does it mean to say the Buddha has come or has gone?
A12. This means the Buddha is never coming from anywhere / nor is he going anywhere. / The name Buddha is merely a word.
Q13. Why does the Buddha use words and ideas in his teachings?
A13. The Buddha uses words and ideas in his teaching / in resemblance to a raft, / of use only to cross a river. / As the raft is of no use after the river is crossed, / it should be discarded./ So too ideas about things should be given up as one attains enlightenment.
Q14. Has the Buddha given us any definite teaching in this sutra?
A14. No. The Buddha has not given us any definite teaching in this sutra.
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
“Like a meteor, like darkness,
as a flickering lamp, an illusion,
like hoar frost, or a bubble,
like clouds, a flash of lightning,
or a dream.
So all conditioned existence is to be seen.”
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Heart Sutra in Sanskrit by Bernadette Fernandes of Morning Star Zendo
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Sandokai: The Identity of Relative and Absolute
or the Harmonious Song of Difference and Sameness
The mind of the great sage of India
Was intimately conveyed from west and east
Among human beings are wise and fools
But in the way there is no northern or southern Patriarch
The subtle source is clear and bright
The tributary streams flow through the darkness
To be attached to things is illusion
To encounter the absolute is not yet enlightenment
Each and all the subjective and objective spheres
Are related
And at the same time independent
Related yet working differently
Though each keeps its own place
Form makes the character and appearance different
Sounds distinguish comfort and discomfort
The dark makes all words one
The brightness distinguishes good and bad phrases
The four elements return to their nature
As a child to its mother
Fire is hot
Wind moves
Water is wet
Earth hard
Eyes see
Ears hear
Nose smells
Tongue tastes the salt and sour
Each is independent of the other
Cause and effect must return to the great reality
The words high and low are used relatively
Within light there is darkness
But do not try to understand the darkness
Within darkness there is light
But no not look for that light
Light and darkness are a pair
Like the foot before and the foot behind in walking
Each thing has its own intrinsic value
And is related to everything else in function and position
Ordinary life fits the absolute
As a box and its lid
The absolute works together with the relative
Like two arrows meeting in mid-air
Reading words you should grasp the great reality
Do not judge by any standards
If you do not see the Way
You do not see it even as you walk on it
When you walk the Way
It is not near
It is not far
If you are deluded
You are mountains and rivers away from it.
I respectfully say to those who wish to be enlightened
Do not waste your time by night or day.
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Song of the Grass-Roof Hermitage
Shitou (700-790)
I’ve built a grass hut where there’s nothing of value.
After eating, I relax and enjoy a nap.
When it was completed, fresh weeds appeared.
Now it’s been lived in – covered by weeds.
The person in the hut lives here calmly,
Not stuck to inside, outside, or in between.
Places worldly people live, he doesn’t live.
Realms worldly people love, he doesn’t love.
Though the hut is small, it includes the entire world.
In ten square feet, an old person illumines forms and their nature.
A Great Vehicle bodhisattva trusts without doubt.
The middling or lowly can’t help wondering;
Will this hut perish or not?
Perishable or not, the original master is present,
not dwelling south or north, east or west.
Firmly based on steadiness, it can’t be surpassed.
A shining window below the green pines --
Jade palaces or vermilion towers can’t compare with it.
Just sitting with head covered, all things are at rest.
Thus, this mountain monk doesn’t understand at all.
Living here he no longer works to get free.
Who would proudly arrange seats, trying to entice guests?
Turn around the light to shine within, then just return.
The vast inconceivable source can’t be faced or turned away from.
Meet the ancestral teachers, be familiar with their instruction,
Bind grasses to build a hut, and don’t give up.
Let go of hundreds of years and relax completely.
Open your hands and walk, innocent.
Thousands of words, myriad interpretations,
Are only to free you from obstructions.
If you want to know the undying person in the hut,
Don’t separate from this skin bag here and now.
