Tao by Matsumoto

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66. Lower yourself

[Chapter 66 / English Translation] - click the line to watch the related video.
The reason why big rivers and seas can be the king of hundreds of valleys is that the former is well down the latter. Therefore, they can be the king of hundreds of valleys.

Hence, if you want to be above people, lower yourself below them verbally.

If you want to be before people, be after them physically.


Therefore, the sage puts himself above people, but they don't find him heavy.

He puts himself before people, but they find him harmless.

Therefore, the world under the sky is happy to support him and never hates him.

He doesn't compete, so no one in the world under the sky can compete with him.


Rapid Decoded
Lower yourself, and you will be void. If you are as void as Tao, you can "reign" over holograms. They are like dewdrops reflecting the moon. They are individual, but you find the same moon on each of them. In Buddhism, the mechanism is called Mugeko 無碍光: the light that lights up everything. "The king of hundreds of valleys" suggests this.

"People" indicates your hologram, one of the above-mentioned dewdrops. Hence, if you want to be detached from your hologram (=the world), accept it as it is.

What is it "before" your hologram? It is the state called "Bumo-misho-izen" in Zen. It is Tao. What is it "after" your hologram? Everything returns to Tao, so it is Tao. After all, "before" and "after" are the same. (☞See Ch.2)


Therefore, even though you project everything in your hologram, people in there don't know you are the creator. It is exactly like the characters in a movie who never talk about its director in the drama.

Even though you are the Almighty in your hologram (=the world), people there don't know it. Even your own self doesn't know it. That's the origin of suffering.

Therefore, your hologram (=the world) is perfect. Everything there is a character who "supports" it. No one can really "hate" you. "Support" and "hatred" are your judgement, which is absolutely useless.

Do you want to compete? But with who? Everyone in the world is part of your hologram. Do you want to compete with yourself? It is useless, too.


Videos / YouTube playlist

- 66-1 100 valleys
- 66-2 Verbally
- 66-3 Physically
- 66-4 Never heavy
- 66-5 Harmless
- 66-6 Support
- 66-7 Don't compete


[Related Articles]
-Life is a movie. Life is a hologram you project.

-Small country. Mugeko is also discussed there.





Read Yama Uba the Zen play

☞南無阿弥陀仏 [namu amida butsu] - 南無不可思議光如来 [namu fukashigi ko nyorai] - 帰命尽十方無碍光如来 [kimei jinjippokai muge ko nyorai] Unlike Genshin 源信 and Honen 法然, who worshipped the pictures and statues of Amida Butsu 阿弥陀仏 / Amitabha Buddha, Shinran 親鸞, the founder of Jodo (Pure Land) Shin school 浄土真宗, prayed in front of these three sets of Kanji / Chinese characters. In the last one, you can find the word "mugeko 無碍光". "Mu 無" means no; "ge 碍", hamper; "ko 光", light. Daisetz Suzuki 鈴木大拙 beautifully translated the word as "Infinite Light". Rennyo 蓮如 is the "second founder" of Jodo (Pure Land) Shin school.
  1. Tao

 2. Hologram

 3. The floating world Ukiyo

 4. Play

 5. Gate

 6. Dark Depth

 7. Dark Depth Female

 8. Do nothing

 9. Body soul and Spirit soul

10. You and non-you

11. Yin Yang circle

12. No judgement

13. Resistance

14. Satori

15. Act without acting

16. Colour

(Last modified: 5 February 2012)

  Why don't you think the other way 
  round?

-"I am not happy about how I look."

  There are a few things to think
  about.

-"Are you scared of seeing your
  reports?"

  To forget about statistics.


☞Japanese Soto Zen Buddhism 日本曹洞宗 - Dogen 道元 - «Shobogenzo 正法眼蔵» - Jiriki 自力 / Self-power.
☞Jodo (Pure Land) Shin Buddhism 浄土真宗 - Shinran 親鸞 - «Tannisho 歎異抄» by Yuien 唯円 - Tariki 他力 / Other-power.
☞You can find Shinran's Akunin shoki setzu 悪人正機説 (the Doctrine of Evil Persons as the Object of Salvation) in «Tannisho», which is not so abstract as Dogen's «Shobogenzo». Use Hiroyuki Itsuki's «Tariki» 五木寛之「他力」as a supplement. When you find that Self-power and Other-power are the same, your spiritual quest is over.