Baizhang Huaihai: Then you can be called one who does not fall into any category at all.

When a person of the Way encounters all kinds of painful or pleasant, agreeable or disagreeable situations, their mind is not pushed around. Not thinking of fame or profit, clothes or food, and not seeking for any merit or blessing, they are no longer obstructed by anything in the world. With nothing to cling to, free from craving, they equally accept pain and pleasure. A coarse robe provides protection from the clod, simple food is all that's necessary to support the body. Letting go, they might appear like a fool, or like a deaf and mute person – but it is only then that one gains some understanding. If you extensively pursue intellectual understanding, seeking merit and wisdom, this is all just birth-and-death; it is useless for apprehending reality. Blown around by the wind of conceptual knowledge, such a person is drowned in the ocean of birth-and-death.

...Not to be controlled by greed for anything is called “saving others." Not to dwell in the notion of self is called “saving oneself"...Right now, if you wish to realize awakening immediately, you should just let both self and outer objects disappear, let subject and object dissolve, let both self and world return to emptiness. Then...you can be called one who does not fall into any category at all. This is having faith in the true teaching, observing true ethics, practicing true generosity, true study, attaining true wisdom, and so on.

Baizhang Huaihai [source: Terebess]

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Wandering Ronin commentary: I wish a few more brave souls would step forward to talk about their own experiences with insights in Zen; are there any here? Insights don't have to be thought of as enlightenment experiences, as one can have many insights over time with a practice and understanding of Zen. My own earliest insight experience was in accordance with a few of the sentences in this very excerpt from Baizhang, particularly you should just let both self and outer objects disappear, let subject and object dissolve, let both self and world return to emptiness.

Through the study of the Zen masters and a continued practice, I can explain what happened with my own first insight much better than I ever could before. When this insight happened, it was so unusual to 'see through' what I never could see through before. All of my worldly and familiar concepts, particularly seeing each real world object as the constructed conceptually-bound idea of that object, just fell away altogether.

Before you study Zen, mountains are mountains and rivers are rivers.
While you are studying Zen, mountains are no longer mountains and rivers are no longer rivers.
But once you have had enlightenment mountains are once again mountains and rivers again rivers.

These worldly objects and forms no longer were the concrete objects and forms that I had known all of my life. How unusual to see beyond the form of a thing, and into this stream of oneness. A tree wasn't really a tree any more; it was the same 'substance', for lack of a better term, as the ground or even a person. All forms could be seen clear through as if ghosts; forms were merely suggestions at that time. I no longer immediately trapped and bound by the myriad things as was the long-standing habit. Now of course I know that a stage of mountains are no longer mountains and rivers are no longer rivers is just another stage of dualism in Zen, but to finally see something like that was life-altering. Would any of you like to share your experiences with insights?

Submitted January 12, 2019 at 10:03PM by WanderingRoninXIII http://bit.ly/2VQBRhI