The following zoom teisho Koten Roshi gave in February 2023. It was first given by Harada Sekkei Roshi in 1984 at Kinmokutsu Dojo, a Rinzai dojo in Munich, Germany.
日本の長崎という港に黄檗宗の隠元和尚が来られました。	The Zen monk Ingen of the Obaku sect arrived at the port of Nagasaki in Japan,
禅宗にはご存知のように、曹洞宗、臨済宗、黄檗宗という3つの宗派があります。その中の一つに黄檗宗というのがあります。	As you know, there are three sects of Zen Buddhism: Soto sect, Rinzai sect, and Obaku sect. Master Ingen belonged to the Obaku sect.
黄檗宗は隠元が開山になっております。	Master Obaku is the founder of the Obaku sect.
その隠元が長崎に上陸しましてまず、第一に曹洞宗という宗派を潰さなければいけないということで、大きな看板を掲げたわけですね。「曹洞滅却」という、曹洞宗を潰そう！という、まず曹洞宗から潰しにかかろう、というそういう宣伝をしたわけです。	When Master Ingen landed in Nagasaki, the first thing he wanted to do was to crush or shut down the Soto sect.　So he raised a large flag that said “Destroy the Soto Sect, Wipe Out Soto Zen”. Ingen wanted to be the one to wipe out the Soto school. So he raised this flag to announce it to everyone.
そこで曹洞宗は大変な騒ぎになりました。	This caused a great uproar or commotion within the Soto sect.
曹洞宗の中で有名な和尚達がその隠元に問答に行くわけですけども、みんな隠元に問答に負けてしまって、しっぽをまいて帰って来てしまうわけですね。犬がしっぽをまいて帰るように。	All of the highly respected monks of the Soto sect went to meet Master Ingen to debate the Dharma, but they were all overwhelmed by Master Ingen and returned home humiliated and ashamed.
いよいよ曹洞宗も黄檗の隠元によって潰されるという本当に瀬戸際、寸前まで行ったときに、一人の和尚が来ました。その和尚の名前は祖暁という名前の和尚です。	Finally, just as the Soto sect was right on the verge of being crushed by the Obaku sect Master Ingen, one more Soto sect monk came forward. The name of this monk was Sogyo.
その和尚がある僧堂で典座和尚をしておって祖暁和尚にそんな隠元と問答するような力があるとは誰も考えておらなかったわけです。	Sogyo was the tenzo of a monastery. But no one who ever regarded him as having the ability to debate the Dharma with Master Ingen
ところがその祖暁和尚が「自分が行ってきます」と言うので、まだ若かったですけれども、行くというのを誰も拒むわけにはいきませんので、長崎までその祖暁和尚が出掛けて行って、隠元と問答をするわけです。	But Sogyo said, “I’ll go and try.” He was a young monk, but no one tried to prevent him from going. So he set off for Nagasaki to confront master Ingen to debate the Dharma.
その祖暁和尚の問答というのはどういう問答をしたかと言いますとね、こんな長い約１ｍぐらいの、今でもありますけれども線香があります。お線香を持って隠元の前に進んだわけです。	You may ask what kind of debate did Sogyo and Master Ingen have. Sogyo brought with him a very long stick of incense that was about one meter long. This kind of very long incense is still used today. The monk Sogyo lit the incense and walked toward Master Ingen.
隠元は鉄の警策をもって構えているわけですね。	Master Ingen stood there waiting while holding an iron kyosaku.
そうしますとね、祖暁は長い線香を持って黙って、一言も話をしません。	Sogyo approached Master Ingen and stood there silently holding the long stick of incense without saying a single word.
段々線香が短くなってきましてね。	Sogyo continued to stand there silently as the long stick of incense slowly became shorter and shorter.
先に隠元和尚の方から「何とか申せ」とこういう声がかかったわけです。	Then Master Ingen finally broke the silence and said, “Now say something!”
