Dogen

“Next to Good Manners, Enlightenment is the most important thing in the world”


"On the great road of Buddha ancestors,  there is always unsurpassable practice, continuous and sustained.  It is the circle of the way and is never cut off.  Between aspiration, practice, enlightenment, and nirvana,  there is not a moment’s gap; continuous practice is the circle of the way.
This being so, continuous practice is unstained, not forced by you or others. The power of this continuous practice confirms you as well as others. It means your practice affects the entire earth
and the entire sky in the ten directions. Although not noticed by others or yourself, it is so."


~ 13th century Zen master Dogen

"In 1227 the Japanese monk Dōgen (1200–1253) returned to Japan from four years of study in China. During his remaining twenty-five years he composed an extraordinary volume of writings, now widely prized for their philosophical profundity, poetic virtuosity, and subtle, evocative wordplay. Dōgen is remembered as the founder of the Sōtō branch of Japanese Zen. But he disdained sectarian labels, saying that “Zen” was “an extremely foolish name” and that “if you use the name Zen School you are not descendants of buddha ancestors, and also have poisonous views.” Nevertheless, in the long history of what is now considered the Zen tradition, no master has left a legacy of writings as voluminous and comprehensive, in so many aspects of teaching and practice, as Eihei Dōgen. Although he was a medieval monk born eight centuries ago, his writings about time, space, Buddha nature, and the subtle character of spiritual pursuit and realization are now widely esteemed by contemporary philosophers, physicists, poets, environmentalists, and religious thinkers and practitioners. His writings can be baffling and intensely challenging but also inspiring and deeply comforting. This work of Dōgen's, Eihei Kōroku, or Dōgen's Extensive Record, is one of his great collections of wisdom and insight, but it also reveals the unique kindness, authority, wit, and personality he displayed while training his disciples, who successfully sustained his teaching and practice." ~ Taigen Dan Leighton