THE

BOOK
OF
GOOD
FRIENDS
An Anthology of Stories,
Teachings, and Poems
From the Great
Masters of Wisdom

Muchi Anthony
May all beings be happy at heart.
Table of Contents
The Book of Good Friends 1
Table of Contents 4
Introduction 7

Book 1: Teachings 11
Worldly Knowledge 13
Enlightenment 24
Ignorance 33
The True Basis of Being 38
Time 43
Awareness of the Moment 48
Impermanence 53
The Deathless 58
Karma 63
Suffering 70
Fear 73
Fools 77
Natural Goodness 80
Wealth, Poverty and Contentment 87
Charity 98
Religion 101
Relativity 111
Miracles 114
Fame and Gain 116
Good Friends 120
Good and Bad 124
Teachers and Teaching 126
The Mind 135
Inter-dependence 138
Death 142
The Dream-like Nature of Reality 149
 The Sages 158
The Truth 166
The Path to Enlightenment 171

Book 2: Discipline 177

Desire 179
Love, Kindness and Compassion 187
Views and Arguments 194
Words and Silence 201
Work 208
Humility 213
Self-Discipline 216
Right Thought 223
Meditation 233
Mindfulness 239
Effort 249
The Middle Way 258
Equanimity 262
Patience 272
Non-Interference 275
Anonymity 280
Yielding 288
Non-discrimination 293
Selflessness 298
Emptiness 310
Letting Go 317
Solitude 329

Book 3: Awakening 339

No Relativity 340
No Duality 343
No Karma 348
No Emptiness 352
No Mind 359
Direct Teachings 361
 Testing insight 371
Nothing to be done 381
Continuance of Effort 390
No Words, No Silence 393
Eternal Aloneness 401
Perfect Effortlessness 408
Expressing the Inexpressible 417
Not Knowing 424
In the world, beyond the world 430
The happy fool 443

Appendices 451
Paths, Texts, and Schools 452
Buddhism 453
Some Dates and Details 456
From the Buddhist Lineage 457
From the Taoist Lineage 463
From the Hindu Lineage 465
Acknowledgements 466

Index 469
 Introduction
When the Buddha was asked, “What is Enlightenment?”, he
answered: “It is unshakeable freedom of mind.” On first hearing
this statement, it may come as a disappointment. Granted,
unshakeable freedom of mind would seem to be a state worth
desiring, but what of the attainment of miraculous powers? What
of breaking through the boundaries of Reality? What of the
Awakening into the very substance and meaning of life? When
we are enlightened, do we finally get to know of the origins and
end of the universe? Do we finally get to know why we have
been created, what is our purpose, and what is our end?
‘Unshakeable freedom of mind’ – what really does this mean?

In truth, it is a statement far deeper than can possibly be

imagined, for to understand it completely, requires in the first
place, that one has an experiential and true insight into the nature
of that which is called ‘mind’. When the Buddha spoke of
‘unshakeable freedom of mind’, he was most certainly speaking
from the standpoint of one whose mind has been freed. But freed
from what? In reading the ancient discourses, we are told that he
was freed from delusion, freed from the waywardness of desires,
freed from erroneous views, and most importantly, freed from
ignorance, which is simply the state of not knowing the nature
of things as they are.

Throughout antiquity, the sages have been those beings who

have realized the futility of any attempt at an intellectual inquiry
into the nature of reality. And why? Because even if the intellect
were finally to intuit some final understanding, the question
would still remain: ‘Whence comes this intellect that has gained
this understanding?’ or, in simpler terms, “Who is it that
understands?”
Consider this: the eye sees. Now, in terms of an intellectual
understanding, we could say that seeing is a reflection of
external objects on a layer of light-sensitive cells in the eye. The
brain interprets this as sight. But does this really tell us what
seeing is? If one were blind and were given this knowledge,
would it enlighten one as to the experience of seeing? Would
one know the sight of the drifting clouds? Would one ever know
the beauty of the moon as it hangs over distant hills? Only seeing
is seeing, and however the intellect may describe the act of
seeing, it does not change the fact that, to know what seeing is,
one must first have seen. Thus, in answer to the question, ‘What
is sight?’ the only answer that can be given is, “Do you see? That
is sight.” The reality is such, and intellectual descriptions –
however detailed, subtle, or grand – forever miss the point. The
ultimate matter of existence, and existing, is just the same.

Let us remember that we are considering here not how the

components of the world can be changed and rearranged in the
manner of discovery and invention, but rather what this
experience is that we have come to call life. We are dealing with
the question, “What are we?” or perhaps, “What is
consciousness?” or even “Whence does this present experience
arise?”

In truth, it is these very questions that distinguish the sage from

the multitude of beings lost in delusion. Ordinarily, one might
consider: “This is me – this body, this face, these thoughts, and
here I am thinking about the world.” The sage, however,
considers: “What am I? What is this experience of seeing, of
hearing, of thinking, of imagining, of tasting, of touching, of
hearing?” A sage, looking at the body, would consider: “See this
skeleton clothed in flesh, how it speaks and thinks, and moves.
What has brought it into being? What makes it speak and think
and move? What is this peculiar Reality? What is there to be
truthfully desired?”

Our opinions, beliefs, and deeply entrenched views, hang before

our minds like an impenetrable curtain. Our vision of the
universe is thickly coloured by the nature of our thoughts. It is
only when we once and for all let go of our accumulated
preconceptions and biases that we can finally awaken to the real
nature of things as they are, and indeed, always have been. Only
then can we realise the extent of our previous delusion. Only
then can we see how pointlessly we have struggled and suffered
in vain, seeking to maintain what could never be, longing for
things we should never want, living in a reality that never was.
When a man overcomes his own ignorance, he awakens to a
knowledge and state from which he will not once again fall.

This, then, is enlightenment. This is the extraordinary and single

experience proclaimed by the countless sages throughout time,
many of whom were disconnected by culture, location and era,
yet all of whom arrived at the same insight, driven by the same
intensity of yearning for release. It is with this point in mind that
the following compilation has been created: firstly, as a
companion, friend, and guide to those beings who, feeling
somehow alienated from the state of the world, want desperately
to awaken to the Truth; secondly, as a testimony to the unanimity
of experience realized by the countless great sages throughout
time. Here you will find the austerity and insight of the Buddha,
the assurance and affirmation of Krishna, the clarity and
simplicity of Lao-tzu, the humour and irreverence of Chuang-
tzu, the carefree transcendence of Ashtavakra, and the
unpredictable directness of the many masters of Zen.

There is a popular story told by the Mahayana Buddhists of how

the Buddha stood before an assembly of monks, all well versed
in the teachings of wisdom, and well-disciplined in body and
mind. The Buddha stood in perfect silence, slowly turning a
flower in his hands. As the assembly sat, watched, and waited,
only Kasyapa amongst them smiled. The Buddha announced,
“There is that which is freedom; there is that which is bliss; there
is that which is unstained by anything in this world or the next.
O monks, the treasury of the True Law has been realised by
Kasyapa!”

I offer this collection of teachings, stories and poems as a

flower. My only wish is that it will make a face somewhere
break out in a smile.


 BOOK 1:
TEACHINGS
 Worldly Knowledge

A wise person knows that truthfully, they know not.

They who think they know, are not wise.

 Lao-tzu



When I heard the learn’d astronomer,

When the proofs, the figures,
were ranged in columns before me,
When I was shown the charts and diagrams,
to add, divide, and measure them,
When I sitting heard the astronomer where he lectured
with much applause in the lecture-room,
How soon unaccountable I became tired and sick,
Till rising and gliding out I wander’d off by myself,
In the mystical moist night-air, and from time to time,
Look’d up in perfect silence at the stars.

 Walt Whitman
(1819-1892)
 

Break the tree into pieces!

But what will become of the beautiful blossoms
That flower each year on Yoshino?

 Anon


Alas!
Man’s knowledge reaches to the particles of an atom on a hair,
But not to the realisation of peace.

 Chuang-tzu



It was the time of the autumn floods. Every stream poured into
the river, which swelled in its turbid course. The banks receded
so far from each other that it was impossible to tell a cow from
a horse.
Then the Spirit of the River laughed for joy that all the life-
essence of the earth was gathered unto himself. Down with the
stream he journeyed east until he reached the ocean. Then,
suddenly, his countenance changed, for looking eastwards he
could see no limit to the ocean’s waters, no end to the limitless
waves. As he gazed over the mighty expanse, he sighed and said
to the Spirit of the Ocean, “It is an old proverb that says: ‘He
who has heard but part of the truth thinks no one equal to
himself.’ Just such a one am I.”
The Spirit of the Ocean replied, “Friend, now that you know of
your own insignificance, you are ready to appreciate a deeper
awareness. The great cities of the world, are they not to the ocean
like a seed in the midst of a field? And even these mighty oceans,
when compared to the universe, are they not like small puddles
formed after a rain? As for a man, when compared with all
creation, is he not like the tip of a hair upon a horse’s skin?
The span of a man’s existence cannot be compared with the span
of his non-existence. What man knows cannot be compared with
what he does not know. For space is limitless, and time is
endless. Conditions forever vary, and every concept is a
miniscule fraction of the whole.

 Chuang-tzu


Nan-in, a Japanese master during the Meiji era (1868-1912),
received a university professor who came to enquire about
awakening and the path to liberation.
Whilst Nan-in served tea, the professor chatted endlessly about
the latest discoveries, about theories of the origins of life, and of
the possible destiny of mankind. Quietly, Nan-in filled his
visitor’s cup, and when the cup was full, he kept on pouring.
The professor watched the overflow until he no more could
restrain himself. “What are you doing?” he cried. “Do you not
see the cup is full? No more can go in!”
“Like this cup,” said Nan-in, “you are full of your own opinions
and speculations. How can you awaken to the true nature of
things, unless you first empty your cup?”1



Reality has no comparison, because there is nothing to which it

may be compared. The body of Reality has no identifiable
origin, and cannot be contained by the limit of thought.

 Zen insight



The Buddha told the following story to his monks:
“A widowed father was dearly devoted to his only young son.
One day, while the father was away on business, the whole
village where he lived was plundered and then burned to the
ground by bandits, who took the little boy as their captive. When
the father returned and found only ruins, he entered into abject

1
Adapted from “Zen Flesh, Zen Bones” by Paul Reps and Nyogen Senzaki
misery. He found the charred remains of an infant nearby the
ruins of his old house. Thinking it to be his son, he had them
ceremonially cremated. Then he placed the ashes in a special bag
and carried them with him wherever he went.
“One day his son, still very much alive, managed to escape from
the bandits and found his way back to his old home, where his
father had rebuilt the house. Arriving late at night he knocked
loudly on the door. ‘Who is there?’ called the father. ‘It is I, your
son, please let me in.’
But the father, still carrying his precious bag of ashes and lost in
misery, thought this must be some cruel boy making fun of him.
‘Leave me alone!’ he shouted out. ‘How can you torment a
grieving man in his agony?’
The boy knocked and called again and again, but always the
father made the same response, until at last the boy left, never to
return again.”

Having completed the story, the Buddha added:

“If you cling to some idea as the unalterable truth, then when the
truth does come in person and knocks at your door, you will be
unable to open and accept it.”

 Khuddaka Nikaya
Udana Sutta


The great fault with us all is that we force logic on facts whereas
it is facts themselves that create logic.

 D.T. Suzuki1

1
In ‘The Zen Doctrine of No Mind’
 
A cock crows and a dog barks. So much we know. But the wisest
of us could not say why one crows and the other barks, nor guess
why they should crow or bark at all.

 Chuang-tzu


When a vessel contains water, it may be said that the water has
been limited; while the vessel, in relation to the water, seems
large. However, when the ocean contains that same vessel, then
the vessel appears diminutive while the waters appear immense.

In reality, all vessels are tiny compared to the ocean; and no

matter how much water one may try to scoop, it is merely a
question of displacing a small amount from one place to another.
Such efforts are in vain; for how could that which is limited be
made to contain that which stretches without end?

It is just so with knowledge and the universe. When knowledge

attempts to contain the universe, then the universe appears
contained by the mind. But when the universe is seen to create
knowledge, then knowledge appears infinitely small.

 Mu-chi
 

Those who fear stupidity are already stupid.

Those who do not fear stupidity are on the way to being wise.

 The Yin Fu Ching

Dated 1200 B.C.



‘Forests and marshes make me joyful and glad; but before the
joy is even ended, sadness comes and succeeds to it. When
sadness and joy come, I cannot prevent their coming; when they
go, I cannot hold them back. How sad it is that man should only
be as a lodging-house for feelings, memories, and emotions! For
we know what we experience, but we are unable to know what
we do not experience. We use the power that is given us, but we
are powerless when that power is taken away.
Such ignorance and powerlessness is what man cannot avoid.
That we should try to avoid what we cannot avoid, is this not
also sad?
Thus, perfect speech is to put speech away; perfect action is to
put action away; to pursue all knowledge - that is known as a
thing to be despised.’

 Chuang-tzu
 

Monks, ordinary beings, who have no faith in the existence of a

path to awakening, who do not recognize that there are those
beings that have awakened, are entirely bound and tied by their
own misconceptions of Reality. Seeing the elements of earth,
water, air, and fire, they interpret these things according to
preconditioned and misconceived views. In considering forms,
senses, feelings, thoughts, and consciousness, they interpret
these things according to the specific views they have
accumulated through time. Thus, clinging to such misconceived
ideas, viewing things from a basis of erroneous views, they live
in a world of delusion. It is impossible that such beings should
awaken to the nature of this Reality as it is.

Monks, those beings who desire to walk the path to unexcelled

liberation and knowledge, in seeing and experiencing the
elements of earth, water, air, and fire, should not cherish any
opinions or ideas about such experience. It is in this way that
they will come to know the nature of these things as they are. In
the experience of earth there should be only the experience of
earth, in the experience of water only the experience of water,
and so forth. One should not conceive things about earth and
water, one should not conceive things in earth and water, and
one should not conceive things as coming from earth and water.
Furthermore, one should not conceive of any identity between
oneself and the elements, nor should one take delight in them,
nor experience any aversion towards them. Why is that? So that
one may comprehend the nature of this Reality as it is.
And it is just so with the manifestations of form, with the
experience of senses and feelings, with the arising of thoughts,
and with consciousness itself. One should not cherish any
conceptions, nor hold to any ideas, nor make any suppositions
about these experiences whatsoever.

And why is that? So that going beyond all conceptions based on

ignorance, one may come to the complete and direct knowing of
things as they are.

 The Buddha
Majjhima Nikaya 1



When Chu Po Yu reached his sixtieth year, it occurred to him

that all the opinions he had previously adhered to and even
fought for, he now considered wrong. But then, he considered,
how could he know that what he now thought right was not
perhaps just as wrong as everything he had thought before?

 Chuang-tzu


 The other day I dream I was a butterfly,
Fluttering hither and thither - to all intents and purposes
a butterfly!
Now I do not know if I was then a man dreaming I was a
butterfly, or if I am even now a butterfly dreaming I am a man.

 Chuang-tzu


In the pursuit of knowledge,
Every day notions are gained.

In the practice of the Way,

Every day conceptions are let go.

Lost and again lost, until there is nothing left to lose.

When all notions and conceptions are forgotten,
Then nothing remains to be known.

When it is known that nothing is known,

Then nothing is left unknown.

No matter how much you possess,

You will never possess the world.
But by relinquishing everything,
The entire universe is yours.

 Lao-tzu
 

In the midst of Eternity, flashes this - man’s life.

Like a pin-prick glimmering in an ocean of darkness.

How arrogant, then, those thoughts

That would grasp all of heaven and earth!

We arise out of darkness, and into darkness we return.

This short interim of awareness,
This rapid display of visions, colours, and sense,
Who can say whence it comes,
And how Eternity transforms into birth?

Even were a man to find the ultimate meaning,

Still, one would have to ask,
“Who is it that knows?”

 Mu-chi


 Enlightenment
I consider the positions of kings and rulers as that of dust motes.
I observe treasures of gold and gems as so many bricks and
pebbles. I look upon the finest silken robes as indifferent to
tattered rags. The myriad worlds of the universe are no different
from the small seeds of a fruit; the greatest lake in India is but a
drop of dew by one’s foot. The teachings of the world are like
illusions created by magicians. The highest conception of
emancipation is like a golden brocade in a dream. The great path
walked by the awakened ones is like a vision, a flower in the sky.
Meditation is like a pillar of a mountain; liberation is like a
dream within a dream. The judgement of right and wrong is like
the serpentine dance of a dragon, and the rise and fall of
civilisations, worlds, outlooks, knowledge, and beliefs, are like
leaves swept haphazardly by time.

 The Buddha1
Mahayana Sutra


‘O Arjuna, behold in this body of mine the entire universe
altogether, with all that is moving and unmoving, and all thou

1
Adapted from “Zen Flesh, Zen Bones” by Paul Reps and Nyogen Senzaki
could desire to perceive. But with these worldly eyes of thine
thou cannot see me; wherefore I give thee the sight of the Divine.
Behold my supreme power!’

Having spoken thus, the ultimate Being revealed itself to Arjuna

in its supreme and unspeakable form. With billions of faces and
eyes and with untold wondrous sights; with endless ornaments
and garlands and garments; with celestial perfumes of
unimaginable fragrance; the all-wonderful Existent – infinite
and endless – containing all marvels and witnessing all marvels,
arose to Arjuna’s sight.

If the effulgence of a thousand suns were to shine at once in the

sky, even that could not be compared with the splendour and
vision of the Ultimate, so now exposed. Then Arjuna saw the
entire universe with its innumerable divisions and sub-divisions,
resting altogether in the body of the God of gods, moving and
yet motionless, all in perfect and grand concord. Overwhelmed
with wonder, and with his hair standing on end, Arjuna bowed
his head in awe, and with trembling voice proclaimed:

‘O Lord, O Being of all beings, I see Thee with innumerable

arms and legs, with numberless mouths and eyes, boundless on
every side! Nowhere is there to be seen a beginning, a middle,
or an end! I see Thou effulgence shining everywhere: blazing,
dazzling to the sight, and immeasurable! Thou art the
Imperishable, the Supreme, the Unity and Existence of all that
can be known! Thou art Ancient, without beginning. Thou art
unchanging and mysterious, though everything that moves is
You! You alone pervade the space between the heaven and the
earth and all quarters! O Infinite Awareness, on seeing this, Thy
gleaming and mysterious Form, all the worlds submit
themselves with awe!’

 Bhagavad Gita XI.7-20

 
Sudhana, having endured endless trials on his quest for
enlightenment, finally meets Maitreya, and asks the enlightened
being to allow him to enter the Tower of the Vision of Truth.
Maitreya steps towards the Tower and snaps his fingers, and lo!
the doors open. With a joyous heart Sudhana enters, the doors
closing by themselves behind him as mysteriously as they had
opened before.
What a sight is now revealed to him! The tower is as wide and
spacious as the sky itself. The ground is paved with precious
stones of every conceivable kind, and everywhere within the
tower are innumerable palaces, porches, windows, staircases,
railings, and passages, all of which are made of effulgent and
radiant gems. There are innumerable banners, canopies, strings,
nets, and hangings of various shapes, all made of radiant stones.
Endless bells tinkle in the breeze, boundless petals shower down
from the trees, endless golden flakes are scattered, infinite
mirrors shine, and limitless lamps can be seen as they glow.
Innumerable birds, magnificent to behold, sing everywhere
melodiously; uncountable lotus flowers in myriad colours are in
full bloom, incalculable trees are planted in regular rows,
innumerable ray-emitting jewels send out exquisite facets of
light.
And within this tower, spacious and exquisitely ornamented,
there are untold hundreds upon thousands of other towers, each
one as magnificently ornamented and spacious as the main tower
itself. And all of these towers – infinite in number and each one
boundless in spaciousness within – stand not at all in one
another’s way; each preserves its individual existence in perfect
and mutual harmony with the rest; there is nothing here that bars
one tower from being fused with others individually or
collectively; there is a state of perfect interfusion and yet also
perfect identity and orderliness. Sudhana the young pilgrim sees
himself in all the towers as well as in each single tower, where
all is contained in one, and each contains all.
Finding himself in this mysterious place, and with his mind
wandering from one marvel to another, his joy knows no bounds.
He is freed from all individualistic notions, from all mental
hindrances, and from all bewilderments; for he is now in the
midst of an emancipation that goes beyond limitations of any
kind.
 The Gandavyuha Sutra1


After enlightenment, you will be able to use knowledge, and
virtue freely. In life, you are not stayed by life; in death, you are
not obstructed by death. Even though you are within the clusters
of mental and physical elements, it is as if a door has opened, so
that you are no longer inhibited by the elements. You are free to
leave or to remain, going out and entering without difficulty. If
you can be like this, there is no question of stages or steps, of
superior or inferior; everything, even down to the bodies of ants,
is all the land of pure marvel. It is inconceivable.

 Pai-chang (720 – 814)2

1
Adapted from D.T. Suzuki’s translation in “Essays in Zen Buddhism – 3rd
Series”
2
Slightly altered from Thomas Cleary’s translation in ‘The Five Houses of
Zen’
 
“It is just within this very body, six-foot long and endowed with
perception and intellect, that I declare that there is the cosmos,
the origination of the cosmos, the cessation of the cosmos, and
the path of practice leading to the cessation of the cosmos.”

 The Buddha1
Anguttara Nikaya IV.45



Limitless and far-reaching, without boundaries, solitary and

stainless, effulgent, this spirit is beyond obstruction. It is empty
and radiant through space. Luminous and purifying, it
transcends all perceptions of this and that. Subtle and self-
preserved, illumined and vast, it cannot be spoken of as being or
non-being, or be discussed with images or calculations. Right
here the pivot turns, the gateway opens. You accord and respond
without labour, and accomplish without hindrance: everywhere
moving freely, not following conditions, beyond all ideas and
thought.

 Hung-chih (d. 1157)

1
Adapted from the translation by Thanissaro Bhikkhu
 

All awakened ones and every noble ancestor without exception

testifies to arriving at this refuge: the state where past, present,
and future cease, and the ten thousand changes are brought
perfectly to rest. Straight-ahead, unopposed by the smallest
atom, the inherently illumined spirit of awareness subtly
penetrates the very source of all being.

 Hung-chih



When you come to the inescapable insight that all things in their
nature are without possessions, without attainments, without
dependence, without an abiding place, without mutual
conditioning, you will become free from the entanglements of
imagination. This is to realise enlightenment.

 Huang-po (d. 850)


 When understanding dawns,
Then one is fulfilled.
The mind is luminous and empty,
And all things are complete.
One sees and hears,
Touches, smells, and tastes,
And one is happy.
For at last the mind is free.
Free from striving,
And free from all concerns.

 Ashtavakra Gita 17.81



When one reaches the level of absolute freedom, then one is truly
free. Mind and body are no longer attached to anything
anywhere. There is no gain, and no loss. This mystery is the way
of non-differentiation. In trying to say even one word about it,
one misses the point.

 Ch’ing-chu Hao-sheng
(c 10th century)



1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Byrom in ‘The Heart of
Awareness’
When your realization is true, then your words and actions will
be in perfect accord. Your body is no longer mere flesh; your
mind no longer perplexed. Your eyebrows are low on the spring
mountains, your eyes blue as the autumn sea. Unlimited
meditations appear in every particle of matter; innumerable
teachings emerge from the endless manifestation of forms.

 Dogen


When by the side of the ancient ferry
The breeze and moonlight are cool and pure,
This dark vessel transforms into a glowing world.

 Hung-chih (d. 1157)


Coming and going, life and death:
A thousand hamlets, a million houses.
Don’t you see?

Moon in the water,

Flowers in the sky.

 Gizan


 Ignorance

The butterfly sleeps well

Perched on the temple bell.
Until it rings.

 Buson



Hell is not painful compared to the tremendous misery

Of failing to understand this great matter of life and death.

 Taoist saying



Lost in the darkness of ignorance,

Not knowing the ways which bring suffering
And the way leading to peace;
People stumble about like blind men,
Grasping at illusions and clinging to thorny vines.
 Good friends!
Do you not see that you are the cause
Of your own misery?
Slow down, look into what is good;
Pay attention to what is wise,
And by walking the true path,
Train yourselves diligently so as to open your eyes!

 Mu-chi



One’s perceptions of the world are forever tainted by the

delusions of one’s own mind. If you are ambitious, you will see
others as being competitive. If you are greedy, you will think
others are jealous of what you have. If you are forever concerned
about yourself, not recognising the suffering of others around
you, you will think that the entire world is selfish, with nobody
to share the misery that you yourself must suffer through.

 Bunan


How foolish are they who turn away from what is deep and
eternal and instead pursue the fleeting shapes of this physical
world, shapes that are mere reflections in the mirror of the
essence of self. Not caring to peer beneath the surface, deluded
beings are content to snatch at images. They think that the
material world’s ever-flowing energy can be modified into
permanent forms, that they can name and value these forms, and
then, like great lords, exert dominion over them.

 Han shan Te’-Ch’ing

(1546 - 1623)



The enjoyments that come from sensuality and a desire for

objects are forever the cause of misery, O Arjuna, for they are
transient, short-lived and swift. Therefore, the wise do not chase
after them, knowing well that their pleasure leads only to pain.

 Bhagavad Gita V.22


A certain monk went to the Buddha and, on arrival, having
bowed down to him, sat to one side. As he was sitting there he
said to the Blessed One: “Previously, lord, you have spoken of
three feelings: a feeling of pleasure, a feeling of pain, and a
feeling of neither pleasure nor pain. However, I have also heard
the Blessed One say: “Whatever is felt comes under pain.” How,
lord, is this apparent contradiction to be understood?”

“Well spoken, monk, well spoken! I have indeed spoken of three

feelings: a feeling of pleasure, a feeling of pain, and a feeling of
neither pleasure nor pain. But I have also said: ‘Whatever is felt
comes under pain.’ This I have stated simply in connection with
the impermanent nature of all that is created. I have stated it
simply in connection with the nature of all things arisen to end.
I have stated it in connection with the nature of all conditions,
situations, and things to change, to fall away, to disintegrate, to
cease.”

 Samyutta Nikaya XXXVI.11


To the one with discernment, all attainments are considered
painful, on account of bringing pain either as consequence, or
from anticipation of loss, or from fresh cravings arising from the
contact with transitory happiness.

The misery that has not yet come is to be avoided.

 The Yoga aphorisms of

Patanjali
 

“It is only with the abandoning of ignorance that clear knowing

arises.
“And how does one abandon ignorance so as to see clearly and
know things as they are?
“Here one must recognise that all things are impermanent, and
unworthy of attachment. Thus, one ceases from clinging, ceases
from grasping, and lets things go. When one no longer grasps at
things, when one is no longer attached to things, and when one
is able to observe things without inherent bias, then one comes
to see things as they are. In this way, one comes to direct
knowledge, to a knowledge which is clear sighted and free from
the obstructions of ignorance.”

 The Buddha
Samyutta Nikaya XXXV.80


Shrouded in darkness, why not seek the light?

 The Dhammapada
 The True Basis of Being
There is that which is the basis of all heaven and earth. It is itself
the source of names, how then could it be named? Being forced
to name it, I call it the Tao (literally, the Way). Though it is all
in action, it never acts. Though it is all in creation, it has no
substance of any kind. It is based in itself, rooted in itself. It
exists in its solitude throughout all time. It gives to all beings,
from spirits to kings their existence and their power, and creates
the great heavens and earth out of its Self. To the Tao there is no
such thing as great, nor any such thing as small; no point in time
is long ago, nor by the lapse of ages does it grow old.

 Chuang-tzu


There is that dimension where there is neither earth, nor water,
nor fire, nor wind; neither the dimension of the infinitude of
space, nor dimension of the infinitude of consciousness, nor
dimension of nothingness, nor dimension of neither-perception-
nor-non-perception; neither this world nor the next; neither sun
nor moon. And there, I say, there is neither coming, nor going,
nor staying; neither passing away nor arising: for there is no
foundation, no change, and no support of any kind. This, just
this, is the abode of those who have made an end of suffering.

 The Buddha
Udana VIII.1
 
Sword cannot pierce it, fire cannot burn it, water cannot wet it,
and air cannot dry it. It is all pervading, unchangeable,
immoveable, existing beyond all constructs of time. It is
uncreated, unimaginable, and unalterable. It is the basis and
awareness of all that is. Knowing this to be so, thou should never
grieve.

 Bhagavad Gita II.20-25


That which makes things what they are has not the limit which
belongs to things, and when we speak of things being limited, it
is only that they appear so in themselves. When we consider the
matter deeply we realize that all that is limited resides within the
limitless, and all that is bounded is permeated by the boundless.
People speak of fullness and of emptiness; of withering and
decay. The Absolute produces fullness and emptiness, but is
neither made full nor emptied thereby; it manifests withering and
decay, but neither withers nor decays. It fabricates the root and
branches, but is neither root nor branch; it causes accumulation
and dispersion, but is itself neither accumulated nor dispersed.

 Chuang-tzu


 Reality does not come from anywhere,
and does not depart to anywhere,
therefore it is called ‘Such-as-it-is’.

 The Diamond Sutra


While the blue mountain remains unmoved,
White clouds come and go.

 Zen saying


O Arjuna, like pearls on a thread, all this universe is strung
together on My Being. I am the water, the earth, and the sun and
moon; I am silence and I am sound; I am fragrance and the
brilliance of light; I am intellect and also ability; I am thought,
and yea – even desires are of My Being. I am the seed of all in
existence; I am the power by which all things have life; and the
awareness that presently ponders these things – this, too, is My
Being.

 Bhagavad Gita VII.8-11


 I am the boundless ocean.
This way and that,
The wind, blowing where it will,
Drives the ship of the world.
But I am not shaken.

I am the unbounded deep

In whom the waves of all the worlds
Naturally rise and fall.
But I do not rise or fall.

I am the infinite deep

In whom all the worlds
Appear to rise.

Beyond all form,

Forever still.
Even so am I.

 Ashtavakra Gita 7.1-31


However rapidly the stream may flow,
It cannot carry the reflection of the moon.

 Zen saying

1
Translated by Thomas Byrom in ‘The Heart of Awareness’

 Time

No sooner have they bloomed,

Than the scented flowers of the plum-tree
Are scattered and blown away,
By the winds of this world of change.

 Japanese Folk Song


It is said that what is called the ‘spirit of the age’ is something to
which one cannot return. That this spirit gradually dissipates is
due to the fact that existence is bound up with change. All the
worlds must, therefore, come to an end. For this reason, although
one may lament that the present spirit of the world is a
degeneration of times gone by, it is impossible that things should
not alter, and there is no way for circumstances to return to what
they were. Thus it is important to make the most out of every
generation, for this generation, too, is changing and tumbling
into something new.

 Hagakure


 Man passes through this sublunary life
As a sunbeam through a crack –
Here one moment, gone the next.

 Chuang-tzu
[c. 300 B.C.]



“O Power of Creation, seeing thee suffusing the entire universe,

radiating endless colours, with cavernous mouths and blazing
eyes, my heart is terrified and I find neither composure nor peace
of mind.
O Lord of the gods, seeing Thy mouths, terrible with long teeth,
blazing like the fires of destruction, I know not who or where I
am, nor do I find any peace. Have mercy, O Abode of the
universe!
All the warriors on this battlefield – the wise, the mighty, and
the iniquitous - all enter rushing into Thy mouths, terrible with
long teeth and fearful to look at. Some are seen hanging between
Thy teeth, with bodies’ limp and heads crushed to powder.
As the many torrents of rivers rush towards the ocean, so do
these warriors enter every one into Thy mouths, blazing fiercely
on all sides.
As moths rush into the burning flame with headlong speed for
destruction, just so do the manifold creatures, beings, and things,
rush into Thy mouths with headlong speed to perish.
O Almighty! Swallowing all the worlds with Thy blazing
flames, Thou art licking all around. Thy fierce, radiant eyes,
filling the whole universe, are burning.
Tell me, who art Thou, in this terrible Form? Reverence to Thee!
O Power Supreme, have mercy on me! O Primeval One, I wish
to know who Thou art, for I cannot conceive of Thy purpose.”

The Lord replied: “I am Time, the destroyer of all worlds. I am

the slayer of every warrior – every being and creature on this
field. Even without man’s interference, none of these warriors,
arrayed here in such hostile arms, shall live. Therefore, be
fearless and do thy duty, Arjuna, knowing that thou art no more
than an instrument of cause. For all this has already been
destroyed by Me.”

 Bhagavad Gita XI.23 - 34



Just as a line drawn on water with a stick will quickly vanish,

even so is human life. It is exceedingly short. For none who are
born can escape death.

 The Buddha
Anguttara Nikaya VII


 The body of man is like a flicker of lightning,
Existing only to return to Nothingness:
Like the verdant spring growth that shrivels in autumn.

Look deeply into the essence of this moment.

This existence is just what it is:
Like sparkling dew these lives fade in an instant.

 Than Hhan
(circa 1018, Vietnamese
Buddhist)


The endlessness of space has no limit of duration, but the death
of man has its appointed time. Take the longest amount of a
limited time, and compare it with what is unlimited, and its brief
existence is no different from a galloping horse seen through a
crack in a wall.

 Chuang-tzu


 Old battlefield, fresh with spring flowers again.
All that is left of the dreams
Of twice ten thousand warriors slain.

 Basho1


A single leaf –
Just a single leaf has fallen,
And is swept away breathless
By a gust of wild wind.

 Ransetsu (1654 – 1707)

(Written at the time of his
death)


The years of a lifetime pass like a flash of lightning; how can it
be possible to cling to objects? They are empty through and
through. Even if you care for the nose in front of your face, still
be careful and value every moment to journey towards
enlightenment.

 Dogen (1200 – 1253)

1
Translated by C. H. Page
 Awareness of the Moment
In a certain town lived a mendicant priest named Seedy who one
day received a generous amount of barley-meal on his begging
rounds. He ate a portion, and filled a jar with the remainder,
which he hung from a peg in his roof. Then that night, placing
his bed beneath the jar, and fixing his gaze on it, he fell into a
hypnotic reverie.
“Well, here is a jar full of barley-meal,” he thought. “Now, if
famine comes, it will be worth a hundred rupees. With that sum,
I will buy two goats – one male and the other female. Every six
months they will bear kids. When I have enough goats, I will sell
some and buy cows. When the cows calve, I will sell just a few
and keep the rest. After cows, I will get buffaloes; and after
buffaloes, mares. From the mares, I shall get plenty of horses.
The sale of these will mean a lot of gold. The gold will buy a
great house with an inner court. Then someone will come to my
house and offer his lovely daughter with a dowry. She will bear
a son whom we will name Moon-Lord. When he is old enough
to ride on my knee, I will take a book, sit on the stable roof, and
think. Just then Moon-Lord will see me, and jumping from his
mother’s lap in eagerness to ride on my knee, will go too near to
the horses. Then I’ll get angry and tell my wife to take the boy.
But she, forever being engrossed in her chores, won’t pay
attention to what I say. That will irritate me even more, and I’ll
go over to her and give her a kick!”
Being sunk in his reverie, he let fly such a kick that he smashed
the jar, and the barley-meal covered him with white.

 The Panchatantra1

1
Adapted from the translation by Arthur W. Ryder
 
If you think about the past, you carry your former habits,
misconceptions, and actions along with you. In this way, you do
not grow beyond the limitations imposed by your former self.
If you think about the future, the road seems long and difficult
to negotiate.

It is better to be serene and relaxed, not thinking of past or future

but just paying attention to this moment, acting naturally and
spontaneously towards events as they arise.
Each moment of pure awareness enhances the depth of your
being. With time this will accumulate. Effortlessly you become
wise.

 Lu-yen (c. 600 A.D.)


What is past is gone, never to return.
The future is uncertain, who knows which way things may go?
This moment is fleeting - swiftly!
Be present, or you are not truly alive.

 The Dhammapada


There is surely nothing other than the single purpose of this
moment. A man’s whole life is a rapid succession of instant after
instant. If one fully comprehends this moment, there will be
nothing lacking, and nothing further to pursue.

 Hagakure
(The Way of the Samurai)


Not being present, even temporarily, is like being dead.

 Zen saying



The Buddha told the following parable in one of his teachings:

“A man travelling across a field encountered a tiger. He fled, the
tiger after him. Coming to a precipice, he caught hold of the root
of a wild vine and swung himself down over the edge. The tiger
sniffed at him from above. Trembling, the man looked down to
where, far below, another tiger was waiting to eat him. Only the
vine sustained him.
Two mice, one white and one black, little by little started to gnaw
away at the vine. The man saw a luscious strawberry growing in
a crevice overhead. Grasping the vine with one hand, he plucked
the strawberry with the other. How sweet it tasted!”

Mu-chi commented: “The first tiger represents birth, which from

the start carries all beings towards death. The second tiger is
death itself. The white and black mice are the endlessly rotating
cycles of day and night, driving us every moment closer to
disintegration. And the strawberry? It is the subtle perception of
this moment. Are you aware of its’ taste?”



I-Naosuke (1815 – 1860) was the chief administrator of the

Tokugawa Shogunate and was also a tea master. Because of the
radical changes he instituted, he had many enemies and was
constantly threatened with assassination.

Every day, before he left for the castle, he made a bowl of tea by
himself, saying that it was an unprecedented tea and, most likely,
an unrepeatable tea. In this way, he practiced tea meditation.
One snowy morning, in the spring of 1860, he was assassinated.
However, this saying – ‘unprecedented, unrepeatable’ – lived
on, and now it is the most important motto for Zen students of
tea.1


1
As told by Eido Tai Shimano in “Zen Word, Zen Calligraphy”
 Tea is not but this:
First you make the water boil,
Then infuse the tea.
Then you drink it properly.
That is all you need to know.

 Sen-No-Rikyu



Each moment of time has more worth than gold: Treasure it.
This moment will not return.
Misplaced gold may perchance be found,
Misspent time is lost forever.

 Takuan
(A.D. 1573 - 1645)


 Impermanence

Duke Ching of Ch’i was travelling across the northern flank of

the Ox-mountain in the direction of the capital. Gazing at the
view before him, he burst into a flood of tears, exclaiming:
‘What a lovely scene! How verdant and luxuriantly wooded! To
think that someday I must die and leave my kingdom, passing
away like running water! If only there were no such thing as
death, nothing should induce me to stir from this spot!’ Two of
the Ministers in attendance on the Duke, taking their cue from
him, also began to weep, saying: ‘We, who are dependent on
Your Highness’ bounty, whose food is of an inferior sort, who
have to ride on broken-down hacks or in creaking carts, even we
do not want to die. How much less our sovereign liege!’
Yen Tzu, meanwhile, was standing by with an amused smile on
his face. The Duke wiped away his tears and, looking at him,
said: ‘Today I am stricken with grief on my journey, and my two
close attendants both mingle their tears with mine. How is it that
you stand and smile?’
Yen Tzu replied: ‘If the worthy ruler were to remain in perpetual
possession of his realm, then those worthy dukes of ancient
times would still be exercising their sway. If the bold ruler were
to remain in perpetual possession, then the powerful men of yore
would still be ruling the land. But if all these rulers were now in
possession, where would Your Highness be? Why, standing in
the furrowed fields, wearing a peasant’s rough clad boots and
hat! Condemned to a hard life on earth, you would have no time,
I warrant, for brooding over death. Again, how did you yourself
come to occupy this throne? By a series of successive reigns and
removals, until at last your turn came. And are you alone going
to weep and lament over this order of things? That is nothing but
selfishness. It was the sight of these two things - a self-possessed
prince and his fawning attendants - that set me quietly laughing
to myself just now.’
Duke Ching felt much ashamed. Filling his goblet with wine, he
quickly downed a cup, while his obsequious attendants
swallowed two quick cups each.

 Lieh-tzu



Decrease and increase, ripening and decay, are the constant

accompaniments of life and death. They alternate in continuous
succession, and we are not conscious of any interval. The body
of spiritual substance grows constantly without a pause; the body
of material substance decays constantly without intermission.
But we do not perceive the process of spiritual growth, nor do
we perceive the process of bodily decay. Man, from birth to old
age, becomes something different each day in face and form, in
wisdom and in conduct. His skin, his nails and his hair are
constantly growing and constantly fading. From infancy into
childhood there is neither stopping nor respite from
transformation. Though imperceptible while it is occurring, with
a shock we one day realise that everything has changed.’

 Lieh-tzu


When an uninstructed worldling comes upon gain, he does not
reflect on it thus: ‘This gain that has come to me is impermanent,
subject to change, and hence bound up with suffering.’ He does
not know it as it really is. Being thus obsessed with likes and
dislikes, he cannot free himself from suffering.

An instructed noble student reflects thus: ‘This gain that has

come to me is impermanent, subject to change, and hence bound
up with suffering.’ He understands the nature of things as they
are, and they do not engross his mind.

 The Buddha
Anguttara Nikaya VIII



“Monks, whether or not there exist anywhere any beings who

have awoken to the true nature of this Reality, still this inherent
first property stands, this first steadfastness of Reality, this first
principle of the Truth: All in existence is impermanent.

“The sage directly awakens to that, breaks through to it. Directly

awakening and breaking through to it, he declares it, teaches it,
describes it, and sets it forth. He reveals it, explains it, and makes
it clear: All in existence is impermanent.”

“Monks, whether or not there is the arising anywhere of any

beings who have awoken to the true nature of this Reality, this
second property stands, this second steadfastness of Reality, this
second principle of the Truth: To desire what is impermanent
will cause suffering.

“The sage directly awakens to that, breaks through to it. Directly

awakening and breaking through to it, he declares it, teaches it,
describes it, and sets it forth. He reveals it, explains it, and makes
it plain: To desire what is impermanent causes suffering.

 The Buddha
Anguttara Nikaya III:134



There are these four summaries of the Truth:

The world is variable: subject to ceaseless change.

The world is impermanent: swept away for nothing to remain.
The world is without ownership:
One must leave all and pass away.
The world is unsatisfying: a slave to craving, and insatiable.

 Majjhima Nikaya 82


All things arise, suffer change, and pass away.
This is their nature.

When you know this, you cease from clinging.

Then nothing perturbs you, nothing hurts you.

You stop seeking,

You become peaceful and still.

It is easy.

 Ashtavakra Gita 11.1



Fleeting is this world:

All that arises inherently decays.
Things spring into being and again they cease;
Happy the marvel of them, and the peace.

 Nidana Vagga
Mahayana Buddhism


 The Deathless

“Monks, there is that which exists beyond notions of birth,

which exists without being, which is beyond being made, which
remains unaltered by conditions. If, monks, it was the case that
there was not that which is unborn, not-brought-to-being, not
made, and not-conditioned, then no escape would be discerned
from what is born, from what is brought-to-be, from what is
made, from what is conditioned. But since there is a not-born, a
not-brought-into-being, a not-made, an unconditioned, therefore
an escape is discerned from what is born, brought-into-being,
made, and conditioned.”

 The Buddha
(Siddharta Gautama)
Itivuttaka II:16



Puliang-I, having the mental perspicuity of a sage, but not yet

having realised enlightenment, desired for nothing but that
liberation into the All. As such, he persevered with relentless
energy and determination. After three days, he transcended all
thoughts of the mundane world. Seven days more and he
transcended the solidity of material form. Nine days further, and
he transcended the matter of life. After he had transcended life,
he had a clear vision of the morning; and in the depths of serenity
and self-reflection, he merged with the One. Having merged
with the One, he ceased all distinctions of past and present.
Having ceased notions of past and present, he was able to enter
where life and death are no more, where killing does not take
away life, nor giving birth add to it. He was ever in accord with
the necessities of the moment, accepting all and welcoming all,
regarding everything as destroyed, and everything as perfectly
complete.

 Chuang-tzu



To learn the Way, you must gain an insight into birth and death.
If you don’t comprehend birth and death, to seek after
immortality is vain. When you know the true nature of birth, then
also you know the nature of death. Free to leave or stay, you
leave all things to nature’s course.

Originally there is no death and no birth – the moment a thought

goes astray, you see myriad forms. If you know the foundation -
whence thoughts arise and disperse - then the solitary orb of the
moon illumines brightly the central courtyard of your being.

 Wang Wei-i (c. 1300 A.D.)1

1
Adapted from Thomas Cleary in ‘Vitality Energy Spirit’
 

Ananda, the nature of the Absolute is that of total enlightenment.

It is beyond name and form, and beyond the world and all its
living beings. Those who are ignorant are fooled by the illusion
of birth and death, but when ignorance is dispelled, the supreme
and shining Absolute is revealed. Then, suffering is changed into
insight, and death is like a release from a dream.

 The Surangama Sutra


The physical body passes away, but the basis of being does not
change. Use the unchanging to respond to changes, and all things
flow on their way. What changes disintegrates, while what does
not change is everlasting and pure.

That which gives birth to life is eternal, hence it lies beyond

concepts of birth. It is what it gives birth to that considers itself
born. That which causes change does not itself change; what it
changes is what seems to change.

 Wen-tzu (c. 100 B.C.)

 
Tsesang Hu, Mengtse Fan, and Tsech’in Chang, were
conversing together, saying, “Who can live together as though
they did not live together? Who can help others as though no
help were given? Who can mount to Heaven, and roaming
through the clouds, leap about to the Infinite, oblivious of
existence, for ever and ever without end?” The three looked at
each other and smiled in perfect mutual understanding, and
became good friends accordingly.
Shortly afterwards, Tsesang Hu died, whereupon Confucius sent
his disciple Tsekung to attend the mourning. But on arriving
there, Tsekung found Mengtse arranging sheets of music, while
Tsech’in was plucking on a harp, and both were singing together
loudly. Tsekung hurried in and said, “How can you sing in the
presence of a corpse? Are these good manners?”
The two men looked at each other and laughed, saying, “What
does this man know about the matter of good manners?”
Tsekung hastened back to Confucius, and telling him of the
incident, asked, “What manner of men are these? They can sit
near a corpse and sing, unmoved! There is no name for such
people! What manner of men are they?”
“Alas!” replied Confucius, “These are men who play about in
the realm beyond material things; while you and I only move
about within them. Consequently, our paths do not meet, and it
was my mistake to have sent you to mourn. These men are
companions of the Creator, and they play about within the One
Spirit of the universe. They look upon life as the arising of a
bubble from a stream, and upon death as its return to the water.
How could such people be concerned about the coming of life
and death, or their consequence? They go through life
backwards and forwards as in a circle without beginning or end,
strolling forgetfully beyond the dust of mortality, and playing in
the realm of non-doing.”
“All the same,” said Tsekung, “I cannot help but think their
behaviour strange!”
“Indeed,” replied Confucius, “those men seem strange to the
eyes of man, but perfectly normal in the eyes of the Universe.
Hence the saying that the meanest thing in heaven would be the
best on earth; and the best on earth, the meanest in heaven.”

