DHARMA SPRING

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Once Yunmen said, "There is nothing whatsoever that does not explain the Dharma. Striking the bell or beating the drum is no exception. If this is the case, nothing will be Dharma, and nothing will not be."
He added, "One should not assert that when one speaks, it is, and that when one doesn't speak, it isn't. Even what I just said has not quite made it. Well, as long as it benefits people, it may be okay. . . ."
from Zen Master Yunmen, Urs App, trans

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Panshan addressed the assembly, saying, "The moon of mind is solitary and perfect, its light swallowing the myriad forms. Its light does not illuminate realms, for realms do not exist. But when light and realms are both gone, what is it that remains?"
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Baofu brought up for consideration Panshan’s statement, "When all illuminated realms are gone, what is it that remains?" and Dongshan’s statement, "When all illuminated realms are undiminished, what else is there?"
He then said, "According to what was expounded by these two worthies, there is something left over that isn’t annihilated."
He then asked Changqing, "What would you say now to exterminate it?"
Changqing was silent for a long time.
Baofu said, "You are seeking speaking strategies in a mountain spirit's cave."
Changqing asked, "Then what would you say?"
Baofu said, "Both hands on the plow, water above the knees."

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Yunmen said, "Sickness and medicine accord with one another. The whole world is medicine. What are you?"
Blue Cliff Record, Case 87

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In my most recent talk, Talking to a Rock, I referenced a talk from a few years back in which I shared the story of my journey to practice, and said I would post it here. So here it is, dusted off and freshened up a bit, with tales of affinity for the Way via things occurring in early childhood through to adolescence and on to early adulthood, culminating with my participating in the ceremony of taking refuge, which marked the beginning of my journey with The Open Source and Pacific Zen School.
Enjoy!

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The practice of true reality is simply to sit serenely in silent introspection. When you have fathomed this you cannot be turned around by external causes and conditions. This empty, wide open mind is subtly and correctly illuminating. Spacious and content, without confusion from inner thoughts of grasping, effectively overcome habitual behavior and realize the self that is not possessed by emotions. You must be broad-minded, whole without relying on others. Such upright independent spirit can begin not to pursue degrading situations. Here you can rest and become clean, pure, and lucid. Bright and penetrating, you can immediately return, accord, and respond to deal with events. Everything is unhindered, clouds gracefully floating up to the peaks, the moonlight glitteringly flowing down mountain streams. The entire place is brightly illumined and spiritually transformed, totally unobstructed and clearly manifesting responsive interaction like box and lid or arrowpoints [meeting]. Continuing, cultivate and nourish yourself to enact maturity and achieve stability. If you accord everywhere with thorough clarity and cut off sharp corners without dependence on doctrines, like the white bull or wildcat [helping to arouse wonder], you can be called a complete person. So we hear that this is how one on the way of non-mind acts, but before realizing non-mind we still have great hardship.
-Hongzhi Zhengjue, Cultivating the Empty Field

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