Buddha's Body

When the Buddha was preaching the Nirvana Sutra, he passed the palm of his hand over his chest, saying, "You should observe my body thoroughly, otherwise you will regret it later. If you say, 'Buddha enters Parinirvana,' you are not my disciple. It you say, 'Buddha does not enter Parinirvana,' you are not my disciple."

This koan cuts away attachment to words, a cause of great trouble in life. If it is said, "there is," we attach to the "is"; if it is said, "there is not," we attach to the "is not." If one says, "he is bad," we judge him as always bad. Conversely, "she is kind," does not mean she is necessarily always kind. Time and the situation change, and former words do not apply to latter cases. Whether the Buddha goes into Parinirvana or not is simply words. It is a useless discussion.

Parinirvana means the complete, or perfect Nirvana, that is, physical death. According to Buddhist philosophy, Nirvana can be attained by anyone, but as long as one has this physical body, there is some residue of the human element, and it is not complete, or perfect Nirvana. Parinirvana is attained only when one dies. So it is said that when Gautama Buddha died, he entered Parinirvana.

About the fourth century, A.D., Mahayana Buddhism began to develop the doctrine of Tri Kaya to explain the relationship of "Buddha" to man. Buddha is the Absolute.

Buddha is also an ideal and a potential. Buddha is also a living, breathing human being, not only the Gautama Buddha, but all enlightened ones (and unenlightened ones) as well. The Tri Kaya are: 1) Dharma Kaya (formless, colourless, absolute reality; 2) Sambhoga Kaya (the ideal, such as expressed by Amida, the Buddha of infinite love and compassion); and 3) Nirmana Kaya (the actual, physical Buddha, such as the historical Gautama  Buddha). The Buddha of Dharma Kaya never enters Parinirvana; the Buddha of Nirmana Kaya does enter Parinirvana.

In this koan "Buddha" has different meanings, and one who attaches to any of them lacks true understanding.