Hishiryo: Beyond Thinking

Text

During zazen, do not try to stop your thoughts. Do not try to chase them away. And do not follow them either. Let them come, let them go. This is the secret of Zen: hishiryo, beyond thinking. It is not thinking, it is not not-thinking. It is the consciousness before thought arises, the consciousness that is the source of all thought. When you return to this consciousness, even for a single breath, you touch the essence of Buddha.

license: fair_use

Attribution

• Attributed To
  Taisen Deshimaru

Lineage: Sōtō

By Taisen Deshimaru

• Just Sitproverb
• The Cosmos in the Postureproverb
• Automatic Thinkingproverb
• Observe Your Own Mindproverb
• Mushotoku: Without Seeking Gainsaying

From Teachings of Taisen Deshimaru

• Just Sit
• The Cosmos in the Posture
• Automatic Thinking
• Observe Your Own Mind
• Mushotoku: Without Seeking Gain
• The Posture Is the Teaching
• True Zen Is Useless
• Here, Now, Nothing Else
• Shikantaza: Only Sit
• Kontin and Sanran: The Two Sicknesses of Zazen

Sources

• contentWikisource — English-language free library

  Kusen of Taisen Deshimaru, oral teaching during zazen

  Teachings of Taisen Deshimaru: Hishiryo: Beyond Thinking