Don't look for meaning in the world of beauty

A haiku by Shiki

Evening moon:
Plum blossoms start
to fall upon the flute

These are pictures seen by a deeply meditative consciousness. They don't mean anything, they are not supposed to have any meaning, they are pictorial.

Once Picasso was asked .... A man was watching him painting continuously for hours; finally he said, "I cannot resist asking, because I have been watching you paint for hours, but I can't make any sense out of what you are painting. What is it? What is the meaning of it?"

Picasso looked at the man and said, "I don't know. You can ask the picture yourself."

The man said, "Are you insane or something?"

Picasso said, "Perhaps, but nobody asks the rose, 'Why are you so beautiful? Why are you here in the first place?' Nobody asks a sunset, nobody asks a full moon, but everybody goes on harassing me, 'What is the meaning of your painting?' There is no meaning, it is a statement. I have enjoyed it tremendously, just the colors, flowing into each other, creating strange patterns."

Meaning is no more relevant in the world of beauty. And what to say about the world of meditation? -- no meaning, only significance. That's why those who have experienced have remained silent, or have spoken only to indicate to you the path to be silent.