The Dokkodo
2009-01-08
- Accept everything just the way it is.
- Do not seek pleasure for its own sake.
- Do not, under any circumstances, depend on a partial feeling.
- Think lightly of yourself and deeply of the world.
- Be detached from desire your whole life long.
- Do not regret what you have done.
- Never be jealous.
- Never let yourself be saddened by a separation.
- Resentment and complaint are appropriate neither for oneself or others.
- Do not let yourself be guided by the feeling of lust or love.
- In all things have no preferences.
- Be indifferent to where you live.
- Do not pursue the taste of good food.
- Do not hold on to possessions you no longer need.
- Do not act following customary beliefs.
- Do not collect weapons or practice with weapons beyond what is useful.
- Do not fear death.
- Do not seek to possess either goods or fiefs for your old age.
- Respect Buddha and the gods without counting on their help.
- You may abandon your own body but you must preserve your honour.
- Never stray from the Way.
See the Wikipedia page about the Dokkodo for more explanation.
...Practise Za-Zen without the thought
that you are trying become a Buddha. You are in fact a Buddha. Now you are a suffering Buddha.
Spiritual practises
should be the manifestation
of your true nature.
Sitting still the spring comes,
and the summer grass grows.
Shunryu Suzuki
#11 is a tricky one, don't you think?
It is said that in today's western capitalist society human beings are not capable of independent decision making. I think this is true, when one considers the science of marketing and the segregation of people based on culture.
How can one have no preferences when incessantly bombarded with "subliminal" instructions or programming for what choices to make and which article or type of article to prefer.
I think the only place #11 can be realised is when it comes to string. You never see string advertised anywhere, do you. 8-)
I suppose in some ways #11 is automatically realised at the personal/independent level. Because it is not our own drives that lead us to our preferences, but the messages planted in our brains.
Just my two cents.
AJT
I really like:
Think lightly of yourself and deeply of the world.
Do not act following customary beliefs.
Easier said than done:
Be detached from desire your whole life long.
Never be jealous.
I don't necessarily think these tenets lead to a full life. It seems more like a detachment from everything that makes life worth living. A few of them are great - never be jealous is one of my personal mantras, but 'accept everything for the way it is'? That sounds like complacency. And detachment from desire? Isn't wanting to do or be a certain way a desire in itself? And 'in all thing have no preferences' - that sounds like someone who just can't make up their mind. It's almost like saying 'I don't care' to any question you're asked. And what does THAT say about someone other than just that - they don't care.
Hm. It's all lovely but it sounds like yet another loose interpretation of a truth that somebody may be stumbled into at some point. The thing is, and it is a fact, that it is NOT possible to discover truth via intellect. It is possible to move closer, think of the the right questions, may be, but discovery of truth is well, physical. It's a body thing. Mind as a part of the body. Plus, you take away desires and passion from a human being and here were have a corpse. It's simply stupid. It's all words, that have been massively misinterpreted in the course of the culture. I could retell the passage (I think closer to what it meant) but I would probably fail as badly at conveying the meaning.
...or spell correctly, for that matter.
No sex? No food? No pretty places? Good god what a DULL life! ;)
16. Do not collect weapons or practice with weapons beyond what is useful.
Having too many samplers, sequencers, plugins, synths, toys, gizmos and gadgets. The short-lived drug addicted high of buying new gear for it's own sake. Using that as an excuse to keep you from being creative. Getting stuck in software learning curves instead of being creative. Using too much gear and mucking up your sound. Trying too much to sound like the latest thing using your toys and 'hollywoodizing' your sound.
An elegant formulation, but the pursuit of total detachment can be a form of spiritual materialism...ain't that a bitch? And what I found out as an actual warrior (Army Special Forces) like Musashi, is that asceticism may well be a form of machismo, which I don't have much time for. DS, you do know how to provoke--thanks.
I'm totally jealous that you are so good at bringing us all wisdom. ;)
Plenty of time for total detachment when I'm 90 years old and everyone thinks everything I say is wisdom. At this point, I prefer to strive for total engagement. I want every one of those feelings, I want to make every one of those mistakes, I want to taste it all. Then I have something to renounce. I would prefer to be a hedonistic rock star who rises above all the trappings to enlightenment than someone who never strove at all.
Do not pursue the taste of good food? But I can still pursue good food, right?
Can't see where you're going with this Derek. Seems like instructions for becoming an observer rather than a participant in your own life.
Just thought it was interesting. The Wikipedia link at the bottom gives more context. -- Derek
Desire itself aint Wrong. It´s the
Tail, the need for continuance of desire that we often get caught into, that lead us to suffering.
Suffering leads us to anger,pride,desire,
lust,violence,chaos.
The code of The Universe is constant change.
The scriptures advise us not
to go against that Supreme order.
Going against that Order leads you
to the dark side.
Watch the world and tell me that I am
Wrong!
Jedi master Yoda.
I think i do the exact opposite of each one
Like anything useful written down each precept contains a certain amount of truth but nothing is absolute. Each precept has a parallel in western thought and each one has its opposite which is equally true.
So my favorite passages from the Old Testament book of Ecclesiastes chapter 7 "Be not righteous over much" being the most famous excerpt about avoiding extremes.
And One of my favorite quotes from Jesus: "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath."
Even good rules are made to be broken.
Does anyone else see the inconsistency between following #11 and dedicating the document to a favorite disciple (as in the Wikipedia article?)
Practicing this kind of thing may make life less stressful, but it's really just denying yourself acceptance of the fundamentals of your humanity.
But, then, I like 20 - very important to me.
I am surprised by the comments here. It seems like most people are un-willing to see the virtues here, but that they'd rather try to prove that in the 20-50 years of life experience they have more wisdom than these thousands of year old tenants of life.
Open your eyes to the good that is listed here. The challenges listed here. It says' do not let yourself be guided by lust and love'.
It doesn't say don't enjoy sex. I'm not sure why we are so quick to put the blinders up and ignore wisdom when it sits right in front of us. Thanks Derek!