5月2日

香林掃塔
清 金農 ( 1687~1764 )

佛門以灑掃為第一，
執事自沙門至老衲，
無不早起勤作也。
香林有塔，掃而洗，洗而又掃，
舍利放大光明，不在塔中，而在手中矣。

──選自蘇州博物館「香林掃塔圖」

May 2

Sweeping Under the Pagoda in Xianglin
Jin Nong (1687 - 1764, Qing Dynasty)
English translation: You Zai

In a monastery, cleaning and sweeping are the
top priorities. From novices to old monks, no one
is exempt from having to get up early to work
diligently. There is a pagoda in Xianlin Monastery,
which one sweeps and cleans, and then cleans and
sweeps again. Brightly the sarira* illuminates, not
in the pagoda, but in one’s own hands.

── from Sweeping the Pagoda in Xianglin, a painting collected by Suzhou Museum

*The relics of the Buddha or a revered monastic.