Hsin Shin Ming: “22. If there is even a trace of right and wrong, the mind is lost in confusion.”
As mentioned before, the truth, the true-Self is oneness as emptiness. There is nothing that is not the truth. Oneness, or emptiness, is the state without any labels or imaginary lines. Any trace of right and wrong means making discriminations, which is drawing imaginary lines, or labelling ‘right’ and ‘wrong’. ‘The mind is lost in confusion’ means being deluded by illusions. So, the scripture means ‘If you make even a little discrimination, you become deluded by illusions’.
However, you should not mistake this scripture as meaning that you should not discriminate between ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ at all in your life. If you are attached to not discriminating between ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ in order to avoid making right and wrong in your life, that itself is to make another trace of right and wrong. This is because you think that judging ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ is wrong, and not making such a judgement is right.
Having no trace of right and wrong is not to stop judging ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ but knowing that your judgement is empty in essence. Don’t hesitate, but feel free to judge ‘right’ or ‘wrong’. Hesitating, or avoiding, judging ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ is the evidence that your mind is in confusion. No matter how many traces of right and wrong there may be, they don’t matter at all if you know that they are all empty.
Student: “How can I have no trace of right and wrong?”
Master: “You should know that right is not different from wrong, but one with it.”
©Boo Ahm
All writing ©Boo Ahm. All images ©Simon Hathaway
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