The Unborn Buddha-Mind

last SG · 2009-11-26T23:54:38+00:00

Unintentional deeds such as what you said is not blameful as it is done out of need and not an unwholesome intention to kill others. Whatever harm is totally...

An Eternal Now SG

I borrowed a book from Emanrohe, The Unborn: The Life and Teachings of Zen Master Bankei which I think is interesting so I typed out a small section of the book.

Here's an excerpt from Page 87-91:

What I teach everyone in these talks of mine is the unborn Buddha-mind of illuminative wisdom, nothing else. Everyone is endowed with this Buddha-mind, only he doesn't know it. My reason for coming and speaking to you like this is to make it known to you.

Well then, what does it mean, you're endowed with a Buddha-mind? Each of you now present decided to come from your home in the desire to hear what I have to say. Now, if a dog barked beyond the temple walls while you're listening to me, you'd hear it and know it was a dog barking. If a crow cawed, you'd hear it and know it was a crow. You'd hear an adult's voice as an adult's and a child's as a child's. You didn't come here in order to hear a dog bark, a crow caw, or any of the other sounds that might come from outside the temple during my talk. Yet while you're here, you'd hear those sounds. Your eyes see and distinguish reds and whites and other colors, and your nose can tell good smells from bad. You could have had no way of knowing beforehand of any of the sights, sounds, or smells you might encounter at this meeting, yet you're able nevertheless to recognize these unforeseen sights and sounds as you encounter them, without premeditation. That's because you're seeing and hearing in the Unborn.

That you do see and hear and smell in this way without giving rise to the thought that you will is the proof that this inherent Buddha-mind is unborn and possessed of a wonderful illuminative wisdom. The Unborn manifests itself in the thought "I want to see" or "I want to hear" not being born. When a dog howls, even if ten million people said in chorus that it was the sound of a crow cawing, I doubt if you'd be convinced. It's highly unlikely there would be any way they could delude you into believing what they said. That's owing to the marvelous awareness and unbornness of your Buddha-mind. The reason I say it's in the "Unborn" that you see and hear in this way is because the mind doesn't give "birth" to any thought or inclination to see or hear. Therefore it is un-born. Being unborn, it's also undying: It's not possible for what is not born to perish. This is the sense in which I say that all people have an unborn Buddha-mind.

Each and every Buddha and bodhisattva in the universe and everyone in this world of humans as well, has been endowed with it. But being ignorant of the fact that you have a Buddha-mind, you live in illusion. Why is it you're deluded? Because you're partial to yourself. What does that mean? Well, let's take something close to home. Suppose you heard about your next-door neighbor was whispering bad things about you. You'd get angry. Every time you saw his face, you'd immediately feel indignant. You'd think, Oh, what an unreasonable, hateful person! And everything he said would appear to you in a bad light. All because you're wedded to your self. By becoming angry, losing your temper, you just transform your one Buddha-mind into the sinful existence of the fighting spirits.

If your neighbor praised you instead, or said something that pleased you, you'd be immediately delighted, even if the praise was totally undeserved and the pleasure you felt unfounded, a product of your wishful thinking. The delight you experience when this happiness is due to the same obstinate, constitutional preference to yourself.

Just stop and look back to the origin of this self of yours. When you were born, your parents didn't give you any happy, evil, or bitter thoughts. There was only your Buddha-mind. Afterward, when your intelligence appeared, you saw and heard other people saying and doing bad things, and you learned them and made them yours. By the time you reached adulthood, deep-stead habits, formed in this way of your own manufacture, had emerged. Now, cherishing yourself and your own ideas, you turn your Buddha-mind into the path of fighting spirits (Asuras). If you covet what belongs to other people, kindling selfish desires for something that can never be yours, you create the path of hungry ghosts, and you change the Buddha-mind into that kind of existence. This is what is known as transmigration.

