SHUNYATA AND THE DIAMOND SUTRA
Ozmo Hyonjin
Piedmont, Ph.D
A copy from block prints of The
Diamond Sutra dating from 868 C.E. make it the oldest printed book in history,
predating by 700 years the invention of the Gutengerg printing press in Europe .
They were discovered in the Dunhuang caves of a thousand Buddhas by the British
archeologist Marc Aurel Stein in 1907 in the desert
of Gansu China ,
a way station on the Silk Road offering shelter and
protection from the heat, containing thousands of Buddhist manuscripts, scrolls
and wall paintings. At that time, Stein smuggled out several cases of
manuscripts and had them sent to the British
Museum Paris .
Among their smugglings was a copy of the Diamond Sutra. This discovery opened up a new awareness for Western
researchers of Eastern Philosophy, revealing a long standing tradition of
revered texts related to the Prajnaparamita literature, the earliest layer of
teachings emerging from the early Mahayana tradition in India from the 1st
to 5th Century BCE. The Diamond Sutra itself was first
composed sometime between the 2nd to the 4th Century
BCE. The Diamond Sutra is an independent
part of the Prajnaparamita Sutra series, dealing with the twin themes of
emptiness and the Bodhisattva path, referred to as shunyata and Bodhisattvayana
respectively. It is an effort to resolve the ongoing tension set up from the
earlier Abhidharma formulation of anatman as a lack of a continuous self with
the notions of Nirvana, karma, and rebirth.
Though early Buddhism emphasized psychological
development for personal liberation, later bodhisattva emphasis transformed
Buddhism into a visionary Buddhism of cosmic enlightenment and social transformation,
an all inclusive path that everyone could participate in for the benefit of all
of society, and which anyone could contribute with new insights and scholastic
reflection. By 200 BCE to 300 CE, the mercantile community provided cohesion
and continuity, developing an international written culture through Sanskrit,
where Buddhist monks were now open to interpret the original teachings, leading
to two important new schools emerging, the Madhyamakas, the Yogacharas, and
several splinter groups and spiritual experiments, including Zen and Tantra,
all questioning the meaning of the transcendent and the mundane, and the
corresponding equivalent of emptiness, Samsara, and Nirvana.
In the second century C.E., five hundred years after the
Buddha’s death, the philosopher monk Nagarjuna founded the Madyamaka school
of Mahayana
These debates and questions
regarding the Buddhadharma were earmarked by several shifts in Buddhist
doctrine. First, there was a shift from the original dry map developmental
model of personal liberation to that of a more passionate discovery model of spiritual
experimentation. There was also a shift from cold psychological analysis to
that of dynamic mystical exploration and transformation. There was also a shift
from scriptural authority to individual models of enlightenment by living
persons. Likewise, there was a shift from the parts mentality to a whole
mentality, not just individual liberation, but liberation of all beings. Also,
assisting in this transition from obedience to scriptural authority to that of
creative exploration, was a shift from seeing the Buddha as just an historical
person to that of the Buddha as a transcendent principle that which is found by
living a life based on Shunyata.
The Freedom of Living Simply
The first chapter of the
Diamond Sutra illustrates in very simple language and natural imagery the
essential teaching of the entire Sutra by recounting a day in the life of
Buddha as he goes about his daily routine:
Thus have I heard. At one time the Buddha
was staying at Anathapindika’s garden in Jeta Grove in the city of Shravasti.
With him was a large gathering of 1,250 monks and bodhisattva-mahasattvas.
Early in the morning, when the meal time came, the Buddha put on his robe and,
holding his bowl, entered the great city of Shravasti where he begged for food.
Having finished begging from door to door, he came back to his own seat in the
garden and took his meal. When this was done, he put away his robe and bowl,
washed his feet, spread his seat, and sat down, mindfully fixing his attention
in front of him. (Soeng, 1:72).
