“Buddhas bear the same relation to sentient beings as water does to ice. Ice, like stone or brick, cannot flow. But when it melts it flows freely in conformity with its surroundings. So long as one remains in a state of delusion he is like ice. Upon realization he becomes as exquisitely free as water. And remember, there is no ice which does not return to water. So you will understand there is no difference between ordinary beings and Buddhas except for one thing - delusion. When it is dissolved they are identical.”
Source: Letter to the abbess of Shinryu-ji https://sites.google.com/site/esabsnichtenglisch/bassui-tokusho-the-letters
Help us to complete the source, original and additional information
Bassui Tokushō 1
Japanese monk 1327–1387Related quotes
“Like ice beneath the sun's rays — to such poverty did he fall…his fortune melted to water.”
Book III, ch. 5.
The Japanese Family Storehouse (1688)
“Snow is water, and ice is water, and water is water; these three are one.”
Source: Dictionary of Burning Words of Brilliant Writers (1895), P. 285.
“It's like giving a glass of ice water to somebody in hell!”
On how Apple is the largest developer for Microsoft Windows due to the popularity of its iTunes software, at the All Things Digital Conference 5 (30 May 2007) http://www.engadget.com/2007/05/30/steve-jobs-live-from-d-2007/, on stage with Bill Gates, Kara Swisher and Walter Mossberg.
2000s
“Jesus never walked on water, but he was always on thin ice.”
Ron English's Fauxlosophy (2016)
Something, someone — help them.
"It's me."
Song lyrics, Hounds of Love (1985), The Ninth Wave
“Awakened at midnight
by the sound of the water jar
cracking from the ice”
“If the formula for water is H2O, is the formula for an ice cube H2O squared?”
Contributions of Jane Wagner