Chapter 61 Can people be "selfless", like a pineapple in the air, far away from the earth? (59)

It is said that the air pineapple is a kind of epiphytic plant, and there are traces of them on utility poles, aerial wires, rocks, trees, etc. Plants, no matter where they are, or of any variety, need soil equally. I remember the first time I saw an air pineapple, I was really shocked! What kind of plant can survive without soil?Air pineapple! I used to look in disbelief at the green hairy leaves under that wire.Sometimes I really wonder if it is fake?In the end, I have to admit that it is neither a "rootless orchid" nor an "unsqueezable rose". It is an air pineapple, a plant that only needs air and water.

When I saw the air pineapple, I couldn't help being in awe. Ordinary plants can't surpass the attachment to the land, but it can do it!Perhaps it is due to its innate characteristics.But in my eyes, air pineapple represents a kind of "selfless" spirit. The argument of "selflessness" is shocking to those who are used to self-existence! If "I" does not exist, then who is reincarnated?As a result, various schools and interpretations have been derived, some of which are even far from what the Buddha said.However, in the sexual Buddhism of various sects and regions in later generations, the teaching of "no-self" is even omitted.

In fact, "no-self" does not negate the existence of a relative "I" that can talk and walk, but denies the existence of an absolute self that is eternal and unchanging, always dominated by one. The Buddha proposed "non-self" because he saw that all people in the world are obsessed with "I" and "what I have" and cause all kinds of suffering.When the Buddha became enlightened more than two thousand years ago, he said: "It's amazing! It's amazing! All living beings on the earth have the wisdom and virtue of the Tathagata, but they can't realize it because of delusion and persistence." The goal that Buddhas always pursue.

The Buddha once picked up dead leaves in the Jeta Grove and asked the monks: "Do these leaves belong to you, or do they belong to your property?" The monk replied: "Of course these leaves are not us and do not belong to us". The Buddha then said: "So, monks! Abandon what does not belong to you! Abandon all attachments to form, feeling, thought, action, and consciousness. In this world, what really belongs to 'I'? You may wish to refer to it carefully. A reference." How about planting air pineapples in the soil? The answer is that it must not survive!This is another very interesting case.

The Buddha repeatedly told his disciples the truth of "no-self", but if a practitioner is obsessed with "self" and refuses to let go, is it like an air pineapple planted in the soil, and the dharmakaya and wisdom will not grow after all?I looked up at the air pineapple hanging in the air, thinking so.