THE ZEN TEACHING OF HUANG PO: ON THE TRANSMISSION OF MIND [TRANSLATED BY JOHN BLOFELD]
Huang Po on the practice of mindfulness, an excerpt from page 90
Were you now to practise1 keeping your minds motionless at all times, whether walking, standing, sitting or lying; concentrating entirely upon the goal of no thought-creation, no duality, no reliance on others and no attachments; just allowing all things to take their course the whole day long, as though you were too ill to bother; unknown to the world; innocent of any urge to be known or unknown to others; with your minds like blocks of stone that mend no holes --- then all the Dharmas would penetrate your understanding through and through. In a little while2 you would find yourselves firmly unattached. Thus, for the first time in your lives, you would discover your reactions to phenomena decreasing and, ultimately, you would pass beyond the Triple World; and people would say that a Buddha had appeared in the world. Pure and passionless knowledge implies putting an end to the ceaseless flow of thoughts and images, for in that way you stop creating the karma that leads to rebirth—whether as gods or men or as sufferers in hell.
1 WanderingRonin77: Zen Master Huang Po is very clearly explaining the concept of mindfulness practice above by using this word here. This literally cannot be argued, for "practise" connotes effort put forth towards mindfulness, which requires the control and focus of the mind through diligent training. Mindfulness is not easily or quickly accomplished, as I've directly found in my own training over time.
2 WanderingRonin77: The term "in a little while" connotes a certain passage of time, which again strengthens the argument of making an attempt to diligently practice and cultivate mindfulness through effort. The practice of mindfulness is beyond estimable, for it is using the mind to come to a realization of Mind or dharma-nature.
Huang Po on the practice of zazen, an excerpt from page 131
Question: But how can we prevent ourselves from falling into the error of making distinctions between this and that? Answer: By realizing that, though you eat the whole day through, no single grain has passed your lips; and that a day's journey has not taken you a single step forward --- also by uniformly abstaining from such notions as 'self' and 'other', DO NOT PERMIT THE EVENTS OF YOUR DAILY LIVES TO BIND YOU, BUT NEVER WITHDRAW YOURSELVES FROM THEM. Only by acting thus can you earn the title of 'A Liberated One'.
Never allow yourselves to mistake outward appearance for reality. Avoid the error of thinking in terms of past, present and future. The past has not gone; the present is a fleeting moment; the future is not yet to come. When you practise mind-control,3 sit in the proper position, stay perfectly tranquil, and do not permit the least movement of your minds to disturb you.4 This alone is what is called liberation.
Ah, be diligent! Be diligent! Of a thousand or ten thousand attempting to enter by this Gate, only three or perhaps five pass through. If you are heedless of my warnings, calamity is sure to follow. Therefore is it written: Exert your strength in THIS life to attain! Or else incur long aeons of further pain!
The Master passed away on this mountain during the T'ai Chung Reign (A.D. 847-859) of the T'ang Dynasty. The Emperor Hsüan Tsung bestowed upon him the posthumous title of 'The Zen Master Who Destroys All Limitations'. The memorial pagoda is known as 'The Tower of Spacious Karma'.
3 WanderingRonin: In the original notes in the book, the term "mind control" was quite clearly in shown in the translation as "zazen", therefore this proves that zazen was spoken of by Huang Po as a necessary aid for some in attaining liberation. Zazen is one of the core practices of Zen; I have witnessed several people in this community disparaging zazen as if it is unnecessary or somehow extraneous to Zen, which I find to be slanderous and misleading. Let your efforts match your expectations.
4 WanderingRonin: Zazen has inestimable merit in our practice and understanding of Zen. Master Huang Po has directed us to "not permit the least movement of your minds to disturb you" during zazen, which I feel explains one of the core purposes of zazen. The practice of not allowing your mind to develop either attachments or aversions to thoughts arising during zazen allows the mind to settle naturally over time to be able to bear witness to the truth of the Dharma, which was right in front of our faces all along.
Submitted January 29, 2018 at 02:04AM by WanderingRonin77 http://ift.tt/2EhgGwJ
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