The Bodhisattva's Path: Not Abiding, Not Clinging
When you do not regard the body as yourself, and do not make the mind something to grasp and cling to, you come to see the true nature of body and mind rightly. This does not mean getting rid of body and mind or turning away from them. It means letting go of the clinging that holds them as "I." When that grasping is released, the way to look at body and mind rightly opens.
With this prajna wisdom, a bodhisattva is free from the fixed notions of self, person, sentient being, and lifespan. Because the bodhisattva does not hold on to notions about self and others, beings and lifespan, realization is not shaken by whatever circumstances arise. Diamond-like firmness lies not in guarding some notion tightly, but in wisdom that is not bound to notions.
Yet the thought "I will get rid of notions" can also become a place to abide. You need to let go even of the thought that you have become free of notions. When you do not hold on to a realization you must obtain, and do not set up something you must discard, the wisdom of non-abiding and non-thought appears, with nothing to take and nothing to cast off. This is not clinging even to freeing yourself from notions.
The bodhisattva's path is to be free of form without denying form. You stay in the world without being tangled in it, and you help sentient beings without setting up the notion that you are the one helping. You leave clinging behind without leaving life, and while helping others, you do not hold on to that work as your own merit. This is the bodhisattva's path.
Look at body and mind, and notice what you are holding on to as "I." See whether you are making the thoughts and feelings that arise into objects of clinging.
If you notice clinging, do not abide even in the thought that you must get rid of it. Without holding on to the thought that you have let go, do what is in front of you to do now.
When you help someone, give your full care to the helping, and practice not setting up the notion "I helped."
When you do not regard the body as yourself and do not cling to the mind, you come to see the true nature of body and mind rightly. With prajna wisdom, a bodhisattva is free of all fixed notions and is not shaken by circumstances.
When you let go of the thought of getting rid of notions, and even of the thought of having become free of them, wisdom appears with nothing to take and nothing to cast off. The bodhisattva's path is to be unbound by form without denying form, to live in the world without being tangled in it, and to help sentient beings without setting up the notion of helping.
- You held this bowl tightly, believing it was you.
- The tighter you gripped, the more the ripples shook.
- You did not throw the bowl away. You only loosened your grip.
- You let go even of the thought that you had let go.
- Help, but do not build up the thought, "I helped."