If you realize fully the meaning of what I've just said, and do not lose your temper, or think you must have this, or decide that you don't like that, or have feelings of bitterness or pity -- that in itself is the unborn Buddha-mind. You'll be a living Buddha.

It's the same thing I always tell everyone about the Buddha-mind. I do it because when I was a young boy I tried very hard to attain the Buddha-mind myself. In the course of y practice, I sought help from Buddhist teachers. I had interviews with them and questioned them about the various doubts and uncertainties that arose in me. But nobody could give me any help. So I went on practicing very hard. I did zazen. I went and lived in the mountains. I disciplined myself as severely as I possibly could. But none of it helped a bit. I didn't get any closer to understanding the Buddha-mind.

Finally, when I was twenty-six years old, it suddenly came to me, and I arrived at my realization. I've been telling others about the unborn Buddha-mind ever since. I'm sure there's no one else who can teach these things as thoroughly as I do.

You can gather from what I've told you that my practice lasted many long years and that I came to realize my Buddha-mind only after great hardship. But you can grasp your Buddha-minds very easily, right where you sit, without that long, punishing practice. That shows the relation that links you to Buddhahood is stronger than mine was. You're all very fortunate indeed.

Every since I realized the wonderful working of the Buddha-mind, I've been going around telling people about it. Many of them have become convinced of it too. Of course, it's not something I learned from a Buddhist teacher; I discovered it on my own. And since I did, each time I tell others about it at these meetings, my words come from personal knowledge and experience. Hearing about it only once or twice probably won't be enough, so you should listen as many times as you need to. If you have any questions about it, ask them, and I'll answer them for you.

I was once asked some questions by a Confucian scholar in Edo. I think it would do you good to hear about them. He said: "I have no trouble accepting what you say about 'unborn, undying.' It's quite reasonable. While the body is strong, it's true that the ears hear sounds, the eyes see and distinguish things, the nose recognizes smells, the mouth perceives the tastes of the five flavors and speaks, all in the absence of any conscious thought to do so. But once the body dies, no matter how much it's spoken to, it can make no response; it can't tell one color from another, and it's ignorant of all smells. You can't very well speak of either unborn or undying then."

Now, the thrust of this argument, while it may seem quite plausible, is wrong. But we can use it to make the principle of "unborn, undying" better understood. Since the physical body is something that was born and is composed of the elements of earth, water fire, and air brought temporarily together, according to the principle that what is born cannot avoid perishing, it, too, must one day perish. But the Buddha-mind is unborn; the body may be burned with fire or decompose through interment, but the Buddha-mind cannot. The unborn Buddha-mind simply makes the born body its temporary home. While it resides there, it is free to hear, see, smell, and so forth. But when the body perishes and it loses its dwelling place, it can no longer do those things. It's as simple as that. The body, being created, has a birth and a death, but the mind, which is originally the unborn Buddha-mind, does not. It stands to reason, doesn't it? It's the same as Shakyamuni's death or nirvana: ne is the unborn, and han is the undying mind. Both point to the Unborn.

Listen closely, because whatever I say, it's always about your inherent Buddha-mind. The important thing for you is to clarify it for yourself.

An Eternal Now SG

Here's a related video that Thusness and I thinks is very good:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LP0Fnm9mY-A&feature=player_embedded

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8bZmm6jH4C4&feature=player_embedded#

An Eternal Now SG

A layman: Every time I clear a thought from my mind, another appears right away. Thoughts keep appearing like that without end. What can I do about them?

Bankei: Clearing thoughts from the mind as they arise is like washing away blood in blood. You may succeed in washing away the original blood, but you're still polluted by the blood you washed in. No matter how long you keep washing, the bloodstains never disappear. Since you don't know that your mind is originally unborn and undying and free of illusion, you think that your thoughts really exist, so you transmigrate in the wheel of existence. You have to realize that your thoughts are ephemeral and unreal and, without either clutching at them or rejecting them, just let them come and go of themselves. They're like images reflected in a mirror. A mirror is clear and bright and reflects whatever is placed before it. but the image doesn't remain in the mirror. The buddha-mind is ten thousand times brighter than any mirror and is marvelously illuminative besides. All thoughts vanish tracelessly into its light.

