Sacred Heart #35

The Great Way isn’t difficult
for those who are unattached to their preferences. 
Let go of longing and aversion,
and everything will be perfectly clear.
When you cling to a hairbreath of distinction,
heaven and earth are set apart.
If you want to realize the truth,
don’t be for or against….
Don’t keep searching for the truth;
just let go of your opinions.

Seng-Ts’an (? -606) was a Buddhist layman for over 40 years. He became a monk and later succeeded as Patriarch.

“Let go of longing and aversion … don’t be for or against….just let go of your opinions.”

If we can let go of our judgments and opinions, the truth will be clear. The mind is quick to look for exceptions to this advice. How can we not judge a Hitler, a child murderer, a psychopath. How simple to understand and how difficult to live!

It is the mind’s ability to remember, analyze, weigh and consider that keeps us alive in a world filled at times with peril. But the mind is designed for survival; it is not designed to recognize Truth. It is not big enough or wise enough to see beyond appearances. We must find the Mind of Absolute Trust to know the Truth.