Stephen Mitchell, a great translator, tells a story from China in the ninth century. Ryoshi Doyama, one of the successors of the Cao Dong Zong Zen master, learned from Tansheng Yunyan and became good friends. One day, Doshan asked Yunyan, "After one hundred years, if someone asks what kind of person you are, what should I say?" Yunyan pondered for a long time and said, "That is, to cover the yes." Yunyan put his arm around his shoulder and said, "It is a big thing to cover, and you must be careful." That was the end of the conversation. One day, shortly after Yunam's death, Dongshan was walking along a stream in grief. While he stopped to think, he saw his own reflection in the stream and the reflection of the scenery around him. It was then that he suddenly understood the meaning of his friend. Dongshan later reflected in his writings, "Do not seek the truth from him, and go far away from me." (If you seek the truth from outside yourself, the truth will be farther and farther away from you.) This riddle opens the soul. Let's imagine the two best friends walking together in silence. Maybe it was the refreshing breeze that made the students stop asking questions. Maybe it was the face of Dongshan with love that made Yunyan completely relax and go deep into his soul, giving a mysterious answer. The core of the story lies in Yunyan's answer -- "That is, to conceal (this) a yes". What does it mean? It seems to me that the story is about the importance of the lesson of "being yourself," the humble master who taught us that the noblest work of every soul is not to become great or outstanding, or to emulate the example of others, but to fully realize our own vitality. Consider how the trees turn to the light and stretch their branches.

No tree envies another; Every shell in the sea is so deeply surrendered to the sea that it lets itself be washed away again and again, that no shell imitates the thread of any other; Each raindrop falls in its own way, but all will come together and soak into the earth; As human beings, we are so easily affected by random encounters with other people or setbacks. But beneath the masks we keep piecing together and tearing apart, there is a unique mission that each of us is born to fulfill only by blooming, not by achieving or reaching something, which requires us to summon the courage to fully embrace the life we have been given. But beneath the masks we keep piecing together and tearing apart, there is a unique mission that each of us is born with, and we can only achieve it through blooming. "A matter of great importance must be covered up carefully." This is another of Cloud Rock's teachings. How do we understand that? It seems that the mystery of life as a whole lies deep within the eternal contradictions faced by each individual, and that the mystery of life as a whole can only be unfolded through the specific days of each life, just as each seed takes root in the spring. It's up to each of us to show it through our own unique experience. Only by being ourselves can we experience our innate state of oneness with the universe. But it is not enough. We also need to allow ourselves to be nurtured and loved until we mature and become ourselves. This is an inevitable process that no one can avoid or accelerate. We must take care of each other so that no soul can be twisted. Care and love has always been one of the most powerful forms of education, with this kind of care, we can achieve self-growth. Doyama sees the reflection of the world in grief, because love and grief allow us to feel common with others. Although love and grief are very personal experiences, the differences that separate us dissolve when we are in them. Gradually, we experience oneness with everything through our own unique experiences and bodies. Therefore he said, "Do not seek him out of my way."

