Before you were born

In Korea, Seon’s meaning of teacher is greater than that of a parent, so calling someone a teacher and following them is something to be taken with a grain of salt.

In my Dharma talks, I refer to my teacher as ‘Nim’ instead of calling him/her by name, which is a basic courtesy in both the East and West.

The bigger reason is that the Korean word ‘nim’ has many different meanings.

In Korea, ‘nim’ has the same meaning as ‘Dear’ in English, and is used to address God, saints like Buddha, Jesus, or anyone else you respect, and it can also be used after any pronoun in the world as a sign of respect, but it is rarely used in colloquial speech because its meaning is uncertain when used alone.

As explained above, it is rarely used in isolation, but in “The Silence of Nim” by Korean Seon monk and poet Man Hae, he describes it as a loved one whom he misses dearly, but whose true meaning is someone he should meet but cannot.

Whenever you address me as ‘Nim’, you are not calling me, you are calling your true self, and one day, when the whole of you answers that fervent call, you will prove to yourself the enlightenment of all Buddhas and Seon Masters.

In that sense, Nim is only a mirror reflecting you, a finger pointing to the moon.