Yes-But-Mind vs. Don't-Know-Mind

[Lairg]

1 hour ago, Tommy said:

the act of breathing brings a spirit or spiritual sense?

 

Spirit penetrates all Existence.  So doing anything within Existence with attention on Spirit, allows both physical and spiritual changes to occur.

 

For example, breathing in while intending to draw in Spirit, increases the amount of Spirit in the human light-body (aura) and thus the physical body too.

 

A common example is that "mother's cooking is best".  Traditionally the mother was intent on proper nourishment of the family beyond the physical.  The result was that the mother's love penetrated the food as an increased flow of Spirit

 

One might conclude that the good-hearted human has a natural authority to draw increased flows of Spirit. 

[Keith108]

1 hour ago, Tommy said:

I thank you for your reply and trying to help me understand. Still, I remain confused with all this as my mind doesn't see these complexities. Saying that breath or the act of breathing is in part spiritual, leaves me wondering if actions turn into portions of ourselves. The actions of the mind to sense conditions brings an uprising of emotions. So, the act of breathing brings a spirit or spiritual sense? My head spins with all these thoughts and ideas. So, let me just say thank you for your efforts to let me understand. And let's just say that I don't get it and probably never will.

 

When Quantum mechanics says that anything can come from from the nothingness of space, I can understand that. But, when one states that breath or watching breath is a spiritual act, my mind freezes. One can say that one is on a spiritual path. However, it seems to me that it is only the real path to follow. All others returns to the beginning. When one says that two quantum objects can share the same information at the same time even though they may be light years apart thru quantum entanglement, okay, I get that but don't understand how since it is faster than the speed of light. So, yeah, I read your words and as I read they make sense. But, how it relates to me, there is a chasm. Still I thank you for trying.

Hi Tommy

 

I can assure you my friend, I am not trying to help you to understand anything. Understanding won't help you. 

 

Breathing is just breathing, It isn't a spiritual act, unless we just go ahead and call every act a spiritual act. 

 

Zen isn't a philosophical pursuit. Any philosophical explanations point at something, but aren't the thing. That thing has to be awakened to and digested through direct experience.

 

When the head is spinning with thoughts, look at that.

Who is thinking?

Where do these thoughts come from?

Are they "mine"?

Are they inside? or outside? or neither?

 

Only go straight, don't know. 

 

_/|\_

Keith 

[Tommy]

1 hour ago, Lairg said:

 

Spirit penetrates all Existence.  So doing anything within Existence with attention on Spirit, allows both physical and spiritual changes to occur.

I personally do not know how the spirit would penetrate all existence since I have found no such thing in myself. Some have mentioned that they can travel thru the astral planes. Guessing that might have something to do with the spirit. For me, I do not have such experiences. And so, I do not see, feel, or grok that there is such a thing as spirit. This not to say there isn't a spirit. Just that for me, it doesn't exist. I live and breathe. Wake up in the morning, cook myself a meal, boil water for coffee. What life is, it is in front of me. When I read the saying before enlightenment, chop wood  carry water. after enlightenment, chop wood carry water, the question arises what changed?.

[Lairg]

1 hour ago, Tommy said:

after enlightenment, chop wood carry water, the question arises what changed?

 

Enlightenment literally means that the Light of Spirit flows easily through the human.

 

When the Light flows easily, the human can be used by Spirit and Spirit can delegate some local decisions to the human

 

You may recall something along the line of :  When you have seen me you have seen the Father, for I live in Him and He lives in me

 

 

[Keith108]

10 hours ago, Lairg said:

 

Enlightenment literally means that the Light of Spirit flows easily through the human.

 

When the Light flows easily, the human can be used by Spirit and Spirit can delegate some local decisions to the human

 

You may recall something along the line of :  When you have seen me you have seen the Father, for I live in Him and He lives in me

 

 

Perhaps. But, since this is a thread in the Buddhist Discussion forum, enlightenment in the Buddhist sense is simply moving from incorrect view to correct view. That is, awakening to reality as it is, not as seen from the view of a separate self or spirit.  

