Empty Cups

One of the greatest things about Chan Buddhism is that it is investigating something that is really limitless. From my experiences of this practice, the curiosity to keep going deeper and further is what drives the joy of practice, even though it may not be very blissful all the time. I am even wondering if this experience of mind could be called "miraculous everyday", though I object to the term 'miraculous'. I am trying to say that Chan is so marvelous in terms of its ability to go deeply into contemplation, even when the things it is exploring really pertain to ordinary life experiences.
   Gilbert said something very interesting today about a very commonly recited story about the monk who keeps pouring tea into a scholar's cup even though the cup is full. While the common interpretation of this story is that one can never learn 'with a full cup', Gilbert offered an alternate interpretation of this story, and that is that the mind itself is always overflowing, so much so that the intellect could never fathom this mind. What is so interesting about Chan practice is how the fascination for mind continues even though a person might be going through leg pain and other very heavy thoughts and sensations. Gilbert explained today that the mind itself is always trying to equalize the phenomena: there is an inherent  drive toward this equalization of all experiences, to achieve a state where there is no attaching or adding to thoughts.
    This interpretation of the empty cup story is interesting, because it suggests that Chan is not about limiting the mind to 'simplify' experience. On the contrary, it seems to be about seeing that all things are just coming up in mind, and one need not fear these experiences anymore: they are really manifestations of the vast nature of a mind without limits. Seeing things in this way, I can freely come and go, without trying to expand a mind that is already inclusive of everything. It is somewhat like the merchant who comes down from a mountain with lots of gifts to give out. It's not that the merchant has anything to sacrifice, but at the same time, she or he has everything to give because the heart is not tied or attached to one place or thing. Everything becomes the heart's gift and the heart's home.