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Zen Koans
The consciousness is like the gardener, while the store consciousness is like the garden soil containing both wholesome and unwholesome seeds. To practice is to tend this soil—removing weeds, watering it with mindfulness and wisdom—so that wholesome seeds can sprout and grow into the fruits and flowers of peace. To truly absorb the Dharma, we must uproot our prejudices and open our hearts; if we only maintain outer form without true transformation, our practice becomes an empty ritual.
Bodhi mind is a seed already present in each person, needing to be nurtured and watered through joy and the aspiration to bring happiness to ourselves and others. There are two interwoven methods of meditation: using a koan, which is planted deep in the store consciousness until it blossoms into enlightenment, and the method of Silent Illumination (just sitting, without calculation), allowing the mind to settle and shine by itself. Both aim to nourish the Tathagata-garbha—the sacred embryo of the future Buddha within each of us.
The main obstacles that must be uprooted:
- greed
- anger
- ignorance
- arrogance
- doubt