Lecture 22:
The Relationship between Yourself and Your Life
A lecture given by Sensei Ryokyu Endo.
Kyoto, June 6th 2007.
I have been talking about why some people and not everybody will be able to be 100% passionate about Sangha Creation because of such things as survival, daily life etc, but some people will be in that state of 100% passionate, may be reaching that state in one moment and then continuously be in that state. Also I have just realized that it is not just a relationship between yourself and Sangha, but the relationship between yourself and your life. There is the person who lives life creatively, has a creative life, and the person who just flows in their life, living life from day to day. If living life as a flow, then you become passive to Sangha, if you become passive then we don’t call it Creation, if passive then art just doesn’t happen. If I don’t translate it to “about you and your life, the relationship between you and your life” and just talk about the relationship with Sangha, then people take it the wrong way.
Life has not changed even since the time of Sakyamuni Buddha i.e. birth, death, sickness, old age, nothing has changed. If your life is just “flow” and temporary you have a good time or play it safe, “let’s make it safe”, but honestly what are you talking about? “Let’s make it safe” what is safe? Also if you are just living your life as a “flow” in Sangha, you are just depending on. “Flowing” is not creation, it is Jaki and I want to make it clear that this is Jaki. Ki responds from 100% Passionate to Create Life or Sangha. If you have an attitude of interpreting or being on top, then this is the state of Ashira, fighting hell. With even less Passion, as though you are just like luggage this passes to the middle existence and may be even down to the fasting hell of the hungry ghosts or beyond. When the spirit passes away, what state will you be in? When you die what ki state will you be in? Which should you worry about more, after you die, or your now security? Which is longer, the time that you are living or the time that you are dead? If you think about the time range, death is much longer than living here. Also from what point you look at the time range is completely different, to see from this temporary time to the future, the long range, or from the really long range to look at the temporary, it is a completely opposite point of view. This is also connected to and similar to your relationship with Amida Buddha, i.e. to see Amida Buddha from your side, or to see yourself from Amida Buddha’s side.
This is a big subject and although every one has this kind of worry inside many people seem to cover it up because it is just too big a subject, it is a real shame, a pity, and I really feel sorry about this. If you don’t see life like this, in this way, I think that the Sangha Creation Passion doesn’t come out. It is the basis of how you want to live your life, more than your life, how you want to live your existence and your non-existence. If you don’t do this then the state of your heart is in the “Hell Realm”, and you never know if you will get another chance after you die, you never know.
Tao Shiatsu is really strict. To do Tao Shiatsu is a really strict practice, but why so strict? The mission of Tao Shiatsu is to support the Nembutsu Practitioner.
The 3rd generation of Tao Sangha has began. The role of Tao Sangha is to bring the next Spiritual Revolution to human beings.