そうすると初めてその線香を持っておった祖暁和尚が曰く「大法重きが故に」とこう言った。大法というのは、正法という大きな法です、ダルマね、重いは重量の軽い、重い、の重いね、「大法重きが故に」ということを一言、たったその一言だけ言いました。	Then Sogyo who has been holding this long stick of incense for so long speaks for the first time, he simply says “For the momentous importance of the Great Dharma.” When Sogyo said the Great Dharma, he is talking about the True Dharma. And saying momentous importance, he speaks of the Dharma being of paramount importance, of being gravely or crucially important. That was all that Sogyo said. “For the momentous importance of the Great Dharma.”
問答はそれで終わったんです。	And that was the extent of the debate between Master Ingen and Sogyo.
そうしますと、隠元がね、鉄の如意を前において、そして「まだ日本にもこのような立派な禅僧が曹洞宗にもおったのか」と言って「曹洞滅却」のその立て看板を外したという有名な話があります。	But after Sogyo spoke, Master Ingen laid down his iron kyosaku in front of him and said, “I didn’t think there still remained in Japan such an able monk as this.” Then master Ingen took down the sign or banner he had put up saying “Destroy the Soto sect.” This story is a famous one.
その甲斐の祖暁がこういう詩を残しているわけです。	This able and worthy monk Sogyo left a poem for posterity.
ちょっと難しいですけどね。「幾度か痛棒におうてきゅう瘡斑点」幾度かというのは度々、痛棒というのは叩かれる、きゅう瘡というのは叩かれるから青い傷ができる、青い傷が斑点のように出来ておった、長い間自分の修行時代に叩かれて、叩かれて、叩かれてその青い傷が斑点になって出来ております。	It is a little bit difficult to understand. Basically it says: “When I trained long years in the monastery, I was beaten by the kyosaku until my whole body turned blue.”
「往事を追想すれば毛こ寒し」往事というのは自分が修行時代のことを想うと身の毛もよだつような恐ろしさである。	“When I think of my training days now, it is so terrifying that my hair stands up straight.”
「知らずや、快かつは痛所より起こる」かいかつというのは本当の喜びというものはそういう本当の痛みを味わった人でなければ本当の喜びというものは知ることは出来ませんよ。	“It is impossible to taste and know true joy and fulfillment without experiencing that kind of pain and suffering.”
「翻って思う。棒とうの緩なき処と」昔もっと叩かれておったならば、自分はまだこんな修行の程度で終わるではなかっただろうに。ということを実解しているわけです。「棒とう緩」そんなに叩かれてもまだ緩やかだったということを自分で実解をしているということです。	“Looking back and reconsidering this, if only I had been beaten more when I was a young, practicing monk, then I wouldn't be the half-baked monk I am today.” This describes how he actually feels. He describes “the soft stick”, him being hit so hard his body turned blue, and he still turns around and actually says “the stick was too soft.”
最近では日本の僧堂でもKinmo僧堂でも少し警策が緩くなったんじゃないかと思いますね。	Even these days in sodo’s in Japan and probably elsewhere, too, the kyosaku is probably a bit weak or soft.
そうでなければ一般の人がなかなか出てこない	But if the kyosaku is used too robustly/energetically, then laypeople won’t come to the temple or monastery.
そういう祖暁でありましたから大法重きが故にという言葉が出てきたわけです。	It was because Sogyo was this kind of monk that he was able to say, “For the momentous importance of the Great Dharma” when he met master Ingen.
私は２，３日こうしておしゃべりをさせて頂きましたけれども、本当はこれは親切なことではありません。	I talk a lot when we meet for a few days for sesshin, but this really isn’t being very kind.
本当は警策を持って皆さん斑点がね、青あざが出来るほど叩いてあげた方が、しゃべることよりも本当は親切なことですね。	I should actually just pick up my kyosaku and go around hitting everybody until they all turn blue. This would really be much kinder than talking to you.
しかし、そういう本当に道を求めるということは本当に大変なことであるということを皆さんよくご承知おき願いたいと思います。	I would just like you all to know that truly seeking the Way really does require a tremendous and continuous effort on your part.
道元禅師の正法眼蔵の中のお話をちょっとさせて頂きたいと思います。	I would like to mention here something written in Dogen Zenji's Shobogenzo, The Eye and Treasure of the True Dharma.
