do i intellectualise? i do the zen way or at least try too
straight to the point...merle Merle, >From you or from me? Mike Sent from Yahoo! Mail for iPad ________________________________ From: Merle Lester <merlewiit...@yahoo.com>; To: Zen_Forum@yahoogroups.com <Zen_Forum@yahoogroups.com>; Subject: Re: [Zen] buddha nature Sent: Sun, Aug 25, 2013 1:25:05 AM too much far too much intellectualisation..and too much blah blah blah...merle Bill!, I'd still be careful as to the distinction between acting on auto-pilot and being completely awake as to what you are doing. Mike Sent from Yahoo! Mail for iPad ________________________________ From: Bill! <billsm...@hhs1963.org>; To: <Zen_Forum@yahoogroups.com>; Subject: Re: [Zen] buddha nature Sent: Sat, Aug 24, 2013 8:50:56 AM Mike, Read the link I posted earlier for my intellectualization of the origin of duality - as exemplified by the delusion of self: http://www.billsmart.com/writing/zen/self/self.htm If you strip away duality what you have left is Buddha Nature. This is in both of the cases of children and in the case of humans before they had a well-developed and dominating intellect. I do think that in the case of children (infants) you start with Buddha Nature and then add layers (or maybe only one layer that gets more and more complex) of intellect. Zen techniques such as zazen, chanting, bowing, koans, etc... are designed to start stripping those layers until all that's left is Buddha Nature - now unobscured by the layers of intellect. I didn't use the examples of 'driving your car' and certainly not 'listening to the radio'. I could use 'driving your car' as long as you are not needing to think about where you are going, like following a map or directions or something like that. The act of turning the wheel to go right or left, pushing on the accelerator to speed up or jamming on the brakes to stop certainly could be examples of Buddha Nature in action. As long as you are not thinking about them, intellectualizing about them, they may indeed be. Here's a good example of that in a famous zen mondo which is the basis for a koan: "Yunyan asked Daowu, "How does the Bodhisattva Guanyin use those many hands and eyes?" Daowu answered, "It is like someone in the middle of the night reaching behind her head for the pillow." ...Bill! --- In Zen_Forum@yahoogroups.com, uerusuboyo@... wrote: > > Bill!,<br/><br/>The Buddha Nature of a child isn't the same though, in the > sense that layers are being formed rather than stripped. I'd also be careful > with comparing experiencing Buddha Nature (being Awake) with losing yourself > whilst driving your car and listening to the > radio.<br/><br/>Mike<br/><br/><br/>Sent from Yahoo! Mail for iPad >
