anthony nicholas

a place to rest; zion national park, utah

334. The craving of one given to heedless living grows like a creeper. Like the monkey seeking fruits in the forest, he leaps from life to life (tasting the fruit of his kamma).

335. Whoever is overcome by this wretched and sticky craving, his sorrows grow like grass after the rains.

336. But whoever overcomes this wretched craving, so difficult to overcome, from him sorrows fall away like water from a lotus leaf.

337. This I say to you: Good luck to all assembled here! Dig up the root of craving, like one in search of the fragrant root of the birana grass. Let not Mara crush you again and again, as a flood crushes a reed.

338. Just as a tree, though cut down, sprouts up again if its roots remain uncut and firm, even so, until the craving that lies dormant is rooted out, suffering springs up again and again.

339. The misguided man in whom the thirty-six currents of craving strongly rush toward pleasurable objects, is swept away by the flood of his passionate thoughts. [21]

340. Everywhere these currents flow, and the creeper (of craving) sprouts and grows. Seeing that the creeper has sprung up, cut off its root with wisdom.

341. Flowing in (from all objects) and watered by craving, feelings of pleasure arise in beings. Bent on pleasures and seeking enjoyment, these men fall prey to birth and decay.

342. Beset by craving, people run about like an entrapped hare. Held fast by mental fetters, they come to suffering again and again for a long time.

343. Beset by craving, people run about like an entrapped hare. Therefore, one who yearns to be passion-free should destroy his own craving.

344. There is one who, turning away from desire (for household life) takes to the life of the forest (i.e., of a monk). But after being freed from the household, he runs back to it. Behold that man! Though freed, he runs back to that very bondage! [22]

345-346. That is not a strong fetter, the wise say, which is made of iron, wood or hemp. But the infatuation and longing for jewels and ornaments, children and wives — that, they say, is a far stronger fetter, which pulls one downward and, though seemingly loose, is hard to remove. This, too, the wise cut off. Giving up sensual pleasure, and without any longing, they renounce the world.

347. Those who are lust-infatuated fall back into the swirling current (of samsara) like a spider on its self-spun web. This, too, the wise cut off. Without any longing, they abandon all suffering and renounce the world.

348. Let go of the past, let go of the future, let go of the present, and cross over to the farther shore of existence. With mind wholly liberated, you shall come no more to birth and death.

349. For a person tormented by evil thoughts, who is passion-dominated and given to the pursuit of pleasure, his craving steadily grows. He makes the fetter strong, indeed.

350. He who delights in subduing evil thoughts, who meditates on the impurities and is ever mindful — it is he who will make an end of craving and rend asunder Mara’s fetter.

351. He who has reached the goal, is fearless, free from craving, passionless, and has plucked out the thorns of existence — for him this is the last body.

352. He who is free from craving and attachment, is perfect in uncovering the true meaning of the Teaching, and knows the arrangement of the sacred texts in correct sequence — he, indeed, is the bearer of his final body. He is truly called the profoundly wise one, the great man.

353. A victor am I over all, all have I known. Yet unattached am I to all that is conquered and known. Abandoning all, I am freed through the destruction of craving. Having thus directly comprehended all by myself, whom shall I call my teacher? [23]

354. The gift of Dhamma excels all gifts; the taste of the Dhamma excels all tastes; the delight in Dhamma excels all delights. The Craving-Freed vanquishes all suffering.

355. Riches ruin only the foolish, not those in quest of the Beyond. By craving for riches the witless man ruins himself as well as others.

356. Weeds are the bane of fields, lust is the bane of mankind. Therefore, what is offered to those free of lust yields abundant fruit.

357. Weeds are the bane of fields, hatred is the bane of mankind. Therefore, what is offered to those free of hatred yields abundant fruit.

358. Weeds are the bane of fields, delusion is the bane of mankind. Therefore, what is offered to those free of delusion yields abundant fruit.

359. Weeds are the bane of fields, desire is the bane of mankind. Therefore, what is offered to those free of desire yields abundant fruit. Notes: 22.(v. 344) This verse, in the original, puns with the Pali word vana meaning both “desire” and “forest.”

23.(v. 353) This was the Buddha’s reply to a wandering ascetic who asked him about his teacher. The Buddha’s answer shows that Supreme Enlightenment was his own unique attainment, which he had not learned from anyone else.

Apple Blossoms in a gentle breeze

I have come here today because I have a connection of many lifetimes with you officials, clerics, and laypeople. This teaching has been passed down by the ancients. It isn’t something I discovered by myself. But if you wish to hear this teaching of the ancients, you must listen with pure minds. And if you wish to get rid of your delusions, you should understand it as past generations have.

