Tathāgata or Buddha
plurality over uniformity
understanding over rejection
consciousness over ignorance
detachment over personification
forgiveness over accusation
harmony over clashes
sharing over owning
unity over duality
spirit over mind
joy over suffering
inclusion over exclusion
appreciation over repulsion
acceptance over separation
humility over arrogance
reality over illusion
love over hate
peace over war
giving over taking
solutions over conflict
movement over paralysis
cooperation over isolation
befriending over alienation
tending over destruction
everything over nothing
nothing is everything!
“Flashes of radiant cognizance” — in empty space
Emptiness, concepts, names, and more
“To abide in emptiness takes a leap of faith. You have to leave behind the familiar comforts of sense objects and the old habits of thinking, liking, and disliking. You set off on a wide sea with just intention as your rudder, and you don’t know what will come next. You can try paddling hard and kicking, but that only sends you in circles. Relaxing with awareness helps but does not bring complete security. The maps are encouraging, but so much of the vastness seems uncharted — and yet you have committed to the journey. You need to maintain your effort but without striving hard for a result. In such a moment, you have to trust in the journey — and you have to trust in emptiness enough to surrender to it. This expresses a deep faith in the unfolding.”
“The more we live in the world of concepts, the more we forget that what the name points to is just a momentary flashing into sense experience. We take the static concept as real and forget the changing reality… We need to remember that the name is just something we’ve invented because it is useful… Doctrines are also concepts; they are not reality itself. When one is in touch with the underlying reality of things, one doesn’t have to label it… [It] is what it is.”
Born in consciousness and attention
“Before an object appears, the light is invisible, unborn, and unmanifest. Once an object appears, the light is born and manifest. The object is then ‘born’ in consciousness.”
“Understanding the truth of things is the most beneficial view, and that ultimately relies on experience, not concepts…
No one technique is always the best practice. What is best is what’s suited to your body and mind in a given moment. As a general rule, when distracted, focus on a simple object to collect the attention.”
— Guy Armstrong, Emptiness: a practical guide for meditators, pp. 159, 201-202, 238, 252
It is what it is — flowing in countless dribbles, falls, rivers, and streams
• 道 可 道 非 常 道 •
“The Dao that can be spoken of is not the ever-constant Dao.”
— Lao Zi, Dao De Jing, beginning of verse #1, minimalist translation by Bruce R. Linnell