Chapter 41 Chapter 4 Nirvana Beyond the Concept-4

Awakening through knowledge and experience can transcend doubt.We must fully understand that the defilements and delusions that block enlightenment are not fixed.Even though our obstacles may seem tenacious and constant, they are in fact unstable combinations.Understanding how interdependent phenomena are dependent and manipulated can lead us to see their impermanent nature and allow us to be sure that they can be completely eliminated. Our nature is like a wine glass, and our defilements and obscurations are like filth and fingerprints.When we buy a cup, it doesn't have inherent fingerprints on it, and when it gets dirty, the habitual mind thinks that the cup is dirty, not that there is dirt on the cup.The cup is not dirty, it is just a cup with filth and fingerprints on it.These impurities can be removed.If the glass is dirty, then the only recourse is to throw the glass away, because the filth and the glass will combine into one thing; a dirty glass.But that's not the case.Dirt, fingerprints, and other things that appear on the cup come from certain conditions.They are temporary, and we can wash the filth away in a variety of different ways.We can wash it in the river, in the sink, or in the dishwasher, or have the servants clean it up.But whatever method we use, the purpose is to remove the filth, not the cup.There is a great difference between washing the cups and washing the dirt.Maybe we'll argue that that's just semantics.But it is a fallacy if we think that the cup is different from the original one.Because the cup has no intrinsic fingerprints, when you remove the defilement, the cup is not transformed -- it's still the same cup you bought in the store.

When we think our nature is angry or ignorant, and we doubt our ability to attain enlightenment, we actually think our nature is always impure and defiled.But like fingerprints on a cup, these emotions are not part of our true nature, we just collect these pollutants from various unfavorable situations, such as getting along with people who are not kind, or not understanding the consequences of our actions.This original, unpolluted, self-pure nature is often called the Buddha nature.But this defilement and the emotions it brings have been around for so long that it is so strong that it becomes our second nature, covering us from time to time.No wonder we think there is no hope.

To rekindle hope, someone on the Buddhist path can start thinking, My wine glass can be washed clean, or I can cleanse my negativity.This is similar and slightly naive to Jack's belief that the snake should be removed.However, sometimes this is necessary preparatory work before being able to see the original truth of things.If we cannot feel the inherent purity of all phenomena, at least, believing that we can achieve a state of tranquility can help us to move forward.Just as Jack thinks that the snake should be removed is a similar and slightly naive view.However, sometimes this is necessary preparatory work before being able to see the original truth of things.If you cannot feel the inherent purity of all phenomena, at least, believe that you can achieve a state of tranquility.can help us move forward.Just as Jack wanted to get rid of the snake, we want to remove the obscuration and have the courage to try because we know it is possible.We just need to apply countermeasures to either weaken the cause of the pollution or strengthen its opposite, such as generating compassion to conquer hatred.We eagerly wash our cups because we believe we can have a clean cup; similarly, we eagerly seek ways to remove obscurations because we believe we have Buddha-nature.We have the confidence to put dirty dishes in the dishwasher knowing that food residue can be removed.We would not have the same zeal and confidence if someone asked us to whitewash the charcoal.