−−⏑−¦−⏑⏑¦−⏑−−¦¦−−⏑−¦−⏑⏑¦−⏑−− Upajāti
(Indravajrā)
iṣṭaṁ
hi tarṣa-praśamāya toyaṁ
kṣun-nāśa-hetor-aśanaṁ tathaiva |
−−⏑−¦−⏑⏑¦−⏑−−¦¦−−⏑−¦−⏑⏑¦−⏑−−
vātātapāmbv-āvaraṇāya
veśma kaupīna-śītāvaraṇāya
vāsaḥ || 11.37
11.37
For water is good for the purpose of
allaying thirst;
Food, in a very similar way, for
staving off hunger;
A dwelling for protection against wind,
the heat of the sun, and rain;
Clothing for covering the private parts
and protecting against cold.
COMMENT:
Thinking exactly about what the
bodhisattva is saying both on the surface and below the surface,
though I may have been on the right lines yesterday I probably need to go back and
tweak the translation. For example:
11.36
As for the view “But desires are
enjoyments!”,
No desire is to be reckoned as “to be
enjoyed.”
Clothes and other such material goods
in the world,
Are rather to be seen in terms of
counteracting pain.
The point to be clear about, in regard to yesterday's verse, is that the bodhisattva was ostensibly thinking
light of enjoyment of material goods like clothes, since such
enjoyment addresses only the symptoms of pain and suffering; but
below the surface the bodhisattva might be suggesting something much more
fundamental about the attitude towards material objects of a
practitioner whose fundamental task is to cut off pain and suffering at the
root.
In today's verse, then, the bodhisattva
ostensibly is continuing to think light of what he has been calling
kameṣu and viṣayeṣu, desires, pleasures, objects of the senses,
objects of sensual enjoyment. These objects include material
necessities like water, food, shelter and clothing which are iṣṭam,
sought, desired, approved as good – in the same way that good
medicine is sought, and approved as good, not because it is enjoyable
to take but because it has utilitarian merit.
So on the surface the bodhisattva seems
to be saying that water is desired, or approved as good (iṣṭam)
in order to allay thirst – i.e. that water has the practical merit
of allaying thirst, but no significance beyond that in terms of what
really matters. What really matters, the bodhisattva has been suggesting, is
nurturing the desire for freedom and rendering oneself immune to the
pernicious influence of miscellaneous other desires.
But below the surface how buddhas and
bodhisattvas feel about water has to run much deeper than dry appreciation of its utilitarian merit. So,
on reflection, we are forced to think again about what the
bodhisattva is really saying.
To what extent it is a native
sensibility and to what extent a lasting influence of Dogen's
teaching, I don't know, but in Japan water is revered as much more
than a material substance that is good for allaying thirst. One
manifestation of that reverence is the widespread use of the
honorific o- before mizu, so that an ordinary Japanese
woman in the kitchen is liable to talk not of mizu (water) but
o-mizu (the honourable water). This is as per the teaching of
Zen Master Dogen in Shobogenzo chap. 82, JI-KUIN-MON, Sentences to Be
Shown in the Kitchen Hall.
One thinks again of the famous story of
the half-dipper bridge at Eihei-ji temple, where Dogen, so the story
goes, would take a dipper of water from the stream and pour half of
the water back into the stream, out of some kind of unfathomable
reverence for the stream and the water.
At the same time, I venture to suggest,
buddhas and bodhisattvas are not beyond appreciating water from the
point of view of atoms and molecules whizzing about, which is how my
son, when studying for a Chemistry A level, deepened my own
appreciation of water. While we tend to take water for granted (and
as I write, in fact, it is absolutely pissing it down with rain),
water turns out to have some unique and amazing chemical properties.
Do the Zen patriarchs have water in
their dojos, their places of practice?, Dogen asks at the end of
Shobogenzo chap. 14, SANSUIGYO, The Sutra of Mountains and Water.
Dogen leaves the question unanswered. But the right answer, of
course, is: You bet they do. And not because they appreciate water
only for its utilitarian merit.
