There's a passage in a letter written by Zen Master Dahui Zonggao (1089-1163) of the Song Dynasty in China, renowned as the founder of Ganhwa Seon (Korean for kฤnhuà chán), to a lay practitioner who had experienced enlightenment:
"You said before, 'As for Principle (็), one suddenly awakens, and with this awakening, all dissolves; but as for Phenomena (ไบ), they are not suddenly removed but gradually disappear.' You must never forget this statement in your daily life." <Dahui Seojan> Reply to Li Canzheng Hanlao.
The phrase mentioned by Li Canzheng, "As for Principle, one suddenly awakens, and with this awakening, all dissolves; but as for Phenomena, they are not suddenly removed but gradually disappear" (็ๅ้ ๆ, ไนๆๅ้ท, ไบ้้ ้ค, ๅ ๆฌก็ฌฌ็ก), originally comes from Volume 10 of the Shurangama Sutra. This saying is a skillful means of expression, briefly summarizing the two aspects of mind cultivation.
In Buddhism, it's always said that our mind-world has two aspects: the aspect of a sentient being afflicted by defilements, and the aspect of a Buddha liberated from defilements. It can be said that a single mind has these two aspects: the mind of a sentient being and the mind of a Buddha. These two aspects are always referred to using opposing terms. For instance, the mind-world of sentient beings is called the mundane world, and the mind-world of a Buddha is called the transcendent world. Roughly categorized, the names created by opposing these two worlds are as follows:
| Function (็จ; manifested form as action) | Substance (้ซ; basis of action) |
| Can be grasped or abandoned | Cannot be grasped or abandoned |
| Good or Bad | Neither good nor bad |
| Wave | Water |
| Golden Calf | Gold |
As shown, a single mind-world has two aspects. The difference between these two aspects, in a nutshell, is the discriminable world and the world beyond discrimination. The discriminable world is the mind-world of sentient beings, and breaking free from this discrimination is liberation, nirvana, and enlightenment. The discriminable world is where all sorts of things are distinguished and appear, while the undiscriminable world is an empty, void world where nothing is distinguished. In Buddhism, all discriminable things are classified into five categories—form, feeling, perception, volition, and consciousness—called the Five Aggregates (ไบ่). That which is undiscriminable is likened to empty space and is called Emptiness (็ฉบ).
From the perspective of the skillful means of Principle (็) and Phenomena (ไบ): the discriminable world is the manifest phenomenal world that ordinary people discriminate, perceive, and know; this is called Phenomena (ไบ). The essential world, which is beyond discrimination and thus imperceptible and unmanifest, is called Principle (็). In other words, Phenomena (ไบ) refers to the discriminable world, and Principle (็) refers to the undiscriminable world.
Therefore, the meaning of the Shurangama Sutra's phrase, "As for Principle, one suddenly awakens, and with this awakening, all dissolves," is that when one experiences an immediate release from discrimination, all distinctions disappear, and there is nothing, like empty space. The experience of breaking free from discrimination is a sudden, momentary experience, like opening one's eyes after having them closed. And once one is free from discrimination, there is nothing left to discriminate.
This sudden experience of enlightenment is called seeing one's true nature (๊ฒฌ์ฑ; gyeonseong) in Buddhism. Since it is an experience of confirming one's inherent fundamental nature, confirming it once is like confirming the whole. This is what the Shurangama Sutra meant by saying that when the experience of enlightenment, free from discrimination, suddenly arises, one is freed from all discrimination.
However, the phrase "but as for Phenomena, they are not suddenly removed but gradually disappear" refers to the familiarity of life in the discriminable reality. How much one enjoys the effects of liberation, being free from discrimination in daily life, depends on which side one is more accustomed to. In other words, even if one has had the experience of sudden enlightenment (๋์ค; don-o) where one breaks free from discrimination, discrimination does not disappear. Therefore, if we compare the strength of discrimination that one has been accustomed to until now with the strength of being free from discrimination, which has only just been experienced, naturally, the strength of the familiar discrimination is greater.
