It is so easy to get stuck on words, unaware that they are not the things they refer to. All words, no matter whether we call them ‘nouns’, ‘verbs’, or whatever, are adjectives—that is, they describe things, or attempt to. Grammatically, though the word ‘book’ is a noun, it is not the object made of paper and ink. If we understand this, we might see beyond words.

     There are many religions—many ‘isms’—in the world, but the most they can do is to help us understand something of life; they cannot make us understand. There is, however, only one Life, one Reality, one Truth, though it cannot really be spoken of. Immediately we open our mouth to speak of Truth, it becomes untruth. We cannot catch it with words; it must be experienced and lived, not spoken of.

     It is amusing how some people latch-onto Zen, which they consider a branch or aspect of Buddhism; they don’t follow ordinary Buddhism, we hear them say; they are exclusive, and follow Zen. They trot out well-known Zen anecdotes to impress others, as if they are from their own experience, instead of recognizing the Zen of the present—the living Zen—in the life all around and within themselves. They want something special, to distinguish themselves from others, not knowing that the special can only be found in the things we consider ordinary and common. We live only on the surface, knowing nothing of what is within. In reality, there is nothing ordinary; everything is special, though at that point, there is nothing special, either!