This first chapter of the
Diamond Sutra has profound implications for those that study and practice
Buddhism. What is being shown is the peace and joy that comes from living a
simple life free from conflict. Conflicts result from clinging to views and
opinions. The ultimate teaching of Buddhism is to renounce all views
whatsoever, freeing one from clinging, desires, attachments, and all
discriminative thought whatsoever. One does this by living simply, attending to
that which arises as good to do, without attachment to the idea of a personal,
separate self doing something, in short, a life supported by Shunyata.
Defining Shunyata
What is Shunyata? Shunyata is a way
of differentiating appearances from reality.
Shunyata comes from the Sanskrit word “svi” which means to inflate or expand, as in a bubble appearing as
a fixed thing, but is actually empty of any content. In the Mahayana tradition of Buddhism, it is
that which appears solid and permanent to the senses, but in reality is empty
of past, present, or future, changing continually due to prior conditions,
manifesting as a constant flow of appearances, which the mind constructs into
an illusory reality. The author Mu Soeng defines “shunyata” as the empty nature
and relative existence of all dharmas (phenomena) and that all things have a
relative existence based on the interdependent connections of causal conditions
(p. 30). In this sense, phenomena have no independently real existence, but
rather exist as they appear in their suchness in the moment, an apparent
reality, reified by our concepts and ideas, and which overlay a fundamental
reality, the ground of all being, the dharmadatu, which such metaphors as a
holographic image, or the Net of Indra, or a hall of reflecting mirrors try to
describe.
In the Pali Canon, shunyata is used
in two ways: 1. The direct perception where nothing is added or taken away from
the data of perception, with Nirvana considered the ultimate perception of
things as they are without any distortion; and 2. Being completely free of any identification
with a self either in phenomena or oneself. Contemporary physics confirms this
concept, affirming that if one enters deeply into the world of the extremely
small, one discovers that there is nothing solid there, nor any independent entity
exists there. There is no irreducible particle in itself, everything can be
divided into smaller and smaller particles which are effectively empty of any
self existence or permanence. In fact, both the subject perceiving and the
object perceived directly influence each other in what is perceived, for
example, Quantum Physics affirms that the perception of light as a wave or
particle depends on the expectation of the subject observing it. Phenomena do not have any real or independent
existence, but rather they exist as an apparent reality, created by our mental
concepts, which obscure the fundamental reality. It is like a great room
totally covered on all its walls with mirrors, each one reflecting a candle
placed in the middle of the room, such that one sees an infinity of candles
everywhere, an apparent reality based on illusive images.
(Soeng,
p. 30)
Mirror Mind
A mirror serves as a metaphor for
how the mind functions and why it confuses the image with reality. One can
imagine a monk teaching the Dharma to a disciple in a room where there is also
a mirror, so that the mirror, the monk, and the disciple symbolize the True
Mind, the Buddha, and man, respectively. The mirror reflects the image of the
two individuals face to face; one teaches and the other listens. One can
describe this as the monk inside the
mirror is teaching the Dharma to the disciple
in the mirror, or inversely, the disciple
in the mirror is listening to the Dharma taught by the monk in the mirror. This is similar to when the Buddha teaches the
Dharma to human beings, such that there are four relationships being manifest
at the same time: 1. The Buddha image in the mind of the human is teaching the
Dharma; 2. the human image in the mind of the Buddha is listening; 3. the human
mind inside the Buddha Mind is listening to the teaching; and 4. The true
Buddha, inside the mind of the human is teaching. It is like saying that there
are two false images conversing with two aspects of Truth, seen from the
perspectives of ignorance or Enlightenment.
Therefore, our universe is like a
great big mirror the size of an ocean. In the Hwa Yen philosophy (Flower
Garland Sutra), each and everything in the universe is at the same time
a mirror and an image. It is a mirror because it reflects everything else; it
is an image, because it simultaneously is reflected by everything else. In some
way, everything is related to everything else in the universe. The existence of
anything depends on other things, and therefore, is a reflection of other
objects distinct from itself, and vice-versa.
