As the eerie silence of their darkened cell stretched on, Genno Shinsho achieved enlightenment after prolonging meditation throughout his entire life, becoming the awakened one despite having his head scalped and malnourished without food or water for the entire week.
With his eyes closed, his spirit and mind have transcended the material limitations of reality itself. While his flesh remains in this horrid place, restrained by chains and the desires of the mortal world, He has gone beyond this and reached higher levels of understanding than anyone else.
Not only had he broken the cycle of samsara through reincarnation and experiences that are the fruit of karma, Genno had learned something more than that. Something so far and beyond that it can't be described with words; it's beyond everything itself.
He understands everything and not everything altogether, to the point that if mere men were granted this knowledge, then their own feeble minds would break apart like glass. And he is connected to anything in existence and its totality.
Omnipotent God exists, but he is nothing more than a blank and apathetic entity known by the author, who is simply disillusioned into believing everything is a story. But the poor author is unaware that he is simply an avatar of it given birth through mysterious circumstances, thinking of itself as being different from the whole and that the world around him is fiction written by him.
The stories that arise from the Narrative Generation can span from the concise and straightforward to the grandiose and intricate. They are imbued with the experiences and imagination of the author and are inspired by the worlds that are within reach of the Creative Engine. This never-ending anthology is constantly evolving, growing, and expanding as the author delves deeper into the connections that the machine has with the divine.
And yet, this Omnipotent Entity consists of multiple identities—a form of polytheism despite being singular. Each God is omnipotent with differing personalities and elements, but each has their own way of handling the creations of others and themselves.
How could one define omnipotence? Is there only one, but if it is capable of creating everything, then it would make sense to have at one point created another of itself either through unknown reason or curiosity; thus, if two created entities are omnipotent, then they wouldn't be able to destroy each other due to being in an eternal stalemate of infinite power.
They could try, but whatever they do is met with a counterbalance, so how is this possible? How can there be multiple omnipotent gods resulting from another God who is constantly and mindlessly producing the possible and impossible altogether?
All things in existence, whether true or false, exist in one way or another; truly, reality is a paradoxical concept that defies common sense of the material realm. Because when there is something beyond reality where any possibility is possible, logic ceases to function as expected; instead, the fundamental aspects of it become nullified altogether.
Nothing makes sense, and it does not make sense but also makes sense. The world is so full of absurdities and contradictions that he felt he was losing himself in this knowledge, a sign of his own mental breakdown from the revelation itself.
So what is the meaning of life?
A life full of pain and suffering where death is always present at any moment of life is a question that will forever be a mystery for the next generation to ponder about. Is there any meaning to all of this in the first place, or perhaps nothing holds any meaning whatsoever?
But he has the answer to it and the truth that all seekers wish to know. The purpose of a human's existence is to experience life in all its forms, regardless of the suffering that comes from it; everything is meant to exist and not exist entirely. Nothing can be described as pure or impure by any means, but rather, it is what it is.
Therefore, existence is a concept of its own, being the sum of all forms. Inherently, existence is neither positive nor negative. No matter how painful life is, suffering is a part of human nature itself, but despite that, a person can do something about it.
When a person can overcome their suffering and adapt to it, that's when they can become stronger through their trials. They may grow to become someone stronger and wiser, or they may fall and stay in their sorrows. Through all of their difficulties, there is always a lesson to learn, a moral to take away, or a silver lining in a cloud of doubt.
While it is true that bad things are going to happen in people's lives, the way they deal with those experiences determines how they see things. Perhaps the most important part of human nature is learning to adapt to things as they come along.
In the end, what's the value of all of these? Why keep living if everything is already done by someone else? So why bother doing anything at all? Is there no choice but to comply with its rules? The truth of it is that nothing is more important than a person's inner freedom.
What gives life its worth is that each man can choose to do what he wants to become. Regardless of the fact that someone has already done it, regardless of the fact that someone is far more skilled or smarter, regardless of the absurdities reality throws at them,.