Thus, even if one has confirmed the mind's foundation—which is originally empty, unhindered, autonomous, and peaceful—by breaking free from discrimination, because one is not yet accustomed to it, the power to abide in this mind-foundation is extremely weak. A person who first experiences liberation from discrimination tastes the joy of freedom after a long period of confinement. However, since that joy is not yet satisfyingly great, it's natural that while extremely happy on one hand, one also feels a thirst for more due to the lingering insufficiency, leading one to further immerse oneself in practice.
Dahui Zonggao spoke of the process of becoming accustomed to the non-dual Middle Way (๋ถ์ด์ค๋; bul-i-jungdo) after having comprehended it, as follows:
"Just make the deep shallow, and the shallow deep; make the unfamiliar familiar, and the familiar unfamiliar." <Dahui Seojan> Reply to Zhao Daizhi Daofu.
"Generally, from time immemorial, familiar places are very familiar, and unfamiliar places are very unfamiliar. Even if one suddenly awakens, the power of the Way ultimately cannot overcome the power of karma. What is the power of karma? Familiar places are the power of karma. What is the power of the Way? Unfamiliar places are the power of the Way." <Dahui Fabao> Sent to Lü Jiyi.
"As days and months pass, unfamiliar places will naturally become familiar, and familiar places will naturally become unfamiliar. What are familiar places? Cleverly thinking, calculating, and scrutinizing with thoughts. What are unfamiliar places? Enlightenment, nirvana, true thusness (jinyo), Buddha-nature; where thought and discrimination are cut off, utterly immeasurable, and cannot be handled by the mind." <Dahui Fabao> Sent to Xu Tixing.
It takes time for our mind to become accustomed to anything. If we are always close to something, we gradually become accustomed to it over time. Confirming the mind's nature as originally empty and pure by seeing it freed from discrimination is a sudden, momentary experience. However, becoming accustomed to that nature in daily life requires a long time. Therefore, the sutra states, "as for Phenomena, they are not suddenly removed but gradually disappear."
Among practitioners, there are cases where this fact is misunderstood, and they mistakenly believe that their practice is complete after a sudden experience of breaking free from discrimination. In other words, they sometimes think that if they confirm the mind's inherent emptiness, their practice is over. This is an error resulting from ignorance or disregard of the issue of familiarity. In fact, if one experiences breaking free from discrimination, as Zen Master Dahui Zonggao said, the power of enlightenment liberated from defilements is still so weak that the mind is still largely drawn by the strong power of discriminative delusion. That is why a person who has experienced breaking free from discrimination shows even greater zeal for practice than before, because they have tasted how good it is to be free from discrimination.
Thus, mind cultivation has two aspects: the experience of sudden enlightenment (้ ๆ; don-o), which is breaking free from discrimination, and the long process of becoming accustomed to that enlightenment. Just as a mirror has two sides—an empty background and the images that appear on it—our mind also has two sides: the undiscriminable empty ground of the mind and the world of discrimination, the myriad phenomena that appear in this mind. These two aspects are inseparable; one cannot exist without the other. Since both the world of discrimination and the empty mind exist together, to avoid leaning towards one side, one must become equally accustomed to both. Since we have been accustomed to the world of discrimination for a long time, we now need to become accustomed to the empty mind.
Enlightenment is when a sentient being, who lived believing the world of discrimination was everything, suddenly confirms that there is an undiscriminable world. However, even if one has experienced the undiscriminable world, one is still accustomed to discrimination, and the undiscriminable world remains unfamiliar. We follow what is familiar and do not follow what is unfamiliar. In other words, familiarity has the power to pull us in real life. If there is no power, even if something is good, we will be drawn to what is familiar, and thus, even if we know what is good, we cannot enjoy it.
In truth, the entire process of mind cultivation can be said to be the process of becoming accustomed to enlightenment. Mind cultivation is the experience of a person who lived in the discriminable world, breaking free from discrimination, awakening to the empty mind, and then being able to live in the discriminable world with a mind that is always empty and free from any defilements. The experience of breaking free from discrimination is an unknowable, inconceivable experience, so there is nothing one can do to break free from discrimination.
