For the Buddha, however, this physical identification is as ridiculous as mistaking the dinner spices for the leaf in which they are wrapped. The body is only a wrapper. Most of a person is mind, which is a blend every bit as particular as a physical body is. We identify a person by referring to his big hands, his dimple, her fingerprints, the mole on his left cheek. The Buddha would refer to a person’s mindprint: his big ego, her tender heart, her fondness for chocolate, his fear of being wrong.