In this sense, the True Mind is a great big mirror, pure, silent, and
with the capacity to reflect or perceive all things spontaneously in the
universe. This big mirror can reflect not only the numerous formations of
clouds, rain, and storms on all the continents, but also the innumerable stars,
galaxies, and all the sentient beings everywhere, including any celestial image
of gods and angels, as well as any grotesque image of demons and evil. This
ocean sized mirror is the Mind, reflecting the infinity of beautiful and ugly
forms, but one doesn’t realize this because the mirror mind is agitated with
mental ideas and distractions. Nevertheless, when the mind calms down, the
surface of the mirror becomes serene, crystalline, transparent, allowing one to
see clearly all the reflections. This Ocean Mirror of the Universal Mind is
essentially the same mind of the human being (Chang, 124-126).
Bodhisattva practice
It is not enough to just understand this intellectually. It
requires compassion as a fundamental expression of the universe in each moment
that functions to alleviate the apparent suffering of everyone. Upon helping
others, we help ourselves, since everything is interconnected. There is nothing
separate from us. Helping others, we overcome our own ignorance, that which
erroneously believes that the suffering of others is separate from us. When we
let go of ego, we liberate ourselves from apparent suffering, motivating us to
help others also liberate themselves. It is as if we were all in a big train
car together. We are together on this trip to the very end of a long journey. Although
there are some happy and relaxed passengers on this train car during the trip,
there are however others that are upset and agitated. Logically, if we could
help the upset passengers to feel happy, we would all enjoy the trip better (Goldstein,
p. 78). Our capacity to give ourselves to others by way of compassion to
alleviate their suffering allows us to become bodhisattvas.
What is a bodhisattva? The
term itself is a composite of two words: bodhi + sattva. Bodhi comes from the
sanskrit root “budh,” meaning to know or be awakened. The other part, “sattva,”
has more range of meaning, including a “being”, “mind” or “intention”, or
strength and courage. Therefore, a bodhisattva is a being headed for awakening,
who cultivates wisdom mind, and directs it with all his effort toward
awakening. In present day usage, a bodhisattva is anyone aspiring toward
buddhahood. Such a person generates the thought of awakening, makes a vow to
help all other beings to awaken, and deliberately is reborn in samsara to share
their accrued merit with others, a kind of spiritual hero who aspires to
nothing less than perfect buddhahood in order to access unlimited upaya for
helping those in distress.
Upaya
Upaya means skillful
means, they are techniques that the Buddha and Bodhisattva use according to the
context of a situation and the capacity of the hearers to help free them from
suffering. However, the upaya are in themselves empty, and in the Mahayana
tradition, not considered as possessing any real existence. They are used as a
boat to ferry one across the river of samsara and suffering, and when one has
arrived to the other shore, they are to be given to others or left behind, not
to be carried on one’s back as sacred relics. Therefore, since there is not any
one thing that is in itself upaya, all things can be used as skillful means.
The upayas serve as a
bridge between wisdom and compassion, since the bodhisattva knows that
ultimately, there is nothing being given and no-one that is receiving the
skillful means. However, it is indispensible for the aspiring bodhisattva to
resolve to help others, and stay actively engaged in the world for this help.