The only path of practice is to seek out a wise teacher (์ ์ง์; seonjijik) who is already living free from discrimination and listen to stories about the world beyond discrimination. By repeatedly listening to stories about life in the world beyond discrimination, one's mind will unconsciously move towards breaking free from discrimination, and at some moment, one will suddenly experience breaking free from discrimination. This experience is called seeing one's nature and becoming a Buddha (๊ฒฌ์ฑ์ฑ๋ถ; gyeonseongseongbul). However, even after experiencing breaking free from discrimination, the mind is still accustomed to discrimination and not to the world beyond discrimination. Therefore, in most cases, the mind still follows discrimination as it is accustomed to. But as time passes, one becomes more accustomed to being free from discrimination, and it gradually becomes clearer that one is firmly grounded in that state.
Thus, mind cultivation has two aspects: the experience of sudden enlightenment and the gradual process of becoming accustomed to enlightenment. However, from the perspective of a practitioner, one must always look towards and practice for the state of being free from discrimination. Only then will one become accustomed to it. Do not calculate with thoughts; look towards the place where there are no thoughts and practice. Do not look to the future, nor the past, nor the present. Do not look at yourself, nor at others. Do not think of enlightenment, nor of ignorance. Do not even think of practicing, but just practice.
This is a question primarily asked by those who have had an experience. If one has had an experience, then how should one continue to practice afterward? Frankly, I sometimes wonder if it even needs to be said. This is because if one was wandering lost before enlightenment and then experiences it, one has found the path, so one simply needs to follow it. However, it can still be confusing because the path is still so unfamiliar and untrodden. Therefore, this question can arise.
First, I want to say that just as there is no fixed method of practice to attain enlightenment before it, there is likewise no set method of practice after enlightenment. Enlightenment, which is said to be reaching the non-dual self-nature, free from the discriminating mind, is a non-contrived Dharma (๋ฌด์๋ฒ; muwibeop) that naturally occurs for a person who has made the initial resolve. It is not the practice of contrived Dharma (์ ์๋ฒ; yuwibeop), where one sets a particular method of practice and diligently follows it. Contrived Dharma, as stated in the Diamond Sutra, is as illusory as bubbles or a mirage. True attainment is always non-contrived Dharma.
As the Sixth Patriarch Huineng said in the Platform Sutra, because the Buddha Dharma (๋ถ๋ฒ; bulbeop) is non-dual Dharma (๋ถ์ด๋ฒ; bul-i-beop), it only speaks of seeing one's true nature (๊ฒฌ์ฑ; gyeonseong), which is realizing the non-dual self-nature. The inconceivable experience of liberation from the discriminating mind of sentient beings is precisely the experience of the non-dual Middle Way (๋ถ์ด์ค๋; bul-i-jungdo). The non-dual Middle Way is to be free from the discriminating mind, neither choosing nor abandoning either discrimination or non-discrimination. Therefore, the practice after the experience of seeing one's true nature is ultimately the time during which the enlightenment of the non-dual Middle Way is fully realized.
Zen Master Dahui Zonggao referred to this period by saying that one becomes familiar with the unfamiliar and unfamiliar with the familiar. He said that Prajñฤ (่ฌ่ฅ; wisdom) is the unfamiliar, and discriminating delusions (๋ถ๋ณ๋ง์; bunbyeol-mangsong) are the familiar. Although one has had the experience of being free from the discriminating mind and realizing the non-dual Middle Way, it is still too unfamiliar and strange, and the reality of still being afflicted by familiar discriminating delusions is unsatisfactory. For this reason, one becomes more zealous in practice, but in reality, it takes a lot of time until one becomes fully satisfied.
Generally, when one breaks free from discrimination, one confirms a mind like boundless, empty space, which has no end. One then strives to abide in this mind, thinking, "This is my original mind." Furthermore, abiding here frees one from all the noisy worldly affairs, making one feel light, refreshed, and stable, with nothing to do. It cannot be better than this. However, the power to abide here is still too weak, always leaving one thirsty.
The mind previously afflicted by mundane concerns is disliked, while the current empty, unburdened mind is satisfying, like returning home and comfortably abiding in one's own house. A lot of time flows as one regards this unburdened mind as one's original mind and tries to become accustomed to it. After a considerable period of such living, suddenly, one day, that empty mind disappears.
