middle way

Excerpts

What our teachers say on it: excerpts from the talks and texts, lightly edited and shortened; an ellipsis (…) marks a sentence or more left out. The titles above the excerpts are mine, the teacher's words are in the excerpt; a question under a title really was asked at the talk. How they were made →

1. A drink of milk: not material, not spiritual, right here

   Gautama Buddha was brought up in a palace, and he got sick of all the rich material; it was too much for him. So he went off and tried living in a forest with some yogins who didn’t eat very much, and who said you could attain the highest level of consciousness, where you could see little atoms popping in and out of existence. He tried that, and it didn’t work. So he went out of the forest, and a girl handed him a drink of milk, which he drank, and he felt the milk was real. Then he sat under a tree for some time and saw that it’s not in material pursuit, it’s not in spiritual pursuit, it’s right here. And he sat right where he was and realised: this is it, this is real, this is where the truth is. And he’d been searching for many years.

   Mike · Uji 2: An Alternative to Linear Time Winter 2004 — Uji

2. Gautama finds a way between two extremes

   Gautama realized that the whole of his life was right there in that place, just at that moment. … He continued to sit and reflect on his experience for about a month or so, and he realized that he had found some kind of deep balance in his life. At last, the internal conflict inside him, which had made him leave the palace, go to the forest, leave the forest and come to where he was — he realized that he had found the middle way between the two extremes which had formed his life so far. On the one hand, the extreme of material pleasure; on the other hand, extreme spiritual enthusiasm. At last he noticed another way, which wasn’t one or the other. It was between the two. The days passed and he realized clearly that sitting in the posture of dhyāna was in some way connected with his balanced state.

   Mike · The Buddha’s Discovery June 2005 — Lotus CentreAlso in: What did the Buddha discover?

3. Forcing ourselves is not the Buddhist state

   On some retreats, people like to get kind of higher and higher, and one way to do it is to have very strict rules about zazen. So people force themselves, and if we force ourselves it creates a spiritual state: this is called asceticism, and it’s very well known. So many spiritual people in the past have done very painful things, and they achieved a spiritual state, in all religions. If you take that approach to zazen, you’ll create a nice spiritual state and you’ll feel wonderful. But that’s not the Buddhist state.

   Mike · Introductions 4: Ordinary Balance Summer 2003 — Introductions to Shobogenzo ChaptersAlso in: Making Dogen's Words Our Own

4. The first sermon: four views and the middle way

   Buddhist Scriptures tell us that after Gautama Buddha attained the truth, he wanted to teach others what he had learned. … His first sermon was preached to his five former companions with whom he studied asceticism. We are told that in this first sermon he preached the Four Noble Truths, or in my translation, the Theory of Four Views, and the Middle Way. This is why we think of these two teachings as the central theories of Buddhism. To understand these theories is to understand the core of the Buddhist philosophical system.

   Nishijima · Three Philosophies and One Reality

5. Not eternal, not cut off, but in the middle

   Gautama Buddha said: not eternal, not cut off, but in the middle. And by that statement he meant that we don’t believe in an eternal soul, that is the Brahman belief that existed in India before him, that the soul is separate from the body and will carry on forever into another body. Not that. And not cut off means: when we die, that’s it, finish, so we’re just a physical body and nothing else. Not that, but in the middle between those, the Middle Way, the Doctrine of the Middle. In that statement he actually denies rebirth, because if we have no soul separate from the body and which is eternal, then it’s impossible for anything to be reborn.