弁道話という教えの中にこういうことがあります。この法は、人人の分上、というのはそれぞれの人のいっぱいいっぱいということですね。豊に備われりと言えども、十分に備わっているということですね。修せざるにはあらわれず、修行しなければ現れてきませんよ。證せざるにはうることなし。證というのは証明の証、得るというのは掴むということですね。	In the Bendowa chapter: A Discourse on the Practice of Zazen, a discourse written by Dogen Zenji, the following is written: People are already fully and abundantly endowed with the Dharma in every way, but until they practice or train, it will not  manifest or come into being. And unless they personally confirm, or prove it for themselves, there is no way for them to realize, or grasp, to make it their own.
もう一回言いますよ。この法は、人人の分上豊に備われりと言えども、修せざるにはあらわれず、證せざるにはうることなし。	I’ll say it once more; People are already fully and abundantly endowed with the Dharma in every way, but until they practice or train, It will not emerge or manifest, or come into being. And unless they personally confirm, or prove it for themselves, there is no way for them to realize, or grasp, to make it their own.
どういうことかと言いますと、この法はというのは今の皆さんの事実ですね。今の事実、この法とか如是の法とか言います。かくのごときの法。今の自分の様子、一切の様子ということですね。	What is this saying? The Dharma that Dogen is talking about is everybody's present reality right now. It is called the Dharma, one's present reality, thusness or suchness, it is called the Dharma of things as they are, one's present condition, the present condition of all things.
この法とか如是の法とかいうのは般若心経には無用無欠、余ることなく、欠けることなしと言っていますよ。	This Dharma, the Dharma of thusness, is what the Heart Sutra describes as no excess and no lack, flawless and without any meaning, import, or substance attached.
道元禅師の言っているこの法というのはそういうことを言っているのですね。	This is the Dharma that Dogen Zenji is talking about.
人人の分上というのはそれぞれの人です。皆それぞれ一人一人違います。だけれども、違ってるままに、大きな人は大きなままに、小さな人は小さなままにあるということです。	“People are already fully and abundantly endowed with the Dharma in every way.” People indicates all of the different kinds of people. Each and every one is different. Different, but simply different, different as such, thusly different. Big people are simply big as such. Small people are simply small as such.
それぞれの人のそれぞれのものということはこの前話しました差別のままということです。	Each person with his or her own circumstances, or conditions. Each is different /distinct, but simply different or distinct just as it is.
差別のままということは般若心経でいいますと空ということです。	In the Heart Sutra, distinct or differentiated, as it is, is what is called emptiness.
一番最初に話しました、それぞれのものがそれぞれの立場においてそれぞれの働きをしておる状態。それを空と言います。	I mentioned earlier that each and every thing has its own function according to or depending on circumstances at that time. This is what is called emptiness.
それはものだけではありません。この人間も含めてですね。	This not only includes things or objects, but also people, men, women as well.
ですから私たちはいつでも、人も物も空の状態であるから差別はありません。区別するなにものも無いということです。	This is why men and women, people and also things and objects, are all invariably the form of emptiness. Therefore there is no differentiation or discrimination. There is no such thing as making distinctions or differentiating.
そういうものを、この法、あるいはかくのごときの法と言います。	This is what This Dharma in the text is. This is called the Dharma of Suchness/ Thusness/ as-it-is-ness.
そういうものはこれから、絵がまだわからないからこれから、そういうものが禅の修行によってそういう状態になるのではありません。今既に皆さんそれぞれの立場においていっぱいいっぱい法が充満しておるということです。	But it is not a matter of we doing Zen practice to become this state or condition of as-it-is. Instead, through practice we realize/consent to the fact that whatever our circumstances may be, it is the full and complete manifestation of the Dharma.
でありますから、禅、坐禅というものを道具に使って自分の足らない所を補う、あるいは余分なものを捨て去るというようなことをしてはいけません。禅を道具に使ってはいけません。	Therefore, Zen or zazen is not a tool or a means of some kind to be used to make up for any lack or something missing, nor is it to be used to get rid of excess or things not needed. Zen shouldn’t be used as a means or way for doing something.