Description
 
A Formula for Ending Suffering:  A Practical Guide to the Heart Sutra 
 
 
Introduction
 
Hui Ko, a prominent Confucian scholar and practitioner, came to Bodhidharma, the First Patriarch of Zen Buddhism, to become his disciple. Despite all his knowledge, Hui Ko could not attain a peaceful and centered state of mind. When Hui Ko saw Bodhidharma, who was practicing meditation in a cave, he said, “Master! My mind is not at peace. Please put my mind to rest.” Bodhidharma replied, “Show me your disturbed mind.” Hui Ko paused and searched for his mind. After a while he said, “Master, I have searched for my mind, but I cannot find it.” Bodhidharma replied, “Then I have already put your mind to rest.”Bodhidharma did not ask Hui Ko why he suffered. He did not ask about Hui Ko’s financial problems, nor did he ask about his personal relationships; rather, Bodhidharma asked him who or what was suffering.
 
What Bodhidharma questioned was the real nature of Hui Ko's mind, his true self.
 
When a stone hits a dog, the dog chases after the stone. When a stone hits a lion, the lion chases after the person who threw the stone. When we understand the reality of ourselves (the reality of our minds), suffering ceases. That is the core teaching of Buddhadharma. That is the essence of the Heart Sutra.
 
Several years ago, a Korean journalist conducted a survey to find out what Koreans wanted the most in their lives, and he asked them to express this desire in one word. Most Koreans chose haeng-bok, which means "happiness." Whatever our race, ethnicity, or age may be, what we want most in our lives is happiness. That is why we try to have a better job, a better house or car, or more recognition. We constantly try to alter our conditions rather than make the effort to discover our true selves.
 
Socrates said, "Know thyself." Trying to change our environment to create happiness without knowing the reality of our mind is like building a house on quicksand and expecting to live in it forever. Happiness, suffering, freedom, dissatisfaction, depression, and joy are all words that describe our state of mind. When we clearly see into the reality of our minds, the root of our suffering is severed, and as a result, suffering ends. The happiness or freedom that comes from the realization of our true self is perpetual and indestructible. The happiness that comes from our changing environment, however, is conditional and fragile, and therefore it cannot be everlasting.
 
This story illustrates this teaching: When a young boy came home from school, he discovered his grandmother diligently looking for something. He asked, "Grandma, what are you looking for?" She replied, "I am looking for a needle." "Where did you lose it?" the boy asked. "I lost it in the living room," she said. The boy asked again, "Then why are you looking for it in the yard?" She replied, "Because it is brighter out here!"
 
The person who searches for happiness without realizing his or her true self is like that grandmother looking for the needle in the wrong place.
 
What could be more important and more urgent than realizing our true self when what we want most is not momentary happiness but eternal and unconditional happiness? For what purpose do we live our lives if not for the complete freedom that comes from awakening to the true reality of our mind? For what purpose do we pour our time and energy into our lives? This is what we need to contemplate.
 
When I was in my teens, whenever I experienced impermanence, I felt as though I were trapped in a very small barrel; it was as though I were imprisoned. The feeling was very strange. Later I came to realize that these experiences were a kind of koan, or spiritual question, arising in my mind. And
then I realized that I could escape from all things except from one thing: my mind.
 
When the reality of our mind is revealed, suffering ceases. When emptiness, which is the nature of all things, is clearly understood, the root of suffering is severed. This is the essential teaching of the Heart Sutra. This is the core of Buddhadharma.
 
Shakyamuni Buddha was born a prince. He lacked nothing and was raised in an environment where he was always satisfied. But when he witnessed old age, illness, and death, the inevitable conditions of human existence, he acutely felt the inherently unsatisfactory aspect of the human condition. His response to this feeling was to leave his palace and search for that which is eternal. Although most people put up with such feelings, the Buddha courageously confronted it face to face. When he attained supreme enlightenment and discovered his true self—when his innate wisdom emerged—he became free from all suffering and was empowered to help all sentient beings.
 
This book is written to encourage everyone to take the journey that the Buddha took twenty-five hundred years ago. This is the inner journey to discover our authentic self, the journey to our inherent indestructible freedom and to unconditional and everlasting happiness.
It is time to go inside to find the needle instead of searching for it in the yard.
 
 
 
Contents
 
 
Introduction
 
The Heart Sutra
 
What Is the Heart Sutra?    7
Entering the Path of a Bodhisattva    25
Emptiness of Self    37
Anybody Home?    53
The Gateless Gate of Nonduality    67
Emptiness of Phenomena    85
Neither Appearing Nor Disappearing    95
When the Shoes Fit, One Forgets About Them    107
The Twelve Links of Dependent Origination    119
Emptiness of the Twelve Links    135
The Four Noble Truths    143
Emptiness of the Four Noble Truths    193
Sudden Enlightenment and Gradual Cultivation    203
The Ultimate Song of Freedom    217
You Are What You Seek    225
 
Acknowledgments    241
Notes    243
Bibliography    251
Index    255
About the Author    261