Zen Masters on Being Upright and Virtuous

Chanlin baoxun: Precious Lessons from the Zen Schools. Compiled by Miaoxi and Zhu-An, with additions by Jingshan.

Case 12: Safety and Danger

Fushan Yuan said:

Nothing is more essential to leadership and teachership than carefully discerning what to take and what to leave aside. The consummation of taking or leaving is determined within; the beginnings of safety and danger are determined without. Safety is not the safety of one day, nor is danger the danger of one day. Both safety and danger come from gradual development.

It is imperative to examine the matter of leadership. To uphold leadership by means of enlightened qualities accumulates enlightened qualities, to uphold leadership with courtesy and justice accumulates courtesy and justice. Exploitative leadership accumulates resentment and enmity.

When resentment and enmity build up, inside and outside are estranged and opposed. When courtesy and justice build up, inside and outside are harmonious and happy. When enlightened qualities accumulate, inside and outside are sensitive and compliant.

So where there is a plenitude of enlightened qualities, courtesy and justice, then inside and outside are happy. When exploitation and resentment are extreme, inside and outside are miserable. It is the feelings of misery and happiness to which calamity and blessing respond.

letter to Master Jingyin Tai

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Study Question:

1.This one is clever, with an obvious study question built right in. What do you take and what do you leave aside in the case, and why?

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Marking Rubric

1 Point - Discussing the contents of the case.

1 Point each - Discussing the study questions.

1 Bonus Point for quoting a Zen Master in your discussion.

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Current Leaderboard

^{All points are tallied before a new case is posted.}

1.SoundOfEars: 17 Points

2..The_Faceless_Face: 10 Points

3.TheDarkChip: 8 Points

4.zenthrowaway17: 7 Points

5.Owlsdoom: 6 Points

5.TheVoidMerger: 6 Points

5.bigSky001: 6 Points

Below the Threshold: Krabice, ewk, twiceborne, coinionaire, sje397, lin_seed, jungle_toad, windDrakeHex

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"The consummation of taking or leaving is determined within."

-Fushan

What's with all this talk of understanding Zen? When Huangbo smacked Linji 60 times, was it because Linji did or did not understand? I like to try and count all the stages between reality and true understanding for my own amusement in my downtime. Here's some Foyan:

Uttering a few sayings does not amount to talking of mysteries and marvels, or explaining meanings and principles; sitting meditation and concentration do not amount to inner freedom.

Think about it independently. Other people do not know what you are doing all the time; you reflect on your own—are you in harmony with truth or not? Here you cannot be mistaken; investigate all the way through.

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Links

What is Intellectual Quicksand?

Do you have questions about Zen?

Can't quote Zen Masters?

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Meta Note

On my last post I saw that ewk received some downvotes without engagement, while I received upvotes for answering. I don't think vote-brigading is a good idea in general. Everyone is free to do as they please, but I ask everyone to engage in Zen discussion on the Zen subreddit regardless. If others choose to make it about personal politics, it doesn't mean we have to. Thank you.

Submitted March 18, 2021 at 05:53AM by The_Mahdoubt https://ift.tt/3cGzxmB