It is true that discrimination is impossible without memory. However, non-discrimination in Buddhism doesn’t mean to remove all memory. Our lives depend on memory, and we can’t maintain our lives without memory. It is not an exaggeration to say that all the civilizations we human beings have achieved are the fruit of accumulated memory for a long time.
Enlightenment, that is, non-discrimination doesn’t mean to remove all memory and enter the state that is free from memory. It means to realise that all memories are empty and not to be deluded by them. Sentient being’s suffering is being tied and entangled in invisible ropes called memory. This is why the Buddha said that we sentient beings should escape from the invisible ropes by Realising that they are empty.
©Boo Ahm
All writing ©Boo Ahm. All images ©Simon Hathaway
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