 Chuang-tzu


Having surmounted all opposites,
The Wise endure unaltered through change.
Leaving behind birth and death,
They awaken to that which never dies,
And transcends all notions of birth.

 Lao-tzu


Take a look at the puppets on the stage!
Their performance is directed entirely by the man behind.

 Lin-chi (d. 866)

 Karma
Mind precedes all states of being.
All that we are arises from mind.
Speak or act with an impure mind,
And trouble will follow you,
As the wheel of the cart follows the ox.

Mind precedes all states of being.

All that we are arises from mind.
Speak and act with a pure mind,
And happiness will follow you,
Even as your shadow, unshakeable.

 The Dhammapada


In the course of Lieh-tzu’s instruction by his Master, the latter
said to him: “You must familiarise yourself with the Law of
Cause before you can talk of proper and appropriate conduct.”
“What do you mean by the law of Cause?” asked Lieh-tzu.
“Look at your shadow,” said his Master, “and you will know.”
Lieh-tzu turned and looked at his shadow. When his body was
bent, the shadow was crooked; when his body was upright, the
shadow was straight. Thus, it appeared that the attributes of
straightness and crookedness were not inherent in the shadow,
but corresponded to positions of the body as its cause.
“Do you see?” said the master, “If the body is long, then the
shadow is long; if the body is short, the shadow is short. If
speech is sweet, the echo will be sweet; if speech is harsh, the
echo will be harsh. Reputation is like an echo; personal
experiences are like a shadow that one casts. Hence the saying:
‘Heed your words, and you will meet with harmonious response;
heed your actions, and you will find agreeable accord.’”

 Lieh-tzu


Even if thou art the most sinful of the sinful,
Thou shalt cross over the ocean of sin
With the vessel of wisdom.

As kindled fire reduces wood to ashes, O Arjuna,

So does the fire of wisdom
Reduce all complications to nothing.

 Bhagavad Gita 4.36; 37


Your worst enemy cannot harm you
As much as your own thoughts, unguarded.
But once mastered,
No one can help you as much -
Neither father, nor mother, nor teacher, nor friend.

 The Dhammapada
 
Neither in the sky, nor in mid-ocean, nor by entering into
forgotten mountain clefts: nowhere in the world is there a place
where one may go to escape the results of one’s own evil doings.

 The Dhammapada


A thief, walking in the midst of a busy market place, came to a
stall selling beautiful gold jewellery. Without thinking, he
snatched some of the jewellery and ran. It so happened that there
were policemen walking all about on the market that day, and so
with very little effort the thief was caught.
“You fool!” shouted some onlookers. “How could you try to
steal in broad daylight in the midst of all these police?”
“I didn’t see the police,” said the thief. “I only saw the gold.”

 Lieh-tzu



The good fortunes of this world are temporary,
And light as feathers,
Yet none recognise them at their worth.
 The misfortunes of this world are weighty,
And heavy as the earth,
Yet few know how to rise beyond their reach.

Beware, beware, and move cautiously on!

O brambles, O brambles, I pick my way about,
hurt not my feet!

 Chuang-tzu


The result of any action is of three sorts:
There is that result to be experienced immediately:
right here and now;
There is that which arises in some time not far off;
And that which has effect in some far distant time.

Just as a boulder, when thrown into water, sinks;

And oil poured on water floats;
Even so does every action have some inviolable result.
For this is the way: that all Causes produce an effect,
Be it desirable or undesirable or both.

 The Buddha
Anguttara Nikaya VI.63
and Samyutta Nikaya XLII.6


Think not lightly of evil, saying, “It will not come to me.” Drop
by drop the bucket is filled. Likewise, the fool, developing it
little by little, makes for himself a character that is evil.

Think not lightly of good, saying, “It will not come to me.” Drop
by drop the bucket is filled. Likewise, the wise man, developing
it little by little, makes for himself a character that is good.

 Dhammapada 120 - 121


At the entrance to most Zen monasteries, there is a plaque that
reads: “Watch your step.” Superficially, it is a suggestion: Be
careful, watch where you are walking.
But the real meaning of “Watch your step” is that in your
everyday activities, both physical and mental, you should be
ceaselessly mindful.
A monk asked Master Kakumyo (1271 – 1361), “What is the
essence of the Great Teaching?”
Master Kakumyo replied, “Watch your step.”1



1
Adapted from Eido Tai Shimano’s “Zen Word, Zen Calligraphy”
Assert mastery; do not follow human sentimentality. The
entanglements of the results of actions are impossible to avoid.
When the voice is gentle, the echo corresponds; When the figure
is upright, the shadow is straight. Cause and effect are perfectly
evident; have you no concern?

 Kuei-shan (771 – 854)



Happiness results from the accumulation of good deeds;

Misery from the accumulation of wicked ones.

 The Su Shu


Put things in order before they get out of hand.
The giant pine grows from a tiny sprout.
A journey of a thousand miles starts from beneath your feet.

 Lao-tzu
 
When this condition is, that condition comes to be.
With the arising of this, that arises.
This not being, that does not come to be.
With the ceasing of this, that too ceases.

 The Buddha
Udana I.3


 Suffering
What is the cause of the mass of suffering in this world? It is that
beings, clouded by ignorance, are lost in thoughts and deeds
running contrary to the Truth.

But by overcoming ignorance in oneself, and by way of oneself

in others, then wisdom comes into being, and the mass of
suffering is brought to an end.

 The Buddha
Samyutta Nikaya



The Venerable Mettagu: “Tell me, lord, whence have arisen

these great many sufferings evident in the world?”

The Buddha: “These sufferings have arisen from worldly

attachments. Whoever ignorantly creates an attachment, that
foolish person comes upon suffering again and again. Therefore,
a man of understanding should not fall into attachment, seeing it
is the source of suffering.”

 The Buddha
(Siddharta Gautama)
Sutta Nipata V.4
 
Though Heaven has no benignity, the most benign results are
produced by its operations. Even the crashing thunderclap and
the cruel wind impart vitality to all things in existence.

The very injury done to man and things is a source of benefit to

them. The very death visited upon them leads to their
revivification. Those who understand this law are able to govern
both themselves and others.

 Yin Fu Ching
(circa 1200 B.C.)


Unless the cold pierces through our bones once,
How can we have the apricot blossoms perfuming the world?

 Dogen (1200 – 1253)


Adversity is an opportunity for growth.

 Lao-tzu
 

“What do you think, monks? Which is the greater: this little bit
of dust I have picked up with the tip of my fingernail, or the great
earth?”
“The earth is far greater, lord. The little bit of dust the Blessed
One has picked up with the tip of his fingernail is next to nothing.
It’s not a hundredth, a thousandth, a one hundred-thousandth of
the extent of the great earth.”
“In the same way, monks, for those who have come to this noble
doctrine, to this discipline in the awakening to the Truth, the
suffering they have left behind is just so much greater than that
which lies ahead. Indeed, that which remains is next to nothing:
it’s not a hundredth, a thousandth, a one hundred-thousandth,
when compared with the mass of suffering they will have gone
through, journeying from one state into the next. That’s how
great the benefit is of breaking out of the darkness of ignorance,
monks. That’s how great is the benefit of walking the pathway
toward the Truth.”

 Samyutta Nikaya XIII.1


 Fear

A young wife fell sick and was about to die. “I love you so
much,” she told her husband, “I do not want to leave you. Do not
forget me after I’ve gone, and go to another woman. If you do,
I’ll return as a ghost to make your lives miserable, I swear!”
The man respected his wife’s request for several months after
her passing, but then he met another woman and fell in love.
They became engaged to be married.
Immediately after the engagement a ghost appeared to the man
every night, blaming him for not keeping his promise. The ghost
was clever too. She told him exactly what had transpired
between himself and his new sweetheart. Whenever he gave his
fiancée a present the ghost would describe it in detail. She would
even repeat conversations. It so worried the man he could not
sleep. Someone advised him to take his problem to a Zen master
who lived close to the village. In despair, the poor man went to
him for help.
“Your former wife became a ghost and knows everything you
do,” commented the master. “Has your fiancée also seen the
ghost?” he asked.
“When I see the ghost I become anxious,” said the man, “and
then my fiancée says she can feel the ghost’s presence.”
“I see,” said the master, “and clearly this ghost is forever
watching you, for it knows of everything that you do. I tell you
what, the next time this ghost appears, tell her you wish to strike
a bargain with her. Since she can see everything that is
happening, tell her that if she can answer one question about a
present situation, then you will end your engagement with your
fiancée immediately.”
“What is the question I must ask her?” inquired the man.
The master replied, “From a sack, grab a large handful of beans
and ask her exactly how many beans you hold in your hand. If
she cannot tell you, then clearly it is your own mind that is
plaguing you, creating ghosts in the dark. For a real ghost would
be able to see the beans, even though you cannot. Is this not so?”
The man was dubious, but agreed to try the plan. The next night,
when the ghost appeared, the man flattered her and told her that
she knew everything.
“Indeed,” replied the ghost, “and I even know of your visit to the
Zen master today, and of your plan to trick me with the beans!”
The man’s heart jumped. Quickly he thrust his hand into the sack
of beans, and holding them tightly in his fist demanded, “How
many beans do I hold in this hand?”
There was no longer a ghost to answer his question.1



An anxious mind sees ghosts in the dark.

 Zen saying.



1
Adapted from “Zen Flesh, Zen Bones” by Paul Reps and Nyogen Senzaki
All is mind-made. It is like a man’s painting a devil, a creature
from hell, or a dragon, or a tiger. He paints it, then he looks at it,
and suddenly he becomes frightened. There is, however, nothing
at all in the painted figure which is fearsome. All is the
brushwork of your own imagination, your own discrimination.
From the first, not a thing there is, except what you have made
out of your own deceptive mind.

 Bodhidharma (Died. c. 528)1



Under the sword lifted high,

There is hell making you tremble;
But go on ahead,
And you find the land of bliss.

 Miyamoto Musashi
(1582 – 1645)


The recluse Bhaddiya was known for walking in lonely places.
He was often seen sitting at the foot of great trees exclaiming:
‘Bliss! Such bliss!’ The monks who saw him, knowing his

1
Adapted from D.T. Suzuki’s translation in ‘The Zen Doctrine of No Mind’
former royal status, thought he must be lost in memories of the
wealth and luxurious life he had left behind. When the Buddha
heard them expressing their thoughts, he sent one of them to
fetch Bhaddiya. When the recluse arrived the Buddha asked him:
“You are often heard exclaiming ‘Bliss! Such Bliss!’ What is
your motive when you are alone and in the forests, to exclaim in
this way?”
“Formerly,” replied Bhaddiya, “when I lived the royal life within
a palace, I had many guards set to protect me. There were guards
within and without the royal apartments, within and without the
royal estate, within and without the countryside. And yet,
although so guarded and protected, I was forever fearful, anxious
and afraid, for my mind was consumed by thoughts of
possessions and of those who would rob me of them. But now,
O Enlightened One, I live in the forest by the roots of trees and
in lonely places, and although I am alone I no longer have any
fear. Indeed, I am serene and unafraid, and live easily, without
anxiety, with a light heart, and feeling everywhere to be
naturally at home like some free-spirited animal. That is my
motive for exclaiming: ‘Ah bliss! Such bliss!’”

The Buddha, in acknowledgement, uttered:

For the one without attachments,

Who no longer covets angry thoughts;
Who has gone beyond notions of being a ‘this’ or a ‘that’;
That one is free of fear,
And enters the serenity that is bliss,
Which even the gods admire in this life.

 Udana II.10


 Fools
Do not have evildoers for friends, do not have blameworthy
people for friends: have only those who are virtuous, and who
genuinely wish upon others well. Associate yourself with those
beings who are amongst the best of men.

If you should not meet with one who is your better, or your
equal, then better it is to travel onwards firmly on your own, for
to travel with a fool makes the journey difficult and long.

Those fools who at least recognise their foolishness are not great
fools. But beware those fools who consider themselves wise.

 The Dhammapada


Even though a fool be accompanied by a wise man all his life,
he will perceive the Truth as little as a spoon perceives the
flavour of the soup.

 The Dhammapada



Four friends, intent on realising their enlightenment, promised
one another to observe seven days of meditation in perfect
silence. On the first day, all sat silently. Their meditation had
begun auspiciously, but when night came and the oil lamps were
growing dim, one of the pupils could not help whispering softly
to a passing attendant, “Please, friend – light those lamps!”
The second pupil, annoyed at overhearing the first, said: “We’re
not supposed to say a word!”
The third pupil exclaimed, “You fools! Now you’ve both broken
your silence!”
The fourth pupil, astonished at the stupidity of his fellow friends,
announced, “Now I am the only one who has not spoken.”


King Huan of Ch’I got drunk one day and lost his crown. For
three days he shut himself up for shame, without giving
audience. Kuan Chung said to the king, “This is a disgrace for a
ruler. Why don’t you make amends by some generous act?”
Accordingly, the king opened the granary and distributed grains
to the poor for three days. The people praised the king for his
generosity, saying, “If only he would lose his crown more
often!”

 Hanfei-tzu
(Died 234 B.C.)


There was a man who had lost some money, and felt sure that
his neighbour’s son had stolen it. He looked at the boy and
noticed his gait was that of a thief, his expression was that of a
thief, and all his gestures and movements were just those of a
thief. It was not long afterwards however, that the man found the
money fallen behind some furniture. When next he saw the
neighbour’s son, the boy seemed quite ordinary: he no longer
possessed the movements or gestures of a thief.

 Lieh-tzu
(circa 250 B.C.)



A certain man of Cheng was going to buy himself a new pair of

shoes. Accordingly, he took measurements of his feet. However,
he forgot to take them along when he left his house. After
entering the shoe shop, he said to himself, “Oh, I have forgotten
to bring along the measurements! I had better go back and bring
them.” And so, he did. But when he returned, the shop was
already closed, and he failed to buy any shoes. Someone said to
him, “Why didn’t you just try the shoes on your feet?” The man
replied, “It is better for me to trust in measurements than to trust
myself.”

 Hanfei-tzu
(died 234 B.C.)
 Natural Goodness
The highest virtue is this:

To act without expectations,

To create without possessing,
To guide without interfering.

 Lao-tzu


That action which is necessary, performed by one not desirous
of rewards, free from attachment, and without desires or
aversion, unaffected by either success or failure, is declared to
be an action of Purity.
But the action which is performed with longing for objects of
desire, or with egoism and pride, or with excess of effort, easily
moved by joy and sorrow, recognition and praise, is declared to
be an action of Passion.
That action which is undertaken out of delusion, without heed
for ability or consequence, performed with dishonesty,
arrogance, indolence, or maliciousness, and resulting in loss or
injury to others, is declared to be an action of Darkness.

 Bhagavad Gita 18.23-28



 The constant virtues of the good are tenderness and love:
To all that lives - in earth, air, sea - great, small - below, above;
Compassionate of heart, they keep a gentle thought for each:
Kind in their actions, mild in will, and pitiful of speech;
Who pities not, he hath not faith: full many a one so;
But of even wicked transgressions, the good man lets go.

 From: The Tale of Savitri

The Mahabharata1


The Wise never aspire to be great,
Thus, they achieve true greatness.

They respond to anger with goodness,

Thus, anger is overcome.

They do not make promises frivolously,

Thus, their promises can always be kept.

They see that all problems have simple beginnings,

And treat every moment as attentively as the next.

 Lao-tzu

1
Adapted from Edwin Arnold’s translation
 
Be kind, and you will realise your judgement
of others was too severe.

 Tschen Tschi Ju


Those of inferior virtue want to be seen to be virtuous.
Natural goodness is unconcerned with recognition or praise.

Those of inferior virtue are forever trying to help others,

But seem always unable to complete their tasks.

Natural goodness appears to make no effort,

And yet good things happen as if on their own.

 Lao-tzu


“My only son was born to me in my fifty-second year. Of course,
I love him, but there is a correct way of loving one’s children.
Even in games, he should be taught to show a heart of mercy and
generosity, and to avoid cruelty. What I dislike most is to have
caged birds: we enjoy their presence, while they are shut up in a
prison. What justification is there that we are entitled to thwart
the instincts of animals to please our own misguided desires? As
for tying up a dragonfly by the hair or tying a crab with a piece
of string, it affords the children some fun only for a little while,
and soon the small creature is dead. Now, nature creates all
things and nourishes them all. Even an ant or an insect comes
from the combination of the forces of nature, and is composed
of the same five elements as us. The universe must love them in
its heart, for it has created them, just as it has created us. We
humans suppose ourselves to be the crown of all creation, but
can we not learn to sympathise with the universe around us?
How then is the animal world going to have a place of refuge?
Thus, I ask you to watch over my son. Develop his heart of
kindness and teach him to avoid anything cruel.
The children of our servants are also human. We should be
equally kind to them and not permit our children to bully them.
When there is food on the table, we must also share with their
children and see them happy and jump about. If our own children
are eating and let the servants’ children stand nearby looking on,
their parents will see it and, while pitying their children and
being unable to help them, will shout to them to go away. Is this
not heart rending for a parent? Now in truth to be a scholar, or a
graduate, or a doctor is a small thing; but what is important and
great is to be a reasonable and good human being.”

 Cheng Panch’iao
(1693 – 1765)
in a letter to his brother
 
Make your heart like a lake,
With a calm, still surface,
And great depths of kindness.

Nurture your true nature.

Make love your gift to others.
Speak only the truth.

 Lao-tzu


All tremble at the rod,
All hold their life dear.
Drawing the parallel to yourself,
Neither harm nor get others to harm.

 The Dhammapada X.129


 How commendable is that abstinence,
Which dispenses with butcher’s need.

 The Yin Chih Wen

[ c. 1600 AD]


The one who shows loving-kindness towards all things sleeps
and wakes in comfort and has no bad dreams; he is dear to both
humans and animals; no danger harms him. His mind can be
quickly concentrated; his expression is happy and serene. He
dies without regrets, and without confusion. Loving-kindness
protects him.

 The Buddha
Anguttara Nikaya XI.16



Of all the ways you can think of, none has a sixteenth part the
value of loving-kindness. Loving-kindness is a freedom of the
heart that takes in all ways. It is luminous, shining, blazing forth.
Just as the stars in the night sky have not a sixteenth part of the
brilliance of the moon, which outshines them with the brilliance
of its light, so loving-kindness outshines all other ways with its
splendour.
Just as when the rainy season ends and the sun rises into the clear
and cloudless sky, banishing all that is gloomy and dark with its
radiance, and just as at the end of a black night the morning star
shines out in all its glory, so none of the ways you can use to
further your spiritual progress has a sixteenth part the value of
loving-kindness. It outshines all, its luminosity is a marvel.

 The Buddha
Itivuttaka Sutta



‘A man’s proper Truth is pure sincerity in its highest degree;

without true sincerity, one cannot possibly move others. Hence
if one merely forces oneself to wail, however exaggeratedly one
may do so, it is not true sorrow. If one forces oneself to appear
angry, however one may seem to be severe, one incites no fear.
If one forces oneself to display affection, however broadly one
may smile, one awakens no feelings of love.
Now, true grief, though not uttering a sound, is heart-breaking;
true anger, without demonstration, incites fear; true affection,
though expressed without a smile, induces feelings of harmony.
The truth that is held within, exercises a spiritual efficacy
without. Seeing this matter to be as it is, one should hold as most
valuable those feelings that are natural and intuitive. One should
never act out of anticipation for results.

 Chuang-tzu


 Wealth, Poverty and
Contentment
Even though you have ten thousand fields,
You can eat but a measure of rice each day;
Even though your dwelling contains a thousand rooms,
You use but eight feet when you sleep.

 Chinese saying



The ideas of profit and of loss rub against one other, and produce
in man a very great fire. The harmony of the mind is consumed
in the mass of men. Their calm, clear awareness cannot see
through the blaze of their desires. Thus do they fall further and
further away, until the course of simplicity and peacefulness is
altogether lost.

 Chuang-tzu


 The more you have,
The more you have to worry about.

The more you acquire,

The more you have to lose.

 Lao-tzu



Ts’ao-shan [AD. 840 – 901], a Chinese Zen master, was asked
by a student, “What is the most valuable thing in the world?”
He replied, “The head of a dead cat.”
Inquired the student: “How can the head of a dead cat be the
most valuable thing in the world?”
“Because no-one can name its price,” replied Ts’ao-shan.



Thousands of rivers flow into the sea,

Yet the sea is never full.
Even if man could turn stone into gold,
Still his heart would never be content.

 Old Chinese saying

 

There is no greater curse than discontentment,

No greater mistake than the desire to attain.

Whoever is contented with contentment,

Will forever be content.

 Lao-tzu



The true man eats enough to fill emptiness and maintain energy,
and dresses sufficiently to cover his body and keep out the cold.
He adjusts to his real conditions and refuses the rest, not craving
gain, and not accumulating much.

 Wen-tzu (c. 100 B.C.)


These four traditions of the Noble Ones - original, long-standing,
traditional, ancient, unadulterated, stainless from the beginning
- are not open to suspicion, will never be open to suspicion, and
are commended by those with true knowledge and insight.
Which four?
There is the case where a monk is content with any old clothing
at all. He speaks in praise of being content with any old clothing.
He does not, for the sake of clothing, do anything unseemly or
inappropriate. Not getting cloth, he is not agitated. Getting cloth,
he uses it without being tied to it, without being infatuated by it,
guiltless, seeing the drawbacks of attachment, and discerning the
escape from them. He does not, on account of his contentment
with any old type of clothing, exalt himself or disparage others.
In this he is skilful, energetic, alert, and mindful. This, monks,
is said to be a monk standing firm in the ancient, original
traditions of the Noble Ones.
Furthermore, the monk is content with whatever food he may be
given. He speaks in praise of being content with any type of
food. He does not, for the sake of food, do anything unseemly or
inappropriate. Not getting food, he is not agitated. Getting food,
he uses it without being tied to it, without being infatuated by it,
guiltless, seeing the drawbacks of attachment, and discerning the
escape from them. He does not, on account of his contentment
with any old food at all, exalt himself or disparage others. In this
he is skilful, energetic, alert, and mindful. This, monks, is said
to be a monk standing firm in the ancient, original traditions of
the Noble Ones.
Furthermore, the monk is content with any old lodging at all. He
speaks in praise of being content with any old lodging. He does
not, for the sake of lodging, do anything unseemly or
inappropriate. Not getting lodging, he is not agitated. Getting
lodging, he uses it without being tied to it, without being
infatuated by it, guiltless, seeing the drawbacks of attachment,
and discerning the escape from them. He does not, on account of
his contentment with any old lodging at all, exalt himself or
disparage others. In this he is skilful, energetic, alert, and
mindful. This, monks, is said to be a monk standing firm in the
ancient, original traditions of the Noble Ones.
Furthermore, the monk finds pleasure and delight in developing
tranquil, skilful states of mind; and he finds pleasure and delight
in abandoning those states of mind that are not skilful, which are
not conducive to calmness, clarity, and peace. He does not, on
account of his pleasure and delight in developing and
abandoning, exalt himself or disparage others. In this he is
skilful, energetic, alert, and mindful. This, monks, is said to be a
monk standing firm in the ancient, original traditions of the
Noble Ones.
These are the four traditions of the Noble Ones - original, long-
standing, well established, ancient, unadulterated, stainless from
the beginning - which are not open to suspicion, will never be
open to suspicion, and which are forever commended by those
with true knowledge and insight.

 The Buddha
Anguttara Nikaya IV.28



I wear rags for robes,

And carry jade in my heart.

 Lao-tzu
 

Wherever the true Way is honoured, people become content.

They enjoy the labour of their hands,
And don’t waste time on labour-saving machines.
They turn their backs on sophistication,
And return to simple pleasures and ways.

 Lao-tzu



When Tsekung, the disciple of Confucius, was travelling south

to the state of Ch’u, he came across an old man engaged in
making a ditch to connect his vegetable garden with a well. The
old man carried a pitcher in his hand, with which he was pulling
up water and pouring it into the ditch, all with very great labour
and seemingly few results.
“If you had a machine here,” said Tsekung, “in a day you could
irrigate a hundred times your present area. The labour required
is trifling compared with the work that is done. Would you not
like to have one?”
“What is it?” asked the gardener, looking up at him.
“It is a contrivance made of wood, heavy behind and light in
front. It draws up water smoothly in a continuous flow, which
bubbles forth like boiling soup. It is called a well-sweep.”
Thereupon the gardener flushed up and said with a laugh, “I have
heard from my teacher that those who have cunning implements
are cunning in their dealings, and those who are cunning in their
dealings have cunning in their hearts, and those who have
cunning in their hearts cannot be pure and innocent, and those
who are not pure and innocent are forever restless in spirit.
Those who are restless in spirit are not fit vehicles for the true
Way. It is not that I do not know of these things, but that I have
no desire for their use.”

 Chuang-tzu


This treasure was discovered in a bamboo thicket --
a bowl! washed in a spring and mended by hand.
After morning meditation, I take my gruel in it;
At night, it serves me soup or rice.
Cracked, worn, weather-beaten, and misshapen
But still of noble stock!

 Ryokan


On one occasion the Blessed One was staying near Alavi on a
spread of leaves by a cattle track in a forest. Then Hatthaka of
Alavi, out wandering for exercise, saw the Blessed One sitting
on a spread of leaves by the cattle track in the midst of the forest.
He went to him and, on arrival, having bowed down to him, sat
to one side. As he was sitting there he said to the Blessed One,
“Lord, I hope the Blessed One has slept in ease.”
“Yes, young man. I have slept in ease. Of those in the world who
sleep in ease, I am one.”
“But cold, lord, is the winter night. The time of snowfall is upon
us. Hard is this ground trampled by the cattle’s hooves. Thin is
the spread of leaves. Sparse are the leaves in the trees. Thin are
your ochre robes. And cold blows the nightly wind. Yet still the
Blessed One says, ‘I have slept in ease. Of those in the world
who sleep in ease, I am one.’”
“Well then, young man, let me ask you a question in return.
Answer as you see fit. What do you think: suppose some prince
or householder has a house with a gabled roof, plastered inside
and out, draft-free, with close-fitting door and windows shut
against the wind. Inside he has a horsehair couch spread with a
long-fleeced coverlet, a white wool coverlet, and an
embroidered coverlet, with a canopy above, and soft cushions on
either side. And there a lamp would be burning, and his four
wives, with their many charms, would be attending to him.
Would that prince or householder sleep in ease, or not? Or how
does this strike you?”
“Certainly, lord, he would sleep in ease. Of those in the world
who sleep in ease, he would most definitely be one.”
“But now tell me, young man, what if that prince or householder
were to have a mind overcome with troubles, anxieties, fears,
and doubts? What if he were troubled by those fevers of mind
which are born of passion, by those fevers of mind born of
aversion, or by those fevers of mind born of delusion? Do you
think such a man, though enshrouded in such a palatial dwelling,
would sleep miserably or well?”
“Troubled by such vexations of the mind, lord, it is most likely
he would sleep miserably.”
“Well then, as for those fevers of passion, those fevers of
aversion, and those fevers of delusion, burned with which a
prince or householder would sleep miserably, they have all been
abandoned by the Awakened One, their root destroyed, like an
uprooted palm tree. Thus it is that I sleep in ease, regardless of
the conditions in which I find myself.”

Always, always, he sleeps in ease,

the sage perfectly free;
who doesn’t adhere to pleasures of sense,
who is without acquisitions, with mind serene.

Having tamed well the heart,

no attachment he seeks;
Fears subdued, calm, and at peace,
With unbounded awareness, in ease he sleeps.

 Anguttara Nikaya III.34



If rank and wealth within the mind abide,

Then gilded dust is all your yellow gold.
Kings in their fretted palaces grow old;
Youth dwells forever at Contentment’s side.
A mist cloud hanging at the river’s brim,
Pink almond flowers along the purple bough,
A hut rose-girdled under moon-swept skies,
A painted bridge half-seen in shadows dim, --
These are the splendours of the poor, and thou,
O wine of spring, the vintage of the wise.
  Ssu-K`ung T`u
(A.D. 834-903)1



Eat simple food to sustain life, wear old clothing to keep off the
cold, and when thirsty scoop up water to drink. Beyond this, if
you harbour no thought of concern with anything at all, whether
it is there or not, then you will in time have your share of ease
and clarity.

 Pai-chang (720 – 814)2



In my hut this spring

There is nothing—
There is everything.

 Sodo (1641-1716)

1
Adapted from “A Lute of Jade” by L. Cranmer-Byng
2
Translated by Thomas Cleary in ‘The Five Houses of Zen’

 Charity

A person who gives freely is loved by all. There is, however, a

proper time and a proper way to give, and the person who
understands this is well rooted and wise. If one gives with a true
feeling of reverence for life, then envy and anger are banished.
A path to great happiness is found. Like one who plants a sapling
and in due course receives shade, flowers, and fruit, so the
results of giving bring joy. The way there is through continuous
acts of unattached kindness, so that the heart matures in
compassion and takes its abode in selfless love.

 The Buddha
Majjhima Nikaya



“To give is happiness”: with this thought, giving to another,

without any expectations of return, in a fitting place and time,
and to a worthy person, is regarded as a gift of Purity.
That gift which is given with the thought of receiving something
in return, or seeking some type of benefit, or that is given
reluctantly, is known as a gift of Passion.
The gift that is given in the wrong place or time, to unworthy
persons, with disrespect and disdain - that is said to be a gift of
Darkness.

 Bhagavad Gita 17.20-22



The Wise have no possessions.

The more they do for others,
The happier they become themselves.
The more they give to others,
The wealthier they themselves grow.

 Lao-tzu
The Tao Te Ching



The Buddha: “Subhuti, regarding the sands of the Ganga River,

suppose there were as many rivers as all the grains of sand. What
do you think – would not the sands of all those Ganga Rivers be
many?”
Subhuti: “Very many indeed, World-honoured One!
Considering the number of rivers alone, they must be said to be
countless; how much more the sands of all those rivers!”
The Buddha: “Subhuti, truly I ask you now: If there be a good
man or woman who, filling all the worlds in the three thousand
chiliocosms – all the worlds as many as the sands of those many
rivers – with the precious treasures and stones, were to give them
all away for charity, would not their merit be large?”
Subhuti: “Very large indeed, World-honoured One.”
The Buddha: “Subhuti, if a good man or a good woman teach
another even four noble words of the Truth which leads to
freedom, this merit is larger than the preceding one.”

 The Diamond Sutra

Mahayana Buddhism


 Religion
For travelling by water there is nothing like a boat. For travelling
by land there is nothing like a cart. This because a boat moves
readily in water; but were you to try to push it on land you would
not succeed in going very far. Now the ancient and modern times
might be likened unto water and land; and the various rituals and
customs to the boat and the cart. To try to make the behaviour
and traditions of one particular time succeed in another is like
pushing a boat on the land: great effort and very little result,
except for certain vexation and injury to oneself.
Dress up a monkey in the robes of Confucius, and it will not be
happy until they are torn to shreds. And the difference between
the past and the present is much the same as the difference
between Confucius and a monkey.

 Chuang-tzu


The Buddha asked Cunda: “Of whose rites of purification do you
approve?”
“I belong to the sect of the Religious Elders of the Western
Lands, lord - those who carry water pots, wear garlands of water
plants, keep a sacred flame burning, and who purify with water.
It is of their purification rites that I approve.”
“But tell me, Cunda,” said the Buddha, “what are their
purification rites, these Religious Elders of the Western Lands?”
“The elders get their disciples to undertake their practice thus,”
replied Cunda, “ ‘Come, now, my good man: Get up at the
proper time from your bed and touch the earth. If you don’t touch
the earth, then you must touch green grass. If you don’t touch
green grass, you must utter a prayer before the sacred fire,
bowing to the four cardinal points. If you don’t utter a prayer to
fire, then you must pay homage to the sun with clasped hands.
These are the purification rites which come forth from ancient
times, and of which the elders approve. “

“Cunda, these purification rites declared by the elders are one

thing; the purification of body, speech, and mind in the
discipline of the Noble Ones is something else all together.
Listen and pay close attention, Cunda, for I will teach you the
way to peace of mind, and to freedom from the chains of
ignorant states.”

“Firstly, Cunda, there are those who whilst practising all manner
of religious rituals and rites remain impure in bodily conduct.
Considering only their own salvation they show no mercy to
creatures and living beings; they kill, slay, and take life. They
take, in the manner of a thief, things in a village or a wilderness
that belong to others and have not been given to them. They
engage in sexual misconduct. In these ways, Cunda, such beings
remain impure in bodily conduct, regardless of the rituals they
observe.
Then, Cunda, there are those who whilst practising all manner
of religious rituals and rites remain impure in verbal conduct.
They engage in false speech. Having been called as a witness to
some town meeting, or a group meeting, or a gathering of some
sort, they claim to know what they do not know, they claim to
have seen what they did not see, or they claim that they do not
know that which they truthfully do know, or not to have seen
what they factually did. Thus they consciously tell lies for their
own sake, or for the sake of another, or for the sake of a certain
reward. Furthermore, they engage in divisive speech. What they
have heard here they tell there, and what they have heard there
they tell here, in order to break those people apart from these
here. They engage in abusive speech. They speak words that are
harsh, cutting, and bitter to others, abusive of others, provoking
anger and destroying concentration. They engage in idle chatter.
They speak out of season, speak what isn’t factual, what isn’t in
accordance with the goal, with the teaching that leads to freedom
of mind, and of the discipline that carries one there. They speak
words that are not worth treasuring. In these ways, Cunda, such
beings remain impure in verbal conduct, regardless of the rituals
and rites they observe.
Finally, Cunda, there are those who whilst practising all manner
of religious rituals and rites remain impure in mental conduct.
This is the case where certain beings are covetous. They covet
the belongings of others, thinking, ‘O, that what belongs to those
beings would be mine!’ They bear ill will toward others,
considering: ‘May these beings be killed or cut apart or crushed
or destroyed, may their lineage be ended, their traditions ruined!’
They cling to wrong views, warped in their way of seeing things,
deluded in their vision of the truth.
Cunda, when behaving in this way, no matter what rites and
rituals are practised, one is led to twisted states of mind, to
modes of living which are confused and tortured, to contention
and wars, to states that may well be likened to hell.
But those, Cunda, who are wise, who put aside clinging to rituals
and rites, regardless of their lineage or family traditions, and
who practice toward the purification of good bodily conduct, of
good verbal conduct, and of exalted states of mind, it is they who
progress toward the goal, towards happy states of being, to clear-
sighted vision, and to the ending of ignorance which keeps one’s
mind as though bound.”

When this was said, Cunda the silversmith proclaimed,

“Magnificent, lord! Magnificent! Just as if one were to place
upright what was overturned, to reveal what was hidden, to show
the way to one who was lost, or to carry a lamp into the dark so
that those with eyes could see, in the same way have you made
the meaning of the teachings clear. May the Awakened One
remember me as a lay follower who has gone to him for refuge,
from this day forward, for life.”

 The Buddha
Anguttara Nikaya X.176


O Arjuna, those who delight in the flowery speech of the unwise,
who are satisfied with the mere letter of the scriptures, saying:
“This is the truth, and naught else”; and those who are full of
desires for self-gratification, regarding heaven as their highest
goal, who engage in intricate scriptural rites hoping to secure
pleasure and power as a result of their deeds, whose discernment
is stolen away by attachments to views, pleasures, and fame - it
is impossible that they should attain to that unwavering and
clear-sighted concentration from which a higher awareness is
born.

 Bhagavad Gita II.42-44


When the true Way is lost, there remains inherent goodness.
When inherent goodness is lost, there is still morality.
When morality is lost, there is ritual.
 Ritual is the husk of true discipline,
The beginning of delusion and strife.

 Lao-tzu


“Suppose that a man, in the course of travelling along a path
beset with dangers and difficulties, was to come to a great
expanse of water, the further shore of which being beautiful,
secure and free from danger. And although the man might wish
to get to that further shore, he can see neither a ferryboat nor a
bridge by which to do so. The thought might occur to him, ‘Here
is this great expanse of water, with the near shore dangerous and
beset with difficulties, the further shore secure and free from
risk, but with neither a ferryboat nor a bridge going from this
shore to the other. What if I were to gather branches, twigs,
grass, and leaves, and having bound them together to make a
raft, were to cross over to the safety of that further shore, making
an effort with my hands and feet?’ Then the man, having made
for himself just such a raft, would enter the water, and exerting
great effort with his hands and with his feet, and clinging for his
dependence to the raft, would cross over to the safety of the
further shore. Having landed on the further shore, the thought
might occur to him, ‘How useful this raft has been to me! For it
was in dependence on this raft that, making an effort with my
hands and feet, I have crossed over to the safety of this further
shore. Why don’t I, having hoisted it on my head or carrying it
on my back, go now wherever I wish to go?’ What do you think,
monks: is this man wise, is he thinking correctly, in carrying that
raft around with him on his head or on his back wheresoever he
goes?”
“No, lord.”
“And in what way would a wise man deal with such a raft, useful
as it may have been? There is the case where the man, having
crossed over, would think, ‘How useful this raft has been to me!
For it was in dependence on this raft that, having made an effort
with my hands and feet, I have crossed over to the safety of this
further shore. Why don’t I, having dragged it on dry land or
leaving it in the water, now travel unburdened wheresoever I
like?’ In so acting, he would indeed be doing what should be
done with the raft.”

“Even so monks, the Path I have taught you is to be recognised

as a raft, for the purpose of crossing over, and not for carrying.
Knowing the Path to be a raft, you should know that the ultimate
aim is liberation from ignorance into true freedom of mind:
based on personal direct experience, free from dependency on
doctrine, free from bias, free from conjecture and reasoned-out
thought. Ultimately, monks, you should relinquish even the
matter of skilfulness and development, to say nothing of those
qualities that are neither skilful nor conducive to good.”

 The Buddha
Majjhima Nikaya 22


Knowledge of the teachings, no matter how great,
Does not make one enlightened.
Enlightenment is the awakening experienced by one
 Who has followed the teachings to their end.

 Mu-chi



It is a fool indeed,
Who mistakes the finger pointing,
For the moon itself.

 Popular Zen saying



All the various teachings exist only in order to cure different

diseases of the mind. Since the diseases are not the same, so too
the remedies are not the same.
Any teaching, which cuts off opinionated views, and brings an
end to delusion, is a true teaching.
Any teaching which gives rise to opinionated views, is false.

 Pai-chang (720 – 814)

 

The spiritual life does not have gain, honour and fame for its
goal, or the attainment of virtue or the attainment of meditative
concentration, or even knowledge and insight into the Truth.
Unshakeable freedom of mind is the goal of the spiritual life.

 The Buddha
Majjhima Nikaya 29



The great Way is straightforward,

But the side paths are many,
And people are led easily astray.

 Lao-tzu


Hsih-shi was one of the most beautiful of women, and when she
was distressed, she would knit her brows. An ugly woman of the
village, seeing how beautiful Hsih-shi looked, went home, and
having worked herself into a fit frame of mind, knitted her
brows. The result was that the rich people of the village barred
up their doors, while the poor people herded their children and
wives to some far away place. The ugly woman saw only the
beauty of knitted brows, she did not see wherein the beauty of
knitted brows lay.

 Chuang-tzu


Do not seek to follow in the footsteps of the Wise.
Seek rather what they sought.

 Ma Tsu (709 - 788)



A devout man looks upon God as upon his Father, and loves Him
in like measure. Should he not then love that which created even
God?
  Chuang-tzu



Huen Sha (died 908) one day went upon the platform and was
about to deliver a sermon when he heard a swallow singing.
“Listen,” he said, “that small bird preaches the essential doctrine
and proclaims the eternal truth.” Then he returned to his room
in silence.


 Relativity
All the living creatures of the universe stand in the same
category as us, and one is of no greater intrinsic value than
another. It is only by reason of size, strength or cunning that
some particular species gains the mastery, or that one preys upon
another. None of them are produced in order to be subservient to
others. Man catches and eats those that are fit for food, but how
can it be maintained that God creates these expressly for man’s
use? Mosquitoes and gnats suck man’s blood, and tigers and
wolves devour his flesh; but we do not therefore assert that God
created man expressly for the benefit of mosquitoes and gnats,
or to provide food for tigers and wolves.

 Lieh-tzu



If a man sleeps in a damp place, he gets lumbago and dies. And

yet, an eel is most comfortable where it is moist. Trying to live
in the heights of a tree would be precarious and nerve-wracking
for a man, and yet monkeys feel there to be quite perfectly at
home. Of the man, the eel, and the monkey, which one shall we
say has the absolute and right habitat?
Furthermore, human beings feed on cooked delicacies, cows and
deer feed on grass, spiders eat insects, while crows and owls eat
mice. Of these four, which one shall we say has the absolute and
right sense of taste?
The male monkey mates with the dog-headed female ape, the
buck with the doe, eels consort with fishes, while men admire
the beauty of Mao Ch’iang and Li Chi, at the very sight of whom
the fishes plunge deep into the water, birds soar high into the air,
and deer hurry quickly on their way. Who shall say which of
these creatures has the absolute and right standard of beauty?
The universe has given birth to the great multitude of living
things, and there is no reason to think that it should consider the
point of view of man as being final and right. Indeed, to say so
is merely the point of view of man, and is most certainly not the
point of view of the multitudinous living things.

 Chuang-tzu


Things can only be considered ugly,
Because others are considered beautiful.
Things can only be thought of as bad,
Because others are held to be good.
The idea of easy makes other things out to be difficult.
The consideration of long defines that which is short.
Something can only be before,
If something else is considered after.
Death only exists in contradistinction to birth.

 Lao-tzu


Heaven and earth form only a speck in the midst of the Void,
But they are the greatest things in the sum of Being.

 Lieh-tzu


 Miracles

The Buddha was urged to perform a miracle in order to attract

some non-believers. He replied: “I denounce, and will not
undertake, the so-called miracles of magic power and divination.
I and my followers attract others only by the miracle of Truth.”

 Digha Nikaya 11



Even if the Great God of Wisdom were himself to appear,

blazing through the skies on a giant lion like a cloud, still, this
would be no auspicious sign. And why? Because that which
ignorant people consider mundane is in fact miraculous. In the
landscape of Mystery all existence is strange, and there is no
thing more mysterious then the first.

 Anonymous Zen monk


Two monks, one an elder and the other an initiate, were walking
together when they arrived at the bank of a river. In midstream
a little ferryboat slowly busied itself in carrying people to the
further shore. The young monk lifted his robes and walked over
the water as if on dry earth. When he reached the further shore,
he called across: “Come elder! You can do it! Just set your mind
to the task.”
But the elder simply sat and waited, watching the ripples on the
water as the ferryboat made its slow passage in return. When he
finally arrived at the further shore, the young monk stood
impatiently waiting.
“You could have done it, Master,” he cried. “It is not a difficult
task for one who as power of mind!”
The elder monk, however, scolded the young man, saying:
“Those who perform small miracles do not see the Great
Miracle. Besides, here we both stand on the bank together, and
what has your impatience gained you?”


 Fame and Gain
The Emperor Tai Tsung1 had heard much of the virtues and
penetrating wisdom of Tao-Hsin2, and so sent a messenger
requesting him to come visit at the palace. Tao-Hsin, however,
declined the invitation, saying that he was now advanced in age
and had no desire to undertake a journey of any sort. The
Emperor sent for him a second time, and then also a third, each
time in vain. This enraged the emperor to such an extent that he
ordered the messenger to tell Tao-Hsin that, should he disobey a
fourth time, he would be beheaded in the very court before the
throne. When the messenger warned Tao-Hsin of the Emperor’s
injunction, Tao-Hsin stretched out his neck and, handing a sword
to the messenger, told him to cut off his head there and then.
This unnerved the messenger, who promptly returned to the
Emperor. On hearing of the proceedings, the Emperor became
filled with admiration for the imperturbable patriarch, and
bestowed upon him rich gifts. Tao-Hsin sent the gifts to the poor,
saying he had no need of further dust in his chambers.


The perfect man ignores self.
The divine man ignores achievement.
The true sage ignores reputation.

 Chuang-tzu

1
(627-649)
2
(died 651)
 

One is the quest for worldly gain, and quite another is the path
to enlightenment. Clearly understanding this, let not a student of
the Awakened One be carried away by worldly acclaim, but
develop non-attachment instead.

 The Dhammapada



Chuang-tzu was fishing on the P’u river when two high officials
arrived, saying, “We come with a message from the prince of
Ch’u: He asks that you accept the post of administrator to his
state.”
Chuang-tzu continued fishing without so much as turning his
head, and said, “I have heard that in Ch’u there is the shell of a
sacred tortoise more than three thousand years old. Further, I
have heard that the prince keeps this tortoise-shell carefully
enclosed in a chest in his ancestral temple. Now what do you
think, would this tortoise rather be dead and have its remains
venerated, or would it rather be alive and wagging its tail in the
mud?”
“Most certainly it would rather be alive,” replied the officials,
“and wagging its tail in the mud.”
“Then begone!” cried Chuang-tzu. “I too will wag my tail in the
mud.”
 

There is no sense in giving a golden egg to a chicken.

What would a chicken want with a golden egg?

 Mu-chi



The fame and gain with which you are so deeply in love,
Is as undesirable as filth to the enlightened.

 Dogen (1200 – 1253)


 Every day the sun blazes through the heavens –
Do you think you can match its brilliance?
People walk about blindly, unseeing of the universe:
The billion stars that wander through Nothingness;
The Void that bubbles like a spectre
out of Nowhere-ness into Life.
Are you so foolish as to wish
that beings will remember your name?

