--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Our true buddha-nature has no shape. And…" description: "\"Our true buddha-nature has no shape. And the dust of affliction has no form.\" — Bodhidharma" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/085/bodhidharma-4333_affliction_our-true-buddha-nature-has-no-shape-and_802412.jpg" --- # Our true buddha-nature has no shape. And the dust of… ![“Our true buddha-nature has no shape. And the dust of affliction has no form.” quote by Bodhidharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/085/bodhidharma-4333_affliction_our-true-buddha-nature-has-no-shape-and_802412.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/085/bodhidharma-4333_affliction_our-true-buddha-nature-has-no-shape-and_802412.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/085/bodhidharma-4333_affliction_our-true-buddha-nature-has-no-shape-and_802412.jpg) > “Our true buddha-nature has no shape. And the dust of affliction has no form.” [Bodhidharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bodhidharma/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Our innate nature is forless, and suffering is also formless, indicating emptiness of self and pain **In simple terms:** True nature and suffering lack fixed form Key Takeaway Recognize emptiness to reduce attachment Themes mindfulness emptiness Buddhist philosophy Mood calm reflective Type spiritual philosophical When to use this quote - meditation - counseling - conflict resolution - stress management Key Concepts non-self impermanence interdependence Questions to Reflect On - How does recognizing formlessness affect daily reactions? - What practices help experience this insight? A Different Perspective Emptiness can be abstract, making practical application challenging ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Affliction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/affliction/) [Buddha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/buddha/) [Buddha nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/buddha-nature/) [Shapes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shapes/) ## Related quotes > [ “The Blessed One is the mother of all sentient beings, and gives them all the milk of mercy."\[FN#158\] Some people named Him Absolute, as… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kaiten-nukariya/the-blessed-one-is-the-mother-of-all-sentient-beings-and-gives-them/) [Kaiten Nukariya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kaiten-nukariya/) > [To find a Buddha all you have to do is see your nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bodhidharma/to-find-a-buddha-all-you-have-to-do-is-see-your-nature/) [Bodhidharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bodhidharma/) > [To find Buddha, you have to see your nature. Whoever sees his nature is a Buddha. If you don't see your nature, invoking buddhas,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bodhidharma/to-find-buddha-you-have-to-see-your-nature-whoever-sees-his-nature-is/) [Bodhidharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bodhidharma/) > [There is a true Buddha in family life; there is a real Tao in everyday activities. If people can be sincere and harmonious, promoting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zicheng-hong/there-is-a-true-buddha-in-family-life-there-is-a-real-tao-in-everyday/) [Zicheng Hong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zicheng-hong/) > [To the fuki plant, dandelions, and their kind that lie for long patiently under the fallen snow, comes the season of breezy spring. No…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kobayashi-issa/to-the-fuki-plant-dandelions-and-their-kind-that-lie-for-long/) [Kobayashi Issa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kobayashi-issa/) > [Our buddha nature is as good as any buddha’s buddha nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sogyal-rinpoche/our-buddha-nature-is-as-good-as-any-buddha-s-buddha-nature/) [Sogyal Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sogyal-rinpoche/) > [“Buddha-nature or real self, being the seat of love and the nucleus of sincerity, forms the warp and woof of all moral actions. He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kaiten-nukariya/buddha-nature-or-real-self-being-the-seat-of-love-and-the-nucleus-of/) [Kaiten Nukariya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kaiten-nukariya/) > [Buddha nature, is like the sun which is always shining, always present, though often obscured. We are blocked from our natural light by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-levine/buddha-nature-is-like-the-sun-which-is-always-shining-always-present/) [Stephen Levine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-levine/) > [“buddha nature, or basic goodness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lodro-rinzler/buddha-nature-or-basic-goodness/) [Lodro Rinzler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lodro-rinzler/) > [“Man is not Good-natured nor Bad-natured, but Buddha natured”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kaiten-nukariya/man-is-not-good-natured-nor-bad-natured-but-buddha-natured/) [Kaiten Nukariya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kaiten-nukariya/) > [The root-word "buddha" means to wake up, to know, to understand; and he or she who wakes up and understands is call a Buddha.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nhat-hanh/the-root-word-buddha-means-to-wake-up-to-know-to-understand-and-he-or/) [Nhat Hanh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nhat-hanh/) > [“The Buddha-nature which is ours from the very beginning is like the sun which emerges from the clouds, or like a mirror which, when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-conze/the-buddha-nature-which-is-ours-from-the-very-beginning-is-like-the/) [Edward Conze](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-conze/) > [“Lord Buddha never put much emphasis on belief. Instead, he exhorted us to investigate and try to understand the reality of our own being.