No-mind - Knowledge

1613:

non-differentiating Mind is the Buddha, that Buddha is the Mind and that the Mind is emptiness. Therefore, the real Dharmakaya is just emptiness. It is not necessary to seek anything whatsoever, and all who do continue to seek for something only prolong their suffering in samsara...Hold neither a concept of holy nor of worldliness; think neither of emptiness nor tranquility in the Dharma. Since originally there is no non-existent Dharma, it is, therefore, not necessary to have a view of existence as such. Furthermore, concepts of existence and non-existence are all perverted views just like the illusion created by a film spread over diseased eyes. Analogously, the perceptions of seeing and hearing, just like the film that creates the illusion for diseased eyes, cause the errors and delusions of all sentient beings. Being without motive, desire or view, and without compromise, is the way of the patriarchs.

1508: 20: 564: 121:, who may or may not be associated with Buddhism or Daoism. In this context, the term may have no religious connotations (or it may retain it, depending on the artist's own context), and is used to mean "the state at which a master is so at one with his art that his body naturally and spontaneously responds to all challenges without thought". This has been compared to the psychological concept of 599: 1846:

think of the opponent, nor of himself, nor of his enemy's sword movements. He just stands there with his sword which, regardless of all technique, is ready only to follow the dictates of the subconscious. The man has effaced himself as the wielder of the sword. When he strikes, it is not the man but the sword in the hand of the man's subconscious that strikes.

477: 1826:, Takuan compares the mind of no mind to flowing water. He warns Munenori not to "place his mind" or fixate it anywhere (not on your sword, your body, you opponent's sword, etc). Since "there is no place to put the mind", it must remain free and able to permeate everywhere. As such, Takuan writes, "Placed nowhere, it will be everywhere!". 359:), then this constitutes its luminosity. Does the mind exist as no-mind? In the state of no-mind (acittat), the states of existence or non-existence can be neither found nor established... What is this state of no-mind? The state of no-mind, which is immutable (avikra) and undifferentiated (avikalpa), constitutes the ultimate reality ( 1657:

quite well--in fact, even better than before, since, now, under the influence of the deeper dimension of the mind it no longer has to operate in a rigid, constricted, and clinging manner. It is now possible to see things more clearly, unfiltered by one's personal depository of presuppositions. This is what is meant by seeing the "

1870:

is attained through the practice or study of martial arts (although it can be accomplished through other arts or practices that refine the mind and body), the objective is to then attain this same level of complete awareness in other aspects of the practitioner's life. Dr Robert Akita claims it helps

1817:

The No-Mind … neither congeals nor fixes itself in one place. It is called No-Mind when the mind has neither discrimination nor thought but travels about the entire body and extends throughout the entire self. The No-Mind is placed nowhere. Yet it is not like wood or stone. Where there is no stopping

1680:

Zen teachers also state that one should cultivate the state of no-mind in daily life, not just in formal meditation. In this context, the Zen student trains to live in the state of no-mind in every aspect of their daily routine, eventually achieving a kind of effortlessness in all activities. This is

1656:

the interruption of the discursive process at a sufficiently deep level allows for an experiential vision of a different aspect of the mind, a vision that allows for a change in the nature of the mental function. But it is not that thought no longer occurs--the conceptualizing faculty still functions

1617:

As such, the state of no-mind is a state in which the workings of the intrinsically pure original mind (本心), which is the Buddha-mind, are known and allowed to function without obstruction, desire, or calculation. This original mind which is free and spontaneous is also not separate from the everyday

1676:

is a pure experience achieved when a person's mind is free from thoughts, concepts, clinging and discrimination. In this state, one is totally free to act effortlessly and spontaneously from their deepest nature (the buddha-nature). It is thus not a kind of sleepiness or stupefaction, but a state of

1784:

In Buddhist terms, Suzuki also held that in this state, the Buddha begins working through you. Thus, Suzuki writes “abandon both the body and the mind, and throw it all into the Buddha. And let the Buddha work for you.” For Suzuki, the attainment of no-mind is achieved through entrusting oneself to

1748:

as "pure presence of things as they are", "without affirming nor negating", without accepting nor rejecting, without believing nor disbelieving. In short, it is a non-conceptual, non-intentional and "prereflective mode of consciousness" which does not imply that it is an experience without content.