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Emmei Jukku Kannon Gyo (Kanzeon Sutra of Compassion)
(Chant 3 times)
KAN ZE ON
NA MU BUTSU
YO BUTSU U IN
YO BUTSU U EN
BU PO SO EN
JO RAKU GA JO
CHO NEN KAN ZE ON
BO NEN KAN ZE ON
NEN NEN JU SHIN KI
NEN NEN FU RI SHIN
(Chant 3 times)
Kanzeon!
At one with Buddha
Directly Buddha
Also indirectly Buddha
And indirectly Buddha
Dharma, Sangha Joyful
Pure Eternal Being!
Morning Mind is Kanzeon (compassion)
Evening Mind is Kanzeon
This moment arises from Mind
The moment is not separate from Mind.
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KADDISH
Translated by Sensei Peter Levitt and Rabi Don Singer
(Recited at Auschwitz/Birkenau Bearing Witness Retreats in various languages.)
May the Great Name whose Desire gave birth
to the universe Resound through the Creation
Now.
May this Great Presence rule your life and
your day and all lives of our World.
And say, Yes. Amen.
Throughout all Space, Bless, Bless this Great Name,
Throughout all Time.
Though we bless, we praise, we beautify,
we offer up your name,
Name That Is Holy, Blessed One,
still you remain beyond the reach of our praise, our song,
beyond the reach of all consolation. Beyond! Beyond!
And say, Yes. Amen.
Let God’s Name give birth to Great Peace and Life
for us and all people.
And say, Yes. Amen.
The One who has given a universe of Peace
Gives peace to us, to All that is Israel.*
And say, Yes. Amen.
*All those who struggle with their relations with God.
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Song
Sung at Auschwitz-Birkenau Bearing Witness Retreats
for the Jews, Gypsies, and Gays annihilated by the Germans
We sing it for marginalized people everywhere.
And we sing it for anyone we have made Other.
How could anyone ever tell you
You were anything less than
Beautiful?
How could anyone ever tell you
You were less than whole?
How could anyone fail to notice
That your loving is a miracle?
How deeply you’re connected to my
Soul.
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Gate of Sweet Nectar
Calling out to Hungry Hearts
Everywhere through endless time
You who wander you who thirst
I offer you this Bodhi Mind.
Calling all you hungry spirits
Everywhere through endless
Time Calling all you hungry hearts
All the lost and left behind
Gather round and share this meal
Your joy and sorrow
I make it mine.
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Hakuin’s Song of Zazen
Chant Leader: From the beginning all beings are Buddha …..
All: Like water and ice,
Without water no ice,
Chant Leader: Outside us no Buddhas
All: How near the truth,
Yet how fa-ar we seek
Being in water
Crying in thirst
Being the child//of a rich family
Wandering poor on this earth
Chant Leader: Endlessly circling the six worlds
All: The cause of our sorrow is ego delusion
From dark path to dark path
We’ve wandered in darkness
Chant Leader: How can we be freed from the wheel of samsara?
All: The gateway to freedom is zazen Samadhi
Beyond exaltation
Beyond all our praises
The pure Mahayana
Observing the Precepts, Repentance and Giving
The countless good deeds and the Way of Right Living
Chant Leader: All comes from Zazen
All: Thus one true Samadhi extinguishes evils.
It purifies karma, dissolving obstructions.
Then where are the dark paths to lead us astray?
The Pure Lotus Land// is not far away
Hearing this truth,// heart humble and grateful
To praise and embrace it
To practice its Wisdom
Brings unending blessings
Brings mountains of merit
And if we turn inward and prove our True Nature
That True Self is no-self,
Our own self is no-self
We go beyond ego
And past clever words
Then the gate to the oneness of cause-and-effect is thrown open
Not two and not three
Straight ahead runs the Way
Our form now being no-form
In going and coming
Chant Leader: We never leave home
All: Our thought now being no-thought
Our dancing and singing
Chant Leader: Are the Voice of the Dharma
All: How vast is the heaven of boundless Samadhi!
How bright and transparent the moonlight of wisdom!
What is there outside us?
What is there we lack?
