The purpose of a reclusive monk such as myself audaciously presenting a volume like this is to transmit the True Dharma and the Great Compassion of Buddha. In doing this, I wish to highlight the fact that the Heart Sutra is an outstanding guidebook for the path to liberation and for the practice of the Buddha Way. This sutra describes the Ultimate Path in a most straightforward manner. I would like you to know that by exerting yourself daily in the way it describes the time will come without a doubt when the results of your effort will manifest -Master Kido Inoue To fully understand the meaning of the Heart Sutra, one cannot simply follow, or have faith in what it is says, without detailed analysis. The Heart Sutra cannot be fully grasped with pure intellect alone. Practicing the True Way requires you to throw away all things and to forget the ego. When the words are approached with both the mind and the heart, its full understanding will naturally be revealed through practice. Because of this, the guidance of a real Dharma Master (or Roshi)-such as Master Kido Inoue-is required. Here, he shares his teachings in a straightforward and honest fashion.

A RECORD OF TRACES AND DREAMS: THE HEART SUTRA

By Kido Inoue

iUniverse, Inc.

Copyright © 2012 Kido Inoue
All right reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4759-4886-8

Contents

Foreword...................................................................................................................ixIntroduction...............................................................................................................xi1. The Most Widely Recognized Buddhist Sutra...............................................................................xi2. Origins of the Heart Sutra..............................................................................................xii3. Genjo's Principles for Translating......................................................................................xiii4. Genjo Sanzo's True Intention............................................................................................xiv5. Sariputra...............................................................................................................xvi6. The Essence of the Sutras...............................................................................................xviii7. Emptiness...............................................................................................................xix8. How Did the Buddha Convey Emptiness?....................................................................................xxi9. The Five-Petaled Flower Blooms..........................................................................................xxiiMAKA HANNYA HARAMITTA SHINGYO..............................................................................................1KANJIZAI BOSATSU GYOJIN HANNYA HARAMITTA...................................................................................23JISHO KEN GO ON KAI KU DO ISSAI KU YAKU....................................................................................30SHARISHI SHIKI FU I KU KU FU I SHIKI SHIKI SOKU ZE KU KU SOKU ZE SHIKI JU SO GYO SHIKI YAKU BU NYOZE.......................37SHARISHI ZE SHOHO KUSO FUSHO FUMETSU FUKU FUJO FUZO FUGEN..................................................................40ZE KO KU CHU MU SHIKI MU JU SO GYO SHIKI...................................................................................43MU GEN NI BI ZESSHIN NI MU SHIKI SHO KO MI SOKU HO.........................................................................48MU MUMYO YAKU MU MUMYO JIN NAISHI MU RO SHI YAKU MU RO SHI JIN.............................................................51MU KU SHU METSU DO MU CHI YAKU MU TOKU I MU SHO TOKKO BODAI SATTA E HANNYA HARA MITTA KO SHIN MU KE GE.....................54MU KE GE KO MU U KU FU ON RI ISSAI TEN DO MU SO KU GYO NEHAN...............................................................60SAN ZE SHOBUTSU E HANNYA HARAMITTA KO TOKU A NOKU TARA SAN MYAKU SAN BODAI.................................................62KOCHI HANNYA HARAMITTA ZE DAIJIN SHU.......................................................................................65ZE DAI MYOSHU ZE MUJO SHU ZE MUTODO SHU....................................................................................67NOJO ISSAI KU SHIN JITSU FU KO.............................................................................................70KO SETSU HANNYA HARAMITTA SHU SOKU SETSU SHU WATSU.........................................................................72GYATE GYATE HARA GYATE HARA SO GYATE BODAI SOWAKA HANNYA SHINGYO...........................................................73A Discussion with Kido Inoue Roshi Questions of 4 practioners..............................................................76

Chapter One

MAKA HANNYA HARAMITTA SHINGYO

"The Heart of the Perfection of Transcendent Wisdom"

MAKA ...

"Great ..."

Maka is the first word of the Heart Sutra. It means "large," "great," or "triumphant." In other words, it means something exclusive in size. Exclusive means "unique," "single," or "single-minded." It means universal power. It is getting to the absolute bottom or source of something. When you are utterly absorbed in something, there is no self. When there is no self, everything becomes oneself. In other words, this means that MAKA is 'no self.' Nothing is as great and powerful as something without a self or center.

I think that almost everyone has experienced at one time or another being so engrossed in their work or studies that for three or four hours they utterly forget time. In this way, they forget both themselves and what they are doing. You are so engrossed in what you are doing that there is only the activity itself. Space and time, mind and body — literally everything — is forgotten. Everything disappears. This is because during these times you are utterly one with the activity itself. There is no room or space for anything to become a hindrance or distraction. There is no gap where anything extra can intervene. Solely and single-mindedly being utterly absorbed in the present moment we call 'now,' the self is transcended. Becoming more and more deeply absorbed in this way, the self drops off and one obtains emancipation, or true freedom. This is Buddha's awakening. Here one realizes MAKA.

However, if you are not vigilant in maintaining the Way-seeking Mind, this vitally important awakening experience becomes lost. You end up returning to old, customary habits and ways, falling into the confusion and conflict of the regular world and discarding the precious path to Enlightenment. In other words, because you fall into the habit of examining and dealing with your present condition and because you do not give up the habit of looking back at the past, it becomes impossible to get to the very source of this vital matter. These bad habits themselves are the self, or ego. Before someone has completely awakened, his or her condition is like an ongoing dream. The habits of the customary mind are truly deplorable.

Having compassion for those who have fallen into these old habits, Buddha expounded the teaching of the Heart Sutra so that people could awaken quickly from their dream. As long as the self remains, conflict with others is unavoidable; confusion and discord within oneself is inevitable. Therefore, it is necessary to awaken to true MAKA. This is done through the practice of sitting Zazen.

Gutei, a 9th century Zen master from China, was a unique monk. During his entire life he simply raised his finger to answer anything he was asked. There was a young apprentice monk who would mimic this, raising his own finger, too, whenever someone asked him about the Way. When Gutei heard about this, he chopped off the apprentice's finger. The apprentice ran off in pain. Gutei suddenly yelled to the fleeing monk and raised his finger. Seeing Gutei, the disciple also tried to raise his finger, but it was gone. At that moment, the young monk instantly dropped off the self and deeply awakened. He had penetrated to the source.

If Gutei had been thinking about human rights or personal reputation, if he had been preoccupied with a sense of guilt or ethical responsibility, or had he been concerned about crisis management or pain, he could have never done what he did. Because he was utterly empty he was able to act freely and unrestrained. This mind, this action, and this freedom—all arising from no self—are what is known as MAKA. Zen master Setcho praised Gutei saying the remarkable capacity he displayed exalted the Way. Gutei not only transmitted the Dharma for future generations of patriarchs, but he cut off utterly all vestiges of the ego and...