 Mu-chi


 Good Friends
On one occasion, Ananda went to the Blessed One and, on
arrival, having bowed down to the Blessed One, sat to one side.
As he was sitting there, Ananda said to the Blessed One, “This
is half of the spiritual life, lord, which is to say: admirable
friendship, admirable companionship, admirable association.”
“Don’t say that, Ananda. Don’t say that. For admirable
friendship, admirable companionship, admirable association is
the whole of the spiritual life! When a monk has admirable
people as friends, companions, and associates, he can be
expected to develop and pursue the ways that are good, he will
consider and discuss those views that are right, he will abide in
those intentions which are noble.

 The Buddha
Samyutta Nikaya XLV.2


If you have never taken the principles of the teachings to heart,
you have no basis for awakening to the subtle path. As you
advance in years and grow old, your vanity will not allow you to
associate with worthy companions; you know only arrogance
and complacency.

 Kuei-shan (771 – 854)1

1
Translated by Thomas Cleary in “The Five Houses of Zen”
 


Only the Sage knows with whom to consort and from whom to
hold aloof. He consorts with those who regard life and death as
merely a waking and a sleeping, and holds aloof from those who
are steeped in forgetfulness of their return.

 Lieh-tzu



Where there is an all-sided concordance of views

You may talk together regarding the teaching and the Way.
Where there is really no such concordance,
Keep your hands folded and your joy within yourself.

 Hui-neng1

1
Adapted slightly from D.T. Suzuki’s translation in ‘The Manual of Zen
Buddhism’
 

Even if you do no wrong yourself

but accompany those who do,
you’re suspected of evil.
Your bad reputation grows.

The sort of person you make a friend,

the sort you seek out,
that’s the sort you yourself become --
for your living together is of one sort.

Like an arrow smeared with poison

Contaminates the quiver.
So, fearing contamination, the enlightened
should not be comrades with those who are bad.

A man, who wraps rotting fish

in the large blades of a leaf,
makes the leaf smelly too.
So it is if you seek the company of fools.

But a man who wraps powdered incense

in the large leaf of a tree
makes even the leaf fragrant.
So it is if you keep company with the enlightened.

 The Buddha
Itivuttaka III.27
 

When you speak, let it concern the noble teachings; in

discussion, follow your study of the ancients. Be upright and
dignified in demeanour; let your spirit be lofty and serene.
On a long journey, it is essential to walk with good companions;
purify your eyes and ears again and again. When you stay
somewhere, choose your company carefully; listen to what you
have not heard time and again. This is the basis of the saying, “It
was my parents who bore me; it is my companions who raise
me.”
Familiarity with bad companions increases false knowledge and
corrupted views, day and night tarnishing one’s character,
insight and scope. Companionship with the good is like walking
through dew and mist – without even realising it, one’s clothes
become drenched.

 Kuei-shan (771 – 854)


 Good and Bad
Who knows how the future will turn out?
Who knows what is best and what worst?
What now is normal will one day appear strange.

 Lao-tzu


A poor Chinese farmer lived with his wife and son in a small
house on the plains. They had but one old horse, which helped
them in ploughing their fields and carrying any surplus
vegetables to town when possible.
One day, the horse ran away. The farmer’s neighbours, hearing
of his misfortune, went over to the house to express their
sympathy. On hearing their words, all the farmer would do was
shake his head and say, “Perhaps.”
A few months later the horse miraculously reappeared on the
farmer’s lands. Even more astonishing was the fact that it
brought along with it a herd of wild horses. The neighbours
couldn’t believe the farmer’s good luck. They all assembled on
his doorstep to congratulate him on his good fortune. The farmer
shrugged his shoulders and said, “Perhaps.”
Not long after that, tragedy struck the house again. The farmer’s
son was attempting to tame one of the wild horses, when the
horse reared and broke the boy’s leg so badly that it had to be
amputated. The neighbours were filled with sorrow, and took
whatever small gifts they could muster as a token of their
commiseration. The farmer, in thankfully accepting their
condolences, said only: “Perhaps”.
But a year later, the province in which the farmer lived was
called to war. Every man and boy able to fight was summoned
to the front. Reports of terrible bloodshed returned to the villages
and farms. Many of the farmer’s neighbours lost their husbands
and their sons.
“How lucky,” they told the farmer, “that your son is unable to
fight! He may have only one leg, but at least he is here with you
alive!”
The farmer nodded his head, saying only: “Perhaps”.

 Old Taoist story.


The raindrops patter on the banana leaf,
but these are not tears of grief;
the only anguish is in the one who is listening.

 Zen saying.


There is nothing that is of itself either good or bad,
But thinking makes it so.

 Old Chinese saying

 Teachers and Teaching
When the minister Kuan Chung was on the point of death, Duke
Huan went to see him.
“It is clear, venerable Sir, that you are gravely ill.” said the Duke.
“Please tell me, in the event of your condition deteriorating, to
whom should I entrust the State?”
“Whom does your Highness wish to choose?” inquired Kuan
Chung.
“Will Pao Yu do?” asked the Duke.
“No, he will not,” said Kuan Chung. “He is a man of
righteousness and purity, incorruptible and good. With those
who are not like him, he will not associate. And if he has once
heard of a man’s wrongdoing, he never forgets it. If you employ
him in the administration of the empire, he will quickly get to
loggerheads with the Prince, and to sixes and sevens with the
people. It would not be long before he and your Highness fell
out.”
“Then whom do you suggest?” asked the Duke.
“There is no alternative,” replied Kuan Chung, “it must be Hsi
Peng. He is a man who forgets the authority of those above him,
and makes those below him forget his. Ashamed he is not the
peer of the great sages of old, he grieves over those who are not
his peers.
“For, to share one’s virtue with others is to be considered great
virtue, and to share one’s wealth with others is to be considered
generosity. But to exhibit superior merit is not the way to win
men’s hearts. To exhibit inferior merit is the way. There are
matters in the State that Hsi Peng does not hear; there are things
in the family he does not see. Let there be no doubt, it is he who
must next administer the State.”

 Chuang-tzu
 

Throw away holiness,

Forget wisdom,
And people will be a hundred times happier.

Abandon trying to seem good,

Throw out self-righteousness,
And rediscover natural compassion.

 Lao-tzu



Put away your small wisdom, and your great wisdom will be
bright. Discard your contrived skilfulness, and you will become
naturally skilful. A child when it is born needs no great master,
and yet it becomes able to speak, simply living as it does
amongst those who are able to speak.

 Chuang-tzu


Beware the old priests and self-proclaimed sages, clinging to
doctrine and practice, immersed themselves in ignorance and
proclaiming the way to be wise. Have you not heard the old
saying: ‘Our eyes were originally bright, but are made dim
because of false teachers.’?”

 Ch’eng-ku (ca 1037)


My child,
You may read or discuss scripture
As much as you like.
But until you forget everything,
You will never live in your heart.

 Ashtavakra Gita 16.11


Even to be recognised as an aspirant because of the search for
unsurpassed enlightenment and ultimate peace is still a false
ambition; how much more so is worldly disputation, seeking to
prevail, claiming one’s own ability and understanding, seeking

1
Translated by Thomas Byrom in ‘The Heart of Awareness’
a following, favouring a particular disciple, becoming attached
to a dwelling place, making a pact with a patron for the sake of
a robe, a meal, a reputation, an advantage.

 Pai-chang (720 – 814)1


The more assistance you give,
The more dependent people become.

Therefore the Wise just practice serenity,

And leave others to make a change for themselves.

 Lao-tzu


The ancient masters didn’t try to educate people,
But kindly taught them to not-know.
When they think they know the answers,
People cannot know the Truth.
When they know that they don’t know,
Then people can find their own way.

 Lao-tzu

1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Cleary in “Rational Zen – The
Mind of Dogen Zenji”
 
The wisdom of the small man does not go beyond giving charity
and writing memoranda, wearying out his spirits in what is
trivial and mean. What he wishes for is to guide others towards
the Truth, and to aid in the incorporeity of all things into the
Grand Unity. In this way, however, he goes all astray in regard
to the mysteries of space and time. The fetters of embodied
matter keep him from the true knowledge of the foundation of
all being.
On the other hand, the perfect man directs his energy to that
which was before even a Beginning, and finds pleasure in the
mysteriousness belonging to the region of Nothingness. He is
like water, which flows on regardless of the obstructions of
matter, and expands at last into the unfathomable sea.
Alas for what you do, O men! You occupy yourselves with
things trivial as a hair, and remain ignorant of the ultimate
respite!

 Chuang-tzu1



If the music of the Great Composers were performed in the wilds

of the T’un-Sing Lake, birds would fly away, and beasts would

1
Adapted from the translation by Lionel Giles
run off. Fish would plunge down to the bottom of the water,
while men, however, would gather around and look on.
Now, fish live happily in the water, while men die if they are
submerged for only a while. They are different in constitution,
and therefore differ in what they like and dislike. Hence it was
that the ancient sages did not require the same ability from all,
nor demand the same practice. They gave names according to
what was done, and gave their approval when it was appropriate.
This was what was called the method of universal adaptation and
of sure success.

 Chuang-tzu



For guiding beings well,

There is nothing better than being flexible.
Those who are flexible recognise things as they are,
And do not cling to preconceived ideas
As to how things should and should not be.

 Lao-tzu


‘In the governing of people, the hardest thing is to recognise
each person’s individual worth, and not to rely upon one’s own.
‘If you succeed in recognising worth, then those who are wise
will think out plans for you, and those who are talented will act
for you. By never rejecting ability from outside, you will find
that people govern themselves most efficiently.’

 Lieh-tzu



Just as the sun ripens a growing plant, so the skilled teacher is

able to mature the seed of enlightenment in others. Just as the
sun never stops giving out its heat, so this person, established in
goodness and compassion, establishes others in compassion. As
the sun melts away the frost and ice of dawn, so the skilled being
melts away the cravings, fears, and obsessions of others. As the
sun in its shining dissipates the darkness, so this person shines
through the darkness of ignorance. As the sun imparts its warmth
without discrimination to all things equally, so the skilful one is
a friend to all beings without making distinctions.

 Prajnaparamita
 
After Kakua visited the emperor he disappeared and no one
knew what became of him. He was the first Japanese to study
Zen in China, but since he showed nothing of it, save one note,
he is not remembered for having brought Zen into his country.
Kakua visited China and accepted the true teaching. He did not
travel while he was there. Meditating constantly, he lived on a
remote part of a mountain. Whenever people found him and
asked him to preach, he would say a few words and then move
to another part of the mountain where he could be found less
easily.
The emperor heard about Kakua when he returned to Japan and
asked him to preach Zen for his edification and that of his
subjects.
Kakua stood before the emperor in silence. He then produced a
flute from the folds of his robe, and blew one pure, short note.
Bowing politely, he disappeared.1


Prime minister Pei Hsiu invited Huang-po2 for a series of
lectures at his prefecture. When Huang-po arrived at the
minister’s house, Pei Hsiu presented to him his own written
interpretation of wisdom and insight. Huang-po took it and put
it beside him on the table. He did not read it. After remaining
silent for a while, he said: “Do you understand?”
The minister shook his head: “No, I do not understand.”
1
From “Zen Flesh, Zen Bones” by Paul Reps and Nyogen Senzaki
2
(died 849)
Huang-po said: “It would be better if you could understand
through direct inner experience. Whatever teaching may be
expressed through words is not the Great Teaching.”1



The true sage cultivates only himself. He uses his talents to

perfect his mind, and with time his mind merges seamlessly with
the Absolute. Without making any effort to display himself, yet
it is that people seek him out. For a man does not seek to see
himself in running water, but in still water. Only that which is
itself still, can instil stillness into others.

 Chuang-tzu



1
Adapted from the translation by Chang Chung-Yuan in “Original
Teachings of Ch’an Buddhism”
 The Mind

Mind is the house of spirit. It is the source of all wonders and the
director of all beings. Essence is in it, life is in it. People studying
the Way should first understand the mind; everything else comes
after that.

 Wang Pang-shu



Mind precedes all phenomena. Mind is their chief; they are all
mind-wrought. If with an impure mind a person speaks or acts
suffering follows him like the wheel that follows the foot of the
ox.
Mind precedes all phenomena. Mind is their chief; they are all
mind-wrought. If with a pure mind a person speaks or acts
happiness follows him like his never-departing shadow

 The Dhammapada


Oxen and horses are domestic animals, but if you let them go
free and do not restrain them, they will naturally become wild
and will not submit to the harness.
Hawks and falcons are wild birds, but if they are tied up by
people and always perched on the wrist, with time they become
tame.
So it is with the mind; if you let it run wild and do not restrain
it, it will grow increasingly coarse – how then will you be able
to appreciate that which is subtle?

 Chan San-feng (c. 1200)1


The myriad affairs of the human world all come from mind. The
mind is formless – where will you look for it? Understand before
a single thought is born, and you finally see the mind as it is.

 Wang Wei-i (c. 1300 A.D.)



1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Cleary in ‘Vitality Energy Spirit’
The mind is subtle, endlessly it flows on through countless
transformations, and beings everywhere get caught up in a
thicket of names and ideas. Don’t set your mind on these things;
as long as feelings don’t stick to things, how can things possibly
hinder people? Leave everything to the all-pervasive flow of
reality; do not cut anything off, yet do not seek anything either.


 Inter-dependence

Children playing with shadows do not realise that the shadows

are playing with them. Madmen shouting at visions do not
realise that the visions are making them shout. Those who are
running households do not realise that the households are
running them. Those who think they are ruling countries do not
realise that the countries are ruling them.

 T’an Ch’iao (c. 1000 A.D.)1



No one who falls can get up without the support of the ground.

 Chinese proverb


1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Cleary in ‘Vitality Energy Spirit’
The stick said to its shadow, “During the day you appear, and
then at night you disappear. For a while you seem stationery, but
with time you move. Now you are short, then you are long. Why
this indecision of purpose?”
“I depend,” replied the shadow, “upon something which causes
me to do as I do; and that something depends in turn upon
something else which causes it to do as it does. My dependence
is like that of a snake’s scales or a cicada’s wings. How can I tell
what ultimately moves me to do one thing, and what prevents
me from doing another?”

 Chuang-tzu


“I will teach you the origination and the ending of the world.
Listen and pay close attention, and I will speak.”
“What is the origination of the world?
Dependent on the eye and forms there arises the experience of
seeing. Dependent on the ear and sounds there arises the
experience of hearing. Dependent on the nose and aromas there
arises the experience of smelling. Dependent on the tongue and
flavours there arises the experience of taste. Dependent on the
body and tactile sensations there arises the experience of touch.
Dependent on the brain and objects of thought there arises the
experience of the mind.
In each case, the meeting of the three is contact. From contact as
a requisite condition comes feeling. From feeling as a requisite
condition comes desire. From desire as a requisite condition
comes clinging. From clinging as a requisite condition comes
creation. From creation as a requisite condition comes existence.
From existence as a requisite condition comes deterioration and
death. Hence do sorrow, lamentation, pain, distress, and despair
come into play. This is the origination of the world.

“And what is the ending of the world?

Dependent on the eye and forms there arises the experience of
seeing. Dependent on the ear and sounds there arises the
experience of hearing. Dependent on the nose and aromas there
arises the experience of smelling. Dependent on the tongue and
flavours there arises the experience of taste. Dependent on the
body and tactile sensations there arises the experience of touch.
Dependent on the brain and objects of thought there arises the
experience of the mind.
In each case, the meeting of the three is contact. From contact as
a requisite condition comes feeling. From feeling as a requisite
condition comes desire. However, by the remainder-less
cessation and fading away of that very desire comes the
cessation of clinging. From the cessation of clinging comes the
cessation of creation. From the cessation of creation comes the
cessation of existence. From the cessation of existence, comes
the cessation of deterioration and death. Hence do sorrow,
lamentation, pain, distress, and despair no longer come into
being. Such is the ending of this entire mass of suffering.
This, monks, is the ending of the world.”

 The Buddha
Samyutta Nikaya XII.44


 Whatever is caused to expand, will one day collapse.
Something can only collapse if it was once caused to expand.

Whatever is subject to growth, will one day decay.

Something can only decay if it was once subject to growth.

Whatever is raised up, will one day be torn down.

Something can only be torn down if it once was raised up.

Whatever is considered owned, will one day be lost.

Something can only be lost, if it once was considered owned.

This is called the subtle perception

Of the way things are.

 Lao-tzu


 Death
How do I know that love of life does not spring from delusion?
How do I know but that he who dreads to die is not as a child
who has lost his way, standing fearful of walking the very path
that leads to his home?
The lady Li-Chi was the daughter of Ai Feng. When she heard
her father had arranged for her to be married to the Duke of Chin,
she wept until the bosom of her dress was drenched with tears.
But when she arrived at the royal residence, she found the duke
to be a man of fine character and charm. It did not take her long
to adapt to a life of rich food and luxury, and soon she repented
of her pitiful behaviour at her father’s home. How then do I
know but that the dead do not repent of having previously clung
to life?

 Chuang-tzu


Nature is indifferent,
It treats the Creation like sacrificial straw dogs.
The wise, too, are indifferent.
They know that impermanence is integral to life.

 Lao-tzu
The Tao Te Ching


 Without sign, mysterious, unknown,
is the life of mortals in this world.
Bound by mystery is the arising of life:
Mysterious the power by which things exist.
And like sweet fruit that swells to ripeness,
Swaying precariously on the boughs,
Just so do these bodies ripen and drop.

For those overcome by death:

Gone to the Darkness beyond,
No father can shelter his son,
or beings a being of any kind.
For see how even now,
As the mourners stand dolefully by,
they are each one of them,
being led like an ox to its end.

This is the way of the world!

The mystery of life is bound to decay.
Knowing this to be the way of the world,
the enlightened don’t grieve.

For, if by lamenting, and grieving,

and wallowing in pain,
any use could be gained,
the Wise would then do it as well.

But as to the path of our coming,

And the path of our going,
Neither end is apparent to see.

 The Buddha
Sutta Nipata III:8
 
Ananda then sat to one side and said, “Here, Lord, are the
venerable Sariputta’s robes and bowl. He has passed away,
Lord.” Then, looking at the ground, he continued, “I feel as if
my body is drugged, Lord. I seem to have lost my bearings;
things no longer seem clear to me now that Venerable Sariputta
has passed on.”

“But Ananda, it is inevitable that whatever arises must pass

away. Would you cling to that which cannot be retained?
Sariputta’s form has vanished, but Awareness remains. Is it not
the case that Awareness remains?”

“Lord, it is not that I do not see that Awareness remains, but that
Sariputta was my instructor and counsellor. He was one who
exhorted, urged, roused, and encouraged me. He was tireless in
his teachings, and a great help to his companions in the holy life.
We miss the nourishment of his teachings, the wealth of his
virtue, the serenity of his countenance, his character gentle and
kind.”

“But, Ananda, for a long time I have instructed you as to the state
of growing indifferent with regard to things dear and appealing.
It is impossible that one could forbid anything born from passing
away. What else is there to expect? It is just as if a large limb
were to fall off a great and stable tree, standing firm; in the same
way, Sariputta has fallen away from this generation, this time,
this community of beings.”

 The Buddha
Samyutta Nikaya 47.13
 
Cowards die many times before their deaths;
The valiant never taste of death but once.
Of all the wonders that I yet have heard,
It seems to me most strange that men should fear;
Seeing that death, a necessary end,
Will come when it will come.

 William Shakespeare1



That which has life must by the law of its being come to an end;
and the end can no more be avoided than the living creature can
help having been born. He who hopes to perpetuate his life, or
to shut out death, is deceived as to his natural destiny.

 Lieh-tzu


1
From ‘Julius Caesar
 The basis of Being is never born, nor does it die;
Nor after having been does it go into non-being.
The basis of Being is unborn;
It is changeless, beyond the constructs of time.
It cannot be destroyed,
regardless of the destruction of material things.

 Bhagavad Gita II.20


When Chuang-tzu’s wife died, Hui Tzu went to condole. He
found the widower sitting on the ground, singing, with his legs
spread out at right angles, and beating time on a bowl.
“To live with your wife,” exclaimed Hui Tzu, “and see your
eldest son grow up to be a man, and then not to shed a tear over
her corpse, - this would be bad enough. But to drum on a bowl
and sing; surely this is going too far!”
“Not at all,” replied Chuang-tzu. “When she died, I could not
help being affected by her death. Soon, however, I remembered
that there was a time before she was born, when she had neither
substance nor form. Thence she assumed substance and came
into this fleeting world; and now, by virtue of a further change,
she has returned whence she came, passing from one phase to
another like the sequence of summer, autumn, winter and spring.
And now, while she is thus conjoined with the nature of Eternity,
for me to go about weeping and wailing would be to proclaim
myself ignorant of the way of things as they are.”

 Chuang-tzu
 
Tzu Kung was tired of study, and confided his feelings to
Confucius, saying: ‘I yearn for rest.’
Confucius replied: ‘In life there is no rest. To toil in anxious
planning for the future, to slave in bolstering up the bodily frame
- these are the businesses of life.’
‘Is rest, then, nowhere to be found?
‘Oh yes!’ replied Confucius; ‘look at all the graves in the wilds,
all the vaults, all the tombs, all the funeral urns, and you may
know where rest is to be found.’
‘Great, indeed, is Death!’ exclaimed Tzu Kung. ‘It gives rest to
the noble hearted, and causes the base to cower.’
‘You are right,’ said Confucius. ‘Men feel the joy of life, but do
not realise its bitterness. They feel the weariness of old age, but
not its peacefulness. They think of the evils of death, but not of
the repose which it confers.’

 Lieh-tzu


The Wise embrace the significance of the inevitability of death.
Clinging to nothing, they have nothing to lose,
No illusions in their minds,
No possessiveness of their bodies.
Living life ardently they are unperturbed by death,
Just as a person is happy to sleep at the end of an honest day’s
work.

 Lao-tzu
 

When a man dies, does the universe die?

Death exists in the mind of man,
To the universe there is no death.

 Mu-chi


The Dream-like Nature
of Reality
Our revels now are ended.
These our actors,
As I foretold you, were all spirits and
Are melted into thin air, into thin air:
And, like the baseless fabric of this vision,
The cloud-capp’d towers, the gorgeous palaces,
The solemn temples, the great globe itself,
Yea, all which it inherit, shall dissolve
And, like this insubstantial pageant faded,
Leave not a rack behind.
We are such stuff as dreams are made on,
And our little life is rounded with a sleep.

 William Shakespeare1
(1564 – 1616)


Things are not what they seem,
Nor are they otherwise.

 Zen saying


1
From ‘The Tempest’.
In the time of King Mu of Chou, there was a great magician who
came from a kingdom in the far west. He could pass through fire
and water, penetrate metal and stone, overturn mountains and
make rivers flow backwards. Further, he could transplant whole
towns and cities, ride on thin air without falling, and encounter
solid bodies without being obstructed. There was no end to the
countless variety of changes and transformations that he could
effect; and, besides changing in external form, he could also
spirit away men’s internal cares.
King Mu revered him as a god, and served him like a prince. He
set aside for his use a spacious suite of apartments, regaled him
with the daintiest of food, and selected a number of singing-girls
for his express gratification. The magician, however,
condemned the King’s palace as mean, the cooking as rancid,
and the concubines as too ugly to live with. So King Mu had a
new building erected to please him. It was built entirely of bricks
and wood, and gorgeously decorated in red and white, no skill
being spared in its construction. The five royal treasuries were
empty by the time that the new pavilion was complete. It stood
six thousand feet high, over-topping Mount Chung-nan, and it
was called Touch-the-sky Pavilion. Then the King proceeded to
fill it with maidens, selected from Chêng and Wei, of the most
exquisite and delicate beauty. They were anointed with fragrant
perfumes, adorned with moth-eyebrows, provided with jewelled
hairpins and earrings, and arrayed in the finest silks, with costly
satin trains. Their faces were powdered, and their eyebrows
pencilled, their girdles were studded with precious stones. All
manner of sweet-scented plants filled the palace with their
odours, and ravishing music of the olden time was played to the
honoured guest. Every month he was presented with fresh and
costly raiment; every morning he had set before him some new
and delicious food.
The magician could not well refuse to take up his abode in this
palace of delight. But he had not dwelt there very long before he
invited the King to accompany him on a jaunt. So the King
clutched the magician’s sleeve, and soared up with him higher
and higher into the sky, until at last they stopped, and lo! they
had reached the magician’s own palace. This palace was built
with beams of gold and silver, and incrusted with pearls and
jade. It towered high above the region of clouds and rain, and
the foundations whereon it rested were unknown. It appeared
like a stupendous cloud-mass to the view. The sights and sounds
it offered to eye and ear, the scents and flavours that abounded
there, were such as exist not within mortal ken. The King verily
believed that he was in the Halls of Paradise, tenanted by God
Himself, and that he was listening to the mighty music of the
spheres. He gazed at his own palace on the earth below, and it
seemed to him no better than a rude pile of clods and brushwood.
It seemed to the King as if his stay in this place lasted for several
decades, during which time he gave no thought to his own
kingdom. Then the magician invited him to make another
journey. Here they entered a realm where neither sun nor moon
could be seen in the heavens above, nor any rivers or seas below.
The King’s eyes were dazed by the quality of the light, and he
lost the power of vision; his ears were stunned by the sounds that
assailed them, and he lost the faculty of hearing. The framework
of his bones and his internal organs were thrown out of gear and
refused to function. His thoughts were in a whirl, his intellect
dissolved, and he begged the magician to take him back again.
Thereupon, the magician gave him a shove, and the King
experienced a sensation of falling through space...
When he awoke to consciousness, he found himself sitting on
his throne just as before, with the selfsame attendants standing
round him. He looked at the wine in front of him, and saw that
it was still full of sediment; he looked at the viands, and found
that they had not yet lost their freshness. He asked where he had
come from, and his attendants told him that he had only been
sitting quietly, without going anywhere at all. This threw King
Mu into a reverie, and it was three months before he was himself
again. Then he made further inquiry, and asked the magician to
explain what had happened.
‘Your Majesty and I,’ replied the magician, ‘were only
wandering about in the spirit, and, of course, our bodies never
moved at all. But what essential difference is there, O King,
between that sky-palace we dwelt in, and your Majesty’s palace
on earth; between the spaces we travelled through and your
Majesty’s own park? From the standpoint of the Absolute,
wherein everything arises and disappears, they are all equally
like dreams, without an abiding reality of any sort.
You are accustomed to being permanently in the body, and
cannot understand being out of it for a while. Can any number
of changes, or successive intervals of fast and slow, fully
represent the ultimate scheme of things?’
The King was much pleased. He ceased to worry about affairs
of State, and took no further pleasure in the society of his
ministers or concubines.

 Lieh-tzu


Which way did you come,
Following dream paths at night,
While snow is still deep in this mountain recess?

 Ryokan (1758-1831)


Sentient beings, confused and bound up, come and go in the
realms of desire, form, and abstraction, to the extremes of
exhaustion. When you realize that life and death are like dreams,
all your sense of seeking will spontaneously stop.

 Pao-chih1 (9th century)



The three worlds of desire, form, and formlessness, and the

infinite paths of existence, are no more than manifestations of
your mind. They are all illusory, like the moon reflected in
water, or images seen in a mirror. How can we speak of such
things as being born or passing away?

 Shih-t’ou (700-790)



1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Cleary in “The Pocket Zen
Reader”
 Beings lost in ignorance,
Cling to the world as it arises,
Not knowing it is like unto a dream:
Like a thirsty man seeing water,
Which is but the shimmering of the sun.
Like a serpent seen in the darkness,
Which is only a strand of rope.
Like a glint of silver in the ocean,
Which is no more than mother-of-pearl.

 Ashtavakra Gita 2.9



All composite things

Are like a dream, an illusion, a bubble, and a shadow;
Like a dewdrop and a flash of lightning.
They are thus to be regarded

 The Diamond Sutra


Superficial beings don’t look into themselves, or wonder who
they are. They simply busy themselves with collecting the
flowers they see floating in the sky, and grabbing at the moon
they see lying in the water.

 Yao-shan (c. 880)


Without foundation, without substance, illusory
– Like flowers in the sky –
Such is the nature of this Reality.

 Dogen Zenji
(1200 – 1253)


Every good fortune,
Wives, friends, houses, lands,
All these gifts and riches…
They are a dream,
A juggling act,
A travelling show!
A few days, and they are gone.
  Ashtavakra Gita 10.21


Past mind cannot be grasped;
Future mind cannot be grasped;
Present mind cannot be grasped.

 The Diamond Sutra

Mahayana Buddhism


Know that everything; inside and outside, is all unreal.

 Kuei-shan (771 – 854)


From the very first, not a thing is.

 Hui-neng (673 – 713)

1
Translated by Thomas Byrom in ‘The Heart of Awareness’

 The Sages

In A.D. 520 a charismatic and wholly awakened monk by the

name of Bodhidharma travelled over from Southern India to
China. It was the introduction, not of the dead scriptures, as was
repeatedly done before him, but of an experiential awakening,
so that Bodhidharma’s position as a representative of true insight
was unique. He was, however, not a missionary to be favourably
received by the public. He seems to have been a religious
teacher entirely different in every point from any popular priest
or theologian of our age. The latter would smile or try to smile
at every face he happens to see and would talk sociably, while
the former would not smile at any face, but would stare at it with
large glaring eyes that penetrated to the innermost soul. The
latter would keep himself scrupulously clean, shaving, combing,
brushing, perfuming, while the former would be entirely
indifferent to his apparel, being always clad in a faded yellow
robe. The latter would compose his sermon with great care,
making use of rhetorical art, and speak with force and elegance;
while the former would sit as silent as a bear, and abruptly tell
one off, should one approach him with idle questions.

 Kaiten Nukariya


Nyogen Senazaki1 (1876 – 1958) wrote the following poem in
Chinese in reference to his teacher, Soyen Shaku (1859 –
1919):2
How can I forget his angry face?
How can I forget the blows of his strong fist?
Thirty years in America I worked my way to answer him –
Cultivating a Buddhist field in this strange land.
This autumn, the same as in the past,
I have no crop but the growth of my white hair.
The wind whistles like his scolding voice,
And the rain hits me, each drop like his whip.
Hey!


The true sage acts without calculation, and has no mind for
results. Laying no plans, he has no cause for regret, and no desire
to be praised. He does his duty to his neighbours, but does not
associate with them. He behaves as though wanting in himself,
but without flattering others. Naturally self-disciplined, he is not
uncompromisingly hard. He manifests his independence without
going to extremes. He appears to smile as if pleased, when the
expression is only a natural response. His outward semblance
gains its fascination from the store of goodness within. He seems
to be of the world around him, when in truth he treads beyond
its bounds. He seems to have a preference for silence, when in
reality he has left behind words.

 Chuang-tzu

1
Nogen Senzaki was co-author of “Zen Flesh, Zen Bones”, with Paul Reps
2
As told by Eido Tai Shimano in “Zen Word, Zen Calligraphy”
 

What sages learn is to return their nature to the beginning and let
the mind travel freely in openness. What developed people learn
is to link their nature to vast emptiness and become aware of the
silent infinite.
The learning of ordinary worldlings is otherwise. They grasp at
virtues and constrict their nature, inwardly worrying about their
bodies and physical organs, while outwardly belabouring their
eyes and ears.

 Huai-nan-tzu



In sleep, the true sage is like a baby; in waking he is without

concerns. He eats with indifference to flavour, and each breath
he draws is deep. Indeed, the true man draws breath from his
heels, whereas the vulgar draw only from their throats.

 Chuang-tzu
 

Ordinary people and liberated sages are essentially identical; it

is only delusion that makes the one suffer; it is only clear-seeing
that makes the other free.

 Wei-chao (c. 1060)



He whose mind is not agitated by calamities, and who has no

longing for pleasure, free from attachment, fear, and anger, he
indeed is said to be a sage of steady wisdom.
He who is free from all attachment, who neither rejoices in
receiving good, nor is vexed on receiving bad, he indeed is well
established in the Truth.

 Bhagavad Gita II.56-57


He who delights in the material world is not wise. He who has
personal attachments is not humane. He who calculates the time
of his actions has no insight. He who does not know what is of
benefit and what of harm is not awake. He who pursues fame at
the risk of losing his natural self is not a sage.

 Chuang-tzu


Duke Ai of the Lu State said to Confucius, “In the Wei State
there is a leper named Ai T’ai T’o. The men who live with him
like him and make no effort whatever to get rid of him. Of the
women who have met him, many have said to their parents: ‘
Rather than be another man’s wife, I would be his concubine.’
“He never preaches to people, but puts himself into sympathy
with them. He wields no power by which he may protect men’s
bodies. He has at his disposal no appointments by which to
gratify their hearts. Truthfully, his appearance is most
loathsome, and yet males and females alike seek him out.
“So thinking he must be different from ordinary men, I sent for
him, and saw that he was indeed a most loathsome form. Yet we
had not been months together ere my attention was fixed upon
his conduct. A year had not elapsed ere I trusted him thoroughly;
and as my State wanted a Prime Minister, I offered him the post.
He accepted it sullenly, as if he would rather have declined.
Perhaps he did not think the position good enough for him! At
any rate, he accepted; but within a very short time he resigned,
and returned to his innocent ways. I grieved for him as for a lost
friend, and as though there were none left with whom I could
rejoice. Tell me, what manner of man is this?”
“When I was on a mission to the Ch’u State,” replied Confucius,
“I saw a litter of young pigs trying to suckle their dead mother.
It did not take long, however, before they deserted the body and
went off. For what they loved was their mother – not the mere
body which contained her, but rather that which made the body
what it was.
Now this leper Ai T’ai T’o speaks little, and he is trusted. He
does little, and he is sought after. He causes a man to offer him
the government of his own State, and the only fear is lest he
should decline. Truly he is one whose talents are perfect, for he
seeks nothing, he grieves over nothing, and he no longer
associates with bodily form.

 Chuang-tzu


To enter the way of the sages it is necessary to struggle with
determination for years on end, to accumulate achievement and
build up practice, to be highly illumined, wise and
understanding. Only thus can you enter the way of the sages.
Then, while your body may be located in one room, your essence
fills the universe; while your body temporarily lodges in the
material world, your mind is already illumined beyond things.

 Wang Che (1113–1171)

 

The true Masters are profound and enigmatic.

Their wisdom is unfathomable,
Only their demeanour can be discerned.

They are careful, like one crossing an icy river.

Alert, like a warrior in enemy territory.
Courteous, like a guest.
Unaffected, natural, like a piece of wood.
Beneficent, like a fertile valley.
Self-effacing, like melting ice.
Innocent, like a mountain stream.

 Lao-tzu



Chuang-tzu and Hui-tzu had strolled onto a bridge crossing the

river Hao, when Chuang-tzu observed, “See how the fish dart
about - that is their happiness!”
“Not knowing the mind of a fish,” said Hui-tzu, “how can you
know the happiness of the fish?”
“And you, not knowing my mind,” retorted Chuang-tzu, “how
can you know what I do and do not know?”
  Chuang-tzu


 The Truth

The mighty ocean has but one taste, the taste of salt.
Even so, the Truth has but one savour, the savour of freedom.

 Khuddaka Nikaya
Udana v.5



The Truth is directly visible, immediate, inviting one to come

and see, worthy of application, to be personally experienced by
the wise.

 The Buddha
Anguttara Nikaya VI


He who makes no effort to seek out wisdom in this life grows
old like a bull. He grows only in the size of his body, but his
wisdom does not grow.

 The Dhammapada



There are three kinds of hearing Truth: higher, middling, and

low. Superior beings listen to Truth with the heart; middling
beings listen to Truth with the mind; inferior beings listen to
Truth with the ears. Since we every one of us have heart, mind,
and ears, how will we listen to the Truth, and what truth shall we
listen to?

 Dogen (1200 – 1253)



The Truth is noble and sweet; the Truth can free you from all
ills. There is no saviour in the world like the Truth.
Have confidence in the Truth, however difficult it may be to see.
Even though its sweetness may have a bitter edge, even though
at first you may shrink from it, the Truth remains what it is. Have
trust!
The Truth is best as it is. It cannot be altered; it cannot be
improved upon. Have faith in the Truth and live in accordance
with it.
The self is in a fever; the self is forever changing, like a dream.
But the Truth is whole, sublime, and everlasting. Nothing is
immortal except the Truth, for Truth alone exists forever.

 Majjhima Nikaya



‘For Nature has its Law,

Against which to struggle could lead no man to profit.’

 Lieh-tzu


Swiftly and soon the golden sun goes down,
The blue sky wells far into the night;
Changeful is the way of all that exists,
Happy are they who with the Way unite.

 Po Chu-i (772 – 846)

 

The noble path is the best of all paths,

Freedom from craving is the best state,
And the one who has eyes to see
Is the happiest of all beings.

The Noble Path leads to freedom from delusion

And clarity of awareness.
The one who sees this path and follows it
Comes to an end of sorrow.

You yourself must make the effort,

The enlightened ones merely point out the way.
Those who have entered the path,
Meditating constantly on the truth,
Free themselves from the bonds of illusion.

 The Dhammapada


Sages merge the spirit with the ocean of awareness, and return
to the beginning of all creation. They look at the formless and
listen to the soundless. In the midst of profound darkness they
see the source of all light; in the midst of silent vastness, they
illuminate the infinitude of things.

 Huai-nan-tzu (c. 130 B.C.)



The Truth is timeless, it is stable, it is unchanging, it is deathless,

it is sublime, it is freedom, and the Refuge.

 The Buddha
Samyutta Nikaya XLIII.14


 The Path to Enlightenment
Delight in quietude.
Forget your desires.
Surrender your thoughts.
Settle your dust.
Unravel your complications.
Soften your glare and merge with the everyday.
Thus comes union with the Truth.

 Lao-tzu


Just as if there were a lake in a mountain recess, clear and
undisturbed, so that a man with good sight standing on the bank
could see shells, gravel and pebbles, and also shoals of fish
swimming about and resting.
So too, the Awakened One sees and understands, with clarity, as
it actually is: ‘This is how the world suffers; this is the cause of
suffering in the world; without this cause, the world would not
suffer; and this Eightfold Path is the practice by which suffering
brought to an end.’

"Now this, monks, is the noble truth of stress: Birth is stressful,

aging is stressful, death is stressful; sorrow, lamentation, pain,
distress, & despair are stressful; association with the unbeloved
is stressful, separation from the loved is stressful, not getting
what is wanted is stressful. In short, the five clinging-aggregates
are stressful.
"And this, monks, is the noble truth of the origination of stress:
the craving that makes for further becoming — accompanied by
passion & delight, relishing now here & now there — i.e.,
craving for sensual pleasure, craving for becoming, craving for
non-becoming.
"And this, monks, is the noble truth of the cessation of stress: the
remainderless fading & cessation, renunciation, relinquishment,
release, & letting go of that very craving.
"And this, monks, is the noble truth of the way of practice
leading to the cessation of stress: precisely this Noble Eightfold
Path — right view, right resolve, right speech, right action, right
livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration.

 The Buddha
Majjhima Nikaya 39 &
Samyutta Nikaya 56


“There is a middle way realised by the Awakened One that leads
to peace, to direct knowledge, to self-awakening, to unshakeable
freedom of mind. And what is this middle way? It is just this
Noble Eightfold Path, being: Right Understanding, Right
Intentions, Right Speech, Right Action, Right Livelihood, Right
Effort, Right Awareness, and Right Concentration.

“And what is Right Understanding? Firstly, to recognise that

there is suffering in the world. Secondly, to know that untamed
desires are the cause of that suffering. Third is to realise that
those untamed desires can be restrained, and indeed, brought to
an end. Finally, one with Right Understanding looks into,
considers, and comes to know that this Eightfold Path is the very
path by which suffering is brought to an end. This is called Right
understanding.
And what is Right Intention? To be resolved on relinquishment,
on letting go, on freedom from ill-will, on harmlessness: This is
called Right Intention.
And what is Right Speech? Abstaining from lying, from divisive
speech, from abusive speech, and from idle chatter: This is
called Right Speech.
And what is Right Action? Abstaining from taking life, from
stealing, and from unchastity: This is called Right Action.
And what is Right Livelihood? Here, having abandoned any
harmful or dishonest livelihood, one maintains one’s life in an
honest and harmless livelihood. This is called Right Livelihood.
And what is Right Effort? Here a monk generates energy and
arouses persistence for the sake of the non-arising of
unwholesome, unskilful qualities that have not yet arisen; for the
sake of the abandoning of unwholesome, unskilful qualities that
have arisen; for the sake of the arising of skilful qualities that
have not yet arisen, and for the maintenance, increase,
development, and culmination of skilful qualities that have
arisen. This is called Right Effort.
And what is Right Awareness? There is the case where a monk
maintains awareness of the body in and of itself - ardent, alert,
and mindful - putting aside greed and distress with reference to
the world. He maintains awareness of feelings in and of
themselves; he maintains awareness of the mind in and of itself;
he maintains awareness of mental qualities in and of themselves
- ardent, alert, and mindful - putting aside greed and distress with
reference to the world. This is called Right Awareness.
And what is Right Concentration? It is that singleness of mind,
which, leaving aside both future and past, remains focussed on
present experience. This is called Right Concentration.”

 The Buddha
Samyutta Nikaya XLV.8
 
“I tell you, monks, that the Path to liberation consists of a three-
fold development. And what is this three-fold development?
Firstly, it is the development of virtue through good conduct;
then, it is the development of concentration through a meditative
and contemplative mind; finally, it is the development of
wisdom by one intent on understanding the nature of things as
they are.
Now, great is the fruit, great is the gain of concentration when it
is fully developed by virtuous conduct; and great is the fruit,
great is the gain of wisdom when it is fully developed by a
concentrated mind.
That mind which is fully developed in wisdom is utterly freed
from the taints of lust, the taints of becoming, and the enveloping
darkness of ignorance. Such a one attains to unshakeable
liberation right here, right now.”

 The Buddha
Digha Nikaya 16


The essential subtlety of our path is in sincerity alone – without
sincerity you have nothing, and the great Way cannot be
approached.

 Wang Wei-i (c. 1300 A.D.)

 
“This is a case where a monk, having seen by right wisdom in
regard to all material shape as it has really come to be – whether
it is past, future, or present; subjective or objective; gross or
subtle; low or excellent; distant or near –that “This is not mine,
I am not this, this is not my Self,” comes to be freed without
grasping. And just the same with regard to feelings, perceptions,
thoughts, and consciousness itself.

To this extent a monk becomes a perfected one, the fluxions

destroyed, having lived the life, done what was to be done, laid
down the burden, won his own goal, the fetter of becoming quite
destroyed, freed by right profound knowledge.

The heart thus freed, the monk becomes endowed with three
incomparable qualities: with incomparable insight; with
incomparable practise; with incomparable freedom.

 Majjhima Nikaya i. 234



If you have set your heart on awakening, wanting to break

through the darkness of ignorance once and for all, and if your
faith is firm and in earnest, first accept three precepts, then act
in accord with these three precepts with constant heedfulness.
Thus will you awaken to the Way.
The three precepts are as follows: first, simplify involvements;
second, remove desire; third, quieten the mind.
If you diligently practice these three precepts without abatement
or backsliding, then the nature of all things will open and reveal
itself, without any specific intention of seeking on your part. A
classic says, “If people can always be clear and pure, the whole
universe will be naturally revealed.”

 Chang San-feng (c. 1200)



To do what is good,
To avoid what is bad,
And to purify the mind:
This is the teaching of all the enlightened ones.

 The Dhammapada


 
 BOOK 2:
DISCIPLINE
 Desire

“Now this, monks, is the noble truth of suffering: Birth is

suffering, aging is suffering, sickness is suffering, death is
suffering, association with the unpleasant is suffering,
dissociation from the pleasant is suffering, not to receive what
one desires is suffering.
“And this, monks, is the noble truth of the cause of suffering: the
desire which seeks for new conditions to come into being -
accompanied by passion and delight, relishing now here and
now there – which is to say, desire for sensual pleasures, desire
for new states of being, desire for the ending of states that have
come to be.
“And this, monks, is the noble truth of the ending of suffering:
the relinquishment, the fading and cessation, the renunciation,
release, and letting go of those very desires.
“And this, monks, is the noble truth of the way of practice
leading to the ending of suffering: precisely this Noble Eightfold
Path, which being Right Understanding, Right Intention, Right
Speech, Right Action, Right Livelihood, Right Effort, Right
Awareness, and Right Concentration.

 The Buddha
Samyutta Nikaya LVI.11


For people practicing the Way, nothing compares to simplifying
affairs. Know what is essential, discern relative importance, and
understand what to leave and what to take.
For example, luxurious food and clothing, social distinction, and
material riches are all extraneous likes born of desire, and do not
carry one toward true freedom in life.
When people pursue these things, they steadily walk the path to
destruction. What could be more confused?

 Chang San-feng (c. 1200)1



“And how is one, walking the path to independence and

freedom, content? Just as a bird, wherever it goes, flies with its
wings as its only burden; so too is he content with any old robes
to provide for his body, and any alms food to provide for his
hunger. Wherever he goes, he takes only his barest necessities
along. That is how one, walking the path to independence and
freedom, is content.”

 The Buddha
Digha Nikaya 2


1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Cleary in ‘Vitality Energy Spirit’
 Real peace will arise spontaneously
When your mind becomes free of attachments,
When you know that the objects of the world
Can never give you what you really want.

 Theragatha



Human nature is generally such that it likes tranquillity and

dislikes anxiety; it likes leisure and dislikes toil. Only when the
mind is without desires can it settle in tranquillity; only when the
body is relinquished can it be at ease.
If you forget your desires and set your mind free in tranquillity,
and relinquish the body to let it abide in leisure, awaiting the
direction of nature, spontaneously happy within and free from
hurry without, even the magnitude of the universe cannot change
you; even should the sun and moon be eclipsed, that does not
dampen your composure. Then you are as if noble even if lowly,
and you are as if rich even if poor.

 Huai-nan-tzu (c. 130 B.C.)1


1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Cleary in ‘Vitality Energy Spirit’
Only that man attains to peace who, abandoning all desires,
moves about without longing and attachments, without any
sense of ‘I’ or ‘mine’.

 Bhagavad Gita II.71



What is essential to practice the Way is to get rid of mental

afflictions. If afflictions are not removed, it is impossible to
attain stability of mind.
This is like the case of a fertile field, which cannot produce good
crops as long as the weeds are not cleared away.
Cravings and fixated thoughts are the weeds of the mind; if you
do not clear them away, concentration and wisdom do not
develop.