Hui-neng then proclaimed, Good friends! You already possess the prajna wisdom of enlightenment! But because your minds are deluded, you can’t understand by yourselves. You need to find a truly good friend to show you the way to see your nature. Good friends, buddha nature isn’t different for the ignorant and the wise. It’s just that people are deluded or awake. When people are deluded, they’re ignorant. When they wake up, they become wise.

Good friends, this dharma teaching of mine is based on meditation and wisdom. But don’t make the mistake of thinking that meditation and wisdom are separate. Meditation and wisdom are of one essence and not two. Meditation is the body of wisdom, and wisdom is the function of meditation. Wherever you find wisdom, you find meditation. And wherever you find meditation, you find wisdom. Good friends, what this means is that meditation and wisdom are the same.

Fellow students of the Way, be careful. Don’t think that meditation comes first and then gives rise to wisdom or that wisdom comes first and then gives rise to meditation or that meditation and wisdom are separate. For those who hold such views, the dharma is dualistic: If the mouth speaks of goodness, but the mind doesn’t think of goodness, meditation and wisdom aren’t the same.

But if goodness pervades both the mouth and the mind, if what is external and internal are alike, then meditation and wisdom are the same.

The cultivation of self-awareness does not involve argument. People who argue about which comes first and which comes second only confuse themselves. Unless you put an end to right and wrong, you will give rise to self-existent dharmas, and you will never be free of the Four States.

One Practice Samadhi means at all times, whether walking, standing, sitting, or lying down, always practicing with a straightforward mind.

The Vimalakirti Sutra says, “A straightforward mind is the place of enlightenment,” and “a straightforward mind is the pure land.” Don’t practice hypocrisy with your mind, while you talk about being straightforward with your mouth.

If you speak about One Practice Samadhi with your mouth, but you don’t practice with a straightforward mind, you’re no disciple of the Buddha. Simply practice with a straightforward mind and don’t become attached to any dharma. This is what is meant by One Practice Samadhi.

Deluded people who cling to the external attributes of a dharma get hold of One Practice Samadhi and just say that sitting motionless, eliminating delusions, and not thinking thoughts are One Practice Samadhi. But if that were true, a dharma like that would be the same as lifelessness and would constitute an obstruction of the Way instead.

The Way has to flow freely. Why block it up? The Way flows freely when the mind doesn’t dwell on any dharma. Once it dwells on something, it becomes bound. If sitting motionless were right, Vimalakirti wouldn’t have criticized Shariputra for meditating in the forest.

Good friends, I know there are people who tell others to devote themselves to sitting and contemplating their minds on purity and not to move or think. Deluded people are unaware, so they turn things upside down with their attachments. There are hundreds of such people who teach the Way like this. But they are, you should know, greatly mistaken.

Good friends, what are meditation and wisdom like? They’re like a lamp and its light. When there’s a lamp, there’s light. When there’s no lamp, there’s no light. The lamp is the light’s body, and light is the lamp’s function. They have two names but not two bodies. This teaching concerning meditation and wisdom is also like this.

Good friends, the dharma isn’t direct or indirect. It’s people who are sharp or dull. For those who are deluded, there is indirect persuasion. For those who are aware, there is direct cultivation: Know your mind and see your nature. For those who are aware, there is basically no separation. For those who aren’t aware, there are infinite kalpas on the Wheel of Rebirth.

Good friends, since ancient times, this dharma teaching of ours, both its direct and indirect versions, has proclaimed “no thought” as its doctrine, “no form” as its body, and “no attachment” as its foundation.

What do we mean by a form that is “no form?” To be free of form in the presence of forms. And “no thought?” Not to think about thoughts. And “no attachment,” which is everyone’s basic nature? Thought after thought, not to become attached. Whether it’s a past thought, a present thought, or a future thought, let one thought follow another without interruption.

Once a thought is interrupted, the dharma body becomes separated from the material body. When you go from one thought to another, don’t become attached to any dharma. Once one thought becomes attached, every thought becomes attached, which is what we call bondage. But when you go from one thought to another without becoming attached to any dharma, there’s no bondage. This is why “no attachment” is our foundation.

Good friends, “no form” means externally to be free of all forms. If you can just be free of forms, the body of your nature is perfectly pure. This is why we take “no form as our body.”

To be unaffected by any object is what is meant by “no thought,” to be free of objects in our thoughts and not to give rise to thoughts about dharmas. But don’t think about nothing at all. Once your thoughts stop, you die and are reborn somewhere else.

Students of the Way, take heed. Don’t misunderstand the meaning of this teaching. It’s one thing to be mistaken yourself, but quite another to lead others astray then to criticize the teaching of the sutras while remaining unaware that you yourself are lost.

Thus the reason we proclaim “no thought” as our doctrine is because deluded people think in terms of objects, and on the basis of these thoughts they give rise to erroneous views. This is the origin of all afflictions and delusions.

