釋門歸敬儀 2.93

2.93

When practicing and studying, the practitioner should rely on the Bodhisattvabhūmi Sūtra, which says: 'One who practices the Dharma relies on open solitude and stillness, does not wander about with the body, remains silent with the mouth and speaks little, sleeps little and stays awake much, always eats in a single sitting, and does not mix different kinds of food. Contemplating all dharmas taught by the Tathāgata, one knows they are neither existent nor nonexistent; with what one knows, one thoroughly penetrates all dharmas, causing oneself to attain good understanding.' Attested by this passage, the practitioner must know to observe one's own mind: from the very beginning, its nature is innately pure, neither empty nor existent, neither defiled nor pure, free from all discriminations. It is solely due to delusional thoughts that right and wrong arise, and gain, loss, sin, and merit increase as a result. Now, penetrating to the original nature can be called returning to the source. If one constantly practices this contemplation and does not see persons or phenomena, this is penetrating emptiness. Since emptiness originally has no form, how could delusion arise? Thus in all actions, moving the body and deploying thought, one must not lose mindfulness, as clarified above. This is real contemplation; the rest is called empty understanding.