Again, what does the Buddha tell Rāhula
about water? Does the Buddha tell his son that water is good only for
allaying thirst? No, he does not. What he says about water is this:
Āposamaṁ Rāhula bhāvanaṁ bhāvehi
Develop developing, Rāhula, like
water.
Just as, Rāhula, they wash away what
is clean in the water, and they wash away what is unclean, and they
wash away what has become dung, and they wash away what has become
urine, and they wash away what has become spit, and they wash away
what has become pus, and they wash away what has become blood, but
the water is not distressed, or ashamed, or disgusted by it...
evam-eva kho tvaṁ Rāhula āposamaṁ
bhāvanaṁ bhāvehi,
just so do you, Rāhula, develop the
developing that is the evenness of water.
In these terms, water as the Buddha
directs Rāhula's attention to it, is not an object of enjoyment, is
not a thing “to be enjoyed” (bhogya); but water is very much a
thing for a practitioner to use, and to appreciate -- for its evenness and for its other myraid virtues -- in the work of
counteracting pain and suffering at the deepest levels of origination of pain and suffering
The situation with food can be
understood to be exactly the same (tathaiva) or to be very
similar (tathaiva) as with water. What does the Buddha tell
Nanda, in relation to eating and enjoyment of food, at the beginning
of SN Canto 14?
cikitsārthaṃ yathā
dhatte vraṇasyālepanaṃ vraṇī /
Just as one who is wounded, for the
purpose of healing,
puts ointment on a wound,
kṣud-vighātārtham-āhāras-tadvat
sevyo mumukṣuṇā // 14.11 //
So does one who wills freedom, for the
purpose of staving off hunger, eat food.
bhārasyodvahanārthaṃ ca rathākṣo
'bhyajyate yathā /
Just as, in order to ready it for
bearing a burden,
one greases a wagon's axle,
bhojanaṃ prāṇa-yātrārthaṃ
tadvad vidvān-niṣevate // 14.12 //
So, in order to journey through life,
does the wise man utilize food.
samatikramaṇārthaṃ ca kāntārasya
yathādhvagau /
And just as two travellers in order to
cross a wasteland
putra-māṃsāni khādetāṃ dampatī
bhṛśa-duḥkhitau // 14.13 //
Might feed upon the flesh of a child,
though grievously pained to do so, as
its mother and father,
evam-abhyavahartavyaṃ bhojanaṃ
pratisaṃkhyayā /
So food should be eaten, consciously,
na bhūṣārthaṃ na vapuṣe na
madāya na dṛptaye // 14.14 //
Neither for display, nor for
appearance;
neither to stimulate intemperance, nor to feed
extravagance.
dhāraṇārthaṃ śarīrasya bhojanaṃ
hi vidhīyate /
Food is provided for the upkeep of the
body
upastambhaḥ pipatiṣor-durbalasyeva
veśmanaḥ // 14.15 //
As if to prop, before it falls, a
dilapidated house.
plavaṃ yatnād yathā kaś-cid
badhnīyād dhārayed-api /
Just as somebody might take pains to
build and then carry a raft,
na tat-snehena yāvat-tu
mahaughasyottitīrṣayā // 14.16 //
Not because he is so fond of it but
because he means to cross a great flood,
tathopakaraṇaiḥ kāyaṃ dhārayanti
parīkṣakāḥ /
So too, by various means, do men of
insight sustain the body,
na tat-snehena yāvat-tu duḥkhaughasya
titīrṣayā // 14.17 //
Not because they are so fond of it
but because they mean to cross a flood
of suffering.
śocatā pīḍyamānena dīyate
śatrave yathā /
Just as a king under siege yields, in
sorrow, to a rival king,
na bhaktyā nāpi tarṣeṇa kevalaṃ
prāṇa-guptaye // 14.18 //
Not out of devotion, nor through
thirsting, but solely to safeguard life,
yogācāras-tathāhāraṃ śarīrāya
prayacchati /
So the devotee of practice tenders food
to his body
kevalaṃ kṣud-vighātārthaṃ na
rāgeṇa na bhaktaye // 14.19 //
Solely to stave off hunger, neither
with passion nor as devotion.
