Enlightenment is not the acceptance of, or practical experience of rebirth. Enlightenment is not the acceptance of, or practical experience of a ‘soul’ theory. In other words, a fully enlightened and rational mind, is a mind ‘emptied’ of all delusion and irrationality.
Tag: Ch’an School
The Confucian Patriarch in Ch’an
As Ch’an masters have been generally celibate, the idea of successful procreation does not hold for the perpetuation of their respective lineages. In the case of enlightened lay Ch’an masters – even if they have off-spring it is not guaranteed that their children will be enlightened beings.
Hui Jian (慧剑) – the Sword that Clears the Mind
Therefore the characters ‘慧剑’ (hui jian) represent a distinctly ‘Buddhist’ method of clearing the mind that is as decisive as a blow from a sharp sword used in scholarly self-defence. Despite its obvious Buddhist origin and undertones – the ‘sword’ is a clear concession to the Confucian establishment as it strove to integrate foreign Indian Buddhist thought, with that of Chinese indigenous understanding and belief.
SANGHA KOMMUNE (SSR) 