Nevertheless, when this school proclaims “no thought” as its doctrine, those people who transcend objects and who don’t give rise to thoughts, even though they have no thoughts, they do not then proclaim “no thought.” What does “no” negate? And what thought is “thought” about? “No” negates dualities and afflictions. And “thought” is thought about the original nature of reality. Reality is the body of thought, and thought is the function of reality.

When your nature gives rise to thought, even though you sense something, remain free and unaffected by the world of objects.

The Vimalakirti Sutra says, “Externally, be skilled at distinguishing the attributes of dharmas, and internally, remain unshaken by the ultimate truth.”

Good friends, in this school of the dharma, when we practice Zen, we don’t contemplate mind, and we don’t contemplate purity, and we don’t talk about being dispassionate.

If someone says to contemplate the mind, the mind is basically a delusion. And because a delusion is the same as an illusion, there is nothing to contemplate.

If someone says to contemplate purity, your nature is already pure. It’s because of deluded thoughts that reality is obscured. But once you are free of deluded thoughts, your original nature is pure.

If you don’t see that your nature is already pure, and you rouse your mind to contemplate purity, you create the delusion of purity instead. A delusion has no actual location, which is how we know what we contemplate is a delusion.

And purity has no form. If someone establishes a form for purity and thinks they have achieved something, those who hold such a view separate themselves from their own nature and become trapped by purity instead.

And if someone cultivates dispassion, as long as they don’t pay attention to the faults of others, their nature is dispassionate. But deluded people act dispassionate then open their mouths and talk about right and wrong and turn their backs on the Way. Meanwhile, contemplating the mind and contemplating purity are actually what separates them from the Way.

In that case, what do we mean in this school by “to practice Zen?” In this school, by “to practice Zen,” we mean not to be obstructed by anything and externally not to give rise to thoughts about objective states. And by “Zen,” we mean to see our nature without being confused.

And what do we mean by “Zen meditation?” Externally to be free of form is “Zen.” And internally not to be confused is “meditation.” Externaly, if you are attached to form, internally, your mind will be confused. But if you are free of form externally, internally your nature will not be confused.

Your nature itself is pure and focused. It is just that you come into contact with objects, and as you come into contact, you become confused. When you are free of form and not confused, you are focused. To be free of form externally is “Zen.” Not to be confused internally is “meditation.” External Zen and internal meditation, this is what we mean by “Zen meditation.”

The Vimalakirti Sutra says, “Suddenly all at once, we return to our original mind.”

And the Bodhisattva Precept Sutra says, “Our original nature is pure.” Good friends, see the fundamental purity of your own nature. Cultivate and put to work for yourselves the dharma body of your own nature. Practice for yourselves the practice of a buddha. Begin and complete for yourselves the path to buddhahood.

Let’s go through all of these heroes.

Black Lightning was the OJ Black Electric Hero, created in 1977 by Tony Isabella. The character got his own comic but was canceled after 12 issues. Around this time DC wanted to include Black Lightning in their new animated show Super Friends but was told they would have to pay rights to Isabella. Instead, the cartoon created Black Vulcan, who was essentially the same character with a different name. This ended up pissing off Isabella, souring his relationship with DC and leading to rights issues with Black Lightning for decades. As Black Vulcan was created just for the cartoon, he never appeared in the comics, and only really popped up in pop culture when someone wanted to make a reference to the Super Friends. One of these references was in the early 2000s Justice League cartoon, where a two-parter revolved around a team of heroes created by Amanda Waller, all of whom were inspired by the Superfriends. This is where Juice was created, a one-off villain who died following the episode and was never used again.

Arguably the most famous of the Black Lightning clones, and arguably one who has become more famous than him is Static, created by Dwayne McDuffie in 1993, originally for Milestone Comics. A combination of two of McDuffie’s favorite heroes, Spiderman and Black Lightning, Static was meant to be a young black superhero with electric powers who would grow and mature into being a great hero. Milestone Comics would eventually be bought by DC, with many of its heroes incorporated into the DC Universe, resulting in the animated Static Shock series. The creators of Static Shock wanted to have an episode where Static teamed up with Black Lightning, who would act as a mentor to the young hero. The problem was, Isabella was still pretty pissed at DC, and they could get the character’s rights. As a result, we got Soul Power, another one off hero who never appeared outside this one episode or in any other superhero media.

The last of the Black Lighting clones is a literal Black Lightning clone: Black Power. Black Power actually is Black Lighting, or rather the Black Lightning from Earth-Three, an alternate Earth was all superheroes are villain and villains are heroes. Black Power was created for the DC animated film Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths, and, you guessed it, never appeared after this event.

Of the last two heroes, Shango is a minor Firestorm ally, inspired by the actual West African god Ṣàngó, while Thunder Fall was a minor Congolese superhero who briefly teamed up with the Batfamily.