Without this activating factor, the bodhisattva would fall into quietism and
inactivity. But compassion is both the technique to help the apparent other
sentient beings in the world, to be release from their apparent suffering, but
in effect, nothing has been truly changed in and of itself, since samsara is
nirvana, and the relative nature of beings are still always empty and one with
transcendent reality. It is only the mind, trapped by the confusing currents of
passions, desires, aversions, and ignorance, that keep the individual in a
state of suffering. But once one realizes that it is all empty, then one can
let go of one’s attachments and experience life fully in the present, helping
others to do the same. The act of compassionate giving is its own reward. Since
there is nothing given, nothing received, all empty, then in the attitude of
helping apparent others and the joy this brings, is both the path to buddhahood
as well as the fruit of aspiring to perfect buddhahood. (Diamond Sutra ch. 13-16)
A fundamental teaching of the Diamond Sutra is that if the
Mahayana practitioner takes refuge in the teachings of absolute emptiness,
shunyata, then all obstacles of the mind will be eliminated, such as greed,
aggression, desire, and especially innate clinging to an isolated and permanent
“I”, dissolving it completely. Upon the realization of Emptiness, one conquers
the root of ego; upon eradicating the ego, one can conquer fear and confusion,
achieving the supreme liberation of Nirvana. A mind impregnated with Shunyata is
vast, dynamic, and compassionate, because the false veil of an “I” has been
removed and the radiant true Mind has been revealed everywhere. When the practitioner is free of the concept
of a personal I doing something meritorious for someone, and without thinking
of any reward, it is the highest form of practice based on Shunyata. The way to
practice is to do all action with a sense of Complete Emptiness, free of
attachments, free of someone doing something, free of something being done, and
free of anyone receiving something. It is just what is arising in the context
of a function responding spontaneously to the situation at that moment to
relieve suffering. If one practices for the benefit of others, supported by the
emptiness of Shunyata, without even thinking about personal benefit, one will
attain complete liberation (Chang, 115-116).
Compassion to whom?
If all existence is is shunya or
insubstantial, to what or to whom is compassion directed? Merely knowing that the universe is empty is not enough. It
requires compassion as a fundamental expression of the universe in each moment.
But one might ask the question: This compassion is for what or to whom? In its
ultimate sense, the answer is, to no-one. Compassion just is in its suchness,
it arises spontaneously in the moment in response to conditions, and when we
have let go of our attachment to ideas and mental constructs, e.g. our ego
structures, then this natural flowing compassion manifests unhindered in every
moment. If we were to be attached to wisdom of shunyata, there would be no
motivation to do anything. It would be a static universe. And yet, knowing that
all is empty, there is still this apparent arising of suffering due to
ignorance that arises in the universe. But suffering too is empty, only apparent
in its suchness. Since it is not ultimately real, one can see it for what it
is, and the suffering can be released, retuning to that which was always
present but just overlooked, the essential oneness of the dharmadatu. We must
realize that emptiness, too, is empty, void of reification and
conceptualization, we can then face the relative arising of suffering in the
forms of apparent beings, and use an apparent medicine to cure an apparent
disease. Therefore, we are free from attaching to either the apparent reality
of suffering as well as the apparent wisdom of fundamental emptiness. We just
give ourselves to the moment as it is, in its context of arising momentary
conditions that manifest images of suffering beings before us, and we give
ourselves over to the naturally manifesting urge of the dharmadatu itself to
help and alleviate suffering, with compassionate acts. So, in the most
fundamental sense, in helping others we are essentially helping ourselves,
since all is one in dharmadatu and all is the many in the infinite appearances
of phenomena. As we help others, we are overcoming our own ignorance that the
suffering of others is separate from myself, and in so doing, I let go of ego,
and free myself and others from the attachment to apparent suffering, while at
the same time, I realize I am always already free since all is empty, and
therefore, this is only apparent suffering, not real in the ultimate sense, so
it too is empty and must change, as all phenomena in the universe. I then let
go of trying to do anything for anyone. There is no doer, nothing being done,
and no one receiving the doing. There is just momentary awareness of arising of
sensations and perceptions which manifest suffering and which are released from
that suffering when the concept of permanence, ego, and separate identity are
released.
Saying all this, it comes down to just
letting go of all ideas, trusting in the fundamental wellness and goodness of
the universe, and allowing oneself to just do what arises as good to do in each
moment, whether for others or for oneself, so that the illusion of suffering
can be released and peace and harmony prevail. It is the capacity to give
through compassion just for the sake of giving and compassion, that allows one
to become a bodhisattva to help others, knowing that there is no-one to help,
no-one to receive the benefits of that helping, that it is free of karma, and
there is just this present moment arising, pure and perfect as it is.
