Those who can realise this, do so at once, without training or testimonial, without gain or loss. There is no other Dharma. Were there a special one, I say it is like a phantom and a dream. This is all that I teach.
Commentary:
‘Those who can realise this’ means those who can see and hear things as they are without being deluded by their names, that is, those who can attain enlightenment. ‘Do so at once, without training or testimonial’ implies that enlightenment comes suddenly, not gradually in the way knowledge is acquired through academic training, or by testimonial.
‘Without gain or loss’ means that enlightenment is not to gain good things and lose bad things but to realise that we are already so perfect that there is nothing to be gained to compensate for our deficiency, and nothing wrong to be removed for our perfection. So, Buddha, according to the Diamond Sutra, said, “I’ve never gained anything at all, even the smallest thing. My highest enlightenment is just a name.”
‘Were there a special one, I say it is like a phantom and a dream’ means that we should be able to see everything as empty without any exception, including Buddha, which is more often than not compared to seeing things as a dream. According to the Diamond Sutra, Buddha said, “If you see things as a dream, you will see the true-Self.”
Student: “How can we see Buddha if you ask us to see even Buddha as an illusion?”
Master: “That’s the way you can see Buddha?”
©Boo Ahm
All writing ©Boo Ahm. All images ©Simon Hathaway
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