You should know how to use it. And he kept saying that every day. We should think about how to use the sutra. In The Tiger's Cave , Abbot Obora talks about the great bright mantra of the Heart Sutra. Whatever appears in front of us is reflected just as it is, without any thought, or idea, or concept standing between clear mind and its perception.
Perception is direct and intuitive.
With that kind of direct perception our mind is like a mirror, simply reflecting, without contrivance. It's like when you come out of zazen into the bright morning. That's because you are beautiful. It's not beautiful, we feel that it's beautiful. We feel something, and then we say it's beautiful.