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thubten-yeshe/lord-buddha-never-put-much-emphasis-on-belief-instead-he-exhorted-us/) [Thubten Yeshe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thubten-yeshe/) > [It is not what you can do for your country, but what you can do for all of mankind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-norton/it-is-not-what-you-can-do-for-your-country-but-what-you-can-do-for/) [Mike Norton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-norton/) > [“Every man possesses the Buddha-nature. Do not demean yourselves.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dogen/every-man-possesses-the-buddha-nature-do-not-demean-yourselves/) [Dōgen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dogen/) ## More by Bodhidharma > [Unless you see your nature, all this talk about cause & effect is nonsense. Buddhas don't practice nonsense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bodhidharma/unless-you-see-your-nature-all-this-talk-about-cause-effect-is/) [Bodhidharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bodhidharma/) > [“Those who worship don't know, and those who know don't worship.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bodhidharma/those-who-worship-don-t-know-and-those-who-know-don-t-worship/) [Bodhidharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bodhidharma/) > [If you see your nature, you don't need to read sutras or invoke buddhas. Erudition and knowledge are not only useless but also cloud…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bodhidharma/if-you-see-your-nature-you-don-t-need-to-read-sutras-or-invoke/) [Bodhidharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bodhidharma/) > [People who don't see their own nature and imagine they can practice thoughtlessness all the time are liars and fools.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bodhidharma/people-who-don-t-see-their-own-nature-and-imagine-they-can-practice/) [Bodhidharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bodhidharma/) > [The mind is the Buddha, and the Buddha is the mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bodhidharma/the-mind-is-the-buddha-and-the-buddha-is-the-mind/) [Bodhidharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bodhidharma/) > [Whoever realizes that the six senses aren't real, that the five aggregates are fictions, that no such things can be located anywhere in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bodhidharma/whoever-realizes-that-the-six-senses-aren-t-real-that-the-five/) [Bodhidharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bodhidharma/) > [If you use your mind to study reality, you won't understand either your mind or reality. If you study reality without using your mind,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bodhidharma/if-you-use-your-mind-to-study-reality-you-won-t-understand-either/) [Bodhidharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bodhidharma/) > [Many roads lead to the Path, but basically there are only two: reason and practice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bodhidharma/many-roads-lead-to-the-path-but-basically-there-are-only-two-reason/) [Bodhidharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bodhidharma/) > [All Buddhas preach emptiness. Why? Because they wish to crush the concrete ideas of the students. If a student even clings to an idea…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bodhidharma/all-buddhas-preach-emptiness-why-because-they-wish-to-crush-the/) [Bodhidharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bodhidharma/) > [Buddhas don't practice nonsense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bodhidharma/buddhas-don-t-practice-nonsense/) [Bodhidharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bodhidharma/) > [Not thinking about anything is Zen. Once you know this, walking, sitting, or lying down, everything you do is Zen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bodhidharma/not-thinking-about-anything-is-zen-once-you-know-this-walking-sitting/) [Bodhidharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bodhidharma/) > [When you don't understand, you depend on reality. When you do understand, reality depends on you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bodhidharma/when-you-don-t-understand-you-depend-on-reality-when-you-do/) [Bodhidharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bodhidharma/) > [And the Buddha is the person who's free: free of plans, free of cares.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bodhidharma/and-the-buddha-is-the-person-who-s-free-free-of-plans-free-of-cares/) [Bodhidharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bodhidharma/) > [The Way is basically perfect. It doesn't require perfecting. The Way has no form or sound. It's subtle and hard to perceive. It's like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bodhidharma/the-way-is-basically-perfect-it-doesn-t-require-perfecting-the-way/) [Bodhidharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bodhidharma/) > [The Dharma is the truth that all natures are pure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bodhidharma/the-dharma-is-the-truth-that-all-natures-are-pure/) [Bodhidharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bodhidharma/) [Explore all 112 Bodhidharma quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bodhidharma/) ## More Affliction quotes > [I don't feel insecure about any of this work anymore. Maybe I don't have what I had when I was younger. I'm not really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-norton/i-don-t-feel-insecure-about-any-of-this-work-anymore-maybe-i-don-t/) [Edward Norton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-norton/) > [Every man will have his own criterion in forming his judgment of others. I depend very much on the effect of affliction. I consider…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-cecil/every-man-will-have-his-own-criterion-in-forming-his-judgment-of/) [Richard Cecil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-cecil/) > [WHANGDEPOOTENAWAH, n. In the Ojibwa tongue, disaster; an unexpected affliction that strikes hard.