PRAISE FOR DISCOVERING THE TRUE SELF “I love this book! Kodo Sawaki was one of the greatest and most influential Zen teachers of the twentieth century. He was a huge influence on my teacher Gudo Nishijima, as well as Shunryu Suzuki, author of Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind; Taisen Deshimaru, founder of AZI; and many others who became important in Zen Buddhist lineages in the United States and Europe. This book is a treasure. It’s the first complete biography of Sawaki in English, as well as a compendium of some of his deepest and most profound teachings. Sawaki wasn’t some airborne guru floating through the clouds. He began life as a tough street urchin, then faced some of the greatest tragedies of the twentieth century and emerged as one of the deepest and most relevant philosophers of our time. It’s great to finally have this material in English. Arthur Braverman deserves tremendous praise for making it available to us. I will read it again and again.” —BRAD WARNER, author of Hardcore Zen “A fascinating portrait of an unforgettable Zen master. From unpromising beginnings in Japan’s lower depths, Sawaki rose to become among the best-loved and respected Soto Zen teachers of modern times. Engrossing and illuminating . Sawaki’s unmistakable and authentic voice can be savored in this fine translation, which will offer many Westerners their first glimpse of this compelling Zen personality.” —PETER HASKEL, author of Bankei Zen “Discovering the True Self is the best new book in English about Kodo Sawaki Roshi’s life and teachings and his influence on his disciples. Arthur Braverman is a skillful master of the English language, and he translates both the power and the sense of humor of Sawaki Roshi. Arthur Braverman is the best person to translate Sawaki’s unique and colloquial Dharma expressions, because of his long practice and study. I would like to express my deepest respect and gratitude for his continuous efforts.” —SHOHAKU OKUMURA, translator of Zen Teaching of Homeless Kodo “Philippe ReiRyu Coupey, in his new commentary on the Shinjinmei (In the Belly of the Dragon, 2020) states the importance of Kodo Sawaki and his disciples not just for the perpetuation but also for the reinvigoration of Zen in Japan and the West: ‘Times change, circumstances change, languages change. Master Kodo Sawaki took the expression of the Way out of the antiquated context it had fallen into and brought it into modernity. Master Deshimaru and others of his generation [including Kosho Uchiyama and Gudo Nishijima] transplanted it into a Western context. And now it’s up to us to make it understandable for today’s generation.’ “Arthur Braverman does just this in his new work on Kodo Sawaki, Discovering the True Self. “Traditionally, Zen masters have been immortalized in hagiographies and mythologies that have sometimes done as much disservice as service to the preservation and perpetuation of Zen. In his new book on the teachings of Kodo Sawaki, as in his other portraits in Living and Dying in Zazen and The Grass Flute Zen Master, Braverman gives us the undistorted humanity of his subject. We might say he ‘mortalizes’ the masters. “The charismatic Kodo, with all of his contradictions, is displayed through a sharp if narrow lens: his devotion to zazen. As a result, the hyperactive, competitive, and scholarly Zen student becomes over time the tireless teacher of stillness (shikantaza), the advocate of no- gain Zen (mushotoku), and the professor for whom all of the Buddhist scriptures are but a footnote to zazen.” —RICHARD REISHIN COLLINS, abbot Kodo Sawaki in the garden at Sengakuji Temple (Photograph courtesy of Daihorin Publishers) ALSO BY ARTHUR BRAVERMAN Mud and Water: A Collection of Talks by the Zen Master Bassui Warrior of Zen: The Diamond-Hard Wisdom Mind of Suzuki Shosan A Quiet Room: The Poetry of Zen Master Jakushitsu Living and Dying in Zazen: Five Zen Masters of Modern Japan Dharma Brothers Kodo and Tokujoo: A Historical Novel Based on the Lives of Two Japanese Zen Masters The Grass Flute Zen Master: Sodo Yokoyama Bronx Park: A Pelham Parkway Tale Discovering the True Self Copyright © 2020 by Arthur Braverman First paperback edition: 2020 All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Braverman, Arthur, translator, editor. | Sawaki, Kōdō, 1880–1965. Works. Selections. English. Title: Discovering the true self : Kodo Sawaki’s art of Zen meditation / translated and edited by Arthur Braverman. Description: First paperback edition. | Berkeley, California : Counterpoint Press, 2020. Identifiers: LCCN 2020000997 | ISBN 9781640093775 (trade paperback) | ISBN 9781640093782 (ebook) Subjects: LCSH: Sawaki, Kōdō, 1880-1965—Teachings. | Spiritual life—Zen Buddhism. Classification: LCC BQ9288 .D57 2020 | DDC 294.33/927092—dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020000997 Cover design by Alex Camlin Book design by Jordan Koluch COUNTERPOINT 2560 Ninth Street, Suite 318 Berkeley, CA 94710 www.counterpointpress.com Printed in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 To the memory of Kojo Watanabe All of Buddhism is a footnote to zazen. —KODO SAWAKI CONTENTS Prologue: Two Sawakis Part 1: The Life Part 2: The Teaching Part 3: Reflections Acknowledgments PROLOGUE: TWO SAWAKIS Kosho Uchiyama, the late abbot of Antaiji Temple, often quoted from the talks of his teacher Kodo Sawaki. Sawaki was renowned for translating obscure Buddhist terms into everyday language. It’s not surprising that Uchiyama, after studying with Sawaki for over twenty- five years, would have acquired his teacher’s talent for clarity and simplicity. Uchiyama remarked on more than one occasion that Kodo Sawaki had charisma, and added that sometimes his charisma could become an obstacle to people understanding what Uchiyama referred to as the “Buddhist Sawaki.” I believe what Uchiyama was referring to as the “Buddhist Sawaki” was the wisdom his teacher imparted that was not something based on a particular time and place—a teaching that transcended the culture and customs of Japan at the time. So what was this charisma to which Uchiyama referred? In 1973, I married the daughter of a Jodo Shin (True Pure Land) Buddhist priest. Jodo Shin Buddhism is a “faith only” sect of Buddhism where priests have had families since back in the days of its founder, Shinran, in the thirteenth century. After the shock of giving up his heir, my father-in-law decided to take me to hear a sermon of a famous Jodo Shin priest by the name of Kikuchi.* Reverend Kikuchi was ninety years old and still quite healthy. Since his daughter wasn’t going to marry a Jodo Shin Buddhist priest, I guess my father-in-law thought he would at least indoctrinate me to their family religion. There were two priests giving sermons that night, Reverend Kikuchi and a Jodo priest whose name I don’t remember. The Jodo priest spoke first. His talk was not very stimulating. When it was Rev. Kikuchi’s turn, from the beginning he created an atmosphere of friendly openness. He talked about why he was able to live so long (eat no more than 80 percent of what you would like to eat) and then told a few anecdotes having little to do with religion. Once his audience was relaxed, he added bits of Jodo Shin philosophy into his talk. He had everyone’s attention. Because Japanese is not my native language, I got tired of trying to follow every word, and my mind started to wander. I looked around at the faces of people glued to the priest’s every word, their heads slightly bobbing in assent and some lips moving quietly. They were mostly older people, more women than men. As Kikuchi spoke, quoting the old masters, I could hear voices reciting Namu Amida Buddha—“I take refuge in Amida Buddha.” The priest became more animated as he spoke, and the voices of the choir of Namu Amida Buddha rose accordingly. By the end of the talk, it sounded like I imagined a revival meeting in the South would sound, with people losing their self-consciousness, inspired by voices from within. Was this Kikuchi’s charisma? When we returned to my father-in-law’s temple, I told my wife what I’d experienced. She explained that before all the new forms of entertainment—movies, TV, and theater—were available, temples were the places where people went for amusement. If there was no entertaining religious theater at that time, it would be left to the priest to make the evening enjoyable. That was where charisma became a plus for drawing crowds to the temples. This was particularly true of Jodo Shin temples, where Kodo Sawaki often went as a child. * The oldest daughter in a Pure Land Buddhist family without sons is expected to marry a priest to take over their family temple. PART 1 The Life Kodo Sawaki was raised in a town called Isshinden that had been formed around a major Jodo Shin temple, Senjuji. The town was divided into two zones, an inner and an outer. The inner zone was enclosed by a moat surrounding Senjuji, whose head priest ruled the town. The outer zone outside the moat, where Sawaki lived, was developed after the inner zone and comprised mostly shady businesses like gambling parlors and brothels. After Saikichi (Sawaki’s given name) lost both parents, he was passed on to an uncle, who died soon after the boy moved in with him, and then was adopted by an associate of another uncle.