 Chang San-feng (c. 1200)1


1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Cleary in ‘Vitality Energy Spirit’
 The master’s way is unfettered
Simple, natural, and free of guile.
He shines.

But for the fool

There is no peace.
His thoughts are consumed by desire.

 Ashtavakra Gita 18.52


“When one awakens to the knowledge that ‘Acquisition is the
root of suffering’, then one lets go of acquisitions. Having
realised that the desire to appropriate is the cause of suffering, it
is not possible that one would stir one’s body or arouse one’s
mind in an effort to acquire.
“Suppose there were a deadly poisonous snake, and a man were
to come along wanting to live, not wanting to die; desiring
pleasure, and detesting pain. What do you think, monks, would
he give his hand or finger to the snake knowing that ‘Having
been bitten by this snake, I will incur death or death-like
suffering’?”
“No, lord.”
“In the same way, when one awakens to the knowledge that
‘Acquisition is the root of suffering’, then one lets go of
acquisitions. Having tasted of the release from the tyranny of
acquisitions, it is not possible that one would stir one’s body or
arouse one’s mind in an effort to acquire. “

 The Buddha
Majjhima Nikaya 105
 

From the beginning-less past you have turned your back on the
light of awareness and plunged into the darkness of
discriminations and desire. The roots of your illusions are deep
and cannot be pulled out all at once. That is why one must
practice diligently and in earnest to overcome states of mind that
are base.
 Yang-shan (814 – 890)1


Those who are afraid of the sufferings of this world desire
freedom. But they do not see that this world and freedom cannot
be separated the one from the other. They desire to be released
from this world of the senses, not knowing that this very world
of the senses is already a miracle and a mirage, indeed, a state of
perfect freedom – that is, when the world is no longer grasped
at.

 Lankavatara Sutra

1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Cleary in “Rational Zen – The
Mind of Dogen Zenji”
 
The mind desires this,
And grieves for that.
It embraces one thing,
And spurns another.
Now it feels anger,
Now happiness.
In this way you are bound.

But when the mind desires nothing

And grieves for nothing,
When it is without joy or anger,
And, grasping nothing,
Turns nothing away…
Then you are free.

 Ashtavakra Gita 8.1-21



Free from desire, one realises the Marvel.

Caught in desire, one sees only the manifested world.

 Lao-tzu
The Tao Te Ching

1
Translated by Thomas Byrom in ‘The Heart of Awareness’

 Love, Kindness and
Compassion
The Wise have no heart of their own.
They work with the hearts of the people.

They are kind to people who are good.

They are also kind to people who aren’t good.
This is untainted kindness.

They have dispositions like unto space:

Accepting all, hosting all, mixing freely.

 Lao-tzu


“Once, monks, in this same Savatthi, there was a lady of a
household named Vedehika. This good report about Lady
Vedehika had circulated: ‘Lady Vedehika is gentle, she is even-
tempered and calm.’ Now, Lady Vedehika had a slave named
Kali who was diligent, deft, and neat in her work. The thought
occurred to Kali the slave: ‘It is said that Lady Vedehika is
gentle, even-tempered, and calm. Now, is anger present in my
lady without showing, or is anger truthfully absent? Or is it
perhaps just because I’m diligent, deft, and neat in my work that
the anger present in my lady doesn’t show? Why don’t I test
her?’
“So the next day, Kali the slave got up only after daybreak. Then
Lady Vedehika said to her: ‘Kali!’
“‘Yes, madam?’ replied Kali.
“‘Why did you get up only after daybreak?’
“‘No reason, madam.’
“‘No reason, you wicked slave, and yet you get up after
daybreak?’ Angered and displeased, the Lady scowled.
“Then the thought occurred to Kali the slave: ‘Ah, so anger is
present in my lady without showing, and not absent. And it is
just because I’m diligent, deft, and neat in my work that the
anger present in my lady doesn’t show. Why don’t I test her
some more?’
“So Kali the slave got up a little later the following day. Then
Lady Vedehika said to her: ‘Kali!’
“‘Yes, madam?’
“‘Why did you get up still later today?’
“‘No reason, madam.’
“‘No reason, you wicked slave, and yet you get up so late in the
day?’ Angered and displeased, the Lady grumbled.
“Then the thought occurred to Kali the slave: ‘Anger is indeed
present in my lady without showing, and not absent. Surely it is
just because I’m diligent, deft, and neat in my work that the
anger present in my lady doesn’t show. Why don’t I test her
some more?’
“So Kali the slave awoke only late in the morning of the
following day. Then Lady Vedehika said to her: ‘Kali!’
“‘Yes, madam?’ replied Kali.
“‘Do you have a reason for now getting up so late in the
morning?’
“‘No reason, madam,’ said Kali.
“‘No reason, you wicked slave, and yet you get up in the middle
of the day?’ Thoroughly angered, Lady Vedehika grabbed hold
of a rolling pin and beat Kali over the head.
“Then Kali the slave, with blood streaming from her cut-open
head, went and denounced her mistress to the neighbours: ‘See,
ladies, the gentle one’s handiwork? See the even-tempered and
calm one’s handiwork? How could she, angered and displeased
with her only slave for getting up after daybreak, grab hold of a
rolling pin and beat her so viciously over the head?’
“After that this evil report about Lady Vedehika circulated:
‘Lady Vedehika is vicious. She is foul-tempered and violent.’
“In the same way, monks, a monk may be ever so gentle, ever
so even-tempered and calm, for just so long as he is not touched
by disagreeable aspects of speech. But it is only when
disagreeable aspects of speech touch him, and he shows no
angered response, that he can truly be known as gentle, even-
tempered, and calm.
“There are, monks, these five aspects of speech by which others
may address you: They may address you in a timely way or in
an untimely way. They may address you with what is true or
with what is false. They may address you in an affectionate way
or in a harsh way. They may address you in a beneficial way or
in an unbeneficial way. They may address you with a mind of
good will or inner hate. In any event, you should train
yourselves: ‘Our minds will be unaffected and we will say no
evil words. We will remain sympathetic to that person’s welfare,
with a mind of good will, and with no inner hate. We will keep
pervading him with an awareness imbued with good will and,
beginning with him, we will keep pervading the all-
encompassing world with an awareness imbued with good will
- abundant, expansive, immeasurable, free from hostility, free
from ill will.’ That is how you should train yourselves.
“Suppose that a man were to come along carrying a hoe and a
basket, saying, ‘I will make this great earth be without earth.’
Then he would dig here and there, scatter soil here and there, spit
here and there, urinate here and there, saying, ‘Be without earth.
Be without earth.’ Now, what do you think, monks - would he
succeed in making this great earth be without earth?”
“In the same way, monks, in however an unpleasant manner
others may address you, you should train yourselves thus: ‘Our
minds will be unaffected and we will say no evil words. With an
awareness imbued with good will equal to the great earth -
abundant, expansive, immeasurable – we will remain free from
hostility, free from ill will.’ That is how you should train
yourselves.
“Monks, if bandits were to carve you up savagely, limb by limb,
with a two-handled saw, he among you who let his heart get
angered even at that would not be doing my bidding. Even then
you should train yourselves: ‘Our minds will be unaffected and
we will say no evil words. With an awareness imbued with good
will - abundant, expansive, immeasurable – we will remain free
from hostility, free from ill will.’ That is how you should train
yourselves.
“Monks, if you attend constantly to this admonition on the simile
of the saw, do you see any aspects of speech, slight or gross, that
you could not endure?”
“No, lord.”
“Then attend constantly to this admonition on the simile of the
saw, for that will be for your long-term welfare and happiness.”
Gratified, the monks delighted in the Blessed One’s words.

 The Buddha
Majjhima Nikaya 21


Those who know the joy of Goodness,
Would never allow themselves to do what is bad.
The poor souls caught up in what is bad,
Have not yet touched the joy of being good.
How, then, can a good man be angry at one who is bad,
Knowing that the bad man does not know what is good?

 Mu-chi
 
Ryokan (c. 1758 – 1831) lived the simplest kind of life in a little
hut at the foot of a mountain. One evening a thief visited the hut
only to discover there was little in it to steal.
Ryokan returned and caught him. “You must have come a long
way to visit me,” he told the prowler, “and you should not return
empty handed. Please take my clothes as a gift.”
The thief was bewildered. He took the clothes and slunk away.
Ryokan sat naked, watching the moon. “That poor fellow,” he
mused, “ if only I could give him this beautiful moon.”

 Zen Flesh, Zen Bones.


This is to be done by one skilled in aims,
who wants to break through to the state of peace:

Be capable, upright, and straightforward,

easy to instruct, gentle, and not conceited,
content and easy to support,
with few duties, living lightly,
with peaceful faculties, masterful,
modest, and no greed for supporters.

Do not do the slightest thing

that the wise would later censure.

Think: ‘Happy, at rest,

may all beings be happy at heart.
Whatever beings there may be,
 whether weak or strong, without exception,
may all beings be happy at heart.
Let no one deceive another
or despise anyone anywhere,
or through anger or resistance
wish for another to suffer.’

As a mother would risk her life

to protect her child, her only child,
even so should one cultivate a limitless heart
with regard to all beings.

With good will for the entire cosmos,

cultivate a limitless heart:
Above, below, and all around,
unobstructed, without hostility or hate.
Whether standing, walking,
sitting, or lying down,
as long as one is alert,
one should be resolved on this awareness.

This is called a sublime abiding

here and now.

 The Buddha
Khuddakapatha


Never by hatred will hatred be brought to an end.
Only by non-hatred is hatred appeased.
This is an eternal law.

 The Dhammapada
 
The way of heaven is impartial.
Kindness is its own reward.

 Lao-tzu


Fostering the good name of others
Is the way to foster your own good name.
Fostering the merits of others
Is the way to foster your own merit.
Fostering the work of others
Is the way to foster your own work.
Fostering the benefit of others
Is the way to foster your own benefit.

It is all love.

 Chang San-feng (c. 1200)1



1
Translated by Thomas Cleary in ‘Vitality Energy Spirit’
 Views and Arguments
Let us consider that you and I enter into an argument. If you beat
me, are you necessarily right and I wrong? If I beat you, does
that make me right, and you wrong? Is it not possible that we are
both partly right and partly wrong? Is it also not possible that,
from different standpoints, we are both perhaps wholly right, or
maybe both wholly wrong? Neither you nor I would be able to
know this, since each clings stubbornly to a subjective view.
Perhaps, then, we should employ some arbiter. But who would
that arbiter be? If we employ somebody who inherently tends to
your view, then naturally they will agree with you. On the other
hand, if the arbiter’s view is like unto my own, they will
naturally agree with me. This cannot be called true arbitration,
but rather an accumulation of bias. If we, then, employ
somebody who inherently differs from both of our views, or
even someone who agrees with both of our views, such a person
will never be able to determine one of us as right and the other
wrong.
Certainly there is that which is the Truth, for the Truth is
whatever is existent. Whatever is existent is necessarily True.
Since views themselves are in existence, we may conclude that
views are subsumed by the Truth. Thus, all is embraced in a
unity, the unity of the infinite and True. Therefore those who
have no particular standpoint, see all things just as they are.

 Chuang-tzu


He who maintains that Heaven and earth are destructible, and he
who upholds the contrary, are both equally at fault. Whether they
are ultimately destructible or not is something we can never
know; though in either case, the truth will be what it is, and will
be the same for all alike. The living and the dead, the going and
the coming, know nothing of one other’s state. Whether
destruction awaits the world or no, why should I trouble my head
about it?

 Lieh-tzu


The monk Hsiu asked Ching-ch’en: “Where has Nan-ch’uan,
your late master, gone after his death?”
“As to that,” replied Ching-ch’en, “it makes one think.”


What is most important in gaining a true insight into the nature
of things is to have a settled and clear mind. If your mind is not
clear then wrong and right become confused, reality and illusion
become muddled.
If you want your mind to be clear, it is essential to put opinions
to rest. If you stop opinions and allow the mind to clear, then
reality and illusion become easily recognizable, and wrong and
right no longer stand.

 Hsueh-yen (ca 1253)


At one time the Buddha was staying near Savatthi in the Jeta
Wood at Anathapindika’s monastery. Now at that time there
were many recluses, wanderers, and priests of various sects,
living around Savatthi. And they were of various views, of
various beliefs, of various opinions, and they relied for support
on their various views. Some proclaimed that the world is
eternal; others proclaimed that the world is not eternal. Some
asserted that the world is finite, others, proclaimed it to be
infinite. Some maintained the body and the self to be identical;
others declared the body and the self to be separate. Each of
these sectarians proclaimed themselves to be right, saying, “This
is the Truth, that is not!” And so they lived engaging in endless
disputes, elevating themselves and denouncing others.
A number of monks approached the Buddha, confused by the
proclamations of the various sectarians, wanderers, and teachers,
and asked him how one could know which of the teachings are
right, and which wrong.
“Monks, these wanderers and priests, each clinging to
intellectual views and opinions, are as if blind. They do not see
the nature of this Reality in its entirety. Some, having
experienced a small part of the Truth, proclaim it to be the
Whole. Others, lost in deluded thought and experience, declare
their experience to be complete. But these sectarians, monks, do
not know what is beneficial for beings, and they do not know
what is harmful. They do not see that all views have ignorance
as their foundation. They do not realise that suffering has
ignorance as its cause.
“In former times, monks, there was a certain king in this very
Savatthi. One day that king addressed his advisor, saying, ‘Come
now, my good man, I would like you to bring together all the
people in Savatthi who have been blind from birth and who have
not yet encountered an elephant.’
“‘Yes, your majesty,’ replied the advisor, and rounded up all the
blind people in Savatthi who had never before encountered an
elephant.
“‘Now, counsellor,’ said the king, ‘give each of these blind
people a post about the elephant, and let them become
acquainted with the beast.’
“‘Very well, your majesty,’ said the counsellor, and he presented
the blind people to the elephant, saying, ‘This, blind people, is
an elephant.’
“Now, monks, at the time the blind people were introduced,
there were some who were standing by the head, and others who
were standing by the tusks; some stood by the ears whilst others
stood by the trunk; some stood by the body while others were
nearby a foot, and each extended their hands to experience the
creature known as an ‘elephant’.”
After just a short time the king called the blind people to come
forth, and said, ‘Have you been shown the elephant?’
“‘Yes, your majesty, we have been shown the elephant,’ replied
the crowd.
“‘Tell me, good people,’ said the king, ‘ what is an elephant
like?’
“‘Your majesty, an elephant, is very much like a water jar,’ said
those who had been standing by the head.
“‘No, your majesty, it is like a small sail, or a triangular sheet!’
said those who had been standing at the ears.
“‘Your majesty, an elephant is like a ploughshare,’ said those
who had felt a tusk.
“‘We beg of you, your majesty, do not listen to these people’s
lies, for an elephant is like a tree-trunk, a pillar, or a post!’ said
those who were standing by a foot.
“Then those who were standing at the body proclaimed it to be
like a granary, while those at the tail said the beast was like a
broom.”
“It was not long, monks, before those blind people, saying ‘An
elephant is like this! An elephant is not like that!’ began to
quarrel and to fight. And the king, in seeing this spectacle, was
most amused.
“Even so, monks, are these various wanderers and priests, each
clinging to their own views and opinions. They are as if blind.
Some, having experienced a small part of the Truth, proclaim it
to be the Whole. Others, lost in deluded thought and experience,
declare their experience to be complete. They do not know what
is beneficial for beings, and they do not know what is harmful.
They do not see that views and opinions arise from ignorance,
nor do they see that suffering has ignorance as its cause.

It is those who are attached to views;

who see things from only one side,
Who engage in quarrels and disputes.

 The Buddha
Udana VI.4


Those who cling to ideas perish;
Those who linger over concepts get lost.

 Ku-shan (died ca. 940)1


Dandapani (literally, “Stick-in-hand”) the Sakyan, out roaming
and rambling for exercise, went to the Great Wood where the
Buddha sat quietly in the shade of a tree. Having exchanged

1
Translated by Thomas Cleary, “Teachings of Zen”
everyday greetings and courtesies, he stood to one side and said,
“Tell me contemplative, what is your doctrine? What view do
you proclaim?”
“The sort of doctrine, friend, where one does not enter into
quarrels with anyone in this cosmos. The sort of doctrine where
views no longer lie latent in the one who remains dissociated
from sensual pleasures. Being free from perplexity, his
uncertainty is cut away. He craves neither the realisation of
future states, nor the ending of any states that have presently
arisen. Such is my doctrine, such is what I proclaim.”
When this was said, Dandapani the Sakyan, shaking his head,
wagging his tongue, raising his eyebrows so that his forehead
was wrinkled in three furrows, departed leaning on his stick.

 The Buddha
Majjhima Nikaya 18



The one who thinks himself equal, inferior, or superior to others

becomes, for that very reason, involved in arguments. But such
thoughts as equal, inferior, or superior are not there in the one
who has left behind all such measurements.
Why should a wise person argue with another, saying: “This is
a truth” and “This is a lie”? If such a one never entertains a
thought about equal, inferior, or superior, then with whom is he
going to argue?
The sage who has freed himself from dependence on others and
from dependence on words, and who is no longer attached to
views and knowledge, does not enter into the smothering of truth
by engaging in futile disputes.
  Samyutta Nikaya


When your heart is crooked,
You don’t realize your tongue is forked.

 Zen proverb


A good person does not argue.
Those who argue are not good.

Those who perceive clarity within themselves,

Have no need of convincing others.

Those who are content within themselves,

Have no desire to be praised.

 Lao-tzu
The Tao Te Ching


 Words and Silence
A dog is not considered a good dog
because he is a good barker.
A man is not considered a good man
because he is a good talker.

 Chuang-tzu



Neither speak ill of others, nor well of yourself.

The moment you open your mouth to speak,
The autumn wind stirs and chills your lips.

 Buson (1716 – 1783)



Vassakara, the minister to the king of Magadha, approached the

Blessed One and, on arrival, exchanged courteous greetings with
him.
Then, as he was sitting there, he said to the Blessed One: “It is
my opinion, Noble One, that so long as anyone speaks directly
of what they have personally seen, heard, experienced, or
cognised, saying, ‘Thus have I seen’, or ‘thus have I heard’, or
‘thus have I experienced’, or ‘thus have I cognised’, then there
can be no fault with that.”
The Buddha responded: “I do not say, Vassakara, that everything
that has been seen, heard, experienced, or cognised, should be
spoken about. Nor do I say that these things should not be spoken
about. One should be aware as to when it is the right time and
the wrong time to speak. If it be the case, Vassakara, that the
time is right, and that one’s words are true and also of benefit,
then indeed it is fitting that one should utter them.”

 Anguttara Nikaya IV.183

and Majjhima Nikaya 58



In the afternoon, the Buddha, emerging from his seclusion, went

to the meeting hall and sat down on a seat made ready. As he
was sitting there, he addressed the monks: “For what topic of
conversation are you gathered together here? In the midst of
what topic of conversation have you been interrupted?”
“Just now, lord, after the meal, on returning from our alms
round, we gathered at the meeting hall and were engaged in
many kinds of topics of conversation. We conversed about
kings, robbers, and ministers of state; about armies, alarms, and
battles; food and drink; clothing, furniture, garlands and scents;
relatives; vehicles; villages, towns, cities, the countryside;
women and heroes; the gossip of the street and the well;
speculation about the dead; tales of diversity; arguments about
religion, the creation of the world and of the sea; talk of whether
things exist or not.”
“It is not right, monks, that sons of good families, on having
gone forth from home to the homeless life, seeking that
unexcelled liberation of the mind, should become engaged in
such topics of conversation; which is to say, conversation about
kings, robbers, ministers of state, and so on.
“There are these ten topics of uplifting conversation, monks,
which is to say: talk on modesty, on contentment, on seclusion,
on letting go, on arousing persistence, on virtue, on
concentration, on discernment, on freedom, and on the
knowledge and vision of freedom. These are the ten topics of
uplifting conversation. If you were to engage repeatedly in these
ten topics, you would outshine even the sun and moon, so
mighty, so powerful, to say nothing of the followers of the
various other sects.”

 Anguttara Nikaya X.69



Learn to be silent,
And you will notice that you have talked too much.

 Tschen Tschi Ju
 
When you meet a swordsman, show him your sword.
Do not discuss poetry with one who is not a poet.

 Lin-chi (d. 867)



There is no sense in speaking of the ocean to a well frog, for it

is a creature of a narrower sphere. There is no sense in speaking
of ice to a summer insect, for it is the creature of but one season.
One wastes one’s time in discussing the Truth with sceptics, for
their minds are spellbound by theories and views.

 Chuang-tzu


“What boots it to just go wandering about like a sheep sticking
its nose in every corner, picking up any old thing, and putting it
into its mouth? When I was with Shih-t’ou1, he used to say

1
(c. 780)
whenever anybody asked him a question: ‘Close your mouth!
Stop barking like a dog!’ I follow his example and say just the
same. Only realise that all things are like a dream, a vision, an
ethereal flower, and that to run after them, and endlessly speak
about them, is no more than idle occupation. If you wish to reach
the depths of Reality, then just sit down quietly for say, twenty
or thirty years, and if you still fail to understand, you can come
and cut of this old man’s head.”

 Chao-chou (788 – 897)


Once, three scholars on the way to the civil service examination
stopped to buy refreshments from a woman who sold pastries by
the side of the road. One man was calm and quiet, while the other
two discussed and argued over literature. The woman asked
where they were going. The latter two told her they were going
to take the civil service examination. She replied: “You two
scholars won’t pass the exam; that other man will.” The two men
scorned her in rebuke and left.
When the results of the examination turned out just as the
woman had predicted, the two scholars who had failed went back
to find out what means she had used in her prediction.
“All I know,” said the woman, “is that when a pastry is
thoroughly cooked, it just sits there quietly, but when it is still
half-baked it keeps on making a noise.”
 Wu-men (1183 – 1260)1

1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Cleary, in “Teachings of Zen”.
 
There are these four kinds of verbal conduct in accordance with
the Truth – leading to righteousness and conducive to what is
good. And what are these four kinds of verbal conduct?

“Abandoning false speech, one speaks what is true. When

summoned to a court or to a meeting or to one’s relatives'
presence or to the royal court, and questioned as a witness, then
when not knowing, one says ‘I do not know,’ or when knowing,
one says ‘I know’. Not having seen one says ‘I did not see,’ or
having seen, one says ‘I saw’. One does not in full awareness
speak falsehood for one’s own ends, or for another's ends, or for
some trifling worldly gain.
Abandoning malicious speech, one abstains from words
injurious to others. One does not repeat elsewhere what one has
heard here in order to divide. One reunites those who are
divided, one is a promoter of friendships, one enjoys concord,
rejoices in concord, delights in concord, one is a speaker of
words that promote harmony.
Abandoning harsh speech, one abstains from harsh speech. One
speaks such words as are gentle, pleasing to the ear and loveable.
One speaks such words as go to the heart, are courteous, desired
by many and agreeable to many.
Abandoning gossip, one abstains from gossip. One speaks at the
right time, speaks what is fact, speaks on what is good, and
speaks on the Truth and the Discipline when the time is right.
One speaks such words as are worth recording: reasonable,
moderate and beneficial.”

 The Buddha
Majjhima Nikaya 41

 Work

O Arjuna, he who, disciplining the senses and the mind,

Performs that duty which must be performed,
With neither attachment nor desires for results,
Verily, he is esteemed.

Do thou perform those actions which are right and obligatory,

For without some manner of work,
Thou couldst not maintain even the necessities of the body.

 Bhagavad Gita III.7;8



Whoever receives a salary without doing any service,

Is uneasy eating and sleeping.

 Zen proverb


Those whom we call sages rest peacefully in their places
according to the time, and enjoy their work as appropriate to the
age.

 Wen-tzu (c. 100 B.C.)


The noble student, endowed with discipline, determination, and
one-pointed awareness, thinks: ‘No fear do I have for my
livelihood. Why should I have fear about it? Have I not the four
powers of wisdom, energy, an unblemished life, and acting
benevolently?’
It is one who is foolish, lazy, blameworthy, and whose conduct
in deeds, words and thoughts lack benevolence, who might have
fear for his livelihood.

 The Buddha
Anguttara Nikaya IV


The man who does what he loves,
Never works a day in his life.

 Confucius
 
That work which comes naturally to one,
Even though considered by others to be inferior,
Is better than that work which is considered superior,
Yet in which one feels out of place.

Indeed, better is death

In the course of one’s natural inclinations,
Than to live a life of suffering doing what one does not enjoy.

 Bhagavad Gita III.35



The sage with few desires,

Has no need of excessive activity to keep himself alive.
Indeed, he has no time for unnecessary busy-ness!
For what he loves most is not comforts and wealth,
But Awareness and quietude in life.

 Mu-chi


 One should not be another’s man.
One should not live depending on another,
Nor turn the Teachings into a trade.

 The Buddha
Udana VI.2


The man who sees that even action is stillness,
And that from stillness comes the impulse to act:
For that man, imbued with stillness,
There is no work.

 Bhagavad Gita IV.18


When the truth is understood,
Work falls away.
Though in the eyes of others
The master may seem to work,
In reality he has no occasion
To say or to do anything.

 Ashtavakra Gita 18.771

1
Translated by Thomas Byrom in ‘The Heart of Awareness’

 Humility

If you stand on tiptoe, you will not stand firm.

If you rush ahead, you will tire quickly.

If you try to shine, you will be unable to absorb.

If you define yourself,
You will never know who you truly are.

If you boast, you will have no merit.

If you promote yourself,
You will create nothing that ever endures.

 Lao-tzu



“This Path is for one who is modest, not for one who is self-
aggrandizing.” Thus was it said. With reference to what was it
said?
There is the case where a monk, being modest, does not want it
to be known that he is modest. Being content, he does not want
it to be known that he is content. Being reclusive, he does not
want it to be known that he is reclusive. His persistence being
aroused, he does not want it to be known that his persistence is
aroused. His mindfulness being established, he does not want it
to be known that his mindfulness is established. His mind being
centred, he does not want it to be known that his mind is centred.
Being endowed with discernment, he does not want it to be
known that he is endowed with discernment. Enjoying non-
complication, he does not want it to be known that he enjoys
non-complication.

 The Buddha
Anguttara Nikaya VIII.30


True goodness is like water.
It flows everywhere, filling everything.
By its very nature it is life giving.
Humbly, it settles in the lowest places.
Those who follow the true Way are the same.

 Lao-tzu


He who has no reverence for the teacher,
Is incapable of being taught.

 Zen saying


 The Wise view everything with compassion,
Knowing each thing to be a part of the Whole.
Being themselves no different from anything else,
They are imbued with humility and love.
Not glittering like a jewel,
They let themselves be shaped by the Way,
As rugged and common as stone.

 Lao-tzu


 Self-Discipline

Let a man raise himself by his Self;

Let him never lower himself.
For he alone is the friend of himself,
And he alone is his own Self’s foe.

 Bhagavad Gita VI.5



An owl met a quail, and the quail asked, “Where are you going?”
“I am going east,” was the owl’s reply.
“May I ask why?” asked the quail.
“The people of the local village hate my screeching noise,”
replied the owl. “That is why I am going east.”
“Then,” said the quail, “what you should do is change that
screeching noise. If you can’t, you will be hated for it even in
the east.”

 Liu Hsiang (c. 77 B.C.)


“Train yourselves to become this and then that. Nor rest content
thinking that what is done is enough and that nothing further
remains to be done. I protest to you, I declare to you, let there be
no falling back in your aims while something further remains to
be done. And what is there that further remains to be done? First,
to become conscientious and scrupulous. Thereafter,
successively, to become pure in deed, speech, and thought; to
become restrained as to the six senses; to become mindful and
circumspect; to become diligent as to introspection; to become
moderate in eating; to become possessed of the insight of
liberating wisdom. But when all this is accomplished, then can
the recluse finally proclaim, “Done is what was to be done.
Lived is the onward faring. Nothing more remains for this
world.”

 The Buddha


Living in the world,
Yet not forming attachments to the dust of the world,
Is the practice of a true student of the Way.
When witnessing the good action of another,
Encourage yourself to follow their example.
Hearing of the mistaken action of another,
Advise yourself not to emulate it.
Even though alone in a dark room,
Be as though you were facing a noble guest.
Express your feelings,
But become no more expressive than your true nature.
Poverty is your treasure.
Never exchange it for an easy life.
 A person may appear a fool and yet not be one.
He may only be guarding his wisdom carefully.
Virtues are the fruit of self-discipline,
And do not drop from heaven of themselves
as does rain and snow.
Modesty is the foundation of all virtues.
Let your neighbours discover you
Before you make yourself known to them.
A noble heart never forces itself forward.
Its words are as rare gems,
seldom displayed and of great value.
To a sincere student, every day is a fortunate day.
Time passes but he never lags behind.
Neither glory nor shame can move him.
Censure yourself, never another.
Do not discuss right and wrong.
Some things, though right, were considered wrong for
generations.
Since the value of righteousness may be recognised only after
centuries, there is no need to crave an immediate appreciation.
Live with cause and leave results to the law of the universe.
Pass each day in peaceful contemplation.

 Shen Yueh [d. 912]


One on the Path should not tremble at blame,
nor grow haughty with praise;
should thrust aside selfishness, greed,
divisive speech, and anger;
 should not buy-and-sell,
nor revile anyone anywhere;
should neither linger in villages,
nor flatter people in hopes of gain.

 The Buddha
Sutta Nipata iv.14



Have firm principles for yourself,

But be patient when it comes to others.
Set an example, but do not criticise.
Be honest, but never hurtful.
Be straightforward, but always gentle.

Shine your light, but not so brightly that it blinds.

 Lao-tzu



When a good man makes a mistake, he recognises it.

Having recognised it, he admits it.
 Having admitted it, he corrects it.
He considers those who point out his faults
As his most benevolent teachers.

 Lao-tzu



“Associate with good friends and choose a remote lodging,

secluded, with little noise. Be moderate in eating. Robes, alms-
food, remedies and a dwelling - have no craving for these things;
do not become one who returns to the world. Practice restraint
according to the Discipline, and control the five sense-faculties.
“Practice awareness of the body and continually develop
dispassion towards it. Avoid the sign of the beautiful connected
with passion; by meditating on the foul cultivate a mind that is
concentrated and collected.
“Meditate on that which is the basic cause of experience, and rid
yourself of the tendency to conceit. By thoroughly
understanding and destroying conceit you will live in the highest
peace.”

 The Buddha
Sutta Nipata II.11


It is good to control your words and thoughts. The seeker who is
in control feels free and joyful. Listen to that seeker who guards
his tongue and speaks wisely. Such a one is humble and does not
exalt himself. He follows the universal Law in his daily life.
When you are master of your concentration, you will delight in
inner solitude and meditation. The seeker who loves the truth
and always reflects upon it will always be sustained by it.
Empty your boat, seeker, and you will travel more swiftly.
Lighten the load of craving and opinions, and you will realise
freedom the sooner.

 The Dhammapada



Collecting the mind and simplifying affairs,

Day by day one reduces contrivance.
When the body is calm and the mind uncluttered,
Only then can one observe the subtle.

 Chang San-feng (c. 1200)


You are the master, and you are also the Way.
Where else can you look?
As a merchant breaks in a noble horse,
So you should master yourself.

 The Dhammapada


 Right Thought

When thoughts spring up,

The wind freshens, and like waves,
A thousand worlds arise.

 Ashtavakra Gita 2.231



To raise thoughts towards the environing objects, and on these

thoughts to cherish false views, this is the source of worries and
imaginations.

 Hui-neng (673 – 713)



1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Byrom in ‘The Heart of
Awareness’.
 As the fletcher whittles and makes straight his arrows,
So the master directs his straying thoughts.
Like a fish out of water, stranded on the shore,
Thoughts quiver and thrash about,
For how can they shake off desire?

They tremble, they are unsteady,

and they wander at their own will.
It is good to control them, and to quieten them brings peace.
But how subtle they are, how elusive!
The task is to quieten them,
For the quietened mind is at peace.

 The Dhammapada


If while walking, standing, sitting, or reclining when awake, a
thought of sensuality, hatred, or aggressiveness arises in a monk,
and he tolerates it, does not reject it, discard and eliminate it -
does not bring it to an end - that monk who in such a manner is
ever and again lacking in earnest endeavour and moral
discernment, is called indolent and void of energy.
If while walking, standing, sitting, or reclining when awake, a
thought of sensuality, hatred, or aggressiveness arises in a monk,
and he does not tolerate it, but rejects it, discards and eliminates
it - brings it to an end - that monk who in such a manner ever
and again shows earnest endeavour and moral discernment, is
called energetic, heedful, and resolute.
  The Buddha
Itivuttaka 110


Trivial thoughts, subtle thoughts,
Like a leash for the mind that drags one along;
Not understanding the nature of thoughts,
One runs here and there, out of control.
But comprehending the mind and its thoughts,
The ardent and mindful one restrains them.
The one who is Awake abandons them entirely:
In silence observing their rise and fall, he is not carried along.

 The Buddha
Udana IV.1



Where is thought? It can never be seen or even apprehended. It

is like a magical illusion, for with imagination it colours the
world. Searching for thought, and being unable to see it, a person
may seek its origin. Here one may realise that thoughts arise in
connection with objects. Where there is no object, how could
thoughts possibly rise? Can thought look at thought? No. Just as
the blade of a sword cannot cut itself, or a fingertip touch itself,
so thought cannot see thought.
  Sikshasamuccaya



All toilsome, rambling, and random thoughts are to be dismissed

as soon as you become aware of them. If you hear slander or
praise, or anything good or bad, brush it all off right away; don’t
take it into your mind. If you take it in, your mind will be full,
and there will be no room for the Way. Whatever you see and
hear, see and hear it as if you did not see and hear. Then right
and wrong, good and bad will not enter your mind. When the
mind does not hold to externals, this is called pacifying the mind.
When the mind does not pursue externals, this is called
quietening the mind. When the mind is peaceful and quiet, the
Way comes of itself to dwell therein.

 Chang San-feng (c. 1200)1



“Monks, I know not of any other single thing so obstinate as the

untamed mind. The untamed mind is indeed a thing incompliant.

1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Cleary in ‘Vitality Energy Spirit’
“Monks, I know not of any other thing so dutiful as the tamed
mind. The tamed mind is indeed a thing compliant.
“Monks, I know not of any other single thing so conducive to
great loss as the untamed mind. The untamed mind indeed
conduces to great loss.
“Monks, I know not of any other single thing so conducive to
great profit as the tamed mind. The tamed mind indeed conduces
to great profit.
“Monks, I know not of any other single thing that brings such
woe as the mind that is untamed, uncontrolled, unguarded and
unrestrained. Such a mind indeed brings great woe.
“Monks, I know not of any other single thing that brings such
happiness as the mind that is tamed, controlled, guarded and
restrained. Such a mind indeed brings great happiness.”

 The Buddha
Anguttara Nikaya I.31-40



The mind has the ability to roam to Heaven. Now, if there be too
little room in a house, then a wife and her mother-in-law will
forever be at each others throats. Similarly, if the mind remains
trapped in worldly matters, and does not roam to Heaven, then
the faculties will be in a state of constant unease.

 Chuang-tzu


If you involve yourself in many activities, exercising thought
and acting conscientiously at an appropriate time, in an
appropriate manner, and claim you are unattached, this is not
real study. Why? The mind is like an eye –even should a tiny
hair get in the eye, the eye is uncomfortable. Similarly, if even a
small matter obsesses the mind, the mind will be disturbed. Once
afflicted by disturbance, it is hard to concentrate.

 Chang San-feng (c. 1200)1



“When unwholesome and unskilful thoughts, connected with

desires, aversions, or delusion, arise in a monk seeking higher
states of mind, he should attend to another theme, apart from that
one, connected with what is skilful and wholesome. In this way,
those unskilful and unwholesome thoughts are left behind, are
forgotten and subside. With their abandoning the mind becomes
settled, unified, and concentrated. Just as a skilled carpenter
might use a small peg to drive out a large one, in the same way,
the skilful monk drives out unwholesome and unprofitable
thoughts by attending to those that are skilful, profitable, and
wholesome.”

 The Buddha
Majjhima Nikaya 20

1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Cleary in ‘Vitality Energy Spirit’
 
To ‘leave the world’ means that you do not let thoughts of
worldly matters hang on your mind.

 Dogen Zenji


At all times avoid dwelling obsessively on things,
And it will be easy to unveil ‘this’.

 Ku-shan (died ca. 940)1


In walking, only walk.
In sitting, only sit.
Above all, stop daydreaming.

 Yun-men (d. 949)

1
Translated by Thomas Cleary, “Teachings of Zen”
 
Develop thoughts of loving-kindness
And ill-will will be abandoned.
Develop thoughts of compassion
And cruelty will be abandoned.
Develop thoughts of appreciative joy
And discontent will be abandoned.
Develop thoughts of equanimity
And aversion will be abandoned.
Develop thoughts on foulness
And lust will be abandoned.
Develop thoughts on impermanence
And the conceit ‘I am’ will be abandoned.

 Majjhima Nikaya 62


“Luminous, monks, is this Awareness.
And it is defiled by wrong thought.”

“Luminous, monks, is this Awareness.

And it is freed from wrong thought.”

“Luminous, monks, is this Awareness. And it is defiled by

wrong thought. The uninstructed run-of-the-mill person doesn't
discern that as it actually is present, which is why I tell you that
for the uninstructed run-of-the-mill person there is no
development of the mind.”

“Luminous, monks, is this Awareness. And it is freed from

wrong thought. The well-instructed disciple of the noble ones
discerns that as it actually is present, which is why I tell you that
for the well-instructed disciple of the noble ones there is
development of the mind.”

 The Buddha
Anguttara Nikaya I.49-52



Cease conceptualisation; forget about objects; do not be a

partner to the dusts. When the mind is empty, everything is at
peace.

 Kuei-shan (771 – 854)


In spring, thousands of flowers;
In summer, a refreshing breeze.
In autumn, the harvest moon;
In winter, snowflakes accompany you.
If useless things do not hang in your mind,
Every season is a good season.

 Mumon (1183 – 1260)

 Meditation
Grant yourself a moment of peace,
And you will understand how foolishly
You have scurried about.

 Tschen Tschi Ju


“Monks, mindfulness of breathing - if cultivated and regularly
practised – is of great fruit, of great benefit. And how is this so?
Herein, a monk having gone to the forest, to the foot of a tree, to
an abandoned dwelling, or to a quiet place, sits down cross-
legged, keeping his body erect and his mindfulness alert. Just
mindful he breathes in and mindful he breathes out. Breathing in
a long or a short breath, he is aware: ‘I breathe in a long, or a
short breath’. Breathing out a long or a short breath, he is aware:
‘I breathe out a long, or a short breath’. In this way he trains
himself.
In he who thus lives earnest, ardent and resolute, worldly
memories and inclinations will fade away, and through their
fading his mind will become calm, harmonious and
concentrated. Thus does a monk cultivate mindfulness of
breathing, the benefit of which, the fruit of which, is great.

 The Buddha
Majjhima Nikaya 119


To practice the Way, first be able to set things aside. Cut off
contact with external things, so nothing involves or opposes the
mind. After that, sit comfortably.
Inwardly observe arisings of mind. If you notice a thought arise,
you should get rid of it, to bring about peace and quiet.
Next, even if you don’t have any specific craving or clinging,
wandering thoughts should also be exterminated.
Work diligently, day and night, without giving up.

Just extinguish the stirring mind, don’t annihilate the radiance of

awareness. Just stabilise unlimited awareness, don’t solidify the
mind by dwelling on thoughts.

 The Scripture of Spiritual

Jewels (Ling-pao)1
(c. 300 A.D.)


“If you have not yet mastered the great task, nothing compares
to stopping - in the sense of purifying and quieting the body and
mind.”

 Ku-shan (died ca. 940)2

1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Cleary in ‘Vitality Energy Spirit’
2
Translated by Thomas Cleary, “Teachings of Zen”
 

A mind that is not established and settled in virtue

Cannot be easily concentrated.
A mind that cannot be concentrated
Cannot gain an insight into the nature of things as they are.

 Digha Nikaya 16



In one who has no wisdom the mind is unsteady, and in one

whose mind is unsteady there can be no quietude; in one for
whom there is no quietude there can be no meditation, and for
the unmeditative there can be no peace. How can there be any
happiness in one who knows no peace?

 Bhagavad Gita II.66

 

Different winds come from all directions. Some are clear, some
carry dust, some are cold or hot, fierce gales or gentle breezes.
In the same way sensations arise in the body – pleasant,
unpleasant or neutral. When a meditator sees sensations as he
does the winds, coming and going of their own accord, some
clear and some dust laden, some fierce and some gentle, then he
will fully understand them and be free from dependence on
them. When one recognises the true nature of sensations, as
arising and departing without ownership or self-cause, then one
sees beyond this conditioned world.

 The Buddha
Samyutta Nikaya XXXVI.12



The practice of true reality is simply to sit serenely in silent

introspection. When you have fathomed this you cannot be
turned around by external events. The mind becomes empty,
wide, and open, subtle and illuminating.
Spacious and at ease, without confusion from inner thoughts or
grasping, one effectively surmounts habitual behaviour and
awakens to the self that is not possessed by emotions. You must
be broad-minded, whole, without relying on others. Here you
can rest and become clean, pure, and lucid. Bright and
penetrating, everything is unhindered: clouds gracefully floating
up to the peaks, the moonlight glitteringly flowing down
mountain streams. All is illumined and spiritually transformed,
natural and unobstructed.
Continue, cultivate and nourish yourself to realise maturity and
stability. This is the way of one of no-mind, but in order to
realise no-mind one must first exert great effort.

 Hung-chih (d. 1157)



“The concentration of mind achieved through mindfulness of

breathing, if cultivated and regularly practised, is peaceful and
sublime, an unalloyed and happy state of mind that makes
unpleasant, harmful ideas immediately cease and vanish
whenever they arise.
Further, if mindfulness of breathing has been cultivated and
regularly practised, then even at the moment of death, the last
in-breaths and out-breaths will pass consciously, not
unconsciously.”

 The Buddha
Samyutta Nikaya XLIV.9
Majjhima Nikaya 62
 

Just as water derives lucidity from stillness, so do the faculties

of the mind. The mind of the sage, being in repose, becomes the
mirror of the universe, the speculum of all creation.

 Chuang-tzu



The greatest revelation is stillness.

 Lao-tzu


 Mindfulness

O noble one, in this discipline the well-resolved mind is single

and one-pointed; but the purposes of the irresolute mind are
many-branched and endless.

 Bhagavad Gita II.41



“This, monks, is the direct path for the purification of beings, for
the overcoming of sorrow and lamentation, for the
disappearance of pain and distress, for the attainment of the right
method, and for the awakening into unbounded freedom; in
other words, the four foundations of awareness. And what are
the four foundations of awareness? They are: awareness of the
body, awareness of feelings, awareness of states of mind, and
awareness of specific qualities of the mind. These are the four
foundations of awareness in which, having put aside all greed
and distress concerning the world, a being intent on realising
higher states should remain abiding.

And how does one maintain awareness of the body?

“Having gone to a some quiet place, sitting down and folding
one’s legs crosswise, holding one’s body erect, one clears one’s
awareness and brings it to the fore. Then, being simply aware of
the moment, one maintains awareness of breathing in, and
awareness of breathing out.
“When breathing in a long breath, one is aware of the breath as
long; when breathing in a short breath, one is aware of the breath
as short. Similarly one is aware upon breathing out: ‘this is a
long out-breath’, or ‘this out-breath is short’. Thus one trains
oneself to become sensitive to the body, and in so doing one
becomes calm, lucid, and sensitive to the awareness of the
moment.

“Furthermore, when walking, one should discern: ‘This body is

walking.’ When standing, one should discern: ‘This body is
standing.’ Similarly, when sitting or lying down, one should
discern: ‘The body is sitting,’ or ‘it is lying down.’ Thus,
however the body may be disposed, one should abide in a
foundation of awareness toward it.

“Furthermore, when going forward or returning, one should be

mindful of these acts; when looking toward or looking away,
when bending or extending one’s limbs, when putting on
clothes, when eating, drinking, chewing, or savouring, when
falling asleep or waking up, when talking or remaining silent,
one should be perfectly present, with awareness of the moment
as it is, being mindful.

“In this way one remains focused on the body in and of itself.
One recognises that: ‘Whatever arises is impermanent, fleeting,
and subject to passing away.’ Thus one remains focused on the
body: on its arising, on its existence, and on its passing away. Or
one abides in the awareness that: ‘There is this body’, to the
extent that one abides in clear knowledge, unhindered by notions
of ownership or self. Thus one remains calm, clear-minded, and
independent, without clinging to anything whatsoever in the
world. This is how one remains focused on the body in and of
itself.

And how does one maintain awareness of feelings?

When experiencing a painful feeling, one is aware that ‘this is a
painful feeling’. When experiencing a pleasant feeling, one is
aware that ‘this is a pleasant feeling’. When experiencing a
neutral feeling, one is aware that ‘this feeling is neither painful
nor pleasant’.

“In this way one remains focused on feelings in and of

themselves. One recognises that: ‘Whatever arises is
impermanent, fleeting, and subject to passing away.’ Thus one
remains focused on the phenomenon of feelings: on their arising,
on their existence, and on their passing away. Or one abides in
the awareness that: ‘There are feelings’, to the extent that one
abides in clear knowledge, unhindered by notions of ownership
or self. Thus one remains calm, clear-minded, and independent,
without clinging to anything whatsoever in the world. This is
how one remains focused on feelings in and of themselves.

And how does one maintain awareness of states of mind?

Here one recognises states of mind as they arise. When the mind
has passion, one discerns: ‘the mind has passion’. When the
mind is without passion, one discerns: ‘the mind is without
passion’. When the mind has aversion, one discerns: ‘this is the
mind with aversion’. When the mind is without aversion, one
discerns: ‘this is the mind without aversion’. When the mind has
delusion, one discerns: ‘here the mind is in delusion’. When the
mind is without delusion, one discerns: ‘here the mind is without
delusion’.

