Staying in a state of mindfulness and contemplating about clothes can serve as a kind of training: to
strengthen the right knowledge, but also as an offering to clothes.
1. Prison Clothes are the Most Beautiful Clothes
I once watched a short film: A beautiful woman Xu Niang, because of her insatiable needs, she broke the
law and was imprisoned. She ignored the police’s interrogation and spoke a nonsensical sentence instead:
The most beautiful clothes I have worn in this life are actually the prison clothes. She used to chase after
luxury and splurge blindly, however, her wardrobe is always missing that most luxurious piece. What she
did not expect was that later in prison, she would feel strangely safe and at peace, because she had truly
realized the true meaning of contentment with minimalism.
The modern city is full of artificial excessive packaging, flashy without substance, thus the need for
overdressing. If there is real substance and profoundness, you will feel free letting it stick to your skin, you
will walk with confidence, and this is the most beautiful adornment. Xu Niang’s prison clothes kept her free
from distractions internally and externally and the prison clothes were her true reflections.
Xu Niang is able to reflect with introspection and have awareness. Even though she is in prison, she saw
through the illusory nature of her previous luxurious life. This is an alternative meaning to "returning home
in glorious clothing".
2. Respect the robe before the man
He who follows the fashion trend thinks he is very fashionable, however, he does not realize that he has
become the object of consumption (being consumed), because others are paying attention not to him, but
instead to his collection of the so-called "master" brands.
Whether male or female, the idea of "respect the robe before the man" is deeply ingrained, reflecting that
people have always retained the yearning for an "aristocratic" way of life, and all this seems to be projected
through women. These days, it's not just women who chase after fashion, fashionable men are also a
booming consumer market.
Back to the essence of the role of clothing, clothes are meant to cover the body, protect us against cold,
sunlight and insect bites. As long as the clothes are presentable, comfortable, without any additional
decorations, we will be dressing in our own style naturally.
3. The Emperor’s New Clothes
The flattery of the ministers for the “Emperor’s new clothes” are finally punctured by a small boy. Are the
grown-ups more ignorant?
Clothes and people affect each other. Clothing is like a carved mold, and the bodies and minds of the
people who put the clothes on will be unintentionally and quietly changed.
The emperor threw away all his clothes and stayed true to his primal desires: greed, ignorance. In fact, it is
not true ignorance, but a refusal to look back, why is there a need for this to be revealed by a little boy?
We can fool others, but not ourselves. When you still want to deceive yourself, without shame and clear
conscience, that is completely incurable! Therefore, clothes of shame, clothes of endurance and clothes of
renouncement, refers more to the mind of clarity.
