Reading Dr. D. T. Suzuki’s book on the Zen doctrine of no-mind, he writes that Hui-neng showed body/substance/tai to be equal to use/function/yung. For our self-nature, he writes that Hui-neng, in contrast to Shen-hsiu’s dualistic zazen, showed the use of our self-nature, Prajna, is our self-nature itself. Or in other words, knowing is being and being is knowing.
None of this is really clicking with me. Dr. Suzuki gave the example of a hand not being a hand until it is involved in hand-activities, like grabbing something. Its being is expressed through its use. However, the hand’s being is not expressed here, but its form is. The utility of hands is completely derived from how hands are shaped. If I had no fingers, I no longer can execute hand-duties and therefore do not have a hand. Back to Hui-neng, as tzu-hsing is formless, isn’t its being nonexistent and, with that, its use? It seems to me that form and use are the same, but ‘being’ seems to be a useless abstraction.
Thoughts?
Submitted October 20, 2019 at 04:16AM by 25point8069758011279 https://ift.tt/2MuS6hH
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