True and False Mind

The Rantings column is about the translation of words by the Masters and Sages. The column usually consists of me interpreting these words. This month I thought I’d give you a crack at it. What you’ll need is a pen and paper. What follows is a Zen poem that talks about true mind and false mind. In each line of the poem the Author makes reference to either the true mind or the false mind. With your pen I want you to make a note of which mind is being referred to in each line. When you have finished, simply check your answers in the Closing Commentary with Master swordsman Yagyu Munenori…. Good luck.

“There is a poem that says,

It is the mind

That is the mind

Confusing the mind.

Do not leave the mind,

O mind,

To the mind.”

(From The Book of Family Traditions on the Art of War - Yagyu Munenori, under the chapter, The Life Giving Sword. Translation by Thomas Cleary.)