1788:

Suzuki also emphasized the theme of “naturalness” (jinenhōni 自然法爾) as a key feature of no-mind. He saw the state as one which was dynamic, not static. This was a natural dynamism, not a calculated one. Nishihira Tadashi compares these ideas to Dogen's concept of the “pliant mind” (nyūnanshin 柔軟心),

1740:

is not a state in which there is no mental activity whatsoever nor a cutting off of all thinking. Instead, it refers to a state "beyond thinking and not-thinking" which Thomas Kasulis glosses as "merely accepting the presence of ideation without either affirmation or denial." Other Japanese Dogen

1845:

The mind must always be in the state of 'flowing,' for when it stops anywhere that means the flow is interrupted and it is this interruption that is injurious to the well-being of the mind. In the case of the swordsman, it means death. When the swordsman stands against his opponent, he is not to

523:

The object-realms of the five senses and the mind are ultimately wu-nien ... Sentient beings ... deluded by ignorance mistake the mind as thought (nien) but the mind itself never moves (tung). If a person can so examine it and realize that the mind itself is wu-nien, he would smoothly and in due

1554:

separates from the physical body, and in the midst of successive thoughts there will be no attachment to any kind of matter. If, for one thought-moment, there is abiding, then there will be abiding in all successive thoughts, and this is called clinging. If, in regard to all matters there is no

1665:

When the Ch'an writers talk about no-thought, or no-mind, it is this state of non-clinging or freedom from mistaken conceptualization to which they are referring, rather than the permanent cessation of thinking that some imagine. The deeper, immeasurably more clear aspect of the mind that they

1629:

According to Muller, some scholars and practitioners have made the error of thinking that the term "no-mind" or "no-thought" refers to "some kind of permanent, or ongoing absence of thought" or to "a permanent incapacitation of the thinking faculty or the permanent cessation of all conceptual

1752:

Similarly, Hee-Jin Kim describes this state as "not just to transcend both thinking and not-thinking, but to realize both, in the absolutely simple and singular act of resolute sitting itself", which is "objectless, subjectless, formless, goalless and purposeless" and yet it is not "void of

1612:

The Mind is Buddha; no-mind is the Way . Just be without mind and stop your thinking. Just be of that Mind where there is no existence or non-existence, no long and no short, no self and no others, neither negative nor positive, and neither within nor without. Just know, above all, that

379:

Strive for awakening (bodhi) freed from false view (darśana), and for essential nature (svabhāva) which is like an illusion (māya) and mirage (marīci). Strive to attain non-thought (acitta), even though the thought does not exist in reality, and to teach unchanging dharmas.

350:

This mind (citta) is no-mind (acitta), because its natural character is luminous. What is this state of the mind’s luminosity (prabhāsvaratā)? When the mind is neither associated with nor dissociated from greed, hatred, delusion, proclivities (anusaya), fetters

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as follows: "‘Non’ means to be without the characteristic of duality, to be without the mind of the enervating defilements. ‘Thought’ is to think of the fundamental nature of suchness. Suchness is the essence of thought, thought is the function of suchness."

464:(non-action) and self-forgetting (wu-chi). It is a state of being carefree and ease which the sage has achieved through the pursuit of Daoist self-cultivation practices such as fasting the mind (心齋, xīn zhāi) and sitting and forgetting (坐忘; 445:, as was thus also discussed by Chinese Daoist thinkers. This would entail that the term existed in Chinese sources which pre-date the introduction of Buddhism to China. As such, many scholars like Fukunaga Mitsuji have suggested that this 1854:

is the state where a person finally understands the uselessness of techniques and becomes truly free to move. In fact, those people will no longer even consider themselves as "fighters" but move spontaneously without any self-conceptions.

157:(mind, thought, consciousness, heart). In China, the term came to mean a state in which there was no mental activity, or a mind free of all discrimination and conceptualization (making it similar to the Buddhist Sanskrit term nis 1549:

Thoughts do not stop from moment to moment. The prior thought is succeeded in each moment by the subsequent thought, and thoughts continue one after another without cease. If, for one thought-moment, there is a break, the

419:. When there is nothing that is grasped, that is mind only, because there is no grasping. That is the supreme, world-transcending knowledge (jñana), without mind (acitta) and without support or object (anupalambha). 215:

Regarding terms which negate "vikalpa" (conceptualization, discrimination, imagination), such as avikalpa and nirvikalpa, these are also widely used in Buddhist sources. The type of knowledge known as nirvikalpa-

1727:

This passage is actually based on a traditional zen dialogue about master Yakusan Gudo (Chinese: Yueh-shan Hung-tao c. 745-828) which also contains phrases like non-thinking. According to Cleary, it refers to

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Mathes, Klaus-Dieter, A Fine Blend of Mahamudra and Madhyamaka: Maitripa's Collection of Texts on Non-Conceptual Realization (Amanasikara), (Sitzungsberichte Der Philosophisch-Historischen Klasse), 2016, p.