Pegembara SG

We humans tend to think that we are special. We like to think that we are apart from and can control nature.

We can never be other than nature itself and as such subjected to its laws of impermanence. There is no permanent unchanging self to be found anywhere. What is born must die. Aging, sickness, death and separation is our lot.

Unlike plants and animals we are capable of intelligent thoughts and creativity, of love, kindness and compassion but also of the great cruelty and horrors.

We create stories, concepts etc and believe them to be true. Imagine what happens if what we called "Earth" was to be struck by a giant comet tomorrow.

What then is the meaning of life? No one has the answer but know only this: All is impermanent, unsatisfacory and not self. Nothing is to be clung to as me, mine or myself.

bohiruci SG

wont you think what u say means we human are destined and no change of luck ?

thats fatalistic view my fren :)

Weychin SG

Hi ! From what I've read in the original post, is "unborn/ undying" presumably, as I interpret, means eternal or omnipresent. Sensations as hearing , seeing,means "instinctively knowing" or conciousness. The differentiation of conceptual and non-conceptual conciousness and also duality in reference to I. I could interpreting out of context, but, is the author implying an everpresent conciousness devoid or uneffected by conceptual and non bi-polar self- referencing. Since it is unborn but omnipresent, is that meant to be a metaphor or an actual phenomenon?

Weychin SG

Or he referring to our mind process?

An Eternal Now SG

In a way our Buddha-Nature is ever present and cannot be touched by our conceptual mind, yes. We cannot hope to grasp Buddha-Nature conceptually. But in fact concepts are simply thoughts arising and perceived through Buddha-Nature.

In the case of bird chirping, without your thoughts or intention to hear it, and you don't even know you are going to hear it the next moment, nevertheless the sound of bird chirping is spontaneously arising and perceived by your Buddha-Nature.

It is the same case for thoughts. Thoughts simply arise spontaneously and are perceived spontaneously through Buddha-Nature. However, you are not the thinker of the thought, the thought simply arise spontaneously.

So is Buddha-Nature separate from concepts? Well, it certainly cannot be perceived by concepts, any more than the thought 'I hear bird chirping' can actually hear the bird chirping, but nevertheless, concepts are perceived spontaneously through Buddha-Nature.

Weychin SG

So, you are saying is; what simply arises when awareness of sight and sound is registered, not even acknowledged. I used the word "instinctive", loaded as it is, it is conditioned response, a reaction to an action. Also when does in awareness, when non conceptual becomes conceptual. For example, if I've heard a sound I have never heard before, then I "heard " a sound. But, I have heard a dog bark, is that so is because, I've told or seen for myself that is identified as "dog" bark. I've trying grasp the phenomena of awareness arising, where non conceptual ends and conceptualisations begin. How can it be related in one's own experience or mind process?

An Eternal Now SG

So, you are saying is; what simply arises when awareness of sight and sound is registered, not even acknowledged.

What I'm saying is -- the thought 'I perceive' is not capable of perceiving. What is it that perceives? That which perceives, is not graspable by thought but nevertheless given names like Buddha-Nature, Intrinsic Awareness, and so on. It is not separate from all the appearances it reflects. Buddha-Nature simply perceives everything like a mirror, without even your intention to do so, or thoughts or forehand knowledge of what you are going to perceive next.

Everything arises spontaneously in this manner and is perceived through Buddha-Nature. Also, thoughts are likewise -- can you ever know what is your next thought or do you only know it when it comes? You only perceives the thought when it comes and you cannot know the next thought, in other words the thoughts is just spontaneously happening of its own accord, and there is no such thing as a thinker of thought. And whatever thoughts arise too are naturally perceived through Buddha-Nature.

I used the word "instinctive", loaded as it is, it is conditioned response, a reaction to an action.

