In terms of the ultimate dimension, the life span of the Tathagata is immeasurable and infinite. Yet even though in ultimate reality the Buddha is not born and does not die, nevertheless he pretends to be born, to exist for a while, and to enter nirvana to show living beings of the world how to take care of themselves. The Buddha gives us the spiritual medicine we need for the healing and transformation of our bodies and minds – the practice of mindfulness. Now it is up to us to take the medicine and practice diligently so that we too can get in touch with the ultimate dimension and recognize our true nature of no birth and no death.

We have to use mindfulness in order to touch the ultimate dimension. When we notice a yellow leaf underfoot during walking meditation, it is an opportunity to look deeply into its nature of no coming and no going. When we breathe mindfully, we are in touch with our breath and body and we already feel different than before. Using mindfulness, everything appears to us more clearly. The practice of mindfulness is the path that leads us to the ultimate dimension. When we practice mindfulness in our daily life activities – working, gardening, cooking, washing the dishes, greeting guests – we are in touch with the phenomenal world very deeply, much more deeply than when we do not have mindfulness. At that point the ultimate dimension can begin to show itself to us.

The ultimate dimension reveals itself either vaguely or clearly to us depending on the quality of our mindfulness. Sometimes we have mindfulness only for a moment; sometimes we can maintain it for two or three minutes. If we look at a cloud mindfully and are able to maintain our mindfulness for three minutes, for those three minutes we have concentration, samadhi. When our practice of mindfulness is solid and steady enough then we are able to keep the lamp of samadhi alight from moment to moment. Whether we are in the kitchen, bedroom, bathroom, or office, when we sweep the courtyard or drive our car, in all these actions we maintain the bright flame of samadhi. Practicing this way we get in touch with our own true nature, which is exactly the same as the Buddha’s, unborn and undying. Just like the yellow leaf and everything else we see around us in the world of appearances, we too are participating in the infinite life span of the Buddha.