‘Have you not heard that what comes in through the front gate is not the family treasure.’
Zen master Mumon
On our Twitter account, Buddhism Now @Buddhism_Now, most mornings we post a ‘morning meditation’ like the one above.
On the net, of course, it’s morning, afternoon, evening, or night-time 😀 somewhere.
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More teachings from Zen Master Mumon.
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Categories: Buddhism, Buddhist Insights, Chan / Seon / Zen, Morning Meditaton
Buddhism now 
This is a really interesting quote. Interesting for me as I have no idea what it is pointing to!
This is Chan (Zen) pointing out that true realisation is internal and cannot be brought in or attained from outside.
The Nyingma tradition, of Tibetan Buddhism, has a similar emphasis on recognising the innate nature of mind rather than relying on external teachings or methods.
Dzogchen teachings often stress Rigpa, or the direct recognition of one’s primordial, pure awareness, which is already complete and does not require external validation or acquisition. From this perspective, the ‘family treasure’ could be likened to the natural state of mind, which is always present within but obscured by ignorance or conceptual thinking.
Hope this helps.
R