True activity includes everything

Shunryu Suzuki Transcript

Sunday, May 28, 1967
Old Bush Street Zendo - Sokoji
Tony Artino notes


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Questions to Suzuki on difference between a monk and a master.

To practice anything we must know our own position.

In true activity there is no duality. This includes true thinking. True activity includes everything.

We cannot say which occurs first - pure practice or egolessness. When one happens, the other is there also.

There is no such thing as mind. There is no particular location for mind. What is mind?

Student: The other evening I looked at mountains for a long time. After a while I felt the spirit of these mountains. But I don't know if the spirit I felt really was the mountains' or was my own. I do know there existed communication.

SR: There is no answer to What is it? because nothing exists independently, but rather exists only through everything else. And who can understand everything else? That is impossible. But if we become one with the thing such as a cup, then we can understand it - and through it understand other things.

According to Buddhism, any idea that arises is only tentative and specific. It does not apply to everyone. Any idea therefore is not perfect or true always. This includes Buddhist teachings.

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Tony Artino notes on Shunryu Suzuki lecture. This transcript is a retyping of the existing City Center transcript. It is not verbatim. No tape is available. The City Center transcript was entered onto disk by Jose Escobar who received the notes from DC, 1997. It was reformatted by Bill Redican (11/5/01). Edited by DC 4-17
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File name: 67-05-28: True activity includes everything

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