The 2nd pada of today's verse seems to say that just as it is with water, exactly so (tathaiva) is it with food.
But is it? Is it exactly the same?
Or is it very similar? I think it is very similar, with one
important difference, which is that water in general cannot become
the object of human greed. If drinking water causes a thirsty drinker
to feel even more thirsty, that is a sign of dehydration, and so the
drinker should carry on and drink more water. If drinking wine, beer
or cider and eating delicious food causes the eater to want to eat
and drink more and more, however, that is liable to be a case of
greed, with potentially pernicious consequences to health and to
practice. So I read tathaiva in the 2nd pāda as meaning
“very similarly.”
Below the surface, philosophically
thinking (in terms of a four-phased dialectic), it may thus be
possible to read the 1st pāda as tending to suggest positive affirmation of value beyond the purely utilitarian, and the 2nd
pāda as tending to suggest stoic negation of the positive.
In that case, how should we see a
dwelling? Can a case be made for seeing a dwelling as residing in the
middle way between water and food? Even in the Buddha's day, for
example, there were vihāras, which might have been appreciated as
more than utilitarian sheds. And even before there were vihāras,
there were dwellings – old shrines and the like – that the Buddha
describes in the Pali suttas as ramaṇīya, “delightful.”
Finally, at the fourth phase, we have
the kaṣāya, the Buddha's robe, whose unfathomable merits, needless
to say, go far beyond covering the private parts and protecting
against cold.
As if this comment were not already
long enough, EHJ adds in passing a brief footnote encouraging us to
compare today's verse with Majjhima I, 10.
The section EHJ
refers to is titled Sabbāsavasutta, translated in this version as “All the Taints.” In Sanskrit it would be
sarvāsrava-sūtra, or “The Sutra of All the Pollutants” or “The
Sutra of All the Polluting Influences.”
The specific passage is titled
paṭisevanāpahātabbaāsava,
“Taints to be Abandoned by Using” or “Polluting Influences to
be Abandoned through the Use [of Material Things]":
Katame ca, bhikkhave, āsavā paṭisevanā pahātabbā? Idha, bhikkhave, bhikkhu paṭisaṅkhā yoniso cīvaraṃ paṭisevati: ‘yāvadeva sītassa paṭighātāya, uṇhassa paṭighātāya, ḍaṃsamakasavātātapasarīsapasamphassānaṃ paṭighātāya, yāvadeva hirikopīnappaṭicchādanatthaṃ’.What taints, bhikkhus, should be abandoned by using? Here a bhikkhu, reflecting wisely, uses the robe only for protection from cold, for protection from heat, for protection from contact with gadflies, mosquitoes, wind, the sun, and creeping things, and only for the purpose of concealing the private parts.
Paṭisaṅkhā yoniso piṇḍapātaṃ paṭisevati: ‘neva davāya, na madāya, na maṇḍanāya, na vibhūsanāya, yāvadeva imassa kāyassa ṭhitiyā yāpanāya, vihiṃsūparatiyā, brahmacariyānuggahāya, iti purāṇañca vedanaṃ paṭihaṅkhāmi navañca vedanaṃ na uppādessāmi, yātrā ca me bhavissati anavajjatā ca phāsuvihāro ca’.“Reflecting wisely, he uses almsfood neither for amusement nor for intoxication nor for the sake of physical beauty and attractiveness, but only for the endurance and continuance of this body, for ending discomfort, and for assisting the holy life, considering: ‘Thus I shall terminate old feelings without arousing new feelings and I shall be healthy and blameless and shall live in comfort.’
Paṭisaṅkhā yoniso senāsanaṃ paṭisevati: ‘yāvadeva sītassa paṭighātāya, uṇhassa paṭighātāya, ḍaṃsamakasavātātapasarīsapasamphassānaṃ paṭighātāya, yāvadeva utuparissayavinodanapaṭisallānārāmatthaṃ’.“Reflecting wisely, he uses the resting place only for protection from cold, for protection from heat, for protection from contact with gadflies, mosquitoes, wind, the sun, and creeping things, and only for the purpose of warding off the perils of climate and for enjoying retreat.
