Zen Buddhism and Sufism

[DreadFish]

Im just going to keep my opinion 'till later

Nonetheless, a good article. Site linked at bottom

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Chan or Zen Buddhism and Sufi Philosophy See Eye to Eye

[by] Wong Weng Hon

A meaningful interfaith dialogue and understanding canbe established if this article is digested theosophically.The currently troubled and imperiled world is not totallyhopeless. The Message of the Absolute Reality or our communal Lord is the Saviour. This is not a mere dogmatic assertion of an individual of great faith. It isthe communal Message of all Tathᾱgata and Prophets.

Introduction

Sufi Poet Bῑdil wrote poetically thus:

The wave and whirlpool are not other than the sea
Except for this Name
The other is not manifest
By negating yourselves,
We harvest the confirmation of You (God)
We had to walk through the garden
By the renoncement of our own color
When our ashes, like the morning
Were cast to the wind
We only make bright the mirror of the sun

Bῑdil describes the Absolute Reality of God through his Sufi poetry. I’m exuberantly captivated by his Sufi wisdom as it also mirrors the perfection of Wisdom of Chan or Zen Buddhism. It confirms my perception of the Monotheistic God defined by renowned Sufi Ibn ‘Arabῑ as the Unity of Existence (Wahdat al Wujῡ’d). Bῑdil was one the Sufi exponents of Ibn ‘Arabῑ’s School of Wahdat al Wujῡd. Unity of Existence is not-self but holistic existence (Anattᾱ or Śῡnyatᾱ).

Wave and Sea

The waves and whirlpools originate from the sea. In other words, the sea creates the waves and whirl pools. In the absence of the sea, the waves and whirlpools do not exist. Nevertheless, even if waves and whirlpools do not exist, the sea exist. Likewise, the creatures do not exist without the Creator God. Buddhistly put, creatures are conditioned phenomena and Creator is the unifying principle of Dependent Co-arising. The waves and whirlpools are impermanent and mutable phenomena. Likewise, the creatures or phenomena are impermanent and mutable. The Sea is the Noumenon or Principle that is permanent and immutable. The hidden Noumenon governs and sustains the existence of the phenomenal world. Buddhistly depicted, the manifest phenomena are the conventional realties of the relative truth; the unmanifest or hidden Noumenon or Principle is the ultimate Truth.

Truth of Unity

Celeberated Sufi Ibn ‘Arabῑ defines God as the Unity of Existence. Since everything is Unity of Existence designated as either Anattᾱ or Śῡnyatᾱ in Buddhism. Anattᾱ is Non-self or Selflessness. Individual self does not exist but unity of dynamic process becoming exists. All world’s great religions concurs with this Absolute Reality of process philosophy. Śῡnyatᾱ is emptiness of self-identity or self-nature. Therefore, Anattᾱ or Śῡnyatᾱ is ontologically synonymous with the God concept. God is the Truth of the Absolute Reality of Unity of Existence or holistic totality of Non-duality. In Taoism and Confucianism, the Unity of Existence is the integral Way of Tao.

Ordinary worldlings always conceive themselves as individual entities existing independently from others. Consequently, the ordinary worldlings separate themselves from the Unity of Existence of God. Separation produces sin or unwholesome karma. Human beings become sinful or evil when they alienate themselves from the systemic Unity of God/Emptiness/Tao. For instance, when a huge wave of tsunami is separated from the sea, it becomes a dangerous giant killer. When wave is not separated form the sea, it is within the sea’s control and ceases to be destructive. When it is totally separate and out of control from the sea, it becomes harmful. Likewise, when Man is controlled by God existence or the integral Way of Tao or Chan/Zen, he or she is peaceful and harmless. When Man is separate from God, he sins. Buddhistly put, when Man is separated from Anattᾱ or Śῡnyatᾱ, he creates karmas. Any action directed and empowered by self-centric ego is sin or karma. Sin is karma; karma is sin.

All world’s religions can be reconciled through perennial wisdom of process philosophy. When the human world takes this statement seriously and discovers the communal Truth of Wisdom of not-self or Unity of Existence of the systemic Whole, the world can be saved. We are all together in the same family. Disharmony destroys the systemic family. Disharmony violates the Order of the Absolute Reality of holistic Unity of Existence – the Oneness of Being.

Everything human crisis can be overcome though the knowledge of the Absolute Reality of perennial wisdom of process philosophy. It includes the current crises of global financial crisis, economic recession, terrorism, extremism, sectarianism, separatism, political conflicts, racialism and so forth.

