Guest guest Posted September 14, 2000 Report Share Posted September 14, 2000 --> > >The Zen Teaching of Huang Po on the Transmission of Mind > > - exerpted from translation by John Blofeld (1958) > > Regarding this Zen Doctrine of ours, since it was first > transmitted, it has never taught that people should seek for > learning or form concepts. "Studying the Way" is just a figure of > speech. It is a method arousing people's interest in the early > stages of their development. In fact, the Way is not something > which can be studied. Study leads to the retention of concepts > and so the Way is entirely misunderstood. Moreover, the Way is > not something specially existing; it is called the Mahayana Mind > - Mind which is not to be found inside, outside or in the middle. > Truly it is not located anywhere. > > The first step is to refrain from knowledge-based concepts. This > implies that if you were to follow the empirical method to the > utmost limit, on reaching that limit you would still be unable to > locate Mind. The Way is spiritual Truth and was originally without > name or title. It was only because people ignorantly sought for > it empirically that the Buddhas appeared and taught them to > eradicate this method of approach. Fearing that nobody would > understand, they selected the name "Way." > > You must not allow this name to lead you into forming a mental > concept of a road. So it is said "When the fish is caught we pay > no more attention to the trap." When body and mind achieve > spontaneity, the Way is reached and Mind is understood. A > sramana is so called because he has penetrated to the original > source of all things. The fruit of attaining the sramana stage is > gained by putting an end to all anxiety; it does not come from > book-learning. > > If you now set about using your minds to seek Mind, listening > to the teaching of others, and hoping to reach the goal through > mere learning, when will you ever succeed? Some of the > ancients had sharp minds; they no sooner heard the Doctrine > proclaimed than they hastened to discard all learning. So they > were called, "Sages who, abandoning learning, have come to > rest in spontaneity." > > In these days people only seek to stuff themselves with > knowledge and deductions, seeking everywhere for > book-knowledge and calling this "Dharma-practice." They do not > know that so much knowledge and deduction have just the > contrary effect of piling up obstacles. Merely acquiring a lot of > knowledge makes you like a child who gives himself indigestion > by gobbling too many curds. > > Those who study the Way according to the Three Vehicles are all > like this. All you can call them is people who suffer from > indigestion. When so-called knowledge and deductions are not > digested, they become poisons, for they belong only to the > plane of samsara. In the Absolute, there is nothing at all of this > kind. > > So it is said: "In the armory of my sovereign, there is no Sword > of Thusness." All the concepts you have formed in the past > must be discarded and replaced by void. The canonical > teachings of the Three Vehicles are just remedies for temporary > needs. They were taught to meet such needs and so are of > temporary value and differ one from another. If only this could > be understood, there would be no more doubts about it. > > Above all it is essential not to select some particular teaching > suited to a certain occasion, and, being impressed by its > forming part of the written canon, regard it as an immutable > concept. Why so? Because in truth there is no unalterable > Dharma which the Tathagata could have preached. People of > our sect would never argue that there could be such a thing. We > just know how to put all mental activity to rest and thus achieve > tranquility. We certainly do not begin by thinking things out and > end up in perplexity. Question: From all you have just said, Mind is the Buddha; but > it is not clear as to what sort of mind is meant by this "Mind > which is the Buddha." Is the Buddha the ordinary mind or the > Enlightened mind? > > Answer: In the teaching of the Three > Vehicles it is clearly explained that the > ordinary and Enlightened minds are > illusions. You don't understand. All this > clinging to the idea of things existing is > to mistake clarity for the truth. How can > such conceptions not be illusory? Being > illusory, they hide Mind from you. If you > would only rid yourselves of the concepts > of ordinary and Enlightened, you would > find that there is no other Buddha than > the Buddha in your own Mind. > > When Bodhidharma came from the West, he just pointed out > that the substance of which all people are composed is the > Buddha. You people go on misunderstanding; you hold to > concepts such as "ordinary" and "Enlightened," directing your > thoughts outwards where they gallop about like horses! All this > amounts to beclouding your own minds! So I tell you Mind is the > Buddha. As soon as thought or sensation arises, you fall into > dualism. > > Beginningless time and the present moment are the same. > There is no this and no that. To understand this truth is called > complete and unexcelled Enlightenment. > > - Excerpted from The Zen Teaching of Huang Po on the > Transmission of Mind > John Blofeld (1958) > > Top of Page > > > When I first started practice my teacher had me stop reading > books on Buddhism. While it does serve to arouse the interest, > if we're not careful, we get caught by the concepts and > distracted by a kind of head knowledge which is never > satisfactory in the deepest sense. We easily confuse > understanding the words and ideas with true understanding, and > we never go far enough in our own questioning. More > importantly we wind up collecting understandings without any > practical experience of the teaching which leads to a superficial > kind of practice. > > So, how do we "understand" and then "practice" what Huang Po > is telling us in the above? Here's a passage that might shed > some light... > > > Buddhist trainees should first determine whether or not their > practice is headed toward the Way. Shakyamuni, who was able > to harmonize and control his body, speech, and mind, sat > beneath a bo tree doing zazen. To be headed toward the Way > is to know its appearance and how far it extends. The Way lies > under the foot of every person. When you become one with the > Way you find that it is right where you are, thus realizing perfect > enlightenment. If, however, you take pride in your > enlightenment, even though it be very deep, it will be no more > than partial enlightenment. > > To study the Way is to try to become one with it - to forget even > a trace of enlightenment. Those who would practice the Way > should first of all believe in it. Those who believe in the Way > should believe that they have been in the Way from the very > beginning, subject to neither delusion, illusive thoughts, and > confused ideas nor increase, decrease, and mistaken > understanding. Engendering belief like this, clarify the Way and > practice it accordingly - this is the essence of studying the Way. > > The second method of Buddhist training is to cut off the > function of discriminating consciousness and turn away from the > road of intellectual understanding. This is the manner in which > novices should be guided. Thereafter they will be able to let > body and mind fall away, freeing themselves from the dualistic > ideas of delusion and enlightenment. > > If only you believe that you are truly in the Way, you will > naturally be able to understand how it functions, as well as the > true meaning of delusion and enlightenment. > > - Taken from Zen Master Dogen; An Introduction with Selected > Writings > by Yuho Yokoi (1976) May all be Auspicious, xxxxxxx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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