Summarizing
My
Personal Reflections on the Kakisage
The Kakisage is often spoken of as being the tenth Besseki Lecture. After a period of preparation, recipients of the Kakisage, having just been granted the truth of the Sazuke, are advised to read daily and ponder its intended meaning. My own ponderings change day by day, according to the state and truth of my mind at any given time. Upon reflection I find that my thoughts and ponderings change, not only day to day but moment to moment. In that regard I will attempt to be guided in my ponderings by the two poems from the Ofudesaki appearing below.
From now on I shall speak in the metaphor of water.
Be enlightened by the word clear and muddy.
Ponder this: no matter how clear the water may be,
if you put mud into it, it will become muddy.
In summary I want to reflect upon how I may have succeeded or failed in attempting to be guided by the poems above.
Take a moment and ponder the story of Miki Nakayama's awakening. Paying particular attention to the roll that true sincerity played in calming and emptying her mind so that she could act as a medium: Her true sincerity working to instantly overcome thoughts of intense fear and anxiety that flowed from the ordinary truths of her world as they vividly appeared to her self-centered imagination. Miki, because of her true sincerity emptied her mind and thus unintentionally awakened, the "hard way", but because she awakened, she is able to provide a teaching that shows the way for everyone else to awaken just as she had; only now intentionally, quickly and easily. What a great gift!
Depending upon sincerity then, the first step in the order of the Path is my intention to sincerely consent to the total calming of my mind. To me, that means temporarily settling all thinking so that my mind is like "clear water"; deeply pondering then on the implications of what has been revealed as the origin of my thoughts. Depending upon my sincerity the first step can then also be the last step in completing the work or service of awakening single-hearted salvation.
I talk to my self constantly, so at first that calming may seem to be difficult or even impossible to settle. Depending upon my true sincerity, that difficulty or impossibility has turned out to be just an idea like any other. And since I have since learned through working ( performing service) how to distinguish the chattering of constant thinking from the original parental mind (the mind like clear water) that those chattering thoughts are reflected within; my constant internal dialog may be annoying at times but it is no longer holds sway as the arbiter of absolute truths of myself and the world and is no longer a real obstacle to the enjoyment of life.
In short when the origin of thought is revealed, and pondered deeply, the distinction between original truth of self and the world and the imagined truths of self and the world becomes clear.
As instructed, I have pondered this topic on a daily basis and have pretty much replaced my internal constant chatter with deeper ponderings. These days it is understood by the "mind like clear water" that there is only One. Being only One is refreshing for the instruments (we all like a good night's sleep and the wise know the importance of peace of mind) but in the eternal origin it is "tasteless", and not interesting. Being and knowing everything at once is the same as being and knowing nothing in particular. It is indiscriminate. The original One has assembled instruments out of itself to experience the joy of apparent diversity and change, when in fact there is none. The original One is thus the original cause of all that exists. The intention in the creation of human beings is that they all equally experience the joy of diverse, ever-changing, life.
As a next step in the ongoing creation of human beings that are able to play joyously and freely as intended, we are hastened to reveal the original One as it resides eternally at the "heart" and "core" of all equally. This then is the revelation of the total truth of self and can be tested and proven by temporarily turning off the root idea of being a separate body. Nobody is born and nobody dies. Illness only exists from the point of view of ideas centered on the imagined idea of being a separate body, when in fact there is only eternally One. Everything that is experienced is made out of the causality of the free and unlimited interactions of the original instruments that are used in the apparent creation. It is intended that after returning our minds to their original condition and intention of joy in life we can play freely in the free and unlimited workings that make up the world playground for us.
As no two human imaginations are exactly the same the Tenrikyo Teaching "models" examples of a number of different ways to calm and settle the human mind. In my own case I was initially, and continue to be, drawn to universally applicable metaphors appearing in the Ofudesaki. Particularly the name Moonsun, which to me is an exact description of the relationship of my imagination appearing, as it does, within the one unchanging light that it is reflected within. Getting a grip on that is a powerful tool for the work of awakening. The metaphor of water, either clear or muddy, is to me something that anyone, who has a mind, can use to find their way out of the muddy water. The instruction to ponder in all matters that this universe is the body of God can be universalized as it is the same truth for everyone, there being only One, and it is a very quick and powerful tool for use in the work (service) of awakening. And also in the work (service) of staying awake.
Finally there is the task of helping what appears to me as being "others" to awaken. I recall the 3rd Shinbashira instruction concerning the appropriateness of teaching our children to ponder that this universe is the body of God beginning at a very young age. It is much easier to keep a mind high spirited, new and fresh than to remove mud and debris once installed and conditioned. The new world of joyous life for all equally is not the same as the old world based on self-centered imaginations that do not know the truth of their origin. I am daily reminded of the importance of letting go of the notion of absolute truths of the past that do not serve in the provision of a joyous life.