Member-only story
Zen is not irrational or anti-intellectual
The Zen classic, Hsin Hsin Ming, says:
“If you wish to see the truth then hold no opinions for or against anything. To set up what you like against what you dislike is the disease of the mind.”
This must be carefully interpreted. It does not mean some kind of mental or spiritual laxity. Zen does not condone a wishy-washy attitude. It does not mean subscribing to anti-intellectualism. It does not mean rejecting science. It does not mean giving up critical thinking. It does not mean not fighting racism or Fascism.
There is a cliche which says that Zen is not for or against anything. So, let me ask you, is Zen against suffering? Is it against illness? Is it against discrimination and political oppression? Is it against environmental pollution?
The quoted text makes sense only if it is taken to mean stop labeling experiences as “good” or “bad,” especially if they are facts. Don’t aggravate your own suffering by labeling. In the Buddhist tradition, it is called “not taking the Second Arrow.” The Buddha said:
When touched with a feeling of pain,
the ordinary uninstructed person
sorrows, grieves,
and laments, beats his breast,
becomes distraught.
So he feels two pains,
physical and mental.
Just as if they were to shoot a man
with an arrow and,
right afterward,
were to shoot…