And that instinct, conditioned response, is too happening through and as the mirror like awareness. Without this awareness, there can be no perception, no movement, no response, no universe.

Now as you said, the responses are conditioned, which means after you were borned, you were conditioned by your parents, societies, teachers, friends, TV, etc to respond and act in a certain way. When you see your mother, you call 'mummy', when you see your father, you call 'daddy', and so on. All these are learnt, conditioned responses.

However even before such conditionings, even before you were born into this world, all you have is this Unborn Buddha-Mind, which simply perceives everything as it is even before your conditioning steps in, without even a thought or intention (which are shaped by your conditioning), you are able to perceive, see, hear, smell -- all is the natural functioning of the Unborn Buddha-Mind. And if you are to act in a conditioned way, that too is only made possible by the Unborn Buddha-Mind.

Also when does in awareness, when non conceptual becomes conceptual. For example, if I've heard a sound I have never heard before, then I "heard " a sound. But, I have heard a dog bark, is that so is because, I've told or seen for myself that is identified as "dog" bark. I've trying grasp the phenomena of awareness arising, where non conceptual ends and conceptualisations begin. How can it be related in one's own experience or mind process?

Conceptuality begins with labels and interpretations of things. Prior to that it is just bare awareness of everything as it is. To be aware without the conceptual labelling is known as the practice of 'mindfulness'.

You may like to read http://www.urbandharma.org/udharma4/mpe13.html

Mindfulness is the English translation of the Pali word Sati. Sati is an activity. What exactly is that? There can be no precise answer, at least not in words. Words are devised by the symbolic levels of the mind and they describe those realities with which symbolic thinking deals. Mindfulness is pre-symbolic. It is not shackled to logic. Nevertheless, Mindfulness can be experienced -- rather easily -- and it can be described, as long as you keep in mind that the words are only fingers pointing at the moon. They are not the thing itself. The actual experience lies beyond the words and above the symbols. Mindfulness could be describes in completely different terms than will be used here and each description could still be correct.

Mindfulness is a subtle process that you are using at this very moment. The fact that this process lies above and beyond words does not make it unreal--quite the reverse. Mindfulness is the reality which gives rise to words--the words that follow are simply pale shadows of reality. So, it is important to understand that everything that follows here is analogy. It is not going to make perfect sense. It will always remain beyond verbal logic. But you can experience it. The meditation technique called Vipassana (insight) that was introduced by the Buddha about twenty-five centuries ago is a set of mental activities specifically aimed at experiencing a state of uninterrupted Mindfulness.

When you first become aware of something, there is a fleeting instant of pure awareness just before you conceptualize the thing, before you identify it. That is a stage of Mindfulness. Ordinarily, this stage is very short. It is that flashing split second just as you focus your eyes on the thing, just as you focus your mind on the thing, just before you objectify it, clamp down on it mentally and segregate it from the rest of existence. It takes place just before you start thinking about it--before your mind says, "Oh, it's a dog." That flowing, soft-focused moment of pure awareness is Mindfulness. In that brief flashing mind-moment you experience a thing as an un-thing. You experience a softly flowing moment of pure experience that is interlocked with the rest of reality, not separate from it. Mindfulness is very much like what you see with your peripheral vision as opposed to the hard focus of normal or central vision. Yet this moment of soft, unfocused, awareness contains a very deep sort of knowing that is lost as soon as you focus your mind and objectify the object into a thing. In the process of ordinary perception, the Mindfulness step is so fleeting as to be unobservable. We have developed the habit of squandering our attention on all the remaining steps, focusing on the perception, recognizing the perception, labeling it, and most of all, getting involved in a long string of symbolic thought about it. That original moment of Mindfulness is rapidly passed over. It is the purpose of the above mentioned Vipassana (or insight) meditation to train us to prolong that moment of awareness.

When this Mindfulness is prolonged by using proper techniques, you find that this experience is profound and it changes your entire view of the universe. This state of perception has to be learned, however, and it takes regular practice. Once you learn the technique, you will find that Mindfulness has many interesting aspects.