219:

is an important term used in Mahayana Buddhist sources to refer to a transcendent type of knowledge. Furthermore, the term nirvikalpa is also sometimes applied to other concepts, such as Buddha nature. The

117:

This idea eventually influenced other aspects of Asian culture and the arts. Thus, the effortless state of "no mind" is one which is cultivated by artists, poets, craftsmen, performers, and trained

1649:

argues that no-mind is not unconsciousness, mental torpor, lethargy or absent-mindedness. Instead, it is a state of intense clarity and lucidity and compares it to the state of a master musician.

1805:, as Buddhist spirituality was seen as a useful addition to physical training. Some Buddhist teachers encouraged this application of Buddhist thought to the martial arts. For example, Zen Master 371:

As such, this is a state which is beyond all craving or attachment, beyond all views, conceptualization, or dualities (such as being and non-being, birth and death). The term also appears in the

456:, the term no-mind was associated with the inner state of a Daoist sage (shengren 聖人), "one who has no-mind and accords with things" (Guo Xiang), as well as with other Daoist concepts like 1608:(died 850 CE) mentions the concept several times, writing that "if one could only achieve no-mind right at this moment, the fundamental essence (本体) will appear of itself". He also writes: 1666:

experience in the course of this irruption of the discursive flow, they call "enlightenment." Realizing now, that this potential of the mind was always with them, they call it "innate."

952: 1707:. The key passage, which became the paradigmatic description of zazen in the Soto school, first describes the preliminaries of zazen posture and other preparations, and then states: 1618:

working of the mind, even though it does not belong to the worldly functions of mind. The usage of the term no-mind is also reflected in the works of later Chan masters like

261: 1785:

the Buddha, which is the “original purity” (honshō shōjō 本性清浄) at heart of all beings. Indeed, Suzuki held that the pure no-mind was also at the heart of all religions.

194:

prefer the term "freedom from thought" or "freedom from conceptualization" (離念). Some scholars also offer other Sanskrit terms as being the source of the Chinese term

1871:

him "listen to my wife and children more closely...especially when I disagree with them, in my business it has helped when I am faced with difficult decisions...."

1723:. It is simply the Dharma-gate of repose and bliss, the cultivation-authentication of totally culminated enlightenment. It is the presence of things as they are. 1822:

Takuan thus sees “the mind of no-mind” (Japanese: mushin no shin) as a free and open mind, which he contrasts with the fixed and stuck “mind of having-mind”. In

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intellectual content as in a vacuum". Kim further emphasizes that nonthinking is used synonymously with emptiness by Dogen, and that it is also a kind of

2293:

The Sky as a Mahāyāna Symbol of Emptiness and Generous Fullness A Study and Translation of the Gaganagañjaparipṛcchā: Volume 2: Edition and Translation,

982: 918: 161:). Another similar Sanskrit term is amanasikāra (non-thinking, mental non-engagement), which is found in the works of the 11th century tantric yogi 73:

texts and has been described as "the experience of an instantaneous severing of thought that occurs in the course of a thoroughgoing pursuit of a

1507: 938: 2045:

Steve Odin. Artistic Detachment in Japan and the West: Psychic Distance in Comparative Aesthetics. University of Hawaii Press, 2001, p. 152

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Suzuki held that a key aspect of no-mind was “receptivity” (judōsei 受動性), a state of acceptance, openness, letting go, and non-resistance.

403:) which does not rely on or grasp any cognitive object (anupalambha) or thought (acintya), indeed it is totally beyond all cognition or 2756: 1570:

The term no-mind quickly became a central teaching of the Chan schools. It is the key topic of a short Chan text from Dunghuang called

498:

The term no mind (wuxin) was first discussed by Chinese exegetes of the Prajñaparamita sutras, who understood the term as a gloss on

390: 265:

even equates the two, stating: "the non-perception (anupalambha) of all principles (dharmas) is called the perfection of wisdom".

1963:

Toyo Gakuen University, A paper delivered to the International Conference on Sôn at Paekyang-sa, Kwangju, Korea, August 22, 1998.

1862:

is not just a state of mind that can be achieved during combat. Many martial artists train to achieve this state of mind during

1494: 2734: 2411: 1809:(1573–1645) was known to teach Zen to samurai. He wrote an influential letter to a master swordsman, Yagyū Munenori, called 502:. These commentators were known as "the school of no-mind" (心無宗, xinwu zong) and included figures like Zhi Mindu (fl. 326). 427:

states that this kind of supramundane knowledge refers to a non-discriminative experience beyond subject-object duality.

