difficulty at the beginning

quiet, luminous, still

 

If we persevere a great success is at hand.

 
The literal translation of “chun” is “a blade of grass pushing against an obstacle as it sprouts out of the earth.” Receiving this hexagram is a sign that beyond the difficulties and pressures that surround you, a success lies waiting. In order to bring it fully into the light, you must be patient and persevere in nonaction.
 
No matter how fervently one desires to resolve a situation, to intervene impatiently now will only hinder the progress of good fortune. Accept and bear with the discomfort of chaos without attempting to push it away. Allowing it to clear of its own accord, in its own time, is the only way of insuring a subsequent blossoming of success.
 
Hold to proper principles. In your actions, seek and respect the counsel of the Sage. Allow those whose hearts are true to assist you wherever possible; be tolerant of all others. In this way the blessing that now lies hidden will come into the open.
 

from The I Ching, or Book of Changes

Hexagram 3, Chun / Difficulty at the Beginning

 

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invisible yet ever present


 
 

The heart of Tao is immortal,

the mysterious fertile mother of us all,

of heaven and earth, of every

and not-thing.

 

Invisible yet ever present,

you can use it forever

without using it up.

 

Tao te Ching of Lao Tzu,

Chapter 6

 

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Hua hu Ching, Wei wu Wei Ching,

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zazen perfects the human being

this is zazen

 

Scholar’s studies

can become an obstacle,

making the mind difficult to control.

The effect of zazen is to let your mind and

body really listen to you. Quiet sitting is good.

Zazen can reasonably be taken as far

as one chooses—one can advance

by the light discovered

within it.

 

There’s no deception

in it. It’s a natural need in a human

being’s life.It’s the call by the Universe

to a human being’s true nature.

Zazen perfects the

human being.

 

The mission of humans is

to cease producing the waves of thought that

have occurred up until now as a result of egotism.

When that is done, a human being is

born for the first time.

 

Katō Kōzan

everyone is originally pure, not different from the buddha

 

be free of all worldly affairs

stop your search

 

Do not look for a chance to go out.

But if necessary, going out is permitted once a month.

People in the past lived in the remote mountains and practiced

far away in the forests. Not only were they free of all worldly affairs,

but they abandoned all relationships. You should learn the heart of their

covering brilliance and obscuring traces. Now is the time for the fire

on your head to be wiped out. Is it not sad if you waste this time,

concerning yourself with secular affairs? The impermanent

is unreliable. Nobody knows where or when this

dew-like existence will drop into the grass.

Not recognizing impermanence is

truly regrettable.

 

Dogen