Yes indeed.. from my previous post:
The Zen masters would tell you, for enlightenment to occur, you
need doubt. And as my Master said, and many other Zen masters said,
we Not only need doubt, as small doubt can only produce small
realisations, but GREAT DOUBT (of intense questioning) will produce
Great Enlightenment. By great doubt, a person persistantly inquires
on his Koan until he reaches breakthrough. 'Great Faith, Great
Doubt, Great Determination' are three needs of zen practise.
http://www2.bc.cc.ca.us/resperic/science_and_spirituality.htm
Great faith in Zen practice refers to a trust in the process, as
demonstrated by the many who have gone on before, as well as a firm
trust in ones capabilities to see the essential nature of reality
for oneself. In scientific work, great faith refers to a trust in
the scientific method, successfully applied by scientists of the
past, as well as an underlying belief in ones inherent capability
to understand the phenomena being studied.
Great doubt in Zen refers to a willingness to profoundly question
all of ones most cherished beliefs, and ultimately to uproot them.
Beliefs are but concepts, floating on the surface. The conceptual
realm may be useful at times, but compulsive attachment to
particular concepts is a hindrance to penetrating to deeper levels
of realization of the fundamental nature of reality, which is
beyond all concepts. An ancient Chinese saying states that when a
wise man points his finger to the moon, the fool sees only his
finger. In science, great doubt is based on a realization that
the model is not the reality. Being too attached to a particular
hypothesis or theory can prevent one from arriving at a better
theory that reflects a deeper understanding of the phenomena of
interest.
Great determination in Zen is required in order to not give in to
laziness. The process may take some time, and without determination
one may never attain deep realization. In fact, there is no deepest
realization, and only by great determination will one keep going
deeper. Of course the same can be said of scientific research.
A.H.Almaas: "Well the first thing about inquiry, is to
recognise that we don't know basic things about ourselves and
reality. To have the humility to NOT KNOW. And also to have the
courage. It's very scary to say 'I don't know who I am; what I am',
or to know what is going on now. First that's the opening is the
humility to acknowledge we don't know. In science they call it
doubt or scepticism. But here it is not really doubt or scepticism.
The doubt and scepticism turns into an emotional thing. What here
is just an openness. 'I don't really know'. After that, is the love
to find out. The heart-felt appreciation of 'What is the truth of
us? What I am? What am I? What is humanity? What is reality? What
is God?', from a loving and also curious place. So that's the
general inquiry about knowing about spiritual nature. There are
many things that will help us - steadfastness; courageous; an
openness and curiosity that brings in questions."
