Fifth Sundays 10:30am
Each
fifth Sunday of the month (4 per year), ASZC holds dharma combat during the
dharma talk. The ASZC's Abbot, senior teachers, disciples,
and the sangha are invited to question each other in a public dharma contest,
or combat. These often colorful exchanges are intended
to refresh our understanding of Zen through spontaneous exchange, conducted
with the assembly as witness. Members of the sangha are invited to join in,
challenging with difficult or confusing aspects of Zen.
From The Shambhala Dictionary of Buddhism and Zen:
“Hossen Jap., lit. "dharma
contest"; the method typical for Zen of demonstrating the living truth
directly, without recourse to discursive thinking or philosophical or religious
doctrine. Hossen, like mondo, consists of an exchange of words, questions
and answers, gestures and responses between two enlightened people. While the mondo usually consists of one question and one answer, the hossen can develop into an extended encounter. Most koans consist of hossen or mondo that have been handed down by tradition.
In
contrast to what the term dharma contest might suggest, a hossen
is not a matter of debate; it is not a question of defeating an enemy in
discussion or determining which partner is the "better man." The
participants in a hossen speak from their Zen
experience, which admits of no antagonism, no I-you split. They make use of
these occasions only to test the depth of their own experience in an encounter
with a person of greater spiritual power and in this way to train themselves further.”
The P'ang-chu-shih yu-lu contains a series of hossen of an enlightened layman of the T'ang period with renowned Zen masters, among them the following:
One day the Layman P'ang addressed Master Ma-tsu and said, "A person whose original face is not obscured bids you look up."
Ma-tsu looked straight down.
The Layman spoke, "You alone have achieved wondrous mastery at playing the stringless zither."
Ma-tsu looked straight up.
The Layman prostrated.
Ma-tsu drew back.
"That's how one spoils it when one tries to be particularly clever," said the Layman.
Please join us for tea and combat.
The dharma combat will be followed by our usual Sunday lunch, social, and samu.
Location
Atlanta Soto Zen Center
1167-C/D Zonolite Place
Atlanta GA 30306
Questions?
Send
email to info@aszc.org.