What is the symbolic meaning behind "the tiger takes to the mountain" in Dogen's Fugen zazengi?
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The tiger is in his home in the mountains (in the Eastern imagination), dropping off body and mind you return to the natural state.
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1Yes. In the line before, he mentions the dragon taking to the water. – Simon H Aug 25 '17 at 16:23
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Yes, you pretty much become yourself. Beautiful question. – Andriy Volkov Aug 25 '17 at 20:02
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The dragon is a kind of serpent which is a symbol of wisdom. – Thomas Schulte Aug 27 '17 at 00:02
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In addition, consider that when Dogen wrote his works, literacy was mostly reserved to the warrior class in Japan. For this reason, it may also hint to the reverse of Sun-Tzu's fifteenth stratagem, called "Lure the Tiger Out of the Mountains". – Codosaur Oct 31 '18 at 20:09