Ordinary mind is reality. Zen is relentless if not severe in squashing any notions of a special mind, a special state of mind, or some fantastic final holy sacred blissful penultimate mind blowing enlightenment. This puts all the machinations of spiritual attainment on tilt. Sadly, there are Zen teachers who's attachment to some special state of experience permeates their teachings. In Zen circles this is called 'stinky Zen'. I think Zen is particularly unique (not special) among world religions because of this insistence upon bare bones simplicity of mind. There is no special mind.
The Prajna Paramita sutra states unequivocally that 'there is nothing to attain', and that 'with nothing to attain a bodhisattva relies on Prajna Paramita'. The one thing all schools of Zen share in their rituals is the Prajna Paramit Sutra, this wonderful statement of non attainment. With nothing to attain your ordinary mind is the way of the Buddhas, the way of flowing, being, allowing, non-meddling, non anticipation, no past, no future, no present, only present, the giving up of trying,...of awaking to just the way things are.
So what is awakening? This question is the motivation to zen practice and the practice itself. Carrying this question around in the belly and heart begins to open and clarify reality, center and ground one's being in prajna and intuitive wisdom. I have taken heart from Rilke's most profound teaching which he offers in Letters to an Artist, which I paraphrase here: we are not ready for the answers, it is learning to live the questions that really matters. Can we live the question of Zen, the question of what is always going beyond, what arises in the present, what is the great dynamic matrix of inter-being?
Waking at midnight
Grasshoppers buzz in my head
Oh! Forest music!
Ordinary Mind
