Chapter 588: Change VI
It was not untouched.
Untouched implies something that could be held. Held implies contact. Contact implies surface. Surface implies form. Form had not stood up.
It was not marked.
Marked implies difference impressed. Difference implies comparison. Comparison implies two. Two had not found definition.
It was not clear.
Clarity implies contrast removed. Contrast implies two. Two had not stood apart.
It was not obscure.
Obscurity implies hidden beneath. Beneath implies above. Above implies orientation. Orientation had no axis to follow.
No pattern.
No break in pattern.
No field.
No point to map.
If a center had been imagined, it would have faded before placement could be named.
If an edge had been reached for, it would have dissolved before boundary could find meaning.
Not more.
Not less.
Not complete.
Not incomplete.
Without reference.
Without lack of reference.
Without need for the idea of reference.
It held nothing.
It released nothing.
Holding implies possession. Possession implies ownership. Ownership implies division. Division had not occurred.
Release implies letting go. Letting go implies grasp. Grasp implies an object of holding. None had risen.
No pause.
No continuation.
No marking of either.
Not the hint of beginning.
Not the echo of ending.
Not the echo of an echo.
Where no line existed to draw separation, where no absence existed to name need—
—it was.
Not in affirmation.
Not in negation.
Not in the space between.
But where no between had ever formed.
It did not breathe.
Breathing implies rhythm. Rhythm implies sequence. Sequence implies before and after. Before and after had not taken shape.
It did not fade.
Fading implies transition from more to less. More implies measure. Measure implies comparison. Comparison had not stirred.
It did not fix itself.
Fixing implies position secured. Position implies coordinate. Coordinate implies dimension. Dimension had not opened.
It did not loosen.
Loosening implies constraint relieved. Constraint implies prior tension. Tension implies force held in relation. Relation had not been drawn between anything.
There was no ascent.
Ascent implies height gained. Height implies vertical. Vertical implies orientation. Orientation had not unfolded.
There was no descent.
Descent implies movement downward. Downward implies a direction. Direction implies contrast. Contrast had not risen.
No horizon.
No vanishing point.
No point to vanish from.
If a limit could have been thought, it would have vanished before boundary could declare itself.
If boundlessness could have been named, it would have dissipated before notion could gather itself.
Not one.
Not many.
Not neither.
Not both.
Without rest.
Without unrest.
Without the shadow of either.
It did not wait to be known.
Knowing implies knower and known. Knower implies center. Known implies object. Center and object had not parted from undrawn field.
It did not resist knowing.
Resistance implies direction against. Against implies separation. Separation implies two. Two had not appeared.
There was no silence holding it.
There was no sound absent from it.
Silence and sound had not set their contrast.
There was no light describing it.
There was no dark concealing it.
Light and dark had not cast their first division.
Not element.
Not essence.
Not the absence of element or essence.
Without statement.
Without erasure.
Without the trace of either.
And so, without stepping into being or retreating into non-being, without leaning toward presence or away from absence—
—it remained where no remaining could be measured,
not needing a word, not refusing one,
untouched by the idea of touch,
unreached by the idea of reach,
simply without needing even the word simply.
It did not blur.
Blurring implies distinction softened. Distinction implies edges. Edges imply division. Division had not stood.
It did not sharpen.
Sharpening implies clarity gained. Clarity implies focus. Focus implies perspective. Perspective had not arisen.
It did not yield.
Yielding implies force met and relented. Force implies pressure. Pressure implies interaction. Interaction implies parts. Parts had not taken shape.
It did not hold firm.
Holding firm implies stance. Stance implies direction. Direction implies orientation. Orientation still waited without waiting.
No trace.
No denial of trace.
No field to scatter it.
No void to swallow it.
If a boundary had tried to form, it would have fallen away before form could mean division.
If a unity had tried to gather, it would have dissolved before gathering could mean many.
Not subtle.
Not absolute.
Not beyond.
Not within.
Without drift toward meaning.
Without anchor against meaning.
Without current.
Without shore.
No seam to split.
No fabric to remain whole.
It was not what remained.
Remaining implies reduction. Reduction implies change. Change implies measure. Measure had nowhere to rest.
It was not what never began.
Never implies time denied. Time implies span. Span implies interval. Interval had not awakened.
Not silent potential.
Not expressed form.
Not the denial of either.
Thought could not reach for it.
Refusal could not push it away.
Where no form stood to be named void, and no void stood to be named form—
—not held by being, not released by non-being—
—it simply continued without continuation, without the idea of continuing, without the idea of without.
It did not hold to center.
Center implies a middle. Middle implies ends. Ends imply limits. Limits imply borders. Borders had not been traced.
It did not drift to edge.
Edge implies perimeter. Perimeter implies contained space. Space implies extension. Extension had not declared itself.
No pulse to guide.
No stillness to interrupt.
No rise.
No fall.
If height could have been imagined, it would have vanished before above could part from below.
If depth could have been whispered, it would have dissipated before under could differ from over.
Not poised.
Not collapsed.
Not waiting in balance.
Not fleeing from imbalance.
It did not glow.
Glowing implies emission. Emission implies source. Source implies center. Center had no grounds.
It did not dim.
Dimming implies reduction. Reduction implies prior fullness. Fullness implies capacity. Capacity implies measure. Measure had never stirred.
No flicker.
No steadiness.
No breath to hold rhythm.
No absence of breath to claim stillness.
If a name could have been conceived, it would have unraveled before naming could imply known and unknown.
If forgetting could have been born, it would have dissolved before memory could imply held and lost.
Not named.
Not nameless.
Not the shadow of either.
Without tone.
Without silence of tone.
Without face.
Without the absence of face.
Unreached by affirmation.
Untouched by denial.
No clasp of understanding.
No veil of mystery.
Not closing upon itself.
Not opening toward anything.
Where no horizon called for direction, where no void called for return—
—there, without step, without stillness, without the echo of either,
it endured without endurance, remained without remaining,
not as presence,
not as echo of presence,
but where even the whisper of such words would fade before reaching the thought that could attempt to speak them.