The saying is a paraphrase of a line which reads: "What one knows or sees is more important than where one is stepping." The phrase, "What one knows or sees, " should not be replaced with the word "view, " because view is something that can come from one's learning. The phrase refers to those things that come directly from one's experience. In the Lotus Sutra there is a saying, "To open what the Buddha knows and sees; to reveal what the Buddha knows and sees; to realize what the Buddha knows and sees; to enter what the Buddha knows and sees." What the Buddha knows and sees is emptiness, no form, no attachment, no phenomena.

The line should be interpreted thusly: "What is known and seen is more important than what one is doing." And "what is known and seen" specifically refers to what the Buddha knows and sees. How should a practitioner relate to this? First is the case of one who has experienced enlightenment and has entered into what Buddha knows and sees. How does one really know that what one sees is actually what the Buddha sees? One must gauge the experience against the teachings of the Buddha ─ the sutras. Practicing diligently, studying the sutras and keeping the precepts fall under the heading of "What one does." In this case, what one does is not as important as what one sees or knows. If the experience is not real enlightenment, then one cannot know and see what the Buddha knows and sees.

If one has a good, qualified teacher, it is not absolutely necessary to read the sutras for proper guidance. Such a teacher should be able to determine if the experience is real or not, shallow or deep. If it isn't enlightenment, then the teacher can point directly to the problem or sticking point ─ the obstruction or the attachment.