Chapter 23 Chapter 15 Remaining Discussion

15.1 Looking Back Zen is a sect of Buddhism in China. Zen is a distinctive practice method in Buddhism. When talking about Zen, especially in terms of reason, it is often impossible to separate from Buddhism. Therefore, this chapter intends to mix it up.Here it is called Yu Lun, which means that some things about Zen have been explained, and the rest of the pen and ink will be used to talk about it in general.This is biased towards evaluation. Naturally, the beholder sees benevolence, and the wise sees wisdom.I want to divide time into two parts, the past and the future.Talking about the past first, there are the following points.

The first point is that Buddhism and Taoism are worth cherishing.It has been said repeatedly before that life, as an objective reality, is "one" and the way of life is "many".This is like eating, some people like sour, some people like spicy.In the same way, the same people live in the world, some people like morning markets, and some people like mountains and forests.The different choices are all seeking a comfortable life, or in terms of life philosophy, seeking happiness.But when it comes to happiness, there are a lot of problems.For example, Schopenhauer does not admit that there is a positive quality of happiness.The Buddhist school goes a step further and believes that there is no happiness to speak of, but suffering.Expanded, the world is a sea of ​​suffering.This is "knowledge". After knowing, we must follow up with "action", so we seek the way to end suffering.The solution is to go out of this world.From the perspective of ordinary people, this idea is very strange.But if you think about it carefully, it is true that there is suffering in life, and even how much it is.Also, even if you put aside the suffering.The problem of peace of mind, many people often think about it without solving it.In the words of the Buddhist school, this is a major event of life and death.In short, life does have problems as Buddhists think, even if in the eyes of some people, the problems are not so serious.If there is a problem, it should be solved, and what method should be used?The value of Buddhism and Taoism (especially Zen) is that it provides a way, and many people really do it.What is the result?At least disciples of believers admit that many people really get rid of their troubles.There are also many people who may be skeptical, and that's okay.Standing outside Zen, we should use it as a prescription to deal with a certain disease in life in a fair way. If we really suffer from this disease, we might as well try it.That is to say, it is a kind of ancestral inheritance in the philosophy of life, which should always be preserved for later use.

Second, the value of compassion cannot be underestimated.The Hinayana can be satisfied with the requirements of Buddhist practice; otherwise, the Bodhisattva practice has to extend oneself and others.Confucianism also advocates extending oneself to others, so it is said: "A benevolent man, if he wants to establish himself, he will establish others, and if he wants to achieve himself, he will achieve others." "Don't do to others what you don't want yourself to do to yourself." "Sentient beings" or "beings" other than humans.From the perspective of ordinary people, this is too ideal and difficult to implement.However, ideals have an ideal value. For example, since Buddhism prevailed in China, with the help of the theory of retribution, the thoughts and feelings of admiring charity and abhorring cruelty are always very strong. This is very important for maintaining social stability and close relationships between people. It should be said that it has a considerable effect.Open the window and speak frankly, the so-called "virtue" is nothing more than thinking about others when their own interests conflict.Compassionate thoughts and feelings are the powerful force for cultivating virtue, so they should not only be preserved, but also developed.

The third point is that the Tiantai, Huayan, and Faping sects of Central Buddhism all focus on the cumbersome discrimination of names and appearances.Zen Buddhism takes a different path, pointing directly at people's hearts without writing words.Compared with the two, Zen Buddhism has taken a concise path.The so-called "simplification" is relatively easy. If you don't understand "Cheng Wei Consciousness Theory" and other books, you can also get liberation.The so-called "brightness" is relatively easy to explain clearly. If the self-nature is pure, if you stick to it as a belief, you will reduce distracting thoughts over time and feel clear in your mind and body; If you turn around, you are in danger of falling into the sea of ​​concepts.In addition, Zen has the advantage of being close to the world, that is, it is easy to apply.In short, Zen Buddhism flourished in China after the Tang Dynasty, which was both an inevitable evolution and a natural choice.

The fourth point is that ideals are too far away from reality to be realized.It has been said many times before that Buddhism and Taoism are based on reverse.Inverse of what?It is the opposite of "The Doctrine of the Mean" that "the destiny is called nature".This nature, Gao Zi put it concisely and specifically, is "the nature of food and sex".For these, the Buddhist school insists that it is pollution, and even all dharmas are empty.The ones that require purity and truth are the so-called reality, truth, nirvana and the like.What is the essence of these things?Where?It's hard to say.And descending one level from the top, no longer ask whether you can realize Nirvana, but only ask to be able to eliminate passion and desire to cut off afflictions.But lust comes from "destiny is called sex", it is easy to obey, but it is too difficult to resist.Of course, too difficult does not mean impossible. A few people, such as Mazu and Zhaozhou, probably got rid of their troubles and realized that they are enough.However, this is just like the criticism of Mohists in the "Zhuangzi · Tianxia": "If you oppose the heart of the world, the world is unbearable. Although Mozi is alone, what is the world!" Because it is too difficult, my idea, since Wei and Jin, has become a monk. , Four congregations at home, the number is too numerous to count, and I am afraid that there are not many who can really be liberated.If you can't live in the mountains and forests, hold fast, recite the Buddha's name, and practice Zen meditation, how many troubles you will have in it, although it is difficult to know with certainty, it is conceivable.This sorrow is hidden.There is also an open one, which regards cutting hair and becoming a monk or nun as a way of life, or even another way of living in a pampered way, which is called leaving the world and actually entering the world.It is also a tragic aspect of Buddhism that some so-called disciples of believers have gone from the difficulty of being obedient to obedience to the false in name.Should the catechism be responsible for this tragedy, or should some believers be responsible?Maybe it's both?

