The Gift
/Why things come to us, and for what reason. In Zen Buddhism everything has a „nature“ also a potterd tea cup or mug?
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He held the small parcel in his hands.
He carefully cut open the cardboard, and removed the bubble wrap layer by layer. Then he held the announced gift in his hands. A small handmade Japanese mug. He looked at the mug intensely: the basic structure of the mug was brown, with a cracked, chipped glaze which looked like frozen melted white sugar or snow. Towards the foot, the mug tapered with an angular, small foot. He could also see the stamp in Japanese letters from the potter.
For the moment, he put the mug on a shelf.
The next morning, he tried to dialogue with the mug.
What do you want? He asked. The Japanese mug remained silent.
Do you want it to be used coffee or a pen holder?
Silence.
He looked to another mug on the cupboard, this one was made of silver, and inside slightly gilded. Likewise, he remembered very clearly the first time he held the small silver mug in his hand. The metal gave off a slight coolness, and the surface of the mug was tarnished with a smooth surface, and fine hammer marks. Although the mug was not very large, there was something sublime about it. From the very first impression, he had the feeling that the mug belonged to him for a reason.
Later that day, he took the Japanese mug off of the shelf, filled it with water for the first time, and put it on the sink. The cup accepted what was happening. Nothing.
I really don't know what to do with you. I like you, you are nice piece of pottery, but you have to give me something.
After a few hours, as he checked the mug, he spotted a small pool of water around the base of the clay. He emptied the mug and put it back upside down, so that the wet bottom could dry.
He decided to use the mug now, as a pen holder.
He took the cup out of the kitchen and went into the study, to put the mug on his writing desk. The same moment, the mug broke into pieces, with a sigh.
For a moment time was frozen as he looked at the shards.
He took the pieces of the broken Japanese mug, went into the garden, and dug a hole.
By Sugar de Santo
From: Germany
Instagram: sugar_de
X: sugar_de