Shobogenzo

Shobogenzo

Introduction according to Gudo Wafu Nishijima Roshi

2. Origin of the word Shobogenzo

The Chinese characters for Shobogenzo first appear in a Chinese sutra, Daibonten o monbutsu ketsugi kyo (“Sutra of Questions and Answers between Mahabrahman and Buddha”). In chapter 68 of the Shobogenzo, Udonge (“Udumbara Flower”), Master Dogen quotes the following sentence from that sutra:

“Before an assembly of thousands on Vulture Peak, the Honored One raised an udumbara flower and moved it silently with his fingers. Mahakashyapa smiled. The Honored One said: I possess the treasury of the true Dharma eye and the wondrous mind of Nirvana. I transmit it to Mahakashyapa.”

In this quotation, Shobogenzo is translated as “Treasury of the True Dharma Eye.” In China and Japan it is understood that, in this story, Gautama Buddha transmitted the practice of Zazen and the pure mind of Nirvana to his disciple Mahakashyapa. We may therefore understand that “Shobogenzo” means the practice of Zazen, and that Master Dogen himself understood this Buddha-transmitted term in that sense.

3. Meaning of the word Shobogenzo

“Shobogenzo” consists of four characters: sho means “right” or “true,” ho (read here as bo) means “Dharma” or “cosmic law,” gen means “eye” or “essential inner part,” and zo means “storehouse,” “granary,” “treasury,” or a chamber in which precious treasures are kept. Shobogenzo therefore represents the treasury in which the most precious part of the true Dharma, the core of the Buddha’s teaching, is preserved.

In this context we should not lose sight of the fact that Master Dogen understands Buddha-Dharma in such a way that the practice of Zazen is the core of Gautama Buddha’s teaching. I believe this meaning of “Shobogenzo” is very important, especially for those who have so far had difficulty understanding this certainly not easy work. If we ourselves have experience of Zazen practice, it becomes much easier to study Shobogenzo and gradually understand it.

Zazen is therefore very important for understanding Shobogenzo, because Gautama Buddha realized awakening precisely through the practice of Zazen. He transmitted this practice to the first ancestor in India, Master Mahakashyapa, and it was then passed on in one unbroken chain from one Indian ancestor to another up to the twenty-eighth ancestor, Bodhidharma. Bodhidharma then travelled to China and transmitted this practice to the Chinese. In the thirteenth century Master Dogen travelled to China, where he learned the true and deep meaning of this practice from his teacher Tendo Nyojo. There is no doubt that in Shobogenzo Master Dogen refers again and again to this lineage of Buddhas and ancestors who practiced Zazen. We should keep Master Dogen’s true intention in mind if we want to understand the real meaning of this work.