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I. NO BUDDHA NATURE WITHOUT THE MIND

Master: Even though there are so many chaotic events in the Triple Cosmos,[i] all will finally return to just one Mind. The enlightenment of previous and future Buddhas does not depend on non-living, written[ii] words to transmit the mind to the mind.

Student: If it does not depend on any written word, then what do we use to refer to the Mind?

Master: Asking me is your mind. Responding to you is my mind. From the ancient, beginningless time [the time before the first thought], each and every action in all times and places is originally your Mind and originally Buddha. That is the reason it has been said that this Mind in itself is this Buddha.

It is impossible to find either Bodhi[iii] or Nirvana departed from your mind. The original nature of your mind itself[iv] is in all dharmas.[v] It is neither cause nor effect. The Dharma is Mind as it is. Mind as it is, is this Buddha. Mind in itself is already perfectly radiant and serenely luminous Nirvana.

If someone were to insist that it is possible to have Buddha and Bodhi without the mind, that could not be right. Where could Buddha and Bodhi be if they exist without mind? By analogy, suppose someone tries to grab empty space. Is it possible or not? Since “empty space” is just a name having no form and no size, there is no way to hold it and no way to avoid it.

Just like that, you cannot hold “Buddha” when you try to grasp it nor let go of it when you try to throw it away. Seeking “Buddha” outside of your mind is of no avail. Since “Buddha” is produced by one’s own mind, how is it possible to find “Buddha” outside your mind?

Buddhas from the past and future speak only of this Mind:

The mind is Buddha;

Buddha is Mind.

No Buddha outside mind.

No mind outside Buddha.

If Buddha exists outside your mind, then where is it? If no Buddha exists outside your mind, then why do you have the idea of seeing Buddha? Fooled by the interaction of inside and outside and not realizing the Original Mind, we become entangled by lifeless forms around us and thus remain unliberated.[vi]

If you do not trust the truth of this, then you are deceiving yourself, and receive no benefit. Even though Buddha as it is does not have any flaw, ordinary beings, being topsy-turvy, do not recollect or know that their own mind is already the Buddha itself. Know that your own mind is the Buddha, and do not try to find Buddha outside your mind.

[i] Here, the Greek word “cosmos” is used for Triloka rather than the traditional “Three Worlds” or “Three Spheres” because cosmos implies the harmonizing of all differences in one entity. The one entity in our discussion is one “Mind”. Generally, in Buddhism there are three classifications for cosmos. These refer to the internal world of thought or consciousness. The first is the cosmos of desire (where greediness, anger, and ignorance are to be found). The second is the cosmos of rupa (color and form). The third is the cosmos of no rupa (colorless and endless).

[ii] The proper translation is “written”; however, it actually refers equally to written words, spoken words, and words of internal dialogue, disregarding any distinction between writing, speaking, or thinking of words. These words are all non-living without the critical factor of self re-examination. [A famous Chan Koan postulates that error arises the moment there is a single thought arising. How can the mind be transmitted though error. This can be seen clearly in translation errors in Christian scripture. Entire philosophical positions cling to what turn out to be incorrect wording.]

[iii] The Wisdom of Enlightenment.

[iv] In this text, the nature of the mind itself or original nature of mind replaces the often used phrase “self-nature”. This is done to avoid the mistaken idea that self-nature is some substantial “thing” outside the mind.

[v] In the sense here, “dharmas” refers to things or ideas of things as in the “ten thousand dharmas of the world”. On the other hand, “Dharma” refers to the Doctrine or Teaching of Buddha and the patriarchs.

[vi] If anyone calls a lifeless casting of wood and metal a Buddha, then they are chained by that lifeless thing and are not free.

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