『임제어록』에 나타난 임제 선상담의 목표와 방법론

Abstract

Seon counseling is a form of counseling based on Seon Buddhist psychology. Linji’s Seon counseling can be examined from two aspects: goal and methodology. From the perspective of the goal, Linji aims for the right view. From the perspective of emptiness, the Dharma, Buddha, and mind have no form, cannot be obtained, sought, found, or achieved; they are all just names. This way, affairs cease, thoughts rest, there is no cultivation, and one simply trusts and allows the functioning of that which is operating. The focus is not on the external, but on that which functions internally. This is the attitude that a counselor should possess and the goal that a client should strive towards. From a Seon counseling perspective, Linji emphasizes curing illnesses and removing fetters. He completely perceives the client’s capacity, responds, reflects, strikes down dualistic thinking and external objects, and blocks them. While the four guest-host situations show the relationship between counselor and client based on the presence or absence of the right view, the four classifications freely take away the expansiveness and outward orientation of the subject and object. In the four operations of shining and functioning, verbal methods and behavioral methods are used with a time difference. At this time, the methodology of letting go and holding back is used, through which the client is led to the goal. Ultimately, Linji’s Seon counseling can be seen as the right view and function in terms of goal and method. While traditional Seon counseling focuses on connectivity, Linji’s Seon counseling goes a step further by adding immediacy and functionality.