Entering the Gate as a Householder

Text

Buddhamitra did not enter the saṅgha until late in life. When asked how he had practiced before becoming a monk, he said: 'Every meal I prepared was an offering. Every word I spoke to my family was a teaching. Every time I laid down to sleep I entered the great stillness. The gate of the Dharma is not at the monastery entrance—it is wherever you stand right now.' Keizan's verse: Forty years in the household— / not one day apart from the Way. / The monk shaves his head and robes himself. / The householder was already wearing the robe.

license: public_domain

Attribution

• Attributed To
  Buddhamitra

Lineage: Indian Patriarchs

By Buddhamitra

• Find the Old Kingproverb
• Old and Youngproverb

From Denkoroku

• The Robe That Never Wears Out
• The Fragrance Without a Flower
• The Mind That Is Like Space
• The Auspicious Cloud
• The Wine Jar and the Dharma
• The Star That Does Not Move
• The Vow of Pārśva
• The Debate That Ended Without Debate
• Meeting Nāgārjuna
• In Praise of the Perfection of Wisdom

Sources

• contentZen Editorial Overlay - Originals Curation

  Zen project editorial

  Denkoroku, Case 10

  Denkoroku: Entering the Gate as a Householder