Eight Means to Enlightenment
Originally appeared May 2013
All the various past Buddhas were enlightened beings. Their great enlightenment is attributed to their having mastered the eight means to nirvana as human beings. These eight means were clarified by the Buddha Shakyamuni himself in his final teaching before he entered parinirvana.
Nowhere else have I seen this particular piece on the Buddha’s last sermon. Many of us have read the admonition to “be a lamp unto yourself” as his last words, but whether the piece above was spoken before he died doesn’t impact the fact that it really was Dogen’s last piece written before his own death.
Read the Journal while listening
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