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Do We Ever Lose Each Other?
In places where there are all four seasons, the earth and sky wear the unique beauty of each season, causing our hearts to be moved, giving rise to an attitude of reverence and recognizing beauty as being connected with goodness, truth, virtue, and authenticity. The story of Ambapali shows us that beauty and suffering are interwoven, inviting us to look deeply in order to understand their nature and to overcome attachment, as only the Buddha and Shariputra dared to look directly at her to express understanding and not be swayed by appearances. In the ultimate truth, reality transcends the duality of beautiful–ugly, as in the Heart Sutra: no birth, no death, no defilement, no purity, also no beautiful, no ugly; yet in the conventional truth, we can still cherish the beauty of flowers, the scenery of Vulture Peak, golden rice fields, and sew the “field of merit robe” in the pattern of rice paddies to express subtlety in monastic life.
The Buddha teaches us to look deeply to see the impermanence and non-self nature of all objects of form, sound, smell, taste, touch, and dharma, so that we do not get caught in perceptions of good–bad, delicious–not delicious, thereby maintaining clarity in our awareness. Through stories—such as the Zen master admiring the moon regardless of theft, or Thay Nhat Hanh praising tasty food but knowing not to praise or criticize—we learn lessons of humility, mindfulness, and respect in simple living.
We practice mindful breathing to connect with our blood father, spiritual father (the Buddha), mother, and ancestors, which is also the continuation of the stream of wisdom and non-self. For example, meditation with father includes:
- Breathing in, I know I am my father’s child
- Breathing out, I know I am the continuation of my father
- Smiling to greet my father in my heart
- Accepting fully both the strengths and weaknesses of my father
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Nurturing the aspiration to realize what my father has not been able to accomplish
We practice similarly with our mother, teacher, and the Buddha, so that our eyes, ears, and steps become the eyes, ears, and steps of the Buddha, maintaining the undying light, transforming suffering into compassion.