When one negates oneself, one returns to the Unity of Existence of God. Buddhistly put, when one negates one’s self, when returns to the original cosmic Self of Non-self. The Self of Non-self is God or the holistic living of Tao/Emptiness/Non-self. We live in the garden of Heaven or pure Land when one abandons one’s self identity or self-nature on earth. Self-identity or self-nature never exists. It has been superimposed into one’s human personality owing to religious ignorance of the God existence or the integral Way of Tao or Insubstantiality.

Oneness of Being

All human beings originally live in the Unity of Existence of Anattᾱ or Śῡnyatᾱ.Anattᾱ or Sῡnyatᾱ is the systemic Whole or Unity of God or Tao. Self-redemption is reunion with God or concurrence with the integral Way of Tao. Reunion with God or the Way of Tao is the entrance into the door of Non-duality (Advaita). Non-duality is complete consciousness of the world of Oneness of Being of Anattᾱ/Śῡnyatᾱ/God/Tao. When our ashes (mental pollutants/ impurities ) are thrown to the blowing wind, the ashes are brushed aside. Likewise, when we have developed the wisdom of Anattᾱ or Śῡnyatᾱ or Advaita or are fully consciousness of God existence or the Way of Tao/Non-self, we eliminate the darkness of ignorance in us. Tao is Buddha-nature. Tao is the essence of God. Tao is the essence of Brahman.

Wisdom

When the ashes do not settle on the mirror of the sun, the sun can illuminate the world brightly. Likewise, when God abides in us and we abide in God, our wisdom will illuminate our lives so that we are not derailed from the straight path of God or Tao or Buddha. The Noble Path is one – holistic existence. A Gnostic or Enlightened mind is like a bright mirror that reflects all images clearly. An ignorant mind is like a mirror that is obscured by dust. The images can not seen clearly in an unpolished mirror.

Conclusion

Bῑdil wrote poetically thus:

From everything that enters the sphere of growing
And everything that is made the subject of speech
If you open your eyes
His beauty is manifest there
And if you listen to it
You will heard His voice.

The poetry mirrors what the Prophet Muhammad says, “Wherever you turn, you see the Face of God.” Synonymously, Tao is not remote form Man; it is Man who is remote from Tao. Gotama Buddha promulgates, “Every sentient being is endowed innately with Buddha-nature.” Owing to false mental constructs and grasping, it is not realized.” The aforementioned Sufi poetry of Bῑdil is compatible perennially with a Chan or Zen poetry that is uttered thus:

The melancholy yellow flowers are all perfection of wisdom
The green bamboo trees are all Truth Bodies
One leaf constitutes a world
One flower constitutes a Tathᾱgata

Thus, Buddhistly put, we witness that God is Emptiness and Emptiness is God. Form is Emptiness and Emptiness is Form. The multiplicity exists in the Unity; the Unity exists in the multiplicity. Underlying all religions is the perennial philosophy. Perennial philosophy is process philosophy. Process philosophy is Process Reality of dynamic process becoming. The process becoming is the dynamic unity of the systemic parts in a systemic Whole. The Avatamsaka Sῡtra of Mahᾱyᾱna Buddhism expounds the concept of cosmic Self (Dharmadhᾱtu) in terms of the Principle of Dependent Co-arising (Pratῑtyasamutpᾱda). Every dependently co-arisen phenomenon is a creature created by the God. God is eternal Principle of Dependent Co-arising that arranges and unifies contigent causes and conditions into existences. Every existence is a Dharma. Every Dharma is God existence.

Editor’s Note:

Sufism is the Heart of Islam. It is the esoteric teaching of Islam. Likewise, the Heart Sῡtra or Diamond Sῡtra is the esoteric teaching of Buddhism. The I-Ching is the esoteric teaching of Confucianism. Tao Te Ching is the esoteric tenet of Taoism. The Vedᾱnta or Brahma Sῡtra is the ultimate exposition of Hinduism. Underlying all these apparent diverse Scriptures is perennial wisdom of process philosophy called Monotheism. Monotheism means One God only. One God is only one Truth that governs all. There is only one borderless Ocean which creates and regulates the waves. When a huge wave is separate from the Ocean and assails any victim nation, it turns into an ugly tsunami of devastation. The separation from God/Buddha-nature/Tao should be comprehended in this way to develop the fear for the Absolute. The Absolute rewards as well as retributes. It depends on how one behaves.

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Chan or Zen Buddhism and Sufi Philosophy See Eye to Eye : Stories and Poems : Mingkok : Buddhistdoor

I hope others benefit from this as I have

[joea]

Just a quick reply for now, but I believe Sufism existed in many religions when they were of infinite freedom and alive, with no dogma. Buddha,Krishna, Mahavira and Jesus to name a few, were all Sufis, but they probably never heard of the word. When a religion dies, it is because Sufism has moved away from that body. Islams will come and go and religions will take form and will dissolve, but Sufism continues because it is not a dogma.