   Mike · Introductions 5: Clear Explanation for Zazen Summer 2003 — Introductions to Shobogenzo ChaptersAlso in: Buddhism and the Theory of No-Self

6. Katyayana: neither existence nor non-existence

   Master Dogen writes: “This full manifesting of existence which is the nature of buddha is not a concept like ‘existence’ or ‘non-existence’.” If we read some of the early Buddhist writings, we can find, even going back to conversations between Gautama Buddha and his disciples, discussions of existence and non-existence. It was a very big topic in early Buddhism. There’s a very famous conversation between Gautama Buddha and one of his disciples called Katyayana or Katchana; it’s in Pali. The conversation is about whether existence or non-existence is the Middle Way. The Buddha says it’s neither existence nor non-existence. So then for hundreds of years after this, people were wondering what this could mean. … In this sentence, Master Dogen means when we fully manifest existence, we are beyond concepts. And existence and non-existence are actually concepts: we can think about something existing and we can think about something non-existing, in our mind, but nobody has ever seen, in the history of the Universe, something that doesn’t exist.

   Mike · Bussho 1: Fully Manifesting Existence Summer 2004 — Bussho

7. A middle view between science and religion

   Science is a valid way of looking at reality, so the scientific view is valid. It must be based on process; without a process view you can’t separate causes from their effects. … The scientific view of the world has created our civilisation, and we need it and we believe it. But Master Dogen wants to suggest another view, outside of science and also outside of religion, and that view is called the middle view. You can say it’s the middle between science and religion. It’s not based on a process view, and it’s not based on a spiritual or eternal view; it’s based on real experience in the present. But this is so new to us, even in the 21st century, that it sounds very strange, weird, bizarre.

   Mike · Uji 2: An Alternative to Linear Time Winter 2004 — UjiAlso in: Genjo-koan 3: Action Only Here and Now, The Relation Between the Autonomic Nervous System and Buddhism

8. Finding the middle way, the centre of Buddhism

   asked at the talk Am I right in thinking emptiness and form are the same thing, although they appear to be opposite?

   We can say something which is neither emptiness nor form. So something which neither has nor doesn’t have buddha-nature. Something in the middle. In Buddhism we’re always in the middle, it’s the middle way. So Master Joshu gives two apparently opposite answers, and the reality is in the middle. … Master Dogen writes: “Although we have a mental viewpoint that is formed from our past experiences, at this very moment we have buddha-nature.” So it’s a real dichotomy. Master Dogen is insisting that we have buddha-nature in the middle of our mental experiences, mental viewpoints. We’re trying to hold two things in our mind at the same time, and we can’t do it. How to find the middle way is the centre of Buddhism.

   Mike · Bussho 3: Joshu’s Dog and Concepts Summer 2005 — Bussho

9. In the middle between thinking and feeling

   The center of Buddhism is the practice of zazen. And in the practice of zazen, we sit in the state called “action.” We are acting. We are conducting ourselves. So the meaning of action in Buddhism is centered on the state in zazen. When we sit in zazen, we neither concentrate on our thoughts, nor on our perceptions of the external world. We sit in a state that is in the middle between thinking and feeling. This is why Buddhism is called the Middle Way. … When we sit with our legs crossed and our spine naturally straight, with the head balanced on the neck, the ANS is encouraged to come into a state of balance, and in that state of balance we feel peaceful. Not unduly troubled by thoughts, and not caught by our senses. Somewhere in the middle.

   Mike · Action as the Center of BuddhismAlso in: Ikka-no-myoju 5: The Four Views, Buddhism Beyond Robes and Incense

10. We are always passing through the middle

    Zazen is not rigid, not fixed, in the same way that you can’t balance a pile of stones by putting a ruler against them and lining them up, then taking the ruler away; you’ve got to balance them by balancing them, really. … When we find the middle point, we don’t need to do anything. But actually in our real zazen the middle point is only an image; we just wobble around and enter it and leave it. We are always passing through the middle. That’s our real zazen. … After practising zazen for three days we feel settled and a little more peaceful. But we don’t realise that this comes from our zazen. We might say to ourselves that our zazen isn’t very good, we’re thinking all the time, but actually we’re getting the benefit from trying to sit in balance.

