Flowers

本來緣有地，
因地種花生。
本來無有種 ，
花亦不曾生。

Originally, there was some ground,
on which some flowers were planted.
Originally, there was no seed,
and the flowers were never born.

--Gatha transmitted from Sengcan to Daoxin (Baolin zhuan)

---

At the end of the day, Zen is just about flowers. That's it. A flower started this whole tradition! Sowing the seeds in the mind-ground, you're the cultivator, whether you want to resign or not. But if you try to plant flowers in empty space, all you have is a crop of cataracts. Sengcan taught Daoxin to accord with mind only. Bodhidharma said, "The mind is the root from which all things grow. If you can understand the mind, everything else is included. It’s like the root of a tree. All a tree’s fruit and flowers, branches and leaves depend on its root. If you nourish its root, a tree multiplies. If you cut its root, it dies. Those who understand the mind reach enlightenment with minimal effort. Those who don’t understand the mind practice in vain. Everything good and bad comes from your own mind. To find something beyond the mind is impossible."

Submitted March 27, 2018 at 03:01AM by essentialsalts https://ift.tt/2pFEzrU