Thus one recognises states of mind as they arise. Furthermore,

whether the mind be restricted, or scattered; enlarged, or
clouded; concentrated, or not concentrated; released, or bound;
one maintains awareness of the mind as it is.

“In this way one remains focused on states of mind in and of

themselves. One recognises that: ‘Whatever arises is
impermanent, fleeting, and subject to passing away.’ Thus one
remains focused on the phenomenon of states of mind: on their
arising, on their existence, and on their passing away. Or one
abides in the awareness that: ‘There is this mind’, to the extent
that one abides in clear knowledge, unhindered by notions of
ownership or self. Thus one remains calm, clear-minded, and
independent, without clinging to anything whatsoever in the
world. This is how one remains focused on states of mind in and
of themselves.

And how does one maintain awareness of qualities of the mind?

Here one abides in awareness of the five hindrances of the mind
as they arise. Thus, on the arising or presence of sensual desire,
one is aware that ‘at present the mind is hindered by sensual
desire’. On the arising or presence of ill-will, one is aware that
‘at present the mind is hindered by ill-will’. On the arising or
presence of sloth and drowsiness, one is aware that ‘at present
the mind is hindered by sloth and drowsiness’. On the arising or
presence of restlessness and anxiety, one is aware that ‘at present
the mind is hindered by restlessness and anxiety’. On the arising
or presence of doubt, one is aware that ‘at present the mind is
hindered by doubt’.

“In this way one remains focused on qualities of the mind in and
of themselves. One recognises that: ‘Whatever arises is
impermanent, fleeting, and subject to passing away.’ Thus one
remains focused on the phenomenon of qualities of the mind: on
their arising, on their existence, and on their passing away. Or
one abides in the awareness that: ‘The mind has these qualities’,
to the extent that one abides in clear knowledge, unhindered by
notions of ownership or self. Thus one remains calm, clear-
minded, and independent, without clinging to anything
whatsoever in the world. This is how one remains focused on
qualities of the mind in and of themselves.

Furthermore, one may abide in awareness of the qualities of the

mind with reference to the six-fold internal and external sense
media. Here, one discerns the eye, and one discerns forms, and
one discerns the awareness that arises dependent on both.
Similarly, one discerns the ear and sounds, the nose and smells,
the tongue and tastes, the body and feelings, the intellect and
ideas, and in each case one discerns the awareness that arises
dependent on the existence of both.

“In this way one remains focused on qualities of mind with

reference to the six-fold internal and external sense media in and
of themselves. One recognises that: ‘Whatever arises is
impermanent, fleeting, and subject to passing away.’ Thus one
remains in awareness of the six-fold internal and external sense
media: on their arising, on their existence, and on their passing
away. Or one abides in the awareness that: ‘There are these
internal and external sense media’, to the extent that one abides
in clear knowledge, unhindered by notions of ownership or self.
Thus one remains calm, clear-minded, and independent, without
clinging to anything whatsoever in the world. This is how one
remains focused on qualities of mind with reference to the six-
fold internal and external sense media in and of themselves.

“Now, if anyone should develop these four foundations of

awareness in this way for seven years, one of two fruits can be
expected for them: either penetrating insight and knowledge
right here and now, or, if there remain any remnant of clinging,
the state of non-return.
“Let alone seven years; if anyone should develop these four
foundations of awareness in this way for six years, nay, for five
years, or four, or three, or even two years, then one of two fruits
can be expected for them: either penetrating insight and
knowledge right here and now, or, if there remain any remnant
of clinging, the state of non-return.
Let alone two years; if anyone should develop these four
foundations of awareness in this way for even one year, nay, for
just seven months, or even six months, or for five, four, three, or
two months, then I tell you that one of two fruits can be expected
for them: either penetrating insight and knowledge right here and
now, or, if there remain any remnant of clinging, the state of non-
return.
“Let alone two months. Monks, I tell you that should anyone
develop these four foundations of awareness in this way for but
half a month, or even with earnestness for but seven days, one
of two fruits can be expected for them: either penetrating insight
and knowledge right here and now, or, if there remain any
remnant of clinging, the state of non-return.
“For this is the direct path for the purification of beings, for the
overcoming of sorrow and lamentation, for the disappearance of
pain and distress, for the attainment of the right method, and for
the realisation of liberation into the Truth, that is to say, the four
foundations of awareness.

 The Buddha
(Siddharta Gautama)
Digha Nikaya 22


Suppose an elephant trainer has driven a strong post into the
ground, and to it he ties a forest elephant by his neck, for
subduing in him the anxieties, fatigue and heat of the forest life,
for making him amenable to village life, for training him in a
behaviour agreeable to men.
Similarly are the four foundations of awareness for the noble
disciple a fastening of his mind, for subduing in him his worldly
behaviour, for subduing in him his worldly longings, for
subduing in him his worldly anxieties, fatigue and heat; for
reaching the right path: for realising awakening.1

 The Buddha
Majjhima Nikaya 125



“Awareness of in-and-out breathing, when developed and

pursued, is of great fruit, of great benefit. Indeed, the practise of
awareness of in-and-out breathing, when developed and
pursued, brings of itself the four foundations of awareness to
completion, and carries one to a state of unrivalled clear
knowing, of calm comprehension, and of liberation into the
nature of things as they are.

 The Buddha
Majjhima Nikaya 118

1
Translated by Nyanaponika Thera in ‘The Heart of Buddhist Meditation’
 
The king of a country in eastern India invited a Buddhist master
to a feast, during the course of which he asked, “I see all the
other holy men reciting scriptures, but never you. Why is that?”
The master replied, “Breathing out, I have no attachment to
objects. Breathing in, I have no attachment to thoughts. What
more could any scripture have to offer?”


Zen students remain with their masters for at least ten years
before they presume to teach others. Tenno, who, having passed
his apprenticeship, had become a teacher, visited nan-in. The
day happened to be rainy, so Tenno wore wooden clogs and
carried an umbrella. After greeting him, Nan-in remarked, “I
suppose you left your wooden clogs in the vestibule. I want to
know if your umbrella is on the right or left side of the clogs.”
Tenno, confused, had no instant answer. He realised that he was
unable to carry his awareness every moment. He became Nan-
in’s pupil, and studied for a further six years before he realised
his every moment awareness.1



1
From “Zen Flesh, Zen Bones” by Paul Reps and Nyogen Senzaki
“If you want to free yourself from the realm of suffering, you
must learn the direct way to become awakened. This is no other
than the realisation of your own Mind. If you want to know the
Mind, you must first of all look into the source from which all
thoughts flow. Sleeping and working, standing and sitting,
profoundly ask yourself, ‘What is this?’”

 Bassui (1327 – 1387)


When you have attained a little inner quiet, then wherever you
are and whatever you do, be attentive yet at peace.
Whether there is something to do or nothing to do, whether you
are in a tranquil situation or in the midst of commotion, do not
harbour any thoughts - be sure to keep your mental focus unified.
Controlled without fixation, liberated and calm, unfazed by
commotion, undisturbed by events – this is true stability.
Do not seek many affairs just because involvement in things
does not bother you. Don’t purposely take to the hubbub just
because commotion doesn’t dismay you.
Make no thing your true home.
When mind is like a mirror, it illuminates whatever is there.

 The Scripture of Spiritual

Jewels (Ling-pao)1
(c. 300 A.D.)

1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Cleary in ‘Vitality Energy Spirit’
 
Direct observation is the insight of the wise, the awareness of
the able. Every meal, every nap, is a potential source of gain or
loss. Every act, every word, can be a basis of calamity or fortune.

 Chang San-feng (c. 1200)


 Effort

All composite things are subject to decay;

Seek out your salvation with diligence.

 The Buddha’s final words


Like massive boulders,
mountains pressing against the sky,
moving in from all sides,
crushing the four directions,
so aging and death
come rolling in over all beings:
whether kings, warriors, or priests,
workers, outcastes, or thieves.

Nothing is spared;
everything is lost.

Here armoured troops can hold no ground,

nor chariots, not intelligence, nor wits.
Towards death travel the poor and rich alike.

Thus those who are wise,

seeing the futility of the struggles in this life,
Devote themselves steadfastly
to the knowledge of what is good.
 Through constant refinement
of thoughts, speech, and deeds,
they are praised here on earth,
and progress towards that Awareness,
Which knows of no turning back.

 The Buddha
Samyutta Nikaya III.25


Impermanence, aging, and illness do not give people a set time.
One may be alive in the morning, then dead at night, changing
worlds in an instant. We are like the spring frost, like the
morning dew, suddenly gone. How can a tree growing on a cliff
or a vine hanging into a well last forever? Time is passing every
moment; how can you be complacent and waste it, seeing that
the afterlife is but a breath away?

 Kuei-shan (771 – 854)1

1
Translated by Thomas Cleary in “The Five Houses of Zen”
 
“Whoever develops awareness of death, thinking, ‘O, that I
might live for a day and a night, or for a day, or for the interval
that it takes to eat a meal, or for the interval that it takes to
swallow having chewed up four morsels of food, that I might
attend to the Awakened One’s instructions, I would have
accomplished a great deal’ - they are said to dwell heedlessly.
They develop awareness of death slowly for the sake of ending
the mental taints.
“But whoever develops awareness of death, thinking, ‘O, that I
might live for the interval that it takes to swallow having chewed
this morsel of food, or for the interval that it takes to breathe out
after breathing in, or to breathe in after breathing out, that I might
attend to the Awakened One’s instructions, I would have
accomplished a great deal’ - they are said to dwell heedfully.
They develop awareness of death acutely for the sake of ending
the mental taints.
“Therefore you should train yourselves: ‘We will dwell
heedfully. We will develop awareness of death acutely for the
sake of ending the mental taints.’ That is how you should train
yourselves.”

 The Buddha
Anguttara Nikaya VI.19


O son of Kunti, dangerous are the senses, for desires even carry
away forcibly the mind of a discerning man who is striving after
perfection.
The mind that yields to the uncontrolled and wandering senses
is carried away from wisdom, just as a boat on water is carried
away by the wind.

 Bhagavad Gita II.60;67


Over the ages you have followed objects, never once turning
back to look within. Time slips away; months and years are
wasted.

 Kuei-shan (771 – 854)1



“Rather let flesh, sinews and blood dry up in this body than give
up without having attained that which may be attained.”
Thus thinks the noblest of beings – diligent, brave, and true.
Such a one will indeed rise beyond ignorance, and be liberated
into states of mind unsurpassed.

1
Translated by Thomas Cleary in “The Five Houses of Zen”
The lazy person dwells in dissatisfaction, soiled endlessly by
unhealthy states of mind, and great is the good that he or she fails
to attain.
Thus should you train yourselves: ‘We will rouse our energy.
We will strive with unceasing effort for all that is good.’

 The Buddha
Samyutta Nikaya XII.22


The forger of swords for the Minister of War, having reached the
age of eighty, had not lost a hair's-breadth of his ability.
The Minister, approaching him, said, ‘You, Sir, are skilful
indeed. Have you any particular method that makes you so?’
The forger replied, ‘Your servant has simply been diligent in his
work. When I was twenty, I was fond of forging swords. I looked
at nothing else. I paid no attention to anything but swords. With
time and practice, I came to be able to do the work without any
thought of what I was doing. By length of time one acquires
ability at any art; and how much more one who is ever at work
on it! What is there which does not depend on this, and succeed
by it?’

 Chuang-tzu1



1
Adapted from the translation by James Legge
We do not see trees growing, yet they flourish day by day; we
do not see a whetstone wearing down, yet it diminishes day by
day. That is how it is with human actions, so how can we not be
careful?

 Ming-chiao (1008 – 1072)


Day and night, no matter what you are doing, you should
attentively settle the mind. If you are not yet able to attain
quietude of mind, then you should calmly nurture it, not letting
anything vex you. Then you will gain a little peace and
relaxation, and so can be naturally comfortable. Gradually
taming the mind, it will increasingly become clear and deep.

 Chang San-feng (c. 1200)1


A hundred elephants, a hundred steeds,
A hundred mules yoked to a hundred carts,
A hundred thousand maids with jewels bedecked;
One quarter of a quarter are not the worth
Of one long stride made towards the Goal.

1
Translated by Thomas Cleary in ‘Vitality Energy Spirit’
  Vinaya Pitaka ii,6,4


O you, monks, who are in this mountain monastery, remember
that you are gathered here for the sake of Awakening and not for
the sake o clothes and food. Give up your worrying - as long as
you have shoulders you will have clothes to wear, and as long as
you have a mouth you will have food to eat. Be ever mindful,
throughout the twelve hours of the day, to apply yourselves to
the study of the Unthinkable. Time passes like an arrow; never
let your minds be disturbed by worldly cares. Ever, ever be on
the lookout. After my departure, some of you may preside over
five temples in prosperous conditions, with towers and halls and
holy books all decorated in gold and silver, with devotees noisily
crowding into the grounds; some may pass hours in reading the
texts of wisdom and reciting prayers, and sitting long in
meditation may not give themselves up to sleep; they may,
eating but once a day and observing the fast days, and
throughout every moment of the day, practice all manner of
religious deeds. Even when they are thus devoted to the cause,
if their thoughts are not really dwelling on the mysterious and
subtle Way of things as they are, they will most likely come to
ignore the law of moral causation, and, corrupting the teachings,
obscure the pathway for others that leads to the Truth. All such
belong to the family of ignorant beings, lost in darkness, and
however long my departure from the world may be, are not to b
called my descendents. Let, however, there be just one
individual, who may be living in the wilderness in a hut thatched
with one bundle of straw and passing his days eating the roots of
wild herbs cooked in a pot with broken legs; but if he single-
mindedly applies himself to the study of his own spiritual affairs,
he is the very one who has a daily interview with me and knows
how to be grateful for his life. Who could ever despise such a
one? O monks, be diligent, be diligent.

 Daito Kokushi (1282 –

1336)1



Do not die with regrets.

To die with regrets is painful.

 The Buddha
Digha Nikaya 17



Better for me to die in battle, than to live defeated.

1
Adapted slightly from D.T. Suzuki’s translation in ‘The Manual of Zen
Buddhism’
  The Buddha
Sutta Nipata III.2


 The Middle Way

“Sona, when the strings of a lute are pulled too tight, does the
instrument make an agreeable sound?”
“No, Lord.”
“And when the strings are made slack, is the sound pleasing
then?”
“No, Lord.”
“But when the strings are neither pulled too tight, nor made too
slack, but keyed in to the middle pitch, is the instrument then
harmonious to the ears?”
“Indeed, Lord. When an instrument is well tuned in the middle
pitch it emits a most melodious sound.”
“Recognise then, Sona, that when effort is too strenuous, and the
mind too fixated, it leads to strain. And when one’s effort is too
undisciplined, and one’s mind unfocussed, it leads to lack of
clarity and laziness. Thus you should make a firm determination
to adopt the middle path, neither actively struggling nor being
heedlessly slack, but remaining in that sphere of faith and
energy, awareness, concentration, and wisdom.”

 The Buddha
Anguttara Nikaya VI.55


But, O Arjuna, the path to Awakening is not for him who eats
too much or who does not eat at all; or he who sleeps too much
or tries not to sleep at all.

He who is moderate in eating and recreation, moderate in his

efforts in work, moderate in sleep and wakefulness, he walks the
path to Awakening, and makes an end of suffering and despair.

 Bhagavad Gita 6:16-17



“There are these two extremes that are not to be indulged in by

one seeking freedom in the truth. Which two? That which seeks
out and indulges in sensual pleasure: base, vulgar, common,
ignoble, and unprofitable; and that which is devoted to self-
harm: painful, ignoble, and wholly unbeneficial. Avoiding these
two extremes, the Awakened One teaches a middle way, a way
that leads to peace, to direct knowledge, to self-awakening, to
unshakeable freedom of mind.

 The Buddha
Samyutta Nikaya LVI.11


It is like making a sword. If there is too much hard metal it will
break, and if there is too much soft metal it will bend. However,
when hard and soft metals are well balanced, then the sword can
be cast.
If you embody this principle in refining your nature, it will
naturally become sublime.

 Wang Che (1113–1171)


Fill your bowl to the brim
And it will spill over.

Keep sharpening your knife

And it will become blunt.

Chase after money and security

And your heart will never unclench.

Care about people’s approval

And you will be their prisoner.

Do your work, and then let go.

This is the pathway to bliss.

 Lao-tzu
 
‘Take a step towards my fireplace and you burn to death;
Take a step away and you freeze.’

 Rujing (c. 1180)


 Equanimity
Yen Yüan asked Kung-nî, saying, “When I was crossing the gulf
of Khang-shän, the ferryman handled the boat like a spirit. I
asked him whether such management of a boat could be learned,
and he replied, ‘Indeed, it may. Those who are able to swim can
learn it quickly. As for those who are at home diving beneath the
water, they can manage it at once, without even having seen a
boat before.’ I did not understand properly what he meant, could
you please explain this further?”
Kung-nî replied, “Those who are able to swim have no fear of
the water, hence they are able to acquire the ability quickly. As
for those who feel at home diving beneath the waves, it makes
little difference to them whether they are beneath the water or
above it. Hence the upsetting of a boat is as consequential to
them as a chariot rolling slightly backwards before it starts. Thus
it is that, though they may never before have even seen a boat,
they are able to manage it at once.
“An archer who is contending for a piece of cheap earthenware
has no trouble in exhibiting his skill. Let, however, the prize be
a buckle of brass, and he shoots with a degree of trepidation; let
it be a pot filled with gold, and his body begins to shake and he
shoots as if he were blind. The skill of the archer is the same in
all three cases; but in the latter two he is disturbed by the
influence of nervousness, since he is overcome by the notion of
the importance of an external prize. Thus it is that all who attach
importance to what is external, show stupidity within
themselves.”

 Chuang-tzu
 

Just as if there were a mountain of solid rock without cracks,

without fissures, one great unmoving mass, and then from all
sides, from the east, the west, the south, the north, there were to
come a powerful storm of wind, hail and rain. Now that
mountain would neither shiver nor quiver nor shake, but would
remain calm, still, composed, the wind and rain assailing it from
all sides without moving it, until the storm had subsided, leaving
the great mountain perfectly unmoved.
In just the same way, even should powerful, disturbing, or
enticing matters enter the perceptual fields of a monk whose
mind is rightly released, his mind is neither overpowered nor
even engaged. Being still, having reached imperturbability, he
recognises their impermanence, realises the nature of their
arising, and focuses on their passing away.

 The Buddha
Anguttara Nikaya vi.55



Four men: Tsesze, Tseyu, Tseli, and Tselai, were conversing

together, saying: ‘Whoever can make Not-being the head, Life
the backbone, and Death the tail, and whoever thus realises that
death and life and being and non-being are all of one body, that
person shall be admitted into friendship with us.’ The four
looked at each other and smiled, and completely understanding
one another, became friends accordingly.
By-and-by, Tseyu fell ill, and Tsesze went to see him. “Verily
the Creator is great!” said the sick man. “See how he has doubled
me up.” His cheeks were level with his navel, and his shoulders
were higher than his neck. His neck bone pointed upward
towards the sky. The whole economy of his organism was
deranged, but his mind was as calm as ever. He dragged himself
along to a well and said, “Alas, that God should have doubled
me up like this!”
“Do you dislike it?” asked Tsesze.
“No, why should I?” replied Tseyu. “If my left arm should
become a cock, I should be able to herald the dawn with it. If my
right arm should become a sling, I would be able to procure roast
duck for supper. If my buttocks should change into wheels, and
my spirit become a horse, I should be able to ride without need
of a chariot. I obtained life only because it was my time, and I
am now parting with it in natural accordance with the Way.
Content with whatever time may bring, and living in accord with
the Way, joy and sorrow touch me not. This is the state, which,
as all the great sages have known, is freedom from bondage.
Those who cannot be freed from bondage are so because they
bind themselves to material existence. But regardless of what a
man thinks, it remains that his life is created by the universe, to
which he necessarily must give way. Why then should I dislike
it?”
By-and-by, Tselai fell ill, and lay gasping for breath, while his
family stood weeping around. Tseli went to see him, and cried
to the wife and children, “Go away! You are impeding his
natural dissolution!” Then, leaning against the door, he said,
“Verily, God is great! I wonder what He will make of you now,
and whither you will be sent. Do you think he will perhaps make
you into a rat’s liver, or maybe into an insect’s leg?”
“A young son,” answered Tselai, “must go wheresoever his
parents send him. The universe is no other than a man’s parents.
If the universe bid me die quickly, and I demur, then I struggle
to achieve the impossible. For the universe gives me this form,
this toil in manhood, this repose in old age, this rest in death.
Surely that which is responsible for my arising, is also
responsible for my death.
“Suppose the boiling metal in a smelting-pot were to bubble up
and say, ‘I wish to be made only into a sword!’ I think the master
caster would reject that metal as uncanny. And if I, simply
because I am now cast into a human form were to say, ‘Only a
man! Only a man!’ I think the Universe, too, would reject me as
uncanny. If I regard the Universe as the smelting pot, and the
Creator as the Master Caster, how should I worry whatever I
may become?” Then he sank into a peaceful sleep, and woke up
the next morning still very much alive.

 Chuang-tzu


The feelings of heat and cold, pleasure and pain, are produced
from the contact of the senses with sense-objects. They are with
beginning and end, impermanent and transitory. Therefore, O
son of wisdom, endure them bravely.

 Bhagavad Gita II.14


To the sands of the Ganges the Buddha referred in this way:
these sands are trodden and passed over by all the awakened
ones, the saints, and the angels, but the sands are not thereby
gladdened. Again, they are trodden on by cattle, sheep, insects,
and ants, but they are not thereby enraged. They hide within
themselves all kinds of gems, treasures, and scented substances,
but they are not covetous; they may be soiled with all kinds of
filth and ill-smelling material, but hey do not loathe them, nor
are made upset. A mental attitude of this nature is that of one
who as realised a state of freedom, whose mind wanders where
it will and knows no attachment of any kind.

 Huang-po (d. 850)



Calm in quietude is not absolute calm; when you can be calm in

the midst of turmoil, this is the true state of realisation.
Happiness in comfort is not true happiness; when you can be
happy in the midst of hardship, then you see the real potential of
the mind.

 Huanchu Daoren
 
He by whom the world is not afflicted and who is not afflicted
by the world, who is free from excitement, envy, fear and
anxiety, he I call awakened.
He who is free from all external dependence, pure, efficient,
unattached, undisturbed, and who has given up all selfish
undertakings, he I call awakened.
He who is the same to friend and foe alike, who remains
unchanged through honour and dishonour, heat and cold,
pleasure and pain, and who is free from all attachment; he who
is alike in praise and blame; is silent, content with anything,
homeless, steady-minded, he I call awakened indeed.

 Bhagavad Gita 12.15-19



As in the middle of the sea it is still,

though on the surface the waves are churning,
so the monk - unperturbed, still -
should not swell himself anywhere.

 The Buddha
Sutta Nipata iv.14


 Knowing yourself as That
In which the worlds rise and fall
Like waves in the ocean,
Why do you run about so wretchedly?

 Ashtavakra Gita 3.31



The Wise travel all day without ever leaving home.

However splendid the views,
They stay serenely established within.

The turmoil of the world is at play in the arena of stillness.

Recognise this stillness even in the midst of change.

When your movements are like the clouds:

Indifferent, fleeting, vacuous,
Then you will be free wherever you are.

 Lao-tzu

1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Byrom in ‘The Heart of
Awareness’
 

When the mind neither sorrows nor delights, that is supreme

attainment of virtue. To succeed without change in temperament
is supreme attainment of calm. To be unburdened by habitual
desires is supreme attainment of emptiness. To have no likes and
dislikes is supreme attainment of equanimity. Not getting mixed
up with things is supreme attainment of purity.

 Huai-nan-tzu1 (c. 130 B.C.)


Whatever is in the mind is unreal; when you clear it all away,
you will be unobstructed by vexations. As for external things,
nothing is worth keeping the mind on. Things come and go
before your eyes, but they are like mosquitoes or gnats; brush
them off, and you’ll be comfortable.

 Pan-shan (c. 1200 A.D.)2



1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Cleary in ‘Vitality Energy Spirit’
2
Translated by Thomas Cleary in ‘Vitality Energy Spirit’
The Zen master Hakuin was praised by his neighbours as one
living a pure life. A beautiful Japanese girl whose parents owned
a food store lived near him. Suddenly, without warning, her
parents discovered that she was with child. This made her
parents angry. She would not confess who the father was, but
after much harassment at last named Hakuin. In great anger the
parents went to the master.
“Is that so?” was all he would say.
After the child was born it was brought to Hakuin. By this time
he had lost his good reputation. This did not trouble him, and in
accepting the child he looked after it as best he could. He
obtained milk from his neighbours and everything else the little
one needed.
A year later, the girl-mother could stand it no longer. She told
her parents the truth – that the real father of the child was a young
man of no standing who worked in the fish market.
The mother and father of the girl were dumbfounded. They at
once went to Hakuin to beg his forgiveness, to apologise at
length, and to take the child back again. Hakuin was willing. In
yielding the child, all he said was, “Is that so?”1


He who is truly wise,
Is immersed forever in the Absolute.
Praised, he is not delighted.
Spurned, he shows no regret.
Pure of heart,
He watches his own actions as if they were another’s.
How can praise and blame disturb him?

1
Adapted from “Zen Flesh, Zen Bones” by Paul Reps and Nyogen Senzaki
  Ashtavakra Gita1 3.9-10

1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Byrom in ‘The Heart of
Awareness’
 Patience

A single moment of patience

May ward off great disaster.
A single moment of impatience
Can cause long years of regret.

 Old Chinese saying



Flow around obstacles, don’t oppose them.

Don’t struggle to succeed.
Wait patiently for the right moment.

 Lao-tzu



A student in Japan wanting desperately to learn the art of

swordsmanship approached the famous swordsman Banzo.
“If I am dedicated and work hard, how many years will it take
me to become a master?” inquired the youth.
“The rest of your life,” replied Banzo.
“I cannot wait that long,” said the youth. “I give you my word I
will train diligently. I will receive your every instruction
willingly. If I persist in this way, how long do you think it might
take?”
Banzo sighed. “If you truthfully make such a persistent effort,
then perhaps ten to fifteen years.”
“Perhaps I should explain,” said the student. “My father is
getting old and soon I will need to take care of him and support
the family. I do not have the time you advocate. If I train even
more intensively, how long do you think it might take?”
“Thirty years!” said Banzo.
“Why is that?” said the youth. “First you said ten or fifteen years,
and now you tell me thirty. I am prepared to undergo any
hardship in order to learn the art in the shortest possible time!”
“In that case,” said Banzo, “it will take you seventy years. A man
in such a hurry to get results as you are, seldom achieves
anything great.”1



O snail,
Climb Mount Fuji;
But slowly! Slowly!

 Issa

1
From “Zen Flesh Zen Bones” by Paul Reps and Nyogen Senzaki
 
The pure men of old did not forget whence they had sprung; nor
did they seek to hasten their return thither. Cheerfully they
played their allotted parts, waiting patiently for the end. This is
what is called not to lead the heart astray from the Way, nor to
let the human overthrow the divine.

 Chuang-tzu



Great ability takes a long time to perfect.

 Lao-tzu


 Non-Interference
Trying to direct the way things should go,
Is like taking the master carpenter’s place.
When you handle the master’s implements,
Chances are you’ll cut your own hand.

 Lao-tzu


Forget all opinions and judgements,
Let go of all fixed plans and ideas,
And the world will take care of itself.

 Lao-tzu


Discipline yourself in your own behaviour,
And expect nothing of others.
Thus you will be spared much vexation.

 Confucius


 A man of perfect wisdom should not unsettle the minds of
others who have only a limited and imperfect understanding.
For, being attached to the mind and the senses, they are
deluded as to the nature of Reality as it is.

 Bhagavad Gita III.29


In former times a beautiful bird arrived in the suburbs of Lû,
perching on the boughs of a tree. The ruler of Lû was enthralled
with it, and provided a great banquet of various meats and
delicacies for the bird, even arranging that the state opera should
be performed for its delight. But the bird looked anxious and
confused, and without venturing to either eat or drink, rapidly
flew off on its way. This is what is called “Nourishing a bird, as
you would nourish yourself.”
He who would nourish a bird as a bird should be nourished
should let it perch in a deep forest, or let it float on a river or
lake, or let it find its food naturally away from the disturbance
of men. Thus it is of no use discussing the teachings of insight
with those imbued with ignorance and of only slender
intelligence, for they will be unsettled by concepts that they have
no particular desire to know. It is like using a carriage and horses
to convey a mouse, or trying to delight a quail with the music of
bells and drums - the creatures cannot help but be afraid.’

 Chuang-tzu
 
When chickens are cold, they roost in trees; when ducks are cold,
they plunge in the water. Who can say what is right and what is
wrong?

 Zen proverb


Do want to change the world?
I see that you will not succeed.

The world is transcendent.

It is Creation from a source beyond knowing,
And cannot be improved upon.

If you tamper with it, you’ll warp it.

If you wish to keep it, you’ll lose it.
If you try to understand it once and for all,
It will somehow forever elude.

 Lao-tzu


Nature has decreed that a crane’s legs are long, and that a duck’s
feet are short. The long legs cannot be considered excessive, nor
the short feet to be lacking in size. Any attempt to lengthen the
short or shorten the long would most surely cause only misery
in either case. Things are fine just as they are, and what makes
us think our opinions of betterment are necessarily right?

 Chuang-tzu



The teaching without words,

And the benefit of taking no action,
Are without compare in all the world.

Be peaceful, and non-interfering.

Resist not, let everything take its course.

 Lao-tzu


When Governor Lu had completed his stay a Nan-ch’uan’s1
monastery, he went to bid the latter goodbye.
Nan-ch’uan asked him, “Governor, you are returning to the
capital. How do you intend to govern the people?”
The Governor replied, “I will govern them with wisdom.”
Nan-ch’uan remarked, “If this is true, then the people will suffer
for it.”



Things are perfect as they are, and cannot be otherwise.

 Zen saying



1
(748 – 834)
 Anonymity

The nail that sticks up will be hammered down.

 Japanese Proverb.


Suppose a boat were crossing a river, and another empty boat
were to collide with it. Even an irritable man would not readily
lose his temper.
But now, suppose there were a person steering the second boat.
Then the occupant of the first would shout to the second to keep
clear. And if the other did not hear the first time, nor even when
called to three times, bad language and blows would inevitably
occur.
In the first case there was no anger, in the second case there was;
because in the first case the boat was empty, and in the second it
was occupied. And so it is with man. If he could only roam
through this life empty, who would ever wish him any harm?

 Chuang-tzu


In the midst of society,
 The Wise conceal their minds to avoid opposition.
No matter what situations arise,
They preserve harmony and abide in peace.

 Lao-tzu



A certain carpenter Shih was travelling to a distant state. On

reaching a place called Shady Circle, he saw a sacred li tree in
the temple to the God of Earth. It was so large that its shade
could cover a herd of several thousand cattle. It was a hundred
spans in girth, towering up eighty feet over the hilltop even
before it began to branch out. A dozen large boats could easily
be cut out of it. Crowds stood gazing at it in awe, but the
carpenter took no notice, and went on his way without so much
as casting a second glance behind. His apprentice, however, took
a good look at it, and when he caught up with his master, said,
“Ever since I first handled an adze in your service, I have never
seen such a remarkable piece of timber. How was it that you,
Master, did not care to even stop and take a look?”
“Forget about it. It’s not worth talking about,” replied his master.
“It’s good for nothing. Made into a boat it would sink; into a
coffin it would rot; into furniture, it would break easily; into a
door it would warp; into a pillar, borers and worms would ravage
it. It is wood of no quality, and of no use. Why else do you think
it has attained to its present age?”
When the carpenter eventually reached home at the end of his
journey, he one night had a peculiar dream in which the spirit of
the great tree appeared to him.
Said the tree: “Do you think I am one to be compared with the
ordinary sort of stuff of this world? Do you think I am worthless
simply because my wood is not of a fine grain? Look at the
cherry, the pear, the orange, and other fruit bearing trees. As
soon as their fruit ripens they are stripped and treated with
indignity. The great boughs are snapped off, the small ones
scattered abroad. Thus do these trees by their own value injure
their own lives. They cannot fulfil their allotted span of years,
but perish prematurely for the sake of the admiration of the
world. Thus it is with all things. For the sake of fame or
recognition they would give up their very lives.
Moreover, I have for a long period trained myself in the art of
being useless. Many times I was in danger of being cut down,
but at length I have succeeded, and thus I have become
exceedingly useful to myself. Had I indeed displayed my
usefulness to others, I should never have been able to have
reached this present age and height.”
“Finally,” said the tree, “do you not realise that you and I are
both created entities? What then makes you think that my worth
is to be evaluated only by my usefulness to human beings? Were
I to judge you in terms of your usefulness to a tree, I would say
you are of altogether no worth at all! But is such criticism not
misguided? Is a good-for-nothing fellow in imminent danger of
death a fit person to be speaking of a good-for-nothing tree?”
When the carpenter Shih awoke and told of his dream, his
apprentice said, “If the tree aimed at uselessness, then how is it
that it has become a sacred tree?”
“Hush!” replied his master. “It is better for a man of but little
wisdom to keep his silence. Do you not see that it has merely
taken refuge in the temple to escape the abuse of those who do
not appreciate it? Had it not become sacred, how many people
would have wanted to cut it down! Moreover, the means it
adopts for safety is different from that of others, and to criticise
it by ordinary standards would be far wide of the truth. For
everybody knows the use of being useful, but few know the
usefulness of being useless!”

 Chuang-tzu



At one time, whilst the venerable Maha Kassapa was staying in

the remote Pipphali Cave, he became afflicted, in pain, and
seriously ill. Then, after a period, when he had recovered from
his illness, he decided to go into Rajagaha for alms.
Now at that time, word of the hermit Maha Kassapa had spread,
and there were some five hundred householders, living lives of
ease and luxury, who were eager for the chance to be able to give
him alms. But Maha Kassapa, turning down those beings of
privileged lives, early in the morning put on his robes, and
carrying his bowl and outer robe, went quietly and unknown into
Rajagaha for alms along the streets of the poor, the streets of the
indigent, the streets of the weavers.

Thus the Blessed One said:

Maintaining no others, happily unknown;
Disciplined, established in what is essential;
Cravings ended and anger disgorged:
He, I call a sage.

 Udana I.6


Lieh-tzu started off on a journey to Khî, but returned before he
had even got half way. He met Po-hwän Wû-zän, who asked
him, ‘Why have you come back?’
Lieh-tzu replied, ‘I became anxious.’
‘What was it that made you anxious?’ asked Po-hwän.
Said Lieh-tzu: ‘I went into ten soup-shops to get a meal, and in
five of them the soup was set before me before I had even
asked!’
‘But what was there in that to frighten you?’
Lieh-tzu answered, ‘Even though one may conceal one’s inner
state of being, the body - like a spy - gives some bright display
of it. This outward demonstration overawes men’s minds, and
makes them on light grounds treat one as if one were noble or
aged, and from this recognition, no doubt, undesirable
circumstances are brought one’s way. Now vendors of soup
supply their commodity simply as a matter of business, and
however much they may dispose of, their profit is but little, and
their power is but slight; and yet they treated me as I have said:
- how much more would the lord of ten thousand chariots do so!
His body burdened with the cares of his kingdom, and his mind
overtaxed with its affairs, he would entrust those affairs to me,
and require from me the responsible governing of his empire. It
was this which frightened me, and caused me to turn home.’
Po-hwän replied, ‘How admirable is your perspicacity!
However, since you carry yourself as you do, men will most
undoubtedly come flocking to you for instruction!’
Not long after, Po-hwän went to visit Lieh-tzu, and found the
space outside his door crammed with shoes. Po-hwän remained
outside, standing with his face to the north, holding his staff
upright, and leaning his chin on it till the skin became creased.
Then, after standing for quite some time, he left on his way in
silence. The doorkeeper, however, saw him, and went and told
Lieh-tzu of this strange man’s conduct. The latter immediately
took up his shoes, and ran barefoot after the visitor. When he
overtook him at the outer gate, he said, ‘Please, Sir, you have
come all this way - are you now going away without first giving
me the medicine of your wisdom?’
The other replied, ‘It is of no use. Did I not tell you that men
would flock to you? And is it not indeed the case? It is not that
you can cause men to flock to you, but that you cannot keep them
from coming. What influences them and makes them glad is the
display of your extraordinary qualities. But you must also be
influenced by them in turn, and your deeper nature be shaken,
and no warning can be addressed to you. Those who associate
with you do not admonish you of this. The small words that they
speak are truthfully poison to a man. You perceive it not; you
understand it not; - how can you separate yourself from them?’

 Chuang-tzu


I have only three treasures that I cherish:
Simplicity, humility, and love.

Simple in actions and thoughts,

I can proceed on my way without pretensions.
Not daring to reveal myself,
I can perfect my abilities and slowly mature.
Feeling love towards all Creation,
I am fearless of all the world.

For, if I were to forsake love and simplicity,

Forsake restraint and humble reserve,
Forsake anonymity and rush out in front,
I would be doomed!
  Lao-tzu



To know the Great Way is easy,

but not to show that you know it is difficult.
To know it and not to speak of it
is the way to attain to the Heavenly;
To know it and to speak of it
is the way to being simply human.

 Chuang-tzu



Many people, lacking in the way of conduct and deeper

understanding, look for others who will praise them and tell
them that their conduct and understanding accord. But this is
simply a case of delusion in the midst of delusion. Those who
seek out the Truth, and who wish for nothing else but true
Awakening, have no desires that people of the world will
recognise them. Indeed, fame and recognition are bonds that
only the truly liberated can rise above. For those earnestly
wishing to enter into the essence of Reality, it is better to remain
unknown.
  Dogen (1200 – 1253)


Practice unknown, work in secret,
Being like one who is ignorant.
If you can achieve continuity,
This is called mastery of mastery.

 Tung-shan (807 – 869)


If you cleanse the mind and cultivate virtue, conceal your tracks
and hide your name, preserve the fundamental and purify the
spirit, then the clamour will cease.

 Kuei-shan (771 – 854)


 Yielding
If you want to advance, be happy to retreat.
If you want to stand tall, then bow yourself low.
If you want to become full, let yourself be thoroughly empty.

The Wise teach others by simply living in peace.

It is because they don’t display themselves,
That people can see their light.

 Lao-tzu


Prince Huei’s cook was cutting up a bullock. Every blow of his
hand, every heave of his shoulders, every tread of his foot, every
thrust of his knee, every whshhh of rent flesh, every chhk of the
chopper, seemed effortless, in perfect rhythm, like the dance of
the Mulberry Grove, like the harmonious chords of the Ching
Shou.
“Well done!” cried the Prince. “Yours is skill indeed!”
“Sire,” replied the cook, “I have for a long time devoted myself
to the great Natural Way. It is something deeper, nobler, and
more subtle than mere skill. When I first began to cut up
bullocks, I saw before me simply whole bullocks. After three
years’ practice, I no longer saw the whole, but rather the perfect
conjoining of the multitudinous parts. And as for now, I work
with my mind and no longer merely with my eyes. My mind
works effortlessly alongside the senses. Relinquishing all desire
to control, I am guided by the hand of eternity: here avoiding the
unyielding stubbornness of bone; there moving swiftly abreast
of muscles and tendon - the knife glides easily through such
joints or cavities as there may be, depending on the constitution
of the animal.
A good cook changes his chopper once a year, because he cuts;
an ordinary cook, once a month, because he hacks. But I have
had this chopper nineteen years, and although I have cut up
many thousands of bullocks, its edge is as if still fresh from the
whetstone.
Nevertheless, there are naturally times when I come upon a
knotty part, which is difficult to tackle. Then I am all caution.
Taking my time, quietening my mind and senses, I fix my eye
upon it. I stay my hand and first gently apply the blade; and then
with a ‘hwah!’ I yield the part like earth crumbling to the ground.
Then I take out the chopper, and pause a while to stand in
silence. Then, with a feeling of completion, I wipe the blade, and
put it carefully away.”
“Bravo!” cried the Prince. “From the words of this cook I have
learnt how to take care of my life.”

 Chuang-tzu


The softest thing in the world overpowers the hardest.
That which has no set form can enter even where there are no
cracks.

 Lao-tzu
 
To glorify the past and to condemn the present has always been
the way of the scholar. Yet if any of the great sages of old were
caused to re-appear in the present day, which of them would not
but accommodate themselves to the age?

 Chuang-tzu



Beings are born soft and supple.

Dead, they are inflexible and hard.

Plants are born tender and pliant.

Dead, they become brittle and dry.

Therefore it is said:
Stubbornness and rigidity are the companions of death.
Yielding and gentleness are the attendants to life.

 Lao-tzu


 It is better to be able to move,
Than be secured to a fixed position.
Rather than advance an inch,
Have the freedom to retreat a yard.

 Lao-tzu


Chang Chuang was sick and so Lao-tzu went to see him. The
latter said to Chang Chuang, “You are very ill. Have you not
something to say to your disciple?”
“Even if you did not ask me, I was going to tell you,” replied
Chang Chuang. “Do you know why one has to get down from
one’s carriage when coming to one’s old village?”
Lao-tzu replied, “Doesn’t this custom mean that one should not
forget one’s origins?”
“Ah, yes,” said Chang Chuang.
Then the sick man asked again, “Do you know why one should
run when passing under a tall tree?”
“Doesn’t this custom mean we should respect what is old?” said
Lao-tzu.
“Ah, yes,” said Chang Chuang.
Then Chang Chuang opened his mouth wide and asked Lao-tzu
to look into it, and said, “Is my tongue still there?”
“It is,” replied Lao-tzu.
“Are my teeth still there?” asked the old man.
“No,” replied Lao-tzu, “your teeth are not there.”
“And why is that?” asked Chang Chuang.
“Is it not that the tongue lasts longer because it is yielding and
soft?” replied Lao-tzu. “And is it not because the teeth are
stubborn and hard that they quickly decay?”
“Indeed,” said Chang Chuang. “There, you have learned all of
the subtle principles concerning virtue. I have nothing else to
teach you.”

 Liu Hsiang
(circa 77 B.C.)



When the way comes to an end, then change.

Having changed, you pass through.

 The I-Ching
(Very ancient)


 Non-discrimination

A name is imposed on what is thought to be a thing or a state,

and this divides it from other things and other states. But when
you pursue the entity that lies behind the name, you find a greater
and greater subtlety that has no true divisions. What is an atom
of dust? We give it the name: ‘atom of dust’, but as to what it is,
it is beyond knowing. In the same way a world is not a world,
but is merely called that. Since names are merely affixed onto
realities, let us know the realities that lie behind the names.
When all names are taken away, there are no longer any
distinctions between this thing and that.

 Mahayana Buddhism
The Visuddhi Magga



Awareness is alone in its existence.

Discriminate even a single difference,
And the multitude of things knows no bounds.

 Lao-tzu


Recognising the same underlying essence in all things, the wise
look upon a noble priest endowed with learning and humility, a
cow, an elephant, a dog, and an eater of filth, with equal regard
alike.

 Bhagavad Gita V.18


When Banzan was walking through a market he overheard a
conversation between a butcher and his customer.
“Give me the best piece of meat you have,” said the customer.
“Everything in my shop is the best,” replied the butcher. “You
cannot find here any piece of meat that is not the best.”
At these words, Banzan became enlightened.1


In the scenery of spring,
Nothing is better, nothing worse;
The flowering branches are naturally long,
Naturally short.

 Zen saying.

1
Adapted from “Zen Flesh, Zen Bones” by Paul Reps and Nyogen Senzaki
 
Heaven sends rain and dew,
without choosing between the withering and the thriving.

 Hsui-jing (c. 850)


What people care for is of the One.
What they do not care for is of the One as well.
When there is only One, there can be no distinctions.
When things are distinguished, we have the world of things.
Between the human and the divine there is no distinction,
Other than the distinctions created by beings.

 Chuang-tzu


Absolute equality, without clear distinctions,
Is not the great Way.
Distinctions, without absolute equality,
Is not the great Way either.

 Zen saying
 
The Great Way is easy for he who has no preferences.
Only be free of likes and dislikes,
And everything becomes clear – undisguised.
Make, however, just the smallest distinction,
And heaven and earth are set endlessly apart.

To set up what you like against what you dislike –

This is the disease of the mind:
When the true nature of things is not understood
Peace of mind is disturbed to no purpose.

Reality is immaculate, like unto vast space,

With nothing wanting, nothing superfluous;
It is indeed due to making choices,
That the profound nature of being is lost sight of.

Pursue not worldly entanglements,

Nor dwell in the inner void;
Be serene in the oneness of things,
And dualism vanishes of itself.

 Seng-ts’an (d. 606)1


1
Adapted from D.T. Suzuki’s translation in ‘The Manual of Zen Buddhism’
 Selflessness
Mr Kuo of the Ch’i State was very rich, while Mr Hsiang of the
Sung State was very poor. The latter travelled from Sung to Ch’i
and asked the other the secret of his prosperity. Mr Kuo told him,
‘It is because I am a good thief.’ ‘The first year I began to be a
thief,’ he said, ‘I had just enough. The second year, I had ample.
The third year, I reaped a great harvest. And, in course of time,
I found myself the owner of whole villages and districts.’
Mr Hsiang, understanding the word ‘thief’ in its literal sense,
was overjoyed. Accordingly, he climbed over walls and broke
into houses, grabbing everything he could see or lay his hands
upon. But before very long his thefts brought him into trouble,
and he was stripped even of the little he had previously
possessed. Thinking that Mr Kuo had basely deceived him,
Hsiang went to him with a bitter complaint.
‘Tell me,’ said Mr Kuo, ‘how did you set about being a thief?’
On learning from Mr Hsiang what had happened, he cried out:
‘Alas and alack! You have been brought to this pass because you
went entirely the wrong way to work. Now let me put you on the
right track. We all know that Heaven has its seasons, and that
earth has its riches. Well, the things that I steal are the riches of
Heaven and earth, each in their season: the fertilising rainwater
from the clouds, and the natural products of mountain and
meadowland. Thus I grow grain and ripen crops, build walls and
construct tenements. From the dry land I steal winged and four-
footed game, from the rivers I steal fish and turtles. For corn and
grain, clay and wood, birds and beasts, fishes and turtles are all
products of Nature. How can I claim them as mine? Most surely
I am a thief, for there is nothing that I do not steal.’
Mr Hsiang, in a state of great perplexity, and fearing to be led
astray a second time by Mr Kuo, went off to consult Tung Kuo,
a man of learning.
Tung Kuo said to him: ‘Are you not already a thief in respect of
your own body? You are stealing the elements of the universe,
and the harmony of the Yin and the Yang in order to keep alive
and to maintain your bodily form. How much more, then, are
you a thief with regard to external possessions! Truly, to claim
anything anywhere as your ‘own’ betokens great confusion of
thought.’

