脱皮と羽化および解脱と作仏
Molting and Metamorphosis, as well as Enlightenment and Becoming a Buddha
2024-10-11 18:00:00
Cicadas are said to molt several times while growing underground, gradually increasing in size.
The final molt takes place above ground, and at that moment, they also emerge as fully winged adults.
At this time, the cicada is freed from the world of both the underground and the surface, becoming a creature that can fly through the vast sky.
In a similar way, a Buddhist practitioner, through gradual accumulation of virtue by practice, will ultimately encounter the opportunity for enlightenment. If the conditions are right at this moment, they will attain liberation and simultaneously achieve Buddhahood.
At this point, they will have broken free from all the bonds of the world and will become a Buddha, residing in the transcendent state of Nirvana.
At this point, the cicada sheds its skin, and humans achieve the falling away and cessation of name and form (nama-rupa). What they have in common is that they both cast off what they once thought to be part of themselves—at the very least, something that served some purpose—and become their best possible form.
When cicadas are about to undergo their final molt, they seem to observe the surface and look for the optimal time to emerge.
Similarly, a Buddhist practitioner, just before attaining liberation, stirs up an aspiration, glimpses the world of Buddha, and begins to subtly sense that the opportunity for Buddhahood is near.
And finally, the decisive moment arrives.
Of course, the cicada's metamorphosis is a natural phenomenon that accompanies growth, on the other hand, whereas the practitioner’s Buddhahood is a reward for the virtues they have cultivated.
However, the reason a person desires to awaken and become a Buddha is because it represents the most refined expression of the deeply ingrained human desire 'to be kind.'
In this sense, we can believe that all people are capable of attaining enlightenment (= liberation) and that everyone holds within them the desire to honor the Buddha.
Therefore, even if there are periods of pause, the process of a person becoming a Buddha will never be completely interrupted.
The "heart" that lies at the core of humanity is strong enough to justify such belief.
***
