Zen Under the Gun: How to become popular!

https://www.amazon.com/Zen-Under-Gun-Masters-Turbulent/dp/0861715926/ Zen Masters after Wumen:

Hengchuan (1222-1289)

To the assembly of monks at the temple Hengchuan said: "All the brethren in the hall come to my quarters to ask me to give public talks, hoping these talks will become popular in the Zen communities.

"But this affair is not a matter of words. All his life. Bimo just held up a forked stick. All his life, Judi just raised one finger. All his life, Master Dadi just beat the ground. Even if Zen masters like these split open Mount Taihua and shattered the Yellow River (with their direct teaching methods), they would still not be able to receive one or a half [sincere students). If I could speak so that heavenly flowers showered down, that would be even more useless.

"Each and every one of you in this great congregation has the potential to become a realized human being-to reach the stage. where.] twenty-four hours a day, there is not the least defilement: where, in the heaps of red dust, you are lifted with the waves; where, in the reflections of the green mountain, you are blown higher and higher. This is the moment when [as in the sutra] the butcher throws down his slaughtering knife and becomes a buddha then and there.

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Welcome! ewk comment: There is a certain kind of poser who comes into this community and says, "It's not in words! It's not in words! Books won't save you!" but these people aren't trying to save you, they are trying to lead you... where? Wherever they are? And where are they?

Where's the guy with the forked (seriously?) stick? Where is a guy like that leading anybody?

Give lots of talks! That's clearly the way to go. Don't answer question, just make comforting mouth sounds.

Of course, if you get popular, you'll have to lead people.

IF YOU BELIEVE IN "OUTSIDE OF BOOKS", THAT'S NOT ZEN

Submitted July 15, 2022 at 08:20AM by ewk https://ift.tt/MAgWZlS