 

The Chinese character for "Buddha" is translated as "awakened person". Even that isn't correct though, as the concept of a "person" is erroneous. 

 

_/|\_

 

[Keith108]

1 hour ago, Keith108 said:

Perhaps. But, since this is a thread in the Buddhist Discussion forum, enlightenment in the Buddhist sense is simply moving from incorrect view to correct view. That is, awakening to reality as it is, not as seen from the view of a separate self or spirit.  

 

The Chinese character for "Buddha" is translated as "awakened person". Even that isn't correct though, as the concept of a "person" is erroneous. 

 

_/|\_

 

Haha! I think I just did a "yes, but" !

[Lairg]

7 hours ago, Keith108 said:

since this is a thread in the Buddhist Discussion forum, enlightenment in the Buddhist sense is simply moving from incorrect view to correct view

 

Religion is wonderful

 

For myself I prefer metaphysical experiments

 

 

[Keith108]

28 minutes ago, Lairg said:

 

Religion is wonderful

 

For myself I prefer metaphysical experiments

 

 

 

Wonderful!

 

Buddhist practice is a kind of experiment, isn't it? There is the experiment of practice, the result of which must be directly experienced, no faith in a higher power required. Just sit down, be quiet, and see what happens. What am I? Don't know............ 

[Nungali]

20 hours ago, Tommy said:

I personally do not know how the spirit would penetrate all existence since I have found no such thing in myself.

 

Spirit is a term that can mean many things  though , so no wonder this dynamic is happening . If Lairg or anyone else thinks spirit is a ghost like / astral replica of the self  and then tries to convince you that you have one  ... that would be insisting a wide definition is narrow and pertains to you ... in short, its a projection of opinion on to you .

 

I had an issue when teaching year 10 at a Steiner School , by year 10 they over 'spirit' as they had been 'taught' so much varied and opinionated  and  insistent BS about it . The moment I first mentioned the word there was a loud vocal rebellion    

 

Spirit can also be an essence  ... the essence of the 'essential  you '  , its in there amidst all the conditioning and programming . o one could look at spirit that way , and go on a 'spiritual quest ' regarding that .

 

regarding spirit interpenetrating all existence , one could explain that via hermetic theory , but I dont think that is what you are chasing here .

 

20 hours ago, Tommy said:

 

Some have mentioned that they can travel thru the astral planes. Guessing that might have something to do with the spirit. For me, I do not have such experiences. And so, I do not see, feel, or grok that there is such a thing as spirit. This not to say there isn't a spirit. Just that for me, it doesn't exist.

 

Or, you feel different about it  compared to what others insist it is    

 

20 hours ago, Tommy said:

 

I live and breathe. Wake up in the morning, cook myself a meal, boil water for coffee. What life is, it is in front of me. When I read the saying before enlightenment, chop wood  carry water. after enlightenment, chop wood carry water, the question arises what changed?.

 

Fpr me , my saying is ;    I spent a lot of time chopping wood and carrying water ... but then I got 'civilized' , so i dont have to do that any more , now I spend a lot of time fixing and maintaining the chainsaw and water pump   . 

 

Another meaning is    after 'enlightenment '  dont 'give up your life' ... continue your life - in an enlightened manner .  In many eastern systems - isolation and / or  aestheticism  is advocated after 'enlightenment ' but in other systems , eg , some Sufi system if you are a builder ( for example ) after enlightenment you are a Master / better / enlightened builder . 

 

In some cycles of western initiation you end up at the 'level' that you started at  ... yet something has been gained along the way to make one somehow different . We can assume, I think, that what is gained is experience  ( which can include knowledge, practice, insight, intuition , etc ... perhaps even understanding and wisdom   - in short ,  a way of functioning from a more enlightened or illumined perspective .

 

[Tommy]

2 hours ago, Nungali said:

Spirit can also be an essence  ... the essence of the 'essential  you '  , its in there amidst all the conditioning and programming . o one could look at spirit that way , and go on a 'spiritual quest ' regarding that .