Nirvana is openly shown to our eyes
Chant Leader: This earth where we stand is the pure lotus land!
And this very body, the body of Buddha.
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KAN RO MON
THE GATE OF SWEET NECTAR
Opening Verse:
Calling out to hungry hearts
Everywhere through endless time
You who wander, you who thirst
I offer you this bodhi mind.
Calling all to hungry spirits
Everywhere through endless time
Calling out to hungry hearts
All the lost and left behind
Gather round and share this meal
Your joy and your sorrow
I make mine.
Invocation for the Best Aspects of Ourselves to Manifest
Buddham Saranam Gacchami
Dhammam Saranam Gacchami
Sangham Sarranam Gacchami
Buddham Saranam Gacchami
Dhammam Saranam Gacchami
Sangham Saranam Gacchami
Being One with the Buddhas in the Ten Directions
Being One with the Dharma in the Ten Directions
Being One with the Sangha in the Ten Directions
Being One with all the Formless Forms throughout space and time
Being One with the great Manjusri Bodhisattva
Being One with the great compassionate Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva
Being One with our original teacher, Shakyamuni Buddha
Being One with our lineage of men and women ancestors.
Vows to Raise the Awakened Mind
Officiant offers incense
(Officiant bows at altar) Attention!
Attention!
Raising the Bodhi Mind, the supreme meal is offered to all the hungry spirits throughout space and time, filling the smallest particle to the largest space.
All you hungry spirits in the ten directions, please gather here. Sharing your distress, I offer you this food, hoping it will resolve your thirsts and hungers.
I pray that all who receive this offering will return its merits to all Buddhas and to all creations through-out space and time: in this way they will be thoroughly satisfied.
I further pray that in receiving this meal all your sufferings will be eliminated, and that you will be liberated, so that being joyously reborn you will play freely in the fields of the Pure Land. Raising the Bodhi Mind and practicing the Enlightened Way, you become the future Buddhas without any further regress. Those who realize the way first, please vow to liberate all others throughout all space and time.
I further beseech you to sustain me day and night
and give me courage to fulfill my vows.
In offering this meal, I pray that you give its merits equally to all creations in the Dharma worlds. Please transfer the merits of this offering to the Dharma world of True Reality, to unsurpassable enlightenment, and to all the Buddha wisdoms.
With all our love, with all our spirit, and with all our might, inviting misery and suffering no longer, we vow to accomplish the Way. May all creations in the Dharma world swiftly accomplish the Buddha Way together.
Prayers to Enlarge the Meal
NO BO BO HO RI GYA RI TA RI TA TA GYA TA YA
Being one with the Unconditioned Tathagata.
OM BO HO TEI RI GYA TA RI TA TA GYA TA YA
Being one with the Boundless Tathagata.
NO MAKU SA RA BA TA TA GYA TA BARO KI TEI OM SAN BA RA SAN BA RA UN
Being one with all Tathagatas and Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva, please nourish and sustain us.
NO MAKU SO RO BA YA TA TA GYA TA YA TA NYA TA OM SO RO SO RO HA RA SO RO HA RA SO RO SO WA KA
Being one with the Inconceivable Body Tathagata, let the nectar of Dharma spring forth.
Dharani of Feeding all the Hungry Spirits
(Everyone Gassho)
(Repeat 14 times or until officiant completes offering)
NO MAKU SAN MAN DA BO TA NAN BAN
(Repeat 7 times)
Being One with all Buddhas, I turn the water wheel of compassion.
Celebrating the Awakened Nature of All Beings
(Everyone in Gassho)
Officiant: OM BO JI SHI TA BO DA HA DA YA MI
All: OM BO JI SHI TA BO DA HA DA YA MI
Officiant: Now I have raised the Bodhi Mind.
All: Now I have raised the Bodhi Mind
Officiant: Now I have raised the Bodhi Mind.
All: Now I have raised the Bodhi Mind
(Everyone in Gassho)
Officiant: OM SAN MA YA SA TO BAN
All: OM SAN MA YA SA TO BAN
Officiant: I am the Buddhas and they are me.