An Eternal Now SG

This has nothing to do with reaching a state of thoughtlessness or in fact reaching any future state of experience -- you (buddha-nature) already are what you already are -- it is your ordinary present awareness than a special state of experience, your present awareness that is cognizing the words displayed on the screen, the sound of air con humming, the thoughts appearing in your mind.

This is about realising That (You) which shines equally in, and unaffected by, the presence or absence of thoughts. Pure Awareness is certainly not the same as thoughts, for even if you pause all your thoughts and concepts for a moment, Pure Awareness IS. Nevertheless even in the midst of experiences and thoughts, Pure Awareness IS, and in fact couldn't be otherwise -- without Awareness there can be no thoughts, no experience, no world.

At some point we may experience moments of thought-free pure awareness or even have it last for hours and yet it seems to get 'lost' the next day. What happens is that the habits of mind seems to arise again, the doubts, sense of self, sense of separation and all the resultant (imagined) problems - which isn't in itself (and shouldn't be made into) a problem - but the insight has to be refined. At this point the practitioner may be impelled to dwell in naked awareness to experience awareness more 'clearly' without thoughts, which isn't wrong as a practice -- it is important to experience awareness nakedly (just sense, feel, be, without thoughts), however what is very important also is actually to realise that this Awareness is not an experience among other experiences, but rather it is the underlying nature, like a canvas, in which all experiences are painted on. The paintings can change, but never at any moment can the underlying Awareness be lost. You realise you haven't actually 'lost' Awareness. This Ground Reality, being not a 'thing' among others, but rather the underlying nature of everything, does not come, does not go, does not have birth or death, hence known as the 'Unborn Buddha-Mind'. So whatever you experience changes, but never Awareness as such -- the primordial Ground of Reality, your Original Face.

At this point it is no longer a matter of integrating Awareness into everyday life, all efforts are extra and unnecessary -- rather it is a Realisation that you go through your daily life never separated from this fundamental ground of reality from which all manifestation springs from and return to. This is the fundamental insight of I AMness. This is not the final realisation, but is an important step.

Thoughts like all other phenomena simply self-arise and self-dissolve in the radiance of the Unborn Buddha-Mind. Everything, thoughts, sight, sounds, sensations, all are the manifestation of this radiance of our Knowing Presence, without which nothing is.

Knowing your true nature as this Knowing Presence, then nothing is a problem. Not recognizing this and investing identification with the world of objects, your mind, body, mental identity is the cause of all (imagined) problems, all fears, all anxieties, all attachments and suffering.

As Ajahn Chah overcame his fears while meditating on the cemetary:

"...In his mind’s eye he could see the charred body. He could see
a skeleton with guts hanging out, the scorched bits of flesh hanging
off, skin and eyes dropping down the cheek, and a half-burned
mouth. As he felt this rank mess of flesh walking towards him,
he told himself: “Don’t believe it. This is just your imagination.
Stop, be still, concentrate, and let go of the fear.” In the meantime,
the footsteps were getting closer and closer. Then he heard
the steps going around and around him. Thump, thump, thump,
circling around again and again. By this time he was in a state of
white-hot fear. He had gone beyond anxiety. His body was locked
solid and sweating bullets; he was absolutely rigid.

Then this presence came and stood right in front of him.
Ajahn Chah was still determined to keep his eyes closed, not
even a peek. At this point, he was so completely fear-stricken it
burst. The fear system was going at absolutely full force when
suddenly he had the thought: “All these years I’ve been reciting,
‘The body is impermanent, feeling is impermanent, perceptions
are impermanent. The body is not self, feelings are not self, perceptions
are not self, mental formations are not self, consciousness
is not self.’” So he wasn’t just afraid, he was also very con-

centrated and very alert. The insight flashed into his consciousness:
“Even if this is some terrible ghoulish monster that is going
to attack me, all that it can attack is that which is not me. All
that it can harm is the body, the feelings, the perceptions, mental
formations, and consciousness. That is the only stuff that can get
damaged, and that’s not me, that’s not self. That which knows all
of these cannot be touched.”