 

regarding spirit interpenetrating all existence , one could explain that via hermetic theory , but I dont think that is what you are chasing here .

 

 

Or, you feel different about it  compared to what others insist it is    

Long ago, when I first came to daobums, you made a response post which really annoyed me. And I have seen where others have had the same reaction. I have come to the conclusion that it doesn't matter what others say. It only matter how one reacts to others. I can only control myself. So, after having said this, I thank you for your reply.

 

To say that my spirit is the essence of me?? I don't see it. As I have been knocked out, know there is nothing of me that exist outside of my body. Drink alcohol and my mind becomes affected. There is nothing I sense or feel or grok that is outside of this body. And so, what essence would there be? It is like people tell me there is a God. Sure. Okay, then how do I know this? How do I find my God? No visions or acts to show God. Some people who have had near death experiences say there is a God and so on and so forth. Personally, I don't see it. Maybe someday if I ever experience Kensho. Or have a near death experience.

 

Lets see, Ram Dass who took LSD and other drugs to experience something "else". That isn't a path I wish to take. I mean it might give one the experience of something other than this realm. But, how is it real when it only seems like an illusion created by the drug? Sorry, I take seriously the idea of trusting the Buddha's word that one should see for oneself. So, for me, death doesn't allow entrance to heaven or hell. It is the end of this life. What Karma has in store for me? LOL. Does it really matter when there is no continuity of mind or memory?

Edited yesterday at 12:17 AM by Tommy

[Lairg]

1 hour ago, Tommy said:

Does it really matter when there is no continuity of mind or memory?

 

There are quite a few child prodigies

 

 

[Nungali]

2 hours ago, Tommy said:

Long ago, when I first came to daobums, you made a response post which really annoyed me.

 

Did it end up being 'productive '  ?      

 

Quote

 

 

And I have seen where others have had the same reaction. I have come to the conclusion that it doesn't matter what others say. It only matter how one reacts to others. I can only control myself. So, after having said this, I thank you for your reply.

 

To say that my spirit is the essence of me?? I don't see it. As I have been knocked out, know there is nothing of me that exist outside of my body.

 

Valid reasoning .... but I didnt mean  what I think you are meaning now .   Your 'essence' or spirit (in this sense ) is what makes you .... 'you'  ; your individuality ..... that may be seen as wholly physical if one wants  ... but its still there ... otherwise we would all be the same.

 

Also a 'spirit' can be a distilled essence ... which is sorta like I meant above ... the essential you  ... beyond conditioning . ... your 'natural proclivities' . 

 

But perhaps you do not believe in that either ?  Some declare that isnt even there . 

. 

Quote

 

Drink alcohol and my mind becomes affected. There is nothing I sense or feel or grok that is outside of this body.

 

?   Surely you must acknowledge other 'externals'  ... even the 'ideal'   if not considering 'the real '    ( the ideal - like concepts and physical laws that dont have 'hard concrete ' material existence  ? 

 

Quote

And so, what essence would there be?

 

Great question, but that term essence would need better defining in what you mean by it before a good discussion could be had . 

 

 

Quote

It is like people tell me there is a God. Sure. Okay, then how do I know this? How do I find my God? No visions or acts to show God. Some people who have had near death experiences say there is a God and so on and so forth. Personally, I don't see it. Maybe someday if I ever experience Kensho. Or have a near death experience.

 

Personally I dont feel a near death experience proves anything ... thats about near death ... not after death . 

 

People can say  they think or believe there is a God ...  but to declare to another that there IS ..... well  .....   Also what they are thinking or believing is God might not be the same as another .... that old adage  ; 'No I do not believe in God ... not the sort of God you believe in . ''

 

 

Quote

 

Lets see, Ram Dass who took LSD and other drugs to experience something "else". That isn't a path I wish to take. I mean it might give one the experience of something other than this realm. But, how is it real when it only seems like an illusion created by the drug?

