Book Chapter

Part IV - Buddhism and Daoism: sceptical mysticism

Danvers, John

2012

Overview

According to HeeJin Kim, hi-shiryö refers to \"a very special form of thinking beyond thinking and not-thinking\", (ibid: 60) In this sense \"non-thinking\" is \"objectless, subjectless, formless, goalless, purposeless\", (ibid) Once again, this is a form of cognition that manifests the same kind of undifferentiated quality that perception has within zazen practice. Fd like to consider a few aspects of Jacobson's thinking about the self and some of the implications of these ideas in relation to mind and psychology. Since Jacobson's book was published in 1970 there has been a considerable change in some areas of psychology and psychotherapy, not least in the development of methods and approaches that take account of Buddhist perspectives on the self and how Buddhist practices can be integrated into western therapies. (Jacobson 1970:29) For Jacobson, the primary significance of Buddha's teaching is his identification of the self as a problematic concept, around which false assumptions and beliefs have arisen. [...]one of the main purposes of Buddhist practice is to highlight fallacious thinking about the self and to analyse such thinking in order to gain a clearer and more balanced understanding. In Chapter 49 this impartiality is articulated in what may seem a paradoxical, or even nonsensical, statement about the moral outlook of aDaoist sage: [...]he attains truth. (ibid: 106 translated by Moeller) Moeller points out that this amoral moral teaching needs to be seen in the context of a philosophical idea articulated throughout the Daodejing, that is, that all assertions, ideas and claims are subject to change and possible reversal - they are always relative and provisional.

• Publisher: Brill Academic Publishers, Inc