All: I am the Buddhas and they are me
Officiant: I am the Buddhas and they are me
All: I am the Buddhas and they are me
Gatha for Transference of Merit
By this practice I sincerely wish to extend all my love to my own being, friends, enemies, family and community, and to all creations for so much done on my behalf. (Pause)
May those who practice in this sphere continue to empower, to enrich, to enjoy. (Pause)
May those who have gone be released from suffering and nourish peacefulness. (Pause)
May all creations in the three worlds receive loving benefactions. (Pause)
May those suffering on the three paths come to atonement and be cleansed of all
their ills. (Pause)
May they be liberated from samsara and arise in the Pure Land together.
Dedication
Buddha Nature pervades the whole universe existing right here now.
In reciting the Gate of Sweet Nectar we dedicate its merits to:
The all-pervading and everlasting Three Treasures,
All Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in the realm of prajna wisdom,
All protectors of the Dharna
And all beings in the Dharma worlds; and especially to:
Every child, woman, ma, and being who suffered and is suffering the horrors of
holocaust, genocide, wars and all acts of human cruelty
Every child, woman, and man and being who suffers today, here and everywhere,
the effects of the actions.
Let us forever remember the causes of suffering.
Let us forever act to relieve suffering.
May we always have the courage to bear witness,
To see ourselves as Other and Other as ourselves.
May penetrating light dispel the darkness of ignorance,
Let all karma be resolved and the mind flower bloom in eternal spring.
May we all live with great peace and love
And may we realize the Enlightened Way together.
Closing Verse
(Everyone in Gassho)
This is our life,
The length of our days.
Day and night
We meditate upon it
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Practice of Gratitude
I offer my gratitude for the people, animals, plants, pebbles, insects, and creatures of the sky and sea, air and water, fire and earth, and for all whose joyful exertion blesses my life every day
I offer my gratitude for the care and labor of a thousand generations of elders and ancestors who came before me
I offer my gratitude for the safety and well-being I have been given
I offer my gratitude for the blessings of this earth I have been given
I offer my gratitude for the family and friends I have been given
I offer my gratitude for the community I have been given
I offer my gratitude for the teachings and lessons I have been given
I offer my gratitude for the life I have been given
I offer my gratitude for the sangha and for all sentient and insentient beings.
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The Five Remembrances
from the Upajjhatthana Sutra
or “Subjects for Contemplation”
I am of the nature to grow old.
There is no way to escape growing old.
I am of the nature to have ill-health.
There is no way to escape having ill-health.
I am of the nature to die.
There is no way to escape death.
All that is dear to me and everyone I love are of the nature to change.
There is no way to escape being separated from them.
My actions are my only true belongings.
I cannot escape the consequences of my actions.
My actions are the ground on which I stand.
—translated by Thich Nhat Hanh
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Liberation from All Obstructions
In the presence of Sangha, in the light of Dharma, in oneness with Buddha
– may my path to awakening benefit everyone!
In this passing moment karma ripens and all things come to be.
I vow to affirm what is:
If there’s cost, I choose to pay. If there’s need, I choose to give.
If there’s pain, I choose to feel. If there’s sorrow, I choose to grieve.
When burning, I choose heat. When calm, I choose peace.
When starving, I choose hunger. When happy, I choose joy.
Whom I encounter, I choose to meet. What I shoulder, I choose to bear.
When it’s my birth, I choose to live. When it’s my death, I choose to die.
Where this takes me, I choose to go. Being with what is, I respond to what is.
This life is as real as a dream; the one who knows it cannot be found;
and truth is not a thing, therefore I vow to choose THIS Dharma entrance gate!
May all Buddhas and Wise Ones help me live this vow.
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Affirming Faith In Mind by Hsin Hsin Ming
The Great Way is not difficult
for those who do not pick and choose
When preferences are cast aside
the Way stands clear and undisguised
But even slight distinctions made
set earth and heaven apart
If you would clearly see the truth,
discard opinions pro and con
To founder in dislike and like
is nothing but the mind's disease
And not to see the Way's deep truth
disturbs the mind's essential peace
The Way is perfect like vast space
where there's no lack and no excess
Our choice to choose and to reject
prevents our seeing this simple truth.