All it comes down to is acceptance, for they have nothing to do with facing these troubling questions. Accept what they have now and just go with it. Kingdoms come and go, planets and stars wither, then die like flowers, and mountains rise and fall—a constant flow of unending cycles of creation and destruction.
Even when this universe ends, a new one will come in place, and all the memories and knowledge gained in the past will be erased or lost completely; that is the fate of the way it works. Maybe this is how things are supposed to be, and the truth always hurts.
He understood all of it. There is still more to his knowledge than he has achieved, but it doesn't matter anymore. After his death, his soul and mind shall exit the limitations of the beginning and end in totality. He is finally released from suffering, desires, and pain altogether.
For in the Samsara, there are six realms, and Buddha is none of those, as he has liberated these transcended realms. He will not become God, but something else better than that, as he felt like awakening from a long dream in this strange world.
He became a limitless being after his death, where he achieved nothing but did nonetheless. Whatever reality he wakes up to next, he knows it will be full of wonders and knowledge, for the dukkha has no hold on him anymore.
Then an idea clicked with him.
His mind moved through the boundaries of realities, entering the past and future, before he found one interesting event: two Buddhists from where he had lived before being transported to this world. It was like watching a movie even though his eyes are closed from where he is.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Notice: This translation of the text With Vacchagotta on Fire is published by SuttaCentral under license CC0 1.0 (You can copy, modify, distribute and perform the work, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission.). Translation by Bhikkhu Sujato.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SO I HAVE HEARD. At one time the Buddha was staying near Sāvatthī in Jeta’s Grove, Anāthapiṇḍika’s monastery.
Then the wanderer Vacchagotta went up to the Buddha and exchanged greetings with him. When the greetings and polite conversation were over, he sat down to one side and said to the Buddha:
“Master Gotama, is this your view: ‘The world is eternal. This is the only truth, other ideas are silly’?”
“That’s not my view, Vaccha.”
“Then is this your view: ‘The world is not eternal. This is the only truth, other ideas are silly’?”
“That’s not my view, Vaccha.”
“Then is this your view: ‘The world is finite. This is the only truth, other ideas are silly’?”
“That’s not my view, Vaccha.”
“Then is this your view: ‘The world is infinite. This is the only truth, other ideas are silly’?”
“That’s not my view, Vaccha.”
“Then is this your view: ‘The soul and the body are the same thing. This is the only truth, other ideas are silly’?”
“That’s not my view, Vaccha.”
“Then is this your view: ‘The soul and the body are different things. This is the only truth, other ideas are silly’?”
“That’s not my view, Vaccha.”
“Then is this your view: ‘A Realized One exists after death. This is the only truth, other ideas are silly’?”
“That’s not my view, Vaccha.”
“Then is this your view: ‘A Realized One doesn’t exist after death. This is the only truth, other ideas are silly’?”
“That’s not my view, Vaccha.”
“Then is this your view: ‘A Realized One both exists and doesn’t exist after death. This is the only truth, other ideas are silly’?”
“That’s not my view, Vaccha.”
“Then is this your view: ‘A Realized One neither exists nor doesn’t exist after death. This is the only truth, other ideas are silly’?”
“That’s not my view, Vaccha.”
“Master Gotama, when asked these ten questions, you say: ‘That’s not my view.’ Seeing what drawback do you avoid all these convictions?”
“Each of these ten convictions is the thicket of views, the desert of views, the trick of views, the evasiveness of views, the fetter of views. They’re beset with anguish, distress, and fever. They don’t lead to disillusionment, dispassion, cessation, peace, insight, awakening, and extinguishment. Seeing this drawback I avoid all these convictions.”
“But does Master Gotama have any convictions at all?”