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/whangdepootenawah-n-in-the-ojibwa-tongue-disaster-an-unexpected/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [There is nothing in afflictions which ought to disturb our joy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-calvin/there-is-nothing-in-afflictions-which-ought-to-disturb-our-joy/) [John Calvin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-calvin/) > [Come, then, affliction, if my Father wills, and be my frowning friend. A friend that frowns is better than a smiling enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald/come-then-affliction-if-my-father-wills-and-be-my-frowning-friend-a/) [George MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald/) > [Henceforth, I'll bear Affliction till it do cry out itself, 'Enough, enough, and die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/henceforth-i-ll-bear-affliction-till-it-do-cry-out-itself-enough/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [New materials are one of the great afflictions of contemporary art. Some artists confuse new materials with new ideas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sol-lewitt/new-materials-are-one-of-the-great-afflictions-of-contemporary-art/) [Sol LeWitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sol-lewitt/) > [Aimee Parkison offers a distinct new voice to contemporary fiction. Her seductive stories explore childhood as a realm of sorrows, and reveal the afflictions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-anshaw/aimee-parkison-offers-a-distinct-new-voice-to-contemporary-fiction/) [Carol Anshaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-anshaw/) > [May I strike my heart's keys clearly, and may none fail because of slack, uncertain, or fraying strings. May the tears that stream down…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/may-i-strike-my-heart-s-keys-clearly-and-may-none-fail-because-of/) [Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/) > [We are infinitely more than our limitations and afflictions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-r-holland/we-are-infinitely-more-than-our-limitations-and-afflictions/) [Jeffrey R. Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-r-holland/) > [God measures out affliction to our need.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-john-chrysostom/god-measures-out-affliction-to-our-need/) [Saint John Chrysostom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-john-chrysostom/) > [Afflictions make the heart more deep, more experimental, more knowing and profound, and so, more able to hold, to contain, and beat more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bunyan/afflictions-make-the-heart-more-deep-more-experimental-more-knowing/) [John Bunyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bunyan/) > [Religion prescribes to every miserable man the means of bettering his condition; nay, it shows him that the bearing of his afflictions as he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/religion-prescribes-to-every-miserable-man-the-means-of-bettering-his/) [Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/) > [Short-term amnesia is not the worst affliction if you have an Irish flair for the sauce.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-mailer/short-term-amnesia-is-not-the-worst-affliction-if-you-have-an-irish/) [Norman Mailer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-mailer/) > [Revolution will free society of its afflictions, while science will free the individual of his.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-vargas-llosa/revolution-will-free-society-of-its-afflictions-while-science-will/) [Mario Vargas Llosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-vargas-llosa/) [Browse all 598 Affliction quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/affliction/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Our true buddha-nature has no shape. And the dust of affliction has no form.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Bodhidharma" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bodhidharma/our-true-buddha-nature-has-no-shape-and-the-dust-of-affliction-has-no/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Affliction" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bodhidharma/our-true-buddha-nature-has-no-shape-and-the-dust-of-affliction-has-no/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/085/bodhidharma-4333_affliction_our-true-buddha-nature-has-no-shape-and_802412.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/085/bodhidharma-4333_affliction_our-true-buddha-nature-has-no-shape-and_802412.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/085/bodhidharma-4333_affliction_our-true-buddha-nature-has-no-shape-and_802412.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Our true buddha-nature has no shape. And the dust of affliction has no form.” — Bodhidharma", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Bodhidharma", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bodhidharma/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Our true buddha-nature has no shape....", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bodhidharma/our-true-buddha-nature-has-no-shape-and-the-dust-of-affliction-has-no/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bodhidharma/our-true-buddha-nature-has-no-shape-and-the-dust-of-affliction-has-no/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```