Golden chains

[Gonzo]

Had to get my Jeep inspected this morning. I knew it would be a rather tedious wait, and it was. For grins I took along volume three of The Blue Cliff Record and encountered this from a footnote explaining the meaning of "Golden Chains", somewhat similar to "Golden Handcuffs", only spiritually related:

"Golden chains" is a classic Buddhist metaphor for the moral code or behavioral discipline, one of the three Buddhist studies. Though one renounces society to become a monk or nun, and is thus freed from the problems of secular life, one is said to be still bound by the "golden chains" or precepts. Attachment to precepts, pride in one's way of life, or belief in the efficacy of mere morality or ritual, is called a form of bondage in Buddhist teaching, In Ch'an (Zen) this is extended to refer to the whole of the Buddhist teachings, to all sense of realization or attainment, attachment to holiness, which still must be transcended before one is really free. This is like the image of "gold dust in the eyes"; though gold (Buddha Dharma) is precious, gold chains still bind and gold dust still blinds: the qualities of Buddha-hood are not to be set up as external objects of attainment.

[Affinity]

"Though gold (Buddha Dharma) is precious, gold chains still bind and gold dust still blinds."
I like this bit... Thank you for sharing Gonzo!