Paṭisaṅkhā yoniso gilānappaccayabhesajjaparikkhāraṃ paṭisevati: ‘yāvadeva uppannānaṃ veyyābādhikānaṃ vedanānaṃ paṭighātāya, abyābajjhaparamatāya’.“Reflecting wisely, he uses the medicinal requisites only for protection from arisen afflicting feelings and for the benefit of good health.
Yañhissa, bhikkhave, appaṭisevato uppajjeyyuṃ āsavā vighātapariḷāhā, paṭisevato evaṃsa te āsavā vighātapariḷāhā na honti. Ime vuccanti, bhikkhave, āsavā paṭisevanā pahātabbā.“While taints, vexation, and fever might arise in one who does not use the requisites thus, there are no taints, vexation, or fever in one who uses them thus. These are called the taints that should be abandoned by using.”
At the conclusion of the Sutta, having
described taints/pollutants to be abandoned by various means,
including paṭisevanā
(by using [material things]) and bhāvanā (by developing), the
Buddha states:
yaṃ vuccati, bhikkhave: ‘bhikkhu sabbāsavasaṃvarasaṃvuto viharati, acchecchi taṇhaṃ, vivattayi saṃyojanaṃ, sammā mānābhisamayā antamakāsi dukkhassā’”ti.[when the taints that should be abandoned... by using... by developing, etc. have been abandoned...... by using... by developing, etc.] then he is called a bhikkhu who dwells restrained with the restraint of all the taints. He has severed craving, flung off the fetters, and with the complete penetration of conceit he has made an end of suffering.”
What was it again that the Buddha told
Nanda at the beginning of SN Canto 16 in the direction of destroying the polluting influences (āsrava-saṃkṣayāya)?
evaṃ mano-dhāraṇayā krameṇa
vyapohya kiṁ-cit samupohya kiṁ-cit /
Thus, by methodically taking possession
of the mind,
getting rid of something and gathering
something together,
dhyānāni catvāry-adhigamya yogī
prāpnoty-abhijñā niyamena pañca // SN16.1
The practitioner makes the four dhyānas
his own,
and duly acquires the five powers of
knowing...
ataḥ paraṃ tattva-parikṣaṇena
mano dadhāty-āsrava-saṃkṣayāya /
From then on, through investigation of
what is,
he applies his mind to destroying the
polluting influences,
tato hi duḥkha-prabhṛtīni samyak
catvāri satyāni padāny-avaiti // SN16.3
For on this basis he fully understands
suffering and the rest,
the four true standpoints.
bādhātmakaṃ
duḥkham-idaṃ prasaktaṃ duḥkhasya hetuḥ prabhavātmako 'yam
/
This is suffering, which is constant and akin to trouble;
This is suffering, which is constant and akin to trouble;
this is the cause of suffering, akin to
starting it;
duḥkha-kṣayo niḥsaraṇātmako
'yaṃ trāṇātmako 'yaṃ praśamāya mārgaḥ // SN16.4
This
is cessation of suffering, akin to walking away.
And this, akin to a refuge, is a peaceable path.
And this, akin to a refuge, is a peaceable path.
ity-ārya-satyāny-avabudhya buddhyā
catvāri samyak pratividhya caiva /
Understanding these noble truths, by a
process of reasoning,
while getting to know the four as one,
sarvāsravān bhāvanayābhibhūya na
jāyate śāntim-avāpya bhūyaḥ // SN16.5
He prevails over all pollutants, by the
means of mental development,
and, on finding peace, is no longer
subject to becoming.
In conclusion, then, today's verse,
when we dive into it and bite into it and take refuge in it and
envelop ourselves in it completely, might be a kind of dojo in which
to understand the underlying dialectic of the four noble truths, and
in which to get to know those four as one.
At the same time, insofar as it points
us back to what the Buddha taught about using material things in such
a way as to abandon the polluting influences (asravān), today's
verse might be a kind of pointer in the direction of prevailing over
those polluting influences.
The underlying suggestion might be that
prevailing over those polluting influences -- in other words,
eliminating suffering at root – is not accomplished by seeing
material necessities as “things to be enjoyed” or “objects of
enjoyment”; but such victory IS to be accomplished by using those
material necessities in such a way that demonstrates true
appreciation of them.
