Bendōwa

, meaning ''Discourse on the Practice of the Way'' or ''Dialogue on the Way of Commitment'', sometimes also translated as ''Negotiating the Way'', ''On the Endeavor of the Way'', or ''A Talk about Pursuing the Truth'', is an influential essay written by Dōgen, the founder of Zen Buddhism's Sōtō school in Japan.

History and background

''Bendōwa'' is Dogen's earliest known writing in Japanese. Although the text was written in 1231, making it the second piece he wrote following his return from China to Japan, it was not widely known for hundreds of years until the Kanbun Era (1661–1673), when it was found in a temple in Kyoto. In 1684, it was added in manuscript form by the monk Hangyo Kozen as the first fascicle of the 95-fascicle edition of Dōgen's already well-known master compilation, the ''Shōbōgenzō''. This format was standardized in 1788 with its first major printed publication. Despite its four-century absence from the compilation, today it is often said that it "contains within it the essence of all ninety-five fascicles of ''Shōbōgenzō''."

Content

The essay primarily serves to introduce ''zazen'' 坐禅, or seated meditation, to Japanese Buddhists, very few of whom would have been exposed to the practice. According to Gudo Nishijima, one of the many translators of the text into English, Dōgen often used ''bendō'' to mean the practice of ''zazen'' specifically, despite the fact that ''ben'' (辨) literally means ''pursuit'' and ''dō'' (道) means ''way'' or ''truth''. The title can also thus be interpreted as ''A Talk on the Practice of Zazen''. Divided into two sections, the first argues for the preeminence of ''zazen'' before other forms of Buddhist practice, explains the meaning of ''ji juyū zanmai'' 自受用三昧 (or ''ji juyū samādhi''), and tells of his travels in China.

''Ji juyū zanmai'' can be translated loosely as "''samādhi'' of self-fulfillment and enjoyment" or literally as the "''samādhi'' of receiving and using the self." Kosho Uchiyama comments, ". . . we can understand this samādhi of self-fulfillment and enjoyment as the samādhi or concentration on the self when it simply receives and accepts its function, or its spiritual position in the world," while Nishijima writes that it "suggests the state of natural balance which we experience when making effort without an intentional aim."

In the remaining text, which adopts a question-and-answer format, Dōgen answers questions put forward by an archetypical novice Zen student.

See also

*''Shōbōgenzō''
*'' Genjōkōan''
*'' Tenzo Kyōkun''

References

External links

''Bendowa: A Talk on Exerting the Way''
translated by Anzan Hoshin roshi and Yasuda Joshu Dainen roshi
''How To Pursue the Truth'': A Modern Interpretation
translated by Michael Eido Luetchford
''Bendowa''
translated by Prof. Masunaga Reiho

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Soto Zen
Zen texts
1231 works