this post was submitted on 26 Sep 2023
11 points (92.3% liked)
Buddhism
811 readers
1 users here now
A community for Buddhism.
Other subs
- c/buddhism
- c/zen
- c/alcoholicbuddhists
- c/buddhistaddicts
- c/zen
- c/theravada
- c/pureland
- c/tibetanbuddhism
- c/buddhiststudies
- c/vajrayana>
founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
I've heard this koan before but it may not be as straightforward as it seems. On first glance I thought that the lantern would be enlightenment - but the blind guy who says "darkness or light, all the same to me" sounds more like the Zen teacher.
Besides, enlightenment or dharma wouldn't burn out like a candle. So if the blind guy is already enlightened, then the lantern is a useless thing after all. It was certainly of no use to the blind guy or the dude who walked into him.
The lantern. I'm stuck now on what it represents. Maybe I have this completely wrong. It doesn't really matter. It's the thought that counts.
Not a Buddhist, also not spiritual, but I do love good proverbs and stories like this, so I'll give what I was thinking.
For the blind man, he did not need the lantern to see but having the lantern allowed others to see he is there. He takes the lantern, and although it does not guide him like it might others, it announces his 'presence' to others. But it goes out, so he would have been bumped into whether he was using the lantern or not. He cannot see, and so he cannot see when the lantern goes out, making him angry at a passerby who did not see him because he believed he was under the protection of the light he can't monitor. So too are those that obey/adhere to a norm they don't have a need for, that they too are confused or bumped into while believing they're safe by trusting in things they themselves can't see.
Or, and this one I like more because it's less thinking, we are going to be bumped regardless of whether we take the precautions to pre-empt ourselves or others, there are some safeties/precautions that cannot stop what is already going to happen.
I think my interpretation has some similar elements to yours so I'm posting it as a reply. I'm not particularly well-versed in Buddhism either, but I wonder if the lantern could be interpreted as an idea, a teaching, or a particular interpretation/lesson.
In this metaphor, the friend has heard a lesson/story/idea from someone else that was really helpful for him personally on the path to enlightenment. He obviously wants to share it with others because it seems really important. But while this idea resonates with him, his friend is blind to it. He's in a different place in his life, so he can't use it in the same way. He still listens to his well-meaning friend and takes it on his journey. But, because it doesn't resonate with him in the same way, he can't use it correctly. Of course a lantern would help you to be safe at night, but if you aren't in a place to use the lantern (lesson) correctly, it's useless to you, personally.
So, in that interpretation, maybe the blind man would represent someone who is not yet ready for that particular lesson? Maybe he'll carry it with him until a later time when he learns to use it in his own way. Maybe he'll learn to hear the sound of the candle so he can still use it for safety at night. Even if he never sees it.