 Lieh-tzu
[circa 250 B.C.]


One evening, Pai-chang (died 814) came from the meditation
hall, and lighting a lantern, began to beat the gong, shouting
‘Thief! Thief!’
The monks all came running from their quarters, looking
anxiously in every direction for the supposed impostor.
Pai-chang grabbed hold of the nearest monk and proclaimed:
‘Here, I have him!’
‘But master,’ contested the monk, ‘I am no thief!’
‘It is not that you are not a thief,’ said Pai-chang, ‘it is only that
you are unaware of being one!’


“There was once a king who had never heard the sound of a lute.
Upon hearing a lute for the first time, he was astonished.
‘What a wondrous sound! Whence does it come?’ asked the
king.
‘That is the sound of a lute, your Lordship,’ replied his advisers.
‘Bring me that lute,’ ordered the king.
However, upon being given the instrument, the king was
disappointed. ‘I did not ask for this trinket, what I asked for is
that beautiful sound.’
‘But it is from this lute, sire, that the sound comes.’
‘Then where is the music now?’ asked the king.
‘The music is dependent on numerous components, sire, a great
many components. It is through the presence and conditions of
those numerous components that the lute is made to sound: that
is, in dependence on the instrument’s body and neck, its frame,
strings, and bridge, as well as on the appropriate human effort –
the musician’s skill, his mood, the movement of his fingers, the
focus and knowledge of his mind. Thus it is that this lute - made
of numerous components, a great many components – is made
to produce that beautiful sound which you have heard and so
admire.’
But the king could not understand what was being said, and so
he broke the lute into pieces searching for the music he had
heard, believing it to be contained somewhere in the
instrument’s depths.”

“It is in just the same way, monks, that we who seek out the truth
should recognise the whole and not just examine the myriad
parts. Clear it is that we beings are systems of inter-dependence:
of body, feelings, perceptions, thoughts, and awareness all inter-
woven, with many necessary conditions to be present as the
cause. Investigating in this way we come to realise: “There is no
individuated and separate self, no ‘me’ or ‘mine’ contained in
any one location or part; just as the arising of music does not
belong to – cannot be found in – any particular part of a lute.”
  The Buddha
Samyutta Nikaya XXXV.205


A well-instructed disciple of the noble ones does not assume the
body to be the self, or the self as possessing a body, or the body
as in the self, or the self as in the body. He is not possessed with
the idea that ‘I am this body’ or ‘This body is mine.’ As he is not
possessed with these ideas, though his body changes and alters,
he does not fall into sorrow, lamentation, pain, distress, or
despair over its change and alteration.
In just the same way he does not assume feelings to be the self,
or perception to be the self, or mental fabrications to be the self.
Furthermore, he does not assume consciousness to be the self, or
the self as possessing consciousness, or consciousness as in the
self, or the self as in consciousness. He is not possessed with the
idea that ‘I am Consciousness’ or ‘Consciousness is mine.’ As
he is not possessed with these ideas, though his consciousness
changes and alters, he does not fall into sorrow, lamentation,
pain, distress, or despair over its change and alteration.
This is how, though one may be afflicted in body, yet one
remains unaffected in mind.

 Samyutta Nikaya XXII.1


With a mind concentrated, purified, clear and established, he
directs and inclines it towards knowing and seeing. And he
knows: This body is material, made up of the four great
elements, born of mother and father, fed on rice and gruel,
impermanent, liable to be injured and abraded, broken and
destroyed; and this is consciousness – bound to this body and
dependent on it.

 The Buddha
Digha Nikaya 2


When causes and conditions are sufficient, then eyes are present.
When causes and conditions are not sufficient, eyes are absent.
The same is true of body and consciousness, mind and
perception. All manifestations arise only when causes and
conditions suffice.

 The Diamond Sutra

Mahayana Buddhism


“Monks, whether or not there is the arising anywhere of any
beings who have awoken to the nature of things as they are, this
property stands, this steadfastness of Reality, this nature of the
Truth: All phenomena have no individuated, separate self.

“The true sage directly awakens to that, breaks through to it.

Directly awakening and breaking through to it, he declares it,
teaches it, describes it, and sets it forth. He reveals it, explains
it, and makes it plain: All phenomena have no individuated,
separate self.
  The Buddha
Anguttara Nikaya III:134


This world is subject to change and destruction from moment to
moment; it is like a river, a sprouting seed, a flame in the wind,
a cloud. Awareness is like a monkey that is always restless, like
a fly ever in search of unclean things and defiled places, like a
fire that is never satisfied. The universe is like a water drawing
wheel or a machine, it goes on rolling the wheel of
transformations, evoking endless varieties of bodies and forms,
resuscitating the dead like the Demon of the Underworld,
causing endless varieties of beings to move like wooden puppets
under a magician’s gaze. When one considers these phenomena
thoroughly, one comes to see the egolessness of all things.

 The Lankavatara Sutra

Mahayana Buddhism


O Good Friends, time is not to be wasted! Do not commit
yourselves to a grave mistake by searching around everywhere
and yet not within yourselves. You proceed erroneously in trying
to master meditation, in wanting to master the Way, in learning
words and phrases, in seeking out teachers, sages, and good
friends. The universe itself is your parent, and outside of it what
do you wish to acquire? Just look within yourselves. Have you
not heard the story of the man who thought he had lost his head,
and so went running wildly from place to place in trying to find
it? When he realized he had never lost it, he immediately became
a peaceful man. O Friends, just be your natural selves; stop your
hysterical antics. After all, who are you? Where did you acquire
the six senses that you now consider to be your self?

 Lin-chi (d. 867)



The body is confined

By its natural properties.
It comes,
It lingers a while,
It goes.
But the cause of awareness
Neither comes nor goes.
So why cling to the body?

If the body lasted till the end of time,

Or vanished today,
What would you win or lose?
You are pure awareness.

You are the endless sea

In whom all the worlds like waves
Naturally rise and fall.
You have nothing to gain,
 And nothing to lose.

 Ashtavakra Gita 15.9-111


Whatever is not yours you should surrender; surrendering it will
be for your long-term happiness and welfare. And what are the
things that are not yours? The body is not yours; it functions of
its own accord - let it go. Feelings come and go; they cannot be
owned or directed, put them down. Perceptions, and the things
that are perceived are not yours - let them go. The mind, and the
formation of thoughts and ideas are not yours - let them go.
Consciousness arises mysteriously; it is not yours, it cannot be
owned - let it go. Relinquishing and putting away and not
owning will be for your welfare and happiness for a long time.
 The Buddha
Samyutta Nikaya XXXV.101




Search back into your own vision -

Think back to the mind that thinks -
Who is it?

1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Byrom in ‘The Heart of
Awareness’
  Wu-men (1183 – 1260)



Resolve your mental energy into concentration,

And your physical energy into inaction.
Allow yourself to flow with the natural course of existence,
Without clinging to the notion of self.

 Chuang-tzu



This body is like a phantom,

Like a bubble on a stream.
This mind, looking into itself,
Is as formless and empty as space.
Somewhere within,
Sounds are perceived.
Who is hearing?
What is this?
  Bassui (1327 – 1387)



Once in the hoary ages in the ravine of Lung-Men stood a kiri

tree, a veritable king of the forest. It reared its head to talk to the
stars; its roots struck deep into the earth, mingling their bronzed
coils with those of the silver dragon that slept beneath. And it
came to pass that a mighty wizard made of this tree a wondrous
harp, whose stubborn spirit should be tamed but by the greatest
of musicians. For long the instrument was treasured by the
Emperor of China, but all in vain were the efforts of those who
in turn tried to draw melody from its strings. In response to their
utmost strivings there came from the harp but harsh notes of
disdain, ill according with the songs they fain would sing. The
harp refused to recognise a master.
At last came Pai Ya, the prince of harpists. With tender hand he
caressed the harp as one might seek to soothe an unruly horse,
and softly touched the chords. He sang of nature and the seasons,
of high mountains and flowing waters, and all the memories of
the tree awoke! Once more the sweet breath of spring played
amidst its branches. The young cataracts, as they danced down
the ravine, laughed to the budding flowers. Anon were heard the
dreamy voices of summer with its myriad insects, the gentle
pattering of rain, the wail of the cuckoo. Hark! A tiger roars –
the valley answers again. Now it is autumn; in the desert night,
sharp like a sword gleams the moon upon frosted grass. Now
winter reigns, and through the snow-filled air flocks of swans
and rattling hailstones beat upon the boughs with fierce delight.
Then Pai Ya changed the key and sang of love. The forest
swayed like an ardent swain deep lost in thought. On high, like
a haughty maiden, swept a cloud bright and fair; but passing,
trailed long shadows on the ground, black like despair. Again the
mode was changed; Pai Ya sang of war, of clashing steel and
trampling steeds. And in the harp arose the tempest of Lung
Men; the dragon rode the lightning, the thundering avalanche
crashed through the hills.
In ecstasy, the Celestial Monarch asked Pai Ya wherein lay the
secret of his victory. “Sire,” he replied, “others have failed
because they sang but of themselves. I left the harp to choose its
own theme, and knew not whether the harp was Pai Ya, or if Pai
Ya were the harp.”

 Old Taoist story1



My Child, because you think you are the body,

For a long time you have been bound.

Know you are pure awareness.

You are flowing in all things,
And all things are flowing in you:

Eternally unchanging,
Limitless and free,
Serene and unperturbed.

1
Told by Kakuzo Okakura (1863 – 1919) in “The Book of Tea”
 All that takes form is fleeting,
Only the formless endures.

With this knowledge as your sword

Cut through your chains,
And be happy!

 Ashtavakra Gita1 1:14-18



Along this way,

Goes no one,
This autumn evening.

 Basho (1644 – 1694)



1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Byrom in ‘The Heart of
Awareness’
 Emptiness
The world is formed from the Void,
Like utensils from a block of wood.

The wise know the utensils,

Yet keep to the block.

Thus, their actions are forever skilful,

And they can use all things,
Without losing sight of the Truth.

 Lao-tzu



Space contains the sun, the moon, the stars and their
constellations. The great earth with its mountains, rivers, trees,
grasses and plants, good men and bad men, good experiences
and bad experiences, desires and aversions: they all arise in
empty space, they are all permeated by space, and into the void
of space they return. This moment is a vision – it is an unfolding
in space. This is the nature of being as it is.

 Hui-neng (637 – 712)

 
Said Upasiva to the Buddha: “By myself, and with nobody or
anything to rely on, I cannot cross the mighty flood of suffering
in this world. Pray, tell me Enlightened One, what method might
I use, what support, to find my way across?”
Said the Buddha: “Keep your mind focussed on the emptiness of
this existence, knowing that all things are without substance:
luminous and empty, without any being at all. In this way you
will cross the flood of suffering, so difficult to cross.”
Said Upasiva: “When one is free from attachments to this world,
when one no longer craves anything; when everything has been
let go of and one’s mind is settled in emptiness, does one then
remain in that state?”
Replied the Buddha: “When one has relinquished all craving for
sense-pleasures, and when this world is known as it is: empty -
then one enters that freedom which is supreme and unchanging.
Like a flame blown out by a gust of wind, so do one’s delusions
disappear into the Truth. Here, descriptions and words hold no
sway. For when all the ways of being a self have been forgotten,
and when all phenomena are recognised as empty, then all the
ways of describing this vanish too.”

 The Buddha
Sutta Nipata V.6


If the mind wanders anywhere, the spirit is there in a state of
arousal. If you return the mind to emptiness, that will extinguish
compulsive activity, so it can be at rest.

 Wen-tzu (c. 100 B.C.)


When mental conceptions and the external world arise, the
natures of both are truthfully non-existent. Originally, there is no
knower of the cause of the arising. The capacity of the mind is
identical with that which is known. However, when their origin
is illumined, all that is in emergence no longer emerges.
Emergence itself ceases.
When mental conceptions and the external world are neither
differentiated nor created, it is the Void.

 Niu-T’ou Fa-yung
(594 - 657)


The summer clouds, endlessly shifting,
Take on many strange forms.

 Zen saying.
 
In treading the path to Freedom, you should purify your mind
and allow your spirit to penetrate the depths. Thus you will be
able to wander silently within yourself in contemplation, and
clearly will the origin of all things become revealed – beyond all
doubt and without any obstructions.
Your mind is boundless and formless, and plays only
momentarily with the unfolding of this world, just as the pure
stream water is momentarily interfused with the essence of
autumn. It is lustrously bright and revealing, in just the same way
that moonlight envelops the entire night.
In the moment of complete awakening there is illumination
without darkness; there is perfect transparency free from stain.
It is what it is – perfectly tranquil and absolutely illuminating.

 Hung-chih (d. 1157)


Material forms are like a lump of foam,
Feelings are like bubbles on water,
Perception is like a mirage,
Volitions like a hollow trunk,
Consciousness like an illusion.

 The Buddha
Samyutta Nikaya XXII.95
 
The Buddha: “Subhuti, what do you think: Are there many
particles of dust in the universe?”
Subhuti: “Indeed there are many, World-honoured One.”
The Buddha: “Subhuti, the Awakened One teaches that all the
infinite particles of dust are no particles of dust, and yet they are
called particles of dust; he teaches that the world is no world,
and yet it is called the world.”

 The Diamond Sutra

Mahayana Buddhism


Long before Hui-neng, the sixth patriarch of Zen, was
recognised as an enlightened master, he worked as a stable-hand
in the monastery of Hung-jen, the fifth patriarch. After some
time Hung-jen, already an old man, fell critically ill, and
announced his intention to appoint a successor. He asked the
monks to each write a poem illustrating the depth of their
understanding.
Shen-hsiu, the head-monk of the monastery, wrote:
The body is the abode of awakening;
The mind a mirror bright;
With diligence one should keep it clean,
So that no dust alights.

Hui-neng, having read the poem, wrote below it in response:

There is no body of awakening,
Nor mind of mirror bright;
Since all is Void,
Where could the dust alight?
Hung-jen appointed Hui-neng as his successor.



Empty and calm and devoid of self

Is the nature of all things.
No individual being in reality exists.

There is neither an end nor a beginning,

Nor any middle path.
All is illusion: a vision, a dream.

All beings in the world

Are beyond the realm of words.
Their ultimate nature, pure and true,
Is like the emptiness of space.

 Prajnaparamita



Though beings innumerable, immeasurable, and unlimited may

be emancipated, there are in reality no beings that are ever
emancipated. Why, Subhuti? If one on the Path retains the
thought of an ego, a person, a being, or a soul, he is no more on
the true path of enlightenment.
 The Diamond Sutra
Mahayana Buddhism
 
Forms rise from that which has no form;
Names come from that which has no name.

 Seng-chao (384 – 414)


The world with all its wonders
Is nothing.
When you know this,
Desire melts away.
For you are awareness itself.
When your heart awakens to the realisation
That there is nothing,
You are still.

 Ashtavakra Gita 11.8


 Letting Go

The pathway is smooth. Why do you throw rocks before you?

 Chinese saying.



A boat may be hidden in a creek, or concealed in a bog, which

is generally considered safe. But at midnight a strong man may
come and carry it away on his back. Those of dull understanding
do not perceive that however you attempt to hide small things in
larger ones, there is always a way in which they are found. But
if you relinquish that which belongs to the universe to the whole
universe, to where could it possibly go?

 Chuang-tzu


Tanzan and Ekido were once travelling together down a muddy
road. A heavy rain was falling.
Coming around a bend, they met a lovely girl in a silk kimono
and sash, unable to cross the intersection.
‘Come on, girl,” said Tanzan at once. Lifting her in his arms, he
carried her over the mud.
Ekido did not speak again until that night, when they reached a
lodging temple. Then he no longer could restrain himself. “We
monks don’t go near women,” he told Tanzan, “especially not
young and lovely ones. It is dangerous. Why did you do that?”
“I left the girl at the intersection,” said Tanzan. “Are you still
carrying her?” 1



In every direction there are things you know and recognise:

above, below, around and within. Leave them, do not look to
them for rest or relief; do not let consciousness dwell on the
products of existence, on things that come and go.

 The Buddha
Sutta Nipata 1055


1
Adapted from “Zen Flesh, Zen Bones” by Paul Reps and Nyogen Senzaki
Since the beginningless past there has never been an awakened
being who has had an attachment to form.

 Huang-po (d. 850)


Do not look back, do not cling to the world,
And you’ll go or stay naturally.

 Wang Che (1113–1171)


Let go of your past,
And have no desires for the future.
Let the present, too, flow naturally in its course,
And you can wander from place to place in peace.

 The Buddha
Sutta Nipata 1099


There is no need to shut your eyes and close your ears;
As long as you don’t cling to things, that is enough.

 Kuei-shan (771 – 853)


Rushing into action, you fail.
Trying to grasp things, they evade.

Therefore the Wise take action

By letting things take their own course.
Having no notions of possessing anything,
They have nothing to lose.

 Lao-tzu


The way that occurs effortlessly is the right way.
Begin the right way, and all things occur without effort.
The Great Way to live without effort,
Is to forget that there is a right way,
And even that the going is effortless.
  Chuang-tzu


Striving is the root of sorrow.
But who understands this?
Only when you are blessed
With the understanding of this teaching
Will you find freedom.

 Ashtavakra Gita 16.31


Just think of the trees: they let the birds perch and fly, with no
intention to call them when they come, and no longing for their
return when they fly away. If people’s hearts can be like the
trees, they will be in accord with the Way.

 Langya (c. 850)


I flow along with the Mystery -
Pleasure and pain, here nothing can stay.

1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Byrom in ‘The Heart of
Awareness’
 The various seasons are my friends:
Opposing things, misfortune comes my way.

 Po Chu-i (772 – 846)


Outwardly go along with the flow, while inwardly keeping your
true nature. Then your eyes and ears will not be dazzled, and
your thoughts will not be confused, while the spirit within you
will expand greatly to drift in the realm of absolute purity.

 Huai-nan-tzu (c. 130 B.C.)



A primary aim of Zen is the uncovering of what is known as

inherent knowledge. This is not the kind of knowledge that is
produced by thinking based on discriminating consciousness. It
is said that the ignorant are obstructed by ignorance, while
intellectuals are obstructed by the intellect. One way of getting
past these obstacles and approaching inherent knowledge is to
let go of whatever comes to mind.

 Muso Kokushi
 

Let every thought that arises be free from attachment to things.

Let every step you take be free from attachment to any
dwelling place.
If you keep on in this way without interruption,
You will be close to true insight indeed.

 Tung-shan Liang-chieh
(807 – 869)



If the mind is always calm and still, dark and silent, not seeing
anything, indefinable, neither inside nor outside, without a trace
of thought, this is the settled mind, and is not to be overcome.
If the mind gets excited at objects, falling all over itself looking
for heads and tails, this is the disturbed mind, and should quickly
be cut away. Do not indulge it and let it go on, for it will harm
spiritual qualities and cause a loss of essential life.
In whatever you are doing, do not cling to perceptions,
cognitions, and feelings, and you will have no afflictions.

 Wang Che (1113–1171)

 

You have to distinguish references to purity and impurity. There

are many names for impure things – greed, hatred, infatuation,
and so on. There are also many names for pure things –
enlightenment, essence, awareness, liberation, and so on. Yet
even in the very midst of these twin streams, purity and impurity
– in the midst of standards of profanity and holiness, in the midst
of forms, sounds, smells, tastes, feelings, and things, in the midst
of worldly things and supernatural phenomena – the immediate
mirroring awareness should not get fixated on anything at all.

 Pai-chang (720 – 814)1



There is no need to avoid or escape anything – simply be present.

Have awareness, that is enough. If you try to avoid anything, it
is still affecting you. Just don’t be changed or affected by things,
and you’ll be free.

 Ts’ao-shan (840 – 901)

1
Slightly adapted from Thomas Cleary’s translation in “The Five Huses of
Zen”
 
Clinging is never kept within bounds,
It is sure to go the wrong way.
Let all things go, and they follow their own course,
While the Essence neither abides nor departs.

Obey the nature of things, and you are in accord with the Way,
Calm and easy and free of annoyance;
But when your thoughts are tied, you turn away from the Truth:
The mind grows heavy and dull, and is not at all sound.

 Seng-ts’an (d. 606)1


We can hold back neither the coming of the flowers,
Nor the downward rush of the stream;
Sooner or later, everything comes to completion.

 Takuan

1
Adapted from D.T. Suzuki’s translation in ‘The Manual of Zen Buddhism’
 
Sitting quietly, doing nothing,
Spring comes, and the grass grows green of itself.

 Old Taoist saying.


Let your heart journey in simplicity.
Be one with that which cannot be defined.
Have no personal views.
Let things be what they are.

 Chuang-tzu


Silently dwell in the self; recognising things just as they are,
abandon conditioning. Open-minded and bright without
defilement, simply penetrate and drop off everything. Today is
not your first arrival here. Since the ancient home before the
aeon of vast emptiness, nothing has ever been obscured.
Although you are inherently awake and radiant, still you must
open your eyes and embody it. When doing so, immediately
illuminate every atom without hiding a speck of dirt. Dry and
cool in deep repose, profoundly understand. If your rest is not
satisfying and you yearn to travel beyond birth and death, there
can be no such place. Just burst through this moment and you
will discern without thought-hindrance, pure without basis for
anxiety. Stepping back with open hands, giving up everything is
the way to comprehending life and death.

 Hung-chih


When the objective world is clung to, there is the discernment of
birth and death. It is like the recognition of waves rising from
the water. This is what the awakened ones call ‘this shore’.
When the objective world is relinquished, there is no longer birth
and death. It is like the depths of the ocean constantly washing
in its course. This is called ‘reaching the further shore’.
 Hui-neng (637 – 712)


I am boundless space.
The world is temporary as a clay jar.
This is the Truth.
There is nothing to accept,
Nothing to reject,
Nothing to complete.

I am the unbounded ocean.

All the worlds are like waves.
This is the Truth.
There is nothing to hold on to,
Nothing to let go of,
 Nothing to achieve.

 Ashtavakra Gita1

1
Adapted from Thomas Byrom’s translation in ‘The Heart of Awareness’
 Solitude

Three score and ten! A slave to office yet!

In the Li Chi these luminous words befall:
“The lust for honours, honours not at all,”
Here is the golden line we most forget.
Alas! How these long years afflict a man!
When teeth are gone, and failing eyes grow dim.
The morning dews brought dreams of fame to him
Who bears in dusk the burdens of his clan.
His eyes still linger on the tassel blue,
And still the red sedan of rank appeals,
But his shrunk belly scarce the girdle feels
As, bowed, he crawls the Prince’s Gateway through.
Where is the man that would not wealth acclaim?
Who would not truckle for his sovereign’s grace?
Yet years of high renown their furrows trace,
And greatness overwhelms the weary frame.
The springs of laughter flow not from his heart,
Where bide the dust and glamour of old days.
Who walks alone in contemplation’s ways?
“ ‘Tis he, the happy man, who dwells apart.”

 Po Chu-i (A.D. 772-846)1


1
Translated by L. Cranmer-Byng in “A Lute of Jade”
“Before my Awakening, when I was still lost in ignorance and
bound by the ways of the world, the thought occurred to me:
‘The household life is crowded, a dusty road. Life gone forth is
the open air. It isn’t easy, living in a home, to lead the holy life
that is utterly perfect, totally pure, like a polished shell. What if
I, having shaved off my hair and beard and putting on simple
robes, were to go forth from the home life into homelessness?’
“So at a later time, when I was still young, black-haired, and
endowed with the blessings of youth in the first stage of life,
having shaved off my hair and beard - though my parents wished
otherwise and wept with tearful faces - I put on simple robes and
went forth from the home life into homelessness.
“Having gone forth I devoted myself to realising states of mind
that are skilful, seeking the unexcelled state of liberation in this
life, desiring nothing but vision of the true nature of things, and
the sublime freedom of peace.”

 The Buddha
Majjhima Nikaya 36


Beings lost in delusion hate solitude,
But the Wise rejoice in it.
Embracing their aloneness
They realise unity with the Truth.

 Lao-tzu
 
The man who is happy and pure
And enjoys his own company,
Gathers the fruit of his practice
And the fruit of wisdom.

 Ashtavakra Gita 17.11


When people leave home in search of what is good, first they
should live in a hermitage. A hermitage is a house for one
person. When the body has a place to live, the mind gradually
attains peace. When energy and awareness are harmonious and
light, one enters the real Way.
Whatever you do, do not work too hard or have too many
distractions. If you work too hard, your energy will be reduced.
If you are too distracted, you will find it difficult to attain to a
one-pointed concentration. However, it is no good to be entirely
inactive either. If you are inactive, energy and awareness will
stagnate.
When activity and stillness are well balanced, then you can
maintain constancy and rest secure in your lot. This is the way
to live in a hermitage.

 Wang Che (1113 – 1171)

1
Translated by Thomas Byrom in ‘The Heart of Awareness’
 
“Without giving up six things, O monks, it is not possible to live
heedfully, with the mind stable, one-pointed, and trained on
realising heightened states. What are these six? To be fond of
activity; to be fond of talking; to be fond of sleeping; to dwell
without control of the senses; to be immoderate in eating.”

 The Buddha
Anguttara Nikaya VI,118


By standing on his own,
A man finds happiness.
By standing on his own,
A man finds freedom.
By standing on his own,
He goes beyond the world.
By standing on his own,
He finds the end of the Way.

 Ashtavakra Gita 18.501


1
Translated by Thomas Byrom in ‘The Heart of Awareness’
There was a time when the Buddha, staying at a certain
monastery near Kosambi, was living hemmed in by monks and
nuns, by male and female lay followers, by kings and royal
ministers, by sectarian teachers and their disciples, and he lived
in discomfort and not at ease. Then taking his bowl and outer
cloak, he entered Kosambi for alms-food, and having returned
after the meal, and without informing his attendant or taking
leave of the order of monks, he set off alone, without a
companion, for the unfrequented forest of Parileyyaka. There,
seated at the foot of an auspicious tree, it occurred to the
Enlightened One: ‘Before I lived hemmed in, jostled and
troubled by others, living in discomfort and not at ease. But now
I live in freedom, untroubled and undisturbed by others, in
comfort and at ease.’ Thus, observing the calm and peace of
solitude, the Buddha uttered the following verse:

This unites mind with Mind,

for the perfected one and the bull elephant both:
By gentle streams and lofty trees,
each delights in the solitude of quietude and peace.

 Khuddaka Nikaya
Udana IV.5



“Kassapa,” said the Buddha, “you are no longer a young man,

indeed, you are one who is now ripe in years. What compelling
reason do you see that you for a long time have lived in the
wilderness and have extolled living in the wilderness, that you
have lived off simple food and have extolled living off simple
food, that you have worn any old clothes and have extolled
wearing any old clothes, that you have been content and have
extolled being content, that you have lived in solitude and have
extolled living in solitude, that you have lived with heightened
awareness and have extolled living with heightened awareness?”

“Motivated by two reasons, Lord, do I live in contented solitude.

Firstly, it is for me a tranquil and agreeable abiding. Secondly,
is that I feel sympathy for later generations, considering that
perhaps they will take it as an example, recognising how the
elder sages lived in the wilderness and extolled living in the
wilderness, lived as recluses and extolled living as recluses,
lived with heightened awareness and extolled living with
heightened awareness.”

 Samyutta Nikaya XVI.5



One-pointed and unwavering devotion to the Ultimate, resort to

secluded places, distaste for assemblies; constant devotion to
spiritual knowledge, realisation of the essence of Truth, this is
declared to be wisdom. What is opposed to this is ignorance.

 Bhagavad Gita 13.10-11


“This Path is for one who is reclusive, not for one who is
entangled.” Thus was it said. With reference to what was it said?
There is the case where a monk, when living in seclusion, is
visited by monks and nuns, or laymen and laywomen, or even
kings and royal ministers, or philosophers and their disciples.
With his mind bent on seclusion, tending toward seclusion,
inclined toward seclusion, aiming at seclusion, relishing
renunciation, he converses with them only as much is necessary
for them to take their leave.
Thus was it said: “This Path is for one who is reclusive, not for
one who is entangled.”
 Anguttara Nikaya VIII.30


A thousand clouds among a myriad streams
and in their midst a person at his ease.
By day he wanders through the dark green hills,
at night goes home to sleep beneath the cliffs.
Swiftly the changing seasons pass him by;
Tranquil, undefiled, no earthly ties.
Such pleasures! - And on what do they rely?
On a quiet calm, like autumn river water.

 Han-shan, (circa A.D. 750)1


1
Translated by Peter Harris
 All the birds have fluttered and flown away;
A lonely cloud floats leisurely by.
We never tire of looking at each other -
Only the mountain and I.

The birds have vanished into the sky.

The last cloud drains slowly away.
We sit together, the mountain and I,
until only the mountain remains.

 Li-po1


Ever since my realisation of No-birth,
Vicissitudes of fate – good and bad – have lost their power.
Far away in the mountains I live in a humble hut;
High are the mountains, thick the forested shades,
And under an old pine tree I sit,
Quietly and contentedly in my monkish home.
My mind tranquil, my lifestyle simple,
What more could any man ask?

 Yung-chia Ta-shih (d. 713)


1
Adapted from Sam Hamill’s translation.
 The nearby spring trickles cool and clean,
Droplets like diamonds are carried on the breeze.
Behind the stark mountain the moon rises into view,
Sending shafts of light through the bamboo windowpane.
In my old age I especially feel that
living in the deep mountains is desirable.
If I die at the foot of this moss-laden rock,
Even my bones will be pure.

 Jakushitsu (1290 – 1367)



“Be a refuge unto yourself, Ananda.

Let there be no other refuge.
Be an island unto yourself.
Let there be no other island.”

 The Buddha
Samyutta Nikaya XLVII.13


 BOOK 3:
AWAKENING
 No Relativity

The Wise look into space and do not regard the small as little,
nor the great as vast, for they know there is no limit to
dimension. They look into the past and do not grieve over what
is far off, nor rejoice at what is near; for they know that time is
without end. They consider that whatever arises is already in the
past, and do not rejoice in success, nor lament in failure.
They who apprehend the scheme of existence do not cling to life
or grieve over death, for they recognise that these are only
concepts, and are never final.

 Chuang-tzu



There is nothing under the canopy of heaven greater than an

autumn leaf. A vast mountain is a small thing. Neither is there
any age greater than that of a child cut off in infancy. The oldest
man in existence considered his life to have been short. The
universe and I came into being together; and I, and everything
therein, are One.

 Chuang-tzu1

1
Translated by Lionel Giles
 

A monk once drew four lines in front of Ma-tsu1. The top line
was long and the remaining three were short. He then demanded
of Ma-tsu, “Besides saying that one line is long and the others
are short, what else could you say?”
Ma-tsu drew a single line on the ground and asked, “Do you call
this line long or short?”2



Time is one wing of a gnat.

Space is the other.
The universe is a hair of a horse.

 Han shan Te’-Ch’ing

(c 1600)

1
(709 – 788)
2
Adapted from the translation by Chang Chung-Yuan in “Original
Teachings of Ch’an Buddhism”
 

Human life in the world is no more than that of a dayfly. This is

true not only of ordinary people but also of the sages and
enlightened ones of all times as well. However, though a lifetime
is limited, the essence of awareness is unlimited. If we look on
the universe from the point of view of our lifetime, our lifetimes
are those of dayflies. But if we look on the universe from the
point of view of essential awareness, then the universe too is like
a dayfly.

 Lu-yen1 (c. 650 A.D.)



1
Translated by Thomas Cleary in ‘Vitality Energy Spirit’
 No Duality

“Monks, it is important that you realize that all things are

inseparable from yourself. Why? Because in the entire realm of
this existence there is not a single thing which can be found to
be entirely independent.”

 Fa-yen Wen-i (885 – 958)1



“Transcending perceptions of physical forms, with the

disappearance of all objects and resistance, and rising beyond
perceptions of diversity, one enters into, and remains in, the
dimension of unlimited space.”

 The Buddha
Majjhima Nikaya 66


1
Translated by Chang Chung-Yuan, “Original Teachings of Ch’an
Buddhism”
When he sees the separate existence of all beings established in
One, and their expansion from that One alone, then he becomes
one with the Ultimate.

 Bhagavad Gita XIII.30



As a wave,
Seething and foaming,
Is only the ocean;
So all creation,
Streaming out of the Self,
Is only the Self.

Consider a piece of cloth.

It is only threads!
So all creation,
When examined closely,
Is only the Self.

In ignorance and in darkness,

You mistake a piece of rope for a snake.
When you see it is just a piece of rope,
The snake vanishes.

In ignorance and in darkness,

The world of multiplicities arises.
When the Self is known,
 The world arises no more.

From me the world streams out

And in me it dissolves,
As a bracelet melts into gold,
A pot crumbles into clay,
And a wave subsides into water.

 Ashtavakra Gita 2:4-10



The one moon appears reflected in countless bodies of water; in

every body of water, the reflection of the moon has but a single
source.

 Zen saying



Having been one he becomes many;

being many he becomes one.

 The Buddha
Samyutta Nikaya LI.20
 

To unify the ten thousand things into one’s own self,

Is to be a sage indeed.

 Seng-chao (384 – 414)



All the world situations and their manifold appearances are

simply established by one’s self. As the four elements and my
being are of the same source, there is no obstruction to our
interfusion, and the moment we interpenetrate, man and things
become undifferentiated. Self and other becomes inseparable,
and it is only the faculty of naming which distinguishes this thing
from that.

 Hung-chih (d. 1157)


 One Reality only –
How deep and far reaching!
The endless millions of things –
How confusingly multifarious!
The mysterious and the mundane are forever interfused,
But essentially their substance is One.
The wise and the ignorant may indeed be distinguished,
But their being is one and the same.
Desirest thou to find its limits?
How boundlessly expanding! It is limitless!
How vaguely it vanishes! Its ends are never reached!
It knows of no finality, since there was never a point when it
began.

 Seng-ts’an (d. 606)1



1
Adapted from D.T. Suzuki’s translation in ‘The Manual of Zen Buddhism’
 No Karma

“Suppose that a man were to drop a salt crystal into a small

amount of water in a cup. What do you think? Would the water
in the cup become salty because of the salt crystal, and unfit to
drink?”
“Yes, lord. There being only a small amount of water in the cup,
it would become salty and unfit to drink.”
“Now suppose that a man were to drop a salt crystal into the
River Ganges. What do you think? Would the water in the River
Ganges become salty because of the salt crystal, and unfit to
drink?”
“No, lord. The River Ganges, being such a vast body of water,
would not become salty because of the salt crystal, nor would it
be made to be unfit to drink.”
“In the same way, there is the case where a trifling evil deed
done by one individual takes him to hell; and there is the case
where the very same trifling deed done by another individual is
experienced in the here and now, and for the most part barely
appears even for a moment.
“Now, a trifling evil deed done by what sort of individual takes
him to hell? When an individual is undeveloped in
contemplation, undeveloped in virtue, undeveloped in mind,
undeveloped in discernment: restricted, small-hearted, dwelling
with suffering, a trifling evil deed can take him to hell.
“Now, a trifling evil deed done by what sort of individual is
experienced in the here and now, and for the most part barely
appears even for a moment? There is the case where a certain
individual is developed in contemplation, developed in virtue,
developed in mind, developed in discernment: unrestricted,
large-hearted, dwelling in the immeasurable. A trifling evil deed
done by this sort of individual is experienced in the here and
now, and for the most part barely appears even for a moment.

 The Buddha
Anguttara Nikaya III.99



Committing evils or practising goodness – both are the outcome

of attachment to form. When evils are committed on account of
attachment to form, one suffers evil results. When goodness is
practised on account of attachment to form, one finds life’s
hardships difficult to bear. How then is one ever to escape? It is
best to awaken to the depths of the true teaching, and rising
above cause and effect, to dissolve into the mystery unknown.

 Huang-po (d. 850)



The emperor Wu of Liang asked Bodhidharma: “Ever since the

beginning of my reign I have built so many temples, copied so
many sacred books, and supported so many monks and nuns.
What do you think my merit might be?”
“No merit.” replied Bodhidharma.
“Why?” demanded the emperor, astonished.
“These are inferior deeds,” was Bodhidharma’s reply. “It is
possible they may cause their author to be born in the heavens
or in this world again, but they are motivated by notions of gain.
They are like shadows following after objects: though they
appear as actually existent, in truth they have no substance. As
to a truly meritorious deed, it arises from the heart of pure
wisdom. It is perfect and mysterious: it’s nature beyond the
grasp of human thought. Such as this cannot be sought after by
worldly achievements.”


Only because of their errant imaginations and false
discriminations, sentient beings work out their karma and
experience its result. In the true essence of being, however, there
is nothing corresponding to it. The Essence is empty and allows
everything to pass through; it is quiet and perpetually at rest, it
is illuminating, it is peaceful and productive of bliss.

 Huang-po (d. 850)


Those who understand the nature of mental functions regard
desires, cravings, likes, and dislikes as externals. Therefore
nothing delights them, nothing angers them, nothing pleases
them, nothing pains them. Everything is mysteriously the same;
nothing is wrong, nothing is right.

 Wen-tzu (c. 100 B.C.)



If the hand has no wound, one may even carry poison in it.
Poison does not affect those free from wounds. Evil does not
affect those who are free of evil.

 The Dhammapada


 No Emptiness

You can go anywhere, but you cannot find the path.

 Zen saying



While we dream, we do not know that we dream. Some will even

interpret the very dream they are dreaming, and only when they
awake do they realise they were having a dream.
By and by comes the Great Awakening, and only then do we
realise that this very life is itself none other than a dream. Fools
think they are awake now, and flatter themselves they know if
they are really princes or peasants. The ancient sages, and your
present being, are all dreams; and these words speaking of
dreams are but part of the dream itself.

 Chuang-tzu


“Having completely transcended perceptions of physical forms,
with the disappearance of all objects and resistance, and rising
beyond perceptions of diversity, one enters into, and remains in,
the dimension of unbounded space. That is the transcending of
the perception of physical form. But that, I tell you, isn't enough.
Abandon it. Transcend it.
“For having completely transcended the dimension of
unbounded space, one comes to enter into, and remain in, the
dimension of boundless consciousness. That is the transcending
of the dimension of unbounded space. But that, too, I tell you,
isn't enough. Abandon it. Transcend it.
“For, going beyond the dimension of boundless consciousness,
one enters into, and remains in, the dimension of nothingness.
That is the transcending of the dimension of boundless
consciousness. And yet, that too, I tell you, isn't enough.
Abandon it. Transcend it.
“Having left behind the dimension of nothingness, one enters
into, and remains in, the dimension of neither perception nor
non-perception. Thus does one transcend even the dimension of
nothingness. But that, too, I tell you, isn't enough. Abandon it.
Transcend it.
“For with the complete transcending of the dimension of neither
perception nor non-perception, one arrives at the ending of
perception, the ending of feeling. That is the transcending of the
dimension of neither perception nor non-perception.
“Thus do I speak even of the abandoning of the dimension of
neither perception nor non-perception. Do you see, Udayin, that
there is no state of mind, be it contracted or expanded, of whose
abandoning I do not speak.”

 The Buddha
Majjhima Nikaya 66


 The essence of awareness has no location,
Therefore it cannot be attained.

 Vimilakirti Sutra


“O Sariputra, form is here emptiness, emptiness is form; form is
no other than emptiness, emptiness is no other than form; that
which is form is empty, that which is emptiness is form. The
same can be said of sensation, thought, causal arising, and
consciousness.
“O Sariputra, all things here are characterized with emptiness:
they are not born, they are not annihilated; they are not tainted,
they are not immaculate; they do not increase, they do not
decrease. Therefore, O Sariputra, in emptiness there is no form,
no sensation, no thought, no causal arising, no consciousness;
there is no eye, no ear, no nose, no tongue, no body, no mind; no
form, no sound, no colour, no taste, no touch, no objects; no
power of vision, till we come to no power of consciousness;
there is no knowledge, no ignorance, no old age, no death, and
no extinction of old age and death; there is no suffering, no
accumulation, no annihilation, and no path; there is no insight,
no attainment, and no awakening.
In the mind of the enlightened being who dwells depending on
this insight into Emptiness, there are no obstacles; and, going
beyond perverted views, he reaches final Liberation. All the
Awakened Ones of the past, present, and future, depending on
this insight into Emptiness, attain to the highest perfect
enlightenment.
  Hridaya Prajnaparamita
Sutra
Mahayana Buddhism


‘If a person wishes to make a study of illusion,
In spite of the fact that his own being is an illusion,
We are reduced to the absurdity of an illusion
Studying an illusion.’

 Lieh-tzu


There is, monks, that foundation where there is no earth, no
water, no fire, no air; no base consisting of the infinity of space,
no base consisting of the infinity of consciousness, no base
consisting of nothingness, no base consisting of neither-
perception-nor-non-perception; neither sun nor moon; neither
this world, nor another world, nor both. Here, monks, I say there
is no coming, no going; no staying, no decrease, no increase.
Neither fixed, nor movable, it has no support. This, just this, is
the end of suffering.

 The Buddha
Udana VIII.1
 
It is like a mirage in which the springs are seen as if they were
real. They are imagined so by the animals who, thirsty from the
heat of the season, would run after them. Not knowing hat the
springs are their own mental illusions, the animals do not realise
that there are in reality no such springs. In the same way, the
ignorant and simple-minded with their minds impressed by
various erroneous speculations and discriminations; with their
minds burning with the fire of greed, anger, and folly; delighting
in a world of multitudinous forms; with their thoughts saturated
with the ideas of birth, death, and subsistence; not understanding
well what is meant by existent and non-existent, by inner and
outer, these ignorant and simple-minded fall into the way of
grasping at oneness and otherness, being and non-being, as
though they were realities. They do not realise that all things
seen are of the Mind itself, and are like unto a dream.

 Lankavatara Sutra
Mahayana Buddhism


Do not abide in the extremity of Nothingness, but illuminate the
essential reality that all being is non-being. All being is empty,
and it is this very emptiness which is the nature of being.
Emptiness – or the Void – and being, are not conceived of as
two. This is called the Middle Way.

 Niu-T’ou Fa-yung
 
When there is nowhere a thing that can be given up,
One has indeed reached the Source.
When there is no Void to abide in,
One is indeed experiencing the Void.
Transcending quietude is the action that is no-action;
Rather, it is Creation which constantly acts.

 Wang Wei (699 – 759)


My poverty of last year was not real poverty.
This year it is wanting indeed.
In last year’s poverty there was room for a piercing gimlet.
In this year’s poverty, even the gimlet is no more.

 Hsiang-yen (c. 820)


If there is anything beyond the ultimate awakening,
It too is like a dream illusion.

 Zen saying
 
The man who is pure knows for certain
That nothing really exists;
It is all mysterious illusion.
He sees what is beyond being seen.
His nature is peace.

 Ashtavakra Gita 18.70


It is like blossoms sprouting from a dead tree.
Those who know this matter see it thus.

 Tung-shan (807 – 869)


The bamboo shadows are sweeping the stairs,
But the dust remains unstirred.
The moonlight penetrates to the bottom of the pool,
But not a trace can be found in the stream.

 Anonymous
 No Mind

A seeker asked a Zen master: “What are you thinking of so

intently?”
The master said: “I am thinking of that which does not think.”
“How can you think of that which does not think?” asked the
seeker.
“Without thinking,” replied the master.



Thinking of what is beyond thinking,

Is still thinking.
I have given up thinking,
And I am here.

 Ashtavakra Gita 12.7


P’an Shan said:
‘There is nothing in this triple world.
Where can mind be found?’
 

No-tranquillisation, no-disturbance, no-sitting, no-meditation –

this the Suchness of Being of the enlightened ones. The five
elements of nature are not realities; the six objects of sense are
empty from the start. It is neither quiet nor illuminating; it is
neither real nor illusory; it knows of no middle way; it is non-
doing, it is no-effect-producing, and yet it functions with the
utmost freedom. The nature of ‘This’ is all-inclusive.

 Tai-yung (c. 750 A.D.)1



1
Adapted from D.T. Suzuki’s translation in ‘The Zen Doctrine of No Mind’
 Direct Teachings

“It is essential for you to cease and desist from your previously
held knowledge, opinions, interpretations, and understandings.
Know that there is nowhere for you to apply your mind. You
have to be spontaneous and buoyant, your mind like space,
without any concept of place or direction. You must go beyond
light and dark; let there be no teachings, no body, no mind, year
in and year out. That is why it is said: ‘Even if you learn things
pertaining to wisdom, that too is misuse of mind. You have to be
free of preoccupations; you have to be normal.’”

 Ch’eng-ku (ca 1037)1



Chao-chou2 asked his teacher Nan-ch’uan3, “What is the Way?”

Nan-ch’uan replied: “Ordinary mind is the Way.”
“How shall I attain it?” asked Chao-chou.
“If you attempt to attain it,” said Nan-ch’uan, “you will remain
apart from it.”
“How can I awaken if I do not strive for awakening?” asked
Chao-chou.

1
Translated by Thomas Cleary, “Teachings of Zen”
2
(778 – 897)
3
(748 – 834)
Nan-ch’uan replied: “This Reality is not a matter of knowing or
not knowing. If one thinks one knows one is deluded, and to
think that one does not know is ignorance. When one truthfully
awakens to this matter, undoubtedly one finds it as vast as
boundless space, perfectly empty, luminous and alive, without
any distinctions as to better or worse. It cannot be discussed on
the level of what is right and what is wrong. What is most
important is to awaken to the nature of what ‘is’.”



The true way of things is eternal, the Truth is forever the Truth:
don’t misapply body and mind in chasing after matters that are
worldly. That is why it is said: “Even the slightest object is dust;
as soon as you arouse intention, you’re confused by
hallucinations.”

