Rootless_Tree_24Chapter#23・Enlarged image of the painting
Enlarged image of the poem below as Xieyi
Chapter 23
▶Original Text
無根樹，花正紅，摘盡紅花一樹空。空卽色，色卽空，識透眞空在色中。了了眞空色相滅，法相長存不落空。號圓通，稱大雄，九祖超昇上九重。
▶Modern Translation
When you pluck the red flower from the rootless tree, it becomes empty.
“Form is emptiness, and emptiness is form”—true emptiness lies within form.
Realizing this, form dissolves, but the Dharma (truth) remains eternal.
This is called “perfect penetration,” and the awakened is known as the Great Hero (Buddha).
The nine ancestors ascend to the ninth heaven.▶Interpretation
• All things are void of inherent self-nature—true form is emptiness.
• Enlightenment brings transcendence of form and eternal truth.
▶Interpretation related to Tai Chi
In Tai Chi, one transcends outer form to access internal qi and intention.
This chapter reminds us that movement must serve the void—only then does true mastery emerge.
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Copyright © MASAKI WAKABAYASHI. All rights reserved.
