Things done well and with a care, exempt themselves from fear.

William Shakespeare

I see worry as a seeking for a result, a particular result. It goes out into the ocean of possibilities with a bait on a hook. And puts the mind there in anxious waiting.

I cannot go out into the future…I learn to wait.

The contemplative life is set back off the beaten path and sits by the side of the flow on the roadway. All of this can be disrupted by a desire whether from the inside or the outside.

A desire to do something, to get something is what stirs up the dust. When this occurs it is important to wait and contemplate the need. To determine if the desire is ego-bound to get something or is it free of the ego. When there is no wanting a result or a reward or fruit – then, it is not ego-bound. But when we seek something for ourselves – when we have an agenda, a plan…to get something…then wait. Stay still. Be still. Let the mind calm down. Quiet. Is there something in it for you; the you that identifies as a somebody?

When we are able to give the whole thing in devotion, as an offering with each breath without seeking a reward then it is not from the ego-self.  It is generosity, the first paramita. It is a boat that is able to take us across to the other shore of being. A place where the ego is not in charge. Not wanting and wanting and wanting. Not taking. Where the mind of the great sage is intimately communicated we are able to see the source that is always present. The mind of the great sage is there; even in a can of worms.

Our fight is with the inner delusions, the afflictions of self-cherishing and ego-grasping…those most terrible of demons that catch us in the snare of confusion

Somehow the different aspects of life are not so clear cut. The lines are blurred. And this blur tends to confuse us. But our confusion shows us that whatever we have going on is about ego-grasping, ego-cherishing. We are captive.

The mind of the great sage is not confused. It shines everywhere.

Writing for me is a teacher…but only when it is a devoted offering. Only then, and nothing else. Practice occurs when we know where we are.

The Way is actualized by rolling up your sleeves. Yes. Be a saint, a givng person who seeks no reward, no fruit. Do the work right in front of you. Not a thought or a wish or a hope that floats into the brain pan. NO. Look at where you are and roll up your sleeves and actualize the Way right there.

Give your very best without seeking anything in return.

Your true orginal self is there amongst the squirming desires in the mind. Turn away from the mind and seek the true Self. Start by repeating again and again:

DO NO HARM.

GIVE YOUR BEST.

 

Author: Fashi Lao Yue

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