Master
Hakuin Chant In Praise Of Zazen
From
the very beginning all beings are Buddha.
Like
water and ice,
without water no ice,
outside us no Buddha.
How
near The truth,
yet how far we seek,
Like
the one in water crying ‘I thirst!’
Like
the child of rich birth wandering poor on this earth,
We
endlessly circle the six worlds.
The
cause of our sorrow is ego delusion
From
dark path to dark path, we’ve wandered in darkness
How
can we be free from birth and death?
The
gateway to freedom is zazen samadhi-
beyond exaltation, beyond all our praises,
the pure Mahayana.
Upholding
the precepts,
repentance and giving,
the countless good deeds,
and the way of right living
all come from zazen.
Thus
one true samadhi extinguishes evils;
it purifies karma, dissolving obstructions.
Then
where are the dark paths to lead us astray?
The
pure lotus land is not far away.
Hearing
this truth, heart humble and grateful,
to praise and embrace it,
to practice its wisdom,
brings unending blessings,
brings mountains of merit.
And
when we turn inward and prove one True-nature –
that True-self is no-self,
our own Self is no-self –
We
go beyond ego and past clever words.
Then
the gate to the oneness of cause and effect is thrown open.
Not
two and not three, straight ahead runs the Way.
Our
form now being no-form,
in going and returning we never leave home.
Our
thought now being no-thought,
our dancing and songs are the voice of the Dharma.
How
vast is the heaven of boundless samadhi!
How
bright and transparent the moonlight of wisdom!
What
is there outside us?
what is there we lack?
Nirvana
is openly shown to our eyes.
This
earth where we stand is the pure lotus land,
and this very body—the body of Buddha.