When the empty mind suddenly disappears, one is momentarily surprised, wondering if the practice has gone wrong. Now there is no empty mind, and only the usual discriminable states appear, leading to a shock, thinking, "Am I going back to the way I was before?" However, one soon realizes that it's not a return to the past, but that all the discriminable states are precisely empty space. One confirms that all the discriminable states that were previously disliked and rejected are nothing but empty space.
When it is confirmed that all discriminable states are nothing but empty space, there is no longer a separate favored enlightenment and a disliked discriminating delusion. Now, for the first time, there is truly nothing to do. And for the first time, one clearly confirms the true nature of the non-dual Middle Way, that the mundane world of discriminating delusions and the transcendent world of nothingness are not two. Although this non-dual Middle Way is thus realized, it is still unfamiliar, and its power is insufficient. It has become a non-dual, single world, but that single world is not yet firmly integrated, and there is still a slight creakiness due to lingering gaps.
Then, as time passes again, at some moment, the creaking mind with gaps suddenly combines seamlessly, becoming very firm. At this moment, one gains the conviction that no matter the circumstances, there will be no more wavering or creaking, and the non-dual Middle Way will always be a single world, never retreating. One feels even more at ease and confident. Thus, one lives life freely and joyfully, unhindered by anything.
The gradual deepening of practice after the sudden experience of liberation from blocked discrimination can be explained like this. However, a practitioner's insight is always limited to what they have experienced; they do not know what will happen in the future. It's like climbing a mountain where one sees further the higher one climbs, or like navigating an unknown path where one only knows as far as one has gone. One cannot know what will happen next. Even if one hears and understands, one still does not truly know what has not yet been experienced. This is because the practice of enlightenment can only be directly experienced; it cannot be thought about or remembered.
Not knowing what will happen next or what to do is the nature of this practice. Imagining, predicting, or making judgments about this practice, such as "this is so and so," are all acts of discrimination and therefore delusory thoughts (๋ง์; mangsong). There is only the experience of being free from discrimination. In this practice, both before and after the experience of seeing one's true nature, the caution is not to discriminate, judge, or imagine.
If it is a non-contrived experience of seeing one's true nature, where discrimination was blocked and then naturally released, then the insight of the non-dual Middle Way will naturally open up. And this insight naturally becoming clearer over time is precisely this non-contrived practice. Therefore, as long as one does not go down the contrived path of intentional action based on discrimination, everything will happen naturally without any problems. This is the one thing to be cautious about from beginning to end in this practice.
Traditionally, it is said that concentration (ๅฎ; jeong) and wisdom (ๆ ง; hye), that is, meditation (็ฆชๅฎ; seonjeong) and wisdom (ๆบๆ ง; jihye), are simultaneously attained upon enlightenment. The Platform Sutra compares concentration and wisdom to a lamp and its light, stating that the two must be simultaneously present. Concentration is the mind being empty, still, and stable, while wisdom is being brightly aware, unpolluted by discrimination. When one experiences liberation from discriminating delusions, these two are naturally attained together. Emotionally, one feels the stillness and emptiness of unhindered concentration, and intellectually, one confirms the wisdom that abides nowhere and is brightly aware. When one has the experience of sudden enlightenment (๋์ค; don-o), breaking free from blocked discrimination, concentration and wisdom are naturally attained together, giving rise to the insight that sees the true reality of the Middle Way (์ค๋์ค์; jungdosilsang), where the mundane and transcendent are not two. This is consistent with what was mentioned above.
Sudden Enlightenment and Gradual Cultivation?
There's a passage in a letter written by Zen Master Dahui Zonggao (1089-1163) of the Song Dynasty in China, renowned as the founder of Ganhwa Seon (Korean for kฤnhuà chán), to a lay practitioner who had experienced enlightenment:
"You said before, 'As for Principle (็), one suddenly awakens, and with this awakening, all dissolves; but as for Phenomena (ไบ), they are not suddenly removed but gradually disappear.' You must never forget this statement in your daily life." <Dahui Seojan> Reply to Li Canzheng Hanlao.
The phrase mentioned by Li Canzheng, "As for Principle, one suddenly awakens, and with this awakening, all dissolves; but as for Phenomena, they are not suddenly removed but gradually disappear" (็ๅ้ ๆ, ไนๆๅ้ท, ไบ้้ ้ค, ๅ ๆฌก็ฌฌ็ก), originally comes from Volume 10 of the Shurangama Sutra. This saying is a skillful means of expression, briefly summarizing the two aspects of mind cultivation.
