11.4 Five Nodes
The five nodes are the five nodes of the tree of life, the five accumulators of karmic habits. What is karma? In ancient times the aggregation of body, mouth, and intent behavioral habits was collectively called karma. Karma is the three karmas: body karma, oral karma, and intent karma. Body karma is the accumulation of bodily behavioral habits, which this body is. Oral karma is the accumulation of habits of oral behaviors, which is what the mouth speaks. Intentional karma is the accumulation of habits of thoughts, and what the heart (i.e., mind) thinks is what it is.
Karma is to the tree of life like the trunk of a deciduous tree (see Figure 11.4). In winter, the leaves fall off and like the tree loses its life. In spring, when conditions are right, the trunk sprouts branches and leaves, and the deciduous tree becomes full of life again. The growth and prosperity of the tree of life is reflected in the formation and withering of karmic habits.
The five nodes are the five accumulations of karmic habits, which are explained in terms of the five aspects of karma: color node, acceptance node, think node, migration node, and sense node. The five nodes have the nature of “aggregate, fetch, and have”, so are also known as five fetch nodes. The five nodes can assimilate 94 have-as laws among the Buddhist five positions 100 laws, cannot assimilate none-as laws (see 11.6.4 Off-is Fruit, and 17.2.9 Forbidden Fruit of Diamond Sutra), because none-as laws contradict with nature of “aggregate, fetch, and have”, corresponds with nature of “renunciation, equality, and empty”.
Posted May 23, 2024, 4:27 PM UTC