 Yun-feng (d. ca 1060)



A monk asked Ma-tsu (709 – 788) why he always maintained

that “the Mind is the Source”.
Ma-tsu answered: “Because I wish to show the way to those who
are lost.”
“But when they have found the way,” said the monk, “what do
you teach them then?”
“No Mind, no Source,” was the answer.
“How then do you teach a man who has gone beyond all of
these?” persisted the monk.
Ma-tsu said: “I would tell him ‘not things’”.
Once again the monk questioned: “If you met a being free from
attachment to all things, what would you tell him?”
“I would leave him to experience the Great Way,” relied Ma-tsu.



Patch-robed monks make their thinking dry and cool and rest
from the remnants of conditioning. Persistently brush up and
tend to each bit of the field. Directly cut through all the
overgrown grass.
Reach the limit in all directions without defiling even one atom.
Spiritual and bright, vast and lustrous, illuminating fully what is
before you, directly attain the shining light and clarity that
cannot attach to a single defilement. Holding the reins of the
mind sharply, immediately tug and pull back on the ox's nose.
Of course his horns are imposing, and he stomps around like a
beast, yet at least this way he does not damage people's sprouts
and grain.
Wandering around, accept how it goes. Accepting how it goes,
wander around. Do not be bound by or settle into any place. Then
the plough will break open the ground in the field of the aeon of
emptiness. Proceeding in this manner reality becomes
unobstructed - every realm is made complete. Thus it is said that
the mind-ground contains every seed and the universal rain
makes them all sprout. When awakening blossoms, desires fade,
and the fruit of enlightenment is the perfected self.

 Hung-chih (d. 1157)



Take no heed of time, or of right and wrong.

Passing into the realm of the Infinite,
Take your final rest therein.

 Chuang-tzu



A monk asked Ma-tsu, “What is the meaning of the Ultimate?”

Ma-tsu replied, “What is the meaning of this moment?”


 A monk asked: ‘What am I?’
Guang-f’an1 answered:
‘There is nothing in the whole universe that is not you.’



Hsuan-tse worked as superintendent of the monastery where Fa-

yen2 presided. One day Fa-yen asked him: “How long have you
been here?”
“Three years, so far,” answered Hsuan-tse.
Fa-yen asked: “You are young – why don’t you ever ask about
the Teaching?”
“I do not wish to deceive you,” said Hsuan-tse. “I have already
attained my insight under a previous teacher.”
Fa-yen inquired: “By what words did you gain your insight?”
Hsuan-tse said: “Once I asked my teacher, ‘What is the Self?’
My teacher laughed and said, ‘The fire god comes looking for
fire!’ I felt an immediate awakening.”
Fa-yen shook his head and said: “That is a fine saying, but I’m
afraid you still have no true understanding.”
“I can explain,” said Hsuan-tse. “The fire god is already
composed of fire – what is the use of his seeking fire? Just so,
we are made of Self – what is the use of our seeking the Self?”
“You truthfully have no understanding,” said Fa-yen. “If the
matter of awakening was really like this, it would be a trifling
thing indeed.”

1
(c. 850)
2
(885 – 958)
Hsuan-tse was offended and left the temple in indignation.
However, a little while later it occurred to him, “Fa-yen is
recognised as a great teacher by more than four-hundred monks
- even my previous teacher held him in respect. Perhaps there is
some point to his telling me I am wrong.”
He returned to Fa-yen and apologised, saying: “Please, master,
could you give me some further instruction?”
Fa-yen said: “The fire god comes looking for fire!”
On hearing this, Hsuan-tse was enlightened.


Kuei-shan (771 – 853) said to Yang-shan (814 – 890), “To all
beings on this great earth, original consciousness is invisible and
nothing of it can be grasped. How then, do you know whether
such a thing exists?”
Yang-shan replied, “There is a way of demonstrating this.” At
that moment a monk happened to be passing by, and Yang-shan
called out to him, “O, monk!”
The monk responded by turning his head.
“This is the original consciousness,” said Yang-shan to Kuei-
shan. “It is invisible, and nothing of it can be grasped.”


‘I don’t ask about the realm of enlightenment or the Way:
Who is it that speaks of enlightenment or the Way?’

 Tung-shan (807 – 869)

 
During the morning assembly, the elder, T’ing, asked Lin-chi:
“What is the ultimate meaning of the Enlightened One’s
teachings?”
Lin-chi came down from his seat, slapped T’ing and pushed him
away.
T’ing was stunned and stood motionless. A monk nearby said:
“T’ing, why do you not bow?”
At that moment, T’ing was awakened.


If you listen with your ears, you will never understand.
When you hear through your eyes, only then will you know.

 Zen saying.


Said Hwui Ko: “ Please, Master, give me peace of mind!”
Replied Bodhidharma:
“Give me your mind and I will pacify it.”
 
A monk asked Yun-Men (died 949), “What is the Way?”
Yun-men answered: “A piece of dried excrement.”


A monk approached a Zen master saying:
“I beg of you, master, liberate me!”
“Who is it that binds you?” asked the master.



Monk Ching-jui went to Ts’ao-shan (840 – 901) and said: “I am

very poor and fatherless. Please, Master, help me!”
Ts’ao-shan said: “Ching-jui, come over here.”
As Ching-jui walked closer, Ts’ao-shan said: “You have just had
three cups of the finest wine the world has to offer, and yet you
complain that for you there is not even one sip!”
 
It is right here, this present moment.
If you are seeking it, obviously you are unaware of it.

 Muso Kokushi



“You must be like a dead tree or cold ashes, acting responsively

and naturally according to situations and time, without losing
proper balance. A mirror reflects a multitude of images without
their confusing its brilliance; birds fly through the sky without
mixing up the colour of the sky. Let the state of your mind be
just this way.”

 Hsuan-sha
(9th – 10th Century)



Mu-chi was standing in the market place when he saw a man

making his way through a crowd of people.
“Just passing through, just passing through!” said the man, as he
courteously picked his way.
Immediately, Mu-chi was enlightened.



A monk asked Ts’ao-shan: “How can I maintain what I have

realised in my meditation through every moment of the day?”
Ts’ao-shan said: “It is just as when one passes through an
infected country. One should not touch even a drop of water.”


 Testing insight

Don’t get stuck in small successes. You must reach the state of
the great ancients before you realise true freedom from life and
death.

 Zen saying


If you think yourself to be liberated,
But still think: ‘me’ or ‘mine,’
If you are still attached to this body,
Then you have not yet reached true wisdom.
You are simply a man who suffers.

 Ashtavakra Gita 16.10


Pai-chang (720 – 814) once asked Ma-tsu (709-788), “What is
the ultimate teaching of the Great Way?”
Ma-tsu replied, “It is that upon which your life depends.”


Master Wu-Jen asked his disciple Lieh-tzu to give evidence of
his attainment in archery. Drawing the bow to its full, Lieh-tzu
placed a cup of water on his elbow and began to let fly. Hardly
was one arrow out of sight when another was on the string, the
archer seeming to stand still as a statue, the cup of water
remaining perfectly undisturbed.
“Excellent,” said Wu-Jen. “You have indeed attained great skill.
However, this is still shooting under ordinary conditions, and not
extraordinary ones. Let us see how you perform under
conditions of stress.”
Thereupon Wu-Jen went with Lieh-tzu up a high mountain.
Standing on the edge of a precipice a thousand feet in height,
Wu-Jen approached it backwards until one-fifth of his feet
overhung the chasm. Then he beckoned to Lieh-tzu to do the
same. But Lieh-tzu had fallen prostrate on the ground, and sweat
was pouring from his head to his heels.
“The perfect man,” said the Wu-Jen, “soars up into the blue of
the sky, or dives down into the depths of hell without any change
in countenance. But see, you are terrified – your eyes are dazed.
Certainly you are a worldling who has attained to great skill in
archery, but you are not yet one who has broken through to the
matter beyond death itself.”

 Chuang-tzu


When Hakuin had his first great insight into awakening, he wrote
down a verse relating his experience, and handed it over to his
teacher. His teacher accepted the verse, crumpled it up without
looking at it, and throwing it to the ground, asked: “What is your
statement?”
Hakuin said, “There is nothing to take a hold of.”
In a flash the teacher grabbed Hakuin by his nose, and twisting
it, said: “It easy to take hold of!”


Mokugen was never known to smile until his last day on earth.
When his time came to pass away, he said to his faithful
disciples: ‘You have studied under me for more than ten years.
Show me your real insight into this matter of being. Whoever
expresses this most clearly will receive my robe and bowl.’
Everyone watched Mokugen’s severe face, but no one answered.
Encho, a disciple who had been with his teacher for a long time,
moved near the bedside. He pushed forward the medicine cup a
few inches. This was his answer to the command.
The teacher’s face became even more severe. ‘Is that all you
understand?’ he asked.
Encho reached out and moved the cup back again.
A beautiful smile broke over the features of Mokugen’s face.
‘You rascal,’ he told Encho. “You have worked alongside me
for ten years, and I have never shown you my true face! Take
the robe and bowl. They belong to you.’1

1
Adapted from “Zen Flesh, Zen Bones” by Paul Reps and Nyogen Senzaki
 
While Rikko, a high government official of the T’ang dynasty,
was walking with Nan-ch’uan, he quoted a saying of Sojo, a
noted monk-scholar of an earlier dynasty:
‘Heaven, earth, and I are of the same source.
The ten thousand things and I are of one substance.’
“Is this not a most remarkable statement?” commented the
official.
Nan-ch’uan stopped and looked at some flowering plants in the
garden. “Governor,” he said, “when people of the world look at
these flowers, it is as if they see them in a dream.”
The governor was at a loss as to what Nan-ch’uan meant.


You are not allowed to travel at night,
But you must arrive before daybreak.

 Zen koan


Lin-chi (d. 867) delivered a sermon to the assembly, saying:
“Within your body of red flesh there exists a true man without
status who is constantly entering and going out through one’s
face. If any of you have not seen him yet, look, look!”
To this a monk responded immediately, asking: “Who is the true
man without status?”
Lin-chi rushed down from his seat, took hold of the monk, and
commanded: “Speak! Speak!”
But as the monk was about to speak, Lin-chi pushed him away,
exclaiming: “What worthless stuff is this true man without
status!”
He then went back to his chamber.1


A monk asked Fu-ch’i: ‘When the conditions for life are
ultimately dispersed, all returns to the Void. But to what does
the Void return?’
Fu-ch’i called out, ‘O Brother!’
The monk responded, ‘Yes, Master.’
Fu-ch’i asked: ‘Where is the Void?’
The monk was confused. ‘Please tell me, Master,’ he said.
Fu-ch’i concluded: ‘It is like a Persian tasting red pepper – he is
not even aware of its heat.’


Pai-chang, on being asked by Ma-tsu how he would teach others
the Way, simply held up his staff.
“Is that all?” inquired Ma-tsu. “Nothing further?”
Pai-chang put the staff down.
1
Translated from ‘The Transmission of the Lamp’ by Chang Chung-Yuan
in “Original Teachings of Ch’an Buddhism”
 
A Zen master sat in a little thatched hut, drinking tea with two
monks. A violent thundershower broke out, exposing a leak in
the weathered roof. The master asked the monks to quickly find
something to hold the water. One monk dashed out into the rain
to find a bucket. The other, seeing an old broken basket, handed
it to the master. The master was very much pleased with this
monk.



One day, while Mu-chou (9th century) was standing on the stone
steps of the monastic corridor, a monk came up to him and
asked: “Where is the abode of Master Mu-chou?”1
Mu-chou took off his sandal and beat the monk on the head with
it. When the astonished monk was about to leave, Mu-chou
called out: “Sir!” The monk turned his head to look back. Mu-
chou pointed at him and said: “Proceed that way.”


1
In terms of Zen, this question is tantamount to asking, “Where is the abode
of the mind?”
Two monks went to visit Yung-ming (904 – 975) who asked the
first visitor, “Have you been here before?”
“Yes, I have,” answered the monk.
Yung-ming then asked the second monk if he had visited before.
“No, I have not,” answered the second.
“One got the point, the other missed it,” said Yung-ming.



Fa-yen (885 – 958) asked two monks to roll up the blinds. They
both went and did so in an identical manner. “One got the point,
the other missed!” declared Fa-yen.


One day Lin-chi (d. 867) was sleeping in the monk’s living
quarters. Huang-po (d. 849) came in and tapped on the side of
his bed three times.
Lin-chi lifted his head and saw the Master standing there, but
simply went back to sleep. At that, Huang-po tapped on the mat
three times and then left for the meditation hall, where he saw
the head-monk sitting in meditation. Huang-po said to him: “In
the living quarters there is a young man sleeping in meditation,
so why are you sitting here so idly lost in thought?”
The head monk answered: “This old fellow must have gone
crazy.” Thereupon Huang-po struck the gong and left.


Nan-ch’uan asked a monk, Liang-hsin, whether consciousness
would remain in the aeon of the Void, when all is finally
destroyed.
Liang-hsin answered: “There is.”
Nan-ch’uan asked: “Who?”
“It is Liang-hsin!” replied the monk.
“Where do you live?” pressed Nan-ch’uan.
The monk kept still.


Yao-shan Wei-yen (751 – 834) was one day approached by a
monk who said to him, “I have a doubt which I wish you would
settle.”
Yao-shan replied, “Wait till the time comes for my sermon when
I will settle it.”
That evening, when the monks were all gathered in the hall, Yao-
shan appeared and said, “Where is the monk who wished today
to have his doubt settled?”
The monk came out of the gathering and stood before the master.
The master thereupon came down from his seat, and seizing the
monk said, “O monks, here is one who has a doubt!” Releasing
him then, the master went back to his room.1


Nan-ch’uan told Kuei-tsung and Ma-yu that he was going to take
them with him to visit Nan-yang Hui-chung, the National
Teacher. Before they began their journey, Nan-ch’uan drew a
circle on the road and said, “If you can give me a right answer
we will be on our way.”
Thereupon Kuei-tsung sat down inside the circle, while Ma-yu
curtsied like a woman. Nan-ch’uan said to them, “Judging by
this response, it will not be necessary to go after all.”
“What kind of mind is this?” questioned Kuei-tsung. But Nan-
ch’uan called them both back, and they did not make their visit
to Nan-yang.



One day, Ma-tsu2 stood before the assembly and remained

perfectly silent. Pai-chang3, being in the audience, rolled up his

1
Adapted from the translation by D.T. Suzuki in “Essays in Zen Buddhism
– 3rd series”
2
(708 – 788)
3
(720 – 814)
meditation mat as though the lecture was finished. Ma-tsu,
observing this, walked out of the hall.


 Nothing to be done
As to what the common people now do, and what they find their
enjoyment in, I do not know whether their enjoyment be really
enjoyment or not. I see them following after all their aims as if
with the determination of death, and as if they could not stop in
their course; but what they call enjoyment is not so to me, yet I
do not say that there is no enjoyment in it. Is there indeed such
enjoyment, or is there not? I consider doing nothing to be the
greatest enjoyment, while ordinary people consider it to be a sin.
Hence the saying from the sages of old: ‘Perfect enjoyment is
to be without enjoyment; the greatest honour is to be left alone.’
 Chuang-tzu


Sages close up together with darkness and open up with the
coming of light. Able to reach the point where there is no
enjoyment, they find there is nothing they do not enjoy. Since
there is nothing they do not enjoy, they reach the pinnacle of
enjoyment.
They use the inner to make the external enjoyable, and do not
use externals to make the inner enjoyable; therefore they have
spontaneous enjoyment within themselves, and so have freedom
of will, which is esteemed by the entire world.

 Wen-tzu1 (c. 100 B.C.)


1
Translated by Thomas Cleary in ‘Vitality Energy Spirit’
 “No calendar in the mountain monastery”

This is the ideal condition of a mountain monastery, where only

the sun and moon rise and set. When spring comes, flowers
bloom, and when winter comes, snowflakes fall. There is no
January, February, no Saturday, or Sunday. Life goes with
nature – no schedules, no appointments. When visitors come,
they just come – no planning, no cancellations, just coming and
going with nature.

 Eido Tai Shimano


The essence of all existence is eternal.
Like facets of a jewel in the sunlight,
Things appear, and yet are empty as the sky.
Counting, counting, how very long.
The lucky day is when you discover it’s all one day!

 Dogen



Sitting quietly, doing nothing,

 Spring comes, and the grass grows green of itself.

 Taoist saying.



Those who know how to nurture the harmony of life cannot be

hooked by profit. Those who have merged inside and outside
cannot be seduced by fame.

 Wen-tzu (c. 100 B.C.)


The one who rejoices in the such-ness of Being, who delights in
the Nature of Things as they are, and who is content within
himself - for such a Self-realized person there is no duty. Such a
person has no interest in what is done and what is not done. For
him there is nothing in the world to be gained by action, nor is
there anything to be lost through inaction. An awakened person
lives in freedom, without dependence on anybody for anything.

 Bhagavad Gita III.17;18

 
His nature is free of conditions.
Gain or loss,
It makes no difference to him.
Alone in the forest or out in the world,
A god in heaven or a simple beggar,
It makes no difference!

 Ashtavakra Gita 18.111


Patch-robed monks practice thoroughly without clinging to even
a thread. Open-minded, sparkling and pure, they are like a mirror
reflecting a mirror, with nothing regarded as outside, without
capacity for accumulating dust. They illuminate everything
fully. Perceiving all is nothing their perceptions disappear.
Wisdom illuminates the darkness without confusion. The Way
integrates with the body and no longer clings or holds or gets
stuck. Unobstructed and free, beyond restraints, without
dependence, the essence of being cannot be eclipsed. Fulfilled,
one wanders endlessly without a destination, arriving through
every moment at what is real. Everywhere safe, everywhere at
leisure, the open field of awareness is plain and simple. You
must intimately experience and arrive here.

 Hung-chih (d. 1157)

1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Byrom in ‘The Heart of
Awareness’
 

When Ts’ao-shan left Tung-shan, Tung-shan asked him, “Where

are you going?”
Ts’ao-shan said, “To an unchanging place.”
Tung-shan retorted, “If it is an unchanging place, how can there
be any going?”
Ts’ao-shan replied, “The going is also unchanging.”1



First I gave up action,

Then idle words,
And lastly thought itself.

Now I am here.

 Ashtavakra Gita 12.12

1
Translated by Thomas Cleary in ‘The Five Houses of Zen’
2
Translated by Thomas Byrom in ‘The Heart of Awareness’
 
When a person thoroughly understands the world from top to
bottom, when there is nothing in the world that agitates him
anymore, then he is free from confusion, free from fear, free
from anxiety, free from the attractions of desire. He resides
where there is no longer any ageing, where neither birth nor
death have any hold.

 The Buddha
Sutta Nipata V.4



The sage, having subjugated the self, attains to peace. He moves

among objects with the senses tamed, free from longing and
aversion.

 Bhagavad Gita II.64


 Detached from the senses,
You are free.
Attached, you are bound.
When this is understood,
You may live as you please.

When this is understood,

The man who is bright and busy
And full of fine words
Falls silent.
He does nothing.
He is still.
No wonder
Those who wish to enjoy the world
Shun this understanding.

 Ashtavakra Gita 15.2-31



The original Mind is luminous, formless, and pure as the Void.

The raising of a single thought deviates from the true Source.

 Huang-po (d. 849)

1
Translated by Thomas Byrom in ‘The Heart of Awareness’
 

You are pure.

Nothing touches you.
What is there to renounce?
Let it all go,
The body and the mind.
Let yourself dissolve.

You see the world.

But like a piece of rope mistaken for a snake,
It is only illusion.
You are pure.
Let yourself dissolve.

You are one and the same.

In joy and sorrow,
Hope and despair,
Life and death.
You are already fulfilled.
Let yourself dissolve.

 Ashtavakra Gita1

1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Byrom in ‘The Heart of
Awareness’

 Continuance of Effort

Flowing with the endlessly drifting stream,

You ask what is the meaning.
‘Infinite unbounded awareness’ is my answer.
However, to be free of forms and names
Does not come easily to man;
Even the sharpest sword must be constantly re-sharpened.

 Lin-chi (d. 866)



Empty and desireless, cold and thin, simple and genuine, this is
how to strike down and fold up the remaining habits of many
lives. When the stains from old habits are exhausted, the original
light appears, blazing through your skull, not admitting any other
matters. Vast and spacious, like sky and water merging during
autumn, like snow and moon having the same colour, this field
is without boundary, beyond direction, magnificently one entity
without edge or seam. Further, when you turn within and drop
off everything completely, realization occurs. Right at the time
of entirely dropping off, deliberation and discussion are one
thousand or ten thousand miles away. Still no principle is
discernible, so what could there be to point to or explain? People
with the bottom of the bucket fallen out immediately find total
trust. So we are told simply to realize mutual response and
explore mutual response, then turn around and enter the world.
Roam and play in the dream and its madness. Every detail
clearly appears before you. Sound and form, echo and shadow,
happen instantly without leaving traces. The outside and one’s
self do not dominate each other, only because no perception
comes between us. Only this non-perceiving encloses the empty
space of the majestic ten thousand forms. People with the
original face should enact and fully investigate this realm
without neglecting a single fragment.

 Hung-chih (d. 1157)



In order to experience true liberation, one must die the Great

Death and yet continue living. And it is not enough to undergo
it only once – one must die many times before one’s mind
dissolves into freedom completely.

 Hakuin Ekaku
(1685-1768)


In one who has reached fulfilment, who has completed the task,
laid down the burden, attained the true goal, totally destroyed the
binds of transformation, and who is released through complete
insight into what is true; there remains yet the dedication to six
things: relinquishment, seclusion, harmlessness, the ending of
craving, the ending of clinging, and awareness without delusion.

However, the reason for this continued dedication is not because

of a dependence on any convictions; nor is it because of any
attachment to rituals, precepts, or rites; nor is it because of any
desire for gains, honour, or fame. One who has realised the final
freedom does not see in himself anything further to do, nor
anything further to add to what has been done. It is only because
all passions have ceased, because all aversions have ceased,
because all delusions have ceased, that he remains naturally
dedicated to what is good – without effort, without dependence,
without confusion of any kind.

 The Buddha
Anguttara Nikaya vi.55


A dragon does not stay in stagnant water.

 Zen saying


 No Words, No Silence

To the awakened sage, the knower of Truth, all the scriptures are
of as little use as a water-well in the time of a flood. Why would
one go looking for water when there is water all around one’s
feet?

 Bhagavad Gita II.46



A monk asked: ‘What is talk beyond convention?’

Guangji1 answered: ‘Whatever you say.’



1
(c. 870)
The reason for a fish trap is for catching fish. When the fish are
caught, the trap is forgotten. The reason for a rabbit-snare is for
catching a rabbit. When the rabbit is caught, the snare is
forgotten. The reason for words is for conveying ideas. When
the idea is penetrated, then words are forgotten. But where can I
find a man who has forgotten words? I wish to have a word with
him!

 Chuang-tzu


Hsuan-sha Shih-pei (935 – 908) sat quietly in his pulpit for some
time without saying a word. Finally he said, “I have been
thoroughly kind to you, but do you understand?”
A monk asked, “What is the sense of remaining quiet without
uttering a word?”
The master said, “How you talk in your sleep!”
“Why do you not teach us the way of enlightenment?” persisted
the monk.
“What is the use of snoring?” said the master.


A monk asked Re-shan (c. 870), “An ancient saying says, ‘When
you meet a true master on the road, don’t face him with speech,
don’t face him with silence’ – how then can one face him?”
Re-shan answered: “Just thus.”
 

Yang-shan (814 – 890) spent many years studying under master

Tan-yuan, but it was said that for every word the master uttered,
Yang-shan would say ten. Finally, Tan-yuan said to him, “One
day you will meet someone who will fix you!”
Years later, Yang-shan went to study under Kuei-shan (771 –
853), who said to him, “I have heard that when you studied under
your first master, you had ten words to say to his every one. Is
that true?”
“Well,” replied Yang-shan, “that is what people say.”
“Tell me,” asked Kuei-shan, “what is the true insight of the
Way?”
As Yang-shan opened his mouth to answer, Kuei-shan shouted
a deafening “Kwatz!”
Yang-shan was taken aback. Again Kuei-shan asked him, “What
is the true insight of the Way?”
Again, as Yang-shan was about to give his answer, he was
silenced with a peremptory “Kwatz!”
When Yang-shan was asked and silenced a third time, he hung
his head in disbelief. Then, tears welled into his eyes as he said,
“My late master told me I would one day meet a man who would
fix me. Today I have met that man.”
He stayed with Kuei-shan for many years, even after his
awakening was complete.


Mugo (760 – 821), whenever asked a question by anyone,
answered only: “Don’t be deluded.”



“You come here looking for sayings and talks, novel expressions
and elegant lines, uselessly taken by verbalization. I am old and
my energy is not up to par; I’m a dull speaker and have no idle
talk for you. If you ask me questions I answer in accord, but I
have no mysterious marvel that can be conveyed to you, and I
won’t have you get fixated on views and ideas. I never assert the
existence of anything – be it here, or in the beyond – and I have
no intention of tying you people down. You go through a
thousand changes, but it is all the production of your own minds
– conceiving ideas, carrying them with you, experiencing the
results of your doings. I have nothing here for you, no doctrines
to give you, no wonders to display, no appearances or intentions
to represent.”

 T’ou-tzu (819 – 914)1


1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Cleary, in “Teachings of Zen.”
It is said that Chuang-tzu and Lieh-tzu would meet every
afternoon for a stroll. Lieh-tzu would arrive at Chuang-tzu’s
modest cabin, and then they would take a circular walk through
the nearby woods in perfect silence. One day Lieh-tzu arrived
with a friend of his – a Confucianist and learned scholar. The
three men departed on their walk in perfect silence, as was the
custom. At one point, while the setting sun turned the sky into
hues of crimson and pink, the three men stopped and gazed in
awe. “What a magnificent evening!” said the scholar. They stood
a while longer, and then finished the rest of their walk in
peaceful silence. Once they had returned to Chuang-tzu’s hut,
the scholar bade his good-byes and went on his way.
Chuang-tzu turned to Lieh-tzu. “Next time,” he said, “leave the
chatterbox!”



The voice of the universe speaks with the valley stream,

The purity of the Void is revealed in the colours of the hills.
How can I recite on another day,
The eighty-four thousand verses of last night?

 Anonymous Zen monk


A monk asked Chao-chou, “Can you give me the essence of your
teaching in just a few words?”
“I have not even half a word,” answered Chao-chou.
“How can you be a teacher if you do not use words?” exclaimed
the monk.
“I myself am not a word,” retorted Chao-chou.


Open your mouth and you have missed the mark,
For whence comes the power that wags the tongue?
Who is it that sees?
What is it that hears?
Do you understand?
Who is it that understands?

 Mu-chi


Those who speak do not know.
Those who know, do not speak.

 Lao-tzu (c. 500BC)

 

Say a word and I give you thirty blows.

Keep silent, and you get thirty blows just the same.

 Te-shan (d. 865)



One day, when Nan-ch’uan went to the assembly hall, the

Governor Lu who was present said, “Please master, teach us the
nature of this Reality!”
“What do you want to talk about?” asked Nan-ch’uan.
“Don’t you have any expedients for attaining enlightenment?”
continued the governor.
“What would you have me say?” asked Nan-ch’uan.
“Tell us of the inheritance of characteristics, and how it can be
known that there is rebirth,” said the governor.
“That is not what I teach,” replied Nan-ch’uan.
“What is it you teach?” asked the governor.
Nan-ch’uan left the assembly.
 

No “I,”
No “mine.”
All his desires have inwardly melted away,
For he knows there is nothing.
Wherever he goes, whatever he does,
He does nothing.

His wondering mind is completely dissolved!

It has simply melted away…
And with it,
All confusion, dreams, delusion and dullness.
And for what he has become,
There are no words.

 Ashtavakra Gita 17.19-201



1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Byrom in ‘The Heart of
Awareness’
 Eternal Aloneness

Blind is this world. Here only a few possess insight. Only a few,
like birds escaping from a net, go to the realms of joy. Better
than sole sovereignty over the earth, better than going to heaven,
better than lordship over all the worlds, is the fruition of a noble
life.

 The Dhammapada 174, 178



Among thousands of human beings,

Scarcely one strives for perfection.
And among even those faithful strivers after perfection,
Scarcely a one is liberated into the Truth.

 Bhagavad Gita VII.3


Only a handful of people in this world are able to discern the
great teaching imbued with the Truth. Fewer are those who are
able to follow it with faith. Fewer still are those who raise their
minds in determination for enlightenment. Fewer yet are those
who practice toward the insight into the emptiness of all
creation. Fewer and fewer still are those who, steadfastly
appraising the actual nature of Reality, reach the stage of No-
turning-back, and so abide in the state of Miraculousness.

 Prajnaparamita Sutra



The Great Way has no gate -

there are a thousand paths to it.
If you pass through the barrier,
you walk the universe alone.

 Wu-men1


1
Translated by Stephen Mitchell
 Drifting on a lake

The autumn sky is clear into the distance,

The clearer being so far from human habitation;
On a sandy shore a crane,
Or beyond clouds a mountaintop rouses my contentment.
The limpid ripples calm and evening comes;
The moon shines out and I relax.
Tonight my single oar takes over,
As I drift ever onwards,
Without thought of going back.

 Wang Wei



All the world seems consumed by excitement,

As though attending a parade!
I alone remain indifferent.
I am as leisurely as one unemployed,
As innocent as a baby before it has learned to smile.

Other people desire endlessly to collect.

How happily I possess nothing!
I drift about like a child without a home.
My heart must be that of a fool:
Muddled, nebulous!
 Other people are exuberant;
I abide in quietude, unknown.

Other people are knowledgeable;

I am speechless, in constant awe.

Other people have a purpose;

I alone have no plans.

I drift like a wave on the ocean;

I blow as aimlessly as a breeze.

I am different from others in this world.

I am like a child in the womb of its mother,
Adrift in a dream of the Way.

 Lao-tzu



How steep is Yun-men’s mountain!

How low the white clouds hang!
The mountain stream rushes so swiftly,
That even fish cannot venture to stay.

 Yun-men (? – 949)
 
This body's existence is like a bubble's;
May as well accept what happens.
Events and hopes seldom agree,
But the one who steps back leaves aside all cares.
We blossom and fade like flowers
Gather and part like clouds.
Worldly thoughts I forgot long ago
Relaxing all day on a peak.

 Shih-wu (1272-1352)


Early autumn in the mountains

Here, next to the mountain, the cold comes early.

Crisp and clear, the air in the thatched hut;
Barren trees admit the sun to the window,
The cistern, brimming full, is still and silent;
Fallen nuts mark the monkey’s trail,
Dry leaves rustle to the passage of deer;
A plain zither – an untrammelled heart –
Hollowly accompanies the clear spring at night.

 Wen T’ing I-yu-un

 
What a pity it is,
There is here in the mountains
Not a person to admire
This beautiful cherry-tree in glorious bloom.

 Gyoson (d. 1135)


I climb the road to Cold Mountain,
The road to Cold Mountain that never ends;
The valleys are long and strewn with stones,
The streams broad and banked with thick grass,
Moss is slippery, though no rain has fallen,
Pines sigh, but it isn’t the wind.
Who can break from the snares of the world,
And sit with me among the white clouds?
As for me, I delight in the everyday way,
Amongst mist-wrapped vines and rocky caves;
Here in the wilderness I am completely free,
With my friends, the white clouds, idling forever.
There are roads, but they do not reach the world,
Since I am mindless, who can rouse my thoughts?
On a bed of stone I sit, alone in the night,
While the round moon climbs up Cold Mountain.
  Han-shan (c. 730 – 800)1



1
Translated by Stephen Mitchell
 Perfect Effortlessness

Like a swan that rises from the lake, with his thoughts at peace,
the awakened one moves onward, without looking back.
The one who understands the unreality of all things, and who
lays up no store – that one’s track is unseen, as of the birds in
the air.
Like a bird in the air he takes an invisible course, wanting
nothing, storing nothing, knowing the emptiness of all creation.

 The Dhammapada



The true sage is a passive agent. If he succeeds, he simply sees

that he was provided by no effort of his own with the energy and
circumstances necessary for success.

 Chuang-tzu


If people want to enter the realm of the Enlightened Ones, they
should make their minds clear as space, detaching from all
appearances and fixations, causing the mind to be unobstructed
where it turns.

How do you act so as to attain this union?

Water and moon, calm, face one another;
The breeze in the pines, clear, has never stopped.
When you use the wind to fan a fire, not much effort is needed.

 Hung-chih (1091 – 1157)



The fool is busy,

Even when he is still.
Even when he is busy,
The master is serene.

 Ashtavakra Gita 18.61



Let all things flow in their course. Just let there be no doing in
whatever is done, and there is no fault. When the mind is
captivated by intentions and desires, immediately one is lost in
the world.

 Pai-chang (720 – 814)



Affections congeal to form the body; thoughts settle to form the

world; henceforth you bob around in the sea of birth and death.
When you see through to the spiritual source, whose profound
stillness is unmixed, then you will know that illusions and
dreams present no obstacles.
 Hung-chih (1091 – 1157)



The way of freedom is to proceed easily

and without a struggle,
To respond perfectly without words,
To move spontaneously without directives,
To accomplish completely without a plan.

How naturally things fall into place!

 Lao-tzu
 
Whatever befalls him,
The master is always at ease.
He wanders where he will.
And wherever he finds himself
When the sun sets,
There he lies down to rest.

 Ashtavakra Gita 18.851


Too lazy to be ambitious,
I let the world take care of itself.
Ten days’ worth of rice in my bag;
a bundle of twigs by the fireplace.
Why chatter about delusion and enlightenment?
Listening to the night rain on my roof,
I sit comfortably, with both legs stretched out.

 Ryokan2


1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Byrom in ‘The Heart of
Awareness’
2
Translated by John Stevens
 Within my heart no sorrows can abide,
I feel the great world spirit through me thrill;
And as a cloud I drift before the wind,
Or with the darting swallow take my will.

 Po Chu-i (772 – 846)


He who knows the Truth, knows:
‘I do nothing at all.’
Though seeing, hearing, touching, and smelling;
Walking, sleeping, breathing, and sleeping;
Opening the hands, and closing;
In all he recognises,
These are merely senses and sense-objects
Intertwined in their play.

 Bhagavad Gita IV:8; 9


My daily activities are simply such,
But beneath all is a well of Grand Harmony.
Grasping nothing, rejecting nothing:
I carry water; I chop firewood.
How miraculous! How marvelous!

 Layman P’ang (? – 811)

 
A monk asked, “What is your Way?”
Ruguan (c. 850) answered, “Picking up fresh vegetables in a
bottomless basket.”


The master is full of joy.
Attached to nothing,
Free from possessions,
He stands on his own.
His doubts dispelled,
He wanders where he will,
Never setting one thing against another.

The master shines.

He never thinks ‘mine.’
Gold, stone, earth –
They are all the same to him.
He is not bound by laziness,
Nor consumed with activity.
He has severed the knots that bind the heart.

 Ashtavakra Gita 18.87-881

1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Byrom in ‘The Heart of
Awareness’
 
They who are awakened know without learning, see without
looking, succeed without striving, and discern without
comparing. They respond to feeling, act when pressed, and go
when there is no choice, like the shining of light, like the casting
of shadows. They take the natural way as their guide; when there
is any opposition they remain empty and open, clear and calm,
and then the opposition disappears.
They consider a thousand lives as one evolution; they regard ten
thousand differences as permutations of one Source. They have
vitality but do not exploit it; they have awareness but do not
make it labour. They keep to the simplicity of wholeness, and
illuminate all things from the heart of Absolute Radiance.

 Wen-tzu (c. 100 B.C.)


“Ordinary beings immerse themselves in toil, while the
insightful are made sad by the plight of this earth. Those,
however, who have gone beyond worldly ability, seek for
nothing. They eat when they are hungry, and find shelter when
they are cold. Like a vessel set loose from its moorings,
aimlessly they wander about!”

 Chuang-tzu


 When hungry, eat your rice.
When tired, close your eyes.
Fools will laugh at me, but the very wise will understand.

 Lin-chi


Sleeping, sitting, walking,
Nothing is good, and nothing is bad.
I sleep, I sit, I walk,
And I am happy.

 Ashtavakra Gita 13.5


When it’s cold I sit by the fire;
When it’s hot, I walk by the stream.
What is it you wish to know?

 Yang-shan (814 – 890)


A monk asked Tai-chu Hui-hai, ‘When disciplining oneself in
the way, is there any special way of doing it?’
Hui-hai responded, ‘Yes, there is.’
‘What is it?’ asked the monk.
‘When hungry one eats; when tired one sleeps,’ said Hui-hai.
‘That is what ordinary people do,’ said the monk. ‘Is their way
then the same as yours?’
‘Not the same,’ said Hui-hai.
‘Why not?’ pressed the monk.
Hui-hai said, ‘When they eat, they do no just eat – they conjure
up all kinds of imagination; when they sleep they do not just
sleep – they are given up to endless varieties of idle thoughts.
That is why theirs is not my way.’1



1
Adapted from the translation by D.T. Suzuki in ‘The Zen Doctrine of No
Mind’
Expressing the Inexpressible

Like this little stream,

Making its way through the mossy crevices,
I, too, sitting quietly,
Turn clear and transparent.

 Ryokan



Empty handed, I hold a hoe.

Walking on foot, I ride a buffalo.
Crossing a river the torrent stands still;
Beneath my feet, the bridge is aflow.

 Fu Ta-Shih (497 - ?)


A single particle of matter involves infinite worlds;
A single instant of thought transcends infinite aeons.

 Hung-chih (1091 – 1157)


Beyond the crest of the solitary peaks,
The human world is no more.
Nothing exists of this Mind,
Yet the eye is filled with green mountains.

 T’ien-t’ai Te-chao
(891 – 972)


The reeds blossom under the bright moon;
The ancient ferryboat begins its passage;
The jade thread mysteriously fits the golden needle.
The dust of every world is yours,
Every particle is not someone else's.
Follow the current and paddle along,
Naturally unobstructed, effortless and free!

 Hung-chih
 
|A monk asked: “What is the great meaning of the teachings?”
Ts’ao-shan (840 – 901) replied, “It is everywhere.”



Cast off completely your head and skin. Thoroughly withdraw

from distinctions of light and shadow. Where the ten thousand
changes do not reach is the foundation that even a thousand
sages cannot transmit. Simply by yourself illuminate and deeply
experience it with intimate accord. The original light flashes
through confusion. Deliberations about being and non-being are
entirely abandoned. The wonder appears before you, its benefit
radiating outwards for endless aeons. Immediately you follow
conditions and accord with awakening without obstruction from
any defilements. The mind does not attach to things, and your
footsteps are not visible on the road. Then you are called to
continue the family business. Even if you thoroughly
understand, still, please practice until it is familiar.

 Hung-chih (d. 1157)


All the awakened ones know that all beings are like phantasms,
that all the sages are like shadows, that all existence with its rise
and fall is like a dream, that cause-and-effect is like a reflection
in a mirror, that the rising of all things is enveloped in mystery,
that all the worlds are mere transformations leaving no trace.
They are complete masters of their conduct so that they move
about in the world as freely as in space; their knowledge
penetrates into the present, future, and past; knowing that all
things are like space, they practice non-resistance, remaining
perfectly unattached; they see clearly that from the point of view
of all-knowledge nobody knows whence they come; they enter
into all the worlds by means of incorruptible insight; they are
born in all the worlds, take all form; in all the worlds they reveal
themselves with the utmost freedom; they survey the entire
universe with a single glance and experience no confusion; they
are able to visit all the worlds in but a single instance of time.

 The Gandavyuha Sutra1


The moonlight touches on the towers and chambers
of innumerable houses;
The autumn air interfuses lakes and rivers
that the eye yet cannot see.
Blossoms blow in the reeds, indistinguishable in their colours;
A white bird descends the white sandbank of a stream.

 Fen-yang (947 – 1024)

1
Adapted from the translation by D.T. Suzuki in “Essays in Zen Buddhism
– 3rd series”
 
You ask me to explain the reason for failure or success.
The fisherman’s song goes deep into the river.

 Wang Wei (699 – 759)


A bird in a secluded grove cries like a flute,
While willows bow gracefully with their golden threads.
The mountain valley grows the quieter as the clouds return,
A breeze carries the fragrance of the blossoms of spring.
I have sat here all day encompassed by peace,
Now my mind is cleansed of care and of thought.
I wish to tell you how I feel, but words fail.
Only come to this place, and you will know me completely.

 Fa-yen (885 – 958)


Pure is the water and transparent,
Where fish move ever slowly;
Boundless is the sky,
And the flying birds disappear into the unknown.

 Hung-chih (d. 1157)

 
Evening view as the snow clears

I lean on my staff and gaze at the sunlit snow,

Clouds and gullies in countless layers,
The woodcutter returns to his plain hut
As the winter sun falls behind sheer peaks;
A wild fire burns over the grass of the hills,
Broken patches of mist rise amongst the rocks and the pines;
Then, turning back on the mountain temple road,
I hear the bells ring in the evening sky.

 Chieh T’ou


Space explains, sentient forms listen;
The ability to explain this matter does not hang on the lips.
People! Transients of this world – do you not see it?
It fills your eyes and ears twenty-four hours a day,
Transcending all notions of time.
What is it?
Do you understand?
Who understands?

 Dogen (1200 – 1253)

 

This transcendent jewel, burning bright,
Long buried beneath worldly cares,
Today unveiled!
It illumines endless mountains stretching toward distant hills.

 Yu of Tu-Ling (d. 1049)



The water in this pail

Reflects the passing clouds in the sky.

 Yao-shan (d. 834)



 Not Knowing
“What lies on the other side of ignorance?”
“Clear knowing lies on the other side of ignorance.”
“What lies on the other side of clear knowing?”
“Release lies on the other side of clear knowing.”
“What lies on the other side of release?”
“Freedom lies on the other side of release.”
“What lies on the other side of Freedom?”
“You've gone too far, friend Visakha. You can't keep holding
on up to the limit of questions. For the holy life plunges into
Freedom, culminates in Freedom, has Freedom as its final end.

 Majjhima Nikaya 44



All the angels know not of My origin, nor even the perfectly
enlightened ones - for I am the Source and being of all in
existence, the angels and enlightened ones all.

 Bhagavad Gita X.2


The awakened sage forgets notions of God. He forgets notions
of man. He ignores a beginning. He has no interest in an end. He
ignores matter. He moves in harmony with his generation and
suffers not. He takes things as they come and nothing weighs
him down.

 Chuang-tzu



The emperor Wu asked Bodhidharma,” What is the fundamental

principle of the holy teaching?”
“Perfect emptiness,” replied Bodhidharma. “Since there is
nothing anywhere, what is there to be considered holy?”
“If you say there is nothing,” said the emperor, “then who is it
that stands before me?”
“ I do not know,” said Bodhidharma.



Those who know many things are not wise.

Those who are wise, do not know many things.

 Lao-tzu
 

Knowledge is shallow. Things are deeper than knowledge.

 Seng-ts’an (d. 606)



Nan-ch’uan (748-834) asked Shen-shan what he was doing.

Shen-shan answered, “I am beating the gong.”
“Are you beating it with your hand or with your foot?” pressed
Nan-ch’uan.
“Please, Master! You tell me!” said Shen-shan.
“Remember it clearly,” noted Nan-ch’uan, “this question was
put to an expert.”



The other day I dreamt I was a butterfly, fluttering hither and

thither – to all intents and purposes a butterfly. Now I do not
know if I was then a man dreaming I was a butterfly, or if I am
now a butterfly dreaming I am a man.

 Chuang-tzu


This is the Heart of Mystery, the abode of those who are not
attached to any world, who regard all the habitable worlds as no
home to live in, who have no desire for any habitation, refuge,
or devotion; who have shaken off all thoughts of passion and
desire.
This is the abode where they are delighted to live who
understand that all things are without self-nature; who no more
discriminate things in any form whatever; who are free from
ideas and thoughts; who are neither attached to nor detached
from ideas.
This is the abode of all the beings of enlightenment, whose
renown is far-reaching, who are established in the ream of
supreme knowledge and emancipation, who walk around in the
mysteriousness of Reality, unattached and companionless.
This is the abode of those who have grown powerful in self-
control, charity, morality, patience, and strenuousness; whose
intelligence knows no attachment; whose hearts are broad,
expansive, and unfettered as the limitless sky; who know all that
is moving in time and all that exists and becomes.
This is the Heart of Mystery, the abode of those who recognise
that the birth of all things is not their true beginning; that the
origin of things is beyond discernment; that the original essence
of things is by nature like space; who recognise that there is
nothing anywhere capable of having an individualized, separate
self; who understand that even greed, anger, and ignorance have
no self-nature, and that the rise of delusion is caused by
imagination.
This is the abode of those who go about everywhere in the
mysteriousness of Reality, unattached, depending on nothing,
with no habitation, burden-free, like the wind blowing in the air,
leaving no trace of their wanderings.
This is the abode of those beings of enlightenment who enjoy
planning and establishing varieties of treatises, stories, tenets
and discourses for the sake of all beings; as well as setting forth
the useful and subtle arts, and creating places of enjoyment for
the benefit of the world.
This is the abode of those peerless ones who walk about
everywhere and enjoy staying everywhere without ever leaving
a track behind, as their knowledge rests on complete non-
differentiation.
This is the abode of those spotless ones who, seeing into the
original nature of all things as quiet and homeless as the sky, live
in a realm which may be likened unto the vastness of space.
Here abide those who perceive in one thought all the
immeasurable aeons, and who, while conforming themselves to
the worldly way of thinking, are free from ideas and
discriminations.
Here abide those beings-of-enlightenment who are familiar with
the number of all the lands of the past, present, and future, and
who have intimate knowledge as to their origin, their creation,
and disappearance in time.

 The Gandavyuha Sutra


From the mystery into the Deeper Mystery,
Is the gateway to the revelation of all life.

