When Obstacles Become the Path

One stanza from the Trust in Heart poem says:

Cut off all useless thoughts and words and there’s nowhere you cannot go.

Returning to the root itself, you’ll find the meaning of all things.

If you pursue appearances you overlook the primal source.

Awakening is to go beyond both emptiness as well as form.

I appreciate the clarity of these instructions. Here we find an invitation to practice with our thinking minds.

I find that this instruction to “cut off” is more of an invitation to see through or into the thinking mind and recognize what thoughts really are. Especially thoughts that appear as hindrances. The repetitive inner critical thoughts, endless doubts, obsessive thinking about the future.

What are thoughts made of? How long do they last?

We are told in Buddhism to regard thought as another sense. What is this like? To notice the textural, auditorial, image-emotional experience of thinking.

What happens when during a meditation period or in your daily life you turn attention to the thinking mind, to attend to the thought stream?

When we see thoughts for what they are, they have less power over us. We don’t have to believe or even identify with everything we think—we also don’t need to get a in struggle with our thoughts.

This teaching and practice empowers us to be more discerning. We use our thinking minds throughout the day—planning, reflecting, reasoning, contemplating, conversing.

And it is possible to use the mind, without being used by the mind.

This poem is inviting us to recognize the root of the thinking mind. The root of the thinking mind, is the root of all things. When we know experientially the true nature of the thinking mind which includes: doubt, inner critic, worry, anxiety, judgement, planning, other people’s thoughts, views, perspectives—then they have less power over us.

Then everything turns around, we can see the light, bodhicitta— within each thought and/or emotion—no matter the content.

Dahui, as great Zen teacher of the 12C says it this way in a letter to one of his students.

This very moment just cease to entertain thought, putting an end to the confused mind. Then you will know that there is no delusion to be destroyed, no awakening to be aspired to, and no discriminatory thought to be cut off. With time erroneous views will disappear of themselves, and you will be like a person drinking water and knowing for themselves whether it is hot or cold.

The mind that is clearly aware of discriminatory thought taking place—how can this mind possibly be obstructed? How can there possibly be any other kind of mind than this one?

Since times of old the wise have taken to discriminatory thought like dragons to water and tigers to mountains. They regard discriminatory thought as a companion, employing such thought as upaya, and on the basis of discriminatory thought practice universal compassion and carry out all sorts of buddha deeds. For them, discriminatory thought is never a source of suffering because they understand its source. Once the source of discriminatory thought is fathomed it becomes the locus of liberation and of release from samsara.

May we recognize the source of all thoughts and find freedom and love in our nature!

Thank you! For the month of November Mud Lotus Sangha is sending 50% of our donations to the Clintonville-Beechwold Community Resource Center to help those in our neighborhood who are struggling with food insecurity this month. All of our communities can use extra support and there are many ways to practice generosity. Thank you for all the ways that you show generosity to me and the other beings in your life.

Weekly Online Meditation Event

Monday Night Dharma — 6P PT / 9P ET Join weekly for drop-in meditation and dharma talk. We are currently exploring the Faith in Mind poem by the 3rd Chinese Ancestor.

Feel free to join anytime. Event lasts about 1.5 hours. ZOOM LINK

In-Person in Oregon

Universe Somatic: The Bright Thread in the Dark — January 22nd - 25th

Universe Somatic is a practice that integrates group meditation, movement and energy work with a spirit of experimentation and playfulness. We explore the union of spaciousness and embodied energies in a contemplative practice that is embodied and expressive.

The theme for this Universe Somatic is The Bright Thread In the Dark. We will play in knowing and not-knowing, hope and despair, yin and yang, creation and destruction, dancing in deep relationship with these polarities while also listening for the thread that doesn’t get stuck on either side.

Light of the Ancestors Sesshin—May 11 - 17 at Great Vow Zen Monastery

In-Person in Columbus, Ohio through Mud Lotus Sangha

Weekly Meditations on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday

Retreats, Meditation instruction and other events can be found on our website.

Save the Dates! 2026 Mud Lotus Sesshins at Saranam Retreat Center in West Virginia

Mountains and Rivers Sesshin March 18 - 22

Interdependence Sesshin June 29 - July 5

I’m Amy Kisei. I am a Zen Buddhist Teacher, Spiritual Counselor, Astrologer and Artist. I offer 1:1 Spiritual Counseling sessions using IFS and Hakomi (somatic mindfulness). I also offer astrology readings. Check out my website to learn more. I currently live in Columbus, OH and am a supporting teacher for the Mud Lotus Sangha.

Earth Dreams is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit amykisei.substack.com/subscribe