A. When we say that everything is empty, it means that lust and greed are also empty. Saying that lust and greed are also empty implies that lust and greed are also the Buddha since Emptiness is another name of the Buddha. Lust and greed are not different and separate from the Buddha, but they are one and inseparable from each other.
It can be said that lust and greed contain the Buddha and that the Buddha is hidden in lust and greed. This is why it is said that lust and greed are all Buddhas’ mother. When they are seen and heard as they are, they appear and sound as the Buddha. So, once upon a time when a monastic asked his master how he could remove his lust and greed, the master answered, “Why do you want to discard such a good thing?”
©Boo Ahm
All writing ©Boo Ahm. All images ©Simon Hathaway
Zen Fools 