With these facts in mind, we turn now to the second text to be considered in relation to the essay, Merit of Raihaitokuzui “The Leaving Home” (Shukke kudoku). and Shukke kudoku Raihaitokuzui The chapter called Merit of the famous passage in “The Leaving Home” contains which Dogen denies that the teaching that women can become buddhas in a female body is an authentic transmission of Shakyamuni’s golden words. Let us turn now to this famously puzzling passage that seems to contradict what Dogen sets out in his essay: Raihaitokuzui all buddhas of the three times and ten directions there are no buddhas, “Among not even a single buddha, who become buddhas as householders (zaike jōbutsu). Due to the existence of buddhas in the past, there is the merit of going forth from home and receiving the precepts (shukke The gaining of the Way (tokudō) jukai). by living beings always depends on going forth from home and receiving the precepts. In essence, because the merit of going forth from home and receiving the precepts is itself the constant norm (jōhō) of all buddhas, that merit is incalculable (muryō). Although within the holy/sagely teachings (shōkyō) there is talk of becoming a buddha as a householder, that is not an authentic transmission (shōden); although there is talk of becoming a buddha in a female body (nyoshin that too is not an authentic transmission. What the buddhas and [Chan] jōbutsu), ancestors authentically transmit (busso is becoming a buddha as a shōden suru) home-leaver (shukke jōbutsu).”
With these facts in mind, we turn now to the second text to be considered in relation to the Raihaitokuzui essay, “The Merit of Leaving Home” (Shukke kudoku). Shukke kudoku and Raihaitokuzui The chapter called “The Merit of Leaving Home” contains the famous passage in which Dogen denies that the teaching that women can become buddhas in a female body is an authentic transmission of Shakyamuni’s golden words. Let us turn now to this famously puzzling passage that seems to contradict what Dogen sets out in his Raihaitokuzui essay: “Among all buddhas of the three times and ten directions there are no buddhas, not even a single buddha, who become buddhas as householders (zaike jōbutsu). Due to the existence of buddhas in the past, there is the merit of going forth from home and receiving the precepts (shukke jukai). The gaining of the Way (tokudō) by living beings always depends on going forth from home and receiving the precepts. In essence, because the merit of going forth from home and receiving the precepts is itself the constant norm (jōhō) of all buddhas, that merit is incalculable (muryō). Although within the holy/sagely teachings (shōkyō) there is talk of becoming a buddha as a householder, that is not an authentic transmission (shōden); although there is talk of becoming a buddha in a female body (nyoshin jōbutsu), that too is not an authentic transmission. What the buddhas and [Chan] ancestors authentically transmit (busso shōden suru) is becoming a buddha as a home-leaver (shukke jōbutsu).”