Going beyond the singular road

"When you decide to come here, you do so by yourself. When you want to ask a question, you do it by yourself. You do not depend on another nor do you use the teachings of the Buddha. This mind which directs the self is the essence of 'the transmission outside the scriptures and not through words.' It is the pure Zen of the Tathagata. Clever worldly statements, the written word, reason and duty, discrimination and understanding, cannot reach this Zen. One who looks penetratingly into his true self and does not get ensnared in words, nor stained by the teachings of the Buddhas and patriarchs, one who goes beyond the singular road which advances toward enlightenment and does not let cleverness become his downfall, will, for the first time, attain the Way.” — Zen master Bassui 抜隊 (1327–1387)

Submitted June 16, 2017 at 08:18PM by Dhammakayaram http://ift.tt/2rElGUg