The Experience of Living It Through Is the Perfect Understanding
Practice is life, and life is practice itself.
There is a Zen story, which is also a Koan, called The Famous Story of the Mushrooms:
Master Dogen went to China to find wisdom and truly understand Zen, but despite studying and practising for years, he had not reached the place he was looking for. One day, he came to a tiny temple. It was summer, and it was very hot. There, he found an old monk — an honourable one — who was working under the sun. His job was to dry mushrooms. Despite his age, the old man spread these mushrooms on the ground under a scorching sun.
Seeing this, Dogen asked him, “You are a senior and elderly monk. Why do you work? It’s boiling today; do it another day.” Following the old Monk’s answer, which was very interesting, became a historical answer of Soto Zen:
The Monk said, “Young man, you have come from Japan. You are intelligent and understand Buddhism, but you do not understand the essence of Zen. Who could have had I not done this and not worked here and now? I am not you; I am not the others. Others are not me; if I don’t experience it here and now, I won’t understand it. If a young man helped me work, if I just looked at him, I wouldn’t be able to have this experience of drying these mushrooms. If I said: Do this or that. Put it here or there; I couldn’t experience it myself. I could not understand the act of this here and now…”
This is how Dogen obtained Satori.
You can only “Get It” through your own experience
In other words:
If you don’t practice, you can’t understand it.
If you don’t practice, you can’t explain it.
If you don’t practice, there is no progress.
If you don’t practice, you can’t experience it.
If you don’t practice, you have no experience.
If you don’t practice virtue, it doesn’t exist.
If you don’t practice, you don’t know what’s true.
If you don’t practice, you don’t connect with your instincts.
If you don’t practice, you can’t be in what you do.
If you don’t practice, this moment is lost.
If you don’t practice, there is no wisdom.
If you don’t practice, you can’t see through your own nature.
If you don’t practice, there is no empty mind.
If you don’t practice, you can’t be one with everything.
If you don’t practice, there is no here and now.
If you don’t practice, you don’t live.
That is why practice is life, and life becomes practice.
Life is practice
If we do not experience, we will not be able to understand the true essence of things because life cannot be understood by the brain; life can only be practiced.
Practice. Train. You are not others; others are not you.
Go through.
