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Kill the buddha
Master Linji, thich nhat hanh, they're right. If you see the buddha, kill the buddha. He is holding you back.
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Kill them all.
Be your own master.
Anybody read this book? According to the actors in Fringe it's about seeking the answers to questions in yourself, not from the mouth of others.
(and no actual killing please)
First, let's quote the actual koan. Lin Chi says "If you meet the Buddha on the road, kill him." It's not one that's hard to penetrate. The road is a metaphor for the path to enlightenment. Now, for the paradox that makes it a koan. Buddhists cannot kill people, except perhaps in self defense to keep others from being killed. Yet a great Master has said it is your duty to kill someone. So what gives?
It's a koan, which means the paradox must be penetrated. Let's be clear. The koan does NOT mean you should reject authority and rules! That is only chewing on the koan. That answer will get you sent back to the zafu and told to try harder. Nor does it mean that your concept of what it means to be enlightened is false. Why kill it, then? Why not just see it for the false Buddha it is, and walk past it to continue your journey? The koan says you must kill the Buddha on the path, not ignore it.
To understand the koan, you have to understand what or who the "Buddha on the road" is referring to, that's all. You want a hint? In order to meet the Buddha on the road, you must be on the road. Now, who is the "Buddha on the road" that the koan is referring to? And, why then is it your duty to kill this person?
That's what the koan is about. If you don't penetrate the koan, you aren't understanding what it's trying to point out.
The path is meant to guide the mind toward enlightenment indirectly. If the mind gets a true taste of Nirvana it may catch on and direct itself, but not before. I'd also quote what I said in the "Pain and suffering!" thread recently (bolding the relevant parts):
Having penetrated this question, having met the "Buddha on the road", then what?
Ah okay so my answer to the koan wasn't exactly what is expected. I didn't read the koan the same way you explain it.
OTOH, "murder" has a nice ring to it.
Here's a list of options. I like the last ones in the list below. :nyah:
murder, take/end the life of, assassinate, eliminate, terminate, dispatch, finish off, put to death, execute; slaughter, butcher, massacre, wipe out, annihilate, exterminate, mow down, shoot down, cut down, cut to pieces; informal bump off, polish off, do away with, do in, knock off, take out, croak, stiff, blow away, liquidate, dispose of, ice, snuff, rub out, waste, whack, smoke; euphemistic neutralize; literary slay. destroy, put an end to, end, extinguish, dash, quash, ruin, wreck, shatter, smash, crush, scotch, thwart; informal put the kibosh on, stymie, scuttle, occupy, pass, spend, waste exhaust, wear out, tire out, overtax, overtire, fatigue, weary, sap, drain, enervate, knock out. hurt, cause pain to, torture, torment, cause discomfort to; be painful, be sore, be uncomfortable.alleviate, assuage, soothe, allay, dull, blunt, deaden, stifle, suppress, subdue. veto, defeat, vote down, rule against, reject, throw out, overrule, overturn, put a stop to, quash, squash. turn off, switch off.
I don't mean to be mean or anything, but without feedback you wouldn't know if you're not making sense to people (you'd naturally make sense to yourself). This is feedback.
The Buddha is alive and well, the Four Noble Truths stand unquestioned and Cloud is enthusiastic about koan-practice.:clap:
Roger you must be a sick person! :pirate:
I just wonder why Lin Chi says "If you meet the Buddha on the road, kill him” - if what he actually means is ”Destroy the self delusion”.
And quit honestly I am a bit upset about my teacher keeping me sitting in meditation for ages, just because Lin Chi is using some sort of code and no one bothers to tell me what it is.
Until now.
Thank you Cinorjer.
If you’re right, why doesn’t this crazy Chinaman simply tell people that the idea of “ having attained enlightenment” is a hindrance?
I can understand that without meditating at all.
I’m not convinced we solved this koan. :scratch:
And maybe I’m not good at koans because I think they're deep.
But that's just something that came my way.....
We have the simile of the father outside the burning house, promising toys to the children inside.
The Buddha – the idea of Buddha – is a stepping stone; his teaching is a finger pointing to the moon; and a raft is something we don’t carry around on our shoulders.
There are plenty of “kill the Buddha’s” in Buddhism.
But koans are also a distinctively Eastern way of teaching, and while fascinating, might be too bound up in their culture to really be useful in Western Buddhism. By this, I mean Chinese language is full of words that have multiple meanings, far exceeding Western languages. So koans are full of metaphors and have multiple layers, instead of just giving it to you straight. Also, they were written by Chinese and Japanese monks that assume you are familiar with Buddhist temples, typical Zen teachings, how Masters and students interact, etc.
For me koan practice was more like an endless lesson in accepting failure.
A useful lesson in life, no doubt, and – if my teachers are as brilliant as they’re supposed to be – it was a lesson I needed.
Now I’m okay without any koan AND without any of the answers.