On 'The Worn Awl'

kan ko sui — The Worn Awl.

On the origin

From the Avatamsaka Sutra (Flower Garland Sutra), the Gandavyuha chapter, in the pilgrimage of the youth Sudhana. The first teacher Sudhana visits, the monk Meghasri (Tokuun / Deyun), dwells on the summit of Wondrous Peak (Myohozan). In ko-sui, “sui” is an awl worn until its point has gone blunt; the term also serves as an honorific for a seasoned, mellowed master. The verse “Deyun, the worn old awl, how often he descends Wondrous Peak” is transmitted as a Chan verse and is quoted by Hakuin in the Dokugo Shingyo. (Note: this phrase is not the verse for Case 23 of the Blue Cliff Record; that verse opens with a different line.)

On the reading

An old awl, used so long its point has worn round. The sharpness has not gone; it has settled inward, and no longer cuts. One who has passed through the work, and left no trace of the work behind. Not dullness, but an edge that no longer needs to be shown.

On the garment

The seal for this phrase was hand-carved in Tokyo by the artist Satake Hōsen. The front carries this phrase’s seal; the back and inside label carry the Hōsen seal (寳千), printed in vermilion.

The garment is Bella + Canvas 3001 (short sleeve) or Gildan 2400 (long sleeve). A vessel for the word, not the subject itself.

― hosen, tokyo