Both striving for the outer world
as well as for the inner void
condemn us to entangled lives.
Just calmly see that all is One
and by themselves false views will go.
Attempts to stop activity
will fill you with activity
Remaining in duality
you'll never know of unity
And not to know this unity
lets conflict lead you far astray
When you assert that things are real
you miss their true reality
But to assert that things are void
also misses reality
The more you talk and think on this
the further from the truth you'll be
Cut off all useless thoughts and words
and there's nowhere you cannot go
Returning to the root itself
you'll find the meaning of all things
If you pursue appearances
you overlook the primal source
Awaking is to go beyond
both emptiness as well as form
All changes in this empty world
seem real because of ignorance
Do not go searching for the truth
just let those fond opinions go
Abide not in duality
refrain from all pursuit of it
Just let go now of clinging mind
and all things are just as they are
in essence nothing goes or stays
See into the true self of things,
and you're in step with the Great Way
thus walking freely, undisturbed
But live in bondage to your thoughts
and you will be confused, unclear
This heavy burden weighs you down
so why keep judging good and bad?
If you would walk the highest Way
do not reject the sense domain.
For as it is, whole and complete
this sense world is enlightenment
The wise do not strive after goals
but fools themselves in bondage put
The One Way knows no differences
The foolish cling to this and that.
To seek Great Mind with thinking mind
is certainly a grave mistake
From small mind comes rest and unrest
but mind awakened transcends both
Delusion spawns dualities –
these dreams are merely flow'rs of air-
why work so hard at grasping them?
If there's a trace of right and wrong
True-mind is lost, confused, distraught.
From One mind comes duality
but cling not even to this One.
When this One-mind rests undisturbed
then nothing in the world offends
And when no thing can give offense
then all obstructions cease to be.
If all thought-objects disappear
the thinking subject drops away.
For things are things because of mind
As mind is mind because of things.
These two are merely relative
And both at source are Emptiness
In Emptiness these are not two
yet in each are contained all forms
Once coarse & fine are seen no more
then how can there be taking sides?
The Great Way is without limit
Beyond the easy and the hard
But those who hold to narrow views
are fearful and irresolute
their frantic haste just slows them down
If you're attached to anything
you surely will go far astray (end p. 2)
Both gain and loss, and right and wrong -
once and for all get rid of them
When you no longer are asleep
all dreams will vanish by themselves
If mind does not discriminate
all things are as they are, as One
To go to this mysterious Source
frees us from all entanglements
When all is seen with "equal mind,"
to our Self-nature we return
This single mind goes right beyond
all reasons and comparison
Seek movement and there is no movement
see rest and no-rest comes instead
When rest and no –rest cease to be
then even oneness disappears
The ultimate finality's
beyond all laws, can't be described
With single mind one with the Way
all ego-centered strivings cease
Doubts and confusion disappear
and so true faith pervades our life
There is no thing that clings to us,
and nothing that is left behind
All's self revealing void and clear,
without exerting power of mind
Thought cannot reach this state of truth,
here feelings are of no avail
In this true world of Emptiness
both self and other are no more
To enter this true empty world
immediately affirm "not-two"
In this "not-two" all is the same
with nothing separate or outside
The wise in all time and places
awaken to this primal truth
The Way's beyond all space, all time
one instant is ten thousand years
Not only here, not only there
truth's right before your very eyes
Distinctions such as large and small
have relevance for you no more
The largest is the smallest too
here limitations have no place
What is is not, what is not is
If this is not yet clear to you
you're still far from the inner truth
One thing is all, all things are one –
know this and all's whole and complete
[RECITE TOGETHER]
When faith and Mind are not separate
and not separate are Mind and faith
this is beyond all words, all thoughts
For here there is no yesterday
no tomorrow
no today.
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