In Buddhism, it's always said that our mind-world has two aspects: the aspect of a sentient being afflicted by defilements, and the aspect of a Buddha liberated from defilements. It can be said that a single mind has these two aspects: the mind of a sentient being and the mind of a Buddha. These two aspects are always referred to using opposing terms. For instance, the mind-world of sentient beings is called the mundane world, and the mind-world of a Buddha is called the transcendent world. Roughly categorized, the names created by opposing these two worlds are as follows:
Two Aspects of a Single Mind-World
| Sentient Being's World | Buddha's World |
| :----------------------------------- | :------------------------------- |
| Mundane World (ไธ้) | Transcendent World (ๅบไธ้) |
| Afflictions of Life and Death (็ๆญป็ ฉๆฑ) | Liberation from Afflictions (่งฃ่ซ) |
| Ignorant Avidyฤ (็กๆ) | Wise Radiance (ๅ ๆ) |
| Conventional Truth (ไฟ่ซฆ) | Ultimate Truth (็่ซฆ) |
| Painful Life (่ฆ) | Nirvana (ๆถๆป ; cessation of suffering) |
| Dualistic Dharma (ไบๆณ; world of distinctions) | Non-dual Dharma (ไธไบๆณ; world beyond distinctions) |
| Choosing one side from two | Middle Way (ไธญ้; transcending both sides) |
| The myriad phenomena exist (ๆฃฎ็พ ่ฌ่ฑก) | Emptiness (็ฉบ; nothing exists) |
| Manifest phenomenal world (็พ่ฑกไธ็) | Hidden essential world (ๆฌ่ณชไธ็) |
| Knowable through discrimination | Unknowable through discrimination, inconceivable (ไธๅฏๆ่ญฐ) |
| Form (็ธ; world of appearances) | Nature (ๆง; world without appearances) |
| Five Aggregates (ไบ่; form, feeling, perception, mental formations, consciousness) | Emptiness (็ฉบ) |
| Phenomena (ไบ; discriminable facts) | Principle (็; undiscriminable principle) |
| Function (็จ; manifested form as action) | Substance (้ซ; basis of action) |
| Can be grasped or abandoned | Cannot be grasped or abandoned |
| Good or Bad | Neither good nor bad |
| Wave | Water |
| Golden Calf | Gold |
As shown, a single mind-world has two aspects. The difference between these two aspects, in a nutshell, is the discriminable world and the world beyond discrimination. The discriminable world is the mind-world of sentient beings, and breaking free from this discrimination is liberation, nirvana, and enlightenment. The discriminable world is where all sorts of things are distinguished and appear, while the undiscriminable world is an empty, void world where nothing is distinguished. In Buddhism, all discriminable things are classified into five categories—form, feeling, perception, volition, and consciousness—called the Five Aggregates (ไบ่). That which is undiscriminable is likened to empty space and is called Emptiness (็ฉบ).
From the perspective of the skillful means of Principle (็) and Phenomena (ไบ): the discriminable world is the manifest phenomenal world that ordinary people discriminate, perceive, and know; this is called Phenomena (ไบ). The essential world, which is beyond discrimination and thus imperceptible and unmanifest, is called Principle (็). In other words, Phenomena (ไบ) refers to the discriminable world, and Principle (็) refers to the undiscriminable world.
Therefore, the meaning of the Shurangama Sutra's phrase, "As for Principle, one suddenly awakens, and with this awakening, all dissolves," is that when one experiences an immediate release from discrimination, all distinctions disappear, and there is nothing, like empty space. The experience of breaking free from discrimination is a sudden, momentary experience, like opening one's eyes after having them closed. And once one is free from discrimination, there is nothing left to discriminate.
This sudden experience of enlightenment is called seeing one's true nature (๊ฒฌ์ฑ; gyeonseong) in Buddhism. Since it is an experience of confirming one's inherent fundamental nature, confirming it once is like confirming the whole. This is what the Shurangama Sutra meant by saying that when the experience of enlightenment, free from discrimination, suddenly arises, one is freed from all discrimination.