I don't think Dongshan means that we are the source of all truth as individuals, but that the only way to experience the essence of life is to deal directly with everything in person, and only then can we experience the essence of truth. Although we may learn from one another, attend classes, or follow the example of others, we are all one cell of the whole universe, and each of us -- "this person" -- is a unique vessel that holds a gram of spirituality during our brief inhabitation of this Earth. Each of us -- "this person" -- is a unique vessel carrying a gram of spirituality during our brief inhabitation of the Earth. I love this conversation between two great friends walking a thousand years ago. It reveals the core of our journey, individually and together. They were having this conversation on a sunny day somewhere in Zhejiang Province, China. Perhaps they would have looked silently at the white clouds floating in the valley after they had finished talking. Perhaps the white clouds would have bowed their heads in tribute to each other. In the next few sections, I want to discuss in detail our journey back to the glory we were born with, the process by which we strive to realize our soul. We all live our lives in our own time, and if we persist in living with who we are, then we are in the whole of life. Perhaps each of us, through the flicker of our own life, is achieving the brilliance we were born with. Perhaps the glow of life that we all feel and give off diffuses it into all things and enhances our unity with our source like rain falling into a lake. This is how we cover things up in this life, and the only way to do it is to be "careful" with everything we have in life. The only way to experience the essence of life is to deal with all things directly and personally, so that the truth can be revealed. Self-examination Exercise ● In your journal, nonjudgmental describe a time when you have elevated yourself and a time when you have lowered yourself. It's a way to discover your true self. ● Leave the above answers for a day or two, and then go back to your journal and describe how these actions have become a part of your personality. Where does this behavior come from? What was the purpose? ● During conversations with family and friends, share and listen to each other's answers to the above questions and share any insights you gain or new questions you encounter in the process. ● Then, pause, listen to the silence between conversations, and let that silence lead you to meditation. Later, look into each other's eyes and slowly exhale, letting them come into your soft heart; Breathe in slowly, with gratitude for your friends and loved ones. When you are fully aware of your partner's presence, reach out to him or her. Take a deep breath until you can feel all your years together being activated. Take another deep breath and ask each other that loving question: "A hundred years from now, what should I tell people who you are?" After sharing, have a cup of tea together, stand in the sun together or go for a walk together. In the first canto, we talked about how people are born with a twinkle in their eyes, but they will never grow up smoothly, and they will encounter obstacles. It is through these inevitable struggles and elevations that we face our choices in life. The power of love lifts us up, and the power of pain threatens to devour us. Sometimes we forget that we have light too. The key to practicing in the world is how to meet the challenges of life while not blocking the light within yourself. Only when we persist in returning to our inner glory, can our soul unfold a magnificent picture to us. In fact, the challenge for each of us is to live in the world with a pure heart and a true soul, to be completely true to ourselves, and to finally awaken and fully bloom into life. Everything we experience will lead us to the true mission that we were born with. By engaging with each challenge, we discover our own unique talents. But it's never easy. Finding your talent by accepting your life is the practice we say about life. Here, I want to ask you: What does it mean for you to fulfill the mission you were born with? What is that inch of light in your body that is buried under the praise or blame of others? How can you listen more to the sound of light? What's keeping you from facing the obstacles in your life? How can you look at the situation in front of you and realize that the path to acceptance is actually within the roadblocks you face? How have your challenges helped you develop your talent? What part of you is irreplaceable, and what part of you has been changed by someone else and needs to be let go? What can you do today to be in tune with that little piece of yourself, and how can you live in harmony with the experiences that haunt you and the people you meet along the way? How do you embrace your innate ability to say yes to life? Every problem we encounter in life is an opportunity for us to explore and develop a unique way of practice. There is no end to the practice of achieving perfection. Every step we take, the next step is revealed. With each step we take, we explore the troubles of life, the sweetness and bitterness of being alive, constantly recognizing that we need to keep starting over. We begin to try to understand our connection to the world's never-ending call, and how we can leverage our own feelings.

Stephen Mitchell, a great translator, tells a story from China in the ninth century. Ryoshi Doyama, one of the successors of the Cao Dong Zong Zen master, learned from Tansheng Yunyan and became good friends. One day, Doshan asked Yunyan, "After one hundred years, if someone asks what kind of person you are, what should I say?" Yunyan pondered for a long time and said, "That is, to cover the yes." Yunyan put his arm around his shoulder and said, "It is a big thing to cover, and you must be careful." That was the end of the conversation. One day, shortly after Yunam's death, Dongshan was walking along a stream in grief. While he stopped to think, he saw his own reflection in the stream and the reflection of the scenery around him. It was then that he suddenly understood the meaning of his friend. Dongshan later reflected in his writings, "Do not seek the truth from him, and go far away from me." (If you seek the truth from outside yourself, the truth will be farther and farther away from you.) This riddle opens the soul. Let's imagine the two best friends walking together in silence. Maybe it was the refreshing breeze that made the students stop asking questions. Maybe it was the face of Dongshan with love that made Yunyan completely relax and go deep into his soul, giving a mysterious answer. The core of the story lies in Yunyan's answer -- "That is, to conceal (this) a yes". What does it mean? It seems to me that the story is about the importance of the lesson of "being yourself," the humble master who taught us that the noblest work of every soul is not to become great or outstanding, or to emulate the example of others, but to fully realize our own vitality. Consider how the trees turn to the light and stretch their branches.

No tree envies another; Every shell in the sea is so deeply surrendered to the sea that it lets itself be washed away again and again, that no shell imitates the thread of any other; Each raindrop falls in its own way, but all will come together and soak into the earth; As human beings, we are so easily affected by random encounters with other people or setbacks. But beneath the masks we keep piecing together and tearing apart, there is a unique mission that each of us is born to fulfill only by blooming, not by achieving or reaching something, which requires us to summon the courage to fully embrace the life we have been given. But beneath the masks we keep piecing together and tearing apart, there is a unique mission that each of us is born with, and we can only achieve it through blooming. "A matter of great importance must be covered up carefully." This is another of Cloud Rock's teachings. How do we understand that? It seems that the mystery of life as a whole lies deep within the eternal contradictions faced by each individual, and that the mystery of life as a whole can only be unfolded through the specific days of each life, just as each seed takes root in the spring. It's up to each of us to show it through our own unique experience. Only by being ourselves can we experience our innate state of oneness with the universe. But it is not enough. We also need to allow ourselves to be nurtured and loved until we mature and become ourselves. This is an inevitable process that no one can avoid or accelerate. We must take care of each other so that no soul can be twisted. Care and love has always been one of the most powerful forms of education, with this kind of care, we can achieve self-growth. Doyama sees the reflection of the world in grief, because love and grief allow us to feel common with others. Although love and grief are very personal experiences, the differences that separate us dissolve when we are in them. Gradually, we experience oneness with everything through our own unique experiences and bodies. Therefore he said, "Do not seek him out of my way."

