Signlessness: A Cloud Never Dies
Based on The Art of Living by Thich Nhat Hanh
“The eye with which I see God is the same eye with which God sees me.” — Meister Eckhart
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A sign is what characterizes the appearance of something — its form.
We have a tendency to become caught up in signs, appearances, and familiar forms, and this distracts us from seeing the true nature of reality.
If we recognize things only by their signs, we may think that one cloud is different from another cloud, the oak tree is not the acorn it came from, and the child is not the parent.
We lose sight of the fact that we’re much more than this body of this name.
The Buddha said, “Where there is a sign, there is always deception.”
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When you see a photo of yourself as a young child, where is that little child now? You’re older now, and you look different, but that child is still alive in you, in every cell of your body.
It is still possible to listen to and take care of the child within you at any time.
You can invite that child to breathe, come for a walk with you, and enjoy nature with you.
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You were not born on your birthday. You were not born on the day you were conceived. You existed even before your parents thought of having a child.
In the Zen tradition, they ask, “What did you look like before your grandmother was born?”
Pause – Close your eyes, ask yourself that question. Take note of what arises.
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Just as we need to liberate ourselves from the idea of a separate self — a human being different from other living beings — we also need to liberate ourselves from the sign and appearance of a lifespan.
You are life without boundaries.
You are much more than this body. We are interconnected with all life; we are never truly born, and we never truly die. We are always transforming.
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You are a continuation of everything before you and everything after you.
Birth and death are always taking place. We are coming into existence and going out of existence at every moment of our lives.
We can recognize that something has to die for something else to be born.
From this, we understand that it is not important how long we live; it is the quality of our life that matters.
The gift of what we do with the gift of this body and this time.
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You are not just your physical body. Many spiritual and religious traditions recognize that we have multiple bodies. And our quality of life is influenced by the attention that we give to those bodies.
In yoga, we identify 5 bodies. (the Koshas). Buddhism teaches that we have eight bodies.
The body is a collection of energy.
When we have a close relationship with all eight bodies, when we can take care of them and allow them to take care of us, they encompass the qualities we would like to continue after we pass away.
We discover our truth.
“To study the self is to forget the self.” — Dōgen Zenji (Zen tradition)
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The First Body: The Human Body
Through our human body, we can feel, heal, and transform.
We can experience life, take care of someone, speak up for others, hear the birds, and act to make our world better.
It’s a bit ironic that we are scared of what happens to our physical body when we die, and yet we are not truly enjoying our physical body while we are alive. Caught up in our projects, worries, and fears.
When we can detach our identity from our body, we see that our body is a garden and we are the gardener – you’re the awareness that understands where you need to turn the soil, pick the weeds, remove the rotted roots.
This is an act of reconciliation. It is an act of love.
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The Second Body: The Buddha Body
The word Buddha means someone who is awakened and who works for the awakening of other beings.
Your Buddha body is your capacity to be awake and fully present — to be understanding, compassionate, and loving.
We all have the seeds of mindfulness, love, understanding, and compassion. Whether these good seeds have a chance to grow depends on our environment and our experiences.
You have to give the Buddha within you a chance.
Whatever your livelihood is — teacher, artist, businessperson — you can participate in the work of the Buddha.
This also means waking up to the suffering in the world and finding ways to bring relief and transformation.
If you have the mind of love, you are a Buddha in action.
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The Third Body: The Spiritual Body
Our spiritual practice body grows from our Buddha body.
Spiritual practice is the art of knowing how to generate happiness and handle suffering. It is the art of stopping and looking deeply in order to gain insight.
Every time you embrace a strong emotion with mindfulness and restore your clarity and calm, your spiritual body grows.
Then, in difficult moments, your spiritual practice body will be right there with you when you need it.
People can steal your phone, computer, or money, but they can never steal your spiritual practice. It is always there to protect and nourish you.
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The Fourth Body: The Community Body
A beloved community is a community of people who share the same aspiration and support each other in realizing it.
We need a community and spiritual friends to support and nourish us. In return, we support and nourish them, like cells in the same body.
With understanding and compassion in our way of being, our community can become a source of support and a place of refuge for many people.
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The Fifth Body: The Body Outside the Body
Our presence, our practices, and our actions.
The parts of us that extend outward and can be felt by other people.
Our humor, wisdom, kindness, patience, clumsiness, favorite colors, perfumes, and dance moves.
When we experience the fifth body of other people, we can still be with them.
When we listen to their favorite song, eat their favorite foods, or watch their favorite movies, we are with them.
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The Sixth Body: The Continuation Body
What we produce is our continuation body.
We are like stars whose light continues to radiate across the cosmos millions of years after they become extinct.
When you are able to produce thoughts of compassion and understanding, they become healing and nourishing for yourself and the world.
Just as an acidic cloud produces acid rain, the energy of anger, fear, blame, and discrimination creates a toxic environment for ourselves and others.
At every moment, it is possible to think, say, or do something that inspires hope, forgiveness, and compassion.
We have to train ourselves in the art of right thinking and right doing (Such as with The Four Agreements).
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The Seventh Body: The Cosmic Body
We are made of stardust. We are children of the Earth, made of the same elements and minerals.
We contain mountains, rivers, stars, and black holes.
We breathe the atmosphere, eat the Earth’s food, create new ideas, and experience new feelings.
Our human body is a masterpiece of the cosmos, and when we treasure, respect, and cherish our body, we are treasuring, respecting, and cherishing our cosmic body.
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The Eighth Body: The Ultimate Body
Our ultimate body is truth. The way of things.
We go beyond appearances and signs to touch the ultimate truth — the true nature of the cosmos.
We are a wave appearing on the surface of the ocean.
We have our wave body and our ocean body. They are one. Because we are not only a wave; we are also the ocean.
Our ultimate body is our ocean body.
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We cannot take the water out of the wave, and we cannot take the wave out of the water.
Just as the wave is the water itself, we are the ultimate.
Truth, peace, and bliss are within you.
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Pause – To understand our ultimate body, I’d like you to slow the breath, calm the heart… And picture a could in the sky…
Now imagine that the cloud evaporates, vanishes.
When we live life based on appearances, we would think the cloud is gone. But in reality, the cloud condensed into other clouds, and those clouds became rain, and that rain fell into a river. That river flowed into your pipes and out of your faucet, then into your cup.
The cloud never died, it became your cup of tea.
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That is our true nature. We are life, constantly transforming.
Never born, never dead.
Not doing, just being.
The poet Rumi says, “you’re not a drop in the ocean, but the entire ocean in a drop.”
Put your hands on your heart, feel your oceanness. And smile :)
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Much love, Alex
