Direct transmission — a tiny Thought
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A piece of cloth here has been with me in the past 37 years since I was given this from the Eihei-ji temple.
I have washed it may be 10 times or so —– and when ever I did, its color faded farther, so that I became
even more reluctant to wash.
I wrote about this in my old post [Life's Domain] saying that it could be an intended teaching of
“Nothing stays the same, nothing is Permanent”. —– ? ? ? Was such big issue here ?
It’s just an old cotton cloth isn’t it, and it is nothing strange the color dye is fading. ( Dye will be dissolved
and washed away by the water, and it degraded by the UV light as well)
—– Isn’t it thinking too much ? Isn’t it a pointless delusion —– or the Truth ?
To explain and prove a fact in the life = “Nothing stays the same” may need to have lot more than a word, yet
just a piece of cloth shows its truth far clearer. This is what a Direct Transmission is.
—– Then, how about “Should I wash more often” or, in order to preserve its original state, I shouldn’t
have used it in the dairy life, let alone washing.
But, what’s the original state mean ? Is that the color on the cloth and the name of the temple printed on ?
—– isn’t this, just a sentimental reminiscence ? Clinging the past ?
There may not be such a value in its original state. It may only be in the mind.
So, without having such THINKING, just wash it = “Having no useless thinking and just do it”
might be more like the Mushin of Zen Buddhism. = and when the cloth become completely
white, it would be the enlightenment —– WHAT a beautiful metaphor ! ! !
Though, no such things could happen.
In reality, if you keep washing cotton cloth 30, 50 years, the cotton fiber would be disintegrated.
And, when we wash, intending to make the color disappear, ironically, color never disappear.
It is just like our DNA, it would never disappear.
—– Does it mean, no white cloth, neither see the Enlightenment ?
It was a good exercise of thinking = this is a practice of what
Lord Buddha said “ Think it by yourself”. :-)
Just a small piece of cloth teach us all about the Buddhism. This is very “Direct Transmission”.
—– strangely, some people having an illusion “There would be a mythical communication of the
Cosmic Wisdom (Panya Paramita) which suddenly come into the mind and enlighten the person” is what
the Direct Transmission meant. —– Ha ha ha, Don’t make me laugh. :-D
It is a worst delusion than a pretty picture of a spin-doctor’s medicine bottle.
If such magic could ever existed in this world, one of the highest enlightened man like
Dalai Lama could have received such wisdom, and the trouble of the Tibet could be solved long ago.
Though, there is no magic solution or escape, hence this is the Samsara,
as Lord Buddha said. —– We only able to become aware of the Truth by the observation with the clear eyes.
And the Truth is not our wishful thinking but the reality = face of the Dharma.
Direct Transmission is a trigger to make us to actually see it = it is not a mythical magic.
In the famous (Flower Summon], the flower was the trigger to realize “What the Dharma is”=
Dharma is not in the special place, but even in a mere small flower = that’s why even small
flower can broom beautifully.