 

Even if it is not , experiencing such 'something else' might not assume spirit, afterlife or soul anyway .  Its a bit of a leap or a jump to a conclusion . What those substances are revealing is an expansion of faculties , or a diversion of them  to other things .  To me it can be a bit like ,  if we are surrounded  by  magnetic conductive substances , we would not know it  . But if we took up a magnet ( which I am comparing to these drugs )  all of a sudden a 'new world' opens to us  ...... but what do we conclude from that , thats the issue . 

 

 

Quote

 

Sorry, I take seriously the idea of trusting the Buddha's word that one should see for oneself. So, for me, death doesn't allow entrance to heaven or hell.

 

 And if it did , what sort of heaven and hell might that be ?  Some human concept of what that is ?  HA!   to that I say .  And while HAing ... I see similar human audacity (or hubris ) in attempts to define or understand 'God' . 

 

Quote

It is the end of this life. What Karma has in store for me? LOL. Does it really matter when there is no continuity of mind or memory?

 

No , not if there is no continuity whatsoever .  Cant be 'sure' one way or the  other , at least we can say death is a great adventure , stepping off into the unknown (even if it is instant obliteration ) .   I do have my own personal convictions and indications about it , but thats for me and relevant to me . 

 

But at least ... here you are , now .   May as well make the best of it ... which might include 'finding your spirit' within .... and  'doing stuff' according to your true nature  ... that seems to satisfy a lot of people  and dispels depression and pointlessness and feeling lost . 

[Tommy]

1 hour ago, Lairg said:

 

There are quite a few child prodigies

And how many compared to those who have no past memories or continuity from the past?

One in a million? Two in a million?

Or let us say 2 or 3 in a hundred thousand. What percentage are you talking about?

Only those exceptions? If they really are for real?

Also, can't one be a prodigy and not have the talent come from a previous life?

 

Note: The Buddha or the awakened one could not prevent his own death. All things born will die. So, awakening is suppose to end the cycle of birth, death and rebirth? If one gets a chance to live again then why would anyone want to stop from being born again? Life isn't all suffering. Is it? Well at least for some of us, life can be very nice for a little while.

Edited yesterday at 03:14 AM by Tommy

[Nungali]

22 minutes ago, Tommy said:

And how many compared to those who have no past memories or continuity from the past?

One in a million? Two in a million?

Or let us say 2 or 3 in a hundred thousand. What percentage are you talking about?

Only those exceptions? If they really are for real?

Also, can't one be a prodigy and not have the talent come from a previous life?

 

Certainly .....   a blow to the head can do it !  There are many examples of that .  

 

Acquired savant syndrome is a rare condition where an individual develops extraordinary new talents, such as those in music, art, or mathematics, after a brain injury, stroke, or other central nervous system event. This condition is distinct from congenital savant syndrome because it appears in previously neurotypical individuals who had no prior ability in the newfound area. It is believed to result from the right hemisphere of the brain compensating for damage to the left hemisphere

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Savant_syndrome#Acquired_cases

 

22 minutes ago, Tommy said:

 

Note: The Buddha or the awakened one could not prevent his own death. All things born will die. So, awakening is suppose to end the cycle of birth, death and rebirth? If one gets a chance to live again then why would anyone want to stop from being born again? Life isn't all suffering. Is it? Well at least for some of us, life can be very nice for a little while.

 

' Amen' to that    

 

[Mark Foote]

22 hours ago, Tommy said:

 

To say that my spirit is the essence of me?? I don't see it. As I have been knocked out, know there is nothing of me that exist outside of my body. Drink alcohol and my mind becomes affected. There is nothing I sense or feel or grok that is outside of this body. And so, what essence would there be? It is like people tell me there is a God. Sure. Okay, then how do I know this? How do I find my God? No visions or acts to show God. Some people who have had near death experiences say there is a God and so on and so forth. Personally, I don't see it. Maybe someday if I ever experience Kensho. Or have a near death experience.
 

 

 

I'm with Nungali, near-death experiences are only near-death experiences. I don't think they really tell us much about actual death. 

 

I'm not a believer in rebirth, either, although that doesn't say there isn't some phenomena there. I'm just not sure it has anything to do with the intention in a person's actions. Gautama seemed to imply that ceasing volitional actions of the body and possibly of the mind was conducive to a final rest that was more than simply not being reincarnated. 