And instantly the feelings of terror evaporated. It was like
switching on a light. It disappeared completely and he went into
an incredibly blissful state. He went straight from total
dukkha—pain and incandescent fear—to an extraordinary bliss.
His mind was alert, and as that happened he heard the footsteps—
thump, thump, thump—getting fainter. Eventually the
footsteps disappeared. He never found out their source."

An Eternal Now SG

About I AMness, I shared this with someone at the I AM stage on another board based on a sharing by Thusness. By refining the I AM in these 4 aspects, non dual insight also eventually arise.

Thusness told me that at present try not to talk too much about non-dual and he also talked to me about the deepening of the "I AM" in 4 aspects: 1) the aspect of impersonality, 2) the aspect of the degree of luminosity, 3) the aspect of dissolving the need to re-confirm and abide in I AMness and understanding why such a need is irrelevant, 4) the aspect of experiencing effortlessness.

Impersonality will help dissolve the sense of self but it has the danger of making one attached to a metaphysical essence. It makes a practitioner feel "God".

The degree of luminosity refers to feeling with entire being, feel wholely and directly without thoughts. Feeling 'realness' of whatever one encounters, the tree bark, the sand, etc. (see the next post)

Dissolving the need to re-confirm is important as whatever is done is an attempt to distant itself from itself, if there is no way one can distant from the "I AM", the attempt to abide in it is itself an illusion.

On the other hand, abiding in presence is a form of meditative practice, like chanting, and leads to absorption. It can result in the oceanic experience. But once one focuses on the 4 aspects mentioned above, one will have that experience too.

Also, as for I AMness, there are varying degrees. It is related to the five categories of Koan.

In Zen tradition, different koan were meant for different purposes. For example the experience derived from the koan “before birth who are you?” (which leads to the realisation/experience of I AMness) is not the same as the Hakuin’s koan of “what is the sound of one hand clapping?” The five categories of koan in Zen ranges from hosshin [introductory koan - Either What is your original face before birth? or Mu] that give practitioner the first glimpse of ultimate reality to five-ranks that aims to awaken practitioner the spontaneous unity of relative and absolute (non-duality).

Similarly different techniques can also be devised to allow a practitioner to experience the different qualities of Awareness. The experience of “impersonality” is not the same as the experience of the “pristineness” of our nature; the experience of “oneness” is also not the same experience as spontaneity; the experience of non-dual without a subject and object split does not necessary result in the thorough insight of anatta; the experience of anatta is also not the same experience when a practitioner thoroughly sees the emptiness nature of phenomena. Hence, there are the 5 categories of koan. It is not a one for all sort of medicine.

....

Here's a good post on 'the degree of luminosity' by a friend 'JonLS' or 'Amadeus':

I was walking through the park on my way home when something happened. Something holy arose from within and took over. I was standing there looking out at the trees and the grass like it was the first time I was seeing them. I was looking at my hands and feeling my body as it moved and I was marvelling at being alive and being in this body. I was acutely aware of being in the world, that I was a separate being in the world. I was enjoying all this as a child would enjoy a new and novel experience. I went over to a tree and grabbed a branch, I touched it softly and then grabbed it firmly, I really wanted to feel the tree, I really wanted to be there with it, to be present, to feel and see and take it all in. I bent down and touched the trunk near the roots, it was very real, very solid to my touch, it felt very alive. I noticed some bare earth around the tree trunk and picked up a chunk and broke it in my hand and watched and felt it crumble and stream through my fingers as it fell down to the earth. I was feeling so primal, so alive, I went around to the other side of the tree where the branches were a little higher off the ground and sqatted under the branches near the tree trunk and put my hand on the trunk and left it there. I was feeling the roots and feeling extremely rooted myself in being. I stayed there for a few minutes, the feelings arising were so intense and overwhelming that tears were streaming down my face. Finally I left the tree and moved closer to the bench and sat and watched the crescent moon in the clear blue sky, there was a very bright star right beside it, so bright that I thought it might be the headlight of a plane heading towards me. I sat there and watched this scene and marvelled at life and being alive.

