Chants

CHANTS

ADELAIDE ZEN GROUP SUTRAS
Adelaide Zen Group sutras derive from those of the Diamond Sangha in Honolulu.
The English translations at the end of the page are those of Robert Aitken Roshi.
The versions found here are from his book "Encouraging Words".

PURIFICATION
All the evil karma ever created by me since of old;
On account of my beginningless greed, hatred, and ignorance;
Born of my conduct, speech and thought;
I now confess openly and fully.(3 times)

VANDANA
NAMO TASSA
BHAGAVATO
ARAHATO
SAMMASAMBUDDHASSA

TI-SARANA
BUDDHAM SARANAM GACCHAMI
DHAMMAM SARANAM GACCHAMI
SANGHAM SARANAM GACCHAMI

MAKA HANNYA HARAMITA SHIN GYO
KAN JI ZAI BO SA GYO JIN HAN NYA HA RA MI TA JI
SHO KEN GO ON KAI KU DO IS SAI KU YAKU
SHA RI SHI SHIKI FU I KU KU FU I SHIKI
SHIKI SOKU ZE KU KU SOKU ZE SHIKI
JU SO GYO SHIKI YAKU BU NYO ZE
SHA RI SHI ZE SHO HO KU SO FU SHO FU METSU
FU KU FU JO FU ZO FU GEN
ZE KO KU CHU MU SHIKI MU JU SO GYO SHIKI
MU GEN NI BI ZES SHIN I
MU SHIKI SHO KO MI SOKU HO
MU GEN KAI NAI SHI MU I SHIKI KAI
MU MU MYO YAKU MU MU MYO JIN
NAI SHI MU RO SHI YAKU MU RO SHI JIN
MU KU SHU METSU DO
MU CHI YAKU MU TOKU I MU SHO TOK’KO
BO DAI SAT TA E HAN NYA HA RA MI TA KO
SHIM MU KEI GE MU KEI GE KO MU U KU FU
ON RI IS SAI TEN DO MU SO KU GYO NE HAN
SAN ZE SHO BUTSU E HAN NYA HA RA MI TA KO
TOKU A NOKU TA RA SAM MYAKU SAM BO DAI
KO CHI HAN NYA HA RA MI TA
ZE DAI JIN SHU ZE DAI MYO SHU
ZE MU JO SHU ZE MU TO TO SHU
NO JO IS SAI KU SHIN JITSU FU KO
KO SETSU HAN NYA HA RA MI TA SHU
SOKU SETSU SHU WATSU
GYA TEI GYA TEI HA RA GYA TEI HARA SO GYA TEI
BO JI SOWA KA HAN NYA SHIN GYO

THE GREAT PRAJNA PARAMITA HEART SUTRA
Avalokiteshvara Bodhisattva, practising deep Prajna Paramita,
clearly saw that all five skandhas are empty,
transforming anguish and distress.
Shariputra, form is no other than emptiness, emptiness no other than form;
form is exactly emptiness, emptiness exactly form;
sensation, perception, formulation, consciousness are also like this.
Shariputra, all things are essentially empty – not born, not destroyed;
not stained, not pure; without loss, without gain.
Therefore in emptiness there is no form, no sensation,
perception, formulation, consciousness;
no eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, mind,
no colour, sound, scent, taste, touch, thought;
no seeing and so on to no thinking;
no ignorance and also no ending of ignorance,
and so on to no old age and death and also no ending of old age and death;
no anguish, cause of anguish, cessation, path;
no wisdom and no attainment. Since there is nothing to attain,
the Bodhisattva lives by Prajna Paramita,
with no hindrance in the mind; no hindrance and therefore no fear;
far beyond delusive thinking, right here is Nirvana.
All Buddhas of past, present, and future live by Prajna Paramita,
attaining Anuttara samyak sambodhi.
Therefore know that Prajna Paramita
is the great sacred mantra, the great vivid mantra,
the unsurpassed mantra, the supreme mantra,
which completely removes all anguish. This is truth, not mere formality.
Therefore set forth the Prajna Paramita mantra,
set forth this mantra and proclaim:
Gate Gate Paragate Parasamgate
Bodhi Svaha!

SHO SAI MYO KICHIJO DARANI
NO MO SAN MAN DA MOTO NAN
OHA RA CHI KOTO SHA SONO NAN
TO JI TO EN GYA GYA GYA KI GYA KI UN NUN
SHIFU RA SHIFU RA HARA SHIFU RA HARA SHIFU RA
CHISHU SA CHISHU SA SHUSHI RI SHUSHI RI
SOHA JA SOHA JA SEN CHI GYA SHIRI EI SOMO KO (3 times)

