Morning Words on the 16 Bodhisattva Precepts

Ed Mushin Russell

For a while now I have been saying a few words each morning on the basic teachings of Buddhism. I'd like to continue this with the 16 Bodhisattva precepts. One thing to keep in mind about the precepts is that they aren't meant to be rules to live by so much as statements about our life as it is. During a jukai ceremony we are asked for each precept, "Will you maintain this?" Our commitment is not to necessarily change our behavior but to realize and manifest who we truly are. We begin tomorrow with the three refuges.


When we take the precepts, we begin by acknowledging that we take refuge in the three treasures of Buddha, Dharma and Sangha. What does it mean to take refuge in this context? It certainly doesn't mean to hide from anything or seek shelter from what we want to avoid. It's the simple realization that the three treasures are exactly the life that we live. There is no Buddha, Dharma or Sangha outside of this moment experiencing. In seeing this clearly we realize and manifest the unity, diversity and harmony that is who we truly are. Tomorrow we look at the treasure of Buddha.


In taking refuge in the Buddha, we aren't just paying homage to an historical figure, regardless of his achievements. We are recognizing his fundamental teaching expressed in his words upon his awakening when he said, "I and all beings have attained the Way". When we sit zazen, we are taking refuge in the Buddha. When we attend to our life with care and compassion, we take refuge in the Buddha. We need look no further than our own life to find this refuge, regardless of what we feel or believe about it. When the Buddha said I and all beings, he was excluding no one, not even you. So, take refuge in the Buddha that sits on your cushion, eats your breakfast and sometimes wonders what it all means.


The word Dharma is used in two ways. First it refers to the Buddhist teaching, as in Buddha Dharma or Dharma talk. It can also refer to the world of entities or the nature of reality, as in all Dharmas are forms of emptiness. Our practice is to see the relationship between the two. Everything manifests the Dharma. When we say, "Life as it is, the only teacher", we echo Dogen, who said that, in realizing the emptiness of self, we are awakened by all things. When we appreciate our life as it is and recognize the non-self of constant change, we are taking refuge in the Dharma.


I take refuge in the sangha. Traditionally, this refers to the community of practitioners or followers of the Buddhist teaching. More even than teachers, dharma talks and ancient or modern texts, we are supported by those with whom we share this effort. Each of us is responsible for our own practice and yet we are never alone on this path. It's important that we see this. But beyond that, everyone and everything we encounter is our sangha. So we say, all is the never failing manifestation of the mysterious truth of the awakened life.


One way to consider the three treasures is as unity, diversity and harmony. Unity as in Buddha Nature pervades the whole universe. Diversity as in revealing right here now. And harmony as in realizing that our life manifests as both of these. We tend to think of a treasure as rare and hard to come by. The three treasures are ordinary and always within our grasp. No need to hunt for these treasures.


Next we come to what are called the three pure precepts. They can be viewed as an encapsulation of the 10 grave precepts and are non-harming or doing no evil, doing good and actualizing good for others. I'll talk about the first tomorrow. Until then, consider how the pure precepts are like, or different from, the three treasures of Buddha, Dharma and Sangha.


When it comes to the pure precepts, like the hippocratic oath, the first order of business is do no harm. We vow to refrain from words and actions that cause suffering for ourselves and others. We won't always succede at this but, we can at least consider our motives and by being present in this moment we can be aware of the effect our words and deeds have on everyone and everything we encounter. In seeing that we have an effect we realize the unity of all being. This Buddha Nature that pervades everywhere.


The second pure precept is doing good. We might also say practicing good since our life is a work in progress. When we appreciate the diversity of all being we become less judgmental of ourselves and others and we see that everyone and everything has it's time and place. Practicing good means to be who we truely are and to give permission to the universe to be as it is. When we embrace this life as it is we naturally manifest kindness and compassion and our functioning can be encapsulated by the most important phrase in the english language, "how can I help?"


The third pure precept is actualizing good for others. We need to be careful in assuming that we know what is good for someone else. What this precept is really about is appreciating and respecting the Buddha Nature of all beings. No need to search for a Buddha, we are surronded by them. Our practice effort is to engage others with compassion and sincerity. When we respond in this way, regardless of our opinions and judgments, we manifest the harmony of the universe and actualize good for others.


Now we come to the 10 grave precepts. I suppose the word grave is used to remind us to take them seriously. They are not, however, commandments that include in them a threat of retribution. We should see them as prescriptions on how to experience and express the Buddha Nature that we always are. They serve as an antidote to the three poisons of greed, anger and delusion and are statements on the true nature of this life just as it is. We don't really need to take them to heart since they are already the heart of our being and practice. Tomorrow we begin with non-killing.


Sometimes the first grave precept is phrased as "Do not kill" and sometimes as "Non-killing". Is there a difference? If we say do not kill, what about the fact that we can only survive by consuming living things, whether it's a cow or a carrot? Do we believe a cow is alive but a carrot is not? Are bacteria alive? Should we not use antibiotics for the sake of our own health? Interesting questions, perhaps, but they miss the point of this precept. So, tomorrow, we will look at non-killing.


To practice non-killing is to honor and respect all life. It is to recognize and appreciate the interconnected and co-dependent nature of the universe in which we live. The essence of this precept is really the fundamental teaching of compassion which arises naturally when we realize the truth that self and other are not two, that in fact, there is no fixed permanent self. Then the taking of life has no place in our functioning. As Bodhidharma said, "Self Nature is subtle and profound. In the midst of the everlasting dharma, not producing a view of extinction is called the precept of not taking life."


