The Vast Empty Sky

Text

A monk asked Langye, "What is the state before a thought arises?" Langye said, "The vast empty sky." The monk asked, "What is the state after a thought arises?" Langye said, "The vast empty sky." The monk said, "How is it possible that the sky is the same before and after?" Langye said, "How is it possible that you think it would be different?"

license: public_domain

Attribution

• Speaker
  Langye Huijue

Lineage: Linji

By Langye Huijue

• Spring Comes, Grass Grows Naturallyverse

From Wudenghuiyuan

• The Way of the Patriarchs
• On Silent Illumination
• Instructions for Zazen
• Teaching the Japanese Monk
• The Gate of Jingshan
• Spring Comes, Grass Grows Naturally

Sources

• contentZen Editorial Overlay - Originals Curation

  Zen project editorial

  Wudenghuiyuan, Langye Huijue chapter

  Wudenghuiyuan: The Vast Empty Sky