Consciousness is an ice pond:
Though it is all water,
It needs the energy of the sun to melt.
When ordinary people are awakened,
They are Buddhas;
But they rely on the power of
Dharma for cultivation.
When ice melts,
Then water flows and moistens;
Only then can it perform its
Irrigating function.
When delusion is ended,
Then the mind is open and penetrating,
Responsively manifesting the function
Of the light of spiritual powers.
~ Guifeng Zongmi (780-841)
“People today have been confused for a long time. They do not know that their own mind is the real Buddha.
“They do not know that their own essence is the real Dharma.
“Wishing to seek Dharma, they attribute it to remote sages; wishing to seek Buddhahood, they do not observe their own mind.”
~ Master Chinul (1158-1210)
Perceive freshly as you enter
The world of continual emergence.
That rock-bottomed essence of your mind,
Is always still, but ever-emerging;
Always there, as if waiting to be noticed.
– Ji Aoi Isshi
(Quote courtesy DailyZen.com)
“There are those who do not realize that one day we all must died. But those who do realize this settle their quarrels.”
~ The Buddha | Dhammapada 1.6
People may look at you and feel your way of life, your interest in Dhamma, makes no sense. Others may say that if you want to practise Dhamma, you ought to be ordained as a monk. Being ordained is not really the crucial point. It’s how you practise. As it’s said, one should be one’s own witness. Don’t take others as your witness. It means learning to trust yourself. Then there is no loss. People may think you are crazy, but never mind. They don’t know anything about Dhamma.
Others’ words can’t measure your practice. And you don’t realize the Dhamma because of what others say. I mean the real Dhamma. The teachings others can give you are to show you the path, but that isn’t real knowledge. When people meet the Dhamma, they realise it specifically within themselves. So the Buddha said, ‘The Tathāgata is merely one who shows the way.’ When someone is ordained, I tell them, ‘Our responsibility is only this part: the reciting ācariya have done their chanting. I have given you the Going Forth and vows of ordination. Now our job is done. The rest is up to you, to do the practice correctly.’
Teachings can be most profound, but those who listen may not understand. But never mind. Don’t be perplexed over profundity or lack of it. Just do the practice wholeheartedly and you can arrive at real understanding; it will bring you to the same place the teachings are talking about.
AJAHN CHAH
(Excerpt From ‘The Collected Teachings of Ajahn Chah’)
“Don’t try to become anything. Don’t make yourself into anything. Don’t be a meditator. Don’t become enlightened. When you sit, let it be. What you walk, let it be. Grasp at nothing. Resist nothing. ”
I explain to you matters
Pertaining to enlightenment,
But don’t try to keep
Your mind on them.
Just turn to the ocean
Of your own essence
And develop practical
Accord with its nature.
~ Yangshan
“If one’s life is simple, contentment has to come. Simplicity is extremely important for happiness. Having few desires, feeling satisfied with what you have, is very vital: satisfaction with just enough food, clothing, and shelter to protect yourself from the elements. And finally, there is an intense delight in abandoning faulty states of mind and in cultivating helpful ones in meditation.”
~ H.H. the Dalai Lama
Then spring now autumn,
the four seasons revolve.
Then young now old,
you see the hair turn white.
Then wealthy and nobility,
now a long dream.
Years and months go by,
Carrying ten thousand pecks of sorrow.
In the path of suffering,
The wheel of rebirth rolls endlessly.
In the river of passion,
We swim like bubbles
forming and popping.
Now coming to the right place
To learn the Way,
Why don’t you touch your nose?
See that this is your very good
Chance of a million lifetimes.
~ Tue Trung Thuong Si (1230-1291)
“It is by diminishing ego, letting go of arrogance, and abandoning conceit that one becomes a better Buddhist, no matter what tradition one may follow.”
~ Bhikkhu Analayo, “Superiority Conceit in Buddhist Traditions”
After awakening, it is necessary to always observe and examine yourself. When errant thoughts suddenly arise, do not go along with them at all; reduce them, reduce them, until you reach the point of noncontrivance, which alone is the ultimate end. This is the ox-herding practice carried on by all illuminates after their enlightenment. Even though there is subsequent cultivation, they have already realized sudden enlightenment.
~ Chinul (1158-1210)
From the website DailyZen.com for aug12.2020
Image: From this link: This is one of a series of ten images, generally known in English as the Ox-herding (or Bull-herding) pictures, by the 15th century Japanese Rinzai Zen monk Shubun. They are said to be copies of originals, now lost, traditionally attributed to Kakuan, a 12th century Chinese Zen Master.
“Think not lightly of good, saying, “It will not come to me.”
Drop by drop is the water pot filled.
Likewise, the wise one, gathering it little by little,
fills oneself with good.”
~ The Buddha (The Dhammapada 9.122)
Generosity, kind words,
doing a good turn for others,
and treating all people alike:
these bonds of sympathy are to the world
what the linchpin is to the
chariot wheel.
“You must bring yourself back to mindfulness wherever you are, all the time. Along with your regular meditation practice, add practices such as this one-minute meditation into your daily life. Train yourself in this way—as soon as some psychic irritant arises, stop and take care of it before you proceed with other activities in your day.”
~Bhante Gunaratana
(from “WHAT WHY HOW: Answers to Your Questions About Buddhism, Meditation, Mindfulness and Living Mindfully,” Wisdom Publications 2020. NOTE: See free article series based on this new book at this link)
IMAGE: Photo by Khadeeja Yasser on Unsplash