FIRST SUTRA SERVICE DEDICATION
Buddha nature pervades the whole universe,
existing right here now.
With our reciting of The Great Prajña Paramita Heart Sutra
(Maka Hannya Haramita Shin Gyo)
and the Sho Sai Myo Kichijo Dharani, let us unite with:
The Ancient Seven Buddhas, Dai Busso,
Shakyamuni Buddha, Dai Busso,
Bodhidharma, Dai Busso,
Tungshan Liang-chieh, Dai Busso,
Dogen Kigen, Dai Busso,
Keizan Jokin, Dai Busso,
Dai’un Sogaku, Dai Busso,
Haku’un Ryoko, Dai Busso,
Ko’un Zenshin Yamada, Dai Busso;
Anne Aitken, Peaceful Dwelling, Dai Busso,
Robert Aitken, Dawn Cloud, Dai Busso,
The untold women, generations of enlightened women, Dai Busso

All founding teachers, past, present, future, Dai Busso;
let true Dharma continue, Sangha relations become complete:
All Buddhas throughout space and time;
all Bodhisattvas, Mahasattvas;
the great Prajña Paramita.

HAKUIN ZENJI: SONG OF ZAZEN Hakuin Ekaku (1685-1768)
All beings by nature are Buddha,
as ice by nature is water;
apart from water there is no ice,
apart from beings no Buddha.
How sad that people ignore the near
and search for truth afar,
like someone in the midst of water
crying out in thirst,
like a child of a wealthy home
wandering among the poor.
Lost on dark paths of ignorance
we wander through the six worlds,
from dark path to dark path we wander,
when shall we be freed from birth and death?
For this the zazen of the Mahayana
deserves the highest praise:
offerings, Precepts, Paramitas,
Nembutsu, atonement, practice –
the many other virtues –
all rise within zazen.
Those who try zazen even once
wipe away immeasurable crimes –
where are all the dark paths then?
the Pure Land itself is near.
Those who hear this truth even once
and listen with a grateful heart,
treasuring it, revering it,
gain blessings without end.
Much more, if you turn yourself about,
and confirm your own self-nature –
self-nature that is no nature –
you are far beyond mere argument.
The oneness of cause and effect is clear,
not two, not three, the path is straight;
with form that is no form
going and coming – never astray,
with thought that is no thought
singing and dancing are the voice of the Law.
Boundless and free is the sky of Samadhi,
Bright the full moon of wisdom, truly is anything missing now?
Nirvana is right here, before our eyes,
This very place is the Lotus Land,
this very body the Buddha.

TOREI ZENJI: BODHISATTVA’S VOW Torei Enji (1721-1792)
I am only a simple disciple, but I offer these respectful words:
When I regard the true nature of the many dharmas,
I find them all to be sacred forms of the Tathagata’s never-failing essence.
Each particle of matter, each moment,
is no other than the Tathagata’s inexpressible radiance.
With this realisation, our virtuous ancestors,
with compassionate minds and hearts,
gave tender care to beasts and birds.
Among us, in our own daily lives,
who is not reverently grateful for the protections of life:
food, drink and clothing!
Though they are inanimate things,
they are nonetheless the warm flesh and blood,
the merciful incarnations of Buddha.
All the more, we can be especially sympathetic
and affectionate with foolish people,
particularly with someone who becomes a sworn enemy
and persecutes us with abusive language.
That very abuse conveys the Buddha’s boundless loving-kindness.
It is a compassionate device to liberate us entirely
from the mean-spirited delusions we have built up
with our wrongful conduct from the beginningless past.
With our open response to such abuse we completely relinquish ourselves,
and the most profound and pure faith arises.
At the peak of each thought a lotus flower opens,
and on each flower there is revealed a Buddha.
Everywhere is the Pure Land in its beauty.
We see fully the Tathagata’s radiant light right where we are.
May we retain this mind
and extend it throughout the world
So that we and all beings
become mature in Buddha’s wisdom.

SHITOU XIQIAN: TAKING PART IN THE GATHERING Shitou Xiqian (700-790)
The mind of the great Indian immortal
moves seamlessly between East and West.
It’s human nature to be quick or slow,
but in the Way there are no northern or southern ancestors.
The mysterious source of the bright is clear and unstained;
branches of light stream from that dark.
Trying to control things is only delusion,
but hanging onto the absolute isn’t enlightenment either.
We and everything we perceive
are interwoven and not interwoven,
and this interweaving continues on and on,
while each thing stands in its own place.
In the world of form, we differentiate substances and images;
in the world of sound, we distinguish music from noise.
In the embrace of the dark, good words and bad words are the same,
but in the bright we divide clear speech from confusion.
The four elements return to their natures
like a child to the mother.
Fire is hot, the winds blow,
water is wet, the earth solid.
The eye sees form, the ear hears voices,
the nose smells fragrance, the tongue tastes salt and sour.
Everything, depending on its root, spreads out its leaves.
Both roots and branches must return to their origin,
and so do respectful and insulting words.
The darkness is inside the bright,
but don’t look only with the eyes of the dark.
The brightness is inside the dark,
but don’t look only through the eyes of the bright.
Bright and dark are a pair,
like front foot and back foot walking.
Each thing by nature has worth,
but we notice it is shaped by its circumstances.
Things fit together like boxes and lids,
while the absolute is like arrows meeting in mid-air.
When you let these words in, you encounter the ancestors;
don’t limit yourself to your own small story.
If you don’t see the Way with your own eyes,
you won’t know the road even as you’re walking on it.
Walking the Way, we’re never near or far from it;
Deluded, we are cut off from it by mountains and rivers.
You who seek the mystery,
in daylight or in the shadows of night,
don’t throw away your time.

