Questions and Answers Opening up the Mysteries of the
Doctrine of the Golden Flower
You suppose that attainment is possible in quietude but lost in activity; you
do not realize that the reason for loss through activity is because nothing is
attained through stillness. When you attain nothing in quietude or lose
anything through activity, in either case you have not yet reached the Way.
When you keep presence of mind, only then do you have autonomy. When
you have autonomy, only then can you manage affairs. ... However,
presence of mind is easily interrupted. Practice it for a long time, though,
and it will naturally become unbroken. Once it is unbroken, it is continuous.
With continuity, the light shines bright. When the light shines bright, energy
is full. When energy is full, then oblivion and distraction disappear without
effort.
Observing mind means observing the purity of mind. The mind is basically
nondual, just one vital reality; throughout the past and future, there is no