I finally got up and was going to go inside but I had to walk by the sandbox and I was immediately attracted to the sand. I bent down and started letting the sand run through my fingers, feeling the texture of the grains on the skin of my hand. I dug deeply into the sand and noticed that the sand was very damp when you dug down 3 or 4 inches. And then I found a flat stone. I don't know why this was so fascinating but I was like a little child, I would pick up the stone with a handful of sand and squeeze the sand so it would run through my fingers and then I would feel the hard stone pressing against the flesh of my palm and fingers. It was like finding a treasure, I did this over and over again.

I left the sandbox and moved over to a very large pine tree and grabbed on the branches really hard. I gave a really good pull on it and ripped that piece of branch clean off and allowed the needles to run through my fingers as they fell through the ground. I grabbed two branches, and held on really tight like I was holding hands with the pine tree, I looked up at it and was just present with it for a little while. But things were beginning to feel really intense inside of me so I went inside.

I went in the bedroom to change and got undressed, but when I was completely undressed I was drawn down to my knees and I bent very low with my forehead against the carpet. The energy was flowing like crazy inside, it felt like it was all emanating from the gut area. My head was on the carpet and my gut was much higher since I was still on my knees, this felt right as it had so many times before. Energy was flowing from my gut down through my head and out. But the energy also radiated outwards in all directions at the same time, like a sacred sun was shining in my gut. It was extremely intense and overwhelming and continued for at least 15 minutes.

I have no idea what is going on and I don't care. It feels very right and it makes everything sacred, my own body, and everything else in the world. It's almost a mystical experience at times to be alive.

I'm completely filled by this experience, it's overflowing.

I love you.

Emanrohe SG

Dear weychin and all,

To hear without any thought, idea or interpretation is conceptualisation. To have the idea of hearing is also conceptualisation. So there is just IT(which is also a conceptualisation). So what is before that? It cannot be said or explained because any words or explanations is conceptualisation. You must find it yourself.

In the zen school of Buddhism, it is taught that all is Buddha nature. In saying all, I do mean all, everything from the way your mind manifests, comes into being, works, plants, people, everything in this world, your perception, everything is Buddha nature. Thus, here Bankei is simply stating a small part of Buddha nature, which is the ability to differentiate between sounds.

However, the sound is Buddha nature, the hearing is Buddha nature, the ear is Buddha nature, the ear consciousness is Buddha nature, the perceiving the sound is Buddha nature and the distinguishing and naming and conceptualising of the source of the sound by your intellectual capability is also Buddha nature. Remembering is Buddha nature, not remembering is also Buddha nature and so the list goes on. The essential meaning here is that Buddha nature is not something very special. It is right under your feet so to speak (a bad analogy but hopefully it gives u a better idea). That said, what I mentioned is just a conceptual idea of it. The task is to really experience and 'touch' the Buddha nature so to speak. That is the aim. Well, I might have talked too much about Buddha nature already. But once a person realises Buddha nature, one sort of re-lives his life. Buddha nature is thus said to be not far away. And we are said to be within the the Path or already It just that we don't know. So the not knowing is ignorance. In zen, the words Unborn, Buddha nature, Buddha, True Nature, Truth, Path, It are all taken to be equivalent. They are just names of the Essential which is also a name. So we must get what this name is refering to. So what is it?

_(|)_

An Eternal Now SG

I think 'What is it' is a powerful koan and pointer. Whatever you say isn't It (it's your interpretation of It, which thus is not It), you can only 'know' it by becoming ONE with it. Actually there is not even a becoming one, there is only actually IT, our mind merely projects separation.

