ONE ESSENCE, ONE LAW, ONE AIM

  THE Tathagata addressed the venerable Kassapa, to dispel the

uncertainty and doubt of his mind, and he said: "All things are made

of one essence, yet things are different according to the forms

which they assume under different impressions. As they form themselves

so they act, and as they act so they are. It is, Kassapa, as if a

potter made different vessels out of the same clay. Some of these pots

are to contain sugar, others rice, others curds and milk; others still

are vessels of impurity. There is no diversity in the clay used; the

diversity of the pots is only due to the moulding hands of the

potter who shapes them for the various uses that circumstances may

require.

  "And as all things originate from one essence, so they are

developing according to one law and they are destined to one aim which

is Nirvana. Nirvana comes to thee, Kassapa, when thou understandest

thoroughly, and when thou livest according to thy understanding,

that all things are of one essence and that there is but one law.

Hence, there is but one Nirvana as there is but one truth, not two

or three.

  "And the Tathagata is the same unto all beings, differing in his

attitude only in so far as all beings are different. The Tathagata

recreates the whole world like a cloud shedding its waters without

distinction. He has the same sentiments for the high as for the low,

for the wise as for the ignorant, for the noble-minded as for the

immoral.

  "The great cloud full of rain comes up in this wide universe

covering all countries and oceans to pour down its rain everywhere,

over all grasses, shrubs, herbs, trees of various species, families of

plants of different names growing on the earth, on the hills, on the

mountains, or in the valleys. Then, Kassapa, the grasses, shrubs,

herbs, and wild trees suck the water emitted from that great cloud

which is all of one essence and has been abundantly poured down; and

they will, according to their nature, acquire a proportionate

development, shooting up and producing blossoms and their fruits in

season. Rooted in one and the same soil, all those families of

plants and germs are quickened by water of the same essence.

  "The Tathagata, however, O Kassapa, knows the law whose essence is

salvation, and whose end is the peace of Nirvana. He is the same to

all, and yet knowing the requirements of every single being, he does

not reveal himself to all alike. He does not impart to them at once

the fullness of omniscience, but pays attention to the disposition

of various beings."