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Vast Emptiness (BCR1) (BS2)

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KOAN:

Emperor Wu asked the great teacher Bodhidharma, “What is the first principle of the holy teaching?”
Bodhidharma said, “Vast emptiness, nothing holy.”
“Who are you, standing here in front of me?” asked the emperor.
“I don’t know,” said Bodhidharma.
The emperor didn’t understand.

—Blue Cliff Record Case 1, & Book of Serenity Case 2

Text August 6, 2020

Knock on Any Door – Daoist Masters & Zen Koans

John Tarrant

Koans
Abiding Nowhere the Heart-Mind Comes Forth (MK65b), Bankei's Miracle, Dragon Singing in a Withered Tree, Huineng's Original Face (GG23), Knock on Any Door (BCR), Nothing Holy (BCR1)(BS2), Stone Hitting Bamboo (GG5), Vast Emptiness (BCR1) (BS2)
Tags
Blue Cliff Record, Book of Serenity, buddha nature, Daoism, Diamond Sutra, Du Fu, emptiness, no trace, not knowing, out of nowhere, Summer 2019 sesshin
Category
Text

Whatever your condition is, you can see the “I have joy.” Out of that emptiness, out of what seems unpromising—the dark material, the valley spirit, the enigma, out of the mystery, out of what I don’t understand—it just appears. The joy just appears.

3034 Words