 

At the same time, he declared that attainment of the states in which volitional actions of the body or body and mind cease was not necessary to the wisdom that provided complete destruction of the cankers, and that the cessation of volitional actions did not guarantee that wisdom (MN 70). This, after so many of his sermons recount his attainment of that wisdom with the cessation of volition in the body (and the exploration of various psychic powers), and one recounts his attainment of that wisdom after the cessation of volition in the mind.

I would guess he could see that there were individuals in India who were freed, so to speak, without the concentrations, and likewise individuals among his followers who had attained the cessation of volition in actions of the mind (feeling and perceiving) and yet were not freed. 

I continue to believe that transmission in the Zen world is primarily based on the ability to relinquish volition in the actions of the body in seated meditation, Gautama's fourth concentration. That is actually quite different from the complete destruction of the cankers, that Gautama identified as the consequence of enlightenment. It's also different from the experience of zazen getting up and walking around, which is the kind of surprise expression of the spirit in the body that I think you are looking for.

Perhaps of interest to you, Tommy, would be the fact that the first psychic result that Gautama experienced in route to his own enlightenment was the insight that consciousness is bound to the body; he described it as like a jewel strung on a thread, that is bound by the thread.

 

 

22 hours ago, Tommy said:

 

Lets see, Ram Dass who took LSD and other drugs to experience something "else". That isn't a path I wish to take. I mean it might give one the experience of something other than this realm. But, how is it real when it only seems like an illusion created by the drug? Sorry, I take seriously the idea of trusting the Buddha's word that one should see for oneself. So, for me, death doesn't allow entrance to heaven or hell. It is the end of this life. What Karma has in store for me? LOL. Does it really matter when there is no continuity of mind or memory?
 

 

I was a teen in the San Francisco Bay Area in the sixties, and through a friend I was able to try LSD several times. I can say that there is a feeling on the drug that everything makes perfect sense, like the way I used to feel after I listened to an Alan Watts lecture, but like the Watts lecture the effect wears off after a day or two. Not the way to come to spirit, in my experience, I gave it up long ago.

 

 

[Mark Foote]

On 11/14/2025 at 5:30 PM, Tommy said:

I personally do not know how the spirit would penetrate all existence since I have found no such thing in myself. Some have mentioned that they can travel thru the astral planes. Guessing that might have something to do with the spirit. For me, I do not have such experiences. And so, I do not see, feel, or grok that there is such a thing as spirit. This not to say there isn't a spirit. Just that for me, it doesn't exist. I live and breathe. Wake up in the morning, cook myself a meal, boil water for coffee. What life is, it is in front of me. When I read the saying before enlightenment, chop wood  carry water. after enlightenment, chop wood carry water, the question arises what changed?.
 

 

 

It's not about the value of physical labor before and after enlightenment, although as I said in my last reply, the Zen idea of enlightenment quoted in your recounting of the saying is different from Gautama's.

 

Miraculous power and marvelous activity
Drawing water and chopping wood.

 

(Pangyun, a lay Zen practitioner, eight century C.E.)

 

 

Cleave a (piece of) wood, I am there;
lift up the stone and you will find Me there.

 

(The Gospel According to Thomas, pg 43 log. 77, ©1959 E. J. Brill)

 

 

The weight of the entire body can bear at a single point in the movement of inhalation, as though lifting a heavy bucket or a heavy stone; the weight of the entire body can bear at a single point in the movement of exhalation, as though cleaving a tough block of wood. I would say it's about "one-pointedness" of mind, that these activities are conducive to the experience of consciousness at a single point in the body.

 

So let's all get up, drop body and mind like in the way before your mother was born...

 

while seated and more-or-less stationary!

 

 

 

 

Edited 23 hours ago by Mark Foote

[bradley]

On 11/4/2025 at 8:47 PM, SodaChanh said:

I like this video on the Don't Know Mind

 

Thank you for sharing. Was it or "Dont Know Mind" or "DoNo Mind" ?  Seems like "dono mind" is similar to the Wu Wei concept? interested if anyone who watched the video agrees/disagrees. 