Three methods of Contemplation
There are three methods to
contemplate Shunyata as ways of being conscious and aware of the constant flow
of ideas and sensations in the mind without grasping a any of them. They
consist of the use of 1. hwadu; 2. direct contemplation; and 3. contemplation
on emptiness. When one uses hwadu, one asks, “What is Wu?”. Since Wu literally
means “nothingness,” “non-being,” “no,” or “emptiness,” one is actually
contemplating Shunyata with an attitude of investigating and focusing one’s
attention on an enigma that cannot be resolved by intellectual concepts or
ideas. Asking oneself the hwadu in this way creates a ball of doubt in the
mind, focusing the mind, eliminating distractions, and opening the mind to
Reality, in spite of the little ego mind that can only respond “Don’t know.”
One continues with this attitude of investigation and perplexity before this
great enigma, until the mind opens itself completely, breaking the ball of
doubt into a million pieces, directly revealing the Truth or Enlightenment
(Yen, 2009).
During practice, one may become
distracted by external or internal sensations, like the barking of a neighbor’s
dog, mental disturbances and irritations may arise. At that time, one can use
the “direct contemplation” method of calming the mind. One trains the mind to
directly perceive just what is in front of one, using only one’s eyes or ears.
The main point is not to attach to any discriminative thought based on
judgments, comparisons, likes or dislikes. There are three principles related
to this form of direct contemplation: no labeling, no describing, and no
comparing. One only directly perceives anything that arises in the mind simply
by observing it as it is, without adding anything, without taking anything
away, without eliminating anything, only paying complete attention to what is
in that moment. Awareness is the key. One must be conscious here and now,
directly perceiving that which is arising in each moment. If one lets go of
preferences, likes and dislikes, the very same sensation will reveal the truth
of Shunyata, emptiness, since the sensation was never separate from the Truth
in the first place, all is empty, impermanent, without a separate or
independent self from the totality (Yen, 2009).
As one becomes proficient in direct contemplation, one can then progress
to the contemplation of emptiness itself.
Contemplation is generally believed to mean “reflect” or “analyze”
something. However, in Buddhism, to contemplate emptiness does not mean to
think about emptiness, but is rather a non-conceptual way of perceiving,
allowing the mind to stay in a certain state. The difference between direct
contemplation and contemplation of emptiness is that in direct contemplation,
one maintains the mind’s focus on the object of perception without thinking
about anything else, without concepts, categories or comparisons, the mind only
perceiving the object as it is. Whereas when one contemplates emptiness, the
mind learns how to stay aware without attaching to any object of meditation.
One does not allow the mind to attach to any form, sound, or idea; nor to any
event or external situation, nor to any thought or idea. The mind does not rest
anywhere, it just keeps letting go of everything. One keeps the free flow of the mind
from
being trapped by any perceptions whatsoever. When one sees forms, one doesn’t
allow them to become contents of the mind; one just lets them go. It is a
continual process of noting and letting go, where things arise in one’s
awareness and then disappear by themselves (Yen, 2009).
Theopathy
The
non-conceptual, non-linear, non-intellectual way of contemplation in Buddhism
could also be described to as “theopathy.” The word “theopathy” comes from the Greek “theo” meaning God (or a
religious experience of the Divine), and “pathy” which means to feel or suffer.
It has a general meaning as a capacity for religious affections or worship. It
can also be defined as the experience of divine illumination and the intense
absorption in religious devotion, as for example, through contemplation or
meditation. It carries a sense of religious emotion inspired by the
contemplation of God, which can become so intense that one may even experience
suffering due to extreme excitement. Therefore, theopathy is an emotional,
intuitive reaction that occurs through the contemplation of God, a kind of
identification and participation with God. Theopathy is the realm of direct
mystical experience.