However, the phrase "but as for Phenomena, they are not suddenly removed but gradually disappear" refers to the familiarity of life in the discriminable reality. How much one enjoys the effects of liberation, being free from discrimination in daily life, depends on which side one is more accustomed to. In other words, even if one has had the experience of sudden enlightenment (๋์ค; don-o) where one breaks free from discrimination, discrimination does not disappear. Therefore, if we compare the strength of discrimination that one has been accustomed to until now with the strength of being free from discrimination, which has only just been experienced, naturally, the strength of the familiar discrimination is greater.
Thus, even if one has confirmed the mind's foundation—which is originally empty, unhindered, autonomous, and peaceful—by breaking free from discrimination, because one is not yet accustomed to it, the power to abide in this mind-foundation is extremely weak. A person who first experiences liberation from discrimination tastes the joy of freedom after a long period of confinement. However, since that joy is not yet satisfyingly great, it's natural that while extremely happy on one hand, one also feels a thirst for more due to the lingering insufficiency, leading one to further immerse oneself in practice.
Dahui Zonggao spoke of the process of becoming accustomed to the non-dual Middle Way (๋ถ์ด์ค๋; bul-i-jungdo) after having comprehended it, as follows:
"Just make the deep shallow, and the shallow deep; make the unfamiliar familiar, and the familiar unfamiliar." <Dahui Seojan> Reply to Zhao Daizhi Daofu.
"Generally, from time immemorial, familiar places are very familiar, and unfamiliar places are very unfamiliar. Even if one suddenly awakens, the power of the Way ultimately cannot overcome the power of karma. What is the power of karma? Familiar places are the power of karma. What is the power of the Way? Unfamiliar places are the power of the Way." <Dahui Fabao> Sent to Lü Jiyi.
"As days and months pass, unfamiliar places will naturally become familiar, and familiar places will naturally become unfamiliar. What are familiar places? Cleverly thinking, calculating, and scrutinizing with thoughts. What are unfamiliar places? Enlightenment, nirvana, true thusness (jinyo), Buddha-nature; where thought and discrimination are cut off, utterly immeasurable, and cannot be handled by the mind." <Dahui Fabao> Sent to Xu Tixing.
It takes time for our mind to become accustomed to anything. If we are always close to something, we gradually become accustomed to it over time. Confirming the mind's nature as originally empty and pure by seeing it freed from discrimination is a sudden, momentary experience. However, becoming accustomed to that nature in daily life requires a long time. Therefore, the sutra states, "as for Phenomena, they are not suddenly removed but gradually disappear."
Among practitioners, there are cases where this fact is misunderstood, and they mistakenly believe that their practice is complete after a sudden experience of breaking free from discrimination. In other words, they sometimes think that if they confirm the mind's inherent emptiness, their practice is over. This is an error resulting from ignorance or disregard of the issue of familiarity. In fact, if one experiences breaking free from discrimination, as Zen Master Dahui Zonggao said, the power of enlightenment liberated from defilements is still so weak that the mind is still largely drawn by the strong power of discriminative delusion. That is why a person who has experienced breaking free from discrimination shows even greater zeal for practice than before, because they have tasted how good it is to be free from discrimination.
Thus, mind cultivation has two aspects: the experience of sudden enlightenment (้ ๆ; don-o), which is breaking free from discrimination, and the long process of becoming accustomed to that enlightenment. Just as a mirror has two sides—an empty background and the images that appear on it—our mind also has two sides: the undiscriminable empty ground of the mind and the world of discrimination, the myriad phenomena that appear in this mind. These two aspects are inseparable; one cannot exist without the other. Since both the world of discrimination and the empty mind exist together, to avoid leaning towards one side, one must become equally accustomed to both. Since we have been accustomed to the world of discrimination for a long time, we now need to become accustomed to the empty mind.
Enlightenment is when a sentient being, who lived believing the world of discrimination was everything, suddenly confirms that there is an undiscriminable world. However, even if one has experienced the undiscriminable world, one is still accustomed to discrimination, and the undiscriminable world remains unfamiliar. We follow what is familiar and do not follow what is unfamiliar. In other words, familiarity has the power to pull us in real life. If there is no power, even if something is good, we will be drawn to what is familiar, and thus, even if we know what is good, we cannot enjoy it.
