The first thing ever expressed by an enlightened sage to any given student of the way is the wordless proof that “there is only Mind”. This is the very same dharma professed by all bodhisattvas maha bodhisattvas and Buddhas.Whatever more sentient beings might see, either by the appearance of words, various meanings via composed doctrines and other forms of literal conveyance, it all falls back on that first wordless truth of the Absolute, that is immaculate, permanent, unborn,
Whatever more sentient beings might see, either by the appearance of words, various meanings via composed doctrines and other forms of literal conveyance, it all falls back on that first wordless truth of the Absolute, that is immaculate, permanent, unborn, instantaneous.
This is why the sage or the composed representation of the Tathagata twirls a flower between two fingers, points towards a thing, gives up a shout, draws a black circle of ink on white paper, or performs any similar act based on the sheer creative power of the absolute confirming not only its Truth in the timeless reality of dharmakaya, but also shares its radiance to those able to pick up the wordless Buddhadharma before the interference of countless phenomena.
These acts can be said to be nothing more than expedients means of trying to inform the mind of the lesser able about this singular Buddhadharma that has no likeness or equal in any part or direction of this world (or other).
For where absolute Truth is positionless, as it is imageless, the relative truth being the finger pointing to the moon is but a shadow trying to turn the attention of its believer and beholder to the source of its becoming, the Sun.
Tozen