The Gateless Gate: Nansen said, "The Way is not a matter of knowing or not knowing.

The Gateless Gate: Nansen's "Ordinary Mind Is the Way" [19th Case]

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Jõshû asked Nansen, "What is the Way?"

"Ordinary mind is the Way," Nansen replied.

"Shall I try to seek after it?" Jõshû asked.

"If you try for it, you will become separated from it," responded Nansen.

"How can I know the Way unless I try for it?" persisted Jõshû.

Nansen said, "The Way is not a matter of knowing or not knowing.

Knowing is delusion; not knowing is confusion.

When you have really reached the true Way beyond doubt, you will find it as vast and boundless as outer space.

How can it be talked about on the level of right and wrong?"

With these words, Jõshû came to a sudden realization.

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Mumon's Comment

Nansen dissolved and melted away before Jõshû's question, and could not offer a plausible explanation.

Even though Jõshû comes to a realization, he must delve into it for another thirty years before he can fully understand it.

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Commentary and questions: If Zen points directly to the human mind, then what it is to be done in order to attain realization? Here Nansen teaches: Ordinary mind is the Way. There is nothing esoteric or mysterious about this statement, as it is true and direct, but why is it that some people still won't be able to understand? Part of missing something can be in looking for something else; also, disappointment comes from expectations and preconceived notions.

Yet how can one attain realization if they don't even understand what it is in the first place? "If you try for it, you will become separated from it," Nansen shares, eliminating the confusion of seeking for those that are able to understand it. There are no practices, and there is nothing to do; it's all already right here, right now for every single one of us. To move in a direction by seeking is to leave it, and to look elsewhere other than mind is to miss it entirely. Engaging in practices or looking for and holding on to 'special circumstances' such as enlightenment merely serve to create even more dissonance from One Mind, hence there is nothing to do and nothing to attain in the first place.

Submitted November 20, 2019 at 08:39PM by WanderingRoninXIII https://ift.tt/2qm5vR1