A close relative asked, “Isn’t the world including the family a mirror showing my face? Good or bad is My Face and not mirror’s fault?”
I replied:
True if you consider J. Krishnamurti’s quote that “Relationship is the mirror in which we see ourselves” and even otherwise we can appreciate that because where are our faults and shortcomings (including of course our virtues) most on display except in our relationship with others, because after all, we as the “ego” come most into existence in the presence of the “other” unless there is “love” between oneself and the “other”.
But, before we set to “improve” ourselves, become “better” persons, become “more” loving and kind, we should ponder on this:
Shenxiu’s View (Gradual Path)
Verse: “The body is the Bodhi tree, the mind a bright mirror. At all times, diligently polish it, so that no dust alights”.
Meaning: The mind is like a mirror that gets dirty (dust). Through diligent practice (polishing), you remove defilements (dust) to achieve clarity (enlightenment).
Huineng’s View (Sudden Path)
Verse: “Bodhi originally has no tree, the mirror has no stand. Originally there’s not a single thing — So where can dust land?”.
Meaning: The true nature of mind (Buddha-nature) isn’t a physical thing to be polished; it’s already pure emptiness. The “dust” is the belief that there’s a mind/mirror to clean.
Where Dust Alights
With the Mirror (Shenxiu): Dust alights on the mind (mirror) because of worldly defilements, and the practice is to remove it.
With No Mirror (Huineng): Dust can’t alight because there is no separate “mirror” or “thing” for it to land on; it’s an illusion, a concept, a “form”. The “dust” is the attachment to the idea of the mirror itself.
Shenxiu’s verse describes polishing a mirror mind to remove “dust” (false thoughts/attachments), representing gradual enlightenment, while Huineng’s counter-verse declares, “Originally there’s not a single thing — So where can dust land?” meaning the mind is inherently pure emptiness (Buddha-nature), needing no cleaning, representing sudden awakening to fundamental reality. Dust lands on the mirror-mind in the gradual path, but no dust lands in the sudden realization because “there’s no mirror, no tree, no dust” to begin with.
Know Thyself 