Non-Grasping

Non-Grasping

Non-grasping is the relaxation of clinging to self, others, and phenomena as solid or truly existent. It does not mean apathy or detachment from ethical responsibility; it means experiencing things without the extra overlay of "mine," "me," and rigid storylines.

Chandrakīrti

• Shows, through reasoning, that no phenomenon (including the person) has svabhāva (inherent existence).
• When this is seen, grasping at things as ultimately real cannot be sustained.

Bankei

• Points out that thoughts, emotions, and habits arise within the Unborn mind and self-liberate when not followed.
• "Don’t leave the Unborn" is a concise instruction in non-grasping:
  • don’t chase, fix, or suppress what appears — let it come and go in the Unborn.

Both offer different doorways into the same functional shift: the loosening and eventual release of clinging.