| |
is pure resting, sinking into your rest deeply. And as you sink deeper and deeper you find you are melting. The moment you come to oneness with existence, you have arrived to your nature. It can be possible only through relaxation, through rest.
Suzuki's statement is rational, but not existential, and Zen is the only existential approach in the whole world.
A little biographical note:
ONCE, WHEN HE WAS TRAVELING, TANKA TENNEN STOPPED OVERNIGHT IN A TEMPLE.
You know the meaning of Tennen; it means "absolutely natural."
Zen is your nature; whether you know it or not does not make any difference. If you know you will not stumble unnecessarily, you will not go on falling into the same ditches again and again. If you know, you will walk like a man with eyes. If you don't know, you will walk with eyes, but closed. Your whole life you will suffer unnecessary misery, tension, anxiety. But there is no difference as far as your inner nature is concerned. You are a buddha all the time -- sleeping, waking, whether you know it or not. If you know, life becomes a bliss. If you don't know, life becomes a misery.
So it is simply you. If you are ready to sink deep within yourself, being in deep rest... It is not a victory, it is just remembering that buddhahood is your nature, it is your dhamma.
TANKA TENNEN STOPPED OVERNIGHT IN A TEMPLE. IT WAS SO COLD THAT HE MADE A FIRE OF ONE OF THE WOODEN BUDDHA STATUES. WHEN HE WAS CHASTISED THE FOLLOWING MORNING BY THE TEMPLE MONKS, TANKA EXPLAINED THAT HE HAD BURNED THE STATUE SO HE COULD TAKE BUDDHA'S BONES.
"HOW COULD A WOODEN STATUE HAVE BONES?" A MONK ASKED TANKA TENNEN.
"THEN WHY HAVE YOU CHASTISED ME?" REPLIED TANKA.
Only a man of immense insight, only a man who knows his buddhahood, can burn a statue of Buddha in the night. The night was so cold, the real buddha was suffering from cold, and the unreal buddha was enthroned, so he took one of the statues -- it was a wooden statue -- and he burned it and was quite happy.
In the morning, when the monks of the temple found that he had burned a statue of Buddha, obviously they were very angry. "What kind of man
|
|
|