Seal of Insubstantial Self in Dharmadhatu

Yutang Lin


Seal of Insubstantial Self in Dharmadhatu


The seal is round to signify the Dharmadhatu, and its stamp shows red background without a boundary line to signify that it is boundless. Within this boundless Dharmadhatu, leaning to one corner (instead of at the right center) and positioned to the lower left (left to signify that it is not in accordance with the Dharma that stipulates right as the honored direction, and lower to signify that it is of lowly statues), the Chinese character Wo (Self) is formed by blank dots and blank thin lines to signify that it is formed by knitting together the bits and pieces that one grasped, and every stroke of this character slants to signify that Self is biased in every aspect, and it is surrounded by a circle of blank dots to signify that Self pervades all activities of one's body, speech and mind and has become the center of self-righteousness. This seal fully illustrates the phenomenon of "the harmonization of truth and worldliness." Furthermore, in case the seal is applied to produce a stamp with the Wo appearing at the upper right corner, then it will naturally show an upside-down Self, and thus signifies exactly that to honor Self would be topsy-turvy.

The design of this seal was mine, and Upasaka Tan Seong Yeow carved it accordingly upon my request. Thanks to him for this Dharma service.


Written in Chinese on April 20, 1997
Translated on July 22, 2006
El Cerrito, California

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