ENMEI JIKKU KANNON GYO
KAN ZE ON
NA MU BUTSU
YO BUTSU U IN
YO BUTSU U EN
BUP PO SO EN
JO RAKU GA JO
CHO NEN KAN ZE ON
BO NEN KAN ZE ON
NEN NEN JU SHIN KI
NEN NEN FU RI SHIN (7 times)

SECOND SUTRA SERVICE DEDICATION
The Buddha and his teachers and her many sons and daughters turn the Dharma wheel to show the wisdom of the stones and clouds;
we dedicate the virtues of reciting
Torei Zenji’s Bodhisattva’s Vow
[or] Hakuin Zenji’s Song of Zazen
[or] Shitou Xiqian’s Taking Part In The Gathering
and the Enmei Jikku Kannon Gyo
to:
Choro Nyogen, Dai Busso,
Hannya Gempo, Dai Busso,
Mitta Soen, Dai Busso,
Maurine MyôOn Stuart, Dai Busso,
and to our relatives and companions of the past who rest in deepest samadhi;
All Buddhas throughout space and time;
all Bodhisattvas, Mahasattvas;
the great Prajña Paramita.

SHIGU SEIGAN MON
SHU JO MU HEN SEI GAN DO
BONNO MU JIN SEI GAN DAN
HO MON MU RYO SEI GAN GAKU
BUTSU DO MU JO SEI GAN JO (3 times)

GREAT VOWS FOR ALL
The many beings are numberless, I vow to save them;
greed, hatred, and ignorance rise endlessly, I vow to abandon them;
Dharma gates are countless, I vow to wake to them;
Buddha’s Way is unsurpassed, I vow to embody it fully.(3 times)

ON OPENING THE DHARMA
The Dharma, incomparably profound and minutely subtle,
Is rarely encountered, even in hundreds of thousands of millions of kalpas;
We now can see it, listen to it, accept and hold it:
May we completely realize the Tathagata’s true meaning. (3 times)

EARLY MORNING SERVICE DEDICATION
Our words ring out through space beyond the stars;
their virtue and compassion echo back from all the many beings;
we recite:
The Great Prajña Paramita Heart Sutra [or] Maka Hannya Haramita Shin Gyo
and the Sho Sai Myo Kichijo Dharani
[or] our gatha and our sutras
for renewal of the Buddha mind in fields and forests,
homes and streets, throughout the world,
in grateful thanks to all our many guides along the ancient way; *
All Buddhas throughout space and time;
all Bodhisattvas, Mahasattvas;
the great Prajña Paramita.

EVENING SERVICE DEDICATION
Infinite realms of light and dark convey the Buddha Mind;
birds and trees and stars and we ourselves come forth in perfect harmony;
we recite our gatha and our sutras for the many beings of the world;
in grateful thanks to all our many guides along the ancient way; *
All Buddhas throughout space and time;
all Bodhisattvas, Mahasattvas;
the great Prajña Paramita.

SESSHIN-ENDING DEDICATION
In the purity and clarity of the Dharmakaya,
in the fullness and perfection of the Sambogakaya,
in the infinite variety of the Nirmanakaya,
we dedicate our sesshin and our reciting of Maka Hannya Haramita Shin Gyo to:
The Ancient Seven Buddhas, Dai Busso,
Shakyamuni Buddha, Dai Busso,
all founding teachers, past, present, future, Dai Busso;
and for the enlightenment of bushes and grasses and the many beings of the world;
All Buddhas throughout space and time;
all Bodhisattvas, Mahasattvas;
the great Prajña Paramita.

TRANSLATIONS

VANDANA
I venerate the Sacred One,
the Great Sage,
the Truly Enlightened One.

TI-SARANA
I take refuge in the Buddha;
I take refuge in the Dharma;
I take refuge in the Sangha.
SHO SAI MYO KICHIJO DARANI
Veneration to all Buddhas!
The incomparable Buddha-power that banishes suffering.
Om! The Buddha of reality, wisdom, Nirvana!
Light! Light! Great light! Great light!
With no categories, this mysterious power
Saves all beings; suffering goes, happiness comes, Svaha!

ENMEI JIKKU KANNON GYO
TEN VERSE KANNON SUTRA OF TIMELESS LIFE
Kanzeon!
I venerate the Buddha;
With the Buddha I have my source,
With the Buddha I have affinity –
Affinity with Buddha, Dharma, Sangha,
Constancy, ease, assurance, purity.
Mornings my thought is Kanzeon,
Evenings my thought is Kanzeon,
Thought after thought arises in mind,
Thought after thought is not separate from mind.