Shundo David Haye

‘Master Dogen is not trying to construct a self-contained intellectual theory. He is trying to use all the tools of philosophy and logic to point to something else; something beyond them all. In the area of reason and logic alone, we cannot embrace systems of thought containing gross contradiction. But reality itself contains contradiction. We experience those contradictions for ourselves at every moment. So an intellectual description of reality must find room for those contradictions, however unacceptable that may feel to our intellectual powers.’

I don’t remember where I pulled this quote from – most likely it was Hardcore Zen. I had it in hand last Thursday for the class, as we pivoted to Dogen, and it may yet get a run out this week.