Let us continue with Verses on the Faith Mind by the 3rd Zen Patriarch, Sengstau.
Infinitely large and infinitely small; no difference, for definitions have
vanished and no boundaries are seen.
So too with Being and Non-Being.
Don't waste time with doubts and arguments that have nothing to do with this.
These three verses go together. They talk about how people get distracted with words, arguing about this and arguing about that. In fact they get so caught up in their arguments that they never find the secret of life. This secret is the knowledge of where reality comes from; it is the secret of your own being.
Does reality come from the world or does it come from you?
If, for instance, reality came from the objects that appear here in the world, then there would be no secret at all. After all you can ask anyone walking down the street if the people walking on the sidewalk, or the cup of coffee on the table are real. Of course they will say yes. You don't have to read thick books or even this blog, or to meditate on your self-nature to discover that reality comes from the things that you see; almost everyone believes that anyway. These people would argue that they see the color of the cup and feel its warmth in their hand, and that is the sign of reality.
On the other hand if we can show that your sense of reality comes from a place that is much closer than the cup, a place that is so close that you look right past it, then this blog is worth reading. And our being, sometimes called the sense of reality, can rightly be called a secret.
Your meditation will become the highlight of your day
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So here’s the secret that I am talking about: the sense of reality that the world seems to have actually comes from you and not from the world. In your meditations you can verify this by noticing what you actually experience, as opposed to what you are supposed to experience. You will gasp in amazement when you discover the difference; and most important you will find that which supports the whole universe.
That’s why in these blogs I suggest little experiments that will light up your meditation practice. Once you get a feel for this type of experimentation, you will gain a whole new appreciation for the power of meditation. Instead of drudgery, your meditations will become the highlight of your day.
What doesn’t depend on coming and going?
So here is an example: We all know what we are supposed to experience, right? That we’re over here and the world is over there. Moreover, when we close our eyes we assume that the world remains, but we don’t see it. Now that we know what we are supposed to experience let’s verify this and see if it’s what we actually experience. Just sit comfortably and close your eyes. What are you experiencing right now? Are you experiencing a world that you just can’t see, or are you experiencing something that is much more basic than the world; a thing that doesn’t depend on the comings and goings of the world.
Don’t worry if your experience doesn’t fit into words and thoughts. Although you can’t quite capture it, you can know it. That is the beauty of being. Before you bring in a separate experiencer, you can notice what you actually experience. This is what we call direct experience; it is the thing that makes your experience seem so rich.
You are yourself already
You may have heard of the quote, Those who know cannot say. You might think that this is a strange quote coming from a person who writes thousands of words on your self-nature. Yet for all of these words, the only thing I can do is point you to the thing that you experience directly. After all you are yourself, aren’t you? Find your being by your direct experience and you can forget all of these words, and just remain as you really are.
There are many more experiments that will enhance your meditations. For instance you can discover the nature of your body and mind, and find out where the world is anyway. But just get to the bottom of the one experiment described above: is the world there when you do not perceive it? You will then be well on your way to discovering that which supports the whole universe. It is the thing that you really are. And it makes no difference whether you call it being or non-being.
Asking Question
As always feel free to ask questions. It is only when you don’t ask that you get to live in assumed limitations. When you can ask you are well on your way to freeing yourself from the limitations that seem to cause your suffering.
Here questions about this article or other things going on in your life are always welcome; you can write us at michael@ananya.com. I love questions and try to answer them all in this blog. That’s because when you start to question limitation, you are on the verge of destroying it.
Please Tell Your Friends
Please tell you friends. Although we don’t have an advertising budget, we hope that everyone who wants to can find out about and wake up to this wisdom.
Best Wishes,
Michael Gluckman
