Words and Phrases

I have cunningly deduced that the "ino's desire" is some kind of game, as people insist on looking for it, and many people seem to want to play it, as evidenced in the search keywords: "ino's desire игра" and "play ino’s desire". I can only feel sorry for the people that somehow land on this site, which Google insists on putting at the top of the list for those keywords, unless it somehow turns out that the blog is all part of the game too, and no-one let me in on the secret.
Other visitors who I suspect may have left disappointed, if not entirely empty-handed, were those looking for "hardcore zen". I mean Brad and I are in the same general field, but this blog is mostly PG-rated, beyond the odd piece of salty language. And while I would have liked to oblige the person who was looking for "tassajara bike graphics", I don't think I have any here. As for the person who typed in "the aspiration for enlightenment & conditions hold out a sin", perhaps someone else would like to take a guess at what they meant, and perhaps Google can explain to me how they ended up here...
Perhaps more pertinently, I found the phrase "what does the enmei jukku kannon gyo mean?" in the search keywords the other day. I don't believe the answer to that question is elsewhere on the blog, but I could say that it is a chant that revolves around Avalokiteshvara, the Bodhisattva of compassion, and is chanted for protecting life. I tend to think of it more as a dharani, an invocation where the power resides in the chanting and not in the meaning. I did, however, chant an English version of it at Great Vow when I was there a few years ago, and this is what appears in their chant book:

Chant of Boundless Compassion
Absorbing world sounds
Awakens a Buddha right here!
This Buddha the source of compassion!
This Buddha receives only compassion!
Buddha, Dharma, Sangha – just compassion.
Thus the pure heart always rejoices!
In the light recall this!
In the dark recall this!
Moment after moment the true heart arises.
Time after time there is nothing but THIS!

Speaking of co-opting things from other sanghas, someone asked me today if we could include the people of Egypt in our noon service dedication. I wrinkled my nose at that, as I couldn't think how to fit it in there, but then I decided we could just make our evening service a well-being service. I was just re-wording our usual dedication before zazen when Kathryn came into the ino's office, and on hearing what I was up to said, oh, we had a lovely dedication at Santa Cruz Zen Center that Katharine Thanas wrote for the Burmese monks, whereupon she went back to her room and emailed it to me. I added a line about Egypt and had it printed out and downstairs by the time the han started. The consensus afterwards was that it was a very nice dedication, and a good idea. (Update, the next morning: well, perhaps it helped...):

May all awakened beings manifest through the Three Treasures their luminous mirror wisdom;
having chanted the Enmei Jukku Kannon Gyo for protecting life,we dedicate this merit and virtue to:

­        The people of Egypt in this time of turmoil and transition in their nation
        The peace and well being of all those injured by acts of violence.
       All world leaders so they may exercise wisdom and care in their actions.

May the words of this sutra and dedication heal this world of suffering and confusion.
May we with our acts of body, speech and mind dedicate ourselves to wholesome action,
   so that the power of goodness may free beings from ignorance and violence.
May we and all beings find solace and strength in Buddha’s way.