Part 18-3
“What is the reason? All the minds that the Realised One has mentioned are not mind but they are just called mind.”
Commentary:
All things in this world that we think of as real require our words so as to be real because they become real only when we attach names to them. However, all that becomes real by means of the names granted by us is not real but illusionary. This is why the Buddha said, “All the minds that the Realised One has mentioned are not mind but they are just called mind.”
The true-Self, however, doesn’t need our words to be real, and it is neither existent nor non-existent because they are also words. This is why it is said that it is beyond words. Although the true-Self, Emptiness, the Buddha, mind and nirvana are used to express it, they are not real but no more than expedient means to indicate and point to it. This is why ancient masters would say, “Mind is not mind” when asked what mind is and answered, “Emptiness is not emptiness” when enquired about Emptiness.
In other words, all the names that signify the true-Self are to the true-Self as fingers pointing to the moon are to the moon. No matter how holy and attractive the fingers may look, we should look at the moon instead of being deluded by the fingers.
Student: “If the minds that the Buddha mentioned are not minds, what are they?”
Master: “Mind.”
©Boo Ahm
All writing ©Boo Ahm. All images ©Simon Hathaway
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