 

On 11/16/2025 at 2:15 AM, Tommy said:

To say that my spirit is the essence of me?? I don't see it.

 

Does it matter what your essence is? If one were to discover and scientifically understand one's true essence, as some sort of magical spiritual object or otherwise, what would be gained?  A tofu-stealing cat does not need to know it is a cat to be a cat.  I think the point of the video was that by ceasing to seek answers to esoteric questions, one is free to be what one is.    

 

PS, I also very much appreciate your posts on this site, Tommy :  )  

[Lairg]

1 hour ago, bradley said:

If one were to discover and scientifically understand one's true essence, as some sort of magical spiritual object or otherwise, what would be gained?

 

 

Esse is a Latin word  it means: to be

 

If you understood what you be, you might unfold your functions and authority.

 

 

[bradley]

1 hour ago, Lairg said:

If you understood what you be, you might unfold your functions and authority.

 

What functions and authority are there to unfold other than being? Did you watch the video? I liked it.

[Keith108]

4 hours ago, bradley said:

 

Thank you for sharing. Was it or "Dont Know Mind" or "DoNo Mind" ?  Seems like "dono mind" is similar to the Wu Wei concept? interested if anyone who watched the video agrees/disagrees. 

 

 

Does it matter what your essence is? If one were to discover and scientifically understand one's true essence, as some sort of magical spiritual object or otherwise, what would be gained?  A tofu-stealing cat does not need to know it is a cat to be a cat.  I think the point of the video was that by ceasing to seek answers to esoteric questions, one is free to be what one is.    

 

PS, I also very much appreciate your posts on this site, Tommy :  )  

The phrase is "don't know". When ZM Seung Sahn came to the states, he didn't speak English. So, as he learned, what he taught was conveyed in a kind of choppy English. He often said that he didn't teach Zen, he taught "don't know". This give you an idea of how important he felt that teaching was. 

 

I tend to agree about it's similarity to wu wei, and the rest of what you wrote. See the parable of the arrow.

 

 

[Keith108]

15 hours ago, Mark Foote said:

I continue to believe that transmission in the Zen world is primarily based on the ability to relinquish volition in the actions of the body in seated meditation, Gautama's fourth concentration. That is actually quite different from the complete destruction of the cankers, that Gautama identified as the consequence of enlightenment. It's also different from the experience of zazen getting up and walking around, which is the kind of surprise expression of the spirit in the body that I think you are looking for.

 

Sigh...I hear this a lot from non - Zen Buddhists. I don't want to get into a pissing contest, just noting my disagreement. Someone posted Bassui's Talk on One Mind here on the site. It talks about how to achieve an initial opening, and how that is not the final emancipation. No Zen teacher worth anything thinks kensho = final enlightenment. There is much work still left do. 

[Tommy]

4 hours ago, bradley said:

Does it matter what your essence is? If one were to discover and scientifically understand one's true essence, as some sort of magical spiritual object or otherwise, what would be gained?  A tofu-stealing cat does not need to know it is a cat to be a cat.  I think the point of the video was that by ceasing to seek answers to esoteric questions, one is free to be what one is.    

 

PS, I also very much appreciate your posts on this site, Tommy :  )  

Does it matter? Guessing that with my abilities and knowledge that not much would change. So for me it wouldn't matter. However, what would knowledge of the atom matter? Well, atomic energy, a big bomb, ?? Guessing again that maybe true knowledge of the essence or soul might allow for other things to happen which may not be evident at the moment??

 

I remember a movies where the premise was that the whole world found out that reincarnation was absolutely true. The consequences of that was there was a jump in the number of suicides. If people didn't like their life then they would turn it in and go for a new one. I know it sounds silly. The consequences of knowledge and experience does matter?? Doesn't it?

 

Note: Thank you for your kind words.