1524: 316: 201: 2006: 962: 507: 323:

and negative mental states or thoughts. In some of these texts, the term is associated with another important term in

2279: 2066: 1777:, Suzuki defines the term no-mind as the realization of non-duality, the overcoming of all dualism and discrimination 1413: 977: 241:

Another related Sanskrit term is anupalabdhi / anupalambha (non-perception, non-apprehension) which is found in the

1985:

Lai, Whalen W. 'A Clue to the Authorship of the Awakening of Faith: "Siksananda's" Redaction of the Word "Nien"*'

2340:

A Buddhist Doctrine of Experience: A New Translation and Interpretation of the Works of Vasubandhu, the Yogācārin

1601:, who compared no-mind to a clear mirror that is not reflecting any objects but retains its reflective capacity. 1640: 967: 933: 286:. That is, a mind not fixed or occupied by thought or emotion and thus open to everything. It is translated by 913: 532:

The idea of no-mind is thus originally connected to a Buddhist practice which allows one to be aware of the

222: 1634:

However, this assumption is mistaken and it is not what is taught in the classic Chan / Zen texts like the

878: 2261:

Mahachulalongkornrajavidyalaya University, Main Campus Wang Noi, Ayutthaya, Thailand, 31 May–2 June 2012.

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The Mushin Way: How the Power, Clarity and Mindfulness of Aikido Can Bring Success in Business and Life

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Buddhist Phenomenology: A Philosophical Investigation of Yogacara Buddhism and the Ch'eng Wei-shih Lun

1328: 1736:, focussing awareness on awareness itself. According to Dogen scholar Masanobu Takahashi, the term 1733: 1441: 1090: 687: 650: 158: 86: 2259:

Buddhist Philosophy and Meditation Practice: Academic Papers Presented at the 2nd IABU Conference,

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abiding from thought-moment to thought-moment, then there is no clinging. Non-abiding is the basis

1436: 1408: 1318: 1313: 1381: 1040: 1000: 858: 677: 533: 191: 1693:(非思量, "non-thinking", "without thinking", "beyond thinking"), is used by the Soto Zen founder 1333: 1025: 1866:

so that a flawless execution of moves is learned and may be repeated at any other time. Once

1586:). Some scholars also see Daoist influence on these as well as the influence of the works of 1480: 1055: 234:(without appearance). Other Mahayana sources use nirvikalpa as a description of the Buddha's 2724: 2358:

The Habit of Perfection—A Summary of Fukunaga Mitsuji's Studies on the Chuang-tzu Tradition.

1323: 515:, 無念) in relation to its doctrine of the ultimate One Mind, which is pure, without thought, 1961:"Innate Enlightenment and No-thought: A Response to the Critical Buddhist Position on Zen". 807: 92:

Chinese Buddhist texts also link this experience with Buddhist metaphysical concepts, like

66: 58: 1030: 8: 1960: 1398: 1045: 400: 74: 23: 2632:(Bloomsbury Introductions to World Philosophies), pp. 36-37. Bloomsbury Academic (2022). 2470:(Bloomsbury Introductions to World Philosophies), pp. 74-75. Bloomsbury Academic (2022). 2426:(Bloomsbury Introductions to World Philosophies), pp. 44-45. Bloomsbury Academic (2022). 1801:

In Asia, the Buddhist idea of no-mind became widely applied to various arts, especially

2300: 2139: 1512: 1466: 1403: 827: 491: 134: 2257:

Skorupski, Tadeusz. "Consciousness and Luminosity in Indian and Tibetan Buddhism." In

1719:). This in itself is the essential art of zazen. The zazen I speak of is not learning 2730: 2700:(Bloomsbury Introductions to World Philosophies), p. 119. Bloomsbury Academic (2022). 2687:(Bloomsbury Introductions to World Philosophies), p. 116. Bloomsbury Academic (2022). 2674:(Bloomsbury Introductions to World Philosophies), p. 114. Bloomsbury Academic (2022). 2407: 2275: 2062: 2002: 1881: 1841:

read the following quote to him, attributed to the legendary Zen master Takuan Sōhō:

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clarity. The mind remains clear and awake, but with no intention, plan or direction.

