Grass, trees, fences, and walls bring forth the teachings for all beings, usual people as well as sages. And they in accord extend this Dharma for the sake of grass, trees, fences, and walls. Thus, the realm of self-awakening and awakening others is fundamentally endowed with realization lacking nothing, and realization itself is actualized ceaselessly. (Dogen, Bendowa, tr. Hoshin and Daien)
Historically, Buddhists have been all about "nature" and some masters, more than others, have included rocks and "fences and walls" within, or hinted that they should be included within, the circle of "sentient beings."
Suppose we, as individuals, were proved to be a kind of baggage, hauled around by the consensus chorus of our mitochondria as convenient packages of nutrients, "intended" as means of preserving the long chain of replication and nothing more?
Lovelock and Margulis proposed, after studying the evidence that Earth's
biosphere and geosphere seem to form a self-regulating system that
"just happens" to keep the Earth within the temperature and humidity
ranges that protect the integrity of DNA-carrying organisms, a
hypothesis that the system is itself purposive, a survival project, so
to speak.
Were we to decide that's how it is, wouldn't Dogen's quote above remain much the same? All support all, but some may realize it less than others, simply because the illusion of self-importance promulgated by our DNA code is quite powerful. Even those who "get it" relapse continually, and zazen is often described as a process of noticing this and returning, again and again, to realization.
So, patience is prajna practice for good reason. I say to myself, "hey, self! Be patient with yourself and others." A few minutes later, I may say it again. This is practice. Life is short, yet we are all in this for the long haul.
-- shonin
