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The awareness of mortals falls short. As long as they’re attached to appearances, they’re unaware that their minds are empty. And by mistakenly clinging to the appearance of things they lose the Way.

Bodhidharma

To have a body is to suffer.
BODHIDHARMA

Body Suffer
Trying to find a buddha or enlightenment is like trying to grab space.
BODHIDHARMA

Buddha Enlightenment Find Grasp Space Try
Freeing oneself from words is liberation.
BODHIDHARMA

Free Liberation Oneself Word
The Way is basically perfect. It doesn’t require perfecting. The Way has no form or sound. It’s subtle and hard to perceive. It’s like when you drink water: you know how hot or cold it is, but you can’t tell others.
BODHIDHARMA

Ay Basic Perfect Require
But when you first embark on the Path, your awareness won’t be focused. You’re likely to see all sorts of strange, dreamlike scenes. But you shouldn’t doubt that all such scenes come from your own mind and nowhere else.
BODHIDHARMA

Awareness Embark First Focus Path
According to the Sutras, evil deeds result in hardships and good deeds result in blessings.
BODHIDHARMA

Accordingly Bless Deed Evil Good Hardship Result Sutras
Everything good and bad comes from your own mind. To find something beyond the mind is impossible.
BODHIDHARMA

Come Everything Good Impossible Mind Something
Regardless of what we do, our karma has no hold on us.
BODHIDHARMA

Hold Karma Regard Us
Not engaging in ignorance is wisdom.
BODHIDHARMA

Engage Ignorance Wisdom
I never lost or fail, not yet conquered. If I fall seven times, I get up eight
BODHIDHARMA

Conquered Eight Fall never
Once you see your nature, sex is basically immaterial.
BODHIDHARMA

Basically Immaterial Nature See
Our true buddha-nature has no shape. And the dust of affliction has no form.
BODHIDHARMA

Affliction Buddha Dust Form Nature One Shape True
To see nothing is to perceive the Way, and to understand nothing is to know the Dharma, because seeing is neither seeing nor not seeing, and because understanding is neither understanding nor not understanding.
BODHIDHARMA

Dharma Nothing Perceive See Understand Wa
Worship means reverence and humility. It means revering your real self and humbling delusions. If you can wipe out evil desires and harbor good thoughts, even if nothing shows, it’s worship. Such form is its real form.
BODHIDHARMA

Delusion Humanity Humbling Mean Real Reverence Self Worship
But this mind isn’t somewhere outside the material body of the four elements. Without this mind we can’t move. The body has no awareness. Like a plant or a stone, the body has no nature. So how does it move? It’s the mind that moves.
BODHIDHARMA

Body Element Four Mind Move Outside Somewhere
Not suffering another existence is reaching the Way.
BODHIDHARMA

Another Existence Reach Suffer Vary

The awareness of mortals falls short. As long as they’re attached to appearances, they’re unaware that their minds are empty. And by mistakenly clinging to the appearance of things they lose the Way.

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The awareness of mortals falls short. As long as they’re attached to appearances, they’re unaware that their minds are empty. And by mistakenly clinging to the appearance of things they lose the Way.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

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