So apologies again for another unduly
long post, but at present I am by the forest in France with plenty of
time (when I am not chasing grass snakes out of the house) to ponder;
and, as always, the more one digs into every verse that Aśvaghoṣa
wrote, the more one realizes there is to dig for below the surface of
each verse, and the more one realizes there is to research in the
background to each verse.
 |
no whiff of [unreal fancies] should be tolerated, as if they were snakes in the house (SN16.82) |
In the background to much of what Aśvaghoṣa wrote, evidently, was material that is much more familiar to students of the Pali Suttas than it is to devotees of Chinese and Japanese Zen. I am thinking in particular about prevailing over pollutants by means of developing/meditation.
Though it was apparently very rare for
Buddhist monks in Japan to discuss teachings regarded as belonging to
the Hīnayāna, the small vehicle, Zen Master Dogen wrote a chapter
of Shobogenzo, chap. 73, titled SANJUSHICHI-BON-BODAI-BUNPO, “The
37 Elements of Bodhi.” In Pali that would be Sattatiṁsā Bodhipakkhiyadhammā, 37 Things on the Side of Awakening.
Dogen wrote that those 37 were the very
eyes and nostrils of Gautama Buddha. At the same time, he wrote in
conclusion that we should forget all about them, cutting everything out by sitting.
In order truly to appreciate where
Aśvaghoṣa was coming from, and what direction Aśvaghoṣa was
veering in, I venture to submit, we are called upon, even in a
seemingly innocuous-looking verse like today's verse, to appreciate,
for a start, both these aspects of the Zen patriarchs' teaching. The
two mutually opposing aspects are like something very devoted to the
teaching of Gautama Buddha co-existing with something very ironic and
subversive. Like believing in absolutely everything and believing in
absolutely nothing.
Mining Aśvaghoṣa gold is, among other things, a kind of training in dealing with this difficult opposition.
Master Kodo Sawaki, who my teacher regarded as his teacher, even though Master Kodo didn't regard my teacher as his student, apparently used to say, "A buddha can do this" (joining hands and bowing), and "A buddha can do this" (touching his lower eyelash with his index finger and pulling the skin down).
Mining Aśvaghoṣa gold is, among other things, a kind of training in dealing with this difficult opposition.
Master Kodo Sawaki, who my teacher regarded as his teacher, even though Master Kodo didn't regard my teacher as his student, apparently used to say, "A buddha can do this" (joining hands and bowing), and "A buddha can do this" (touching his lower eyelash with his index finger and pulling the skin down).
VOCABULARY
iṣṭam
(nom. sg. n.): mfn. sought, wished for, desired ; liked ; agreeable ;
reverenced ; regarded as good , approved
hi: for
tarṣa-praśamāya
(dat. sg.): for allaying of thirst
toyam
(nom. sg.): n. water
kṣun-nāśa-hetoḥ
(gen. sg.): for the removal of hunger
kṣudh:
f. hunger
nāśa:
m. the being lost , loss; ifc. destroying
aśanam
(nom. sg.): n. eating, food
tathā:
ind. likewise
eva:
(emphatic)
vātātapāmbvāvaraṇāya
(dat. sg.): for protection against wind, heat, and water
vāta:
m. wind
ātapa:
m. heat (especially of the sun) , sunshine
ambu:
n. water
āvaraṇa:
n. the act of covering
veśma
(nom. sg.): n. a house , dwelling , mansion , abode , apartment
kaupīna-śītāvaraṇāya:
for covering private parts and protecting against cold
kaupīna:
n. the pudenda , privities ; a small piece of cloth worn over the
privities by poor persons ; a wrong or improper act , sin = kaupa, n.
well-water
kaupa:
mfn. (fr. kūpa) , coming from a well or cistern; n. well-water
śīta:
n. cold , coldness , cold weather
āvaraṇa:
n. the act of covering
vāsaḥ
(nom. sg.): n. clothes, clothing
食以療飢患 除渇故飮水
衣被却風寒
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