A finger points at the moon, but the moon is not at the tip of the finger. Words points at the truth, but the truth is not in words.
HuinengWords are not truth. Truth is like the moon, and words are like my finger. I can point to the moon with my finger, but my finger is not the moon. Do you need my finger to see the moon?
HuinengBy amending our mistakes, we get wisdom. By defending our faults, we betray an unsound mind.
HuinengWhen our mind works freely without any hindrance, and is at liberty to 'come' or to 'go', we attain Samadhi of Prajna, or liberation. Such a state is called the function of 'thoughtlessness'. But to refrain from thinking of anything, so that all thoughts are suppressed, is to be Dharma-ridden, and this is an erroneous view.
Huineng