15.2 Looking to the future There are a few things to say about the future. The first point is that the knowledge and practice of Buddhism and Taoism are far from modern ideas and life, and it is not easy for modern people to accept it.Let me tell you first, modern times are the time when science rules everything. The so-called science is the pursuit of knowledge that can explain causality and can be verified.On a larger scale, the earth is a planet in the solar system, the solar system is a galaxy in the Milky Way, and so on, all of which can be verified.On a small scale, the human body is composed of various cells, some diseases are caused by viruses, etc., which can also be verified.The teachings in Buddhist scriptures are not the same. As big as the thirty-three days and as small as the seeds of alaya consciousness, they all come from fantasy and cannot be verified.It is always too difficult, even if it is not absolutely impossible, to compare the ability to demonstrate and the inability to demonstrate.Knowledge cannot but affect action, so science and technology are produced.Technology wants to solve more practical problems, such as air-conditioning can improve living conditions, airplanes can improve travel conditions, and so on.The addition of these and so on will lead to major changes in life, that is, the unsatisfactory elements will gradually decrease, and the pleasant elements will gradually increase.Subtracting and subtracting, adding and adding, as a result, the situation in the world will become farther and farther away from the Buddhist idea (the world is a sea of ​​suffering).In addition, it is too difficult for Buddhists to act recklessly. It must be more and more difficult for modern people to follow the line of Xuanzang, Mazu and others.

The second point is that the disciples of believers will gradually decrease.Science and religion, at least the intellectual part, are difficult to reconcile.In this way, the power of scientific knowledge expands, and the power of religious dogma decreases accordingly.This is the fate shared by all religions.Since the Six Dynasties, Buddhism in China has been very powerful. There are four groups of monks and lay people. There are a lot of people.In modern times, although there is freedom in religious belief and there are still some monasteries in various places, there are always a small number of people who are willing to live in them and insist on seeking liberation.There are naturally fewer duo at home.

It is conceivable that this situation will continue to develop in the future, that is to say, there will be fewer and fewer disciples of believers.Buddhism, as a branch of the history of philosophy, will find its place in philosophical institutions and university classrooms.But this is research, which is equivalent to standing outside and watching with cold eyes, rather than following the trend.Knowing that it is difficult to see all deeds, this is a pity from the standpoint of Buddhism.There may also be a bigger regret, that is, the great ambition and method of eliminating suffering, as well as the great ambition of vowing to attain salvation, are gradually disappearing in people's minds.This is a pity.It is regrettable because, if people's life can be divided into two parts, material and spiritual, the spiritual problems felt by the ancients will not be reduced by the advancement of science and technology.Then, the systematic thoughts and solutions of the ancients on such problems are worth saving and thinking about when necessary.That is to say, based on this kind of thinking, I feel that Buddhism and Taoism, especially Zen practice methods and life attitudes, should always be stored in appropriate places as precious heritage.

The third point is the dilemma of survival.The above two points mean that the future of Buddhism is full of thorns, and it is not easy to walk. In other words, there are many difficulties in order to survive.Believers of course want to survive, how to overcome difficulties?Obviously, it is to find a middle way in the dilemma.Among the two dilemmas, one is more conservative, that is, clinging to the teachings.This, just said, would be incompatible with modern thought and life.Specifically, if you still believe that all dharmas are only consciousness, using modern equipment is also suffering, and you can realize life and death after Zen enlightenment, etc., it will be difficult to win people's trust.This road could not be smooth, so we had to try a new one, that is, to get closer to the secular, or to modernize.How?It's hard to explain in one word, because it involves infinite things, and it cannot be listed all, even if it is just one item, such as using pesticides to kill insects, it is not easy to handle.Not long ago I read a newspaper and saw a living Buddha once said:

If "all four elements are empty" is understood as not asking for anything, not thinking about things, and not indulging in material desires, then it still has its value of retention and existence. This intention is very good, but as far as Buddhism is concerned, giving up "all four things are empty", after all, the change is too great.I sometimes think that I have no choice but to approach the secular and modern times. If I give up the idea of ​​"life is suffering", the road will be easy to walk, but can it still be regarded as Buddhism?How to obtain the middle way without abandoning the basic teachings and not departing from the modern spirit in order to survive is too big a problem, so it has to be left to those who are involved with Buddhism and Buddhist teachings to think slowly.

The fourth point does not exclude another possibility.This means that after a long period of time, the trend of thought in the entire world may change, from an outward pursuit of technology to an inward pursuit of the heart.If this is the case, Buddhist teachings and Zen practice methods are very important among all kinds of psychology, maybe someone will find it out of the library and look at it with admiration?