Teaching You Zazen 24: Names, Appearances, and Delusions of "You" and "Yours"

2008/2/16 10:39:47

A couple of casual remarks first:

First, from now on there will be only one post on weekends. This ID also needs some time for other things and can't be writing posts all the time.

Second, I see many people talking about Baoding Tian'e — that will certainly have its run too, but the best entry point has long passed. Buying it now is tantamount to chasing the high. Note: for stocks with generous bonus share distributions, you must be careful of those exploiting the news to offload shares. So be wary of the overly hyped ones. Also, if you can get in early with inside information, that's obviously the best. If you don't have that channel, then after the news is released, the first pullback confirmation after the initial surge — as long as there's no sign of distribution and the price isn't too high — those are safe entry points.

"You" and "yours" acquire their names through naming. Of course, in different language systems, these two things take different forms, but in essence they are the same.

Obviously, this naming and acquisition of names doesn't come entirely out of thin air, because without the arising of the appearances of "you" and "yours," there would be no such names.

Materialism and idealism love to argue about whether names determine appearances or appearances determine names, whether matter determines consciousness or consciousness determines matter, and similar tedious things. In reality, both names and appearances, both matter and consciousness, are nothing but delusion.

The power of delusion is of course formidable. With the most primitive names and appearances, one can weave the most colossal world of delusion. For example, science is also a form of delusion, and within the world of delusion, self-verification is possible. For instance, appearances that conform to the name of science can be repeatedly produced — why? Because appearances are also within delusion. Names and appearances are all part of the game of collective karma.

Even if ultimately there existed such a powerful naming system that could perfectly correspond to all appearances that humanity could face — that is, could explain and scientifically account for all phenomena that humans could perceive, manufacturing every new thing according to human desire — this would still be within delusion.

From the standpoint of zazen, the first layer of delusion is the delusion of names. The entanglement of names has been somewhat perceived in postmodern philosophy and by other so-called sages. They hope to break the entanglement of names, thinking that this will yield an authentic, pristine world. But they don't realize that breaking the entanglement of names is precisely being entangled by names. Names, conceptual systems, and such things are delusion. Using one delusion to break another delusion is like cutting off your head to look for your head — utterly foolish.

Beneath the delusion of names, the second layer — the delusion of appearances — is even further beyond the comprehension of ordinary people. Everything your six senses encounter is within delusion, and your six senses themselves are even more so within delusion. How laughable that some fools play at "direct present-moment apprehension," not realizing that this is still within the crudest delusion of appearances.

Everything of yours, your world, the universe and space-time, heaven and hell, and all the rest — all are within the delusion of appearances. This delusion, intertwined and entangled in continuity, generates all worlds, all living and dying.

Zazen is, in essence, also a great delusion. Hoping to use zazen to break through delusion is an even greater delusion. Here, you have no path to walk, no gate to enter.

No path to walk, no gate to enter — only then is there a slight semblance. Ultimately, how is it? Investigate!