There are no followers of Tao, but Rinzai is a man of philosophy where there are only followers. In Tao, in Zen, in Dhamma, there are only lovers…love at the highest peak, where you open your heart to the unknown realities, to the unknown invisible mysteries of your own being. It is a trust certainly, but not a following.

Remember, trust is not a belief. These things I have to remind you of again and again, because all your dictionaries are misleading. I have not come across a single dictionary or encyclopedia which is not mixed up and confused about trust and belief.

Belief is in a system of thoughts and trust is the essence of love. You can trust only a living being; you can believe in a dead scripture. Trust simply means that you have already tasted something and you have heard the call of the master…”Come closer, be more intimate. I can show you my inner world in order to help you to see your own inner world.” The function of the master is to provoke a quest in you for your inner treasures.

There are no followers of Tao.

There are only lovers.

Rinzai says:

“I am talking about that which is distinctly solitary and bright and is listening to my expounding of the dharma. This one knows no obstructions and is omnipresent in the three worlds of existence in the ten directions of space. It can freely and comfortably enter all the different states, without being infected by them.”

This I call philosophical – going round and round. In this whole passage what he is saying is simply, “Look into yourself. The reality of your being is as big as all ten dimensions. Nothing can penetrate it and nothing can burn it, nothing can steal it.” If Bodhidharma was to say it, he would simply hit you with his sandal, and that would be enough. “It is you, there is no need to go on talking about it.” Why not wake you up directly?

“In the shortest instant,”

says Rinzai,

“it will penetrate deeply into the dharma-dhatu,”