“The Realized One has done away with convictions. For the Realized One has seen: ‘Such is form, such is the origin of form, such is the ending of form. Such is feeling, such is the origin of feeling, such is the ending of feeling. Such is perception, such is the origin of perception, such is the ending of perception. Such are choices, such is the origin of choices, such is the ending of choices. Such is consciousness, such is the origin of consciousness, such is the ending of consciousness.’ That’s why the Realized One is freed with the ending, fading away, cessation, giving up, and letting go of all identifying, all worries, and all ego, possessiveness, or underlying tendency to conceit, I say.”
“But Master Gotama, when a mendicant’s mind is freed like this, where are they reborn?”
“‘They’re reborn’ doesn’t apply, Vaccha.”
“Well then, are they not reborn?”
“‘They’re not reborn’ doesn’t apply, Vaccha.”
“Well then, are they both reborn and not reborn?”
“‘They’re both reborn and not reborn’ doesn’t apply, Vaccha.”
“Well then, are they neither reborn nor not reborn?”
“‘They’re neither reborn nor not reborn’ doesn’t apply, Vaccha.”
“Master Gotama, when asked all these questions, you say: ‘It doesn’t apply.’ I fail to understand this point, Master Gotama; I’ve fallen into confusion. And I’ve now lost even the degree of clarity I had from previous discussions with Master Gotama.”
“No wonder you don’t understand, Vaccha, no wonder you’re confused. For this principle is deep, hard to see, hard to understand, peaceful, sublime, beyond the scope of reason, subtle, comprehensible to the astute. It’s hard for you to understand, since you have a different view, creed, preference, practice, and tradition.
Well then, Vaccha, I’ll ask you about this in return, and you can answer as you like.
What do you think, Vaccha? Suppose a fire was burning in front of you. Would you know: ‘This fire is burning in front of me’?”
“Yes, I would, Master Gotama.”
“But Vaccha, suppose they were to ask you: ‘This fire burning in front of you: what does it depend on to burn?’ How would you answer?”
“I would answer like this: ‘This fire burning in front of me burns in dependence on grass and logs as fuel.’”
“Suppose that fire burning in front of you was extinguished. Would you know: ‘This fire in front of me is extinguished’?”
“Yes, I would, Master Gotama.”
“But Vaccha, suppose they were to ask you: ‘This fire in front of you that is extinguished: in what direction did it go—east, south, west, or north?’ How would you answer?”
“It doesn’t apply, Master Gotama. The fire depended on grass and logs as fuel. When that runs out, and no more fuel is added, the fire is reckoned to have become extinguished due to lack of fuel.”
“In the same way, Vaccha, any form by which a Realized One might be described has been cut off at the root, made like a palm stump, obliterated, and unable to arise in the future. A Realized One is freed from reckoning in terms of form. They’re deep, immeasurable, and hard to fathom, like the ocean. ‘They’re reborn’, ‘they’re not reborn’, ‘they’re both reborn and not reborn’, ‘they’re neither reborn nor not reborn’—none of these apply.
Any feeling … perception … choices … consciousness by which a Realized One might be described has been cut off at the root, made like a palm stump, obliterated, and unable to arise in the future. A Realized One is freed from reckoning in terms of consciousness. They’re deep, immeasurable, and hard to fathom, like the ocean. ‘They’re reborn’, ‘they’re not reborn’, ‘they’re both reborn and not reborn’, ‘they’re neither reborn nor not reborn’—none of these apply.”
When he said this, the wanderer Vacchagotta said to the Buddha:
“Master Gotama, suppose there was a large sal tree not far from a town or village. And because it’s impermanent, its branches and foliage, bark and shoots, and softwood would fall off. After some time it would be rid of branches and foliage, bark and shoots, and softwood, consisting purely of heartwood. In the same way, Master Gotama’s dispensation is rid of branches and foliage, bark and shoots, and softwood, consisting purely of heartwood.
Excellent, Master Gotama! … From this day forth, may Master Gotama remember me as a lay follower who has gone for refuge for life.”