In truth, the entire process of mind cultivation can be said to be the process of becoming accustomed to enlightenment. Mind cultivation is the experience of a person who lived in the discriminable world, breaking free from discrimination, awakening to the empty mind, and then being able to live in the discriminable world with a mind that is always empty and free from any defilements. The experience of breaking free from discrimination is an unknowable, inconceivable experience, so there is nothing one can do to break free from discrimination.
The only path of practice is to seek out a wise teacher (์ ์ง์; seonjijik) who is already living free from discrimination and listen to stories about the world beyond discrimination. By repeatedly listening to stories about life in the world beyond discrimination, one's mind will unconsciously move towards breaking free from discrimination, and at some moment, one will suddenly experience breaking free from discrimination. This experience is called seeing one's nature and becoming a Buddha (๊ฒฌ์ฑ์ฑ๋ถ; gyeonseongseongbul). However, even after experiencing breaking free from discrimination, the mind is still accustomed to discrimination and not to the world beyond discrimination. Therefore, in most cases, the mind still follows discrimination as it is accustomed to. But as time passes, one becomes more accustomed to being free from discrimination, and it gradually becomes clearer that one is firmly grounded in that state.
Thus, mind cultivation has two aspects: the experience of sudden enlightenment and the gradual process of becoming accustomed to enlightenment. However, from the perspective of a practitioner, one must always look towards and practice for the state of being free from discrimination. Only then will one become accustomed to it. Do not calculate with thoughts; look towards the place where there are no thoughts and practice. Do not look to the future, nor the past, nor the present. Do not look at yourself, nor at others. Do not think of enlightenment, nor of ignorance. Do not even think of practicing, but just practice.
How to Practice After Enlightenment?
This is a question primarily asked by those who have had an experience. If one has had an experience, then how should one continue to practice afterward? Frankly, I sometimes wonder if it even needs to be said. This is because if one was wandering lost before enlightenment and then experiences it, one has found the path, so one simply needs to follow it. However, it can still be confusing because the path is still so unfamiliar and untrodden. Therefore, this question can arise.
First, I want to say that just as there is no fixed method of practice to attain enlightenment before it, there is likewise no set method of practice after enlightenment. Enlightenment, which is said to be reaching the non-dual self-nature, free from the discriminating mind, is a non-contrived Dharma (๋ฌด์๋ฒ; muwibeop) that naturally occurs for a person who has made the initial resolve. It is not the practice of contrived Dharma (์ ์๋ฒ; yuwibeop), where one sets a particular method of practice and diligently follows it. Contrived Dharma, as stated in the Diamond Sutra, is as illusory as bubbles or a mirage. True attainment is always non-contrived Dharma.
As the Sixth Patriarch Huineng said in the Platform Sutra, because the Buddha Dharma (๋ถ๋ฒ; bulbeop) is non-dual Dharma (๋ถ์ด๋ฒ; bul-i-beop), it only speaks of seeing one's true nature (๊ฒฌ์ฑ; gyeonseong), which is realizing the non-dual self-nature. The inconceivable experience of liberation from the discriminating mind of sentient beings is precisely the experience of the non-dual Middle Way (๋ถ์ด์ค๋; bul-i-jungdo). The non-dual Middle Way is to be free from the discriminating mind, neither choosing nor abandoning either discrimination or non-discrimination. Therefore, the practice after the experience of seeing one's true nature is ultimately the time during which the enlightenment of the non-dual Middle Way is fully realized.
Zen Master Dahui Zonggao referred to this period by saying that one becomes familiar with the unfamiliar and unfamiliar with the familiar. He said that Prajñฤ (่ฌ่ฅ; wisdom) is the unfamiliar, and discriminating delusions (๋ถ๋ณ๋ง์; bunbyeol-mangsong) are the familiar. Although one has had the experience of being free from the discriminating mind and realizing the non-dual Middle Way, it is still too unfamiliar and strange, and the reality of still being afflicted by familiar discriminating delusions is unsatisfactory. For this reason, one becomes more zealous in practice, but in reality, it takes a lot of time until one becomes fully satisfied.
