At the Edge of the World, Tears Fall on the Ultimate Form

From nothing, things are born; into nothing, they return. All things have one face, called the One Aspect. From the heart of utmost desolation, all beings arise; countless aspects overlap and leave their traces, carving out moments and painting time. The sacred fruit of wisdom, a beautiful woman as venomous as a snake or scorpion, hooks souls and fuses spirits, breaking through the void to establish space. When the Way and all things accord, creation transforms the false and the real. To be born is to become time; to die is to become nothing. When time and space are both shattered, all aspects perish. Yet what of geometry? The new replaces the old, reincarnation changes all. Though being is shattered, something remains; though existence is established, something remains. Both real and illusory, both addiction and dream. Only the heart remains undimmed; only love remains unshaken. This is called the Ultimate Aspect. When the Ultimate Aspect is shattered, tears flow in torrents. Reality has no intent; the void has no meaning. For the rest of my life, I shall strengthen myself, champion Xuanyuan, never forget my heart, never abandon love, never betray my beginnings, and never forget where I came from or where I am going.

____Excerpt from Fan Shao's The Record of Beginnings: On Meaning