Zen story: The certainty of uncertainty
By emptychair
@innertalks (23743)
Australia
October 3, 2021 11:38pm CST
The Zen master, Kowlich Ripocke, had been asked about how he could be so certain of his Zen, and of it being ultimately true too.
Here was his answer:
"You might also ask me what has uncertainty got to do with love, or fear?
"Uncertainty creates a fear of the certain, in that you are afraid of stuff being certain, and what that might really mean for you, and instead you sit with the idea that God might be real, and it would be nice if he was, but you are more afraid of accepting the certainty of this, than your keeping holding onto the uncertainty of it not being true at all."
"You are uncertain of certainty, and the doubts create fears, and the fears create more uncertainty, and more doubts, perpetually so, until you embrace love, and love breaks this never-ending cycle for you, as when you feel real love, you will be certain of that love as real, and nothing else will seem unreal for you, as long as you bathe in the elixir of this love."
"In the end, then, you become certain of uncertainty in your mind."
"Nothing can break this down, unless you reintroduce the certainty of love back into your life, your thinking, and into the very essence of who you are too. You are as much love, as God is love too."
"Be certain of love, and you will be certain of God too."
"Zen is merely the connective force of mind that brings the love in your heart back to God, by its freedom of choice to do so."
Photo Credit: The photo used in this article was sourced from the free media site, pixabay.com
The Zen master was certain of his certainty of his Zen.
5 people like this
5 responses
@crossbones27 (53005)
• Mojave, California
4 Oct 21
Well I say the universe is god. I mean if God is a single entity and showed their self. I would not be fearful. I would be like nice to meet you. These people worship you or something.
3 people like this
@innertalks (23743)
• Australia
4 Oct 21
The Universe seems to be the Universe to all people, scientists too, but God seems to be only God to those who believe in him enough to make him real to them.
The Zen master was saying that it is our uncertainty that feeds more uncertainty into us.
If we just drop into love, and feel a great love for the fact of the Universe existing, rather than nothing, we will be certain of our connection to God too, as God would be more God to us, than not God then, to put it in the Zen way.
The Universe is greater than us, and we could call it God, but could something only physically alive like that have love in its makeup too?
No, only if God places it in there, otherwise a rock always remains an uncaring rock, until God injects some love into it, and it turns then into life.
We are alive rocks then, in a way, and certainty in that idea lights our load, as otherwise, we remain as heavy as a rock in our minds, rather than letting the lightness in our hearts carry us along.
@crossbones27 (53005)
• Mojave, California
4 Oct 21
@innertalks I would be down with that, but I think many are alive rocks they care nothing about about anyone but themselves. I would say that is not a very zen attitude.
3 people like this
@crossbones27 (53005)
• Mojave, California
4 Oct 21
@innertalks I think you right there brother.
2 people like this
@arunima25 (93194)
• Bangalore, India
4 Oct 21
It's beautifully said that if you are certain of Love, you are certain of God. God is love and we can see the glimpses of love in everything around us.
3 people like this
@innertalks (23743)
• Australia
4 Oct 21
Yes, we can see God shining forth to us from every part of his creation, when we look with the eyes of love within us.
@arunima25 (93194)
• Bangalore, India
4 Oct 21
@innertalks Yes, I totally agree. We just need those eyes. But unfortunately, we get blinded by many materialistic things and fail to see it.
2 people like this
@innertalks (23743)
• Australia
4 Oct 21
@arunima25 We can be blinded by our own uncertainty too, which prevents us from seeing what is there, because we are uncertain about what we see.
@innertalks (23743)
• Australia
4 Oct 21
The Zen master was saying that uncertainty creates an uncertainty about God in our minds, and when we feel this, we should drop down to our hearts, and feel again the certainty of love, and God, there.
If we stay with the uncertainty thoughts in our minds, these lead us to fear, and doubt, and further away from love and God, in their way, as we hold these thoughts too tightly to us, and are afraid to drop them away, because we are afraid of the certainty of God, and feel that it is all too immense for us to grasp with our minds.
We need to feel the love, as love is always immense in its feeling, and let go of our uncertain thoughts.
@innertalks (23743)
• Australia
4 Oct 21
Yes, that has also always been my dream, to be certain about truth, God, and life.
Uncertainty is of the mind though; certainty of the heart.
Love is the only certainty, and so as the Bible says, perfect love casts out all fear from the one who loves perfectly, as well as all uncertainty too.
The catch is though, that maybe only God can ever love that perfectly; we can only strive to do so.
Even the striving removes our doubts as we strive and feel the extra connection from our very striving, though.
@innertalks (23743)
• Australia
5 Oct 21
@Shiva49 Yes, but if we oil as many of those wheels within wheels with love, instead of bitterness, or greed, the whole process should go a whole lot smoother for us then too.
The wheels within wheels are set up as a whole, but also work better for the individual too, when they oil them with love. Everything affects everything else.
When things work seamlessly for us, there is a truth in that too, which just stares out at us, for us to meet, and to take notice of too.
@Shiva49 (28394)
• Singapore
5 Oct 21
@innertalks Some seem to be at a higher level of connection to love and God.
As for me, I tend to veer around to a point of view that I feel our understanding of our creator is not what it really is. There are wheels within wheels and we are still unsure about the history of our planet beyond a couple of thousand years.
However, I believe there is a creator behind this show and to that extent, I believe in the truth that seems a moving target all the time.
1 person likes this
@DocAndersen (54399)
• United States
4 Oct 21
to be certain of uncertainity
that line alone made this one stand out.
Great piece!!!!!!!
2 people like this
@innertalks (23743)
• Australia
4 Oct 21
Thanks, Scott.
Two great questions that we can ask ourselves in our lives are these ones:
Are we certain about our certainty?
Are we certain about our uncertainty?
Is there anything that we are really still uncertain about in our certainty?
Is there anything that we are really certain about in our certainty?
I wasn't even certain about my number of questions here then either!
Certainty is constantly changing, or at least our own view of it is.
We can be certain about uncertainty, but we cannot be uncertain about certainty, or can we?
Certainty, real certainty is always certain of itself, or is it?
A certainty about uncertainty is a false certainty, or maybe not?
We can be so falsely certain about our own uncertainty (i.e. we think that uncertainty is the only certainty possible) that it stops us from seeing the certainty of the certainty that is really there, but is there ever really a complete certainty about certainty?
2 people like this
@innertalks (23743)
• Australia
5 Oct 21
@DocAndersen Yes, nicely put, Scott.
I would agree that if we are on our right path, certainty, or uncertainty, should not be issues for us then, at all.
2 people like this
@DocAndersen (54399)
• United States
5 Oct 21
@innertalks we are bound to what we are. there is no certainty, or uncertainty as long as we walk our path. the only time there is uncertainty is when we stop and doubt oursevles.
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