    Mike · Introductions 3: A Middle Without Intention Summer 2003 — Introductions to Shobogenzo ChaptersAlso in: Genjo-koan 1: Four Viewpoints, Sacred and Ordinary Together

11. The Buddhist way comes from balance

    People talk about the Buddhist way. But the Buddhist way is not some kind of path which you find and then follow by getting knowledge, or talking and learning, although, of course, those things are important. The Buddhist way comes from balance. When we practise balance, instead of choosing between this way or that way, we can find the middle way. We don’t know what it is, but we do. So if we practise zazen and balance our body and mind, all the very small choices which we make subconsciously sometimes lead our life. But we can’t see clearly what we chose.

    Mike · A Buddhist Teacher Without a Plan June 2007 — Padmafarma

12. Neither good nor bad, but in the middle

    Buddhism says neither good nor bad, but in the middle. To be balanced in the middle is to be good and bad at the same time. Or to stop separating the world into good and bad. … Not worrying about good and bad. This sounds irresponsible to some people, but in fact it’s the middle way between good and bad. And if we follow the middle way, we can act upright. This is the reason that, for instance, Dogen says: don’t make an effort to become Buddha. To become Buddha means to become some good person. So for Dogen, not to make an effort to become Buddha is to be upright. And to be upright is Buddha. … We make an effort, but we don’t make an effort to be good. We make an effort to be upright.

    Mike · Opposites and Being Upright July 2009 — BrnoAlso in: Precepts as Guidelines

13. Kodo Sawaki: right is wrong, left is wrong

    When my teacher Nishijima Roshi went to Kodo Sawaki’s talks, he was a young man of nineteen, and he had been thinking: Which is right? Which is right, right wing or left wing? Which is the best way? Which is the right idea? And he said that Kodo Sawaki said: “Right is wrong and left is wrong. Both are wrong.” This shocked my teacher as a young man. So what is right? Of course, Kodo Sawaki meant something about a middle way, a balance between left and right. But as a young man, my teacher didn’t understand what he meant. He was just very shocked at this very grumpy man saying both sides are wrong, which was a brave thing to say in Japan before the Second World War.

    Mike · Kodo Sawaki and Concrete Teaching August 2011 — DibbavanaAlso in: Introduction to Buddhism and the Practice of Zazen

14. Compromise instead of fighting for our belief

    I think Buddhism has a teaching of balance between opposites. This person thinks they are right. This person thinks they are right. This country thinks they’re right. This country thinks they’re right. Buddhism says they’re both wrong, so they should find a middle way. But we believe very clearly that there is right and wrong, so we fight for our belief. Buddhism says: don’t fight for your belief. So Buddhism believes not in fighting for your belief, but in compromise. But we hate to compromise. We hate it. We feel that if we compromise, we lose our self. So we continue arguing.

    Mike · Action and Result, Living in the Present May 2014 — Banská ŠtiavnicaAlso in: When the Mud Buffalo Dissolve

• he had found the middle way, between the two extremes

  The Buddha’s Discovery June 2005 — Lotus Centre

Texts

1. What did the Buddha discover? ●●●

   he felt that he had found a middle way between the two extremes that had formed the basis of his life that far

   middle way · asceticism · Gautama and the drink of milk
2. The Buddha’s Discovery ●●● June 2005 — Lotus Centre

   he had found the middle way, between the two extremes

   middle way · Gautama and the drink of milk
3. Introduction to Buddhism and the Practice of Zazen ●●●

   He said that the truth that Buddhism taught is the middle way between the two.

   middle way · asceticism
4. Introductions 3: A Middle Without Intention ●●● Summer 2003 — Introductions to Shobogenzo Chapters

   we just wobble around and enter it and leave it. We are always passing through the middle

   passing through the middle
5. Uji 2: An Alternative to Linear Time ●●● Winter 2004 — Uji

   that view is called the middle view. You can say it’s the middle between science and religion

   Gautama and the drink of milk · middle view
6. A Buddhist Teacher Without a Plan ●●● June 2007 — Padmafarma

   The Buddhist way comes from balance. When we practise balance, instead of choosing between this way or this way, we can find the middle way

   passing through the middle
7. Kodo Sawaki and Concrete Teaching ●●● August 2011 — Dibbavana

