In this Dharma talk, Kyosen Mark explores the famous Zen koan “Not the Wind, Not the Flag,” Case 29 of the Gateless Barrier, and its connection to the teachings of Huineng, the Sixth Patriarch of Zen.
Beginning with the story of Huineng's awakening and his encounter with two monks arguing over whether the wind or a temple flag is moving, Mark examines how our tendency to divide the world into opposing concepts can keep us trapped in dualistic thinking.
Drawing on the Platform Sutra, the Gateless Barrier, and the story of the Zen nun Miaoxin from The Hidden Lamp, the talk explores how even the idea that “mind is moving” can become another attachment. A teaching from Ajahn Chah about a heavy boulder offers a practical illustration of the difference between managing our burdens and simply putting them down.
Returning to Chapter 17 of the Platform Sutra, Mark considers Huineng's three foundational teachings—freedom from thought, freedom from form, and freedom from fixation—and how they invite us to experience life without clinging to our thoughts and judgments.
Ultimately, the talk asks: How often do we become caught in arguments about what is right or wrong, true or false? And what freedom might we discover by going beyond these distinctions?
Books Referenced
The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch — Translated by Philip B. Yampolsky
Amazon
The Gateless Barrier: The Wu-Men Kuan (Mumonkan) — Translation and commentary by Robert Aitken
Amazon
The Hidden Lamp: Stories from Twenty-Five Centuries of Awakened Women — Edited by Florence Caplow and Susan Moon
Amazon
