A Transmission Outside Scriptures
Vincent J. Fortunato • April 19, 2019
Here is Vincent's Profound Photo for this month. The senses - touch, sight, smell, hearing, and taste - are experiential portals to places that words, concepts, and other symbols can't take us. As Ginny Kubitz Moyer says in "Taste & See: Experiencing the Goodness of God with OUR FIVE SENSES", "God speaks to me using the language I know best -- the language of the five senses" (p. xiii). Here Vincent shares a gorgeous photo he took of a tulip, and then leaves us with a question.
A Transmission Beyond Scriptures
by
Vincent J. Fortunato
A Zen Koan (paraphrased): Shakyamuni holds up a flower (Mumon’s The Gateless Gate, Case 6).
One day, when Shakyamuni Buddha was to give a talk, he instead held up a flower. Everyone remained silent, except for Kasho, who broke into a smile.
Shakyamuni then said, “I have the all-pervading True Dharma, incomparable Nirvana, exquisite teaching of formless form. It does not rely on letters and is transmitted outside scriptures. I now hand it to Maha Kasho.”
Mumon’s Poem (edited).
A flower is held up,
And the secret has been revealed.
Question:
What was the secret that was revealed?
If “expensive” were one of the principal attributes of what it means to be elegant then most of the world could never experience elegance. But anyone can, it turns out.
"I must conclude again that no one — at least no one I know of — has become whole. At best, they have become 'wholer.' More whole." Also, an invitation to a Messy Elegance Project conversation
What I've Learned Since Defining Elegance with the Help of Flipboard and AI Also, an invitation to a Messy Elegance Project conversation
Messy Elegance is a process, not a thing and how a workshop started this whole messy elegance idea
Earth Day is this week. As we consider the state of our world - and the ecology of both our material and spiritual environment - it makes sense to ask what our role is, has been, and is supposed to be in relationship to "our common home" (Pope Francis).
Here are some initial thoughts about elegance, nature, and depth; a poem about happiness; and even a haiku.
It takes just a second to break something. Restoring what was broken takes time.
