Notes on the Ten Ox-Herding Pictures

I recently posted a comment on Facebook:

Yogacara philosophy does not say that reality is mind. It says that our knowledge of reality is through the mind.

A friend responded with a poem attributed to the Chinese Zen master Pao-chih:

If you do not understand that the mind is Buddha! This is truly the same as riding an ox and going out to search for it.

He asked for my thoughts on the quote and the identity of Pao-chih. The name was unfamiliar to me, but the sentiment is well-known in Zen, often attributed to Hakuin Ekaku (1686–1769), a prominent Japanese Rinzai master. The imagery of seeking an ox while riding it illustrates a core Zen insight: enlightenment is already present within, yet people search for it externally. This theme is vividly expressed in the Ten Ox-Herding Pictures.

Hakuin emphasized direct realization over conceptual understanding. His Song of Zazen conveys a similar message:

Not knowing how near the Truth is,
People seek it far away — what a pity!
They are like one who, in the midst of water,
Cries in thirst so imploringly.

Years ago, I collaborated on a Zen exhibit at the Queens Museum, Zen Stories for Children Old and Young…