Dōgen’s Views on the kaiin-zammai

Abstract

Dōgen’s 道元 (1200–1253) Shōbōgenzō, in the chapter ‘Kaiin-zammai’ 海印三昧 (Ocean Seal Samādhi), twice quotes:

佛言, 但以衆法, 合成此身. 起時唯法起, 滅時唯法滅. 此法起時, 不言我起, 此法滅時, 不言我滅. 前念後念, 念念不相待, 前法後法, 法々不相対. 是即名為海印三昧.

The Buddha said, “It is just the dharmas that combine to form this body. When it arises, it is simply the dharmas arising; when it ceases, it is simply the dharmas ceasing. When these dharmas arise, [the bodhisattva] does not state, ‘I arise’; when these dharmas cease, he does not state, ‘I cease’.” “In prior thought moments and subsequent thought moments, the moments do not relate to each other; in prior dharmas and subsequent dharmas, the dharmas do not oppose each other. This is called the the ocean seal samadhi.” (Trans. Carl Bielefeldt with Michael Radich)

It is commonly thought that the source is the Vimalakīrtinirdeśa 維摩詰所説経, and the same phrase can be seen in the Mazu daoyi chanshi guanglu 馬祖道一禅師広録 (Recorded Sayings of Mazu.).

In this paper, by considering the renewal of this phrase, Dōgen uniquely added the words “this method (此法)” to the words “此法起時, 不言我起, 此法滅時, 不言我滅” (When these dharmas arise, [the bodhisattva] does not state, ‘I arise’; when these dharmas cease, he does not state, ‘I cease”’). It is therefore clear that he presented four phrases.