When water is pure
and sparkling clear, you can see
straight to the bottom. When your mind
holds no concerns, no circumstance can turn you,
and once your mind doesn’t stray, a kalpa
has no changes. From such awareness
nothing hides.
When water is pure
and sparkling clear, you can see
straight to the bottom. When your mind
holds no concerns, no circumstance can turn you,
and once your mind doesn’t stray, a kalpa
has no changes. From such awareness
nothing hides.
Let go of hundreds
of years and relax completely.
Open your hands and walk, innocently.
Thousands of words, myriad interpretations,
are only to free you from
obstructions.
The wave can live her life as a wave, and at the same time she can live the life of water. She does not have to die in order to become water, because the wave is water already in the present moment.
Nirvana means the extinction of all notions and concepts, including the concepts of birth and death, being and nonbeing, coming and going, but it does not mean the extinction of life. Nirvana is the ultimate dimension of life, a state of coolness, peace, and joy.
It is not a state to be attained after you die. You can touch nirvana right now by breathing, walking, and drinking your tea in mindfulness. Everything and everyone are dwelling in nirvana. You have been “nirvanized” since the very non-beginning of time!
If we can live our daily life deeply, we’ll be able to touch nirvana right in the here and now.
The past is already past.
Don’t try to regain it.
The present does not stay.
Don’t try to touch it.
From moment to moment.
The future has not come;
Don’t think about it
Beforehand.
Whatever comes to the eye,
Leave it be.
There are no commandments
To be kept;
There’s no filth to be cleansed.
With empty mind really
Penetrated, the dharmas
Have no life.
When you can be like this,
You’ve completed
The ultimate attainment.
grass and trees have buddha nature
Other than the birds,
Who watches over you?
Lordly peaks, your neighbors.
White head held pillowed on a stone.
Grey robe ragged, but not soiled
Chestnuts pile up on your path.
Monkeys circle where you sit.
If you ever set up another zendo,
I swear I’ll be the one who
sweeps the floors.