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[emarosan]

Whether you are an innocent beginner or seasoned adept, you must show some spirit! Don't vainly memorize other people's sayings: a little bit of reality is better than a lot of illusion. Otherwise you'll just go on deceiving yourself.

- Yunmen (864-949)

Comments

[two_little_fish]

YES TO MR. YUNMEN

[anonymous]

I'll be sure to commit this to memory so I don't forget.

[walksbeauty]

Glad you shared this!

[tenshuaozora]

Absolutely.

[fishmonkeytrip]

That had to be said - if I might share a relevant subjective experience I had recently. I had to leave a so called BBQ that I was looking forward to a couple of weeks ago at my local dharma centre for NO spirit. I felt extremely out of place and others tried to 'make me feel comfortable' but Im not shy or unfamiliar with the place, although I had not seen most of the people at this get together. It really was a case that if I interacted I would rock the boat of NO spirit, that everyone was comfortably paddling along in. I just slipped out and left them to it. Next week at my class when I was required to contribute to a dharma discussion I cheerfully pointed out we had been instructed to share our 'experiences' of dharma not get bogged down in technicalities, by the author of the book we are studying and the spritual guide of our teachers. The teacher agreed that this kind of no spirit, bogged down in technicality / rote learning and regurgitating just leads to a kind of 'cult' mentality that is of no use. I felt the whole room