works of art contemplated by the gods
claude.iconThis text is part of the eighth chapter of the Chūron, "Kanzaku Sakusha Shinpo," which is an annotation of Ryūju's writings by Aomoku and a Chinese translation by Hatomarāshi. The main contents are summarized as follows:
It denies the existence of determinate (fixed) authorship and work, and equally denies indeterminate (non-fixed) authorship and work.
It explains that authorship and work are interdependent and argues that they cannot exist independently.
He criticizes causelessness (the idea that things come about without a cause) and points out the logical contradictions it leads to.
He states that concepts such as sinfulness, causality, and nirvana are also affected by the denial of the reality of the author and the work.
It explains the interdependent relationship of "cause yu yao yu shuusha, cause author yu yao" (by karma there is an author, and by karma there is a karma).
He stated that this method of analysis can be applied to the receiver and the recipient (the experience and its subject), and even to all phenomena.
Ultimately, he argues that in the first principle (ultimate truth), neither the author nor the work is real.
This chapter discusses the concept of emptiness, which is at the core of Chūkan thought, through the relationship between action and actor, emphasizing the interdependence and non-entity of phenomena.
Causeway to the author Causeway to the author
I am not satisfied with what I have done.
Because there is karma, there is an author, and because there is an author, there is karma.
The meaning of karma consists in this and nothing else.
Karma is not fixed in nature. Karma is caused by man, and by karma there is an author. The author is also not fixed. Because there is work, it is called the author. Because these two things are harmonized, work and author come into being. If they arise from harmony, there is no self-nature. Since there is no self-nature, it is empty. If it is empty, nothing arises. Only through the assumptions and judgment of ordinary people do we say that there is work and authorship. In the ultimate truth, there is neither work nor author.
The author who breaks the law is the recipient of the work.
I will not be able to do this again.
Just as the author breaks with the author, so too does the recipient break with the recipient.
And all laws should be broken as well.
Just as the author and the work cannot be separated, they are undetermined because they cannot be separated, and they are not self-existent because they are undetermined. The same is true of the recipient and the recipient. The recipient is the body of the five skandhas, and the recipient is the person. Thus, apart from man there are no five skandhas, and apart from the five skandhas there is no person. Only arising from many karma, they are like the recipient and the receiver. All other Dharma should be broken as well.
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