Beomeosa Temple in Busan: Travelogue: The Gate of Non-Duality. The Heart of Eternity

Stepping into Fanyu Temple, one of the three great ancient temples of Lingnan, the sun blazed brightly, the mountains hushed in silence.
Outside the temple gates lay the world; within, the Dharma Realm.

I slowly approached the ancient stone gate—the Non-Dual Gate.

This gate separates the attachments to right and wrong, life and death, existence and non-existence.

The mottled characters "Non-Dual" (不二) etched on the lintel, silent and unmoving, yet held my attention for a long moment.

This gate is not for those who observe, but for those who awaken.

It is a portal beyond opposites, a symbol of the manifestation of Buddha-nature.

As the Vimalakirti Sutra states, "The Non-Dual Dharma Gate is the non-distinction of all dharmas."

Inside the gate, a golden bodhisattva sat on a lotus throne, his face serene.

Unmoved, majestic and fearless.

That was not the stillness of stone carvings, but the calmness of all dharmas returning to oneness,

the deepest compassion within the unspoken.

The scorching sun shone upon the Buddha's shoulders, as if all things in the world stood still in the present moment.
The wind rustled the shadows of the pines, and light and shadow danced gently. Yet, in this silence,
I heard a long-lost voice within me—

Not a sound, but a sudden realization.

It turns out that true non-duality lies not within or outside the door;

but in an unobstructed mind, where every place is a place of enlightenment.