I don't think Dongshan means that we are the source of all truth as individuals, but that the only way to experience the essence of life is to deal directly with everything in person, and only then can we experience the essence of truth. Although we may learn from one another, attend classes, or follow the example of others, we are all one cell of the whole universe, and each of us -- "this person" -- is a unique vessel that holds a gram of spirituality during our brief inhabitation of this Earth. Each of us -- "this person" -- is a unique vessel carrying a gram of spirituality during our brief inhabitation of the Earth. I love this conversation between two great friends walking a thousand years ago. It reveals the core of our journey, individually and together. They were having this conversation on a sunny day somewhere in Zhejiang Province, China. Perhaps they would have looked silently at the white clouds floating in the valley after they had finished talking. Perhaps the white clouds would have bowed their heads in tribute to each other. In the next few sections, I want to discuss in detail our journey back to the glory we were born with, the process by which we strive to realize our soul. We all live our lives in our own time, and if we persist in living with who we are, then we are in the whole of life. Perhaps each of us, through the flicker of our own life, is achieving the brilliance we were born with. Perhaps the glow of life that we all feel and give off diffuses it into all things and enhances our unity with our source like rain falling into a lake. This is how we cover things up in this life, and the only way to do it is to be "careful" with everything we have in life. The only way to experience the essence of life is to deal with all things directly and personally, so that the truth can be revealed. Self-examination Exercise ● In your journal, nonjudgmental describe a time when you have elevated yourself and a time when you have lowered yourself. It's a way to discover your true self. ● Leave the above answers for a day or two, and then go back to your journal and describe how these actions have become a part of your personality. Where does this behavior come from? What was the purpose? ● During conversations with family and friends, share and listen to each other's answers to the above questions and share any insights you gain or new questions you encounter in the process. ● Then, pause, listen to the silence between conversations, and let that silence lead you to meditation. Later, look into each other's eyes and slowly exhale, letting them come into your soft heart; Breathe in slowly, with gratitude for your friends and loved ones. When you are fully aware of your partner's presence, reach out to him or her. Take a deep breath until you can feel all your years together being activated. Take another deep breath and ask each other that loving question: "A hundred years from now, what should I tell people who you are?" After sharing, have a cup of tea together, stand in the sun together or go for a walk together. In the first canto, we talked about how people are born with a twinkle in their eyes, but they will never grow up smoothly, and they will encounter obstacles. It is through these inevitable struggles and elevations that we face our choices in life. The power of love lifts us up, and the power of pain threatens to devour us. Sometimes we forget that we have light too. The key to practicing in the world is how to meet the challenges of life while not blocking the light within yourself. Only when we persist in returning to our inner glory, can our soul unfold a magnificent picture to us. In fact, the challenge for each of us is to live in the world with a pure heart and a true soul, to be completely true to ourselves, and to finally awaken and fully bloom into life. Everything we experience will lead us to the true mission that we were born with. By engaging with each challenge, we discover our own unique talents. But it's never easy. Finding your talent by accepting your life is the practice we say about life. Here, I want to ask you: What does it mean for you to fulfill the mission you were born with? What is that inch of light in your body that is buried under the praise or blame of others? How can you listen more to the sound of light? What's keeping you from facing the obstacles in your life? How can you look at the situation in front of you and realize that the path to acceptance is actually within the roadblocks you face? How have your challenges helped you develop your talent? What part of you is irreplaceable, and what part of you has been changed by someone else and needs to be let go? What can you do today to be in tune with that little piece of yourself, and how can you live in harmony with the experiences that haunt you and the people you meet along the way? How do you embrace your innate ability to say yes to life? Every problem we encounter in life is an opportunity for us to explore and develop a unique way of practice. There is no end to the practice of achieving perfection. Every step we take, the next step is revealed. With each step we take, we explore the troubles of life, the sweetness and bitterness of being alive, constantly recognizing that we need to keep starting over. We begin to try to understand our connection to the world's never-ending call, and how we can leverage our own feelings.