Zen Buddhism and Two Sources of Peace: the Study Focusing on the Diamond Sutra

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this paper, when we seek peace along with religion especially Zen Buddhism (禪佛敎), is to examine what peace we face and how it can be realized in our lives. Usually, we meet with religion and respond to the appeal of religion, so we question everyday life and move on to the endless path of the religion, but at the end we respond to the appeal of religion itself, which can question even the religion itself. And the question itself comes from the ‘living nature’ of religion, and we could realize the firmness and severity of religion. Moreover, the interrogation, “Should we continue to rely on religion despite the question?” only makes us listen more to the appeal of religion. Therefore, what can be discussed if this attitude is applied to peace as it is? We are looking for a clue to the importance of our Six-roots(六根) to bring this reality to everyday life from the appropriateness that peace should be the reality of the ‘here and now’. Let’s note that questioning and interrogating is about our Six-root routinely facing boundaries(境界). We experience numerous forms(諸相) appearing and disappearing along the boundaries of Six-roots, which are called the Four Forms(四相) in the Diamond Sutra(金剛經). But since our lives go on the ‘here and now’ surrounded by these four forms, we seem to be in conflict with Zen Buddhism’s teaching to develop a mind which does not rely on anything. This paper will reveal that the two sources of peace stem from this inconsistency. First, we focus on the meaning of this inconsistency through the ‘Thus have I heard(如是我聞)’ and then examine how religion and peace relate to the boundaries of Six-roots. Accordingly ‘all that has a form(凡所有相)’, which appear in the Diamond Sutra as the main scriptures of Zen buddhism(所依經典), argue that these become ‘Four Forms’ as boundaries of Six-roots. Then the boundaries of Six-roots will distinguish between one nation ‘surrounded by forms’ and the other ‘developing a mind which does not rely on forms’, which will help clarify what the two sources of peace mean by ‘Four-forms’ and ‘Non-forms’. Finally, it will be revealed that Non-forms practice is that the enlightened One entered the caste for ritual begging(乞食), washed feet(洗足), and returned to the same castle he had left(還至本處).