God or the Divine can be
equated with Buddha essence, also known as “dharmadatu”
or the “dharmakaya” in Mahayana
Buddhism. The dharmadatu refers to “the realm of the dharmas” and is the notion
of a true nature that permeates and encompasses all phenomena; it is the realm
of dharmas (phenomena) as the uncaused and immutable totality in which all
phenomena arise, dwell, and pass away (Kohn, 54). Likewise, dharmakaya means
the body of Truth or the true nature of Buddha, which is identical with the
transcendental reality, the essence of the universe. The dharmakaya is the
unity of the Buddha with everything existing (Kohn, 229).
The practice of Zen
utilizes theopathy to rearrange one’s conceptual framework through the use of
paradoxical statements and intentionally absurd formulas which create a
framework of not-knowing, serving to produce a liberating breakthrough in the
mind of the meditator, shaking the mind out of its linear, conceptualized ways
of thinking so as to experience directly the Essence of the Universe. Theopathy
would be that which is employed in Zen koans as short stories, seen as enigmas,
that can only be solved through deep meditation and contemplation. Many
Mahayana texts also contain preplexing statements that challenge the mind’s
conceptual undertandings, such as that found in the Diamond Sutra when it
states:
“What do you think, Subhuti? Can the
Tathagata (Buddha) be seen by means
of his perfectly formed body?” Subhuti said, “No, World-Honored One. As I
understand it, the Tathagata is not to be seen by means of his perfectly formed
body. Why? Because the Tathagata has taught that what is called a perfectly
formed body is not a perfectly formed body. Such is merely a name. Therefore it
is called a perfectly formed body.”
(Soeng 128)
The Buddha cannot be understood as a person or a thing, since things are
impermanent and empty, therefore, the true Buddha is the Mind itself, empty of
any soul or ego or self. In another passage, the Buddha refers to his teaching
as no teaching in the same fashion:
“The Tathagata has taught that in the
teaching of the Dharma there is no Dharma that can be pointed to as Dharma.
Such is merely a name. That is why it is called the teaching of Dharma.”(Soeng
129).
That which is taught as the Truth of reality, the Dharma, is itself empty
of any existence as a thing, therefore it cannot be the words, either spoken or
written, that are the true Dharma, but rather, that which is beyond all name
and form which is the true Dharma as suchness here and now.
What is essentially being
said in both these statements is that the Buddha is not Buddha, therefore he is
Buddha, meaning that the idea of Buddha
is not really the Buddha, or the essence of the universe of which we are all a
part, and since the real Buddha is not fully expressed by the idea of Buddha, then the real Buddha is
Buddha precisely because it cannot be pinned down to a linear, rational,
intellectual word or thought that contains Buddha. The real Buddha neither
exists nor not exists; it is shunyata, emptiness, which cannot be really known
through thought or reason, but rather through the direct, empathic, experience
of Buddha, that which arises here and now in this present moment before thought
occus about it.
Since one is already perfect and pure as shunyata (God,
Truth, Buddha, Emptiness), these statements are not giving one anything, but
rather they help one to see that which is blocking the perception or direct
experience or realization of Truth, removing the veil so to speak that blinds
one from seeing clearly. Theopathy, the direct experience of Buda, is the
foundation of zen, correcting that which had been distorted by our intellectual
reasoning, allowing us to feel the Essence of the Universe as our true self,
our minds no longer distorted by ignorance and false views. However, nothing
has actually been given or taken away in this process, since all is empty,
shunyata, the suchness in this very moment just as it is. When you attains that
which is unattainable,
realizing the fundamental Buddha body of Truth, you become Buddha.
