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Whoever knows that the mind is a fiction and devoid of anything real knows that his own mind neither exists nor doesn’t exist.

Bodhidharma

Our nature is the mind. And the mind is our nature.
BODHIDHARMA

Mind Nature Our Own
But when you first embark on the Path, your awareness won’t be focused. You’re likely to see all sorts of strange, dreamlike scenes. But you shouldn’t doubt that all such scenes come from your own mind and nowhere else.
BODHIDHARMA

Awareness Embark First Focus Path
The Way is basically perfect. It doesn’t require perfecting. The Way has no form or sound. It’s subtle and hard to perceive. It’s like when you drink water: you know how hot or cold it is, but you can’t tell others.
BODHIDHARMA

Ay Basic Perfect Require
If you use your mind to study reality, you won’t understand either your mind or reality. If you study reality without using your mind, you’ll understand both.
BODHIDHARMA

Mind Reality Study Understand
All Buddhas preach emptiness. Why? Because they wish to crush the concrete ideas of the students. If a student even clings to an idea of emptiness, he betrays all Buddhas.
BODHIDHARMA

Buddha Cling Concrete Crush Emptiness Idea Preach Student
When your mind doesn’t stir inside, the world doesn’t arise outside. When the world and the mind are both transparent, this is true vision. And such understanding is true understanding.
BODHIDHARMA

Arie Inside Mind Outside Stir World
The essence of the Way is detachment. And the goal of those who practice is freedom from appearances.
BODHIDHARMA

Appearance Detach Essence Freedom Goal Practice Way
Neither gods nor men can foresee when an evil deed will bear its fruit.
BODHIDHARMA

Bear Deed Evil Forse Fruit God Neither
But people of the deepest understanding look within, distracted by nothing. Since a clear mind is the Buddha, they attain the understanding of a Buddha without using the mind.
BODHIDHARMA

Deepest Distract Nothing People Understanding
The awareness of mortals falls short. As long as they’re attached to appearances, they’re unaware that their minds are empty. And by mistakenly clinging to the appearance of things they lose the Way.
BODHIDHARMA

Appearance Attach Awareness Empty Fall Mind Mortal Short Unaware
An Awakened person is someone who finds freedom in good fortune and bad.
BODHIDHARMA

Awake Bad Find Fortune Freedom Person Someone
Worship means reverence and humility. It means revering your real self and humbling delusions. If you can wipe out evil desires and harbor good thoughts, even if nothing shows, it’s worship. Such form is its real form.
BODHIDHARMA

Delusion Humanity Humbling Mean Real Reverence Self Worship
All know the way, but few actually walk it.
BODHIDHARMA

Actual All Few Know Walk Way
And as long as you’re subject to birth and death, you’ll never attain enlightenment.
BODHIDHARMA

Attain Birth Death Enlightenment Long never Subject
This one life has no form and is empty by nature. If you become attached by any form, you should reject it. If you see an ego, a soul, a birth, or a death, reject them all.
BODHIDHARMA

Attach Empty Form Life Nature One Reject
Not thinking about anything is Zen. Once you know this, walking, sitting, or lying down, everything you do is Zen.
BODHIDHARMA

Anything Lying Once People Sitting Think

Whoever knows that the mind is a fiction and devoid of anything real knows that his own mind neither exists nor doesn’t exist.

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Whoever knows that the mind is a fiction and devoid of anything real knows that his own mind neither exists nor doesn’t exist.

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