Buddhism Zen Mind

A lot of people wonder how happiness and material things go together. Studies have shown time and time and again that having a lot of personal possessions doesn't actually mean having more happiness. In fact studies show that as soon as you have enough money to not worry about basic human needs - food, water, shelter, protection, etc. - your happiness doesn't actually go up as you get more money.

"Wir müssen aus dem tiefsten Nichtdenken heraus denken (...) das Optimum, das Bersten, der Orgasmus des Bewusstseins, das Jenseits-des-Denkens, das absolute, kosmische, universale, globale Denken (...) tritt unbewusst, natürlich und automatisch ein." (Taisen Deshimaru, Zen-Meister). Der Geist wird in einem Moment ganz plötzlich unendlich weit und löst sich im großen Ganzen auf: Was könnte die Erfahrung der Erleuchtung besser beschreiben, als das Bild einer Explosion in die Unendlichkeit.

Little is known of the life of Zen master Huang-Po (Obaku in Japanese). He was born in Fuzhou, China, and died about 850 AD. His main teacher was Pai Chang (Hyakujo) (720 - 814). The main source for Huang-Po's teaching is the Treatise of the Essentials of the Transmission of the Mind, compiled by his student, Pei Xiu. Huang-Po's teaching is focused on the concept of Mind, the essence of intrinsic Buddahood. According to the master, the search for enlightenment was a useless distraction, as seeking for something inevitably separates the seeker from what is being sought.