 Lao-tzu


In the world, beyond the world
In cases where the extreme summit has been reached, the
epithets of ‘wise’ and ‘stupid’ no longer apply. There are some
who desire stupidity, and others who aim at wisdom; but the
subtle art of Awakening resides in neither the one nor the other.
In true enlightenment, even the notion of enlightenment has no
base. The ultimate place where one’s being finds rest is outside
both stupidity and wisdom; it is in the flowing of Time and the
Such-ness of Reality. Here one enters into the mysteries of the
Sublime.

 The Yin Fu Ching

(approx. 1200 B.C.)


“Leaving the ordinary world” does not mean leaving it
physically; it refers to a state of mind. While the body is like a
lotus root, anchored firmly in the mud, the mind is like a lotus
blossom, waving freely in the air. People who awaken to the true
Way are physically in the ordinary world but mentally in the
realm of enlightenment.
People today, who wish to prolong their life spans, hoping to
avoid physical death, and those who wish to travel beyond the
‘ordinary world’, are fools who do not understand the subtle
nature of this Reality as it is.

 Wang Che (1113 – 1171)

 
The Awakened One, the Teacher, and son of man,
Self-tamed, by inward vision rapt,
Bearing himself by ways sublime,
Happy in tranquillity of heart;
To whom men honour pay as one
Who hath transcended all we know;
To whom even gods do honour yield:-
So I, an aspirant, thus having heard –
From entangled thicket to Freedom have come,
With every fetter left behind.
For he who is free goeth wheresoever he will,
Nor careth wheresoever he goes,
As lotus born within a lake,
By water nowise is defiled,
But groweth fragrant, beautiful;
So is the Awakened One in this world,
Born in the world and dwelling here,
But by the world nowise defiled,
Even as the lily by the lake.

 Therigatha1


1
Adapted from the translation by C.A.F. Rhys Davids
 The master’s mind is natural and empty.
He does as he pleases.
He is not an ordinary man.
Honour and dishonour mean nothing to him.
Even should his servants scorn him,
Or his wife, children, or family ridicule him,
He is unperturbed.
For him there is no pain in pain,
No pleasure in pleasure.

“The body acts, not I.”

“My nature is purity.”
With these thoughts,
In all that he does,
He does nothing.

But he pretends not to know.

He finds freedom in this life,
Though he acts like an ordinary man.
Yet he is not a fool.
Happy and bright,
He thrives in the world,
And only those who are like him
Can know the state of his being.

 Ashtavakra Gita 18.24-261


1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Byrom in ‘The Heart of
Awareness’
 The Wise don’t draw attention to themselves,
So no one competes with them.

They don’t accumulate riches,

So no one steals from them.

They lead by example,

So no one is misled.

They live beyond desires,

Without intentions, at peace.

 Lao-tzu


Even beyond the ultimate limits there extends a passageway,
Whereby one returns among the realms of natural existence;
Every worldly affair is a work of wonder,
And wherever one goes one finds one’s home air.
Such a one stands out like a gem in the mud,
Like pure gold he shines in the midst of a blaze;
Along the endless road he walks sufficient unto himself,
And in whatever associations he is found
he moves leisurely unattached.

 Tzu-te Hui1

1
Adapted from D.T. Suzuki’s translation in ‘The Manual of Zen Buddhism’
 
The perfect man employs his mind as a mirror. It grasps nothing;
it refuses nothing. It receives but does not keep. It is thus that he
can triumph over matter, without injury to himself.

 Chuang-tzu


Beyond where there is no beyond is most great;
Within where there is no within is most precious.
If you know the great and precious,
Where can you go and not succeed?

 Wen-tzu (c. 100 B.C.)


In the midst of the stream of perceptions, the awakened one
engages in the natural flow of successive events, and yet
transcends them airily and gracefully. Therefore it is said that
there is no mountain barrier and no river separation - the bright
light penetrates to every particle of the world. This is the depth
of consciousness that we should abide in, in our everyday being.

 Hung-chih (d. 1157)

 

One day Kuei-shan said to the assembly, “There are many

people who experience the great moment, but few who can
perform the great function.”
Yang-shan went with this statement to the abbot of the temple at
the foot of the mountain and asked him its meaning.
“Try to repeat your question to me,” said the abbot.
As Yang-shan opened his mouth, the abbot gave him a kick,
knocking him to the ground.
Yang-shan returned to the temple and told of this episode to
Kuei-shan, who laughed out heartily.


A monk asked Hsiang-yen1: ‘What is your Way?’
Hsiang-yen replied: ‘Without substance, dwelling in states that
are neither ordinary nor holy, traversing the bird’s path, leaving
no trace.’



1
(c. 870)
 The man of great insight
Is free of all perplexity.
Seeing the world as an illusion,
How could he fear the coming of death?

Pure of heart,
He desires nothing, even in despair.
He is awake to the knowledge of his Being,
With whom may he be compared?

With clear and steady insight

He knows that whatever he sees
Is by its very nature nothing.
How could he prefer one thing to another?

He is beyond all duality.

He has gone beyond the world.

Free from desire,

He is yoked by neither compassion,
Nor the wish to harm.
He does not seek the company of others,
Nor the solitude of the woods.
Come what may,
Joy or sorrow,
Nothing disturbs him,
Nothing surprises him.

 Ashtavakra Gita1 3.11-14

1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Byrom in ‘The Heart of
Awareness’
 
To ordinary beings who have not yet disciplined themselves in
the Great Way, mountains are mountains, and rivers are rivers.
After a glimpse into the true nature of things, mountains are no
longer mountains, and rivers are no longer rivers.
However, in the mind of one who is thoroughly awakened,
mountains are mountains, and rivers are rivers.

 Zen saying



The journey is the destination.

 Zen saying



‘Even if upon hearing you immediately return,

How can that compare to never having left?’

 Ching-lao (c. 1090)

 
The enlightened mind is straightforward and natural, neither
desiring nor avoiding, free of delusion and doubts. At all times
one’s perception is normal. There are no further details.

 Kuei-shan (771 – 853)1


Hsuan-sha2 was one day treating General Wei to tea, when Wei
asked, “What is meant by the statement that ‘people everywhere
are making daily use of it, and yet they do not know it’?”
Sha offered the General a piece of cake saying, “Please, take it.”
Wei accepted, took a bite, and then resumed the question.
Thereupon the master said, “We make use of it every day, only
we fail to know it.”3


Yes, I’m truly a fool,
Living amongst the trees and plants.
Please don’t question me about illusion and enlightenment -

1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Cleary in “Rational Zen, The
Mind of Dogen Zenji.”
2
(835 – 908)
3
Adapted from the translation by D.T. Suzuki in “Essays in Zen Buddhism
– 3rd series”
 This old fellow just likes to smile to himself.
I wade across streams with bony legs,
and carry a bag about in fine spring weather.
That’s my life, and the world owes me nothing.

 Ryokan (1758-1831)


With what do I entertain guests?
From the basket of emptiness I heap the bright moonlight;
In the bowl of non-minding I release the clear breeze.

 Daoqin


When the mind is at peace,
the world too is at peace.
Nothing real, nothing absent.
Neither holding on to reality,
nor getting stuck in the Void,
you are neither holy nor wise,
just an ordinary fellow who has completed his work.

 Layman P’ang yun (740-

808)1

1
Translated by Stephen Mitchell
 
A monk asked Chao-chou: “What is the Ultimate Truth?”
Chao-chou said: “Have you eaten your gruel?”
“Yes,” said the monk.
“Then wash you bowl,” responded Chao-chou.
Immediately, the monk was enlightened.



Old Pan Kou knows nothing about time

And nothing about space has well.
His life is self-defined and self-sufficient.
He desires nothing outside of his own being.
The creation of the world arises with the mind.
When the mind starts to think, the world starts to move.

 The Song of Pan Kou



The liberated man neither loves life, nor hates death.

He does not rejoice in birth, nor strive to put off dissolution.
 Unconcerned he comes, and unconcerned he goes.
That is all.

 Chuang-tzu


In my view, nothing is not extremely profound; nothing is not
liberated. The reality of mind has no form but pervades the ten
directions. In the eyes it is called seeing, in the ears it is called
hearing, in the nose it smells, in the mouth it speaks, in the hand
it grips, and in the feet it steps. Basically it is a single spiritual
light, differentiated into various functions. Once the whole mind
is as nothing, you are liberated wherever you are.

 Lin-chi (d. 866)


The man who has left behind all doubts,
And whose mind is thoroughly illumined,
No longer looks for ways to find freedom.

He lives happily in the world,

Seeing and hearing,
Touching, smelling, and tasting.

 Ashtavakra Gita 18.471

1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Byrom in ‘The Heart of
Awareness’
 

You ask me why I dwell in the green mountain,

I smile and make no reply - for my heart is free of care.
As the peach-blossom flows gently down stream
And disappears into the unknown,
I have a world apart that is not among men.

 Li-po



Scoop up the water, the moon is in your hands.

Toy with the flowers; their fragrance scents your clothes.

 Kido Chigu (1185 – 1269)


 The happy fool
Peerless wisdom often appears childlike.

 Lao-tzu


First days of spring – blue sky, bright sun.
Everything is gradually becoming fresh and green.
Carrying my bowl, I walk slowly to the village.
The children, surprised to see me,
Joyfully crowd about, bringing
My begging trip to an end at the temple gate.
I place my bowl on top of a white rock and
Hang my sack from the branch of a tree.
Here we play with the wild grasses and throw a ball.
For a time, I play catch while the children sing;
Then it is my turn.
Playing like this, here and there,
I have forgotten the time.
Passers-by point and laugh at me, asking:
‘What is the reason for such foolishness?’
No answer I give, only a deep bow;
Even if I replied, they would not understand.
Look around! There is nothing besides this.

 Ryokan1

1
Translated by John Stevens in ‘One robe, one bowl – the Zen poetry of
Ryokan’
 
One day, a travelling monk arrived to see Chao-chou1 at his
monastery. Chao-chou asked him, “Have you been here before?”
The monk replied, “Yes, I have.” Chao-chou said: “Have a cup
of tea.”
A short while later, another travelling monk arrived to see Chao-
chou. Chao-chou asked, “Have you been here before?” The
monk said, “No.” Chao-chou responded, “Have a cup of tea.”
Chao-chou’s attendant monk, who was present on both
occasions, was rather puzzled, and asked his master, “Why did
you say, ‘Have a cup of tea’ to a monk who has gained his
insight, and then also ‘Have a cup of tea’ to a monk still deluded
by ignorance?”
Chao-chou patted him on the shoulder, saying, “Have a cup of
tea.”


Han-shan was a poet recluse of the T’ang dynasty (618 – 922).
He would wander about with clothes in tatters, preferring the
quiet places of the world. For food, he would often frequent the
Kuo-ch’ing monastery in T’ien-tai, where he would eat the
discarded remnants from the monk’s bowls.
Shih-te was an orphan whose name literally means ‘picked up’.
He grew up in the Kuo-ch’ing monastery, where he befriended
Han-shan. Together, the two of them came to be known as the
‘Zen lunatics’ for their display of peculiar behaviour, their
enigmatic utterances, and especially for their childlike abandon
and life of unfettered freedom.

1
(788 – 897)
One day, while Shih-te was sweeping the monastery court, the
monastery supervisor asked, “You are known here only as Shih-
te – the ‘picked up’ – because master Feng-kan came back with
you, saying he picked you up on his way home. But really, what
is your family name and where do you come from?”
Thus asked, Shih-te threw up his broom and stood with his hands
folded in front of his chest. The supervisor did not know what to
make of it.
At that moment, Han-shan happened to pass by. Striking his own
breast, he cried out, “Oh! Oh!”
Shih-te said, “What is the matter with you, brother?”
Han-shan remarked, “Don’t you know the saying, ‘When a
neighbour is in mourning, we all share the grief’?”
Then they both danced, and went away crying and laughing.1


In practice of the Way it is important to be even-minded; why
should it be necessary to struggle to shift at a moment’s notice?
Our livelihood is naturalness; our family way is immersion in
the matter at hand. Following the current, going along with the
wind, the homeward boat lands on the shore. Unfettered beings
laugh out loud; their mood is understood only by those who
understand.

 Hung-chih (1091 – 1157)


1
Adapted from the translation by D.T. Suzuki in “Essays in Zen Buddhism
– 3rd series”
 The master is free of his mind,
And his mind is free.
In this freedom he plays,
He has a wonderful time!
Or he withdraws,
And lives in a mountain cave.

 Ashtavakra Gita 18.531



Well-roofed and pleasant is my little hut,

And screened from the winds: - Rain at thy will, thou god!
My mind is well composed, my heart is free,
And ardent is my mood.
Now rain, god, rain!

 Therigatha2

1
Translated by Thomas Byrom in ‘The Heart of Awareness’
2
Adapted from the translation by C.A.F. Rhys Davids
 

I think of the past twenty years,

Walking home quietly from the Kuo-ch’ing monastery;
Of the many people living there, many proclaim:
‘Han-shan is an idiot.’
‘Am I really an idiot?’ I reflect.
But my reflections fail to solve the question;
For I myself do not know who the Self is,
So how then can others know who I am?
I just hang down my head – no more asking is needed;
For of what service can the asking be?
Let them come then and jeer at me all they like,
I know most distinctly what they mean;
But I am not to respond to their sneer,
For that suits my life most admirably.

 Han-shan (c. 730 - 800)1



1
Adapted from the translation by D.T. Suzuki in ‘Essays in Zen Buddhism
– 3rd Series’
 The cock crows in the early morning;
Sadly as I rise I see how worn out is my form;
I have neither kilt nor shirt,
Just the semblance of a robe.
My loincloth has no seat,
My pants held together with string –
On my head are three or five pecks of grey ashes.
Originally I intended to practice to help save the world;
Who would have suspected that instead
I would become an idiot?

 Chao-chou (788 – 897)



I live far off in the wild

Where moss and woods are thick and plants perfumed.
I can see mountains rain or shine
And never hear market noise.
I light a few leaves in my stove to heat tea.
To patch my robe I cut off a cloud.
Lifetimes seldom fill a hundred years.
Why suffer for profit and fame?

 Shih-wu (1272-1352)
 

White clouds assemble on the summit,

Sweet dew bathes the polar mountain.
Having drunk the wine of eternity,
You wander free; who can know you?
Without cares you silently sit,
Without being, you hear the stringless lute.
The cloud of mysteries unfolds and reveals,
And clearly you understand the mechanism of creation.

 Lu-yen (c. 600 A.D.)



By nature the mind is empty.

Even in sleep, I am awake.
Thoughts arise, yet there is no-one thinking.
All my impressions of the world have dissolved.

My desires have melted away.

So what do I care for money,
Or the thieving senses,
For friends or knowledge or holy books?
 Dissolving the mind,
Or the highest meditation;
The world and all its works,
Life and death,
What are they to me?

Outwardly, a fool.
Inwardly, beyond all thought.
I do as I please,
Immersed in the radiance of being,
And only those like me,
Can understand my ways.

 Ashtavakra Gita 14.1-41



1
Adapted from the translation by Thomas Byrom in ‘The Heart of
Awareness’
APPENDICES
PATHS, TEXTS, AND
SCHOOLS
 Buddhism

Theravada Buddhism

Theravada Buddhism, being almost definitely the oldest extant

school of Buddhism, takes its teachings from the vast Pali
Canon, divided into the Tipitaka, or Three-baskets.
The first basket, known as the Vinaya Pitaka is the collection
of detailed rules of discipline for monks and nuns.
The second basket, or Sutta Pitaka, is the collection of
discourses and sayings recorded of the historical Buddha,
Siddharta Gautama (died approx. 500 B.C.). This is the chief
source for the teachings, instructions, sayings, and recollections
of the life of the Buddha. Included in this vast second basket
are the following collections of texts (or suttas):
The Digha Nikaya (or Long Discourses)
The Majjhima Nikaya (or Middle Length Discourses)
The Samyutta Nikaya (or The Grouped Discourses)
The Anguttara Nikaya (or Numbered Discourses)
The Khuddaka Nikaya (or Collection of Little Texts), which
contains:
The Khuddhakapatha (Short passages)
The Dhammapada (The Way of Truth) – a highly esteemed and
complete little text, written in verse. This is essentially the
Buddhist companion to Lao-tzu’s ‘Tao-Te-Ching’.
The Udana (or short exclamations uttered by the Buddha)
The Ittivuttaka (or ‘Thus was said’)
The Sutta Nipata (or Collection of Suttas)
The Theragatha and Therigatha (Verses of the Elder Monks
and Nuns)
 Mahayana Buddhism

Mahayana Buddhism is a vast and complex school of

Buddhism, which, like a tree, has a single root, and many
branches. Essentially, the school began as a remedy to a
shortcoming found amongst the original disciples of the
Buddha. The disciples placed the Buddha – the perfectly
enlightened one – as their teacher on an unattainable pedestal.
The very act of so doing meant that they resigned themselves to
never attaining equality with the Buddha. The Mahayana
School, therefore, presented an outlandish and revolutionary
new vision of the Buddha. According to the Mahayanists,
Siddharta Gautama was an ordinary being, like any other. The
Buddha, they maintained, is the Power of Awareness that
creates and floods the universe. It is that which is the universe,
and which is also beyond it. It is enlightenment itself.
According to the Mahayanists, we are every one of us the
Buddha, we have only to discipline our minds in order to
awaken to the nature of Truth.
All Mahayana Buddhists respect and study the Pali Canon as
being the utterances of the original Buddha, Siddharta
Gautama. However, a new body of literature soon formed
advocating the very depths of wisdom that the Buddha would
supposedly have taught only to his foremost students. The
stress here is less on the matter of self-discipline, so thoroughly
counselled in the Pali Canon, and more on the realisation of the
inherent emptiness of all Creation. In truth, this does not
deviate in any way from the teachings of the original Pali
Canon. It is only that the Mahayana texts lay more stress on
certain aspects of the Buddha’s teachings in the canon.
These new texts, or sutras, written mostly around 200 B.C. –
100 AD, are now authored by a new Buddha – the universal
Buddha, or Universal Consciousness. They are characterised
with more colour, greater displays of mysterious and
miraculous powers, and with far more occurrences of humour
 than the Pali Canon. Amongst the most important of these
sutras are:
The Lankavatara Sutra – in which all Reality is expressed as
the evocation of Mind.
The Diamond Sutra – stressing that there is no action in all
action; all has the nature of a dream.
The Prajnaparamita Sutras – upholding complete Emptiness as
the basis of all Reality.
The Vimilakirti Sutra – Vimilakirti, a layman, displays
miraculous powers through the realisation of non-duality.
The Gandavyuha Sutra – describing the state of consciousness,
or abode, of the enlightened being.
 SOME DATES AND
DETAILS
“Past mind cannot be grasped.
Future mind cannot be grasped.
What mind is this?”

When the matter is seen clearly, then even your present existence
is no more real than the existence of those masters who have
long since died. If you say they are dead you are mistaken. If you
say you are alive you are equally mistaken. Nothing dies.
Nothing is born. This moment has no specific place in eternity.
There is no such thing as before, nor any such thing as after.
However, for the sake of those of us with one foot still shakily
planted in ‘the world’, here are some only partial lists of names,
dates, and details of those wonderful beings we so happily call
our Good Friends.

Note: Names in brackets denote Japanese equivalents of

Chinese names.
 From the Buddhist Lineage

Person’s Name Date Remarks

Basho 1644 - 1694 Japanese student of Zen.

Probably the most famous of
all haiku poets.
Bodhidharma Died. c. 528 Indian master who travelled
(Daruma) to China. Considered the
Father of Zen. Said to have
meditated for nine years
facing a wall.
Buddha, the c. 500 B.C. Siddharta Gautama
(Sakyamuni). Founder of the
Buddhist religion. Teachings
and life chronicled
extensively in the Pali Canon,
or ‘Tipitaka’. “All composite
things are impermanent. Seek
out your salvation with
diligence.”
Chao-chou 788 - 897 Chinese Zen master who
(Joshu) lived to 120 years old.
Famous for his naturalness of
behaviour.
Dogen Zenji 1200 - 1253 Japanese Zen master.
Founder of the Soto School in
Japan. Noted for outstanding
literary works.
Fa-yen 885 – 958 Chinese Zen master. Famous
(Hogen) for koan: ‘Two monks rolled
up the blinds identically. One
got it, the other missed.’
Hakuin Ekaku 1685-1768 Japanese Zen master. Famous
Zenji for koan: ‘What is the sound
of a single hand clapping?’
Han-shan c. 730 - 800 Chinese recluse/poet. Known
(Kanzan) popularly with Shih-te as the
‘Zen lunatics’.
Han shan Te- 1546 - 1623 Chinese Zen master. Noted
Ch’ing scholar and poet.
Huang-po d. 849 Chinese Zen master. Famous
(Yakusan) for enlightening Lin-chi.
Hui-k’e (E-ka) d. 593 Chinese Zen master. The
second patriarch of Zen. Said
to have severed his own arm
and presented it to
Bodhidharma to demonstrate
his earnestness.
Hung-chih d. 1157 Chinese Zen master. Famous
(Wan-shi) for his poetical works.
Hsiang-yen c. 820 Chinese Zen master. Noted
(Kyogen) disciple of Kuei-shan and
brother-monk to Yang-shan.
Enlightened after hearing a
stone hit a piece of bamboo.
Hsueh-feng 822 - 908 Chinese Zen master. Noted
(Seppo) for strenuous devotion in
attaining enlightenment.
Wandered for years in
seeking final liberation.
Hung-jen Chinese Zen master. Fifth
patriarch of Zen. Teacher of
Hui-Neng, the sixth Patriarch.
Hui-neng 673 - 713 Sixth Patriarch of Zen in
(Eno) China. Founder of the
Southern School of Zen.
 ‘From the very first, not a
thing is.’
Kuei-shan 771 - 853 Chinese Zen master. Founder
(Isan) of the Kuei-Yang school of
Zen.
Lin-chi d. 867 Chinese Zen master. Founder
(Rinzai) of the Lin-chi (Rinzai) school
of Zen. ‘Even the sharpest
sword must be constantly re-
sharpened.’
Li Po 702 - 762 Probably the most famous
Chinese poet. Spent many
years as a wandering
minstrel.
Ma-tsu (Baso) 709 - 788 Chinese Zen master. Father of
the unconventional teaching
style of Zen. Was said to
‘glare like a tiger, and amble
like a cow.’
Miyamoto 1582 - 1645 Japanese Zen master. Famous
Musashi fencing master and Sumiye
artist.
Mu-chou Tao- Chinese Zen master. Teacher
tsung (Bokuju) of Yun-Men Wen-yen.
Nan-ch’uan 748 - 834 Chinese Zen master. Studied
(Nansen) deeply before his
enlightenment. Noted for his
complete transcendence.
Nan-yang Hui- 677 - 744 One of leading disciples of
chung (Echu) Hui-neng. Recognised as
‘National Teacher’ of China.
Niao-k’e T’ang Chinese Zen master, known
(Dorin) Dynasty as the ‘Bird’s Nest Monk’.
“Every two-year-old knows
 it, but a man of eighty finds it
difficult to put into practice.”
Niu-t’ou Fa- 594 - 657 Chinese Zen master. Disciple
Yung (Cozu) of the Fourth patriarch, Tao-
hsin.
Pai-chang d. 814 Noted for laying down the
Huai-hai blueprint of regulations for
(Hyakujo) Zen monasteries in China.
Famous saying: ‘A day
without working is a day
without eating.’
P’ang-yun / d. 811 Chinese Zen master. The
Layman P’ang most noted lay Buddhist;
(Ho on) formerly a Confucianist.
Pu Tai (Hotei) d. 916 Chinese Zen mendicant.
Known as one of the Zen
lunatics. Carried a large bag
for collecting sweets, which
he distributed among the
children.
Ryokan 1758 - 1831 Japanese hermit monk.
Dearly loved for his
compassion and ordinariness.
He loved to play with
children.
Seng-ts’an d. 606 Chinese Zen master. Third
(So-san) patriarch of Zen. Composed
famous poem: ‘On Faith in
Mind’
Shen Yueh d. 912 Chinese Zen master
(Zengetsu) renowned for his poetry.
Shih-te c. 765 Chinese Zen recluse. Known
(Jittoku) popularly with Han-shan as
one of the Zen lunatics.
 Siddharta c. 500 B.C. See ‘Buddha, the’
Gautama
Sodo 1641 - 1716 Japanese hermit monk.
Takuan 1573 - 1645 Japanese Zen master. Teacher
of the fencing master Yagiu
Tajima-no-kami (d. 1646)
Tao-hsin (Do- d. 651 Chinese Zen master. Fourth
shin) Patriarch of Zen.
Te-shan d. 865 Chinese Zen master. ‘Open
(Tokusan) your mouth and say a word –
I give you thirty blows! Do
not say a word – I give you
thirty blows just the same!’
Ts’ao-shan 840 - 901 Chinese Zen master. Co-
Pen-chi founder of Ts’ao-tung (Soto)
(Sozan) School of Zen.
Tung-shan 807 - 869 Chinese Zen master. Founder
Liang-chih of Ts’ao-tung (Soto) School
(Dozan) of Zen.
Tung-shan d. 990 Chinese Zen master. Famous
Shou-ch’u for koan: ‘What is the
(Tosan) Buddha? Three chin of flax.’
Wu-yeh (Mu- d. 823 Chinese Zen master. Replied
go) ‘Away with your idle
thoughts!’ to every question.
Yang-shan 814 - 890 Chinese Zen master. Chief
(Kyozan) disciple and friend of Kuei-
shan, famous for their
interplay of enlightened
conversations. Co-founder of
the Kuei-Yang School of Zen.
Yun-men d. 949 Chinese Zen master. Founder
Wen-yen of Yun-men School of Zen.
(Un-mon)
Yung-chia 665 - 713 Chinese Zen master. Studied
deeply. Said to have been
enlightened ‘after one night’s
lodging’ with Hui-neng.
Yung-ming 904-975 Chinese Zen master. A great
scholar of Buddhist
philosophy.
 From the Taoist Lineage
Person’s name Date Remarks

Chuang-tzu c. 369 - Considered the most famous

286 B.C. disciple of Lao-tzu. Noted for
his brilliant literary style,
encompassing irreverent
humour and bold insight.
Chang San-feng c. 1200 A mystical figure of later
A.D. Taoist legend. Believed to be
the originator of T’ai-chi.
Hanfei-tzu Died 234 Taoist sage and author.
B.C.
Huai-nan-tzu c. 130 One of the great classical
B.C. texts of Taoism; composed by
an anonymous author.
Lao-tzu (Ro-shi) c. 604 - Regarded as the father of
522 B.C. Taoism. Reputed author of
the Tao Te Ching. ‘From the
mystery into the deeper
Mystery…’
Lieh-tzu c. 250 Author of ‘the Lieh-tzu’, a
B.C. wonderful treatise on the
nature of Tao, not dissimilar
from the ‘Chuang-tzu’.
Ling-pao c. 300 The Ling-pao is an
A.D. anonymously authored text.
The title translates as
‘Spiritual Jewels’
Liu Hsiang c. 77 B.C.
Lu-yen (Lu-tzu) c. 600 A common figure in Taoist
A.D. folklore. Had a vivid dream
of an entire lifetime lived,
 then awoke to find he had
fallen asleep at the dinner
table, and the food was still
warm. He then recognised
that this lifetime is no
different.
Po Chu-i 772 - 846 Famous Chinese poet.
Although wishing for a
simple life, he was favoured
by Royalty and forced into a
post of office. “‘Tis he, the
happy man, who dwells
apart!”
Ssu-K`ung T`u 834-903 Taoist poet. Retired from
governmental post to live a
contemplative life. “You
grasp ten thousand, and
secure only one.”
T’an Ch’iao c. 1000 A Taoist adept.
A.D.
Wang Che 1113– At the age of forty seven he
1171 A.D. renounced his position in the
military and left home to
become a Taoist monk.
Wang Wei-i c. 1300 A Taoist adept.
A.D.
Wen-tzu c. 100 A Taoist classic, its true
B.C. origin and author unknown.
 From the Hindu Lineage
Person’s name Date Remarks

Ashtavakra Gita, c. 500 ad. Written by an anonymous

the author. A magnificent short
work pointing the way to the
ultimate depths of
transcendence. A seminal text
alongside the Dhammapada
and the Tao Te Ching.
Bhagavad Gita, c. 100 Written by an anonymous
the B.C. author. A work of undisputed
genius, and one of the chief
studies of a long lineage of
Hindu sages.
Yoga A classic and textbook of the
Aphorisms of Yoga school of mysticism.
Patanjali, the
Upanishads, the c. 600 Perhaps the oldest extant
B.C. record of mysticism and the
path to enlightenment. A
celebrated collection of
hymns and treatises.
Panchatantra, Ancient A collection of wisdom
the stories, many pertaining more
to ‘worldliness’ than to the
‘going beyond’.
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Almost all of the excerpts contained in this book have been
considerably adapted. I wish, however, to offer my sincerest
debt of gratitude to the following authors and translators,
without whose untiring efforts and great love of wisdom this
present work could never have been written.

Buddhist Texts
Author Title

Bancroft, Anne The Pocket Buddha Reader

Bikkhu, Thannisarro A great many translations from
the Pali Canon
The Dhammapada: A
Translation
Bodhi, Bikkhu The Middle Length Discourses
of the Buddha: A translation of
the Majjhima Nikaya
Byrom, Thomas The Dhammapada
Carus, Paul The Gospel of Buddha
Chung-Yuan, Chang Original Teachings of Ch’an
Buddhism
Cleary, Thomas The Pocket Zen Reader
The Blue Cliff Record
Teachings of Zen
The Five Houses of Zen
Rational Zen
Coomaraswami, Ananda Gautama the Buddha
K.
 Muller, F. Max The Dhammapada
Nukariya, Kaiten The Religion of the Samurai
Okakura, Kakuzo The Book of Tea
Reps, Paul and Senzaki, Zen Flesh, Zen Bones
Nyogen
Suzuki, D.T. The Manual of Zen Buddhism
The Zen Doctrine of No Mind
Essays in Zen Buddhism, 3rd
Series
Zen and Japanese Culture
The Lankavatara Sutra
Thera, Nyanaponika The Heart of Buddhist
Meditation
Thurman, Robert A.F. Vimilakirti Nirdesa Sutra
Walshe, Maurice The Long Discourses of the
Buddha
Woodward, F.L. and Hare, The Book of Gradual Sayings
E.M.

Taoist Texts
Author Title

Carus, Paul and Suzuki, D.T. The Tract of the Quiet Way
Cleary, Thomas Vitality Energy Spirit, A Taoist
sourcebook
Freke, Timothy The Tao Te Ching
Giles, Lionel Musings of a Chinese Mystic
The Lieh-tzu
Mitchell, Stephen Selections of Taoist Poetry
The Tao Te Ching
 Muller, Charles The Tao Te Ching
YuTang, Lin The Wisdom of China
The Tao Te Ching

Hindu Texts
Author Title

Arnold, Edwin Selections from The Mahabharata

The Song Celestial: A translation of
the Bhagavad Gita
Byrom, Thomas The Heart of Awareness, A
Translation of the Ashtavakra Gita
Muller, F. Max The Upanishads
Paramananda, Swami The Blessed Lord’s Song: A
translation of the Bhagavad Gita
Richards, John Ashtavakra Gita
Ryder, A.W. The Panchatantra
Vivekananda, Swami The Yoga Aphorisms of Patanjali
YuTang, Lin The Wisdom Of India
 INDEX
A

Anguttara Nikaya · 31, 37, 38, 49, 67, 74, 77, 86, 150, 156,
185, 186, 191, 195, 208, 212, 231, 237, 242, 280, 308, 311,
326, 358, 383, 443. See Buddha
Anon · 14, 96, 284, 335, 388
Arjuna · 26, 31, 46, 86, 119, 190, 238, 355, 356
Arnold, Edwin · 63, 457
Ashtavakra Gita, the · 39, 110, 120, 140, 141, 167, 169, 193,
204, 247, 249, 282, 286, 293, 298, 304, 307, 308, 322, 335,
336, 361, 363, 376, 377, 379, 380, 391, 399, 401, 403, 405,
421, 425, 430, 435, 439, 454, 457. See Hinduism

Banzan · 272
Basho · 33, 286, 447
Bassui · 227, 284
Bhagavad Gita · 26, 31, 46, 62, 81, 86, 118, 119, 132, 146,
166, 190, 192, 193, 197, 215, 219, 231, 238, 244, 246, 254,
272, 310, 321, 356, 375, 378, 384, 392, 402, 413, 454, 457.
See Hinduism
Bodhidharma · 57, 143, 327, 350, 414, 447, 448
Buddha, the · 8, 16, 17, 22, 27, 28, 31, 37, 38, 42, 49, 51, 52,
58, 67, 74, 80, 82, 83, 84, 86, 88, 90, 96, 102, 104, 117, 126,
129, 130, 150, 154, 155, 158, 163, 164, 167, 173, 175, 179,
181, 182, 185, 189, 191, 193, 195, 198, 200, 201, 205, 206,
208, 209, 212, 213, 216, 217, 224, 225, 229, 230, 231, 232,
 236, 237, 238, 242, 245, 246, 278, 279, 280, 282, 288, 290,
291, 295, 296, 306, 308, 309, 313, 320, 322, 326, 330, 332,
338, 354, 355, 358, 378, 383, 443, 444, 445, 447, 450, 455,
456
Bunan · 25
Buson · 24, 184
Byrom, Thomas · 110, 120, 141, 169, 193, 204, 247, 249, 282,
286, 298, 304, 307, 308, 361, 363, 376, 377, 379, 380, 391,
401, 403, 421, 425, 430, 435, 439, 455, 457

Ch’an Buddhism · See Zen

Ch’eng-ku · 110, 344
Ch’ing-chu Hao-sheng · 361
Chan San-feng · 122
Chang San-feng · 159, 164, 166, 176, 202, 207, 209, 228, 234,
452
Chao-chou · 188, 344, 345, 389, 428, 433, 437, 447
Cheng Panch’iao · 65
Chieh T’ou · 412
Ching-ch’en · 178
Ching-lao · 426
Chuang-tzu · 14, 15, 18, 19, 22, 30, 32, 48, 68, 70, 75, 83, 91,
94, 98, 99, 108, 109, 112, 113, 116, 117, 118, 125, 128, 132,
144, 145, 147, 148, 149, 177, 184, 187, 208, 218, 233, 241,
244, 252, 254, 256, 258, 261, 263, 264, 267, 268, 273, 283,
294, 297, 303, 317, 329, 339, 342, 347, 364, 373, 385, 387,
388, 398, 404, 414, 415, 422, 430, 452
Chung-Yuan, Chang · 115, 318, 320, 367, 455
Cleary, Thomas · 78, 102, 111, 122, 124, 139, 164, 165, 166,
168, 176, 181, 188, 207, 209, 210, 214, 227, 230, 232, 234,
248, 301, 319, 339, 340, 344, 359, 373, 377, 387, 426, 455,
456
Confucius · 75, 83, 133, 147, 191, 253, 341, 342
 Cranmer-Byng, L · 78, 305

Daito Kokushi · 235

Daoqin · 428
Dhammapada, the · 28, 41, 45, 47, 49, 59, 66, 99, 121, 151,
153, 160, 175, 202, 203, 205, 328, 392, 398, 443, 454, 455.
See Buddha
Diamond Sutra · 82, 119, 140, 142, 279, 291, 292, 445
Digha Nikaya · 96, 155, 164, 215, 224, 236, 279, 443
Dogen · 34, 53, 100, 111, 141, 151, 168, 210, 265, 362, 374,
412, 426, 447

Encho · 365

Fa-yen · 320, 348, 349, 369, 411, 447

Fen-yang · 410
Folk Song: Japanese · 29
Fu Ta-Shih · 407

Gandavyuha Sutra · 358, 410, 417, 445

Giles, Lionel · 112, 317, 456
Gizan · 362
Guang-f’an · 348
Guangji · 384
Gyoson · 397
 H

Hagakure · 29, 42
Hakuin · 248, 249, 365, 382, 447
Hamill, Sam · 312
Han shan Te’-Ch’ing · 26, 318
Hanfei-tzu · 60, 61, 452
Han-shan · 311, 397, 433, 434, 436, 447, 450
Harris, Peter · 311
Hinduism · See Patanjali. See Ashtavakra Gita. See Bhagavad
Gita
Hridaya Prajnaparamita sutra · 332
Hsiang-yen · 334, 424, 448
Hsuan-sha · 352, 385, 427
Hsuan-tse · 348, 349
Hsueh-yen · 178
Hsui-jing · 273
Huai-nan-tzu · 145, 153, 165, 248, 299, 452
Huanchu Daoren · 245
Huang-po · 115, 245, 296, 326, 327, 360, 370, 379, 448
Hui-hai, Tai-chu · 406
Hui-neng · 103, 142, 204, 287, 291, 304, 448, 449, 451
Hung-chih · 217, 290, 303, 323, 347, 359, 360, 362, 376, 382,
399, 400, 408, 409, 411, 423, 434, 448
Hung-jen · 291, 448

I-Ching, the · 270

Issa · 251
Itivuttaka · 67, 104, 205, 338. See Buddha

Jakushitsu · 313
 Julius Caesar · 131

Kaiten Nukariya · 143

Khuddaka Nikaya · 17, 150, 309, 443. See Buddha
Khuddakapatha · 175
Kido Chigu · 431
Koans, zen · 364, 365, 366, 367, 368, 369, 370, 371, 372
Krishna · 8
Kuei-shan · 50, 102, 105, 142, 212, 230, 232, 265, 297, 349,
386, 423, 424, 426, 448, 450
Kuei-tsung · 371
Ku-shan · 181, 210, 214

Langya · 298
Lankavatara Sutra · 168, 280, 333, 445, 456
Lao-tzu · 8, 13, 23, 51, 53, 62, 63, 64, 66, 70, 71, 74, 81, 87,
90, 94, 106, 109, 111, 113, 127, 128, 133, 149, 169, 170,
176, 183, 194, 195, 196, 200, 201, 218, 239, 247, 250, 252,
253, 255, 256, 259, 264, 266, 267, 268, 269, 271, 287, 297,
306, 342, 389, 395, 400, 414, 418, 421, 432, 443, 452
Layman P’ang · 402, 428, 449
Legge, James · 233
Lieh-tzu · 36, 45, 46, 47, 61, 93, 95, 103, 114, 131, 133, 138,
152, 178, 262, 276, 332, 364, 387, 388, 452, 456
Lin-chi · 187, 281, 342, 350, 367, 370, 381, 405, 430, 448
Ling-pao: the · 214, 227, 452
Li-po · 312, 431
Liu Hsiang · 197, 270, 452
Lu-yen · 41, 319, 452
 M

Ma Tsu · 91
Maha Kassapa · 261
Mahabharata, the · 63, 457
Mahayana Buddhism · 39, 82, 142, 271, 279, 280, 291, 292,
332, 333, 444. See Prajnaparamita Sutra. See Surangama
Sutra. See Gandavyuha sutra. See Vimilakirti sutra. See
Lankavatara sutra. See Diamond sutra. See Sikshasamuccaya
Maitreya · 356
Majjhima Nikaya · 22, 38, 80, 88, 90, 152, 167, 173, 182, 185,
189, 209, 211, 213, 217, 225, 306, 320, 330, 354, 413, 443,
455. See Buddha
Ma-tsu · 318, 345, 346, 347, 364, 368, 372, 448
Ma-yu · 371
Ming-chiao · 233
Mitchell, Stephen · 393, 397, 428, 456
Mokugen · 365
Mu-chi · 18, 20, 23, 25, 43, 48, 81, 89, 100, 101, 134, 173,
192, 343, 352, 389
Mu-chou · 368, 369, 449
Mugo · 387
Mumon · 212
Musashi, Miyamoto · 57, 449
Muso Kokushi · 299, 352

Nan-ch’uan · 178, 257, 344, 345, 366, 370, 371, 390, 415, 449
Nan-in · 16, 226
Nidana Vagga · 39
Niu-T’ou Fa-yung · 289, 333

O
 Okakura, Kakuzo · 285, 455

P’an Shan · 336

P’ang, layman · 402, 428, 449
Page, C.H · 33
Pai-chang · 78, 89, 111, 276, 301, 359, 364, 368, 372, 400, 449
Pan Kou: Song of · 429
Panchatantra: the · 40, 454, 457. See Hinduism
Pan-shan · 248
Pao-chih · 139
Patanjali: the Yoga aphorisms of · 27, 454, 457. See Hinduism
Po Chu-i · 152, 298, 305, 402, 453
Prajnaparamita · 114, 292, 332, 393, 445
Proverb: Chinese · 124; Japanese · 258; Zen · 183, 190, 255

Ransetsu · 33
Reps, Paul · 16, 56, 115, 144, 226, 249, 251, 272, 295, 355,
366, 455
Re-shan · 385
Rhys Davids, C.A.F. · 419, 435
Ruguan · 403
Rujing · 240
Ryder, Arthur · 40, 457
Ryokan · 76, 138, 174, 401, 407, 427, 432, 449

Samurai: way of the · 42

Samyutta Nikaya · 27, 28, 49, 52, 54, 102, 126, 130, 154, 158,
163, 183, 216, 217, 230, 232, 238, 278, 282, 290, 310, 313,
322, 443. See Buddha
Sayings: Chinese · 69, 71, 107, 124, 250, 294; Japanese · 258;
Taoist · 24, 302, 375; Zen · 15, 42, 56, 89, 107, 119, 120,
183, 190, 195, 255, 257, 272, 273, 289, 322, 329, 334, 350,
363, 383, 425, 426
Seng-chao · 293, 323
Seng-ts’an · 274, 302, 324, 415, 450
Sen-No-Rikyu · 44
Senzaki, Nyogen · 16, 56, 144, 226, 249, 251, 272, 295, 355,
366, 455
Shakespeare: William · 131, 135
Shen Yueh · 199, 450
Shen-shan · 415
Shih-t’ou · 139, 187
Shih-wu · 396, 437
Shimano, Eido Tai · 43, 50, 144, 374
Siddharta Gautama · See Theravada Buddhism. See Buddha
Sikshasamuccaya · 206
Sodo · 79, 450
Ssu-K`ung T`u · 78, 453
Stevens, John · 401, 432
Story: Taoist · 107, 285
Su Shu, the · 51
Sudhana · 356, 357
Surangama Sutra · 340
Sutra: Diamond · 82, 119, 140; Gandavyuha · 358, 410, 417,
445; Lankavatara · 168, 280, 333, 445; Mahayana · 8, 39, 82,
142, 168, 271, 279, 280, 291, 292, 332, 333, 355, 444, 445;
Prajnaparamita · 114, 292, 332, 393, 445; Surangama · 340;
Vimilakirti · 331
Sutta Nipata · 52, 129, 200, 201, 236, 246, 288, 295, 296, 378,
444. See Buddha
Suzuki, D.T. · 17, 57, 103, 235, 274, 302, 324, 337, 358, 371,
406, 410, 422, 427, 434, 436, 456

T
 T’an Ch’iao · 124, 453
T’ien-t’ai Te-chao · 408
T’ou-tzu · 387
Tai-chu Hui-hai · 406
Tai-yun · 337
Takuan · 44, 302, 450
Tan-yuan · 386
Tanzan · 295
Tao Te Ching · 81, 128, 169, 183, 452, 454, 456
Taoism · See Huai-nan-tzu. See Wen-tzu. See Wang Che. See
Shen Yueh. See Liu Hsiang. See Wen-tzu. See Ku-shan. See
Hsueh-yen. See Lieh-tzu. See Chuang-tzu. See Lao-tzu. See
Chang San-feng. See Huai-nan-tzu. See Sayings
Tea · 16, 43, 44, 368, 427, 433, 437
Tempest, the · 135
Tenno · 226
Te-shan · 390, 450
Than Hhan · 32
Thanissaro Bhikkhu · 358
Theragatha · 165, 444
Theravada Buddhism · See Therigatha. See Itivuttaka. See
Samyutta Nikaya. See Khuddaka Nikaya. See Anguttara
Nikaya. See Vinaya Pitaka. See Digha Nikaya. See Sutta
Nipata. See Udana. See Dhammapada. See Khuddakapatha.
See Majjhima Nikaya. See Theragatha
Therigatha · 419, 435, 444
Ts’ao-shan · 71, 301, 351, 353, 377, 409, 450
Tschen Tschi Ju · 64, 186, 213
Tung-shan · 265, 300, 335, 349, 377, 450
Tzu-te Hui · 422

Udana · 17, 51, 58, 117, 150, 181, 193, 206, 261, 309, 332,
443. See Buddha
 Upanishads: the · 454, 457. See Hinduism

Vimilakirti Sutra · 331, 445, 456

Vinaya Pitaka · 234, 443. See Theravada Buddhism
Visuddhi Magga, the · 271

Wang Che · 148, 239, 296, 300, 307, 420, 453

Wang Pang-shu · 121
Wang Wei · 122, 158, 334, 339, 394, 411, 453
Wei-chao · 146
Wei-yen · 371
Wen T’ing I-yu-un · 396
Wen-tzu · 72, 191, 289, 328, 340, 373, 375, 404, 423, 453
Whitman: Walt · 13
Wu-men · 188, 283, 393

Yang-shan · 168, 349, 386, 405, 423, 424, 448, 450

Yao-shan · 141, 371
Yin Fu Ching, the · 19, 53, 69, 429
Yun-feng · 345
Yung-chia · 312, 451
Yung-ming · 369, 451
Yun-men · 210, 351, 395, 451

Zen · See Ching-lao. See Wang Wei. See Fen-yang. See Te-
shan. See T’ou-tzu. See Hsiang-yen. See Bodhidharma. See
 Fa-yen. See Han-shan. See Tung-shan. See Seng-chao. See
Basho. See Bassui. See Wu-men. See Lin-chi. See Seng-
ts’an. See Hsui-jing. See Tung-shan. See Nan-ch’uan. See
Issa. See Hakuin. See Huang-po. See Rujing. See Daito. See
Ming-chiao. See Bassui. See Hung-chih. See Mumon. See
Kuei-shan. See Yun-men. See Dogen. See Hui-neng. See
Chao-chou. See Yang-shan. See Sayings. See Ryokan
Zen Flesh, Zen Bones · 16, 56, 115, 144, 174, 226, 249, 272,
295, 355, 366, 455