The Great Way is not difficult for those unchained to preferences.
Attach to the smallest preference, however,
and Heaven and Earth are set infinitely apart.
To set up what you like against what you dislike
is the dis-ease of the (conditioned) mind.
The Way is perfect
like the vast infinity
of time-space
where nothing is lacking
and nothing is in excess.
When the heart-mind abides
undisturbed in the Way,
no-thing in the world can offend,
and when a thing can no longer offend,
it simply —
naturally —
of its own accord —
ceases to exist in the old way.
So just let things be —
in their own way —
and there will be no
“this” or “that” —
“black” or “white” —
“good” or “evil” —
“right” or “wrong” —
“coming” or “going.”
To fathom the indescribable mystery of this One-Essence
is to be emancipated from all entanglements —
all
suffering.
When all things are perceived clearly —
without distortion —
the
timeless
boundless
Heart-Mind
is
awakened.
No comparisons or analogies are possible
when we return to the Origin —
where we
ironically
have
ever
and
always
been.
To come directly into sympathetic resonance
with the Fundamental Reality (Truth) —
whenever you find yourself confused
or mired in doubt —
remind yourself…
“Not two.”
In the realization of
not two
we
awaken —
as if from a dream —
and
remember…
nothing is separate —
nothing is excluded —
nothing is abandoned —
nothing is rejected.
Nothing is missing.
Nothing is broken.
Perfect Integrity.
Perfect Equilibrium.
Perfect
Peace.
And as we awaken
to this fundamental law of Life
we likewise awaken
to our own Innate Integrity —
our own Innate Purity —
and
naturally —
without force
or contrivance —
manifest
(embody)
the
Truth.
And the Truth is beyond extension or diminution —
beyond
space
and
time —
in it a single thought is ten thousand years.
What more can I possibly say?
Words are truly inadequate —
for the Way
is fundamentally beyond language.
In it there is no yesterday
no tomorrow
no today.
Just
this…
not
two.
/|\
— a literary adaptation of select verses from Xìn Xīn Míng 信心铭 (The Heart-Mind of Absolute Trust Sutra), a gāthā of Sõsan Sêng-ts’an, 6th century CE Ch’an (Zen) Buddhist monk, abbot and spiritual teacher, based on works by Osho, Anil Singh-Molare and Stephen Mitchell
Attach to the smallest preference, however,
and Heaven and Earth are set infinitely apart.
To set up what you like against what you dislike
is the dis-ease of the (conditioned) mind.
The Way is perfect
like the vast infinity
of time-space
where nothing is lacking
and nothing is in excess.
When the heart-mind abides
undisturbed in the Way,
no-thing in the world can offend,
and when a thing can no longer offend,
it simply —
naturally —
of its own accord —
ceases to exist in the old way.
So just let things be —
in their own way —
and there will be no
“this” or “that” —
“black” or “white” —
“good” or “evil” —
“right” or “wrong” —
“coming” or “going.”
To fathom the indescribable mystery of this One-Essence
is to be emancipated from all entanglements —
all
suffering.
When all things are perceived clearly —
without distortion —
the
timeless
boundless
Heart-Mind
is
awakened.
No comparisons or analogies are possible
when we return to the Origin —
where we
ironically
have
ever
and
always
been.
To come directly into sympathetic resonance
with the Fundamental Reality (Truth) —
whenever you find yourself confused
or mired in doubt —
remind yourself…
“Not two.”
In the realization of
not two
we
awaken —
as if from a dream —
and
remember…
nothing is separate —
nothing is excluded —
nothing is abandoned —
nothing is rejected.
Nothing is missing.
Nothing is broken.
Perfect Integrity.
Perfect Equilibrium.
Perfect
Peace.
And as we awaken
to this fundamental law of Life
we likewise awaken
to our own Innate Integrity —
our own Innate Purity —
and
naturally —
without force
or contrivance —
manifest
(embody)
the
Truth.
And the Truth is beyond extension or diminution —
beyond
space
and
time —
in it a single thought is ten thousand years.
What more can I possibly say?
Words are truly inadequate —
for the Way
is fundamentally beyond language.
In it there is no yesterday
no tomorrow
no today.
Just
this…
not
two.
/|\
— a literary adaptation of select verses from Xìn Xīn Míng 信心铭 (The Heart-Mind of Absolute Trust Sutra), a gāthā of Sõsan Sêng-ts’an, 6th century CE Ch’an (Zen) Buddhist monk, abbot and spiritual teacher, based on works by Osho, Anil Singh-Molare and Stephen Mitchell