Edited 8 hours ago by Tommy

[stirling]

Just to clarify "don't know" mind:

 

Quote

The wisdom of uncertainty frees us from what Buddhist psychology calls the thicket of views and opinions. “Seeing misery in those who cling to views, a wise person should not adopt any of them. A wise person does not by opinions become arrogant. How could anyone bother those who are free, who do not grasp at any views? But those who grasp after views and opinions wander about the world annoying people.” I like to think that the Buddha said this last sentence with a laugh. Ajahn Chah used to shake his head and smile, “You have so many opinions. And you suffer so much from them. Why not let them go?”

Freedom from views is like a cleaning of the glass, a breath of fresh air. Zen master Shunryu Suzuki calls this open-mindedness “beginner’s mind.” Listen to Rachel Carson, the great naturalist, as she evokes it: “A child’s world is fresh and new and beautiful, full of wonder and excitement. It is our misfortune that for most of us that clear-eyed vision, that true instinct for what is beautiful and awe-inspiring, is dimmed and even lost before we reach adulthood. If I had influence with the good fairy who is supposed to preside over all children, I should ask that her gift to each child in the world be a sense of wonder so indestructible that it would last throughout life.”

When we are free from views, we are willing to learn. What we know for sure in this great turning universe is actually very limited. Seung Sahn, a Korean Zen master, tells us to value this “don’t know mind.” He would ask his students questions such as “What is love? What is consciousness? Where did your life come from? What is going to happen tomorrow?” Each time, the students would answer, “I don’t know.” “Good,” Seung Sahn replied. “Keep this ‘don’t know mind.’ It is an open mind, a clear mind.”

In close relationships, if we rely on assumptions, we lose our freshness. Whether as parents or lovers, what we see about those close to us is only a small part of their mystery. In many ways we don’t really know them at all. Through beginner’s mind we learn to see one another mindfully, free from views. Without views, we listen more deeply and see more clearly. “For there are moments,” says Rilke, “when something new has entered into us, something unknown; our feelings grow mute in shy perplexity, everything in us withdraws, a stillness comes, and the new, which no one knows, stands in the midst of it and is silent.” - Jack Kornfield

 

The perfection of the Four Noble Truths, the Eightfold Path, the precepts, ad nauseum is prajnaparamita or "emptiness". "Don't know" mind is emptiness, resting in the absence of all beliefs, projections into the future, or stories of the past,  and "self". It is the Tao, primordial being-ness. It does not rely on any practice methodology, religion, belief-system, philosophy or any kind of "doing" by a "self". This "being-ness" is how things actually are. It is simplicity itself.

 

Quote

...all dharmas are marked by emptiness; they neither arise nor cease,
are neither defiled nor pure, neither increase nor decrease.

 

Therefore, given emptiness, there is no form, no sensation, no perception, no formation, no consciousness; no eyes, no ears, no nose, no tongue, no body, no mind; no sight, no sound, no smell, no taste, no touch, no object of mind; no realm of sight... no realm of mind consciousness. There is neither ignorance nor extinction of ignorance... neither old age and death, nor extinction of old age and death; no suffering, no cause, no cessation, no path; no knowledge and no attainment.

 

With nothing to attain, a bodhisattva relies on prajna paramita, and thus the mind is without hindrance. Without hindrance, there is no fear. Far beyond all inverted views, one realizes nirvana. All buddhas of past, present, and future rely on prajna paramita and thereby attain unsurpassed, complete, perfect enlightenment. - Buddha, Heart Sutra

 

When the mind is still, look for any of these qualities and see that they only arise with the thinking mind as concepts. This is where our struggle with reality begins.

[Lairg]

7 hours ago, bradley said:

What functions and authority are there to unfold other than being?

 

Why does Existence occur?

 

Does the enlightened/transparent human have some role in Existence achieving its purposes?

 

Pralaya (Sanskrit: प्रलय, romanized: Pralaya, lit. 'Destruction') is a concept in Hindu eschatology. Generally referring to four different phenomena,^[1][2][3] it is most commonly used to indicate the event of the dissolution of the entire universe that follows a kalpa (a period of 4.32 billion years) called the Brahmapralaya.