Shobogenzo Shishobo: The Bodhisattva’s Four Embracing Actions

Shobogenzo is an abbreviation of the Japanese expression Shobogenzo nehan myoshin, jisso, muso, mimyo no homon. This is one long word. In the traditional Zen story of the transmission of the Dharma from Shakyamuni Buddha to Mahakashapa, when Shakyamuni held up a flower, Mahakashapa was the only person in the assembly who smiled. The Buddha then said, “I have Shobogenzo nehan myoshin, jisso, muso, mimyo no homon; I entrust it to Mahakashapa.” Thus Shobogenzo is the name of the Dharma that was transmitted from Shakyamuni to Mahakashapa, from Mahakashapa to Ananda, and from ancestor to ancestor through many generations up until the present day.

A rough translation of this expression is: True Dharma Eye Treasurey, Wondrous Mind of Nirvana, True Form of Formlessness, Subtle and Wondrous Dharma Gate. It means that the reality of our lives is the compiled treasury of the true Dharma eye (wisdom), the wondrous mind of Nirvana, in which the true form of all beings is without form, and this reality is very subtle and inconceivable.

Dogen Zenji gave the collection of his writings in Japanese this title. When we read Shobogenzo, we must understand that the topic of each and every fascicle is this reality of our life. In the fascicle Shishobo, the four actions (offering, loving words, beneficial action and identity action) are actual practices in our daily lives. We need to see these practices as Shobogenzo, that is, the Dharma transmitted through buddhas and ancestors. These actions should be done with awakening to the true reality of emptiness and interdependent origination. In Dogen Zenji’s teachings, zazen practice itself is awakening and wisdom, and these four actions are how zazen functions in our daily lives and in relation to other people and living beings.