   Right is wrong and left is wrong. Both are wrong.

   right and left both wrong
8. When the Mud Buffalo Dissolve ●●● August 2011 — Dibbavana

   In very serious situations, compromise comes out of two positions of strength.

   asceticism · middle way and compromise
9. The Relation Between the Autonomic Nervous System and Buddhism ●●●

   A fundamental principle of Buddhism is that it denies both idealistic belief and materialistic belief.

   middle view
10. Genjo-koan 1: Four Viewpoints ●●● Summer 2002 — Genjo-koan

    But Master Dogen taught that transcending both is the middle, and the middle way that the Buddha taught is transcending both these two.

    passing through the middle
11. Genjo-koan 3: Action Only Here and Now ●●● Summer 2002 — Genjo-koan

    the Buddhist middle view, the Middle Way, transcends that.

    middle view
12. Introductions 4: Ordinary Balance ●●● Summer 2003 — Introductions to Shobogenzo Chapters

    if we force ourselves it creates a spiritual state – this is called asceticism, and it’s very well known

    asceticism
13. Introductions 5: Clear Explanation for Zazen ●●● Summer 2003 — Introductions to Shobogenzo Chapters

    Gautama Buddha said not eternal, not cut off, but in the middle

    middle view
14. Bussho 1: Fully Manifesting Existence ●●● Summer 2004 — Bussho

    The conversation is about whether existence or non-existence is the Middle Way. The Buddha says it's neither existence nor non-existence.

    middle view
15. Bussho 3: Joshu’s Dog and Concepts ●●● Summer 2005 — Bussho

    How to find the middle way is the centre of Buddhism

    middle way
16. Buddhism Beyond Robes and Incense ●●● June 2006 — Padmafarma

    There is a state which is not thinking and not focusing on physical, but between the two.

    state between thinking and feeling
17. Uji 3: The Complete Present ●●● Summer 2007 — Uji

    So he's suggesting a middle way between two positions. One is to try to do something, get something, or be something

    middle way
18. Precepts as Guidelines ●●● July 2009 — Dibbavana

    Buddhism is a middle way between following other people's morality and constructing an abstract morality for yourself

    middle way and compromise
19. Opposites and Being Upright ●●● July 2009 — Brno

    in fact it's the middle way between good and bad. And if we follow the middle way, we can act upright.

    middle way and compromise
20. Action and Result, Living in the Present ●●● May 2014 — Banská Štiavnica

    So Buddhism believes not in fighting for your belief, but in compromise.

    middle way and compromise
21. One Real Teacher and Simplicity ●●● August 2014 — Banský Studenec

    It's not simplicity without any possessions. It's not the simplicity where we get rid of all our desires.

    asceticism
22. Three Philosophies and One Reality ●●●

    in this first sermon he preached the Four Noble Truths, or in my translation, the Theory of Four Views, and the Middle Way

    middle way
23. Action as the Center of Buddhism ●●●

    We sit in a state that is in the middle between thinking and feeling. This is why Buddhism is called the Middle Way.

    state between thinking and feeling
24. Buddhism and the Theory of No-Self ●●●

    what the middle way between having a self and not having a self can possibly be in practice

    middle view
25. Ikka-no-myoju 5: The Four Views ●●● Summer 2006 — Ikka-no-myoju

    to act is to find the middle way between thinking about what we do and the physical aspects of what we do.

    passing through the middle
26. MMK 1: The Four Conditions ●●● Summer 2008 — Nagarjuna’s Mulamadhyamakakarika

    So a good translation would be: ‘Fundamental Verses of the Middle Way’, or something like that.

    middle way
27. Sacred and Ordinary Together ●●● July 2009 — Brno

    But even Hitler passed through the centre sometimes. So we can lead our life like this: extreme, extreme, extreme, and sometimes balanced.

    Hitler passing through the centre
28. Making Dogen's Words Our Own ●●● August 2012 — Dibbavana

    If you want to continue something for a long time, it's better to do it not too strongly.

    asceticism

Keywords