Some people say that the root, stem, and flower stood for the base, spine, and thousand-petaled lotus crown of the Chakra Yoga system and that by raising the plant he was advocating that discipline. Other people say it could just as easily indicate a result of that discipline, the Trinitarian fulfillment: as the Buddha was Father and Mother, he was also Son- the Lotus Born and Lotus Holding Maitreya, Future Buddha, the Julai. That's certainly something to think about!

In Chan we're not sure of too many things. We only really know one: Enlightenment doesn t come with a dictionary! The bridge to Nirvana is not composed of phrases. As old Master Lao Zi wrote, "The Dao that we can talk about is not the Dao we mean."

So the Buddha spoke in silence, but what did he say.

Perhaps he was saying, "From out of the muck of Samsara the Lotus rises pure and undefiled. Transcend ego-consciousness! Be One with the flower!"

There! The Buddha gave a lecture and nobody had to take any notes.

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