But I always liked the story about the Korean Zen teacher Soen Sa Nimh, who was once asked, so to speak, at a public meeting, "Sometimes when I meditate, I feel like such a schmuck." And Soen Sa Nimh replied, "You're either a Buddha or a schmuck -- there is no in-between."
And that's the way it seems to be -- you either see through the "in-between" or you end up as some silly Buddha or schmuck. Either/or strikes me as a good, tentative route. But the emphasis needs to be on the word "tentative." Hammers are tentatively useful when you want to pound a nail, but you wouldn't lug a hammer around all day long, right?
Just some noodling.