Self-deconstruction
The Diamond Sutra is
self-deconstructive, a method of no-method, much like zen, which questions the
assumption we have that there is a thinker or reader who has a particular point
of view shaping his or her thoughts. Buddhism challenges this assumption. One
can take apart the underlying concepts and assumptions that are found in any text
or narrative, literally taking apart a piece of literature to see how it is
creating and reifying a particular view of reality. Upon closer observation,
one can see how language itself distorts reality. This is the basic premise of
the Diamond Sutra, which highlights that any idea or concept of either an
independent self or an independent permanent identity in phenomena, is
inaccurate and a cause of suffering.
Modern deconstructivism
asserts that all texts are fictions that construct reality based on linguistic
categories, a kind of logocentrism, which believes that words describe an
independent permanent reality apart from the person. However, the Diamond Sutra
uses words to descontruct this fabricated reality based on words. Each person
is constucting a culturally based world through language and its associations
with other textual descriptions that affirm one’s own beliefs. The aim of the
Sutra, as well as all Mahayana texts, is to awaken the individual to the true
nature of reality.
The Diamond Sutra serves
as a skillful means to transform the mind of the practitioner, freeing him or
her from the linguistic thoughts and concepts of which he or she constructs an
everyday view of reality, opening one to a new and expanded understanding of
reality. The Sutra is a self-deconstructive text in that reveals itself as a
constructed reality of words and ideas, and makes use of contradictory
statements to show how we are constructing our sense of self and the world
around us. A basic feature of Mahayana literature is that language is
inadaquate to express the insights of an awakened consciousness that has
managed to extinguish an ego-self through either cognition or meditation.
Paradox is the main tool
of the text. It makes absolute claims which are then discarded to reveal a
transformed view of reality based on one’s actual experience and not just a
mental construct of it. In turn, as one continues in practice and spiritual
development, one discards any attachment to previous views one has been
guarding, to open to new insights and discoveries as to the nature of truth.
Though Truth cannot be analyzed or conceptualized, it can be intuited and
experienced. However, the mind continually tries to reify that experience into
an idea which only serves to bind and enslave the practitioner into rigid modes
of thinking that lead to suffering. As the Buddha recommended, one must discard
any view of reality, to be able to experience the eternal, formless, boundless
realm of shunyata. Shunyata cannot be known as an object, it can only be
intuited. Likewise, the Buddha warned against annihilistic views that seek to
eliminate all dharmas or phenomena altogether. One neither clings to things as
ultimately real, nor annihilates them. Rather, one learns to see things as they
are in their immediate, present suchness through direct perception of what is
arising, without the filter of egoistic discriminative thoughts, evaluations,
and judgements. One accepts the relative truth of appearances, while at the
same time understands them in their absolute aspect as empty, without
self-nature, an eternal, numinous presence, beyond time and space, appearance
or disappearance.
Life is But a Dream
The last lines of the
Diamond Sutra poetical summarize the core teaching of the sutra: the world of
appearances is fleeting and lacks self-essence.
So you should see [view] all of the
fleeting world: A star at dawn, a bubble in the stream; A flash of lightning in
a summer cloud; A flickering lamp, a phantom, and a dream. (Soeng, p. 135)
The essence of the Diamond Sutra is to show how one can live a life free of
the illusive images that arise all around us. Life is fragil and
transitory. The Diamond Sutra transforms
one’s views about how one can live in the world without becoming trapped by the
illusions and disappointments that arise through the mind. Since there is no
self and all is empty, there is nothing to attach to and nothing to attain. All
is perfect as it is. Non-attachment is Nirvana, the direct result of seeing
into the nature of how things truly are. We cease to cling to the illusory
nature of the world, and we therefore cease trying to find happiness in these
illusory images that present themselves before us. For Buddhist practitioners,
and especially zen, every aspect of the universe reflects the teachings of the
Diamond Sutra as the essential teaching of emptiness and the Bodhisattva path.
It gives us a chance to live in the world without clinging or aversion, free
from the phenomenal mental constructs of the mind. In so doing, we come to see
that we are inherently peace and tranquility, limitless and empty, without
beginning or end, the basic truth of Shunyata.
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