When we experience Awareness directly without using our thoughts, everything is experienced as having a magical, alive, shimmery, fresh, amazing and blissful quality to it. Life is not not the 'boring and ordinary' as the mind interpretes it, even the most ordinary things rings of 'awesomeness'. You will be naturally attracted, pulled towards the pristine awareness than to stressful thoughts. The ego will melt in the wonder and majesty of awareness. Awareness will literally blow your mind away One moment I was just dreaming stressful thoughts, the other moment I 'woke up' and was totally drawn to Awareness itself... there was no compulsion for me to go back to the dream. It's just such a huge contrast. Sometimes it's so blissful that people around me wonder why I'm smiling. But surely I'm not mad... it's mad to not notice Life... hahaha

Weychin SG

Hi everybody! And a belated word of thanks to AEN for being helpful! I was experiencing a bout of self doubt as pressures suppressed regarding work crept up during my sitting practice which unsettled me. Now back to subject proper, regarding the"unborn Buddha Nature" is characterised by non conceptual, spontaneous arising. I related to it by the state of body and mind during perhaps a martial arts match or sport match two accomplished opponents. The body and mind at perfect ease or tension. Another way describe it is use the words "Tao", that which can be spoken is not "Tao". However, for me least the wisdom acquired from "The Way" is always in hindsight! This is the reason I look towards Buddhism and later became one. One of the key reasons is there strong understanding of human nature and deals with suffering. cont.-

An Eternal Now SG

That's right. When you are practicing martial arts, or any intense sport, mind steps out and everything is done in pure spontaneity and oneness.

Yet actually... this is not merely an experience in martial arts... actually it applies in all moments of life! It can be realised. :)

When you walk, your true nature's innate wisdom will lead you away from danger, you will naturally avoid banging into trees or people, even while you are at perfect ease, without using thoughts.

However most of us are in a dream-like state of distraction, than resting in thought free recognition of our primordial state.

Weychin SG

Cont.- Please bear with me The basis of my understanding of samsara is conditioned existence. Conditioned existence; everything being in place leading to the next- Karmic influences, for sake of differentiation 1. Predisposition; condition acquired before birth, non conceptual. 2. Precondition; nurtured during this lifetime, also non conceptual. 3 .Karmic effects being cumulative . 4. Belief that Enlightenment take many lifetime, the Nirvana stage being the last one. I believe to achieve the state of awareness that you've been talking about is accumulated or conditioned during many lifetimes particularly so, this one. Without preconditioning with proper insight, insight may never arise. This is just aconjecture on my part. However, by associating tendencies also as nonconceptual and self arising, one must realize correct awareness may arise, so it is also true if baser emotions as anger can also arise. Both takes place without fore thought. Subsequently negative karmic effects and imprints may develop My take is before Enlightenment without fully understanding of the Four Noble Truths,the the contemplation of the the Eightfold paths, one attains tranquillity and absorption but not ultimate insight ! Could I be missing the point here?AsI may be completely out of my depth, as I am far removed even from letting go of "I"!

An Eternal Now SG

As far as I know, karma is volition, which is conceptual -- thoughts and concepts are involved for volition to arise. These volition will have consequences in the future, known as karmic effects. Emotions like anger is also thought. You are not born angry, anger is a conditioned arising, it is not innate in you, and therefore it can be transformed or self-liberated into the vast expanse of clear awareness.

Also, enlightenment and nirvana is possible in this lifetime if you practice seriously and yes, the basic teachings must be understood and practiced.

Herzog_Zwei SG

Also, enlightenment and nirvana is possible in this lifetime if you practice seriously and yes, the basic teachings must be understood and practiced.

By existing, it is possible to further create bad karma just due to existence, hence it is advisable to die.

Go figure out this Koan for me.

An Eternal Now SG

By existing, it is possible to further create bad karma just due to existence, hence it is advisable to die.

Go figure out this Koan for me.

Committing suicide is a karma much worse than many other deeds.