good morning Relatives
I suggest that all of you watch the Kung Fu Panda today
below you will find an excerpt from the book I am writing about holding the fire at Lame Deer
A beginners mind is not a child's’ mind. It is also what is meant by the uncarved block. Unfortunately most of us have and do carve up the blocks of our minds and try to fit the world and those around us in those blocks. Thus the term blockhead. One of the reasons I really like the movie Kung Fu Panda is that Po the main character learns his skills, advances in his work but he always returns to the beginners mind. The Chinese word "Pu" is often translated as "the uncarved block.” It refers to a state of pure potential which is the primordial condition of the mind before the arising of experience. The Taoist concept of Pu points to perception without prejudice, i.e. beyond dualistic distinctions such as right/wrong, good/bad, black/white, beautiful/ugly. It is a state of mental unity which places the Taoist, or any practitioner into alignment with the beginners mind.[1} It is this mind that is also known as the gift of the shadowless sword. The shadowless sword is used to protect what is precious. It is used to hold the fire, wait for the prayer to do its work. Holding the shadowless sword with the beginners mind allows us to endure the violent storm that comes to clean out the house, it keeps us from recreating harm, so that that house finally can be filled with peace.
Love is not meant to conquer but to witness, money is not meant to create slavery but to enhance freedom, forgiveness is not about dominance or retribution but about acceptance, the beginners mind is not about absence of knowledge but the lack of grasping its application, spirituality is not about religious right but the beauty and nuance of faith, humanness is not about same exactness but about diversity.
Yet all these things are not of value unless they are actually practiced in our daily lives.
may you go in peace
may you seek the beginners mind
may you hold the shadowless sword
may you do no harm
love love love
mb
[1] the definition for "PU" came from wikipedia I am grateful to that website for its work and the people who contribute to its existence
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