SHIN JIN MEI | 信心銘- DAY ELEVEN

"When we return to the root, we gain the meaning;
When we pursue external objects, we lose the reason."

Far from wordiness and intellection - the root is the source. As Sekitō says in Song of the Grass Roof Hermitage: "The vast inconceivable source can't be faced or turned away from." It is always right before us: Fire is hot, wind moves, water is wet - but without the direct experience, these are just words. Just return to the root - to what is present directly - and the meaning is right at hand. Just as we return to the breath when we sit meditation, let's return to the root throughout our day and experience wholly and directly. This provides meaning.

Although it is always right before us, we often look for meaning outside. But there is none. The more wildly we kick and flail, the more troubled the waters become. I love the expression "lost in thought". We spend a lot of our time lost there...