Liberation Is Reality
Liberation is also known as Rojin-Tsū—the wisdom of exhausting all outflows. It means casting off every form of obstruction. It is a state in which even your own memories can no longer bind you.
At this moment, you are not thinking from the present. You are thinking within memories driven by the momentum of attraction. The one who grows out of these memories and judges based on them is what we call the “ego,” or “self-consciousness.”
Yet liberation is none other than reality itself—living by seeing things as they truly are, unbound by the past. A life without liberation is, in essence, a life lived entirely within the past.
The Cypress Tree in the Courtyard
Long ago in China lived a Zen master named Yuezhou. One day, as he entered his room, a scholar-monk peeked in and asked:
“Why did Bodhidharma come from the West? What is sudden enlightenment?”
Yuezhou answered:
“The cypress tree in the courtyard.”
People have tried to interpret these words in every possible way, and every one of those interpretations is mistaken.
The true meaning is simple: at that time, there was a cypress tree standing in Yuezhou’s courtyard.
In other words: The reality right before your eyes is the Way itself.
Incidentally, it was reported in China last year (2016) that this very cypress tree had been found. There were seven cypress trees at the site.
“This is the tree Master Yuezhou meant.”
“No, it’s that one.”
This is the suffering of those who have not yet freed themselves—still caught in ego-bound concerns.
The Gateway to Liberation
The first condition for liberation is a noble “spirit” or “temperament” that does not fall prey to obstacles.
I believe this wholeheartedly: when Shakyamuni was born in India, he took seven steps just seven days after birth and declared, “Above heaven and below heaven, I alone am honored.” Laozi, too, was a person of extraordinary spirit and presence.
From Bodhidharma to Yuezhou, Huangbo, Linji, Mazu, Nansen, and Xuefeng—all Zen masters possessed a spirit that transcended the self.
Thus, a lofty spirit is the gateway to liberation.
Only with such a spirit can one overcome the difficulties of the real world, detach from self-attachment, act without being swayed by self-consciousness or the soul, and come to know the fundamental energy of the universe.
Realizing this fundamental energy is what is meant by “sudden enlightenment,” “great awakening,” or simply “enlightenment.”
