Mumonkan

CASE 30. BASO'S VERY MIND Daibai asked Baso, What is the Buddha?" Baso answered, "The mind is the Buddha." Mumon's Comments: If you fully understand Baso's meaning, you are wearing Buddha's clothes, eating Buddha's food, speaking Buddha's words, doing Buddha's deeds, that is to say, you are Buddha himself. But Baso misled not a few people into erroring the principles of Zen. He does not realize that if we explain the word "Buddha" we must rinse our mouths for three days afterwards. If he is a man of understanding, he would cover his ears and run away hearing Baso say, "The mind is the Buddha!" Under blue sky, in bright sunlight, One need not search around, Asking around what Buddha is, is liking the stolen goods in one's pocket and declaring oneself innocent.