1623: 1208: 1164: 1085: 928: 908: 453: 352: 308: 154: 122: 19: 2658:(Bloomsbury Introductions to World Philosophies), p. 39. Bloomsbury Academic (2022). 2645:(Bloomsbury Introductions to World Philosophies), p. 40. Bloomsbury Academic (2022). 2616:(Bloomsbury Introductions to World Philosophies), p. 28. Bloomsbury Academic (2022). 2603:(Bloomsbury Introductions to World Philosophies), p. 26. Bloomsbury Academic (2022). 2503:(Bloomsbury Introductions to World Philosophies), p. 78. Bloomsbury Academic (2022). 2444:(Bloomsbury Introductions to World Philosophies), p. 61. Bloomsbury Academic (2022). 2001:. Louis Frederic (author), Paul H Crompton (editor). 2006. Dover Publications Inc.. 1360: 1254: 725: 2086:

The Circle of the Way: A Concise History of Zen from the Buddha to the Modern World

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It is not a total absence of thinking however, instead, it refers to an absence of

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The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch. Translated from the Chinese of Zongbao

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Coles, B. Guo Xiang and the Problem of Self-Cultivation in Daoist Naturalism.

2274:(1998 ed.), p. 284, 286. New Delhi: Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers Pvt. Ltd. 2750: 1703: 1652:

Muller explains the classic Zen Buddhist understanding of no-mind as follows:

1605: 1546: 1532: 1194: 1184: 1169: 1159: 1154: 1129: 1065: 1035: 1010: 868: 797: 682: 618: 536: 328: 251: 93: 1551: 883: 235: 97: 2761: 1926: 1802: 1766: 1711:...settle into a steady, immobile sitting position. Think of not thinking ( 1658: 1619: 1345: 1269: 1174: 1080: 626: 574: 525: 360: 320: 118: 82: 54: 1591: 1124: 1060: 1050: 1015: 923: 853: 742: 634: 457: 287: 187: 101: 2143: 1901: 1597:

The term was widely adopted and used by later Chinese Chan masters like

412: 1720: 1301: 1149: 1005: 848: 812: 747: 720: 548: 424: 396: 385: 364: 216: 162: 1545:"No-thought" means "no-thought within thought." Non-abiding is man's 730: 2327:

Mind Only: A Philosophical and Doctrinal Analysis of the Vijñānavāda,

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Mind Only: A Philosophical and Doctrinal Analysis of the Vijñānavāda,

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Mind Only: A Philosophical and Doctrinal Analysis of the Vijñānavāda,

1838: 1834: 1769:(1870–1966), who saw the idea as the central teaching of Zen. In his 1765:

The topic of no-mind was taken up by the modern Japanese Zen scholar

1370: 1365: 1286: 1237: 1070: 715: 642: 442: 416: 395:

He associates it with a kind of non-conceptual knowledge (nirvikalpa-

307:

term acitta (no-mind, no-thought, unconceived, inconceivable, from a+

873: 692: 449:

idea also influenced the Chinese Buddhist understanding of no-mind.

268:

The term no-mind is also found in the Japanese phrase mushin no shin

1587: 1375: 769: 702: 539:

in all beings, which is the ultimate reality and the nature of mind

499: 324: 304: 42: 1681:

sometimes expressed by the phrase "The everyday mind is the way."

1274: 1259: 1075: 1921: 1911: 1896: 1754: 1598: 1451: 1144: 1139: 843: 822: 817: 465: 404: 105: 2406:(Taishō Volume 48, Number 2008), p. 44. BDK America, Inc. 2000. 598: 480: 423:

In his commentary on this passage, the later Indian philosopher

1906: 1891: 1886: 1520: 1461: 1446: 1296: 1264: 1232: 832: 697: 461: 446: 150: 315:, and it is often related to an absence of conceptualization ( 1790: 1698: 1694: 1291: 1249: 1227: 792: 511:

also mentions no-mind or no-thought (though it uses the term

146: 138: 2134:

App, Urs. “Treatise on No-Mind: A Chan Text from Dunhuang.”

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Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies

255:, the Buddha states: "there is nothing whatsoever for me to 1863: 1789:

which is achieved when one has "cast off body and mind" in

838: 2455:

The Dharma of Mind Transmission: Zen Teachings of Huang-po

1741:

scholars link the term with the realization of emptiness.

415:) whatever, then the mind is established in the nature of 186:. Furthermore, while wunien is common in the texts of the 2481:"mushin – Elite Karate Academy & Personal Protection" 613: 588: 279: 70: 149:). Likewise, in Sanskrit, the term is a compound of the 2020:

Daisetz Teitaro Suzuki, Manual Of Zen Buddhism, p. 80,

1715:). How do you think of not-thinking? Without thinking ( 1578:

This text bares many similarities to another text, the

476: 2574:, pp. 73-75. University of Hawaii Press, May 25, 2021. 2519:, pp. 70-71. University of Hawaii Press, May 25, 2021. 1813:. In this letter, Takuan described no-mind as follows: 2230:

The Way of the World: Readings in Chinese Philosophy

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