The Core
The Shoyoroku Case 30: Dasui's Kalpa Fire is a koan in which, in response to a monk's question asking whether "one's original face ('this')" is also destroyed when the kalpa fire blazes and consumes the entire universe, Dasui Fazhen answers that "it is destroyed," while Master Xiushan answers that "it is not destroyed." Usually, people say that "Buddha-nature (one's original face) is an eternal and imperishable entity, or an absolute truth that transcends the duality of creation and destruction." However, in this dictionary, we define it as a practical lesson: "moving beyond the intellectual dualism of 'destroyed or not destroyed,' fully accepting the reality right here and now whether it perishes or not, and completely focusing on the task right before us."
Q&A
- Q: Why did this monk fail to reach enlightenment and end up wandering from place to place, even after hearing both answers—Dasui's "It is destroyed" and Master Xiushan's "It is not destroyed"?
- A: Because he remained trapped within the dual barrier of words and logic—whether "it is destroyed or not"—merely seeking verbal confirmation instead of personally realizing the "reality of the self right here and now."