The second grave precept advises us to not steal. One way of saying this is, "Do not take what is not given". Basically this is about being satisfied with what we have and gratefully accepting what we need when offered. It's also about giving of ourselves to others in need whether it's a piece of bread or a kind word. But, in a universe of impermanence and constant change, what can we really possess? Even our own life will end one day, whether we like it or not. To believe possession is to be attached to self and guarantees dissatisfaction and suffering. What is our practice but giving and receiving freely and appreciating our life, just as it is?


The third grave precept is not misusing sexuality. As creatures of the earth, second only to self preservation is our instinct for preservation of our species. So, sexual functioning is of great importance. Not only that, it's a wonderful bonding experience between partners and can be a joyous expression of our true nature. We misuse our sexuality when we see other people as objects to satisfy our desire because then it becomes an excuse for manipulating and exploiting others. Our sexual instinct is sometimes problematic for us and provides us with what we call wonderful practice opportunities. And yet, it can be a means to give and receive with an open heart, without attachment to self and a way to truly express not-one, not-two.


The fourth grave precept is refraining from telling lies. We might also include exaggeration and deliberately withholding what is true. This seems straightforward enough. The difficulty arises from the fact that we don't always know what the truth is, as much as we like to think we do. We tend to hold on to our beliefs and opinions very tightly and react with fear and anger when they are challenged. The function of a lie is always to protect the self from a perceived threat. But, who is fooling whom? When we realize the emptyness of self and other, deception becomes unnecessary and irrelevant. Speaking and listening from the heart and embracing not knowing is practicing the precept of non-lying. It also helps to admitt when we are wrong.


The fifth grave precept is do not abuse intoxicants, or we could say do not cloud the mind. We usually see this in terms of alcohol and drugs but we can cloud our mind in other ways, too. Our practice is about experiencing this life clearly and directly, even when we would rather ignore it. The only way we can learn and grow in our practice is to engage with our life, just as it is. When we indulge in escapist behavior as a means of avoiding our life we miss the oportunity to be this experiencing moment. People are free to enjoy the occasional drink or recreational drug, but they should always consider their motivation in doing so. We don't abuse intoxicants, they abuse us, if we allow them to.


The sixth grave precept says do not criticize others or speak of their faults and errors. I suppose that if we had no faults and made no errors, we would be justified in criticizing others. But that's not the case, is it. Or so we believe. And yet, the perfection of the awakened way includes so called faults and errors. What is important is how we respond to the perceived mistakes that we and others will inevitably make. When thoughts and feelings arise about "She shouldn't have said that" or, "He shouldn't have done that", right there is a wonderful practice opportunity to open our hearts and manifest the compassion that is who we truely are. In this practice life of not knowing, judging others is an exercise in futility and a game with no winners.


The seventh grave precept is do not elevate oneself and blame others. Conversely, I would also say do not blame oneself and elevate others. Either way we erect a barrier that divides us based on our attachments and beliefs. It's fine to disagree with what someone says or does, and sometimes we need to atone for what we say and do. Still, we are all doing our best, given our circumstances. It isn't ours to choose the circumstances of our life, what we call causes and conditions, but it is ours to choose how we respond to those circumstances. And, when we see through the illusion of self and other, there is no one to elevate and no one to blame.


The eighth grave precept is do not be stingy or we might say manifest generosity. We aren't just talking here about money or possessions. How about being generous with our time, attention and our appreciation of the circumstances of others? The most generous gift we have to offer is our recognition of the true nature of all beings. To be truly unselfish we must first see the emptiness of self. When we cling to self, even generosity can be self serving. We manifest this precept naturally when we realize that there is no giver, no receiver and that possession is a self-centered dream.


The ninth grave precept is do not be angry, or do not indulge in anger. I prefer the latter since anger arises, doesn't it, when we feel that we have been threatened or offended. When we are attached to self, we have something to defend. When we believe other, we have something to defend against. Anger is a wall that we build to protect our self from the other, but it soon becomes a prison that cuts us off from our own life. Our practice is to see arising anger for what it is, an inherited reactive habit, and to open the hand of emotion-thought. When we do so, the wall of anger will crumble on it's own since it is, in fact, built on a foundation that is impermanent and empty.


The tenth grave precept is not speaking ill of the Three Treasures. Recall that they are Buddha, Dharma and Sangha. What we are talking about here is the unity of the true nature that we all are, the diversity of the experienced world in which we live and the harmony we manifest by the effort of our practice together. I'm not sure how we could speak ill of these, but I guess it's possible. What's more likely is for us to ignore the fundamental truth they represent. We shouldn't see the precepts as just rules to live by, but as insights into our human nature. In the jukai ceremony, for each precept, we are asked, "Will you maintain this?" It's a fair question that we should ask ourselves every day and then simply make our best effort, moment by moment.


I've been talking for a while now about the basic teachings of Buddhism. But, fundamentally, we don't need the teachings of Buddhas and ancestors. We don't need sutras and dharma talks. These do serve to support our practice and encourage our efforts and yet, without our practice effort, they are just a lot of words. We humans are big on ideas and concepts which can both unite and divide us. When it comes to practice, the essential ingredient is our honest and open attention to this life as it is. This is the skill we develop in zazen and in the end, the only teaching that matters.