One day Ananda said to the Buddha, “Sir, when I went to the castle today, I saw a peculiar thing.” The Buddha said, “What peculiar thing did you see?” Ananda said, “When I entered the castle, I saw a group of people dancing, but I didn’t see them dancing at all when I came out of the castle.” The Buddha said, “I also saw an unusual thing when I entered the castle yesterday.” Ananda asked, “What unusual thing did you see?” The Buddha answered, “When I entered the castle, I saw a group of people dancing, and I saw them still dancing when I left the castle.”
Student: “What is the difference between the peculiar thing that Ananda saw and the peculiar thing that the Buddha was?”
Master: “If there is difference between them, they are not the peculiar thing.”
Commentary:
All things being different from each other is ordinary, but all things being identical is peculiar.
©Boo Ahm
All writing ©Boo Ahm. All images ©Simon Hathaway
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