Generally, when one breaks free from discrimination, one confirms a mind like boundless, empty space, which has no end. One then strives to abide in this mind, thinking, "This is my original mind." Furthermore, abiding here frees one from all the noisy worldly affairs, making one feel light, refreshed, and stable, with nothing to do. It cannot be better than this. However, the power to abide here is still too weak, always leaving one thirsty.
The mind previously afflicted by mundane concerns is disliked, while the current empty, unburdened mind is satisfying, like returning home and comfortably abiding in one's own house. A lot of time flows as one regards this unburdened mind as one's original mind and tries to become accustomed to it. After a considerable period of such living, suddenly, one day, that empty mind disappears.
When the empty mind suddenly disappears, one is momentarily surprised, wondering if the practice has gone wrong. Now there is no empty mind, and only the usual discriminable states appear, leading to a shock, thinking, "Am I going back to the way I was before?" However, one soon realizes that it's not a return to the past, but that all the discriminable states are precisely empty space. One confirms that all the discriminable states that were previously disliked and rejected are nothing but empty space.
When it is confirmed that all discriminable states are nothing but empty space, there is no longer a separate favored enlightenment and a disliked discriminating delusion. Now, for the first time, there is truly nothing to do. And for the first time, one clearly confirms the true nature of the non-dual Middle Way, that the mundane world of discriminating delusions and the transcendent world of nothingness are not two. Although this non-dual Middle Way is thus realized, it is still unfamiliar, and its power is insufficient. It has become a non-dual, single world, but that single world is not yet firmly integrated, and there is still a slight creakiness due to lingering gaps.
Then, as time passes again, at some moment, the creaking mind with gaps suddenly combines seamlessly, becoming very firm. At this moment, one gains the conviction that no matter the circumstances, there will be no more wavering or creaking, and the non-dual Middle Way will always be a single world, never retreating. One feels even more at ease and confident. Thus, one lives life freely and joyfully, unhindered by anything.
The gradual deepening of practice after the sudden experience of liberation from blocked discrimination can be explained like this. However, a practitioner's insight is always limited to what they have experienced; they do not know what will happen in the future. It's like climbing a mountain where one sees further the higher one climbs, or like navigating an unknown path where one only knows as far as one has gone. One cannot know what will happen next. Even if one hears and understands, one still does not truly know what has not yet been experienced. This is because the practice of enlightenment can only be directly experienced; it cannot be thought about or remembered.
Not knowing what will happen next or what to do is the nature of this practice. Imagining, predicting, or making judgments about this practice, such as "this is so and so," are all acts of discrimination and therefore delusory thoughts (๋ง์; mangsong). There is only the experience of being free from discrimination. In this practice, both before and after the experience of seeing one's true nature, the caution is not to discriminate, judge, or imagine.
If it is a non-contrived experience of seeing one's true nature, where discrimination was blocked and then naturally released, then the insight of the non-dual Middle Way will naturally open up. And this insight naturally becoming clearer over time is precisely this non-contrived practice. Therefore, as long as one does not go down the contrived path of intentional action based on discrimination, everything will happen naturally without any problems. This is the one thing to be cautious about from beginning to end in this practice.
Traditionally, it is said that concentration (ๅฎ; jeong) and wisdom (ๆ ง; hye), that is, meditation (็ฆชๅฎ; seonjeong) and wisdom (ๆบๆ ง; jihye), are simultaneously attained upon enlightenment. The Platform Sutra compares concentration and wisdom to a lamp and its light, stating that the two must be simultaneously present. Concentration is the mind being empty, still, and stable, while wisdom is being brightly aware, unpolluted by discrimination. When one experiences liberation from discriminating delusions, these two are naturally attained together. Emotionally, one feels the stillness and emptiness of unhindered concentration, and intellectually, one confirms the wisdom that abides nowhere and is brightly aware. When one has the experience of sudden enlightenment (๋์ค; don-o), breaking free from blocked discrimination, concentration and wisdom are naturally attained together, giving rise to the insight that sees the true reality of the Middle Way (์ค๋์ค์; jungdosilsang), where the mundane and transcendent are not two. This is consistent with what was mentioned above.