SHIN JIN MEI | 信心銘- DAY TEN

"Wordiness and intellection—
The more with them the further astray we go;
Away therefore with wordiness and intellection,
And there is no place where we cannot pass freely."

This is not the easiest verse for a rousing commentary!

It is not so much that Sōsan here is despising words or critical thought - it is more that they can be used to form conceptualizations that lead us astray. I had mentioned this in another recent post:

"One of the terms Zen uses in relation to phenomenology is nen. In a first nen experience, we're relating directly. Like having a tall glass of lemonade on a hot day after we've been tending the garden. It is marvelously refreshing. There is no one doing the drinking and no drink to be had in this moment - there is just revitalization and refreshment.

A second nen experience is when you try relating this to a friend, or even to yourself later. No matter how well you finesse the language, you simply cannot conjure the moment in words. This can be extended to the third nen - perhaps as the friend relates it on to another, or as you try to ruminate about the memory of relating the memory. Ideology, prejudice, and philosophical frameworks are products of the third nen and beyond. This is not to say that these are not useful - only that it is important to recognize that they are not a surrogate for direct experience. As a matter of fact, in many cases, we subscribe so closely to our philosophical idylls that we completely miss the direct experience. This is delusion."

When we put away wordiness and intellection, the universe opens up and there is nowhere we cannot pass freely. All in this very present moment.